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Image copyright Reuters Image caption The notes were dictated by the emperor and written down by an aide
A memoir by former Japanese Emperor Hirohito about World War Two has been bought by a Japanese surgeon accused of denying the Holocaust and the Nanjing massacre.
Known as the Emperor's Monologue, the memoir chronicles the slide into war until Japan's surrender in August 1945.
Dr Katsuya Takasu paid $275,000 (£205,000) at an auction in New York.
He has described Auschwitz as a "fabrication" but says he is against Nazism.
According to the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Mr Takasu last month was expelled from the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery in response to his views.
It claimed his social media posts "violate all norms of decency and reveal a person who is a racist anti-Semite and outright lover of Nazism".
Image copyright BBC Sport Image caption Katsuya Takasu travelled from Tokyo to Brazil to reward Nigeria's Olympic footballers after the 2016 Olympics
Mr Takasu, who often appears on Japanese television, tweeted in 2015 that both the massacre in the Chinese city of Nanjing committed by Japanese troops beginning in late 1937 and the Nazi death camp of Auschwitz were "fabrications".
But he also said that there was "no doubt" that Jews were persecuted by the Nazis and told Reuters news agency on Thursday that his tweets had been intentionally misunderstood.
"If you look at all my tweets, I am clearly against Nazism. But I do highly evaluate the wonderful medicine of that era," he said.
The memoir he purchased is assumed to have been carefully written to absolve the god-like emperor of personal responsibility for the war.
He said he bought it because it carried a message to Japan's people and other royals.
Image copyright AFP Image caption Emperor Hirohito remained on the throne after WW2
The notes handwritten by an aide to the emperor are thought to have been made at the request of the US after WW2.
The original manuscript was sold by British auction house Bonhams. It had been expected to fetch between $100,000 and $150,000.
The recollections were dictated by the emperor to several of his aides in 1946, "with the likely encouragement of Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers", according to Bonhams.
The memoir auctioned is a handwritten copy by one of those aides, diplomat Terasaki Hidenari, who also worked as interpreter for the emperor.
Hirohito's role controversial
According to Bonhams, the two notebooks are the only full record of the emperor's spoken memoirs, "and constitute a key resource" for understanding Japanese history.
In the recollection, Emperor Hirohito describes himself as having been in a situation where he had no choice but to agree with cabinet decisions.
He says he feared that opposition to Japan's entry into the war would have plunged the country into a devastating internal conflict.
The memoir was first published in 1990 after the emperor's death the previous year.
The degree to which Emperor Hirohito was involved in decision making during the war remains controversial among historians.
Unlike many senior government figures he was not tried for war crimes after WW2 but continued to reign over his country's re-emergence as an economic powerhouse and an ally of the West throughout the Cold War. ||||| High-profile Japanese cosmetic surgeon Katsuya Takasu won an auction for the only-known World War II memoirs of Emperor Hirohito, besting the competition with a bid of $275,000 (¥30 million) in New York on Wednesday.
The price was nearly double the higher end of pre-auction estimates, which ranged from $100,000 to $150,000, according to auction house Bonhams.
Takasu is widely known in Japan because he has sponsored a number of TV programs for years and is featured in commercials aired almost every day.
The 173-page, two-volume document he bought is widely known in Japan as “Showa Tenno Dokuhakuroku” (“Emperor Showa’s Monologue”).
When the transcript was first published by monthly magazine Bungei Shunju in 1990, it caused a national sensation because Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Emperor Showa, frankly discussed in the record various political events and war in the 1930s and 1940s.
The document auctioned this week was the only known copy of the memoir, which covers World War II and the era leading up to the conflict.
“I really wanted to see the original because the published text could have been edited. On top that, I slightly felt something like indignation because it was sold in an overseas auction,” Dr. Takasu said in a phone interview with The Japan Times on Thursday.
“I believe what belongs to Japan should be kept in Japan,” said Takasu, adding that he is now considering donating the documents to the Imperial Family.
An Imperial Household Agency spokesman told The Japan Times that the agency has not yet been contacted by Takasu. The spokesperson said that in general, under the Imperial Household Finance Act, the Emperor is not allowed to receive gifts beyond a total value of ¥6 million a year.
Takasu runs Takasu Clinic in Tokyo and four other group cosmetic hospitals in Japan. He drew public attention earlier this year when the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights group, claimed that Takasu praised Adolf Hitler and denied the Holocaust and the 1937 Nanking Massacre in social media messages.
On Twitter, Takasu wrote on Oct. 18, 2015: “I believe both Nanking (Massacre) and Auschwitz are fabrications.”
Takasu told The Japan Times on Thursday that he just believes the number of victims in the Nanking Massacre has been exaggerated. He added that while he accepts that people were killed and abused by the Nazis, he believes “toxic gas” was not used to kill victims at Auschwitz.
“I’m not a sympathizer of Nazism and don’t agree with their ideology, either,” Takasu said Thursday.
Emperor Showa’s Monologue was prepared in apparent preparation for the postwar International Military Tribunal for the Far East, better known as the Tokyo Trial.
The record was dictated by the Emperor to several of his aides soon after the war and transcribed by senior diplomat Hidenari Terasaki.
The document in question was originally discovered in Terasaki’s belongings when they were being held by his daughter, Mariko Terasaki Miller.
The Emperor discussed topics such as Japanese politics at the time, Japan’s assassination of Manchuria warlord Zhang Zuolin in 1928, and the nation’s surrender at the end World War II in August 1945.
The Emperor’s frank discussion about the history of the war has fueled heated debate among historians, including the extent to which the leader himself was responsible for key political decisions during Japan’s wars and conflicts in the 1930s and 1940s. | – Japanese Emperor Hirohito's WWII memoir was expected to fetch as much as $150,000 at auction in New York Wednesday. It instead sold for $275,000, but the sale price is potentially less interesting than the buyer: Dr. Katsuya Takasu, a man the BBC describes as an accused Holocaust denier. It points to a 2015 tweet in which Takasu reportedly called Auschwitz a "fabrication." He assigned the same descriptor to the Nanjing massacre, which occurred at the hands of Japanese troops in China beginning in late 1937. He tried to clarify his stance to the Japan Times on Thursday, saying that while he is against Nazism and does believe the Nazis killed people, he does not think "toxic gas" was employed at Auschwitz. In an interview with Reuters, he also emphasized that he thought the death tolls in both instances were inflated, "a stance common among Japanese ultra-nationalists," per Reuters. He says, "What I wanted to say was that it is said that 6 million or 7 million were killed [in the Holocaust], but was that not several tens of thousands?" The Times notes Takasu is a widely known cosmetic surgeon in Japan, in part because he appears in TV commercials that run almost daily. As for his motivation in buying the 173-page memoir, reportedly written at the behest of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, he says, "I really wanted to see the original because the published text could have been edited. On top [of] that, I slightly felt something like indignation because it was sold in an overseas auction." More on what the memoir says here. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Image copyright Reuters Image caption The notes were dictated by the emperor and written down by an aide
A memoir by former Japanese Emperor Hirohito about World War Two has been bought by a Japanese surgeon accused of denying the Holocaust and the Nanjing massacre.
Known as the Emperor's Monologue, the memoir chronicles the slide into war until Japan's surrender in August 1945.
Dr Katsuya Takasu paid $275,000 (£205,000) at an auction in New York.
He has described Auschwitz as a "fabrication" but says he is against Nazism.
According to the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Mr Takasu last month was expelled from the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery in response to his views.
It claimed his social media posts "violate all norms of decency and reveal a person who is a racist anti-Semite and outright lover of Nazism".
Image copyright BBC Sport Image caption Katsuya Takasu travelled from Tokyo to Brazil to reward Nigeria's Olympic footballers after the 2016 Olympics
Mr Takasu, who often appears on Japanese television, tweeted in 2015 that both the massacre in the Chinese city of Nanjing committed by Japanese troops beginning in late 1937 and the Nazi death camp of Auschwitz were "fabrications".
But he also said that there was "no doubt" that Jews were persecuted by the Nazis and told Reuters news agency on Thursday that his tweets had been intentionally misunderstood.
"If you look at all my tweets, I am clearly against Nazism. But I do highly evaluate the wonderful medicine of that era," he said.
The memoir he purchased is assumed to have been carefully written to absolve the god-like emperor of personal responsibility for the war.
He said he bought it because it carried a message to Japan's people and other royals.
Image copyright AFP Image caption Emperor Hirohito remained on the throne after WW2
The notes handwritten by an aide to the emperor are thought to have been made at the request of the US after WW2.
The original manuscript was sold by British auction house Bonhams. It had been expected to fetch between $100,000 and $150,000.
The recollections were dictated by the emperor to several of his aides in 1946, "with the likely encouragement of Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers", according to Bonhams.
The memoir auctioned is a handwritten copy by one of those aides, diplomat Terasaki Hidenari, who also worked as interpreter for the emperor.
Hirohito's role controversial
According to Bonhams, the two notebooks are the only full record of the emperor's spoken memoirs, "and constitute a key resource" for understanding Japanese history.
In the recollection, Emperor Hirohito describes himself as having been in a situation where he had no choice but to agree with cabinet decisions.
He says he feared that opposition to Japan's entry into the war would have plunged the country into a devastating internal conflict.
The memoir was first published in 1990 after the emperor's death the previous year.
The degree to which Emperor Hirohito was involved in decision making during the war remains controversial among historians.
Unlike many senior government figures he was not tried for war crimes after WW2 but continued to reign over his country's re-emergence as an economic powerhouse and an ally of the West throughout the Cold War. ||||| High-profile Japanese cosmetic surgeon Katsuya Takasu won an auction for the only-known World War II memoirs of Emperor Hirohito, besting the competition with a bid of $275,000 (¥30 million) in New York on Wednesday.
The price was nearly double the higher end of pre-auction estimates, which ranged from $100,000 to $150,000, according to auction house Bonhams.
Takasu is widely known in Japan because he has sponsored a number of TV programs for years and is featured in commercials aired almost every day.
The 173-page, two-volume document he bought is widely known in Japan as “Showa Tenno Dokuhakuroku” (“Emperor Showa’s Monologue”).
When the transcript was first published by monthly magazine Bungei Shunju in 1990, it caused a national sensation because Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Emperor Showa, frankly discussed in the record various political events and war in the 1930s and 1940s.
The document auctioned this week was the only known copy of the memoir, which covers World War II and the era leading up to the conflict.
“I really wanted to see the original because the published text could have been edited. On top that, I slightly felt something like indignation because it was sold in an overseas auction,” Dr. Takasu said in a phone interview with The Japan Times on Thursday.
“I believe what belongs to Japan should be kept in Japan,” said Takasu, adding that he is now considering donating the documents to the Imperial Family.
An Imperial Household Agency spokesman told The Japan Times that the agency has not yet been contacted by Takasu. The spokesperson said that in general, under the Imperial Household Finance Act, the Emperor is not allowed to receive gifts beyond a total value of ¥6 million a year.
Takasu runs Takasu Clinic in Tokyo and four other group cosmetic hospitals in Japan. He drew public attention earlier this year when the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights group, claimed that Takasu praised Adolf Hitler and denied the Holocaust and the 1937 Nanking Massacre in social media messages.
On Twitter, Takasu wrote on Oct. 18, 2015: “I believe both Nanking (Massacre) and Auschwitz are fabrications.”
Takasu told The Japan Times on Thursday that he just believes the number of victims in the Nanking Massacre has been exaggerated. He added that while he accepts that people were killed and abused by the Nazis, he believes “toxic gas” was not used to kill victims at Auschwitz.
“I’m not a sympathizer of Nazism and don’t agree with their ideology, either,” Takasu said Thursday.
Emperor Showa’s Monologue was prepared in apparent preparation for the postwar International Military Tribunal for the Far East, better known as the Tokyo Trial.
The record was dictated by the Emperor to several of his aides soon after the war and transcribed by senior diplomat Hidenari Terasaki.
The document in question was originally discovered in Terasaki’s belongings when they were being held by his daughter, Mariko Terasaki Miller.
The Emperor discussed topics such as Japanese politics at the time, Japan’s assassination of Manchuria warlord Zhang Zuolin in 1928, and the nation’s surrender at the end World War II in August 1945.
The Emperor’s frank discussion about the history of the war has fueled heated debate among historians, including the extent to which the leader himself was responsible for key political decisions during Japan’s wars and conflicts in the 1930s and 1940s. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 24,401 |
CLOSE When President Trump addresses a joint session of congress Tuesday night, he will undoubtedly say that the State of the Union is strong, and he's right. The economy is growing, the stock market is booming, and unemployment is low. USA TODAY
President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, this year's designated survivor. (Photo: Mark Humphrey, AP)
WASHINGTON – And this year's "designated survivor" is ... Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
Perdue, a former governor of Georgia, will sit out President Trump's State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol, waiting for the worst.
For decades, presidential administrations have selected one Cabinet member to stay away from State of the Union speeches attended by the president and his staff, in case disaster strikes and wipes out the line of presidential succession.
During the speech, the designated survivor is taken to a safe, secure, undisclosed location. The identity of the official is kept secret until just before the speech, when his or her absence would be apparent.
When Trump spoke to a joint session of Congress in February of 2017, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin sat out the event as the designated survivor.
The tradition harkens back to the dawn of Cold War, amid fears of a nuclear exchange with the Soviet Union.
Its roots are in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, which outlines who would assume the presidency in the case of a catastrophic event such as a nuclear attack.
More: Trump campaign: Send us $35 and we'll scroll your name during State of the Union live stream
More: Trump State of the Union address to make bipartisan call on immigration, infrastructure
More: Trump's State of the Union address: Read the excerpts
After the vice president, the speaker of the House, and the president pro tempore of the Senate, the line of succession goes to cabinet secretaries in the order they were created, beginning with the secretary of State and ending with the secretary of Homeland Security.
One member of Trump’s cabinet cannot serve as a designated survivor: Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao. She was born in Taiwan and does not meet the constitutional requirements to serve as president.
The selection of a designated survivor was relatively routine and unremarkable until the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when the practice took on new urgency.
Hollywood has long been fascinated with idea, from a 2000 episode of NBC's The West Wing to the current ABC series actually entitled Designated Survivor, in which Kiefer Sutherland plays a Cabinet member who assumes the presidency after a terrorist attack on a State of the Union address wipes out the rest of the other possible successors.
Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2E3ywp8 ||||| Every member of President Trump’s Cabinet was invited to attend his first State of the Union address on Tuesday night – except one, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.
Perdue was named "designated survivor" just hours before Trump is expected to step up to the podium to deliver his address to Congress.
Ahead of the speech, Perdue will be taken to a secure and undisclosed location outside of Washington, D.C., where he is expected to stay with Secret Service agents until the conclusion of the event. When Trump and his Cabinet members safely exit the packed House chamber, Perdue will be allowed to return home.
Here’s what you need to know about the "designated survivor," a unique role that has been around for decades.
What does it mean to be the "designated survivor?"
During major political events, such as a presidential inauguration or State of the Union address, an official within the presidential line of succession is given the role of "designated survivor" and has to stay away from the event.
This precaution is taken to assure continuity in the presidency.
If a catastrophic event were to strike the Capitol and result in the death or disablement of the president, vice president, speaker of the House or other White House officials, then the "designated survivor" could step in to be the acting commander-in-chief.
When did this tradition begin?
This tradition dates back to the 1960s amid concerns of a potential nuclear attack during the Cold War.
But official records of "designated survivors" weren't kept until 1984, starting with Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Samuel R. Pierce Jr. during Ronald Reagan's State of the Union speech on Jan. 25, 1984.
Who has been chosen as the "designated survivor" over the years?
Perdue has been appointed the "designated survivor" for Trump's 2018 address. As secretary of agriculture, Perdue would ordinarily rank low in the line of succession to the presidency – ninth on a list of 17 officials.
It's not unusual for a lesser-known Cabinet member to be selected, as the president may point out higher profile officials as he mentions specific tasks and initiatives in his speech.
Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin was given the role during Trump's address to a joint session of Congress in 2017.
Here's a list of Cabinet members who were named "designated survivors" and did not attend the State of the Union over the past 10 years:
Jan. 30, 2018: Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue
Jan. 12, 2016: Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson
Jan. 20, 2015: Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx
Jan. 28, 2014: Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz
Feb. 12, 2013: Energy Secretary Steven Chu
Jan. 24, 2012: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack
Jan. 25, 2011: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
Jan. 27, 2010: Sec. of State Hillary Clinton and HUD Sec. Shaun Donovan
Jan. 28, 2008: Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne
Jan. 23, 2007: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales | – As the last i's are being dotted on President Trump's State of the Union address, one traditional formality has been announced: Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is this year's "designated survivor." That means if disaster strikes during the speech, wiping out the entire presidential line of succession, the 71-year-old will be in charge of the country, reports USA Today. Perdue is expected to be hanging out with Secret Service agents at a secure location until the event is over, per Fox News. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.CLOSE When President Trump addresses a joint session of congress Tuesday night, he will undoubtedly say that the State of the Union is strong, and he's right. The economy is growing, the stock market is booming, and unemployment is low. USA TODAY
President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, this year's designated survivor. (Photo: Mark Humphrey, AP)
WASHINGTON – And this year's "designated survivor" is ... Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
Perdue, a former governor of Georgia, will sit out President Trump's State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol, waiting for the worst.
For decades, presidential administrations have selected one Cabinet member to stay away from State of the Union speeches attended by the president and his staff, in case disaster strikes and wipes out the line of presidential succession.
During the speech, the designated survivor is taken to a safe, secure, undisclosed location. The identity of the official is kept secret until just before the speech, when his or her absence would be apparent.
When Trump spoke to a joint session of Congress in February of 2017, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin sat out the event as the designated survivor.
The tradition harkens back to the dawn of Cold War, amid fears of a nuclear exchange with the Soviet Union.
Its roots are in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, which outlines who would assume the presidency in the case of a catastrophic event such as a nuclear attack.
More: Trump campaign: Send us $35 and we'll scroll your name during State of the Union live stream
More: Trump State of the Union address to make bipartisan call on immigration, infrastructure
More: Trump's State of the Union address: Read the excerpts
After the vice president, the speaker of the House, and the president pro tempore of the Senate, the line of succession goes to cabinet secretaries in the order they were created, beginning with the secretary of State and ending with the secretary of Homeland Security.
One member of Trump’s cabinet cannot serve as a designated survivor: Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao. She was born in Taiwan and does not meet the constitutional requirements to serve as president.
The selection of a designated survivor was relatively routine and unremarkable until the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when the practice took on new urgency.
Hollywood has long been fascinated with idea, from a 2000 episode of NBC's The West Wing to the current ABC series actually entitled Designated Survivor, in which Kiefer Sutherland plays a Cabinet member who assumes the presidency after a terrorist attack on a State of the Union address wipes out the rest of the other possible successors.
Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2E3ywp8 ||||| Every member of President Trump’s Cabinet was invited to attend his first State of the Union address on Tuesday night – except one, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.
Perdue was named "designated survivor" just hours before Trump is expected to step up to the podium to deliver his address to Congress.
Ahead of the speech, Perdue will be taken to a secure and undisclosed location outside of Washington, D.C., where he is expected to stay with Secret Service agents until the conclusion of the event. When Trump and his Cabinet members safely exit the packed House chamber, Perdue will be allowed to return home.
Here’s what you need to know about the "designated survivor," a unique role that has been around for decades.
What does it mean to be the "designated survivor?"
During major political events, such as a presidential inauguration or State of the Union address, an official within the presidential line of succession is given the role of "designated survivor" and has to stay away from the event.
This precaution is taken to assure continuity in the presidency.
If a catastrophic event were to strike the Capitol and result in the death or disablement of the president, vice president, speaker of the House or other White House officials, then the "designated survivor" could step in to be the acting commander-in-chief.
When did this tradition begin?
This tradition dates back to the 1960s amid concerns of a potential nuclear attack during the Cold War.
But official records of "designated survivors" weren't kept until 1984, starting with Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Samuel R. Pierce Jr. during Ronald Reagan's State of the Union speech on Jan. 25, 1984.
Who has been chosen as the "designated survivor" over the years?
Perdue has been appointed the "designated survivor" for Trump's 2018 address. As secretary of agriculture, Perdue would ordinarily rank low in the line of succession to the presidency – ninth on a list of 17 officials.
It's not unusual for a lesser-known Cabinet member to be selected, as the president may point out higher profile officials as he mentions specific tasks and initiatives in his speech.
Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin was given the role during Trump's address to a joint session of Congress in 2017.
Here's a list of Cabinet members who were named "designated survivors" and did not attend the State of the Union over the past 10 years:
Jan. 30, 2018: Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue
Jan. 12, 2016: Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson
Jan. 20, 2015: Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx
Jan. 28, 2014: Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz
Feb. 12, 2013: Energy Secretary Steven Chu
Jan. 24, 2012: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack
Jan. 25, 2011: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
Jan. 27, 2010: Sec. of State Hillary Clinton and HUD Sec. Shaun Donovan
Jan. 28, 2008: Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne
Jan. 23, 2007: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 41,518 |
Cops looking at video after woman found dead in Rosemont hotel freezer
Police are examining videos that were posted to social media in the hours leading up to the disappearance and death of a Near West Side woman in a hotel in Rosemont.
Now-viral video posted over the weekend appears to show Kenneka Jenkins, 19, and several other people in a room at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the northwest suburb.
Early Sunday, Jenkins was found dead in a walk-in freezer in a vacant part of the hotel, authorities said. Her cause of death was not determined Sunday, pending further studies, and her death was considered noncriminal Monday evening, according to a Rosemont town spokesman.
Speaking to reporters after Jenkins was found, her mother, Tereasa Martin, said she felt: “Hurt. Pain. Suffering.”
Jenkins left her home at 11:30 p.m. Friday to go to a party in a room of the hotel, according to Rosemont Police. Jenkins’s sister last heard from her via text message about 1:30 a.m. Saturday.
About 4 a.m., Jenkins’ friends called her mother to tell her they could not find Jenkins, according to community activist Andrew Holmes. An hour later, Martin was at the hotel. She filled out a police report and Jenkins’ sister reported her missing.
Jenkins was last seen at a party on the ninth floor of the hotel in the early hours of Saturday, police said. She was reported missing at 1:16 that afternoon. Police told Martin that surveillance footage showed Jenkins inebriated near the front desk, according to Holmes.
Hotel staff and management searched the hotel and discovered Jenkins inside a freezer at 12:24 a.m. Sunday, police said. Holmes said Martin was told by police that Jenkins, while drunk, let herself into the freezer and died inside.
Gary Mack, a spokesman for Rosemont, said that some people in the video have been identified, though investigators “continue to work on the identities” of others seen.
“[Investigators] have been looking at the video from the very time they became aware of it,” Mack said. “They’re looking at everything they have.”
Holmes said Martin believes her daughter was the victim of “foul play.”
“She wants all of those people that were inside that room to come forward and talk to detectives and clear their name,” Holmes said. “Someone in that room knew what happened.”
Martin was told by police that Jenkins was seen on surveillance video near the hotel’s front desk, intoxicated to the point that she needed to lean against the wall.
If she was that drunk, her mother reasons, Jenkins would not have been able to open the freezer’s thick and heavy doors.
“It takes strength to open these doors,” Martin told reporters Monday. “So if she could barely hold herself up — she needed the wall to support her — how did she find strength to unlock both the double doors?”
It remained unclear Monday night how and by whom Jenkins was found in the freezer.
“That’s the million-dollar question,” Holmes said. “Who led them to the freezer and how did they know she was in the freezer?”
Mack declined to say what led police to finding Jenkins’ body, citing the ongoing investigation.
In the meantime, social media has been flooded with theories as to how Jenkins may have died.
A GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral costs has been established for the family. ||||| Police investigating the death of a young woman found in a Rosemont hotel walk-in freezer are reviewing video on social media that appears to show the victim in a ninth-floor room hours before she disappeared over the weekend.
Investigators also have been going over surveillance video and questioning potential witnesses, but they have yet to say how 19-year-old Kenneka Jenkins died or why she was in a freezer in a vacant area of the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel & Conference Center.
Jenkins' mother, Tereasa Martin, said she last saw her daughter around 11:30 p.m. Friday when she left their West Side home to go to a party. Jenkins' sister last spoke with her around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, close to the time she went missing, relatives said.
Her body was not discovered until nearly 24 hours later after the family repeatedly contacted the hotel and police, at one point knocking on doors until officers stopped them. Jenkins was pronounced dead on the scene at 12:48 a.m. Sunday, according to the medical examiner's office.
Jenkins' mother said Sunday she was told by police that her daughter apparently let herself into the freezer while drunk and died inside. An autopsy Sunday afternoon failed to determine a cause of death, and the medical examiner's office said it was awaiting toxicology tests and further investigation by police.
Rosemont spokesman Gary Mack said police are reviewing a Facebook Live video that appears to show Jenkins sitting on a bed in a hotel room with other people around her.
The video — which has gotten more than 3 million views — features a woman in mirrored sunglasses talking to the camera. Reflected in her glasses is the other side of the hotel room, where Jenkins appears to be sitting.
Kenneka Jenkins, 19, was pronouced dead early Sept. 10, 2017, after she was found in a walk-in freezer at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Rosemont. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office released photos on Oct. 6, 2017, related to the cause and manner of death for Jenkins. (Tribune and Cook Co. Medical Examiner's Office photos) (Tribune and Cook Co. Medical Examiner's Office photos)
Mack said authorities have identified most of the people on the video.
"Yes, they've looked at it and continue to look at it and all the other social media videos and posts," Mack told the Tribune on Monday. "They are leaving no stone unturned as far as trying to corral everyone they can and talk to them and interview them about what happened and what was going on that night."
The Facebook video has stoked outrage on social media, where many users believe Jenkins met with some kind of foul play. Some have threatened to harm people in the room.
The video has been shared online more than 46,000 times and has spawned a trending hashtag on Twitter bearing Jenkins' name.
But Mack said that to seasoned investigators, this type of social media attention has become commonplace and it doesn't hurt the investigation.
"In law enforcement this kind of social media has become king, so everybody with a camera is a reporter now, and they're just taking it in stride as best they can," Mack said.
Mack said it may take weeks to determine what happened. A toxicology test routinely takes weeks or months to complete, and the time it takes to finish a police investigation can vary greatly.
"I don't think anything has been ruled in or ruled out at this point," Mack said. "It's just considered a death investigation at this point."
Records from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration show that walk-in freezer deaths are rare, but one happened last year at a hotel in Atlanta. Carolyn Mangham, who worked at the Westin Peachtree Plaza, was trapped in a freezer for 13 hours at temperatures below minus 10 degrees.
An exit button inside the freezer was supposed to allow people to open the door if it shut behind them, but authorities found it sometimes malfunctioned, The Associated Press reported.
Mack said he didn't know if the freezer was on at the time. "If it was unused, I don't know. Sometimes people keep refrigerators on all the time even if they're unused," he said.
It also remains unclear how Jenkins was found and who discovered her body.
Her family members have said they went to the hotel at 5 a.m. Saturday looking for her and repeatedly asked the hotel and police to search for her. A search was begun around 1:30 p.m. after the family said it was allowed to file a missing persons report.
Steven Shapiro, director of the hospitality and tourism law program at American University's Washington College of Law, said hotel managers are reluctant to intrude upon their guests' privacy, even when someone from the outside indicates there might be an emergency.
"Generally speaking, they're going to bring in the police … and let them do the investigation," he said. "Because people try to dupe them, they're generally not going to open (a guest's) door and say, 'What are you doing?' Their first obligation is to their guest, and not to the person who comes in off the street."
Jenkins' mother said she doesn't believe the hotel began reviewing surveillance video until 3 or 4 p.m. Jenkins' body was found around midnight.
Mack said he didn't know if the surveillance video led searchers to the freezer. "I suppose they searched everywhere," he said. "The surveillance video will reveal a lot, I suppose.
"As far as who found the girl's body, they're not saying on that," Mack said. "That's something that's part of the investigation and they're not releasing."
He said police also were not disclosing whether there were any signs of trauma to Jenkins' body.
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[email protected] | – Police in suburban Chicago investigating the death of a 19-year-old found inside a walk-in freezer at a hotel are studying a Facebook Live video that has now gone viral. The video reportedly was taken inside a room at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Rosemont on Friday night during a party attended by Kenneka Jenkins. (It's circulating online in various places, and you can see it here.) The video mainly features a woman talking into the camera, but the reflection from her sunglasses shows other people in the room. Jenkins is believed to be seen sitting on a hotel bed with people around her, reports the Chicago Tribune. Police have identified most of the people in the video and are interviewing Jenkins' friends, reports the Washington Post. But almost everything else about Jenkins' death remains unclear, including how she died. Toxicology tests are pending. Jenkins' friends called her family about 4am to say she was missing, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. Her body wasn't found until nearly 24 hours after that, inside a walk-in freezer in a vacant part of the hotel undergoing renovations. Jenkins' mother, who is angry at both the hotel and police for what she calls a slow response to her daughter's disappearance, says authorities told her they think her daughter walked into the freezer while intoxicated. The family, however, suspects foul play. Among the unanswered questions is who found Jenkins and whether the freezer was actually fully functioning as a freezer at the time. "I don't think anything has been ruled in or ruled out at this point," says a spokesman for the village of Rosemont. "It's just considered a death investigation at this point." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Cops looking at video after woman found dead in Rosemont hotel freezer
Police are examining videos that were posted to social media in the hours leading up to the disappearance and death of a Near West Side woman in a hotel in Rosemont.
Now-viral video posted over the weekend appears to show Kenneka Jenkins, 19, and several other people in a room at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in the northwest suburb.
Early Sunday, Jenkins was found dead in a walk-in freezer in a vacant part of the hotel, authorities said. Her cause of death was not determined Sunday, pending further studies, and her death was considered noncriminal Monday evening, according to a Rosemont town spokesman.
Speaking to reporters after Jenkins was found, her mother, Tereasa Martin, said she felt: “Hurt. Pain. Suffering.”
Jenkins left her home at 11:30 p.m. Friday to go to a party in a room of the hotel, according to Rosemont Police. Jenkins’s sister last heard from her via text message about 1:30 a.m. Saturday.
About 4 a.m., Jenkins’ friends called her mother to tell her they could not find Jenkins, according to community activist Andrew Holmes. An hour later, Martin was at the hotel. She filled out a police report and Jenkins’ sister reported her missing.
Jenkins was last seen at a party on the ninth floor of the hotel in the early hours of Saturday, police said. She was reported missing at 1:16 that afternoon. Police told Martin that surveillance footage showed Jenkins inebriated near the front desk, according to Holmes.
Hotel staff and management searched the hotel and discovered Jenkins inside a freezer at 12:24 a.m. Sunday, police said. Holmes said Martin was told by police that Jenkins, while drunk, let herself into the freezer and died inside.
Gary Mack, a spokesman for Rosemont, said that some people in the video have been identified, though investigators “continue to work on the identities” of others seen.
“[Investigators] have been looking at the video from the very time they became aware of it,” Mack said. “They’re looking at everything they have.”
Holmes said Martin believes her daughter was the victim of “foul play.”
“She wants all of those people that were inside that room to come forward and talk to detectives and clear their name,” Holmes said. “Someone in that room knew what happened.”
Martin was told by police that Jenkins was seen on surveillance video near the hotel’s front desk, intoxicated to the point that she needed to lean against the wall.
If she was that drunk, her mother reasons, Jenkins would not have been able to open the freezer’s thick and heavy doors.
“It takes strength to open these doors,” Martin told reporters Monday. “So if she could barely hold herself up — she needed the wall to support her — how did she find strength to unlock both the double doors?”
It remained unclear Monday night how and by whom Jenkins was found in the freezer.
“That’s the million-dollar question,” Holmes said. “Who led them to the freezer and how did they know she was in the freezer?”
Mack declined to say what led police to finding Jenkins’ body, citing the ongoing investigation.
In the meantime, social media has been flooded with theories as to how Jenkins may have died.
A GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral costs has been established for the family. ||||| Police investigating the death of a young woman found in a Rosemont hotel walk-in freezer are reviewing video on social media that appears to show the victim in a ninth-floor room hours before she disappeared over the weekend.
Investigators also have been going over surveillance video and questioning potential witnesses, but they have yet to say how 19-year-old Kenneka Jenkins died or why she was in a freezer in a vacant area of the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel & Conference Center.
Jenkins' mother, Tereasa Martin, said she last saw her daughter around 11:30 p.m. Friday when she left their West Side home to go to a party. Jenkins' sister last spoke with her around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, close to the time she went missing, relatives said.
Her body was not discovered until nearly 24 hours later after the family repeatedly contacted the hotel and police, at one point knocking on doors until officers stopped them. Jenkins was pronounced dead on the scene at 12:48 a.m. Sunday, according to the medical examiner's office.
Jenkins' mother said Sunday she was told by police that her daughter apparently let herself into the freezer while drunk and died inside. An autopsy Sunday afternoon failed to determine a cause of death, and the medical examiner's office said it was awaiting toxicology tests and further investigation by police.
Rosemont spokesman Gary Mack said police are reviewing a Facebook Live video that appears to show Jenkins sitting on a bed in a hotel room with other people around her.
The video — which has gotten more than 3 million views — features a woman in mirrored sunglasses talking to the camera. Reflected in her glasses is the other side of the hotel room, where Jenkins appears to be sitting.
Kenneka Jenkins, 19, was pronouced dead early Sept. 10, 2017, after she was found in a walk-in freezer at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Rosemont. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office released photos on Oct. 6, 2017, related to the cause and manner of death for Jenkins. (Tribune and Cook Co. Medical Examiner's Office photos) (Tribune and Cook Co. Medical Examiner's Office photos)
Mack said authorities have identified most of the people on the video.
"Yes, they've looked at it and continue to look at it and all the other social media videos and posts," Mack told the Tribune on Monday. "They are leaving no stone unturned as far as trying to corral everyone they can and talk to them and interview them about what happened and what was going on that night."
The Facebook video has stoked outrage on social media, where many users believe Jenkins met with some kind of foul play. Some have threatened to harm people in the room.
The video has been shared online more than 46,000 times and has spawned a trending hashtag on Twitter bearing Jenkins' name.
But Mack said that to seasoned investigators, this type of social media attention has become commonplace and it doesn't hurt the investigation.
"In law enforcement this kind of social media has become king, so everybody with a camera is a reporter now, and they're just taking it in stride as best they can," Mack said.
Mack said it may take weeks to determine what happened. A toxicology test routinely takes weeks or months to complete, and the time it takes to finish a police investigation can vary greatly.
"I don't think anything has been ruled in or ruled out at this point," Mack said. "It's just considered a death investigation at this point."
Records from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration show that walk-in freezer deaths are rare, but one happened last year at a hotel in Atlanta. Carolyn Mangham, who worked at the Westin Peachtree Plaza, was trapped in a freezer for 13 hours at temperatures below minus 10 degrees.
An exit button inside the freezer was supposed to allow people to open the door if it shut behind them, but authorities found it sometimes malfunctioned, The Associated Press reported.
Mack said he didn't know if the freezer was on at the time. "If it was unused, I don't know. Sometimes people keep refrigerators on all the time even if they're unused," he said.
It also remains unclear how Jenkins was found and who discovered her body.
Her family members have said they went to the hotel at 5 a.m. Saturday looking for her and repeatedly asked the hotel and police to search for her. A search was begun around 1:30 p.m. after the family said it was allowed to file a missing persons report.
Steven Shapiro, director of the hospitality and tourism law program at American University's Washington College of Law, said hotel managers are reluctant to intrude upon their guests' privacy, even when someone from the outside indicates there might be an emergency.
"Generally speaking, they're going to bring in the police … and let them do the investigation," he said. "Because people try to dupe them, they're generally not going to open (a guest's) door and say, 'What are you doing?' Their first obligation is to their guest, and not to the person who comes in off the street."
Jenkins' mother said she doesn't believe the hotel began reviewing surveillance video until 3 or 4 p.m. Jenkins' body was found around midnight.
Mack said he didn't know if the surveillance video led searchers to the freezer. "I suppose they searched everywhere," he said. "The surveillance video will reveal a lot, I suppose.
"As far as who found the girl's body, they're not saying on that," Mack said. "That's something that's part of the investigation and they're not releasing."
He said police also were not disclosing whether there were any signs of trauma to Jenkins' body.
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[email protected] | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 40,755 |
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "I really worry for the toll it's taking on my health, and my family's," said Lauri Love
An autistic man suspected of hacking into US government computer systems is to be extradited from Britain to face trial, a court has ruled.
Lauri Love, 31, who has Asperger's syndrome, is accused of hacking into the FBI, the US central bank and the country's missile defence agency.
Mr Love, from Stradishall, Suffolk, has previously said he feared he would die in a US prison if he was extradited.
A judge at Westminster Magistrates' Court made the extradition ruling.
Follow updates on this story and other Suffolk news
Earlier, his lawyer said his alleged hacking had "embarrassed" US authorities.
Tor Ekeland said the US government "had very, very bad security and these hacks utilised exploits that were publicly-known for months".
Image copyright PA Image caption Lauri Love spoke to members of the press outside Westminster Magistrates' Court before the hearing
Mr Love's lawyers said he could face up to 99 years in prison if convicted of the hacking offences.
Earlier he stood in the dock as district judge Nina Tempia ruled he could be extradited to the US, where he could face trials in three different states.
He was first arrested at home in Suffolk in 2013 and had computer equipment seized by British police, who then released him on bail.
He was not charged in the UK, where the investigation into him was dropped.
Mr Love's defence team argues his depression and Asperger's syndrome mean he should not be sent abroad, but US prosecutors say he is using his mental health issues as an excuse to escape justice.
In England and Wales, the maximum sentence for crimes such as those of which Mr Love is accused is two years and eight months. ||||| Lauri Love, the student accused of hacking into the computer systems of the US missile defence agency, Nasa and the Federal Reserve, has lost his appeal against extradition to America.
Judge Nina Tempia said the 31-year-old, who has Asperger syndrome, could be cared for by “medical facilities in the United States prison estate” and implied that he should answer the “extremely serious charges” in the country where the damage was inflicted.
Love, who lives with his parents in Newmarket, Suffolk, was granted permission to appeal against Friday’s ruling and given bail pending further legal action. The battle over his fate could eventually reach the European court of human rights in Strasbourg and last several years.
There were gasps in the courtroom as Tempia read out her ruling, which followed a full case hearing in June. Love’s supporters, who stormed out of Westminster magistrates court in London shouting “kangaroo court”, fear he could face up to 99 years in a US jail if convicted on all counts.
Extraditing Lauri Love would be cruel. Justice must be done in the UK | Janis Sharp Read more
Delivering her judgment, Tempia said: “Mr Love faces extremely serious charges for offences of computer hacking over a period of one year, from October 2012 to October 2013.
“I accept Mr Love suffers from both physical and mental health issues, but I have found the medical facilities in the United States prison estate, on arrival and during any sentence if he is convicted, available to him, are such that I can be satisfied his needs will be comprehensively met by the US authorities.
“I am satisfied Mr Love’s extradition would be compatible with his convention rights and I send this case to the secretary of state for her decision as to whether or not Mr Love should be extradited.”
The home secretary, Amber Rudd, has until mid-November to consider the case. If and when she decides to authorise Love’s extradition, he will have 14 days to appeal against the ruling.
Love embraced friends and family, who appeared shocked and angered by the decision. “If you have come for justice then you have missed it,” Love told a crowd of press in the courtroom afterwards.
He added that he had not yet read the judgment and would “delay processing it until he was in a safe place”. He added: “It may simply be that this is such an important case that it has to be settled at a higher court.”
His father, the Rev Alexander Love, said: “I don’t criticise the judge. She has just acted on a law that is flawed.
“I always used to believe that to be born in this country was to win the lottery of life. But it’s not fair or just that a boy who has mental health issues should be taken away from his family and support by the US that is determined to exact vengeance on him.
“We have recently had a big debate [in the referendum] about who can come into this country. We need to have one now about who can be taken out.”
Outside the court, Karen Todner, Love’s solicitor, said she was very disappointed by the district judge’s ruling. She pledged to appeal against the decision, initially at the high court and, if necessary, at the supreme court and eventually the European court of human rights in Strasbourg.
“I feel awfully disappointed,” Todner said. “I thought we had done enough. I’m hopeful that the higher courts will consider the human rights issues. This is not the end of the road ... I was in and out of courts for 10 years with [the extradition case of the computer hacker] Gary McKinnon.”
At one stage supporters blocked the road outside the court, bringing traffic to a standstill. They chanted “no love for the US gov” before being moved on by police.
Ahead of Friday’s hearing, Love said he held little hope of justice if he was extradited, and suggested a jail term in the US could cause his health to deteriorate and would lead to a mental breakdown or suicide. The electrical engineering student also suffers from severe eczema and depression.
He and his family want him to face justice in the UK rather than the US, which he said “coerces” people into pleading guilty to get reduced sentences.
The case was considered to be the first substantive test of the “forum bar”, which was introduced by Theresa May when she was home secretary to allow courts to block extradition if it is in the interests of justice to have a person tried in Britain instead. May’s reforms also narrowed any home secretary’s discretion to intervene in such highly charged cases.
Love’s home was initially raided by National Crime Agency officers in October 2013. Asked why it had not prosecuted Love in the UK under the Computer Misuse Act, the National Crime Agency confirmed that it had never sent a full file of evidence on Love to the Crown Prosecution Service.
Sarah Harrison, director of the Courage Foundation, which runs Love’s defence fund and support campaign, said: “This is a very disappointing ruling, not just for Lauri and his family but for everyone who was angry about what happened to Gary McKinnon.
“Clear assurances were given that legal changes would prevent the McKinnon situation from happening again and frankly, if the forum bar can’t help Lauri Love, it’s very difficult to understand how it could ever help anyone. This is not what the public was led to believe at the time and it’s not something we should stand for.”
Bella Sankey, director of policy for Liberty, said: “Where unlawful activity is alleged to have taken place in the UK, those suspected should be tried on UK soil – especially in cases of vulnerable people like Lauri Love.
“Gary McKinnon’s case rightly led to a change in the law which aimed to stop extraditions in cases like this. If that new law cannot be interpreted in a way which does that, the law needs changing again.”
Among the US agencies and firms Love is alleged to have targeted in his cyber-attacks are the US Federal Reserve, US army, US Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency, Nasa, army corps of engineers, Department of Health and Human Services, US Sentencing Commission, FBI regional computer forensics laboratory, Deltek Inc, Department of Energy and Forte Interactive Inc.
Love, who describes himself as a political activist, is accused of stealing personal information and disseminating it online, causing, according to Tempia’s judgment, “millions of dollars worth of damage”. He has denied exaggerating the severity of his medical condition.
One positive point from the judgment is that the issue of Love’s health was acknowledged. The court found that he is at high and severe risk of suicide because of his serious conditions. | – A 31-year-old British man can be extradited to the US for allegedly hacking into the FBI, NASA, Federal Reserve, and Department of Defense, a judge in Britain ruled Friday. Wired reports Lauri Love allegedly hacked the agencies and did millions of dollars worth of damage as a form of protest in 2012 and 2013. Love, who has Asperger's and depression, fought extradition because he's worried he'll kill himself or otherwise die while in custody in the US, where he's facing up to 99 years in prison, according to the BBC. Were Love being tried in England, he'd face less than three years for the same crimes. The judge Friday ruled Love could receive adequate medical care in the US prison system, the Guardian reports. While his supporters protested the ruling, Love told the media: “If you have come for justice then you have missed it." Love's father accuses the US of being out for "vengeance." “We have recently had a big debate about who can come into this country," he says. "We need to have one now about who can be taken out.” Love's extradition still needs to be approved by Britain's secretary of state. He'll then have two weeks to appeal the ruling. Love doesn't believe he'll be treated fairly in US courts. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "I really worry for the toll it's taking on my health, and my family's," said Lauri Love
An autistic man suspected of hacking into US government computer systems is to be extradited from Britain to face trial, a court has ruled.
Lauri Love, 31, who has Asperger's syndrome, is accused of hacking into the FBI, the US central bank and the country's missile defence agency.
Mr Love, from Stradishall, Suffolk, has previously said he feared he would die in a US prison if he was extradited.
A judge at Westminster Magistrates' Court made the extradition ruling.
Follow updates on this story and other Suffolk news
Earlier, his lawyer said his alleged hacking had "embarrassed" US authorities.
Tor Ekeland said the US government "had very, very bad security and these hacks utilised exploits that were publicly-known for months".
Image copyright PA Image caption Lauri Love spoke to members of the press outside Westminster Magistrates' Court before the hearing
Mr Love's lawyers said he could face up to 99 years in prison if convicted of the hacking offences.
Earlier he stood in the dock as district judge Nina Tempia ruled he could be extradited to the US, where he could face trials in three different states.
He was first arrested at home in Suffolk in 2013 and had computer equipment seized by British police, who then released him on bail.
He was not charged in the UK, where the investigation into him was dropped.
Mr Love's defence team argues his depression and Asperger's syndrome mean he should not be sent abroad, but US prosecutors say he is using his mental health issues as an excuse to escape justice.
In England and Wales, the maximum sentence for crimes such as those of which Mr Love is accused is two years and eight months. ||||| Lauri Love, the student accused of hacking into the computer systems of the US missile defence agency, Nasa and the Federal Reserve, has lost his appeal against extradition to America.
Judge Nina Tempia said the 31-year-old, who has Asperger syndrome, could be cared for by “medical facilities in the United States prison estate” and implied that he should answer the “extremely serious charges” in the country where the damage was inflicted.
Love, who lives with his parents in Newmarket, Suffolk, was granted permission to appeal against Friday’s ruling and given bail pending further legal action. The battle over his fate could eventually reach the European court of human rights in Strasbourg and last several years.
There were gasps in the courtroom as Tempia read out her ruling, which followed a full case hearing in June. Love’s supporters, who stormed out of Westminster magistrates court in London shouting “kangaroo court”, fear he could face up to 99 years in a US jail if convicted on all counts.
Extraditing Lauri Love would be cruel. Justice must be done in the UK | Janis Sharp Read more
Delivering her judgment, Tempia said: “Mr Love faces extremely serious charges for offences of computer hacking over a period of one year, from October 2012 to October 2013.
“I accept Mr Love suffers from both physical and mental health issues, but I have found the medical facilities in the United States prison estate, on arrival and during any sentence if he is convicted, available to him, are such that I can be satisfied his needs will be comprehensively met by the US authorities.
“I am satisfied Mr Love’s extradition would be compatible with his convention rights and I send this case to the secretary of state for her decision as to whether or not Mr Love should be extradited.”
The home secretary, Amber Rudd, has until mid-November to consider the case. If and when she decides to authorise Love’s extradition, he will have 14 days to appeal against the ruling.
Love embraced friends and family, who appeared shocked and angered by the decision. “If you have come for justice then you have missed it,” Love told a crowd of press in the courtroom afterwards.
He added that he had not yet read the judgment and would “delay processing it until he was in a safe place”. He added: “It may simply be that this is such an important case that it has to be settled at a higher court.”
His father, the Rev Alexander Love, said: “I don’t criticise the judge. She has just acted on a law that is flawed.
“I always used to believe that to be born in this country was to win the lottery of life. But it’s not fair or just that a boy who has mental health issues should be taken away from his family and support by the US that is determined to exact vengeance on him.
“We have recently had a big debate [in the referendum] about who can come into this country. We need to have one now about who can be taken out.”
Outside the court, Karen Todner, Love’s solicitor, said she was very disappointed by the district judge’s ruling. She pledged to appeal against the decision, initially at the high court and, if necessary, at the supreme court and eventually the European court of human rights in Strasbourg.
“I feel awfully disappointed,” Todner said. “I thought we had done enough. I’m hopeful that the higher courts will consider the human rights issues. This is not the end of the road ... I was in and out of courts for 10 years with [the extradition case of the computer hacker] Gary McKinnon.”
At one stage supporters blocked the road outside the court, bringing traffic to a standstill. They chanted “no love for the US gov” before being moved on by police.
Ahead of Friday’s hearing, Love said he held little hope of justice if he was extradited, and suggested a jail term in the US could cause his health to deteriorate and would lead to a mental breakdown or suicide. The electrical engineering student also suffers from severe eczema and depression.
He and his family want him to face justice in the UK rather than the US, which he said “coerces” people into pleading guilty to get reduced sentences.
The case was considered to be the first substantive test of the “forum bar”, which was introduced by Theresa May when she was home secretary to allow courts to block extradition if it is in the interests of justice to have a person tried in Britain instead. May’s reforms also narrowed any home secretary’s discretion to intervene in such highly charged cases.
Love’s home was initially raided by National Crime Agency officers in October 2013. Asked why it had not prosecuted Love in the UK under the Computer Misuse Act, the National Crime Agency confirmed that it had never sent a full file of evidence on Love to the Crown Prosecution Service.
Sarah Harrison, director of the Courage Foundation, which runs Love’s defence fund and support campaign, said: “This is a very disappointing ruling, not just for Lauri and his family but for everyone who was angry about what happened to Gary McKinnon.
“Clear assurances were given that legal changes would prevent the McKinnon situation from happening again and frankly, if the forum bar can’t help Lauri Love, it’s very difficult to understand how it could ever help anyone. This is not what the public was led to believe at the time and it’s not something we should stand for.”
Bella Sankey, director of policy for Liberty, said: “Where unlawful activity is alleged to have taken place in the UK, those suspected should be tried on UK soil – especially in cases of vulnerable people like Lauri Love.
“Gary McKinnon’s case rightly led to a change in the law which aimed to stop extraditions in cases like this. If that new law cannot be interpreted in a way which does that, the law needs changing again.”
Among the US agencies and firms Love is alleged to have targeted in his cyber-attacks are the US Federal Reserve, US army, US Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency, Nasa, army corps of engineers, Department of Health and Human Services, US Sentencing Commission, FBI regional computer forensics laboratory, Deltek Inc, Department of Energy and Forte Interactive Inc.
Love, who describes himself as a political activist, is accused of stealing personal information and disseminating it online, causing, according to Tempia’s judgment, “millions of dollars worth of damage”. He has denied exaggerating the severity of his medical condition.
One positive point from the judgment is that the issue of Love’s health was acknowledged. The court found that he is at high and severe risk of suicide because of his serious conditions. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 18,510 |
At first glance Peio is a small alpine ski resort like many others in northern Italy. In winter it is popular with middle-class Italians as well as, increasingly, Russian tourists. In summer there’s good hiking in the Stelvio National Park. It has a spa, shops that sell a dozen different kinds of grappa, and, perhaps, aspirations to be the next Cortina. A cable car was inaugurated three years ago, and a multi-storey car park is under construction.
But in Peio, reminders of the region’s past are never far away. Stroll up through the village and, passing the tiny First World War museum on your left, you come to the 15th-century San Rocco church with its Austro-Hungarian cemetery and sign requesting massimo rispetto. Here, one sunny day last September, 500 people attended the funeral of two soldiers who fell in battle in May 1918.
In Peio, you feel, the First World War never quite ended. And in one very real sense, it lives on, thanks to the preserving properties of ice. For Peio was once the highest village in the Austro-Hungarian empire, and had a ringside seat to a little-known but spectacular episode of that conflict called the White War.
In 1914 both Trentino – the province in which Peio lies – and the neighbouring South Tyrol were Hapsburg domains. Italy, recently unified and eager to settle her frontiers permanently, looked on the two provinces, along with Trieste, as ‘unredeemed lands’. In May 1915, with the aim of reclaiming them, she entered the war on the side of the Allies. Conflict was already raging on the western and eastern fronts; now a third front opened up. It stretched from the Julian Alps, which Italy now shares with Slovenia in the east, to the Ortler massif near the Swiss border further west – some 250 miles.
As much of the front was at altitudes of over 6,500ft, a new kind of war had to be developed. The Italians already had specialist mountain troops – the Alpini with their famous feathered caps – but the Austrians had to create the equivalent: the Kaiserschützen. They were supported by artillery and engineers who constructed an entire infrastructure of war at altitude, including trenches carved out of the ice and rudimentary cableways for transporting men and munitions to the peaks.
In the decades that followed the armistice, the world warmed up and the glaciers began to retreat, revealing the debris of the White War. The material that, beginning in the 1990s, began to flood out of the mountains was remarkably well preserved. It included a love letter, addressed to Maria and never sent, and an ode to a louse, ‘friend of my long days’, scribbled on a page of an Austrian soldier’s diary.
The front line between the Allied forces and those of the Central Powers as seen from Punta Linke, 1918. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
The bodies, when they came, were often mummified. The two soldiers interred last September were blond, blue-eyed Austrians aged 17 and 18 years old, who died on the Presena glacier and were buried by their comrades, top-to-toe, in a crevasse. Both had bulletholes in their skulls. One still had a spoon tucked into his puttees — common practice among soldiers who travelled from trench to trench and ate out of communal pots. When Franco Nicolis of the Archaeological Heritage Office in the provincial capital, Trento, saw them, he says, his first thought was for their mothers. ‘They feel contemporary. They come out of the ice just as they went in,’ he says. In all likelihood the soldiers’ mothers never discovered their sons’ fate.
One of the oddities of the White War was that both the Alpini and the Kaiserschützen recruited local men who knew the mountains, which meant that they often knew each other too. Sometimes family loyalties were split. ‘There are many stories of people hearing the voice of a brother or a cousin in the thick of battle,’ Nicolis says.
For both sides the worst enemy was the weather, which killed more men than the fighting. At those altitudes, the temperature could fall to -30C, and the ‘white death’ — death by avalanche — claimed thousands of lives.
The remains of two Austrian soldiers found on the Presena Glacier in 2012. Photo: Office for Archaeological Finds, Autonomous Province of Trento
The people of Peio lived these stories because unlike the inhabitants of other frontline villages, they stayed put. ‘The Emperor decreed that this village should not be evacuated,’ Angelo Dalpez, Peio’s mayor, says. ‘As the highest village in the empire, it was symbolic — a message to the rest.’ They worked as porters and suppliers of food. They tended the injured, buried the dead, and witnessed the remodelling of their ancestral landscape (shelling lowered the summit of one mountain, San Matteo, by 20ft).
In 1919 the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye awarded Trentino to Italy. ‘There was never any clash,’ Nicolis says. ‘No revolution. It was an entirely smooth transition.’ People here had always felt autonomous, in their mountainous border region, and under the new arrangement the Italian government granted them a degree of autonomy. They carried on drinking grappa, eating knödel and speaking Italian (which had been one of the 12 official languages of the empire), but they never forgot their history. Many of their relations had fought on the Hapsburg side, and when the soldiers started melting out of the ice, they looked on them as their grand-fathers or great-grandfathers.
This became clear in 2004, when Maurizio Vicenzi, a local mountain guide and the director of Peio’s war museum, whose own family fought for the Austrians, stumbled on the mummified remains of three Hapsburg soldiers hanging upside down out of an ice wall near San Matteo — at 12,000ft, scene of some of the highest battles in history. The three were unarmed and had bandages in their pockets, suggesting they may have been stretcher-bearers who died in the last battle for the mountain, on September 3 1918. When a pathologist was granted permission to study one of the bodies, to try to understand the mummification process, there was an outcry among local people who felt that the dead were being profaned.
The mummified remains of three Hapsburg soldiers found in 2004. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
The three now lie in the cemetery at San Rocco next to the two from the Presena glacier, in five unmarked graves. All have passed through the lab of the forensic anthropologist Daniel Gaudio and his team, in Vicenza. His priority is to name the mummified soldiers if he can. It is rare that he succeeds for although he can almost always extract DNA, contextual information about the circumstances of their deaths tends to be lacking, meaning that he can’t locate potential living relations to find a match.
In 2005 Vicenzi started exploring a site called Punta Linke, almost 6,500ft above Peio. He found a natural cave in the ice and material scattered over the surface — steel helmets, straw overshoes, boxes of ammunition — and realised there was a structure beneath. With friends from Peio, Great War enthusiasts all, he investigated. Nicolis’s team arrived on the scene two summers later, and together they excavated a wooden cabin — a station on one of the cableways that provided vital supplies to the troops.
The cabin is built against the rocky peak of Punta Linke, and behind it a tunnel runs for 100ft through that peak. When the team first found the tunnel, which is the height of a man, it was filled with ice that they cleared with the help of giant fans. During the war wooden crates brought up on the cableway were pushed through the tunnel before being launched on the final stage of their journey – an impressive 4,000ft leap – using an unsupported cableway, across the glacier to the front line. Beside the tunnel’s exit is a window through which a lookout watched the crates go.
The tunnel dug by Austrian soldiers behind the cableway station at Punta Linke. Photo: Laura Spinney
Inside the cabin is a Sendling engine, made in Munich, dismantled by the departing Austrians and now restored. The archaeologists have left in place three documents they found pinned to the wall: handwritten instructions for operating the engine, a page from an illustrated newspaper, Wiener Bilder, showing Viennese people queuing to buy food, which by 1916 was in short supply in the crumbling empire, and a postcard addressed to a surgeon in the engineering corps, Georg Kristof, from his wife in Bohemia. The card shows a woman sleeping peacefully and is signed, in Czech, ‘Your abandoned lover’.
In their lab in Trento, Nicolis and his colleague Nicola Cappellozza show me the love letter written to Maria, which was found in a box of letters ready to be posted, on Punta Cadini (11,500ft), and dated late in 1918. (The archaeologists do not want to reveal the contents of the letter until they can trace Maria’s family.) ‘Perhaps hostilities ended before they could be sent,’ Nicolis says. Other finds include fragments of newspaper printed in Cyrillic. The Russian tourists who visit Peio today may not know it, but other Russians were there before them — prisoners brought from the eastern front and used as pack mules, or put to work weaving the straw overshoes that protected the Austrians’ feet from frostbite.
Documents pinned to the wall by soldiers at the Punta Linke cableway station. Photo: Laura Spinney
Peio’s war museum fills out the picture. Inside its display cases are primitive-looking surgical instruments of the kind Kristof might have used, rosaries, porcelain pipes that resemble small saxophones, decorated in the Tyrolian style, and ‘trench art’ carved out of fragments of shells or shell casings. In the hungry period following the armistice, the villagers roamed the mountains looking to salvage material they could reuse or sell. Some pieces they kept as souvenirs, donating them to the museum when it opened 10 years ago. ‘They consider the museum their collective property,’ Dalpez says. ‘They’re proud of it.’
More than 80 soldiers who fell in the White War have come to light in recent decades. There are certainly more to come, but one body continues to elude the rescuers – that of Arnaldo Berni, the 24-year-old captain who led the Italians to their conquest of San Matteo on August 13 1918. Berni’s story illustrates the tragedy of a war where, as the British historian Mark Thompson explained in his 2008 book, The White War, Herculean feats produced trivial territorial gains, and no one down below took much notice.
An Austrian rifle found melting out of the ice. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
After his victory, in a letter that must have slipped past the censors, Berni complained to relations about the press coverage. ‘There is a short and confused description of our battle, which was in fact brilliant and incurred very little loss of life… The journalists don’t come to us at such high altitudes, so the prodigious efforts of our men are not known.’ He died three weeks later, when the Austrians — on their way to recapturing San Matteo — dropped a shell on the crevasse in which he was sheltering. Two months later, the Italians dealt a shattering blow to the Austro-Hungarian war effort at Vittorio Veneto, on the Venetian plain, and the war was over.
There have been many attempts to find Berni over the years, first by his own men, then by his devoted half-sister, Margherita — the once skinny little girl he nicknamed Ossicino, or ‘Little Bone’ — who for long after the war made annual pilgrimages to the mountains, and finally by Vicenzi, Cappellozza and others, who in 2009 climbed down into the crevasse where the hero almost certainly met his death. They found no trace of him, but Cappellozza hasn’t forgotten the experience. ‘We were able to walk horizontally a long way. I remember the colours in the ice — the blues, the violets.’
Inside the Peio's war museum. Photo: Laura Spinney
In the summer of 2013, just before the snow came, Nicolis’s team put the finishing touches to the restoration of the way-station at Punta Linke. From next summer, intrepid hikers will be able to visit this simple monument and, as he puts it, ‘smell the war’. Sometimes, Nicolis says, he looks through the window at Punta Linke and tries to see the mountains as the soldiers did. Those, like Kristof, who came from distant corners of the empire, must have been mystified by the struggle for this inhospitable wilderness. For others, local highlanders, the mountains were the prize and the Emperor the abstraction, but one for whom they were expected to fight men they had climbed with all their lives.
In both cases, he believes, the mountains signified death before they signified beauty. ‘Snow is truly a sign of mourning,’ Giuseppe Ungaretti, the Italian war poet, wrote in 1917. Peio’s mayor has a different take on things. At the funeral of the Presena pair, three anthems were played — the Italian, the Austrian and the Ode to Joy. ‘The people who fought here,’ he says, ‘were Europeans before their time.’
Follow @TelegraphMag ||||| They were casualties of the White War, which is not actually a Game of Thrones episode.
De Agostini / Getty Images The Adamello Massif and Paghera stream, Paghera Valley, Lombardy, Italy.
Related Glaciers in northern Italy reveal corpses of WW1 soldiers The Telegraph
In one of the strangest consequences of global warming yet, glaciers far north in the Italian Alps are slowly melting to reveal the frozen corpses of soldiers killed during World War I.
How did the ice-preserved bodies get to the small Alpine village of Peio? They were casualties of the White War, an obscure part of WWI. In May 1915, a newly united Italy decided to join the war on the side of the Allies, opening up a front on the northern border of the country which abutted the enemy Hapsburgs, part of the Central Powers. Far up in the mountains at elevations of over 6,500 feet, Italian troops called the Alpini fought their Austrian equivalent, the Kaiserschützen, with specialized weapons and infrastructure like ice trenches and cable transport systems.
As global warming has intensified over the past few decades, first soldiers’ personal affects like diaries and letters melted out of the ice, and now their bodies are following. The cold has kept them perfectly intact, like frozen mummies. Bare bones are wrapped in the tattered remains of uniforms, gruesome reminders of now-distant violence. In one terrifying photo, three Hapsburg soldiers, skulls exposed to the elements, are tangled in the ice. The trio is now buried in the Peio cemetery.
Archaeologists are continuing to explore the Alpine battlegrounds, uncovering man-made caves and artifacts like engines and guns. Thankfully, none of the uncovered bodies have turned into White Walkers—yet. | – Time calls it "one of the strangest consequences of global warming yet"—glaciers are melting in the Italian Alps and revealing the mummified corpses of soldiers from World War I. Two, for instance, were buried in unmarked graves last year in the village of Peio, reports the Telegraph, which digs into the history of the "White War" fought on mountaintops between soldiers from Italy (called the Alpini) and Austria (the Kaiserschützen). "They feel contemporary," says a local archeologist, who adds that he immediately thought of the young men's mothers upon seeing their bodies. "They come out of the ice just as they went in." The melting ice also is revealing the contraptions used by both armies to fight at altitudes of 6,500 feet or more, including makeshift cable-transport systems to get troops to the peaks, along with diaries and even love letters. As it turns out, the brutal weather conditions killed more men than actual fighting, and a forensic anthropologist is attempting to identify remains as they surface. Click for the full Telegraph piece, or click to read about another unusual find in the Alps. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.At first glance Peio is a small alpine ski resort like many others in northern Italy. In winter it is popular with middle-class Italians as well as, increasingly, Russian tourists. In summer there’s good hiking in the Stelvio National Park. It has a spa, shops that sell a dozen different kinds of grappa, and, perhaps, aspirations to be the next Cortina. A cable car was inaugurated three years ago, and a multi-storey car park is under construction.
But in Peio, reminders of the region’s past are never far away. Stroll up through the village and, passing the tiny First World War museum on your left, you come to the 15th-century San Rocco church with its Austro-Hungarian cemetery and sign requesting massimo rispetto. Here, one sunny day last September, 500 people attended the funeral of two soldiers who fell in battle in May 1918.
In Peio, you feel, the First World War never quite ended. And in one very real sense, it lives on, thanks to the preserving properties of ice. For Peio was once the highest village in the Austro-Hungarian empire, and had a ringside seat to a little-known but spectacular episode of that conflict called the White War.
In 1914 both Trentino – the province in which Peio lies – and the neighbouring South Tyrol were Hapsburg domains. Italy, recently unified and eager to settle her frontiers permanently, looked on the two provinces, along with Trieste, as ‘unredeemed lands’. In May 1915, with the aim of reclaiming them, she entered the war on the side of the Allies. Conflict was already raging on the western and eastern fronts; now a third front opened up. It stretched from the Julian Alps, which Italy now shares with Slovenia in the east, to the Ortler massif near the Swiss border further west – some 250 miles.
As much of the front was at altitudes of over 6,500ft, a new kind of war had to be developed. The Italians already had specialist mountain troops – the Alpini with their famous feathered caps – but the Austrians had to create the equivalent: the Kaiserschützen. They were supported by artillery and engineers who constructed an entire infrastructure of war at altitude, including trenches carved out of the ice and rudimentary cableways for transporting men and munitions to the peaks.
In the decades that followed the armistice, the world warmed up and the glaciers began to retreat, revealing the debris of the White War. The material that, beginning in the 1990s, began to flood out of the mountains was remarkably well preserved. It included a love letter, addressed to Maria and never sent, and an ode to a louse, ‘friend of my long days’, scribbled on a page of an Austrian soldier’s diary.
The front line between the Allied forces and those of the Central Powers as seen from Punta Linke, 1918. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
The bodies, when they came, were often mummified. The two soldiers interred last September were blond, blue-eyed Austrians aged 17 and 18 years old, who died on the Presena glacier and were buried by their comrades, top-to-toe, in a crevasse. Both had bulletholes in their skulls. One still had a spoon tucked into his puttees — common practice among soldiers who travelled from trench to trench and ate out of communal pots. When Franco Nicolis of the Archaeological Heritage Office in the provincial capital, Trento, saw them, he says, his first thought was for their mothers. ‘They feel contemporary. They come out of the ice just as they went in,’ he says. In all likelihood the soldiers’ mothers never discovered their sons’ fate.
One of the oddities of the White War was that both the Alpini and the Kaiserschützen recruited local men who knew the mountains, which meant that they often knew each other too. Sometimes family loyalties were split. ‘There are many stories of people hearing the voice of a brother or a cousin in the thick of battle,’ Nicolis says.
For both sides the worst enemy was the weather, which killed more men than the fighting. At those altitudes, the temperature could fall to -30C, and the ‘white death’ — death by avalanche — claimed thousands of lives.
The remains of two Austrian soldiers found on the Presena Glacier in 2012. Photo: Office for Archaeological Finds, Autonomous Province of Trento
The people of Peio lived these stories because unlike the inhabitants of other frontline villages, they stayed put. ‘The Emperor decreed that this village should not be evacuated,’ Angelo Dalpez, Peio’s mayor, says. ‘As the highest village in the empire, it was symbolic — a message to the rest.’ They worked as porters and suppliers of food. They tended the injured, buried the dead, and witnessed the remodelling of their ancestral landscape (shelling lowered the summit of one mountain, San Matteo, by 20ft).
In 1919 the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye awarded Trentino to Italy. ‘There was never any clash,’ Nicolis says. ‘No revolution. It was an entirely smooth transition.’ People here had always felt autonomous, in their mountainous border region, and under the new arrangement the Italian government granted them a degree of autonomy. They carried on drinking grappa, eating knödel and speaking Italian (which had been one of the 12 official languages of the empire), but they never forgot their history. Many of their relations had fought on the Hapsburg side, and when the soldiers started melting out of the ice, they looked on them as their grand-fathers or great-grandfathers.
This became clear in 2004, when Maurizio Vicenzi, a local mountain guide and the director of Peio’s war museum, whose own family fought for the Austrians, stumbled on the mummified remains of three Hapsburg soldiers hanging upside down out of an ice wall near San Matteo — at 12,000ft, scene of some of the highest battles in history. The three were unarmed and had bandages in their pockets, suggesting they may have been stretcher-bearers who died in the last battle for the mountain, on September 3 1918. When a pathologist was granted permission to study one of the bodies, to try to understand the mummification process, there was an outcry among local people who felt that the dead were being profaned.
The mummified remains of three Hapsburg soldiers found in 2004. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
The three now lie in the cemetery at San Rocco next to the two from the Presena glacier, in five unmarked graves. All have passed through the lab of the forensic anthropologist Daniel Gaudio and his team, in Vicenza. His priority is to name the mummified soldiers if he can. It is rare that he succeeds for although he can almost always extract DNA, contextual information about the circumstances of their deaths tends to be lacking, meaning that he can’t locate potential living relations to find a match.
In 2005 Vicenzi started exploring a site called Punta Linke, almost 6,500ft above Peio. He found a natural cave in the ice and material scattered over the surface — steel helmets, straw overshoes, boxes of ammunition — and realised there was a structure beneath. With friends from Peio, Great War enthusiasts all, he investigated. Nicolis’s team arrived on the scene two summers later, and together they excavated a wooden cabin — a station on one of the cableways that provided vital supplies to the troops.
The cabin is built against the rocky peak of Punta Linke, and behind it a tunnel runs for 100ft through that peak. When the team first found the tunnel, which is the height of a man, it was filled with ice that they cleared with the help of giant fans. During the war wooden crates brought up on the cableway were pushed through the tunnel before being launched on the final stage of their journey – an impressive 4,000ft leap – using an unsupported cableway, across the glacier to the front line. Beside the tunnel’s exit is a window through which a lookout watched the crates go.
The tunnel dug by Austrian soldiers behind the cableway station at Punta Linke. Photo: Laura Spinney
Inside the cabin is a Sendling engine, made in Munich, dismantled by the departing Austrians and now restored. The archaeologists have left in place three documents they found pinned to the wall: handwritten instructions for operating the engine, a page from an illustrated newspaper, Wiener Bilder, showing Viennese people queuing to buy food, which by 1916 was in short supply in the crumbling empire, and a postcard addressed to a surgeon in the engineering corps, Georg Kristof, from his wife in Bohemia. The card shows a woman sleeping peacefully and is signed, in Czech, ‘Your abandoned lover’.
In their lab in Trento, Nicolis and his colleague Nicola Cappellozza show me the love letter written to Maria, which was found in a box of letters ready to be posted, on Punta Cadini (11,500ft), and dated late in 1918. (The archaeologists do not want to reveal the contents of the letter until they can trace Maria’s family.) ‘Perhaps hostilities ended before they could be sent,’ Nicolis says. Other finds include fragments of newspaper printed in Cyrillic. The Russian tourists who visit Peio today may not know it, but other Russians were there before them — prisoners brought from the eastern front and used as pack mules, or put to work weaving the straw overshoes that protected the Austrians’ feet from frostbite.
Documents pinned to the wall by soldiers at the Punta Linke cableway station. Photo: Laura Spinney
Peio’s war museum fills out the picture. Inside its display cases are primitive-looking surgical instruments of the kind Kristof might have used, rosaries, porcelain pipes that resemble small saxophones, decorated in the Tyrolian style, and ‘trench art’ carved out of fragments of shells or shell casings. In the hungry period following the armistice, the villagers roamed the mountains looking to salvage material they could reuse or sell. Some pieces they kept as souvenirs, donating them to the museum when it opened 10 years ago. ‘They consider the museum their collective property,’ Dalpez says. ‘They’re proud of it.’
More than 80 soldiers who fell in the White War have come to light in recent decades. There are certainly more to come, but one body continues to elude the rescuers – that of Arnaldo Berni, the 24-year-old captain who led the Italians to their conquest of San Matteo on August 13 1918. Berni’s story illustrates the tragedy of a war where, as the British historian Mark Thompson explained in his 2008 book, The White War, Herculean feats produced trivial territorial gains, and no one down below took much notice.
An Austrian rifle found melting out of the ice. Photo: Museo della Grande Guerra, Peio
After his victory, in a letter that must have slipped past the censors, Berni complained to relations about the press coverage. ‘There is a short and confused description of our battle, which was in fact brilliant and incurred very little loss of life… The journalists don’t come to us at such high altitudes, so the prodigious efforts of our men are not known.’ He died three weeks later, when the Austrians — on their way to recapturing San Matteo — dropped a shell on the crevasse in which he was sheltering. Two months later, the Italians dealt a shattering blow to the Austro-Hungarian war effort at Vittorio Veneto, on the Venetian plain, and the war was over.
There have been many attempts to find Berni over the years, first by his own men, then by his devoted half-sister, Margherita — the once skinny little girl he nicknamed Ossicino, or ‘Little Bone’ — who for long after the war made annual pilgrimages to the mountains, and finally by Vicenzi, Cappellozza and others, who in 2009 climbed down into the crevasse where the hero almost certainly met his death. They found no trace of him, but Cappellozza hasn’t forgotten the experience. ‘We were able to walk horizontally a long way. I remember the colours in the ice — the blues, the violets.’
Inside the Peio's war museum. Photo: Laura Spinney
In the summer of 2013, just before the snow came, Nicolis’s team put the finishing touches to the restoration of the way-station at Punta Linke. From next summer, intrepid hikers will be able to visit this simple monument and, as he puts it, ‘smell the war’. Sometimes, Nicolis says, he looks through the window at Punta Linke and tries to see the mountains as the soldiers did. Those, like Kristof, who came from distant corners of the empire, must have been mystified by the struggle for this inhospitable wilderness. For others, local highlanders, the mountains were the prize and the Emperor the abstraction, but one for whom they were expected to fight men they had climbed with all their lives.
In both cases, he believes, the mountains signified death before they signified beauty. ‘Snow is truly a sign of mourning,’ Giuseppe Ungaretti, the Italian war poet, wrote in 1917. Peio’s mayor has a different take on things. At the funeral of the Presena pair, three anthems were played — the Italian, the Austrian and the Ode to Joy. ‘The people who fought here,’ he says, ‘were Europeans before their time.’
Follow @TelegraphMag ||||| They were casualties of the White War, which is not actually a Game of Thrones episode.
De Agostini / Getty Images The Adamello Massif and Paghera stream, Paghera Valley, Lombardy, Italy.
Related Glaciers in northern Italy reveal corpses of WW1 soldiers The Telegraph
In one of the strangest consequences of global warming yet, glaciers far north in the Italian Alps are slowly melting to reveal the frozen corpses of soldiers killed during World War I.
How did the ice-preserved bodies get to the small Alpine village of Peio? They were casualties of the White War, an obscure part of WWI. In May 1915, a newly united Italy decided to join the war on the side of the Allies, opening up a front on the northern border of the country which abutted the enemy Hapsburgs, part of the Central Powers. Far up in the mountains at elevations of over 6,500 feet, Italian troops called the Alpini fought their Austrian equivalent, the Kaiserschützen, with specialized weapons and infrastructure like ice trenches and cable transport systems.
As global warming has intensified over the past few decades, first soldiers’ personal affects like diaries and letters melted out of the ice, and now their bodies are following. The cold has kept them perfectly intact, like frozen mummies. Bare bones are wrapped in the tattered remains of uniforms, gruesome reminders of now-distant violence. In one terrifying photo, three Hapsburg soldiers, skulls exposed to the elements, are tangled in the ice. The trio is now buried in the Peio cemetery.
Archaeologists are continuing to explore the Alpine battlegrounds, uncovering man-made caves and artifacts like engines and guns. Thankfully, none of the uncovered bodies have turned into White Walkers—yet. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 23,197 |
After months of legal wrangling, Edmonton's MacEwan University has recovered nearly all of the $11.8 million lost to an online phishing scam.
In a statement Wednesday, MacEwan said it was able to recover $10.92 million before concluding legal proceedings.
"MacEwan's administration credits the recovery of such a large percentage of the funds — just over 92 per cent — to the swift response and diligent efforts of an internal team at the university, legal counsel in several jurisdictions, fraud units at the banks involved in the transactions and law enforcement agencies," the statement said.
The total amount not recovered was $880,000. To get back the $10.92 million, the university spent $250,000 in legal and banking fees, MacEwan spokesperson David Beharry said.
After it was discovered last August, the fraud prompted Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt to instruct all university board chairs in the province to review their financial controls.
Wednesday's statement from MacEwan said it now has stronger financial controls including mandatory IT security training for staff and improved vendor verification protocols. Schmidt said he's glad to see the university has improved its safeguards.
"I'm very pleased that MacEwan has made significant progress on recovering the money, as well as the improvements that they have made in their financial processes and control," Schmidt told reporters at the legislature.
"We raised some significant concerns last summer when this issue came to light and we're very pleased with the progress that they're making."
The university was defrauded last summer when staff failed to verify as legitimate emails requesting a change in banking information for one of its vendors.
Three payments were made to a fraudulent account: one on Aug. 10 for $1.9 million; another on Aug. 17 for $22,000 and a third on Aug. 19 for $9.9 million.
MacEwan discovered the fraud after the legitimate vendor, a construction company, called to ask why it hadn't been paid.
At the time, Beharry said most of the missing money — $11.4 million — was traced to a bank account in Montreal and to two accounts in Hong Kong. He said $6.3 million was seized from the Montreal account and action was taken to freeze the two Hong Kong accounts.
We knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that. - David Beharry, MacEwan spokesperson
He also said three employees involved were not high-level staffers and the university did not believe there was any collusion. He did not say if the three had been suspended or reprimanded.
On Wednesday, Beharry said auditors determined human error made the scam possible.
"We didn't have the proper controls in place," Beharry said. "Since then we have changed that, the reporting structure. The reporting structure has to go through a manager or a director, so there's multiple levels of checks and balances now.
"The university looked at all its processes after this and we knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that."
The Edmonton Police Service and other police agencies are still investigating the fraud.
No charges have been laid in the case, police said. ||||| EDMONTON—The email started with an innocent “Hiya,” but the words that followed set off a chain of events that would tarnish a university’s reputation and send investigators on a months-long chase across the ocean and back. It’s been just over a year since MacEwan University was blindsided by an $11.8-million fraud. While the ruse itself was simple, the case that followed was anything but. Police had to navigate a complex money-laundering scheme that funnelled some of the stolen public funds through various accounts in two continents before reinvesting it in a real-estate deal in Richmond, B.C.
The fraud began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. ( Codie McLachlan / For StarMetro Edmonton )
By scouring court documents from cities across the country that tracked investigations in Edmonton, Vancouver, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, StarMetro has pieced together the most comprehensive picture of the case ever published and uncovered new details about how the money was stolen and where it went. It began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. Emails detailing transactions worth millions of dollars were pinging back and forth between school staff and vendors. As a result, one particular email, sent June 27, didn’t set off any alarms. Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with the affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new National Bank of Canada account.
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A supporting letter attached to the email appeared to have been signed by Marc Timberman, the company’s chief financial officer. Read more: Edmonton’s MacEwan University recovers more than $10 million lost to phishing attack Alberta’s MacEwan University loses $11.8M after being fooled by email phishing scam Udeni Jayasinghe, an accounting technician with the university, changed the banking information on file. Exactly a month later, MacEwan wired $1.9 million into the new National Bank of Canada account.
Oddly, the payment bounced back. The university’s bank confirmed the transfer didn’t go through because the account didn’t exist. Concerned, Jayasinghe replied to the email asking for updated banking co-ordinates. A response four days later provided new banking information, this time to an account with TD Bank. The email was accompanied by a revised letter that once again appeared to have been signed by Timberman.
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In just over a week, the university made three payments into the TD Bank account totalling more than $11.8 million. It would be almost two months before the university would learn the awful truth: Clark Builders never received these payments, no James Ellis had worked for the company for at least eight years and the real Timberman had no knowledge of the letters using his name. The email was a fraud. Over the course of a month, MacEwan University lost the equivalent of $622 for every part-time and full-time student enrolled. That’s enough to cover a year of tuition for more than 2,600 students pursuing bachelor’s degrees, or more than one-eighth of the total amount the university took in through tuition and fees during the 2016-2017 academic year. MacEwan had been fooled by what Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, called a “spear phishing scheme.” “It’s targeted to a specific individual,” said Lewadniuk. “Generally with a spear phishing scheme you would spoof the email address and try to get them to send you money, so you would pretend to be a contractor or a person’s boss.” The fraud was only discovered when Serge L’Abbe, senior project manager with Clark Builders, contacted the university on Aug. 23, 2017 to inquire about the missing money.
StarMetro follows the money stolen from MacEwan University funneled through international accounts and reinvested in Vancouver real estate.
The university immediately started investigating, according to a sworn statement filed in court in Montreal by Stuart McLean, associate vice-president of facilities with Grant MacEwan’s board of governors. They quickly discovered that while the email appeared to have been sent by “[email protected]” the email address had been “spoofed.” The display name of the email was different than the actual originating account. The university’s first break came on Aug. 25, 2017 when a Montreal Superior Court justice issued a seizure order and took back $6.3 million from the TD account, recovering more than half of the missing funds. The account had been opened under the name of Mono Shoes Inc., a company registered to a fifth-floor apartment near downtown Montreal. Before MacEwan’s millions of dollars poured in, according to documents filed in court, the account had a balance of less than $70. But this was just the beginning of the trail, not the end. In another plot twist, the man identified by a corporate registry search as president, sole director and shareholder of Mono Shoes — Jehad Albatniji — claimed he, too, had been a victim of fraud. In September, while he was in Jordan, Albatniji exchanged emails with one of MacEwan’s lawyers. He alleged a man in Montreal introduced him to another man in Toronto — the “main culprit,” Albatniji said, who had access to an account in Hong Kong. Here the story enters its second major theatre: East Asia. From the Mono Shoes TD account, investigators were able to track a trail of transactions to accounts based in Hong Kong. Lewadniuk — who has worked with the RCMP’s financial crimes unit in Red Deer for three years, with expertise in money laundering involving the proceeds of crime — said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn’t stick around. “More and more, the money doesn’t stay in Canada,” he said. “They’ll try to get it sent out to a country outside of Canada because it is harder for us to recover the funds or follow up.” In cases like this, Lewadniuk said, finding out exactly who is responsible and building a case strong enough to lay criminal charges is rare. Criminals often create shell companies with corporate accounts, sometimes using stolen identities, to shuffle money around while concealing the identity of the people controlling the accounts.
Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, has expertise handling major complex frauds and money laundering involving the proceeds of crime. Lewadniuk said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn't stick around. ( Trevor Howell / StarMetro Calgary )
“They want to make it as hard as possible for people to be able to trace where the money goes, so you go from account to account to account through so many countries,” said Lewadniuk. Just one day after MacEwan wired $1.9 million to the Mono Shoes account, $1.4 million of the stolen funds was sent from the Mono Shoes account to an account supposedly operated by a company called Kinglong Commerce Development Ltd., based in Hong Kong. So began a series of transactions that would see the money moved from account to account before it was reinvested in a legitimate real-estate deal back on Canadian soil. Around the same time the fraud was unfolding in Edmonton, Vancouver-based company Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd., owned by mother Jin Lan Feng and son John Yuan, was in the process of acquiring land in Richmond, B.C. The property at 4008 Stolberg St. was valued at over $25 million, but Hoi Fu Enterprises did not have the funds to purchase it outright. According to documents filed with the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the seller offered them a short-term mortgage to finance part of the purchase. The sale was completed on July 12, 2017, with Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd. acquiring the property through a holding company. To pay back the mortgage, Hoi Fu Enterprises borrowed money from Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering Ltd. in China. The registered legal representative and shareholder of that company is Yuan’s uncle. However, to lend Hoi Fu Enterprises the money, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering had to find a way to convert the funds from Chinese currency and send the money to Hoi Fu in Canada. This is how the stolen funds get involved. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering was then “introduced” to two individuals, Shao Xiong Ma and Shao Yun Ma, who claimed they could help purchase Canadian funds and move them from China to Canada, according to a statement filed on behalf of Hoi Fu Enterprises. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering agreed to lend the Mas the money in the form of Chinese renminbi on the condition that they repay their loan in Canadian dollars to Hoi Fu Enterprises in Canada. Between June and July of 2017, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering made four payments to the Mas totalling ¥6.7 million, which would have been worth approximately $1.2 million. In August, Hoi Fu Enterprises received three wire transfers totalling $1 million. What Hoi Fu Enterprises said it didn’t know was that the Mas had made a side deal with Kinglong Commerce Development. The Mas would make payments totalling ¥5.3 million — approximately $1 million — to four individuals and one company in China. In exchange, the Kinglong Commerce Development account, which had previously received $1.4 million in funds stolen during the MacEwan fraud, would transfer $1 million to Hoi Fu Enterprises. Kibben Jackson, a Vancouver-based lawyer who represented Hoi Fu Enterprises during MacEwan’s investigation and subsequent civil suits, said the owners contend they never knew the money they would eventually use to repay their mortgage on the property deal in Richmond was stolen from MacEwan University. Jackson said that after MacEwan threatened to seize $1 million from Hoi Fu Enterprises, the company settled the lawsuit in March 2018. He could not disclose how much money Hoi Fu Enterprises offered to MacEwan. While the case may have been complex, it was certainly not unique, according to experts in the field.
Garry Clement is a financial crime prevention expert and advocate, having once served as the national director for the RCMP's Proceeds of Crime Program and worked as an undercover operator investigating some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. ( Supplied )
Financial crimes specialist Garry Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. Clement previously worked with police for 34 years, going undercover to chase some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. He was also formerly the national director for the RCMP’s Proceeds of Crime Program. Clement said that, prior to 1997, there wasn’t a specific charge under the Criminal Code of Canada for being a member of an organized crime group, as there is under Hong Kong law. Without an equivalent on the books, immigrants with that kind of criminal history wouldn’t be automatically precluded from entering Canada. “As a result, we did end up with our fair share of known organized-crime figures in Canada,” said Clement. This allowed criminals to set up networks between the two countries that have persisted to this day. “You’ve created a network, and that network enables you to do a lot of things through various company formations,” said Clement. “That is essentially what you are seeing in China: Money is flowing that has been defrauded.” Clement said it is not uncommon for the proceeds of crime to end up in legitimate investments as criminals look to keep their money safe and out of reach of authorities. An investment of choice, said Clement, is real estate, given its relative stability and the large sums of money involved. “Nobody asks the genesis of the money,” Clement said. Through legal action in Hong Kong, the university was able to recover nearly $3.8 million from another individual — not named in court documents available in Vancouver or Montreal — who had also been transferred stolen MacEwan funds from the Mono Shoes TD Bank account. In all, MacEwan University announced on April 4, 2018 that it had successfully recovered $10.9 million of the $11.8 million lost to the scam. More than $960,000 remains missing — a stinging loss that has prompted change at the university and beyond. “Taxpayers rightly expect that the money we give to universities is spent on educating our students and isn’t lost because of poor financial controls that are in place,” Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt told StarMetro in a recent interview. “We all have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure that the money is spent properly.” After finding out it had been defrauded, the university waited a week before alerting the public to the loss. A press release assured students that the university’s IT systems were secure and that it had already begun tracking the majority of the stolen funds with the help of legal counsel in Montreal, London and Hong Kong. MacEwan University president Deborah Saucier was not made available for comment. When the administration credited the “swift response and diligent efforts” of staff, legal counsel, investigators and the banks for seeing the return of 92 per cent of the lost funds, it revealed few details about where the money went or how it was recovered.
The money-laundering loop. How stolen money in Edmonton masqueraded as legitimate capital in Vancouver. ( Andres Plana/StarMetro )
That was by design. A presentation to the 2018 Canadian Association of University Business Officers Conference reveals university officials feared “significant political fallout” and loss of reputation in the wake of the scam. University executives, according to the document, refused to provide media with access to Saucier and employed a “disciplined” communications strategy, despite public promises of transparency. In a statement posted online in October 2017, Saucier said “the fraud did shine spotlights on two glaring gaps in our organization.” An internal audit revealed there were inadequate controls in place for changing payment information. There was no requirement for a manager or supervisor to review changes to payment information on file. It also found employees didn’t bother to contact the vendor in any way to confirm the request was valid. The press release sent out in April outlined some of the measures administration took to ensure they wouldn’t be fooled again. Employees are now required to verify all changes to vendor files by phone and a followup email, and all financial changes must first be reviewed by a supervisor, manager or director. A supplied audit report system was also implemented, tracking every change made to vendor files. The university has made employee training in social engineering attacks, phishing and other online scams mandatory. Minister Schmidt praised MacEwan for making changes to its financial department, “including some staff changes at the highest levels, which was a good first step.” Brent Quinton, who was the university’s vice-president of finance and administration at the time of the fraud, resigned from his position three weeks after the fraud was discovered, walking away with a $540,000 severance payout. No staff members were fired, though some were placed in different positions. Harry Oosteroff, executive director of the MacEwan Staff Association, said “our members were treated appropriately.” The provincial government is taking steps to prevent such costly, embarrassing mistakes in the future. The Ministry of Advanced Education’s senior financial officer is now leading a team tasked with “identifying ways that we can help build capacity at institutions to improve their financial controls” so public dollars allocated for the benefit of post-secondary students don’t end up in the wrong hands. “There are always improvements that can be made, and our department is working with institutions to continually improve the financial systems that are used to protect the taxpayers’ dollars,” Schmidt said. After all, this isn’t the first time a post-secondary institution in Alberta has been fooled. An investigation into a similar fraud at the University of Lethbridge found that while the university had such controls in place, staff weren’t following them. The University of Lethbridge sent $368,000 to scammers over a two-month period in 2016, “when payments owing to an external vendor of the university were sent through a process of misdirection to an alternative, nonauthentic bank account,” said Mike Mahon, president and vice-chancellor, in a statement in December 2016.
Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with an affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new bank account.
Const. Lewadniuk said low-tech solutions, such as having two people sign off on financial transactions or following up on emails with a phone call to the person or company in question, can be key in avoiding high-tech fraud. There are institutional changes on the horizon as well. Clement, the financial crimes specialist, is eager to see stronger regulations around identifying beneficial ownership of property, corporations and bank accounts. Beneficial ownership is an arrangement in which the person who enjoys the benefits of the property or bank accounts, such as profits, isn’t necessarily the person listed on the title. Clement said that, until recently, numbered companies would have one or two directors listed, “but there was not that requirement to drill down to see who is actually the beneficial owners of that money.” Finance ministers across Canada entered an agreement to strengthen such regulations and bring them into force by July 1, 2019. The regulations seek to curb the misuse of corporations and other legal entities being exploited for tax evasion, money laundering, corruption and financing terrorism. But until those regulations are brought into force and investigators are given the resources they need to chase down these types of crime, Clement fears such financial crime will continue “unabated.” “If you stem the flow of money and stem their ability to make that profit, you can curb a lot of activity,” said Clement. “But as long as there’s that profit to be made, people are going to gamble.” Claire Theobald is an Edmonton-based reporter who covers crime and the courts. Follow her on Twitter: @clairetheobald With files from Michael Mui
Read more about: | – How do you get millions from a Canadian university? Just ask, apparently. A fraudster emailed MacEwan University in 2017 seeking roughly $9 million (USD) and the school sent it right off, the Toronto Star reports. To be fair, the Edmonton school was busy constructing a $137 million building featuring dance halls and music studios, so the request from Clark Builders, a company on the project, made sense. Only after sending the money did MacEwan learn that Clark Builders never received it and the email's purported author hadn't worked there in years. The funds really went to a Montreal bank account that previously held under $60. From there, over $1 million of it went to East Asia and back to appear legitimate—an international route that made it harder for the RCMP to trace. But trace it they did. According to court documents, most of the money returned to Canada as a loan to Vancouver-based Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd. The loan came from a Chinese company that, via intermediaries, bought Canadian dollars from a supposed Hong Kong company that had received the Montreal money. And presto, Hoi Fu received about $764,000 in loans to help pay a big new mortgage. Luckily, MacEwan recovered over 92% of lost funds, in part by suing Hoi Fu and seizing money from the bank. The school also set up anti-phishing measures to avoid getting fooled again. "We knew we were at fault ... and we accept that," a school rep tells the CBC. No arrests have been reported in the case. (In another story, the so-called "affluenza" mom has been charged with money laundering.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.After months of legal wrangling, Edmonton's MacEwan University has recovered nearly all of the $11.8 million lost to an online phishing scam.
In a statement Wednesday, MacEwan said it was able to recover $10.92 million before concluding legal proceedings.
"MacEwan's administration credits the recovery of such a large percentage of the funds — just over 92 per cent — to the swift response and diligent efforts of an internal team at the university, legal counsel in several jurisdictions, fraud units at the banks involved in the transactions and law enforcement agencies," the statement said.
The total amount not recovered was $880,000. To get back the $10.92 million, the university spent $250,000 in legal and banking fees, MacEwan spokesperson David Beharry said.
After it was discovered last August, the fraud prompted Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt to instruct all university board chairs in the province to review their financial controls.
Wednesday's statement from MacEwan said it now has stronger financial controls including mandatory IT security training for staff and improved vendor verification protocols. Schmidt said he's glad to see the university has improved its safeguards.
"I'm very pleased that MacEwan has made significant progress on recovering the money, as well as the improvements that they have made in their financial processes and control," Schmidt told reporters at the legislature.
"We raised some significant concerns last summer when this issue came to light and we're very pleased with the progress that they're making."
The university was defrauded last summer when staff failed to verify as legitimate emails requesting a change in banking information for one of its vendors.
Three payments were made to a fraudulent account: one on Aug. 10 for $1.9 million; another on Aug. 17 for $22,000 and a third on Aug. 19 for $9.9 million.
MacEwan discovered the fraud after the legitimate vendor, a construction company, called to ask why it hadn't been paid.
At the time, Beharry said most of the missing money — $11.4 million — was traced to a bank account in Montreal and to two accounts in Hong Kong. He said $6.3 million was seized from the Montreal account and action was taken to freeze the two Hong Kong accounts.
We knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that. - David Beharry, MacEwan spokesperson
He also said three employees involved were not high-level staffers and the university did not believe there was any collusion. He did not say if the three had been suspended or reprimanded.
On Wednesday, Beharry said auditors determined human error made the scam possible.
"We didn't have the proper controls in place," Beharry said. "Since then we have changed that, the reporting structure. The reporting structure has to go through a manager or a director, so there's multiple levels of checks and balances now.
"The university looked at all its processes after this and we knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that."
The Edmonton Police Service and other police agencies are still investigating the fraud.
No charges have been laid in the case, police said. ||||| EDMONTON—The email started with an innocent “Hiya,” but the words that followed set off a chain of events that would tarnish a university’s reputation and send investigators on a months-long chase across the ocean and back. It’s been just over a year since MacEwan University was blindsided by an $11.8-million fraud. While the ruse itself was simple, the case that followed was anything but. Police had to navigate a complex money-laundering scheme that funnelled some of the stolen public funds through various accounts in two continents before reinvesting it in a real-estate deal in Richmond, B.C.
The fraud began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. ( Codie McLachlan / For StarMetro Edmonton )
By scouring court documents from cities across the country that tracked investigations in Edmonton, Vancouver, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, StarMetro has pieced together the most comprehensive picture of the case ever published and uncovered new details about how the money was stolen and where it went. It began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. Emails detailing transactions worth millions of dollars were pinging back and forth between school staff and vendors. As a result, one particular email, sent June 27, didn’t set off any alarms. Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with the affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new National Bank of Canada account.
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A supporting letter attached to the email appeared to have been signed by Marc Timberman, the company’s chief financial officer. Read more: Edmonton’s MacEwan University recovers more than $10 million lost to phishing attack Alberta’s MacEwan University loses $11.8M after being fooled by email phishing scam Udeni Jayasinghe, an accounting technician with the university, changed the banking information on file. Exactly a month later, MacEwan wired $1.9 million into the new National Bank of Canada account.
Oddly, the payment bounced back. The university’s bank confirmed the transfer didn’t go through because the account didn’t exist. Concerned, Jayasinghe replied to the email asking for updated banking co-ordinates. A response four days later provided new banking information, this time to an account with TD Bank. The email was accompanied by a revised letter that once again appeared to have been signed by Timberman.
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In just over a week, the university made three payments into the TD Bank account totalling more than $11.8 million. It would be almost two months before the university would learn the awful truth: Clark Builders never received these payments, no James Ellis had worked for the company for at least eight years and the real Timberman had no knowledge of the letters using his name. The email was a fraud. Over the course of a month, MacEwan University lost the equivalent of $622 for every part-time and full-time student enrolled. That’s enough to cover a year of tuition for more than 2,600 students pursuing bachelor’s degrees, or more than one-eighth of the total amount the university took in through tuition and fees during the 2016-2017 academic year. MacEwan had been fooled by what Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, called a “spear phishing scheme.” “It’s targeted to a specific individual,” said Lewadniuk. “Generally with a spear phishing scheme you would spoof the email address and try to get them to send you money, so you would pretend to be a contractor or a person’s boss.” The fraud was only discovered when Serge L’Abbe, senior project manager with Clark Builders, contacted the university on Aug. 23, 2017 to inquire about the missing money.
StarMetro follows the money stolen from MacEwan University funneled through international accounts and reinvested in Vancouver real estate.
The university immediately started investigating, according to a sworn statement filed in court in Montreal by Stuart McLean, associate vice-president of facilities with Grant MacEwan’s board of governors. They quickly discovered that while the email appeared to have been sent by “[email protected]” the email address had been “spoofed.” The display name of the email was different than the actual originating account. The university’s first break came on Aug. 25, 2017 when a Montreal Superior Court justice issued a seizure order and took back $6.3 million from the TD account, recovering more than half of the missing funds. The account had been opened under the name of Mono Shoes Inc., a company registered to a fifth-floor apartment near downtown Montreal. Before MacEwan’s millions of dollars poured in, according to documents filed in court, the account had a balance of less than $70. But this was just the beginning of the trail, not the end. In another plot twist, the man identified by a corporate registry search as president, sole director and shareholder of Mono Shoes — Jehad Albatniji — claimed he, too, had been a victim of fraud. In September, while he was in Jordan, Albatniji exchanged emails with one of MacEwan’s lawyers. He alleged a man in Montreal introduced him to another man in Toronto — the “main culprit,” Albatniji said, who had access to an account in Hong Kong. Here the story enters its second major theatre: East Asia. From the Mono Shoes TD account, investigators were able to track a trail of transactions to accounts based in Hong Kong. Lewadniuk — who has worked with the RCMP’s financial crimes unit in Red Deer for three years, with expertise in money laundering involving the proceeds of crime — said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn’t stick around. “More and more, the money doesn’t stay in Canada,” he said. “They’ll try to get it sent out to a country outside of Canada because it is harder for us to recover the funds or follow up.” In cases like this, Lewadniuk said, finding out exactly who is responsible and building a case strong enough to lay criminal charges is rare. Criminals often create shell companies with corporate accounts, sometimes using stolen identities, to shuffle money around while concealing the identity of the people controlling the accounts.
Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, has expertise handling major complex frauds and money laundering involving the proceeds of crime. Lewadniuk said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn't stick around. ( Trevor Howell / StarMetro Calgary )
“They want to make it as hard as possible for people to be able to trace where the money goes, so you go from account to account to account through so many countries,” said Lewadniuk. Just one day after MacEwan wired $1.9 million to the Mono Shoes account, $1.4 million of the stolen funds was sent from the Mono Shoes account to an account supposedly operated by a company called Kinglong Commerce Development Ltd., based in Hong Kong. So began a series of transactions that would see the money moved from account to account before it was reinvested in a legitimate real-estate deal back on Canadian soil. Around the same time the fraud was unfolding in Edmonton, Vancouver-based company Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd., owned by mother Jin Lan Feng and son John Yuan, was in the process of acquiring land in Richmond, B.C. The property at 4008 Stolberg St. was valued at over $25 million, but Hoi Fu Enterprises did not have the funds to purchase it outright. According to documents filed with the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the seller offered them a short-term mortgage to finance part of the purchase. The sale was completed on July 12, 2017, with Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd. acquiring the property through a holding company. To pay back the mortgage, Hoi Fu Enterprises borrowed money from Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering Ltd. in China. The registered legal representative and shareholder of that company is Yuan’s uncle. However, to lend Hoi Fu Enterprises the money, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering had to find a way to convert the funds from Chinese currency and send the money to Hoi Fu in Canada. This is how the stolen funds get involved. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering was then “introduced” to two individuals, Shao Xiong Ma and Shao Yun Ma, who claimed they could help purchase Canadian funds and move them from China to Canada, according to a statement filed on behalf of Hoi Fu Enterprises. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering agreed to lend the Mas the money in the form of Chinese renminbi on the condition that they repay their loan in Canadian dollars to Hoi Fu Enterprises in Canada. Between June and July of 2017, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering made four payments to the Mas totalling ¥6.7 million, which would have been worth approximately $1.2 million. In August, Hoi Fu Enterprises received three wire transfers totalling $1 million. What Hoi Fu Enterprises said it didn’t know was that the Mas had made a side deal with Kinglong Commerce Development. The Mas would make payments totalling ¥5.3 million — approximately $1 million — to four individuals and one company in China. In exchange, the Kinglong Commerce Development account, which had previously received $1.4 million in funds stolen during the MacEwan fraud, would transfer $1 million to Hoi Fu Enterprises. Kibben Jackson, a Vancouver-based lawyer who represented Hoi Fu Enterprises during MacEwan’s investigation and subsequent civil suits, said the owners contend they never knew the money they would eventually use to repay their mortgage on the property deal in Richmond was stolen from MacEwan University. Jackson said that after MacEwan threatened to seize $1 million from Hoi Fu Enterprises, the company settled the lawsuit in March 2018. He could not disclose how much money Hoi Fu Enterprises offered to MacEwan. While the case may have been complex, it was certainly not unique, according to experts in the field.
Garry Clement is a financial crime prevention expert and advocate, having once served as the national director for the RCMP's Proceeds of Crime Program and worked as an undercover operator investigating some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. ( Supplied )
Financial crimes specialist Garry Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. Clement previously worked with police for 34 years, going undercover to chase some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. He was also formerly the national director for the RCMP’s Proceeds of Crime Program. Clement said that, prior to 1997, there wasn’t a specific charge under the Criminal Code of Canada for being a member of an organized crime group, as there is under Hong Kong law. Without an equivalent on the books, immigrants with that kind of criminal history wouldn’t be automatically precluded from entering Canada. “As a result, we did end up with our fair share of known organized-crime figures in Canada,” said Clement. This allowed criminals to set up networks between the two countries that have persisted to this day. “You’ve created a network, and that network enables you to do a lot of things through various company formations,” said Clement. “That is essentially what you are seeing in China: Money is flowing that has been defrauded.” Clement said it is not uncommon for the proceeds of crime to end up in legitimate investments as criminals look to keep their money safe and out of reach of authorities. An investment of choice, said Clement, is real estate, given its relative stability and the large sums of money involved. “Nobody asks the genesis of the money,” Clement said. Through legal action in Hong Kong, the university was able to recover nearly $3.8 million from another individual — not named in court documents available in Vancouver or Montreal — who had also been transferred stolen MacEwan funds from the Mono Shoes TD Bank account. In all, MacEwan University announced on April 4, 2018 that it had successfully recovered $10.9 million of the $11.8 million lost to the scam. More than $960,000 remains missing — a stinging loss that has prompted change at the university and beyond. “Taxpayers rightly expect that the money we give to universities is spent on educating our students and isn’t lost because of poor financial controls that are in place,” Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt told StarMetro in a recent interview. “We all have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure that the money is spent properly.” After finding out it had been defrauded, the university waited a week before alerting the public to the loss. A press release assured students that the university’s IT systems were secure and that it had already begun tracking the majority of the stolen funds with the help of legal counsel in Montreal, London and Hong Kong. MacEwan University president Deborah Saucier was not made available for comment. When the administration credited the “swift response and diligent efforts” of staff, legal counsel, investigators and the banks for seeing the return of 92 per cent of the lost funds, it revealed few details about where the money went or how it was recovered.
The money-laundering loop. How stolen money in Edmonton masqueraded as legitimate capital in Vancouver. ( Andres Plana/StarMetro )
That was by design. A presentation to the 2018 Canadian Association of University Business Officers Conference reveals university officials feared “significant political fallout” and loss of reputation in the wake of the scam. University executives, according to the document, refused to provide media with access to Saucier and employed a “disciplined” communications strategy, despite public promises of transparency. In a statement posted online in October 2017, Saucier said “the fraud did shine spotlights on two glaring gaps in our organization.” An internal audit revealed there were inadequate controls in place for changing payment information. There was no requirement for a manager or supervisor to review changes to payment information on file. It also found employees didn’t bother to contact the vendor in any way to confirm the request was valid. The press release sent out in April outlined some of the measures administration took to ensure they wouldn’t be fooled again. Employees are now required to verify all changes to vendor files by phone and a followup email, and all financial changes must first be reviewed by a supervisor, manager or director. A supplied audit report system was also implemented, tracking every change made to vendor files. The university has made employee training in social engineering attacks, phishing and other online scams mandatory. Minister Schmidt praised MacEwan for making changes to its financial department, “including some staff changes at the highest levels, which was a good first step.” Brent Quinton, who was the university’s vice-president of finance and administration at the time of the fraud, resigned from his position three weeks after the fraud was discovered, walking away with a $540,000 severance payout. No staff members were fired, though some were placed in different positions. Harry Oosteroff, executive director of the MacEwan Staff Association, said “our members were treated appropriately.” The provincial government is taking steps to prevent such costly, embarrassing mistakes in the future. The Ministry of Advanced Education’s senior financial officer is now leading a team tasked with “identifying ways that we can help build capacity at institutions to improve their financial controls” so public dollars allocated for the benefit of post-secondary students don’t end up in the wrong hands. “There are always improvements that can be made, and our department is working with institutions to continually improve the financial systems that are used to protect the taxpayers’ dollars,” Schmidt said. After all, this isn’t the first time a post-secondary institution in Alberta has been fooled. An investigation into a similar fraud at the University of Lethbridge found that while the university had such controls in place, staff weren’t following them. The University of Lethbridge sent $368,000 to scammers over a two-month period in 2016, “when payments owing to an external vendor of the university were sent through a process of misdirection to an alternative, nonauthentic bank account,” said Mike Mahon, president and vice-chancellor, in a statement in December 2016.
Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with an affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new bank account.
Const. Lewadniuk said low-tech solutions, such as having two people sign off on financial transactions or following up on emails with a phone call to the person or company in question, can be key in avoiding high-tech fraud. There are institutional changes on the horizon as well. Clement, the financial crimes specialist, is eager to see stronger regulations around identifying beneficial ownership of property, corporations and bank accounts. Beneficial ownership is an arrangement in which the person who enjoys the benefits of the property or bank accounts, such as profits, isn’t necessarily the person listed on the title. Clement said that, until recently, numbered companies would have one or two directors listed, “but there was not that requirement to drill down to see who is actually the beneficial owners of that money.” Finance ministers across Canada entered an agreement to strengthen such regulations and bring them into force by July 1, 2019. The regulations seek to curb the misuse of corporations and other legal entities being exploited for tax evasion, money laundering, corruption and financing terrorism. But until those regulations are brought into force and investigators are given the resources they need to chase down these types of crime, Clement fears such financial crime will continue “unabated.” “If you stem the flow of money and stem their ability to make that profit, you can curb a lot of activity,” said Clement. “But as long as there’s that profit to be made, people are going to gamble.” Claire Theobald is an Edmonton-based reporter who covers crime and the courts. Follow her on Twitter: @clairetheobald With files from Michael Mui
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DERRY, N.H. – Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the first presidential straw poll of the 2012 cycle, kicking off New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary election race.
Romney won with 35 percent, beating second-place finisher Ron Paul by 24 points in the WMUR-ABC News straw poll of members of the state Republican Party. In third place was former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who won 8 percent—just one point ahead of Sarah Palin, who drew 7 percent.
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Because Romney has such high name recognition here and has a home in Wolfeboro, N.H., he was widely expected to win—and observers here were far more interested in who would come in second and third.
Only three candidates—Romney, Pawlenty and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum—have spent significant amounts of time on the ground in the state over the past few months. At today’s convention, Pawlenty staffed a table to promote his new book while Santorum consultant and longtime New Hampshire operative Mike Biundo had a table and worked the crowd.
Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint each received 5 percent of the vote, while pizza mogul Herman Cain took 4 percent.
The remaining names on the ballot garnered fewer votes than Cain, the tea party favorite and radio host who has already announced his exploratory committee. Santorum received 3 percent of the vote—tied with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Indiana Rep. Mike Pence and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Losing to even Donald Trump, who took 1 percent of the vote: South Dakota Sen. John Thune and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, who both received no votes.
The poll is a strong showing for Romney, who drew 39 percent support in a Jan. 7 NH Journal poll of likely New Hampshire voters. Noteworthy is how far ahead he is of Pawlenty and Santorum, the other two candidates who have spent significant time in the state in the past year.
“It shows that Romney has a core of support here in the state and they are obviously part of the party structure and they came out and gave him their support today,” longtime New Hampshire Republican consultant Jim Merrill, who ran Romney’s New Hampshire PAC in 2008, told POLITICO.
Biundo, Santorum’s consultant, told POLITICO his boss wasn’t worried about the results. “It’s just a straw poll. And it’s early,” he said, emphasizing that New Hampshire voters expect engaged candidates and are often swayed by unexpected underdogs who work hard.
Romney pulled off a win even as party delegates elected a tea party candidate for state chairman over an establishment Republican hand-picked by former Gov. John Sununu, the outgoing chairman. Jack Kimball, who lost the GOP gubernatorial nomination earlier this year, beat Cheshire County GOP chairwoman Juliana Bergeron by just 19 votes.
Still, the straw poll’s collection of tea party candidates collectively finished far ahead of Beltway favorites like Daniels, Huntsman and Thune. Taken together, Paul, Palin, Bachmann, DeMint and Cain represented 31 percent of votes cast in the straw poll.
The delegates gathered here at Pinkerton Academy were clearly more enthusiastic about the chairman’s race than about the straw poll: 421 people voted in the chairman’s race, but only 273 voted in the straw poll.
The straw poll is an unusual undertaking for the New Hampshire GOP, unlike Iowa, where the late summer GOP straw poll in Ames each cycle is organized months in advance, is widely publicized and is open to a much larger pool of voters.
Correction: An earlier version of this story reported that Romney won with 36 percent of the vote. ||||| Mitt Romney tops New Hampshire presidential straw poll; tea-party favorite Jack Kimball elected state GOP chair
By Felicia Sonmez
Updated: 3:45 p.m.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (R) took the top spot in a presidential straw poll of the 493 members of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee today while tea-party-backed businessman Jack Kimball bested an establishment candidate to become the state party's new chair.
The results were somewhat at odds with each other: Kimball's victory is a boon for New Hampshire's tea-party activists, who have become a rising force within the state party, while Romney's win is a sign that on the presidential level, key party insiders are backing a more establishment candidate a year out from the Granite State's first-in-the-nation primary.
Thirty-five percent of the 273 members voting in the straw poll backed Romney, who came in second in the state's 2008 Republican primary and earlier this month held a wide lead in a poll of New Hampshire Republicans and GOP-leaning independents.
Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul came in second in the straw poll with 11 percent, followed by former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty (R) with eight percent, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (R) with seven percent and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) with five percent.
(Worth noting: While fewer than 300 state committee members voted in the presidential straw poll, 421 members cast ballots in the race for state party chairman -- a reminder that it's wise not to read to much into the straw poll results.)
The straw poll, which was conducted by ABC News and Manchester-based WMUR-TV at the state party's annual gathering in Derry, asked state committee members to choose from 20 potential White House contenders, including those such as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) who have ruled out of the running. Write-in candidates were also permitted.
In the race for state party chairman, members voted 222-to-199 to elect Kimball, who also chairs the Granite State Patriots Liberty PAC, over Cheshire County Republican Party Chair Juliana Bergeron.
Kimball's win came after he and several other tea-party-backed candidates had come up short in recent races: last year, Kimball placed second in the GOP's gubernatorial primary and another tea-party favorite, Ovide Lamontagne, came up short in his bid for the GOP Senate nod.
Amid signs that Kimball was gaining traction, former governor John H. Sununu, the outgoing state party chairman, broke with tradition earlier this month and endorsed Bergeron in the race. Most other influential Republicans had also backed Bergeron, although Kimball had won the support of former Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R).
The New Hampshire presidential primary is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 14, 2012 and is open to registered Republicans and independent voters. While straw polls such as today's set expectations and indicate early support, they're typically worth taking with a large grain of salt, as they sample a small cross-section of the New Hampshire primary electorate.
On top of that, none of the major candidates has formally announced his or her bid, let alone begun campaigning. Polls taken a year out from New Hampshire's 2008 presidential primary showing former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) and then-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) with commanding leads weren't predictive of who would win on primary day.
Romney will travel to New Hampshire in early March, his first visit to the Granite State since the November midterms. Pawlenty will be visiting the state on Monday and Tuesday to promote his new book.
The list of Republicans on the presidential straw poll ballot included Romney, Bachmann, Paul, Palin, Pawlenty, Christie, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, conservative commentator Herman Cain, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Sen. Jim DeMint (S.C.), former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Sen. Judd Gregg (N.H.), former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, Rep. Mike Pence (Ind.), former Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.), Sen. John Thune (S.C.) and Donald Trump. | – We're still nearly two years from the 2012 election, no better time to have a straw poll of a few hundred people in New Hampshire steal the political headlines. And the winner is: Mitt Romney, of course. He was supposed to win on his home turf, the only question being whether he'd do so in convincing fashion. And, as Politico reports, he did. (Maybe the bigger news is that Tea Party favorite Jack Kimball defeated an establishment candidate to become state GOP chair, notes the Washington Post.). The straw poll results: Mitt Romney, 35% Ron Paul, 11% Tim Pawlenty, 8% Sarah Palin, 7% Michele Bachmann, Jim DeMint, 5% Pizza mogul Herman Cain, 4% Tied at 3%: Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Chris Christie, Mitch Daniels, Mike Pence, and Mike Huckabee Tied at 2%: Rudy Giuliani, Judd Gregg, Gary Johnson, and "other" Tied at 1%: Donald Trump, Haley Barbour Jon Huntsman Jr. and John Thune were on the ballot but got no votes. Politico notes that only Romney, Pawlenty, and Santorum spent any time in the state. The bottom line, from ABC's The Note blog: "Romney's still the solid frontrunner here, but there's plenty of room for another Republican to break through here. Pawlenty's showing was also impressive, given how new he is to the scene. He has, however, been working New Hampshire, as have his supporters." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.DERRY, N.H. – Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the first presidential straw poll of the 2012 cycle, kicking off New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary election race.
Romney won with 35 percent, beating second-place finisher Ron Paul by 24 points in the WMUR-ABC News straw poll of members of the state Republican Party. In third place was former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who won 8 percent—just one point ahead of Sarah Palin, who drew 7 percent.
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Because Romney has such high name recognition here and has a home in Wolfeboro, N.H., he was widely expected to win—and observers here were far more interested in who would come in second and third.
Only three candidates—Romney, Pawlenty and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum—have spent significant amounts of time on the ground in the state over the past few months. At today’s convention, Pawlenty staffed a table to promote his new book while Santorum consultant and longtime New Hampshire operative Mike Biundo had a table and worked the crowd.
Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint each received 5 percent of the vote, while pizza mogul Herman Cain took 4 percent.
The remaining names on the ballot garnered fewer votes than Cain, the tea party favorite and radio host who has already announced his exploratory committee. Santorum received 3 percent of the vote—tied with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Indiana Rep. Mike Pence and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Losing to even Donald Trump, who took 1 percent of the vote: South Dakota Sen. John Thune and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, who both received no votes.
The poll is a strong showing for Romney, who drew 39 percent support in a Jan. 7 NH Journal poll of likely New Hampshire voters. Noteworthy is how far ahead he is of Pawlenty and Santorum, the other two candidates who have spent significant time in the state in the past year.
“It shows that Romney has a core of support here in the state and they are obviously part of the party structure and they came out and gave him their support today,” longtime New Hampshire Republican consultant Jim Merrill, who ran Romney’s New Hampshire PAC in 2008, told POLITICO.
Biundo, Santorum’s consultant, told POLITICO his boss wasn’t worried about the results. “It’s just a straw poll. And it’s early,” he said, emphasizing that New Hampshire voters expect engaged candidates and are often swayed by unexpected underdogs who work hard.
Romney pulled off a win even as party delegates elected a tea party candidate for state chairman over an establishment Republican hand-picked by former Gov. John Sununu, the outgoing chairman. Jack Kimball, who lost the GOP gubernatorial nomination earlier this year, beat Cheshire County GOP chairwoman Juliana Bergeron by just 19 votes.
Still, the straw poll’s collection of tea party candidates collectively finished far ahead of Beltway favorites like Daniels, Huntsman and Thune. Taken together, Paul, Palin, Bachmann, DeMint and Cain represented 31 percent of votes cast in the straw poll.
The delegates gathered here at Pinkerton Academy were clearly more enthusiastic about the chairman’s race than about the straw poll: 421 people voted in the chairman’s race, but only 273 voted in the straw poll.
The straw poll is an unusual undertaking for the New Hampshire GOP, unlike Iowa, where the late summer GOP straw poll in Ames each cycle is organized months in advance, is widely publicized and is open to a much larger pool of voters.
Correction: An earlier version of this story reported that Romney won with 36 percent of the vote. ||||| Mitt Romney tops New Hampshire presidential straw poll; tea-party favorite Jack Kimball elected state GOP chair
By Felicia Sonmez
Updated: 3:45 p.m.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (R) took the top spot in a presidential straw poll of the 493 members of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee today while tea-party-backed businessman Jack Kimball bested an establishment candidate to become the state party's new chair.
The results were somewhat at odds with each other: Kimball's victory is a boon for New Hampshire's tea-party activists, who have become a rising force within the state party, while Romney's win is a sign that on the presidential level, key party insiders are backing a more establishment candidate a year out from the Granite State's first-in-the-nation primary.
Thirty-five percent of the 273 members voting in the straw poll backed Romney, who came in second in the state's 2008 Republican primary and earlier this month held a wide lead in a poll of New Hampshire Republicans and GOP-leaning independents.
Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul came in second in the straw poll with 11 percent, followed by former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty (R) with eight percent, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (R) with seven percent and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) with five percent.
(Worth noting: While fewer than 300 state committee members voted in the presidential straw poll, 421 members cast ballots in the race for state party chairman -- a reminder that it's wise not to read to much into the straw poll results.)
The straw poll, which was conducted by ABC News and Manchester-based WMUR-TV at the state party's annual gathering in Derry, asked state committee members to choose from 20 potential White House contenders, including those such as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) who have ruled out of the running. Write-in candidates were also permitted.
In the race for state party chairman, members voted 222-to-199 to elect Kimball, who also chairs the Granite State Patriots Liberty PAC, over Cheshire County Republican Party Chair Juliana Bergeron.
Kimball's win came after he and several other tea-party-backed candidates had come up short in recent races: last year, Kimball placed second in the GOP's gubernatorial primary and another tea-party favorite, Ovide Lamontagne, came up short in his bid for the GOP Senate nod.
Amid signs that Kimball was gaining traction, former governor John H. Sununu, the outgoing state party chairman, broke with tradition earlier this month and endorsed Bergeron in the race. Most other influential Republicans had also backed Bergeron, although Kimball had won the support of former Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R).
The New Hampshire presidential primary is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 14, 2012 and is open to registered Republicans and independent voters. While straw polls such as today's set expectations and indicate early support, they're typically worth taking with a large grain of salt, as they sample a small cross-section of the New Hampshire primary electorate.
On top of that, none of the major candidates has formally announced his or her bid, let alone begun campaigning. Polls taken a year out from New Hampshire's 2008 presidential primary showing former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) and then-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) with commanding leads weren't predictive of who would win on primary day.
Romney will travel to New Hampshire in early March, his first visit to the Granite State since the November midterms. Pawlenty will be visiting the state on Monday and Tuesday to promote his new book.
The list of Republicans on the presidential straw poll ballot included Romney, Bachmann, Paul, Palin, Pawlenty, Christie, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, conservative commentator Herman Cain, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Sen. Jim DeMint (S.C.), former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Sen. Judd Gregg (N.H.), former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, Rep. Mike Pence (Ind.), former Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.), Sen. John Thune (S.C.) and Donald Trump. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 13,583 |
Protesters are calling for the resignation of a Montana judge who said a 14-year-old rape victim was "older than her chronological age" and had "as much control of the situation" as her rapist.
District Judge G. Todd Baugh made the comments Monday in handing former Billings Senior High School teacher Stacey Rambold a 15-year sentence, then suspending all but 30 days.
Baugh did not return calls to The Associated Press Wednesday. He earlier told the Billings Gazette that what he said was "stupid and wrong." The teen in the case committed suicide when she was 16.
Community organizer Sheena Rice says a Thursday protest outside the courthouse will go on, despite the apology. She says Baugh should have known better as a judge than to blame the victim.
She says a petition will be circulated calling for Baugh's resignation.
___
Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com ||||| BILLINGS - A judge’s conclusion that a 14-year-old Billings rape victim was “as much in control of the situation” as her school-teacher rapist has sparked outrage across the nation.
Organizers have scheduled a Thursday rally and a petition drive against District Judge G. Todd Baugh, who Monday handed down a net sentence of 30 days in jail to former Billings Senior High teacher Stacey Rambold, 54, who raped 14-year-old Cherice Morales.
The sentence came after Rambold, 54, failed to meet sex offender treatment requirements and other conditions that would have ended the now six-year-old case.
Morales killed herself weeks before her 17th birthday as her former sexual relationship with Rambold became a criminal case.
Under state law, children younger than 16 cannot consent to sexual intercourse, which makes Rambold’s crime felony rape.
However, issuing the sentence Baugh said Morales not only had equal control of the rape, but was also a troubled youth “older than her chronological age.” The remark sparked public outrage, first from Morales’ mother, Auliea Hanlon, and then from people calling for the judge to at least be censured.
Hanlon left the court screaming “you people suck.” The mother blames Rambold for Morales’ suicide and told the court the former teacher belonged in prison.
On Tuesday, Hanlon said in a written statement that she no longer believes in justice after Baugh’s remarks and sentence order.
“As I looked on in disbelief, Judge Baugh stated that our teenage daughter was as much in control of the situation as her teacher was,” Hanlon said. “She wasn’t even old enough to get a driver’s license. But Judge Baugh, who never met our daughter, justified the paltry sentence saying she was older than her chronological age.
“I guess somehow it makes a rape more acceptable if you blame the victim, even if she was only 14.”
***
Public objection to Baugh’s remarks have prompted a protest planned for 12:15 p.m. Thursday at Veterans Memorial Park, which adjoins the Yellowstone County Courthouse in downtown Billings. The story was recirculated on the Internet and drew comments on the websites of several national news publications.
“Something is not right with our system when a judge can make that kind of decision,” said Marian Bradley of the Montana National Organization for Women. “Unless we show our outrage, none of our children are safe and no one will think of us. I think the judge needs to be reviewed and he needs to be sanctioned.”
Bradley, who has worked with the victims of sexual assault, will circulate a petition calling for the state to investigate Baugh’s sentence, which county prosecutors Tuesday told the Associated Press was within statutory guidelines.
Protest organizer Sheena Rice said the suggestion that any 14-year-old child was on equal footing with a rapist in his 40s, let alone a person of authority, like a schoolteacher, was outrageous.
“What angered me is that the judge said the victim was older than her chronological age,” Rice said. “I don’t care if she wore makeup. I don’t care if she dressed provocatively. She was a 14-year-old and he was in a position of power.”
As a victim of rape, Rice said she thinks it’s strange that the justice system would have mandatory sentences for drug crimes, but that a rape conviction could involve a month in jail.
***
On Tuesday, Baugh stood by his comments that Morales was a troubled youth who was older than her age when it came to sexual matters. That didn’t make Rambold’s sex with Morales any less of a crime, he said.
“Obviously, a 14-year-old can’t consent. I think that people have in mind that this was some violent, forcible, horrible rape,” Baugh said. “It was horrible enough as it is, just given her age, but it wasn’t this forcible beat-up rape.”
Baugh said Morales’ death complicated the county attorney’s ability to prosecute Rambold. After Morales’ suicide, the prosecution and defense reached an agreement that Rambold would enter sexual offender treatment. If the former teacher completed treatment and complied with other conditions, the case would have been closed.
But Rambold broke terms of the agreement by associating with teens, who were his relatives, and by becoming sexually involved with an adult, but not notifying authorities.
“I think what people are seeing is a sentence for rape of 30 days. Obviously on the face of it, if you look at it that way, it’s crazy,” Baugh said. “No wonder people are upset. I’d be upset, too if that happened.” ||||| Close Get email notifications on Greg Tuttle daily!
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Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. ||||| Thousands of activist bits and bytes are marching forward to build your page! Just a sec . . . . [loading....] | – A Montana judge has apologized for comments he made about a 14-year-old female rape victim that seemed to take the "blame the victim" approach to a new level. "I don't know what I was thinking or trying to say," Judge G. Todd Baugh tells the Billings Gazette. "It was just stupid and wrong." In ordering a former high school teacher to spend just 30 days in jail for raping a student, Baugh explained on Monday that she was "older than her chronological age" and was "as much in control" as teacher Stacey Rambold. The girl committed suicide with the criminal case pending. "What I said is demeaning of all women, not what I believe and irrelevant to the sentencing," Baugh wrote in a letter to the newspaper. "My apologies to all my fellow citizens." He also promised to explain his sentencing decision in more detail. (Baugh had previously said that this wasn't "forcible beat-up rape," notes the Missoulian.) Outrage continues to build over the comments, with a protest outside the courthouse scheduled for tomorrow, reports the AP. Also, MoveOn has an online petition calling for Baugh's resignation. Prosecutors had wanted Rambold to spend 10 years in prison. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Protesters are calling for the resignation of a Montana judge who said a 14-year-old rape victim was "older than her chronological age" and had "as much control of the situation" as her rapist.
District Judge G. Todd Baugh made the comments Monday in handing former Billings Senior High School teacher Stacey Rambold a 15-year sentence, then suspending all but 30 days.
Baugh did not return calls to The Associated Press Wednesday. He earlier told the Billings Gazette that what he said was "stupid and wrong." The teen in the case committed suicide when she was 16.
Community organizer Sheena Rice says a Thursday protest outside the courthouse will go on, despite the apology. She says Baugh should have known better as a judge than to blame the victim.
She says a petition will be circulated calling for Baugh's resignation.
___
Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com ||||| BILLINGS - A judge’s conclusion that a 14-year-old Billings rape victim was “as much in control of the situation” as her school-teacher rapist has sparked outrage across the nation.
Organizers have scheduled a Thursday rally and a petition drive against District Judge G. Todd Baugh, who Monday handed down a net sentence of 30 days in jail to former Billings Senior High teacher Stacey Rambold, 54, who raped 14-year-old Cherice Morales.
The sentence came after Rambold, 54, failed to meet sex offender treatment requirements and other conditions that would have ended the now six-year-old case.
Morales killed herself weeks before her 17th birthday as her former sexual relationship with Rambold became a criminal case.
Under state law, children younger than 16 cannot consent to sexual intercourse, which makes Rambold’s crime felony rape.
However, issuing the sentence Baugh said Morales not only had equal control of the rape, but was also a troubled youth “older than her chronological age.” The remark sparked public outrage, first from Morales’ mother, Auliea Hanlon, and then from people calling for the judge to at least be censured.
Hanlon left the court screaming “you people suck.” The mother blames Rambold for Morales’ suicide and told the court the former teacher belonged in prison.
On Tuesday, Hanlon said in a written statement that she no longer believes in justice after Baugh’s remarks and sentence order.
“As I looked on in disbelief, Judge Baugh stated that our teenage daughter was as much in control of the situation as her teacher was,” Hanlon said. “She wasn’t even old enough to get a driver’s license. But Judge Baugh, who never met our daughter, justified the paltry sentence saying she was older than her chronological age.
“I guess somehow it makes a rape more acceptable if you blame the victim, even if she was only 14.”
***
Public objection to Baugh’s remarks have prompted a protest planned for 12:15 p.m. Thursday at Veterans Memorial Park, which adjoins the Yellowstone County Courthouse in downtown Billings. The story was recirculated on the Internet and drew comments on the websites of several national news publications.
“Something is not right with our system when a judge can make that kind of decision,” said Marian Bradley of the Montana National Organization for Women. “Unless we show our outrage, none of our children are safe and no one will think of us. I think the judge needs to be reviewed and he needs to be sanctioned.”
Bradley, who has worked with the victims of sexual assault, will circulate a petition calling for the state to investigate Baugh’s sentence, which county prosecutors Tuesday told the Associated Press was within statutory guidelines.
Protest organizer Sheena Rice said the suggestion that any 14-year-old child was on equal footing with a rapist in his 40s, let alone a person of authority, like a schoolteacher, was outrageous.
“What angered me is that the judge said the victim was older than her chronological age,” Rice said. “I don’t care if she wore makeup. I don’t care if she dressed provocatively. She was a 14-year-old and he was in a position of power.”
As a victim of rape, Rice said she thinks it’s strange that the justice system would have mandatory sentences for drug crimes, but that a rape conviction could involve a month in jail.
***
On Tuesday, Baugh stood by his comments that Morales was a troubled youth who was older than her age when it came to sexual matters. That didn’t make Rambold’s sex with Morales any less of a crime, he said.
“Obviously, a 14-year-old can’t consent. I think that people have in mind that this was some violent, forcible, horrible rape,” Baugh said. “It was horrible enough as it is, just given her age, but it wasn’t this forcible beat-up rape.”
Baugh said Morales’ death complicated the county attorney’s ability to prosecute Rambold. After Morales’ suicide, the prosecution and defense reached an agreement that Rambold would enter sexual offender treatment. If the former teacher completed treatment and complied with other conditions, the case would have been closed.
But Rambold broke terms of the agreement by associating with teens, who were his relatives, and by becoming sexually involved with an adult, but not notifying authorities.
“I think what people are seeing is a sentence for rape of 30 days. Obviously on the face of it, if you look at it that way, it’s crazy,” Baugh said. “No wonder people are upset. I’d be upset, too if that happened.” ||||| Close Get email notifications on Greg Tuttle daily!
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HOUSTON - A kidnapping victim was shot to death Thursday during an FBI investigation at a northeast Houston home.
Investigators said FBI agents were conducting an operation at a home in the 7300 block of Elbert Street when the victim, 47-year-old Ulises Valladares, was shot and killed.
WATCH: Conroe police provide updates on kidnapping victim shot by FBI
Sources said Valladares was taken from a Conroe home in the 1700 block of Tyler Lane Wednesday morning.
Authorities said two men forced their way into the home around 8 a.m. Valladares and his 12-year-son were inside at the time. When Valladares answered the door, the men pushed their way in with guns, according to investigators.
READ: Kidnapping victim shot to death: Timeline of events
The men demanded money, bound Valladares and the child, and began searching the house for valuables. They kicked in the door to a bedroom where Valladares' brother lived, according to court records.
During their search for valuables, the child told police that he heard the men say that his uncle, who was not home during the break-in, owed them $8,000.
The men took Valladares from the house, left the child, and told him not to contact police or they would kill his father. The child was able to free himself and contact a neighbor to get help.
After a neighbor called the boy's uncle at work, he came home to speak with police. During the meeting, the uncle received a phone call around noon from an unknown person who was speaking Spanish and said he was a part of "El Cartel Del Golfo," a Mexican drug cartel, court records said. The caller demanded $20,000 for Valladares' safe return, according to police. When the uncle told the man he did not have the money, the man told the uncle to "figure it out" and to call back when he had it, according to court documents. The man also told the uncle that the house was being watched and they would kill his brother if they discovered that police were involved, court records said.
The uncle denied owing money to anyone.
The uncle later told investigators that he recently lent a relative money for house repairs and the relative repaid him with a car that he registered in his name.
Conroe police then contacted the FBI.
With help from the FBI, authorities were able to track the phone to a location near the relative's house.
They then tracked the phone to a Best Western on Bay Area Boulevard, where two men, Jimmy Tony Sanchez, 38, and Nicholas Chase Cunningham, 42, were detained. They are charged with aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery. Investigators said they may be charged with capital murder.
Further investigation revealed that Cunningham is married to the uncle's relative, according to court documents.
Valladares was not found at the hotel, but Cunningham told investigators that he was being kept at his girlfriend's house in the 7300 block of Elbert Street in Trinity Gardens in northeast Houston, according to court documents.
Investigators and the FBI went to the house where FBI agents made entry into the home where Valladares was being held.
Court records indicate that authorities found Valladares' with his hands bound tape.
According to sources, FBI agents accidentally shot Valladares. He was taken to LBJ Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Cunningham's girlfriend, 35-year-old Sophia Perez Heath, was questioned by investigators.
During the interview, she told investigators that Cunningham and Sanchez brought Valladares to her home Wednesday night. She said that when Valladares arrived, his hands were bound and there was something over his head, according to court records.
Heath told investigators that Cunningham told her that he needed to leave Valladares at her house and asked her to watch him.
She is being charged with aggravated kidnapping.
Houston FBI Public Affairs Officer Christina Garza said during a news conference on Thursday that several people were inside the northeast Houston home, including two children, at the time of the shooting. No one else was injured.
When KPRC 2 reporter Cathy Hernandez asked if the agents knew children were in the home, Garza said, "That's why we're here."
Further details of the shooting and the FBI investigation have not yet been released because the operation is ongoing, Garza said.
Cunningham, Heath and Sanchez appeared in court Friday. Cunningham and Sanchez were denied bond. A judge set heath's bond at $1 million. She was ordered to wear an ankle bracelet if she makes bond.
Neighbors react
Monique McKnight, a neighbor in Trinity Gardens, said she was awakened by the raid.
"It sounded like an explosion and that was about 3 or 4 o’clock this morning," she said.
Another neighbor, who didn't want to be identified, said, "We just heard gunshots. It was like four, pop, pop, pops.”
McKnight said the people living in the home had recently moved in.
“The kids and stuff that lived over there and I would tell them I would see them roaming around,” she said.
McKnight said she believes her neighbors are a family-- a father, mother and two school-aged children. She said the little girl attended school, but the boy did not.
"When the little girl would catch the bus, he would still be there, so he wasn't at school,” McKnight said.
FBI responds
The FBI agent involved in the shooting was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation.
The FBI released a statement that read:
"FBI was conducting an operation at a home in the 7300 block of Elbert Street in Northeast Houston. During the course of the operation, an individual was fatally injured. The FBI's Evidence Response Team is on scene. As with any agent-involved shooting, the Shooting Incident Review Team will investigate the matter."
In another statement, the FBI said:
"A Shooting Incident Review Team (SIRT) has arrived in Houston, as is standard in all agent-involved shootings. The SIRT is comprised of experienced FBI Special Agents who conduct a thorough, factual, and objective investigation of the events. At the conclusion of its investigation, SIRT provides reports to the Department of Justice and the local police department and District Attorney’s Office investigating the incident.
"The FBI takes very seriously any shooting incidents involving our agents and as such have an effective, time-tested process for addressing them. In the interest of protecting the investigation's integrity, we cannot comment regarding investigative details."
Copyright 2018 by KPRC Click2Houston - All rights reserved. ||||| Updated Jan. 30: Revised throughout to include additional details.
A federal agent shot a kidnapping victim dead during a predawn raid at a northeast Houston home last week after the man grabbed his gun, authorities said.
Houston police CHief Art Acevedo said the FBI agent who shot Ulises Valladares, 47, around 3:45 a.m. Thursday didn't know that it was the victim who had grabbed his rifle.
"A well intentioned effort to rescue a man who had been kidnapped ended in a tragic outcome," he said. ||||| Kidnapping victim shot in FBI 'operation' in Trinity Gardens area
An FBI agent shot and killed a kidnapping victim during a predawn operation in northeast Houston, hours after the Conroe man was bound with duct tape and pulled from his home by gunmen who later demanded ransom.
The man — still bound — was hit by gunfire as the FBI burst into the Trinity Gardens home where he was being held with at least one woman and some children inside, officials said.
Details remained murky late Thursday as multiple law enforcement agencies continued to investigate at the small home still trimmed with Christmas lights.
"The system failed," Conroe Police Chief Philip Dupuis told reporters during an emotional press conference Thursday afternoon. "We do this job to help people and it doesn't always go our way."
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Two men and a woman were arrested Thursday at two different locations on first-degree felony charges in connection with the case. A fourth person — the wife of one of the accused — was questioned but not charged, police said.
"We've got the bad guys," said Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon. "Even though it's good work on behalf of Conroe Police Department, it's still a tragedy."
Nicholas Chase Cunningham, 42, and Jimmy Tony Sanchez, 38, were charged with aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery. Sophia Perez Heath, 35, faces one count of aggravated kidnapping, according to authorities.
The FBI agent who fired the fatal shot is on administrative leave pending an internal investigation, according to agency spokeswoman Christina Garza.
"In the interest of protecting the investigation's integrity, we cannot comment regarding investigative details," she said in an emailed statement.
Demanding money
The chaos that ended early Thursday started the day before at a Tyler Lane home in Conroe the man shared with his 12-year-old son and brother.
About 8 a.m. Wednesday, the boy heard a knock on the door. The brother was at work at the time, but the father answered the door and two men rushed in with guns, Conroe Police Sgt. Jeff Smith said.
"They were demanding money they were owed that nobody knew anything about," Smith said.
They tore the house apart and took some property, then bound the boy and his father with duct tape before deciding to take the father with them.
The attackers ordered the boy not to call police. But at some point after the assailants fled, the boy broke free and ran to a neighbor's house, Smith said.
The neighbor called police, who launched an investigation and began interviewing the child and the brother.
As authorities worked to unravel what happened, the brother got a call to his cell phone from a man who demanded a ransom and claimed to be with a cartel. At that point, Conroe police called in the FBI, who obtained a federal warrant that helped them track the suspects' phone to a hotel in the Webster area, Smith said.
"At that point we had full FBI resources," he said. "This is not something that happens every day. You get kidnappings but not movie-style where there's people bound and removed, ransoms demanded."
When federal investigators forced their way into the hotel room around midnight, they detained and questioned three people, including Cunningham and Sanchez. From that, authorities were able to trace the victim's location to the Trinity Gardens home in the 7300 block of Elbert.
After the shooting, the victim was rushed to Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, where he died, Garza said.
Smith stressed there was no indication any of the suspected kidnappers actually had cartel connections.
"There are oftentimes claims of a cartel connection just to place a fear factor," Smith said. "It appears somebody connected to the family was involved."
The cartel link, he said, "was just used as a threat" to better extort money.
All three suspects could face life sentences, and Ligon said he may consider harsher charges as well.
"There's a possibility of filing a felony murder because the defendants put this into play," he said. "We will anticipate seeking a no-bond for the incident."
Sanchez has a long criminal history dating back to at least 1997, ranging from burglary to retaliation. One of Cunningham's prior arrests included aggravated robbery, a conviction for which he was still on parole, according to Texas Department of Public Safety records.
Ligon said he fought to bring the suspects back to Montgomery County to deliver "the most justice possible."
Because the shooting took place in the Houston city limits, Houston Police Department will investigate, along with the FBI and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Neighbors shocked
The outburst of violence sent shock waves along the quiet street of modest homes.
"This is not what happens on Elbert Street," said Flora Henry-Smith, who grew up there.
Monique McKnight, who lives nearby, recounted waking up to the sound of gunfire.
"It sounded like an explosion," she said.
Another neighbor described hearing four shots in the dead of night.
It's not clear who lived in the single-story home at the center of the early morning activity, but according to neighbors the household including two adults and two young children who'd all been there about a year.
McKnight said investigators questioned her about the children. Other neighbors said they didn't see much of the family but were "shocked" at the turn of events.
"Everybody gets along," said one woman, who asked not to be named.
Sharon Ettinoffe stayed the night in her 91-year-old mother's home just around the corner — and woke to federal agents pounding on the door, asking for information.
She didn't have anything to offer, and the federal officials at the door wouldn't give out details on what happened, she said.
"Your neighborhood will be safer now," one agent told her. | – A "movie-style" kidnapping came to a grim ending as an FBI agent accidentally shot and killed the bound victim in Texas. "We do this job to help people and it doesn't always go our way," Conroe Police Chief Philip Dupuis said Thursday, per the Houston Chronicle. A day earlier, Ulises Villadares was taken from his Conroe home by armed men. Villadares' 12-year-old son was tied up by the men but eventually escaped and called police; the boy said he overheard the kidnappers says Villadares' brother, who lives at the residence but wasn't home, owed them $8,000, per KPRC. A phone call to that brother demanding a $20,000 ransom was then traced to a Best Western in Houston, where Jimmy Sanchez, 38, and Nicholas Cunningham, 42, were arrested. Cunningham, married to a relative of Villadares' brother, admitted to having a girlfriend who was holding Villadares, court documents show. It was at her home, with two children present, that a bound Villadares was accidentally shot around 3:45am Thursday, reports the Dallas Morning News. Sophia Perez Heath, 35, told authorities Cunningham had brought the man to her house Wednesday and asked her to watch him, per KPRC. Heath is charged with aggravated kidnapping, while Cunningham and Sanchez face that as well as aggravated robbery charges. "We've got the bad guys," but "it's still a tragedy," Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon tells the Chronicle, noting felony murder charges might also be filed. The FBI agent who fired the fatal shot is now on administrative leave. Meanwhile, Villadares' brother tells authorities he received a car from his female relative in exchange for money he gave her for house repairs, per KPRC. He says he didn't owe anyone money. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.HOUSTON - A kidnapping victim was shot to death Thursday during an FBI investigation at a northeast Houston home.
Investigators said FBI agents were conducting an operation at a home in the 7300 block of Elbert Street when the victim, 47-year-old Ulises Valladares, was shot and killed.
WATCH: Conroe police provide updates on kidnapping victim shot by FBI
Sources said Valladares was taken from a Conroe home in the 1700 block of Tyler Lane Wednesday morning.
Authorities said two men forced their way into the home around 8 a.m. Valladares and his 12-year-son were inside at the time. When Valladares answered the door, the men pushed their way in with guns, according to investigators.
READ: Kidnapping victim shot to death: Timeline of events
The men demanded money, bound Valladares and the child, and began searching the house for valuables. They kicked in the door to a bedroom where Valladares' brother lived, according to court records.
During their search for valuables, the child told police that he heard the men say that his uncle, who was not home during the break-in, owed them $8,000.
The men took Valladares from the house, left the child, and told him not to contact police or they would kill his father. The child was able to free himself and contact a neighbor to get help.
After a neighbor called the boy's uncle at work, he came home to speak with police. During the meeting, the uncle received a phone call around noon from an unknown person who was speaking Spanish and said he was a part of "El Cartel Del Golfo," a Mexican drug cartel, court records said. The caller demanded $20,000 for Valladares' safe return, according to police. When the uncle told the man he did not have the money, the man told the uncle to "figure it out" and to call back when he had it, according to court documents. The man also told the uncle that the house was being watched and they would kill his brother if they discovered that police were involved, court records said.
The uncle denied owing money to anyone.
The uncle later told investigators that he recently lent a relative money for house repairs and the relative repaid him with a car that he registered in his name.
Conroe police then contacted the FBI.
With help from the FBI, authorities were able to track the phone to a location near the relative's house.
They then tracked the phone to a Best Western on Bay Area Boulevard, where two men, Jimmy Tony Sanchez, 38, and Nicholas Chase Cunningham, 42, were detained. They are charged with aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery. Investigators said they may be charged with capital murder.
Further investigation revealed that Cunningham is married to the uncle's relative, according to court documents.
Valladares was not found at the hotel, but Cunningham told investigators that he was being kept at his girlfriend's house in the 7300 block of Elbert Street in Trinity Gardens in northeast Houston, according to court documents.
Investigators and the FBI went to the house where FBI agents made entry into the home where Valladares was being held.
Court records indicate that authorities found Valladares' with his hands bound tape.
According to sources, FBI agents accidentally shot Valladares. He was taken to LBJ Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Cunningham's girlfriend, 35-year-old Sophia Perez Heath, was questioned by investigators.
During the interview, she told investigators that Cunningham and Sanchez brought Valladares to her home Wednesday night. She said that when Valladares arrived, his hands were bound and there was something over his head, according to court records.
Heath told investigators that Cunningham told her that he needed to leave Valladares at her house and asked her to watch him.
She is being charged with aggravated kidnapping.
Houston FBI Public Affairs Officer Christina Garza said during a news conference on Thursday that several people were inside the northeast Houston home, including two children, at the time of the shooting. No one else was injured.
When KPRC 2 reporter Cathy Hernandez asked if the agents knew children were in the home, Garza said, "That's why we're here."
Further details of the shooting and the FBI investigation have not yet been released because the operation is ongoing, Garza said.
Cunningham, Heath and Sanchez appeared in court Friday. Cunningham and Sanchez were denied bond. A judge set heath's bond at $1 million. She was ordered to wear an ankle bracelet if she makes bond.
Neighbors react
Monique McKnight, a neighbor in Trinity Gardens, said she was awakened by the raid.
"It sounded like an explosion and that was about 3 or 4 o’clock this morning," she said.
Another neighbor, who didn't want to be identified, said, "We just heard gunshots. It was like four, pop, pop, pops.”
McKnight said the people living in the home had recently moved in.
“The kids and stuff that lived over there and I would tell them I would see them roaming around,” she said.
McKnight said she believes her neighbors are a family-- a father, mother and two school-aged children. She said the little girl attended school, but the boy did not.
"When the little girl would catch the bus, he would still be there, so he wasn't at school,” McKnight said.
FBI responds
The FBI agent involved in the shooting was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation.
The FBI released a statement that read:
"FBI was conducting an operation at a home in the 7300 block of Elbert Street in Northeast Houston. During the course of the operation, an individual was fatally injured. The FBI's Evidence Response Team is on scene. As with any agent-involved shooting, the Shooting Incident Review Team will investigate the matter."
In another statement, the FBI said:
"A Shooting Incident Review Team (SIRT) has arrived in Houston, as is standard in all agent-involved shootings. The SIRT is comprised of experienced FBI Special Agents who conduct a thorough, factual, and objective investigation of the events. At the conclusion of its investigation, SIRT provides reports to the Department of Justice and the local police department and District Attorney’s Office investigating the incident.
"The FBI takes very seriously any shooting incidents involving our agents and as such have an effective, time-tested process for addressing them. In the interest of protecting the investigation's integrity, we cannot comment regarding investigative details."
Copyright 2018 by KPRC Click2Houston - All rights reserved. ||||| Updated Jan. 30: Revised throughout to include additional details.
A federal agent shot a kidnapping victim dead during a predawn raid at a northeast Houston home last week after the man grabbed his gun, authorities said.
Houston police CHief Art Acevedo said the FBI agent who shot Ulises Valladares, 47, around 3:45 a.m. Thursday didn't know that it was the victim who had grabbed his rifle.
"A well intentioned effort to rescue a man who had been kidnapped ended in a tragic outcome," he said. ||||| Kidnapping victim shot in FBI 'operation' in Trinity Gardens area
An FBI agent shot and killed a kidnapping victim during a predawn operation in northeast Houston, hours after the Conroe man was bound with duct tape and pulled from his home by gunmen who later demanded ransom.
The man — still bound — was hit by gunfire as the FBI burst into the Trinity Gardens home where he was being held with at least one woman and some children inside, officials said.
Details remained murky late Thursday as multiple law enforcement agencies continued to investigate at the small home still trimmed with Christmas lights.
"The system failed," Conroe Police Chief Philip Dupuis told reporters during an emotional press conference Thursday afternoon. "We do this job to help people and it doesn't always go our way."
Now Playing:
Two men and a woman were arrested Thursday at two different locations on first-degree felony charges in connection with the case. A fourth person — the wife of one of the accused — was questioned but not charged, police said.
"We've got the bad guys," said Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon. "Even though it's good work on behalf of Conroe Police Department, it's still a tragedy."
Nicholas Chase Cunningham, 42, and Jimmy Tony Sanchez, 38, were charged with aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery. Sophia Perez Heath, 35, faces one count of aggravated kidnapping, according to authorities.
The FBI agent who fired the fatal shot is on administrative leave pending an internal investigation, according to agency spokeswoman Christina Garza.
"In the interest of protecting the investigation's integrity, we cannot comment regarding investigative details," she said in an emailed statement.
Demanding money
The chaos that ended early Thursday started the day before at a Tyler Lane home in Conroe the man shared with his 12-year-old son and brother.
About 8 a.m. Wednesday, the boy heard a knock on the door. The brother was at work at the time, but the father answered the door and two men rushed in with guns, Conroe Police Sgt. Jeff Smith said.
"They were demanding money they were owed that nobody knew anything about," Smith said.
They tore the house apart and took some property, then bound the boy and his father with duct tape before deciding to take the father with them.
The attackers ordered the boy not to call police. But at some point after the assailants fled, the boy broke free and ran to a neighbor's house, Smith said.
The neighbor called police, who launched an investigation and began interviewing the child and the brother.
As authorities worked to unravel what happened, the brother got a call to his cell phone from a man who demanded a ransom and claimed to be with a cartel. At that point, Conroe police called in the FBI, who obtained a federal warrant that helped them track the suspects' phone to a hotel in the Webster area, Smith said.
"At that point we had full FBI resources," he said. "This is not something that happens every day. You get kidnappings but not movie-style where there's people bound and removed, ransoms demanded."
When federal investigators forced their way into the hotel room around midnight, they detained and questioned three people, including Cunningham and Sanchez. From that, authorities were able to trace the victim's location to the Trinity Gardens home in the 7300 block of Elbert.
After the shooting, the victim was rushed to Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, where he died, Garza said.
Smith stressed there was no indication any of the suspected kidnappers actually had cartel connections.
"There are oftentimes claims of a cartel connection just to place a fear factor," Smith said. "It appears somebody connected to the family was involved."
The cartel link, he said, "was just used as a threat" to better extort money.
All three suspects could face life sentences, and Ligon said he may consider harsher charges as well.
"There's a possibility of filing a felony murder because the defendants put this into play," he said. "We will anticipate seeking a no-bond for the incident."
Sanchez has a long criminal history dating back to at least 1997, ranging from burglary to retaliation. One of Cunningham's prior arrests included aggravated robbery, a conviction for which he was still on parole, according to Texas Department of Public Safety records.
Ligon said he fought to bring the suspects back to Montgomery County to deliver "the most justice possible."
Because the shooting took place in the Houston city limits, Houston Police Department will investigate, along with the FBI and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Neighbors shocked
The outburst of violence sent shock waves along the quiet street of modest homes.
"This is not what happens on Elbert Street," said Flora Henry-Smith, who grew up there.
Monique McKnight, who lives nearby, recounted waking up to the sound of gunfire.
"It sounded like an explosion," she said.
Another neighbor described hearing four shots in the dead of night.
It's not clear who lived in the single-story home at the center of the early morning activity, but according to neighbors the household including two adults and two young children who'd all been there about a year.
McKnight said investigators questioned her about the children. Other neighbors said they didn't see much of the family but were "shocked" at the turn of events.
"Everybody gets along," said one woman, who asked not to be named.
Sharon Ettinoffe stayed the night in her 91-year-old mother's home just around the corner — and woke to federal agents pounding on the door, asking for information.
She didn't have anything to offer, and the federal officials at the door wouldn't give out details on what happened, she said.
"Your neighborhood will be safer now," one agent told her. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 10,821 |
These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Devastating, indeed.
Demi Moore wasn't anywhere near California when news broke that a young man had drowned at her Beverly Hills home Sunday and was in "absolute shock" when she learned of the tragedy.
NEWS: Man Found Dead in Demi Moore's Pool
"I was out of the country traveling to meet my daughters for a birthday celebration when I got the devastating news," Moore said in a statement through her rep. "The loss of a child is an unthinkable tragedy and my heart goes out to this young man's family and friends."
"I ask that you please respect the privacy of all concerned during this sensitive time," the 52-year-old actress added.
Edenilson Steven Valle, 21, had been part of a small party thrown at Moore's home by her assistant. He died shortly before 5 a.m. PT on July 19.
WATCH: Demi Moore Robbed of Over $200,000 in Designer Clothing
Friends and family reportedly told the coroner that Valle did not know how to swim. He had been left outside for a short time and was found floating in the deep end once someone came back outside. It was estimated that he had been in the water about 10 to 15 minutes, according to Los Angeles County coroner's Lt. Fred Corral. Firefighters were dispatched to Moore's home at 5:17 a.m., and Valle was pronounced dead on the scene.
The LAPD's West Los Angeles station is conducting an investigation into Valle's death. It is not a homicide investigation, as earlier in the day they considered the incident to be a tragic accident. ||||| Demi Moore Responds to News of a Man Found Dead in Her Pool: 'I Am in Absolute Shock'
The body of a 21-year-old man was discovered in the swimming pool at Demi Moore 's Beverly Hills home on Sunday morning, PEOPLE has confirmed. The news was first reported by TMZ Officer Lopez of the Los Angeles Police Department tells PEOPLE that they do not suspect foul play and assume the death was from drowning; the LAPD awaits a toxicology report. Lopez added that the victim had been attending a small gathering of five or six people.Moore, 52, was not home at the time, as she's traveling out of town. Police tell PEOPLE that her assistant was present when the body was found.In a statement to PEOPLE, Moore expressed her shock over the death."I am in absolute shock," she said in the statement. "I was out of the country traveling to meet my daughters for a birthday celebration when I got this devastating news."The loss of a child is an unthinkable tragedy, and my heart goes out to this young man's family and friends," she continued. "I ask that you please respect the privacy of all concerned during this sensitive time."A neighbor told TMZ that Moore's three children with ex Bruce Willis have been staying at the house and throwing "parties every day, day and night." However, law enforcement told the site that no one from Moore's family was present when the body was found.Police have identified the deceased as Edenilson Steven Valle of Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Times Moore's daughter Scout Willis will celebrate her 24th birthday on Monday. Her younger sister, Tallulah Belle , 21, has been documenting their celebrations on social media throughout the weekend. The girls appear to be in New York City, where Scout has a home.Eldest sister Rumer Willis was traveling with the Dancing with the Stars: Live! Perfect Ten Tour earlier this summer, but she was seen at LAX on Friday. | – The 21-year-old man found dead in Demi Moore's pool has been identified as Edenilson Steven Valle of Los Angeles, who was believed to be "a staff member," a police officer says. Authorities were called to Moore's Beverly Hills home yesterday around 5:20am after Valle was found floating in the pool's deep end. Witnesses at the gathering of five or six people say he'd been missing for 10 to 15 minutes and couldn't swim, reports the Los Angeles Times. Police say they don't suspect foul play and believe Valle died from drowning, though they're awaiting a toxicology report. The officer confirms Moore wasn't home at the time, "nor were there any family members associated with the celebrity at the location." "I am in absolute shock," Moore says in a statement, per People. "I was out of the country traveling to meet my daughters for a birthday celebration when I got this devastating news." She adds, "The loss of a child is an unthinkable tragedy and my heart goes out to this young man's family and friends." Daughters Scout, who turns 24 today, and Tallulah, were reportedly celebrating in New York City over the weekend, based on social media activity. ETOnline has more. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Devastating, indeed.
Demi Moore wasn't anywhere near California when news broke that a young man had drowned at her Beverly Hills home Sunday and was in "absolute shock" when she learned of the tragedy.
NEWS: Man Found Dead in Demi Moore's Pool
"I was out of the country traveling to meet my daughters for a birthday celebration when I got the devastating news," Moore said in a statement through her rep. "The loss of a child is an unthinkable tragedy and my heart goes out to this young man's family and friends."
"I ask that you please respect the privacy of all concerned during this sensitive time," the 52-year-old actress added.
Edenilson Steven Valle, 21, had been part of a small party thrown at Moore's home by her assistant. He died shortly before 5 a.m. PT on July 19.
WATCH: Demi Moore Robbed of Over $200,000 in Designer Clothing
Friends and family reportedly told the coroner that Valle did not know how to swim. He had been left outside for a short time and was found floating in the deep end once someone came back outside. It was estimated that he had been in the water about 10 to 15 minutes, according to Los Angeles County coroner's Lt. Fred Corral. Firefighters were dispatched to Moore's home at 5:17 a.m., and Valle was pronounced dead on the scene.
The LAPD's West Los Angeles station is conducting an investigation into Valle's death. It is not a homicide investigation, as earlier in the day they considered the incident to be a tragic accident. ||||| Demi Moore Responds to News of a Man Found Dead in Her Pool: 'I Am in Absolute Shock'
The body of a 21-year-old man was discovered in the swimming pool at Demi Moore 's Beverly Hills home on Sunday morning, PEOPLE has confirmed. The news was first reported by TMZ Officer Lopez of the Los Angeles Police Department tells PEOPLE that they do not suspect foul play and assume the death was from drowning; the LAPD awaits a toxicology report. Lopez added that the victim had been attending a small gathering of five or six people.Moore, 52, was not home at the time, as she's traveling out of town. Police tell PEOPLE that her assistant was present when the body was found.In a statement to PEOPLE, Moore expressed her shock over the death."I am in absolute shock," she said in the statement. "I was out of the country traveling to meet my daughters for a birthday celebration when I got this devastating news."The loss of a child is an unthinkable tragedy, and my heart goes out to this young man's family and friends," she continued. "I ask that you please respect the privacy of all concerned during this sensitive time."A neighbor told TMZ that Moore's three children with ex Bruce Willis have been staying at the house and throwing "parties every day, day and night." However, law enforcement told the site that no one from Moore's family was present when the body was found.Police have identified the deceased as Edenilson Steven Valle of Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Times Moore's daughter Scout Willis will celebrate her 24th birthday on Monday. Her younger sister, Tallulah Belle , 21, has been documenting their celebrations on social media throughout the weekend. The girls appear to be in New York City, where Scout has a home.Eldest sister Rumer Willis was traveling with the Dancing with the Stars: Live! Perfect Ten Tour earlier this summer, but she was seen at LAX on Friday. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 36,547 |
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Working at a startup that gets acquired can feel like winning the lottery. Not working at a startup, but still cashing in on its acquisition, can feel pretty good too, as Eric Martin learned when Jet.com Inc. sold to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in a $3.3 billion deal.
Martin, who works for a custom bath installation company, received 100,000 Jet shares last year when he won a contest to see who could get the most people to sign up for memberships to the online shopping site. He spent $18,000 on online ads and came away with a stake now worth millions in one of 2015’s buzziest startups.
“It feels good; it feels really good,” Martin, a York, Pennsylvania, resident, said in a phone interview during his lunch break. “The way I think to describe it is ‘occasional hysterical laughing.”’
Martin, 30, has no idea what his stake is worth, though Fusion reported last year that his shares may be valued from $10 million to $20 million. The cash-and-stock sale to Wal-Mart could have boosted that since Jet’s private valuation was pegged at around $1.5 billion last November, but the company has also raised money since Martin won his shares.
That could have reduced the value of his stake because startups sometimes give preferential shares to later-term investors that can squeeze out smaller investors or employees. Martin, who works in digital marketing, said he’s still waiting for Jet to tell him how much his stake is worth, but he’s hoping it’s in the “multi-millions.”
Wal-Mart’s purchase gives the world’s largest retailer a way to boost its online offering and better compete with Amazon.com Inc. Jet’s founder, Marc Lore, worked at Amazon for about two years after selling his previous company to the e-commerce behemoth. He founded Jet as a members-only online retailer, aiming to cut prices below even what Amazon could offer. He’s raised more than $500 million in venture capital.
While he waits to find out exactly how rich he is, Martin is thinking about his own startup, Ideadash.com, an online portal that lets people post their ideas for inventions or businesses and get others to execute on them while retaining a stake in the project.
“I’m weighing my options,” he said. “I’ve got to take time to process all this.” ||||| Whether you're a venture capitalist or just a bill-paying Joe, you're probably wishing you were in Eric Martin's shoes right now.
Wal-Mart's $3.3 billion acquisition of e-commerce company Jet.com was potentially a flush exit for early employees and its familiar big-name investors like Goldman Sachs, Bain Capital and Fidelity. But it was also a probably huge windfall for 10 people who — like Pennsylvania's Eric Martin — won significant equity in the company.
Martin won 100,000 insider stock options in Jet.com last year as part of a contest aimed to get users to refer the most family and friends to the membership-based site. That means he'll likely get some sort of slice of Jet's $3.3 billion price tag, along with nine other contest winners, who each got 10,000 insider stock options.
It's a nice surprise for a family man who spent about $18,000 to refer about 8,000 customers to Jet in early 2015, surpassing more than 200,000 other contestants for the prize. Martin said he can't disclose the value of his shares, and he doesn't know how the Wal-Mart deal will pay out for him. (The terms of the deal weren't publicly disclosed.)
"Up until today, it was all just a hope and a wish and a dream," he said. "I don't think I'm some genius person that I thought Jet was going to work out. It was a gut instinct."
Martin, a devout Christian, said he hopes to live a lifestyle that "glorifies God," not money. He doesn't live like a millionaire, except for the occasional crab leg, though some reports have valued his Jet.com shares upward of $20 million.
But Jet.com has changed his life, Martin said, giving him the credibility to pursue a career in digital marketing, and inspiring a "gamefied" approach to his new start-up, Ideadash.
Martin, a self-proclaimed addict to Bloomberg Businessweek, was inspired to sign up for Jet by a January 2015 cover story. He then referred his wife (the main Jet shopper in the household) to sign up.
Martin saw that his rank immediately shot up in the contest. After referring a few close family and friends, he was able to estimate how many referrals the top candidates had, and after talking to another contestant on Facebook, he guessed he needed at least 4,000 referrals to win the whole thing.
"I was working out one night during the contest, I was really thinking about it. I wasn't really questioning at the time whether it would worth something or not," Martin said. "I thought, 'I think I can win. Should I win? Should I do this?' I think I prayed about it a little. If it's going to me or someone else, I thought, why not do it?"
Martin used sites like Swagbucks.com and Facebook ads to get referrals, and was able to pay his way to the top 10 with about $3,000. He figured that if he could win 10,000 shares for $3,000, anything less than $300,000 would be worth it for the top spot — so he went all in until he got a call from Jet.com co-founder Marc Lore.
Since future of his Jet shares remains unclear, Martin is focused on the big picture.
"The overarching theme of my life is 'the great idea,'" Martin said. "Ideadash was born out of frustration on my part, no way to get your ideas out there in a way to get some sort of financial gain or return. ....But even if this Jet thing is worth a lot of money, way down the ladder, I don't want to live in a way where all I care about is money. I hope I never care about money." ||||| Enlarge The Jet Insider home page. The new e-commerce company, founded by an earlier Amazon… more
In a highly unconventional move, a well-funded e-commerce startup is offering ownership shares in exchange for word-of-mouth advertising ahead of its planned 2015 launch.
Jet.com, the new venture of Diapers.com founder Marc Lore, posted the promotion on its site this morning. It's an attention-grabbing tactic to rapidly add as many users as possible, a crucial component of his plans to build a new competitor to Amazon, which acquired his former company for $550 million in 2010.
Here's how it works: Between now and February, users can sign up with email address or a Facebook account for a free six-month membership to the site, and receive a unique link to sign up others.
Get breaking business news delivered to your inbox. Sign up for our free newsletter .
The so-called "insiders" will be ranked by how many other users they sign up, and the top finisher on Feb. 7 will receive 100,000 stock options to buy Jet shares at the company's valuation that day.
Winners could exercise those options when or if Jet.com goes public or is acquired.
"The amount of this grant is on par with 4 year equity compensation packages received by some of our earliest and top-level employees," the Hoboken, N.J. company's Frequently Asked Questions page reads.
The rest of the final top 10 insiders will each get 10,000 stock options. Anyone in the top 10,000 receives an extra six months' free membership, and anyone who finishes in the top 100,000 receives pre-launch access to the site.
So what are the options worth? Only time will tell on the far side, but the company raised money this summer at a reported $100 million valuation.
Aside from being an unusual marketing tactic, the plan is shedding new light on the heretofore vague Jet.com plans. Lore, who sold Diapers.com parent Quidsi to Amazon after a protracted price war in 2010, still thinks he can build a successful e-commerce alternative to Amazon.
In September, Jet.com closed an $80 million investment round. New Enterprise Associates, Accel Partners, Bain Capital and MentorTech Ventures all contributed, and Western Technology Investment, a California debt-financing firm and Silicon Valley Bank also contributed.
The details of Jet's model have been slow to emerge, however. We now know it will use a membership model, and may price goods based on their proximity to buyers. Lore wrote the following on his blog in September: "In retail, e-commerce brands have fundamentally altered the way people shop — putting more power in consumers' hands through democratizing tools like price comparisons, ratings and reviews. But there is still more work to be done if we are to truly to live up to our stated ideals of greater transparency and customer empowerment. We have to ask ourselves: What are the hidden costs in e-commerce? Are there aspects of e-commerce that don't make sense? And most importantly, how do we expose these inefficiencies and empower customers to eliminate them? Via a spokeswoman, Lore declined to elaborate beyond what's already on the site.
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||||| × York County man could be worth $20 million after winning contest
Eric Martin could be worth twenty million dollars. “I don’t foresee myself getting a Lamborghini or something like that,” said Martin. It’s all thanks to a contest held by jet.com, which is a new company that hopes to be a cheaper version of Amazon. The contest judged how many people you could get sign up on their website. Martin got his friends and family to give their emails to jet.com, but that’s not how he won. “I would say my most successful idea was two websites. Swag-bucks dot com and gift-hawk dot com,” said Martin.
Martin paid those websites eighteen thousand dollars out of his own pocket. They then converted the money into virtual currency. “I just thought to myself oh, this website pays people to sign up for stuff. The more referrals I got, the better I did,” said Martin. The websites he paid got more than eight thousand people to register with jet.com, more than anyone else. That’s when he got an email saying he won. He knew it was real about a week later when he got a phone call from jet.com’s CEO Marc Lore. Lore told him he’d won a hundred thousand stock options in the company.
Those options could be worth anywhere from a million to twenty million if jet.com is sold or goes public. “It’s kind of like winning the lottery in a way. I think people who win the lottery they say don’t spend the money for a year, so I take it as a huge responsibility,” said Martin. That’s a good thing because, with a wife and two kids, he’s got a lot of responsibility. “I want my kids to have enough money that they can do anything, but not enough money that they do nothing. So that will be a balance. I’ll talk to lawyers and let them advise me. I don’t know,” said Martin.
It can’t all be business though. You have to have some fun, so what’s he going to do if the money comes through? “My wife grew up in Thailand until she was twelve, her parents were missionaries, so she’s always wanted to go back. So we’ll probably take a trip to Thailand. That would be cool,” said Martin. He’s a lucky guy, but he also earned it. For now, the size of his future bank account rests squarely on the success of jet.com. He thinks it could take as long as five years before it pans out, but he’s not in any rush. “I’d consider myself middle class so I have everything I need,” said Martin. ||||| Tech start-ups mint new millionaires every day. Many of these people are young Stanford and MIT graduates who live in Silicon Valley and spend years building their companies while subsisting on ramen noodles and Red Bull. Typically, they’re not funeral industry workers from Central Pennsylvania who spend three weeks learning to game referral competitions.
But there’s a first time for everything.
First, some background. There’s a new tech start-up called Jet.com. Maybe you saw it on the cover of Bloomberg Businessweek. It’s a membership-only online shopping club, similar to Costco, that says it will be able to charge between 10 and 15 percent less than other e-commerce sites by, essentially, cutting its margins to nothing. Jet hasn’t launched to the public yet. But it’s already one of the most-hyped start-ups of the year. It’s raised a staggering amount of money—more than $200 million, at a valuation said to be close to $600 million—and when it does debut (“very soon,” according to the company’s placeholder site), members will sign up to pay $49.99 a year for the privilege of shopping there, and Jet will make some of those millions back. Or it won’t.
The specifics of Jet’s business model aren’t important, for our purposes. What’s important is that, in the run-up to its launch, Jet ran a contest to try to get more people signed up for its “Insider” program, which entitled them to a free 6-month trial of the site and other perks. To stoke interest in the contest, the company offered 100,000 shares of Jet stock to the person who could sign up the most new Insiders, and 10,000 shares to the nine people with the next-highest numbers of sign-ups. (The company didn’t indicate how much 100,000 shares was, relative to its total number of shares, but one person familiar with Jet’s finances said that the winner’s stock could be worth between $10 million and $20 million if everything goes according to plan.)
$10 million to $20 million! For winning an online popularity contest! And that eye-popping opportunity is where Eric Martin comes in.
Eric Martin is not a greedy start-up bro, nor an inveterate gambler who can’t resist a sweepstakes. He’s a modest, soft-spoken 28-year-old who lives in York, Pennsylvania, a city of 40,000 located roughly 25 miles south of Harrisburg. He has a wife, two young girls, and a job as an “ancillary product specialist” for Golden Considerations, a funeral insurance company. (Basically, he’s the IT guy.) His life is stable but unglamorous. He plays online poker, but not for money. He goes to church on Sundays. He ran for Congress in his district in 2012, but lost in the Republican primary, finishing with only 3.3 percent of the votes.
One day last month, Martin was leafing through his father’s copy of Bloomberg Businessweek when he saw the cover story about Jet. Cool idea, he thought. After skimming the article, he went to the site, and signed up for the Insider program. There, he saw the contest, and the grand prize of 100,000 stock options. After reading the contest details, he was skeptical about his chances. After all, it was already January 15th — the contest had been going on since late November, and was only three weeks from being over. There were already more than 200,000 people signed up for the Insider program, meaning he’d be fighting his way through a big crowd. Still, he encouraged his wife, his brother and sister, his parents, and his in-laws to join, using a special referral link that was attached to his account.
Jet set up a leaderboard listing every Insider who was eligible for the contest, ranked by the number of referrals they’d generated. And when his family members started signing up, Martin noticed something odd. A single referral took him from a ranking of 232,582 to a ranking of 13,767. A second brought him to 7,518. A third put him in 5,232nd place. He was moving up the charts quickly, which meant that the contest was far less popular than he’d assumed. What if all those thousands of people weren’t competing for the grand prize? What if he could win 100,000 shares of the year’s hottest tech start-up simply by elbowing a few dozen people out of the way?
Using a 30-day free trial of a statistics app he’d downloaded, Martin plugged his numbers in, ran some calculations, and tried to roughly estimate how many sign-ups he would need in order to win the contest. The answer he got was shockingly low: if his math was right (and if there was no statistical outlier at the top of the leaderboard), he would need just 2,000 referrals to place himself near the top of the leaderboard.
Martin had plenty of experience corralling groups of people, thanks to his run for Congress. And 2,000 was a vanishingly small number of sign-ups, in the grand scheme of things. So he decided to jump in, and spend the next 22 days of his life signing up as many Jet Insiders as possible.
First, he tried buying a Facebook ad containing his unique referral link, as well as a brief description of the contest. But the Facebook ad didn’t move the needle much. He thought about placing an ad in Jet’s Google search results, but when he checked, he found that several other contest participants were already advertising there.
Instead, Martin took his campaign to so-called “rewarded advertising” sites like Swagbucks and Gifthulk. He knew about these sites from his sisters-in-law, who used them to earn gift cards and other small rewards in exchange for taking surveys, signing up for mailing lists, and doing other mundane Internet errands. And he knew that if he paid Swagbucks and Gifthulk to offer their users “swagbucks” and “hawkcoins” in exchange for Jet.com sign-ups, he might be able to growth-hack his way closer to the top of the leaderboard.
“One of their most important demographics is mothers,” Martin told me of the sites. “They’ll do a survey in exchange for a one-month trial of cosmetics … I don’t even remember all the stuff on there.”
All that mattered was that these sites had users who were, as Martin puts it, “trained to sign up for things.” Martin’s first campaign on Swagbucks cost about $3,000, and netted him roughly 2,000 sign-ups in a matter of days, vaulting him to 7th place on the leaderboard. Around that time, Jet began sending regular updates to the top-ranked Insiders, which contained the first names and last initials of the other front-runners, along with how many sign-ups each one had gotten. The first-place Insider, Martin learned, had generated more than 4,000 sign-ups.
At this point, Martin had a choice. For the next week, he could pay Swagbucks and Gifthulk a little more money to get enough sign-ups to keep himself somewhere in the top ten, and settle for the 10,000 runner-up shares. Or he could pay them a bunch more money, redouble his efforts, and try to lift himself into first place.
“I could probably have spent $3,000 or so and gotten into the top ten,” he says. “But the difference between 10,000 and 100,000 shares is pretty big.”
So he went all-in. For the next week, Martin spent thousands of dollars running paid campaigns on Swagbucks and Gifthulk. (He paid for it, in part, with his tax refund. “My wife was…nervous,” he says.) As the sites’ users clicked on his link, his referral total grew, and his rank kept climbing. He found another Jet Insider on Facebook, and compared rankings and referral numbers with him to get a better sense of where he stood. He checked the leaderboard obsessively. And eventually, on February 3rd, with three days left in the contest, he claimed the first-place spot.
Anyone who has bid on an eBay auction knows that online competitions don’t escalate in a linear fashion. They heat up in the last few days or minutes, with a flurry of people all trying to beat the deadline and usurp the winner. And so, as Martin stepped up his game in the hours leading up to February 6th, so did his competitors—several of whom ran expensive ad campaigns on Google to try to gain an edge in the standings. Every night at midnight, Jet would send out the top-ten list, and Martin would study it intently. There was Kyle T. from St. Petersburg, Florida, Collin M. from Boise, Idaho, and two guys from Tampa. All of these people were potential eleventh-hour spoilers.
Martin kept pumping money into his Swagbucks and Gifthulk campaigns, eventually spending $18,000 in all to put his referral links in prominent places on both sites. The money hurt leaving his pocket, but he consoled himself with the vision of start-up riches. “If this works out, it should be worth well more than my investment,” he thought.
The contest was slated to end at noon Eastern Time on February 6th. On the night of February 5th, Martin waited up until midnight for his daily update e-mail. But it never came. Out of desperation not to be eclipsed, he prepared a huge Facebook ad campaign that would blanket the entire country with his Jet referral link.
“I was crazy nervous that someone would come out of nowhere to win this thing,” he says.
But he never needed the Facebook campaign, as it turned out. The next day, the contest ended, and Martin had won with 8,167 referrals. After Jet.com had finished checking his paperwork and verifying the legitimacy of his tactics, it awarded him 100,000 common stock options. He went to the grocery store and bought snow crab legs to celebrate.
“You get this sense, like, oh, I could have some money now,” Martin says.
That’s understating it significantly. On paper, Eric Martin is now a millionaire, with a big stake in one of the most hotly anticipated start-ups in years. He likely won’t be able to exercise his options for years. And if Jet crashes and burns, they’ll be worthless, and his $18,000 will have been wasted. Even with boatloads of pre-launch buzz, Jet is still going up against Amazon, one of the most cutthroat competitors in the history of American capitalism. Much older and wiser businesses have died at Amazon’s hand, and Jet will need to prove that it can fend off attacks from the Seattle giant while building a sustainable business model.
“We’re taking a big swing,” Jet CEO Marc Lore told me. “You can’t do that without there being some risk.”
But if Jet does what its investors think it will, either going public or getting acquired for billions of dollars, Martin’s three-week referral sprint could have generated life-changing, generational wealth for him and his family.
For now, Martin has a big pile of theoretical money and a lot of hope. Tomorrow, he’ll go to his job at the funeral insurance company, fix some IT problems, and perhaps play a game of poker or two. In the next few weeks, he’ll speak with Lore and other Jet executives, and get early access to the site. He admits that he started participating in the Insider competition out of self-interest, but says that, as he’s learned more about what Jet’s trying to do, he’s gotten more supportive of the company’s mission. Still, he says in his typical, understated way, he’s trying not to get too far ahead of himself.
“I’m pretty much a realist,” Martin says. “Until I can actually see real dollars, it’s not going to hit home.” | – Sum up this story with whichever word you like: Luck. Foresight. Jealousy. In early 2015, Eric Martin spent $18,000 in a bid to win a contest being offered by the new startup Jet.com: Sign up the highest number of people for a preview version of the site, get 100,000 stock options. CNN Money reported that the then-28-year-old funneled money to sites like Swagbucks, getting people to sign up in exchange for rewards. More than 8,000 signups later, he was the winner. And how. With Walmart's Monday announcement of its $3.3 billion acquisition of Jet.com, the man from York, Pa., will likely reap a seven-figure windfall, reports Bloomberg. "The way I think to describe it is ‘occasional hysterical laughing," the 30-year-old says of his reaction. Reports at the time of his win put the potential value of the shares at up to $20 million, but CNBC reports Martin doesn't know the value of his shares, and Bloomberg explains how that number could be higher or lower due to changes in valuation or the distribution of preferential shares. At the time of his win, he told CNN Money, "I bought some snow crab legs to celebrate, but that's about it." He was equally low-key for Fox43: "I’d consider myself middle class so I have everything I need." Soon, he'll have that plus a pile of cash. He's not alone: The New York Business Journal reported that those who finished the contest in slots 2 through 10 got 10,000 options apiece. (This guy, meanwhile, might be the unluckiest man in tech.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.SHARE THIS ARTICLE Share Tweet Post Email
Working at a startup that gets acquired can feel like winning the lottery. Not working at a startup, but still cashing in on its acquisition, can feel pretty good too, as Eric Martin learned when Jet.com Inc. sold to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in a $3.3 billion deal.
Martin, who works for a custom bath installation company, received 100,000 Jet shares last year when he won a contest to see who could get the most people to sign up for memberships to the online shopping site. He spent $18,000 on online ads and came away with a stake now worth millions in one of 2015’s buzziest startups.
“It feels good; it feels really good,” Martin, a York, Pennsylvania, resident, said in a phone interview during his lunch break. “The way I think to describe it is ‘occasional hysterical laughing.”’
Martin, 30, has no idea what his stake is worth, though Fusion reported last year that his shares may be valued from $10 million to $20 million. The cash-and-stock sale to Wal-Mart could have boosted that since Jet’s private valuation was pegged at around $1.5 billion last November, but the company has also raised money since Martin won his shares.
That could have reduced the value of his stake because startups sometimes give preferential shares to later-term investors that can squeeze out smaller investors or employees. Martin, who works in digital marketing, said he’s still waiting for Jet to tell him how much his stake is worth, but he’s hoping it’s in the “multi-millions.”
Wal-Mart’s purchase gives the world’s largest retailer a way to boost its online offering and better compete with Amazon.com Inc. Jet’s founder, Marc Lore, worked at Amazon for about two years after selling his previous company to the e-commerce behemoth. He founded Jet as a members-only online retailer, aiming to cut prices below even what Amazon could offer. He’s raised more than $500 million in venture capital.
While he waits to find out exactly how rich he is, Martin is thinking about his own startup, Ideadash.com, an online portal that lets people post their ideas for inventions or businesses and get others to execute on them while retaining a stake in the project.
“I’m weighing my options,” he said. “I’ve got to take time to process all this.” ||||| Whether you're a venture capitalist or just a bill-paying Joe, you're probably wishing you were in Eric Martin's shoes right now.
Wal-Mart's $3.3 billion acquisition of e-commerce company Jet.com was potentially a flush exit for early employees and its familiar big-name investors like Goldman Sachs, Bain Capital and Fidelity. But it was also a probably huge windfall for 10 people who — like Pennsylvania's Eric Martin — won significant equity in the company.
Martin won 100,000 insider stock options in Jet.com last year as part of a contest aimed to get users to refer the most family and friends to the membership-based site. That means he'll likely get some sort of slice of Jet's $3.3 billion price tag, along with nine other contest winners, who each got 10,000 insider stock options.
It's a nice surprise for a family man who spent about $18,000 to refer about 8,000 customers to Jet in early 2015, surpassing more than 200,000 other contestants for the prize. Martin said he can't disclose the value of his shares, and he doesn't know how the Wal-Mart deal will pay out for him. (The terms of the deal weren't publicly disclosed.)
"Up until today, it was all just a hope and a wish and a dream," he said. "I don't think I'm some genius person that I thought Jet was going to work out. It was a gut instinct."
Martin, a devout Christian, said he hopes to live a lifestyle that "glorifies God," not money. He doesn't live like a millionaire, except for the occasional crab leg, though some reports have valued his Jet.com shares upward of $20 million.
But Jet.com has changed his life, Martin said, giving him the credibility to pursue a career in digital marketing, and inspiring a "gamefied" approach to his new start-up, Ideadash.
Martin, a self-proclaimed addict to Bloomberg Businessweek, was inspired to sign up for Jet by a January 2015 cover story. He then referred his wife (the main Jet shopper in the household) to sign up.
Martin saw that his rank immediately shot up in the contest. After referring a few close family and friends, he was able to estimate how many referrals the top candidates had, and after talking to another contestant on Facebook, he guessed he needed at least 4,000 referrals to win the whole thing.
"I was working out one night during the contest, I was really thinking about it. I wasn't really questioning at the time whether it would worth something or not," Martin said. "I thought, 'I think I can win. Should I win? Should I do this?' I think I prayed about it a little. If it's going to me or someone else, I thought, why not do it?"
Martin used sites like Swagbucks.com and Facebook ads to get referrals, and was able to pay his way to the top 10 with about $3,000. He figured that if he could win 10,000 shares for $3,000, anything less than $300,000 would be worth it for the top spot — so he went all in until he got a call from Jet.com co-founder Marc Lore.
Since future of his Jet shares remains unclear, Martin is focused on the big picture.
"The overarching theme of my life is 'the great idea,'" Martin said. "Ideadash was born out of frustration on my part, no way to get your ideas out there in a way to get some sort of financial gain or return. ....But even if this Jet thing is worth a lot of money, way down the ladder, I don't want to live in a way where all I care about is money. I hope I never care about money." ||||| Enlarge The Jet Insider home page. The new e-commerce company, founded by an earlier Amazon… more
In a highly unconventional move, a well-funded e-commerce startup is offering ownership shares in exchange for word-of-mouth advertising ahead of its planned 2015 launch.
Jet.com, the new venture of Diapers.com founder Marc Lore, posted the promotion on its site this morning. It's an attention-grabbing tactic to rapidly add as many users as possible, a crucial component of his plans to build a new competitor to Amazon, which acquired his former company for $550 million in 2010.
Here's how it works: Between now and February, users can sign up with email address or a Facebook account for a free six-month membership to the site, and receive a unique link to sign up others.
Get breaking business news delivered to your inbox. Sign up for our free newsletter .
The so-called "insiders" will be ranked by how many other users they sign up, and the top finisher on Feb. 7 will receive 100,000 stock options to buy Jet shares at the company's valuation that day.
Winners could exercise those options when or if Jet.com goes public or is acquired.
"The amount of this grant is on par with 4 year equity compensation packages received by some of our earliest and top-level employees," the Hoboken, N.J. company's Frequently Asked Questions page reads.
The rest of the final top 10 insiders will each get 10,000 stock options. Anyone in the top 10,000 receives an extra six months' free membership, and anyone who finishes in the top 100,000 receives pre-launch access to the site.
So what are the options worth? Only time will tell on the far side, but the company raised money this summer at a reported $100 million valuation.
Aside from being an unusual marketing tactic, the plan is shedding new light on the heretofore vague Jet.com plans. Lore, who sold Diapers.com parent Quidsi to Amazon after a protracted price war in 2010, still thinks he can build a successful e-commerce alternative to Amazon.
In September, Jet.com closed an $80 million investment round. New Enterprise Associates, Accel Partners, Bain Capital and MentorTech Ventures all contributed, and Western Technology Investment, a California debt-financing firm and Silicon Valley Bank also contributed.
The details of Jet's model have been slow to emerge, however. We now know it will use a membership model, and may price goods based on their proximity to buyers. Lore wrote the following on his blog in September: "In retail, e-commerce brands have fundamentally altered the way people shop — putting more power in consumers' hands through democratizing tools like price comparisons, ratings and reviews. But there is still more work to be done if we are to truly to live up to our stated ideals of greater transparency and customer empowerment. We have to ask ourselves: What are the hidden costs in e-commerce? Are there aspects of e-commerce that don't make sense? And most importantly, how do we expose these inefficiencies and empower customers to eliminate them? Via a spokeswoman, Lore declined to elaborate beyond what's already on the site.
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||||| × York County man could be worth $20 million after winning contest
Eric Martin could be worth twenty million dollars. “I don’t foresee myself getting a Lamborghini or something like that,” said Martin. It’s all thanks to a contest held by jet.com, which is a new company that hopes to be a cheaper version of Amazon. The contest judged how many people you could get sign up on their website. Martin got his friends and family to give their emails to jet.com, but that’s not how he won. “I would say my most successful idea was two websites. Swag-bucks dot com and gift-hawk dot com,” said Martin.
Martin paid those websites eighteen thousand dollars out of his own pocket. They then converted the money into virtual currency. “I just thought to myself oh, this website pays people to sign up for stuff. The more referrals I got, the better I did,” said Martin. The websites he paid got more than eight thousand people to register with jet.com, more than anyone else. That’s when he got an email saying he won. He knew it was real about a week later when he got a phone call from jet.com’s CEO Marc Lore. Lore told him he’d won a hundred thousand stock options in the company.
Those options could be worth anywhere from a million to twenty million if jet.com is sold or goes public. “It’s kind of like winning the lottery in a way. I think people who win the lottery they say don’t spend the money for a year, so I take it as a huge responsibility,” said Martin. That’s a good thing because, with a wife and two kids, he’s got a lot of responsibility. “I want my kids to have enough money that they can do anything, but not enough money that they do nothing. So that will be a balance. I’ll talk to lawyers and let them advise me. I don’t know,” said Martin.
It can’t all be business though. You have to have some fun, so what’s he going to do if the money comes through? “My wife grew up in Thailand until she was twelve, her parents were missionaries, so she’s always wanted to go back. So we’ll probably take a trip to Thailand. That would be cool,” said Martin. He’s a lucky guy, but he also earned it. For now, the size of his future bank account rests squarely on the success of jet.com. He thinks it could take as long as five years before it pans out, but he’s not in any rush. “I’d consider myself middle class so I have everything I need,” said Martin. ||||| Tech start-ups mint new millionaires every day. Many of these people are young Stanford and MIT graduates who live in Silicon Valley and spend years building their companies while subsisting on ramen noodles and Red Bull. Typically, they’re not funeral industry workers from Central Pennsylvania who spend three weeks learning to game referral competitions.
But there’s a first time for everything.
First, some background. There’s a new tech start-up called Jet.com. Maybe you saw it on the cover of Bloomberg Businessweek. It’s a membership-only online shopping club, similar to Costco, that says it will be able to charge between 10 and 15 percent less than other e-commerce sites by, essentially, cutting its margins to nothing. Jet hasn’t launched to the public yet. But it’s already one of the most-hyped start-ups of the year. It’s raised a staggering amount of money—more than $200 million, at a valuation said to be close to $600 million—and when it does debut (“very soon,” according to the company’s placeholder site), members will sign up to pay $49.99 a year for the privilege of shopping there, and Jet will make some of those millions back. Or it won’t.
The specifics of Jet’s business model aren’t important, for our purposes. What’s important is that, in the run-up to its launch, Jet ran a contest to try to get more people signed up for its “Insider” program, which entitled them to a free 6-month trial of the site and other perks. To stoke interest in the contest, the company offered 100,000 shares of Jet stock to the person who could sign up the most new Insiders, and 10,000 shares to the nine people with the next-highest numbers of sign-ups. (The company didn’t indicate how much 100,000 shares was, relative to its total number of shares, but one person familiar with Jet’s finances said that the winner’s stock could be worth between $10 million and $20 million if everything goes according to plan.)
$10 million to $20 million! For winning an online popularity contest! And that eye-popping opportunity is where Eric Martin comes in.
Eric Martin is not a greedy start-up bro, nor an inveterate gambler who can’t resist a sweepstakes. He’s a modest, soft-spoken 28-year-old who lives in York, Pennsylvania, a city of 40,000 located roughly 25 miles south of Harrisburg. He has a wife, two young girls, and a job as an “ancillary product specialist” for Golden Considerations, a funeral insurance company. (Basically, he’s the IT guy.) His life is stable but unglamorous. He plays online poker, but not for money. He goes to church on Sundays. He ran for Congress in his district in 2012, but lost in the Republican primary, finishing with only 3.3 percent of the votes.
One day last month, Martin was leafing through his father’s copy of Bloomberg Businessweek when he saw the cover story about Jet. Cool idea, he thought. After skimming the article, he went to the site, and signed up for the Insider program. There, he saw the contest, and the grand prize of 100,000 stock options. After reading the contest details, he was skeptical about his chances. After all, it was already January 15th — the contest had been going on since late November, and was only three weeks from being over. There were already more than 200,000 people signed up for the Insider program, meaning he’d be fighting his way through a big crowd. Still, he encouraged his wife, his brother and sister, his parents, and his in-laws to join, using a special referral link that was attached to his account.
Jet set up a leaderboard listing every Insider who was eligible for the contest, ranked by the number of referrals they’d generated. And when his family members started signing up, Martin noticed something odd. A single referral took him from a ranking of 232,582 to a ranking of 13,767. A second brought him to 7,518. A third put him in 5,232nd place. He was moving up the charts quickly, which meant that the contest was far less popular than he’d assumed. What if all those thousands of people weren’t competing for the grand prize? What if he could win 100,000 shares of the year’s hottest tech start-up simply by elbowing a few dozen people out of the way?
Using a 30-day free trial of a statistics app he’d downloaded, Martin plugged his numbers in, ran some calculations, and tried to roughly estimate how many sign-ups he would need in order to win the contest. The answer he got was shockingly low: if his math was right (and if there was no statistical outlier at the top of the leaderboard), he would need just 2,000 referrals to place himself near the top of the leaderboard.
Martin had plenty of experience corralling groups of people, thanks to his run for Congress. And 2,000 was a vanishingly small number of sign-ups, in the grand scheme of things. So he decided to jump in, and spend the next 22 days of his life signing up as many Jet Insiders as possible.
First, he tried buying a Facebook ad containing his unique referral link, as well as a brief description of the contest. But the Facebook ad didn’t move the needle much. He thought about placing an ad in Jet’s Google search results, but when he checked, he found that several other contest participants were already advertising there.
Instead, Martin took his campaign to so-called “rewarded advertising” sites like Swagbucks and Gifthulk. He knew about these sites from his sisters-in-law, who used them to earn gift cards and other small rewards in exchange for taking surveys, signing up for mailing lists, and doing other mundane Internet errands. And he knew that if he paid Swagbucks and Gifthulk to offer their users “swagbucks” and “hawkcoins” in exchange for Jet.com sign-ups, he might be able to growth-hack his way closer to the top of the leaderboard.
“One of their most important demographics is mothers,” Martin told me of the sites. “They’ll do a survey in exchange for a one-month trial of cosmetics … I don’t even remember all the stuff on there.”
All that mattered was that these sites had users who were, as Martin puts it, “trained to sign up for things.” Martin’s first campaign on Swagbucks cost about $3,000, and netted him roughly 2,000 sign-ups in a matter of days, vaulting him to 7th place on the leaderboard. Around that time, Jet began sending regular updates to the top-ranked Insiders, which contained the first names and last initials of the other front-runners, along with how many sign-ups each one had gotten. The first-place Insider, Martin learned, had generated more than 4,000 sign-ups.
At this point, Martin had a choice. For the next week, he could pay Swagbucks and Gifthulk a little more money to get enough sign-ups to keep himself somewhere in the top ten, and settle for the 10,000 runner-up shares. Or he could pay them a bunch more money, redouble his efforts, and try to lift himself into first place.
“I could probably have spent $3,000 or so and gotten into the top ten,” he says. “But the difference between 10,000 and 100,000 shares is pretty big.”
So he went all-in. For the next week, Martin spent thousands of dollars running paid campaigns on Swagbucks and Gifthulk. (He paid for it, in part, with his tax refund. “My wife was…nervous,” he says.) As the sites’ users clicked on his link, his referral total grew, and his rank kept climbing. He found another Jet Insider on Facebook, and compared rankings and referral numbers with him to get a better sense of where he stood. He checked the leaderboard obsessively. And eventually, on February 3rd, with three days left in the contest, he claimed the first-place spot.
Anyone who has bid on an eBay auction knows that online competitions don’t escalate in a linear fashion. They heat up in the last few days or minutes, with a flurry of people all trying to beat the deadline and usurp the winner. And so, as Martin stepped up his game in the hours leading up to February 6th, so did his competitors—several of whom ran expensive ad campaigns on Google to try to gain an edge in the standings. Every night at midnight, Jet would send out the top-ten list, and Martin would study it intently. There was Kyle T. from St. Petersburg, Florida, Collin M. from Boise, Idaho, and two guys from Tampa. All of these people were potential eleventh-hour spoilers.
Martin kept pumping money into his Swagbucks and Gifthulk campaigns, eventually spending $18,000 in all to put his referral links in prominent places on both sites. The money hurt leaving his pocket, but he consoled himself with the vision of start-up riches. “If this works out, it should be worth well more than my investment,” he thought.
The contest was slated to end at noon Eastern Time on February 6th. On the night of February 5th, Martin waited up until midnight for his daily update e-mail. But it never came. Out of desperation not to be eclipsed, he prepared a huge Facebook ad campaign that would blanket the entire country with his Jet referral link.
“I was crazy nervous that someone would come out of nowhere to win this thing,” he says.
But he never needed the Facebook campaign, as it turned out. The next day, the contest ended, and Martin had won with 8,167 referrals. After Jet.com had finished checking his paperwork and verifying the legitimacy of his tactics, it awarded him 100,000 common stock options. He went to the grocery store and bought snow crab legs to celebrate.
“You get this sense, like, oh, I could have some money now,” Martin says.
That’s understating it significantly. On paper, Eric Martin is now a millionaire, with a big stake in one of the most hotly anticipated start-ups in years. He likely won’t be able to exercise his options for years. And if Jet crashes and burns, they’ll be worthless, and his $18,000 will have been wasted. Even with boatloads of pre-launch buzz, Jet is still going up against Amazon, one of the most cutthroat competitors in the history of American capitalism. Much older and wiser businesses have died at Amazon’s hand, and Jet will need to prove that it can fend off attacks from the Seattle giant while building a sustainable business model.
“We’re taking a big swing,” Jet CEO Marc Lore told me. “You can’t do that without there being some risk.”
But if Jet does what its investors think it will, either going public or getting acquired for billions of dollars, Martin’s three-week referral sprint could have generated life-changing, generational wealth for him and his family.
For now, Martin has a big pile of theoretical money and a lot of hope. Tomorrow, he’ll go to his job at the funeral insurance company, fix some IT problems, and perhaps play a game of poker or two. In the next few weeks, he’ll speak with Lore and other Jet executives, and get early access to the site. He admits that he started participating in the Insider competition out of self-interest, but says that, as he’s learned more about what Jet’s trying to do, he’s gotten more supportive of the company’s mission. Still, he says in his typical, understated way, he’s trying not to get too far ahead of himself.
“I’m pretty much a realist,” Martin says. “Until I can actually see real dollars, it’s not going to hit home.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 7,290 |
CLOSE A village meeting devolved into chaos on Tuesday night after a Monsey man accused Mayor Demeza Delhomme of breaking up his marriage Peter Carr/The Journal News
Monsey man alleges Demeza Delhomme 'destroyed' his marriage
Buy Photo Spring Valley Village Board of Trustees meeting Feb. 23, 2016. (Photo: Peter Carr/The Journal News)Buy Photo
SPRING VALLEY - A village meeting devolved into chaos on Tuesday night after a Monsey man accused Mayor Demeza Delhomme of breaking up his marriage.
Reginald Alfred, 48, a maintenance worker, offered no proof of his claim, made minutes into an already vocal public comment period that saw dozens of firefighters and taxi drivers crowd into Village Hall.
"Mr. Delhomme is trying to use his power to get into my house," he said.
MEETING: Spring Valley passes $6.4M bond for Fire Dept., roads
RELATED: Mayor Demeza Delhomme: A short history
COVERAGE: Spring Valley mayor crowns self 'king of the village'
ROCKLAND news email: Sign up for the Rockland Angle e-newsletter
Bottom of story: Photo gallery, map
Alfred, dressed in a gray suit and a heavy black overcoat, rambled for three more minutes. "He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters."
A ripple of murmurs of astonishment went through the crowd as Delhomme bluntly denied the claim.
"I don't know this man," he said, raising his voice. "I've never met this man."
Trustee Vilair Fonvil stood up and shouted as others called for calm.
Fonvil pointed his finger at the mayor, used a crude term for sex and said, "And you say you don't know him?"
Tuesday's outburst was the latest in a series of disputes — personal and political — that have all but paralyzed the day-to-day business of government. In a tumultuous two years, Delhomme and other trustees have been accused of a litany of profane outbursts and insensitive comments.
Spring Valley is split between Delhomme and at least three Trustees: Vilair Fonvil, Asher Grossman and Sherry McGill, all Democrats. The Fonvil-led majority has stopped or stalled nearly every function of village government from hiring a village attorney to enforcing building and fire safety.
On Tuesday night, for example, dozens of Spring Valley firefighters gathered to push for a $6.4 million bond to replace their aging equipment.
Still, the 15-minute meltdown represented a new kind of fireworks for the two-and-a-half-square-mile village of 32,500.
Fonvil and Grossman appeared to have been tipped off ahead of time to Alfred's speech, encouraging him to speak up and recount his tale of alleged marital woes.
"Do you know his wife?" Fonvil asked.
Delhomme replied, "I know everybody in this community. I don't know the person."
The crowd broke into boos.
Toward the end of the shouting match, Trustee Emilia White, looking disgusted, called for calm.
"This is not the proper channel for that," she said, speaking to Alfred. "You need to file a police report."
Map: Spring Valley at a glance
Twitter: @alextailored
Read or Share this story: http://lohud.us/1TEDw4R ||||| A Rockland County village meeting devolved into a scene out of Maury Povich on Tuesday night when a resident accused the mayor of using his “power” to have sex with his wife.
Reginald Alfred, a 48-year-old maintenance man, took the microphone at the meeting and began sharing details of how Spring Valley Mayor Demeza Delhomme was a homewrecker who ruined his 12-year marriage, according to video recorded by The Journal News.
“He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters,” he said during a 15-minute shouting fest that riled up city officials and other residents in the audience.
When another resident in the audience asked Delhomme if he knew Alfred’s wife, the controversial mayor yelled, “I know everybody in this community. I don’t know the person.”
He vehemently denied the claims while holding his phone that was recording the confrontation, yelling, “I don’t know this man. I’ve never met this man.”
Alfred went back up to the mic at least one more time, calling the mayor a “liar.”
“I saw him in my house for Thanksgiving with the food inside,” he said, although he failed to provide any physical evidence of the salacious affair.
The riled-up crowd cheered their support for Alfred.
“If you really did this, you should be ashamed of yourself,” one resident said when he was up at the podium. “You are supposed to be a counselor, man, to take care of families, not destroy them.”
View video
Delhomme denied the allegations again to The Post on Wednesday afternoon, adding that he filed a police report after Tuesday night’s drama.
“I wish that man would get some kind of psychiatric help. I feel so bad for these kids involved,” he said of Alfred’s two daughters, who are 4 and 10.
He said he learned Wednesday that Alfred’s wife worked at the bank he goes to, but wouldn’t say whether he knew her personally.
“I don’t owe anyone that information,” Delhomme said.
He believes this is part of what he said is an ongoing smear campaign by two of the city’s trustees, Asher Grossman and Vilair Fonvil, who were also at the meeting.
“They’ve been battling me since I got elected,” he said. “They put him up to this.”
Fonvil lambasted Delhomme repeatedly Tuesday night, saying, “What I’m hearing here is public corruption.”
Alfred’s allegations are a new low for the mayor, who presides over the 2.5-square-mile village of 32,000 residents and has been embroiled in numerous scandals.
Last November, he pledged to nix any Jewish developer projects in secretly recorded conversations, saying it was payback for their lack of support in the 2013 election.
And during a massive snowstorm last January, he ordered the Department of Public Works to install a generator at his girlfriend’s house. | – The mayor of a village in New York was accused of sleeping with a village worker's wife during a raucous public meeting on Tuesday, the Journal News reports. "Mr. Delhomme is trying to use his power to get into my house," 48-year-old maintenance worker Reginald Alfred said during the meeting's public comment period. "He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters." Spring Valley Mayor Demeza Delhomme denied the allegations, but that wasn't the end of it. “You screwed his wife and you say you don’t know him?” Gawker quotes one angry village trustee. “I saw him in my house for Thanksgiving with the food inside,” the New York Post quotes further accusations from Alfred. Alfred appeared to have public approval—if not proof—on his side. The crowd cheered his accusations while booing Delhomme's denials. “If you really did this, you should be ashamed of yourself,” the Post quotes one Spring Valley resident. The meeting, while extreme, was not out of place in the village of 32,500. Gawker notes Delhomme has been a "bad mayor, in general." He was secretly recorded saying he wouldn't approve any projects from Jewish developers, and he once declared himself "king of the village." He even forced a city employee to install a generator for his girlfriend in the middle of a snowstorm. Delhomme admits Alfred's wife works at his bank, but he wouldn't say whether or not he knows her. He says he filed a police report against Alfred following the meeting. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.CLOSE A village meeting devolved into chaos on Tuesday night after a Monsey man accused Mayor Demeza Delhomme of breaking up his marriage Peter Carr/The Journal News
Monsey man alleges Demeza Delhomme 'destroyed' his marriage
Buy Photo Spring Valley Village Board of Trustees meeting Feb. 23, 2016. (Photo: Peter Carr/The Journal News)Buy Photo
SPRING VALLEY - A village meeting devolved into chaos on Tuesday night after a Monsey man accused Mayor Demeza Delhomme of breaking up his marriage.
Reginald Alfred, 48, a maintenance worker, offered no proof of his claim, made minutes into an already vocal public comment period that saw dozens of firefighters and taxi drivers crowd into Village Hall.
"Mr. Delhomme is trying to use his power to get into my house," he said.
MEETING: Spring Valley passes $6.4M bond for Fire Dept., roads
RELATED: Mayor Demeza Delhomme: A short history
COVERAGE: Spring Valley mayor crowns self 'king of the village'
ROCKLAND news email: Sign up for the Rockland Angle e-newsletter
Bottom of story: Photo gallery, map
Alfred, dressed in a gray suit and a heavy black overcoat, rambled for three more minutes. "He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters."
A ripple of murmurs of astonishment went through the crowd as Delhomme bluntly denied the claim.
"I don't know this man," he said, raising his voice. "I've never met this man."
Trustee Vilair Fonvil stood up and shouted as others called for calm.
Fonvil pointed his finger at the mayor, used a crude term for sex and said, "And you say you don't know him?"
Tuesday's outburst was the latest in a series of disputes — personal and political — that have all but paralyzed the day-to-day business of government. In a tumultuous two years, Delhomme and other trustees have been accused of a litany of profane outbursts and insensitive comments.
Spring Valley is split between Delhomme and at least three Trustees: Vilair Fonvil, Asher Grossman and Sherry McGill, all Democrats. The Fonvil-led majority has stopped or stalled nearly every function of village government from hiring a village attorney to enforcing building and fire safety.
On Tuesday night, for example, dozens of Spring Valley firefighters gathered to push for a $6.4 million bond to replace their aging equipment.
Still, the 15-minute meltdown represented a new kind of fireworks for the two-and-a-half-square-mile village of 32,500.
Fonvil and Grossman appeared to have been tipped off ahead of time to Alfred's speech, encouraging him to speak up and recount his tale of alleged marital woes.
"Do you know his wife?" Fonvil asked.
Delhomme replied, "I know everybody in this community. I don't know the person."
The crowd broke into boos.
Toward the end of the shouting match, Trustee Emilia White, looking disgusted, called for calm.
"This is not the proper channel for that," she said, speaking to Alfred. "You need to file a police report."
Map: Spring Valley at a glance
Twitter: @alextailored
Read or Share this story: http://lohud.us/1TEDw4R ||||| A Rockland County village meeting devolved into a scene out of Maury Povich on Tuesday night when a resident accused the mayor of using his “power” to have sex with his wife.
Reginald Alfred, a 48-year-old maintenance man, took the microphone at the meeting and began sharing details of how Spring Valley Mayor Demeza Delhomme was a homewrecker who ruined his 12-year marriage, according to video recorded by The Journal News.
“He destroyed my house. He destroyed my family. I have two daughters,” he said during a 15-minute shouting fest that riled up city officials and other residents in the audience.
When another resident in the audience asked Delhomme if he knew Alfred’s wife, the controversial mayor yelled, “I know everybody in this community. I don’t know the person.”
He vehemently denied the claims while holding his phone that was recording the confrontation, yelling, “I don’t know this man. I’ve never met this man.”
Alfred went back up to the mic at least one more time, calling the mayor a “liar.”
“I saw him in my house for Thanksgiving with the food inside,” he said, although he failed to provide any physical evidence of the salacious affair.
The riled-up crowd cheered their support for Alfred.
“If you really did this, you should be ashamed of yourself,” one resident said when he was up at the podium. “You are supposed to be a counselor, man, to take care of families, not destroy them.”
View video
Delhomme denied the allegations again to The Post on Wednesday afternoon, adding that he filed a police report after Tuesday night’s drama.
“I wish that man would get some kind of psychiatric help. I feel so bad for these kids involved,” he said of Alfred’s two daughters, who are 4 and 10.
He said he learned Wednesday that Alfred’s wife worked at the bank he goes to, but wouldn’t say whether he knew her personally.
“I don’t owe anyone that information,” Delhomme said.
He believes this is part of what he said is an ongoing smear campaign by two of the city’s trustees, Asher Grossman and Vilair Fonvil, who were also at the meeting.
“They’ve been battling me since I got elected,” he said. “They put him up to this.”
Fonvil lambasted Delhomme repeatedly Tuesday night, saying, “What I’m hearing here is public corruption.”
Alfred’s allegations are a new low for the mayor, who presides over the 2.5-square-mile village of 32,000 residents and has been embroiled in numerous scandals.
Last November, he pledged to nix any Jewish developer projects in secretly recorded conversations, saying it was payback for their lack of support in the 2013 election.
And during a massive snowstorm last January, he ordered the Department of Public Works to install a generator at his girlfriend’s house. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 36,632 |
LUDINGTON, Mich. – The Mason County Sheriff’s Office and the FAA have figured out what was responsible for a green laser being pointed at an incoming airplane last week.
Christmas lights.
Deputies determined that what a pilot of a plane carrying U.S. mail saw last Wednesday night was a Christmas laser projector pointed at a barn in the 2300 block of north Tuttle Road.
The deputies were in the area when the pilot reported the issues on a previous night and noticed the light from the image that was projected on the barn was reflecting into the sky. The homeowner had also told deputies that she saw the reports about the pilot seeing the green laser and she was wondering if it was her decorations.
The woman has unplugged the decoration that caused the reflection. ||||| NEW YORK — An NBC news helicopter helped police track down and arrest a suspect who allegedly pointed a laser at the chopper while it was flying over Brooklyn.
NBC New York says Chopper 4 was over Prospect Heights at about 6 p.m. Wednesday when it was stuck by a green laser. A chopper reporter used a camera to zoom in on the suspects, who were seen standing behind a building and laughing.
Police and the FAA were contacted and guided to the location. An NYPD helicopter at the scene was also struck by the laser.
Two people were taken into custody and one of them has been arrested.
The FAA says it is also investigating a laser incident involving a WABC-TV news helicopter near Newark Airport at about 5:20 p.m. Wednesday.
||||| Three pilots reported their planes being hit by a laser beam about 11 miles southeast of Dallas on Wednesday night, according to a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman.
Lynn Lunsford, the FAA spokesman, said that between 7:30 and 7:45 p.m., three planes — including a Southwest Airlines 737 and a private business jet — reported being hit by the laser beam, coming from the same general direction, as they were flying into Dallas Love Field.
Initial reports suggested a Virgin America flight was also affected, but its pilots reported no such incidents in Dallas, spokesman David Arnold said.
The planes were flying at altitudes between 3,000 and 4,000 feet when the incidents occurred, the FAA said.
The FAA and Dallas police are investigating. Police dispatched their helicopter to search for the source of the laser, but “no suspects were located,” a DPD spokeswoman said Thursday morning.
In February 2012, it became a federal crime to interfere with the operation of an aircraft. According to the FBI, the offense is punishable by up to 20 years behind bars a $250,000 fine. In 2014, the FBI announced that it will pay up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of anyone aiming a laser at an aircraft.
In July, 23-year-old Austin Lawrence Siferd of Alvarado was jailed after authorities say he shined a green laser pointer into the cockpits of several jetliners, as well as the helicopters that were sent to look for him.
A few weeks before Siferd’s arrest, a man from Garland was sentenced to eight months for laser-lighting-up a DPS chopper in 2013. | – Someone is in trouble near Dallas: Police and the FAA are investigating after three planes were reportedly hit by a laser beam while flying into Dallas Love Field between 7:30pm and 7:45pm on Wednesday. An FAA rep says a Southwest Airlines 737, a Virgin America A319, and a private business jet reported a laser beam originating in roughly the same area as they flew at between 3,000 and 4,000 feet, per the Dallas Morning News. A police helicopter was unable to find the source. Also on Wednesday, a WABC-TV news helicopter was reportedly hit by a laser near Newark Airport around 5:20pm, while an NBC news helicopter was struck by a green laser over Brooklyn around 6pm, reports the AP. An NBC reporter managed to get footage of suspects laughing behind a building and reported the incident to police, per NBC New York. An NYPD helicopter was also struck by the laser before two people were taken into custody; one was arrested. The feat is indeed no laughing matter: Anyone caught pointing a laser at an aircraft can face up to 20 years in jail and a $250,000 fine. But as it turns out, not all laser incidents are intentional. After a pilot said he was also subjected to a green laser near Ludington, Mich., last week, officials traced the issue to a Christmas display, which included an image that displayed onto a barn and reflected in the sky, reports Fox 17. (There's been a "record pace" of laser incidents this year.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.LUDINGTON, Mich. – The Mason County Sheriff’s Office and the FAA have figured out what was responsible for a green laser being pointed at an incoming airplane last week.
Christmas lights.
Deputies determined that what a pilot of a plane carrying U.S. mail saw last Wednesday night was a Christmas laser projector pointed at a barn in the 2300 block of north Tuttle Road.
The deputies were in the area when the pilot reported the issues on a previous night and noticed the light from the image that was projected on the barn was reflecting into the sky. The homeowner had also told deputies that she saw the reports about the pilot seeing the green laser and she was wondering if it was her decorations.
The woman has unplugged the decoration that caused the reflection. ||||| NEW YORK — An NBC news helicopter helped police track down and arrest a suspect who allegedly pointed a laser at the chopper while it was flying over Brooklyn.
NBC New York says Chopper 4 was over Prospect Heights at about 6 p.m. Wednesday when it was stuck by a green laser. A chopper reporter used a camera to zoom in on the suspects, who were seen standing behind a building and laughing.
Police and the FAA were contacted and guided to the location. An NYPD helicopter at the scene was also struck by the laser.
Two people were taken into custody and one of them has been arrested.
The FAA says it is also investigating a laser incident involving a WABC-TV news helicopter near Newark Airport at about 5:20 p.m. Wednesday.
||||| Three pilots reported their planes being hit by a laser beam about 11 miles southeast of Dallas on Wednesday night, according to a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman.
Lynn Lunsford, the FAA spokesman, said that between 7:30 and 7:45 p.m., three planes — including a Southwest Airlines 737 and a private business jet — reported being hit by the laser beam, coming from the same general direction, as they were flying into Dallas Love Field.
Initial reports suggested a Virgin America flight was also affected, but its pilots reported no such incidents in Dallas, spokesman David Arnold said.
The planes were flying at altitudes between 3,000 and 4,000 feet when the incidents occurred, the FAA said.
The FAA and Dallas police are investigating. Police dispatched their helicopter to search for the source of the laser, but “no suspects were located,” a DPD spokeswoman said Thursday morning.
In February 2012, it became a federal crime to interfere with the operation of an aircraft. According to the FBI, the offense is punishable by up to 20 years behind bars a $250,000 fine. In 2014, the FBI announced that it will pay up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of anyone aiming a laser at an aircraft.
In July, 23-year-old Austin Lawrence Siferd of Alvarado was jailed after authorities say he shined a green laser pointer into the cockpits of several jetliners, as well as the helicopters that were sent to look for him.
A few weeks before Siferd’s arrest, a man from Garland was sentenced to eight months for laser-lighting-up a DPS chopper in 2013. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 2,968 |
Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich hands a pen back to a supporter after signing his autograph during a campaign stop at Hofstra University, Monday, April 4, 2016, in Hempstead,... (Associated Press)
Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich hands a pen back to a supporter after signing his autograph during a campaign stop at Hofstra University, Monday, April 4, 2016, in Hempstead, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on campaign 2016 as voters in Wisconsin head to the polls for the state's presidential primary (all times Eastern Daylight Time):
8:20 p.m.
Wisconsin is projected to have its highest turnout in a presidential primary since 1980, but that hasn't translated into problems at the polls.
The state elections board projects turnout at 40 percent of eligible voters.
Board spokesman Mike Haas says clerks around the state had reported a busy pace but manageable lines throughout the day. The state is holding just its second election since voters were required to show photo identification, and Haas says his office hadn't heard of any major issues.
Neil Albrecht, executive director of Milwaukee's election commission, said wait times in the state's largest city didn't exceed 30 minutes even during peak voting. Albrecht estimated the city would have four to five times the same-day voter registration it had for the primary four years ago.
__
7:25 p.m.
Bernie Sanders offered few details on how he would break up big financial institutions during a recent interview with the New York Daily News.
The Vermont senator was pressed on how he would carry out his campaign pledge.
Sanders said some banks are too big and could be broken up either by "having legislation passed, or giving the authority to the secretary of treasury to determine, under Dodd-Frank, that these banks are a danger to the economy over the problem of too-big-to-fail."
But Sanders did not elaborate on how this would work. When asked how breaking up banks would affect jobs and assets at financial institutions, Sanders said it "is their decision as to what they want to do and how they want to reconfigure themselves. That's not my decision."
__
5:55 p.m.
A potential Donald Trump presidency inspires more excitement among Wisconsin's GOP primary voters than the other two remaining candidates — but also more fear.
About a quarter say they're excited about Trump, while less than 15 percent say that of either of his rivals. At the same time, nearly 4 in 10 say they're scared about what Trump would do as president, while only about 1 in 10 say that about either Cruz or Kasich, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research.
In the case of a brokered convention, nearly 6 in 10 Republicans say the party should nominate the candidate with the most support in the primaries, while just 4 in 10 say it should nominate the candidate the delegates think would make the best nominee.
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5:51 p.m.
Democratic voters in Wisconsin are divided on the effect of trade on unemployment, an issue that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has played up in a flood of television ads over the past few weeks.
About 45 percent of Democratic voters say trade with other countries takes away jobs in this country, while nearly 4 in 10 see trade as beneficial, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research. Only about 10 percent see trade as having no effect on job in the United States.
The polls indicate a mixed response on an issue that Sanders has put at the center of some of his most-aired television ads.
Over the past month, Sanders has poured about $2.4 million into radio and television ads in Wisconsin and one of his top aired ads has tucked in several subtle jabs at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's record on trade, according to data from political advertising tracker Kantar Media.
One Sanders ad touts the senator as standing with American workers, linking jobs losses to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which was signed into law by former President Bill Clinton, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which Clinton initially supported but has since said she opposes.
___
5:49 p.m.
Ted Cruz continues to outmaneuver Donald Trump at local conventions, this time in Colorado.
Two of Colorado's congressional districts held conventions over the weekend and party officials say Cruz won all six delegates at stake. Cruz has also done well at local conventions in North Dakota and Louisiana.
Colorado has a unique system for awarding delegates. There is no statewide primary. Instead, delegates are elected at congressional district conventions and at the state convention on Saturday.
If delegates commit to a presidential candidate when they are running, they must vote for that candidate at the party's national convention this summer. If they don't commit, they are free to support the candidate of their choice.
Colorado has a total of 37 delegates, including the state's three Republican National Committee members.
The AP delegate count heading into the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday:
Trump: 737.
Cruz: 481.
John Kasich: 143.
Needed to win: 1,237.
___
5:42 p.m.
Bernie Sanders will appear on the Democratic primary ballot in the District of Columbia after lawmakers approved legislation clarifying that he met the filing deadline.
A mix-up between the city's Democratic Party and its elections board had left open the possibility that Sanders would be left off the primary ballot. Sanders paid a fee to get on the ballot, but the party didn't submit paperwork to the elections board until the day after the deadline. That led a local activist to file a challenge arguing that Sanders should be left off the ballot.
The District's primary is June 14, the last one before the Democratic convention.
The D.C. Council approved a bill Tuesday that guarantees Sanders' place on the ballot, and Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser says she'll sign it.
___
5:26 p.m.
Republican and Democratic voters in Wisconsin say the economy is weighing heavily on their minds as they head to the polls Tuesday.
Nearly three quarters of Democratic voters say they are worried about the direction of the country's economy, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research. More than a third say the economy and job is the most important issue facing the country and 3 in 10 consider income inequality to be of paramount concern.
The Republicans who came out to vote are even more troubled by the direction of the economy, the early exit polls show. More than 9 in 10 say they are either very or somewhat worried.
Similar to the Democrats, about 30 percent of Republicans consider the economy and jobs the country's top problem, and just about as many consider government spending the most important issue.
___
5:16 p.m.
Hillary Clinton is emphasizing her New York ties during a Tuesday campaign stop — and suggested that Donald Trump doesn't share his home city's values.
Appearing in Brooklyn, Clinton referenced the owner of Trump Tower and said: "The fellow who's from New York? I wish he'd get out of one of his towers and walk the streets."
Clinton, who represented the state for eight years in the Senate, later said she believes "the values of New York are the values of America."
Clinton's campaign is stressing the need to get a win in her adopted home state and has emphasized turning out African-American voters. She was joined onstage by minority women, including activists, elected officials and New York City mayor Bill de Blasio's wife, Chirlane McCray.
___
4:54 p.m.
Hillary Clinton is stressing her fight for more rights for women, including equal pay, during a New York City campaign stop.
Clinton eschewed going to Wisconsin, which is holding its primary on Tuesday and where she is down in the polls to Bernie Sanders. Instead, she is focusing on the next contest, which is being held in her adopted home state of New York in two weeks.
The ex-secretary of state appeared at Medgar Evers College, a public school named after the slain civil rights activist, in Brooklyn. Clinton pledged to "tirelessly fight" for women's causes, including abortion rights, and praised local officials for their efforts to help working women, especially the recent increase of the state's middle wage.
She also said she "loved" the U.S. national women's soccer team's lawsuit alleging wage discrimination.
___
2:50 p.m.
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus says the outcome of Wisconsin's election is important, not just for the individual who wins the delegates, but to the outcome of the race in general.
Priebus said in an interview Tuesday on WTMJ radio in Milwaukee that the outcome of Wisconsin's primary will play an important role in whether there is a contested GOP convention this summer in Cleveland. A win by Ted Cruz would make it more difficult for front-runner Donald Trump to get the 1,237 delegates needed by the end of the primary season to secure the nomination.
But Priebus says the outcome in Wisconsin is also important "on the narrative side." He says since no other state is voting Tuesday, the focus has been on Wisconsin for two weeks and how the outcome will influence the race going forward.
___
2:40 p.m.
Republican Ted Cruz is continuing his call for Ohio Gov. John Kasich to get out of the presidential race.
Cruz said in an interview Tuesday on WTMJ radio in Milwaukee that any candidate who doesn't have a path to winning should end their campaign.
"At this point," he said, "Kasich has been mathematically eliminated."
Cruz's comments come as Wisconsin voters cast ballots in that state primary. Cruz was leading in the polls, but Kasich was trying to win in at least one congressional district. The statewide winner gets 18 delegates, while three delegates are awarded to the winner of each of the state's eight congressional districts.
Republican front-runner Donald Trump has also called on Kasich to get out of the race. Both Cruz and Trump see their chances improving without Kasich taking votes, and delegates, away from them.
___
12:30 p.m.
President Barack Obama is responding to questions about Donald Trump's proposal to cut off billions of dollars in remittances sent by Mexican immigrants living in the U.S.
"Good luck with that," Obama said in a press briefing Tuesday, citing the dangers of what he described as "half-baked notions."
Obama told journalists that the proposal is "one more example of something that is not thought through and primarily put forward for political consumption."
Obama warned of the ramifications such a plan would have on the Mexican economy which, in turn, would drive more immigrants to flee to the U.S. in search of jobs.
"People around the world... don't expect half-baked notions coming out of the White House. We can't afford that."
According to a memo released by his campaign Tuesday, Trump would try to cut off funds sent to Mexico through money transfers known as remittances to compel its government to pay for a wall along the Southern border.
___
10:00 a.m.
Voters are lining up across Wisconsin to cast their ballots in the state's presidential primary.
The stakes are high in Tuesday's contest as candidates from both parties fight to win enough delegates to become their party nominees. Early polling signaled a tight race for both parties, with Republican Ted Cruz and Democrat Bernie Sanders are angling for victories.
Paul Lorentz, a 42-year-old project manager for Affiliated Engineers, was in line at 6:30 a.m. in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, to cast a vote for Republican John Kasich. Lorentz says he typically votes Democratic in the general election and Republican in Wisconsin's open primary, in order to sway that side to a better candidate.
Carrie-Ann Todd, a 39-year-old mother saddled with student debt, is voting for Bernie Sanders due to his efforts to address the cost of college.
"I'm paying more on my student loans than I am on my cars," Todd said.
___
8:30 a.m.
Donald Trump says he would force Mexico to pay for a border wall by threatening to cut off billions of dollars in remittances sent by immigrants living in the U.S.
According to a memo released by his campaign Tuesday, Trump would try to compel Mexico to pay for a 1,000-mile wall if he becomes president.
In his proposal, Trump threatened to change a rule under the USA Patriot Act, an anti-terrorism law, to cut off funds sent to Mexico through money transfers known as remittances. Trump said he would withdraw the threat if Mexico makes "a one-time payment of $5-10 billion" to finance the wall."
The billionaire businessman has estimated his proposed wall would cost between $10 billion and $12 billion, and has argued that it would protect the country from illegal border crossings as well as halting drug shipments.
The release of the memo was first reported by the Washington Post early Tuesday.
___
3:30 a.m.
Republican Ted Cruz and Democrat Bernie Sanders are angling for victories in Tuesday's Wisconsin presidential primaries that could give their campaigns a needed boost but still leave them with mathematically challenging paths to their parties' nominations.
While Sanders remains a powerful force in the Democratic primary, a win over Hillary Clinton would do little to significantly cut into her delegate lead. The stakes are higher for Cruz, who trails Donald Trump but sees Wisconsin as a crucial part of his effort to push the GOP race toward a convention fight.
Leaders in both parties are eager to turn their attention toward the general election. Clinton would enter the fall campaign saddled with persistent questions about her trustworthiness, but also demographic advantages that Democrats believe would be magnified against Trump. ||||| Bernie Sanders arrives at a campaign rally at the Wisconsin Convention Center on April 4, 2016 in Milwaukee, Wis. | Getty Bernie Sanders wins Wisconsin Democratic primary
Bernie Sanders has won the Wisconsin Democratic primary, according to three television networks.
The Vermont senator, who led former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by slim margins in the state’s most recent public polling, had been barnstorming the state in recent days as he sought to shore up his support among working-class voters.
Story Continued Below
With Tuesday’s win, Sanders will have claimed victory in seven of the last eight contests, but he faces a tougher road ahead with a series of closed primaries that are not as well suited for his candidacy.
Sanders also still faces a significant delegate gap with Clinton, who leads in not just pledged delegates but also superdelegates.
For Democrats, Wisconsin awards its 86 pledged delegates on a proportional basis.
View full results: http://politi.co/1oGcEFv
2016 delegate tracker: http://politi.co/2176fPm | – Just one state voted Tuesday, but there was still plenty at stake in Wisconsin for both parties—and it was a good night for Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders. On the Republican side, Cruz scored an easy victory over Donald Trump and John Kasich, reports CNN. With 97% or results in, Cruz has 48%, Trump 35%, and Kasich 14%. On the Democratic side, Sanders comfortably defeated Hillary Clinton 56% to 43%. Wisconsin has 42 delegates at stake for Republicans, and even though it's not winner-take-all, the Cruz victory will be a boost in his quest to keep Trump from securing the necessary number of delegates ahead of the GOP convention. "Tonight is a turning point," Cruz told supporters after the race was called. "It is a rallying cry." He's winning, he added, because his campaign is uniting the Republican party. Sanders, meanwhile, can now boast of winning seven of the last eight contests, with delegate-rich New York up for grabs on April 19, reports Politico. In his own speech to supporters, Sanders emphasized the "momentum" of his campaign. "Real change never, ever takes place from the top on down," he said. "It always takes place from the bottom on up." For Democrats, 86 delegates were at stake on Tuesday. The AP reports that turnout was projected to be about 40% of eligible voters, the highest in a presidential primary in the state since 1980. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich hands a pen back to a supporter after signing his autograph during a campaign stop at Hofstra University, Monday, April 4, 2016, in Hempstead,... (Associated Press)
Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich hands a pen back to a supporter after signing his autograph during a campaign stop at Hofstra University, Monday, April 4, 2016, in Hempstead, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on campaign 2016 as voters in Wisconsin head to the polls for the state's presidential primary (all times Eastern Daylight Time):
8:20 p.m.
Wisconsin is projected to have its highest turnout in a presidential primary since 1980, but that hasn't translated into problems at the polls.
The state elections board projects turnout at 40 percent of eligible voters.
Board spokesman Mike Haas says clerks around the state had reported a busy pace but manageable lines throughout the day. The state is holding just its second election since voters were required to show photo identification, and Haas says his office hadn't heard of any major issues.
Neil Albrecht, executive director of Milwaukee's election commission, said wait times in the state's largest city didn't exceed 30 minutes even during peak voting. Albrecht estimated the city would have four to five times the same-day voter registration it had for the primary four years ago.
__
7:25 p.m.
Bernie Sanders offered few details on how he would break up big financial institutions during a recent interview with the New York Daily News.
The Vermont senator was pressed on how he would carry out his campaign pledge.
Sanders said some banks are too big and could be broken up either by "having legislation passed, or giving the authority to the secretary of treasury to determine, under Dodd-Frank, that these banks are a danger to the economy over the problem of too-big-to-fail."
But Sanders did not elaborate on how this would work. When asked how breaking up banks would affect jobs and assets at financial institutions, Sanders said it "is their decision as to what they want to do and how they want to reconfigure themselves. That's not my decision."
__
5:55 p.m.
A potential Donald Trump presidency inspires more excitement among Wisconsin's GOP primary voters than the other two remaining candidates — but also more fear.
About a quarter say they're excited about Trump, while less than 15 percent say that of either of his rivals. At the same time, nearly 4 in 10 say they're scared about what Trump would do as president, while only about 1 in 10 say that about either Cruz or Kasich, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research.
In the case of a brokered convention, nearly 6 in 10 Republicans say the party should nominate the candidate with the most support in the primaries, while just 4 in 10 say it should nominate the candidate the delegates think would make the best nominee.
___
5:51 p.m.
Democratic voters in Wisconsin are divided on the effect of trade on unemployment, an issue that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has played up in a flood of television ads over the past few weeks.
About 45 percent of Democratic voters say trade with other countries takes away jobs in this country, while nearly 4 in 10 see trade as beneficial, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research. Only about 10 percent see trade as having no effect on job in the United States.
The polls indicate a mixed response on an issue that Sanders has put at the center of some of his most-aired television ads.
Over the past month, Sanders has poured about $2.4 million into radio and television ads in Wisconsin and one of his top aired ads has tucked in several subtle jabs at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's record on trade, according to data from political advertising tracker Kantar Media.
One Sanders ad touts the senator as standing with American workers, linking jobs losses to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which was signed into law by former President Bill Clinton, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which Clinton initially supported but has since said she opposes.
___
5:49 p.m.
Ted Cruz continues to outmaneuver Donald Trump at local conventions, this time in Colorado.
Two of Colorado's congressional districts held conventions over the weekend and party officials say Cruz won all six delegates at stake. Cruz has also done well at local conventions in North Dakota and Louisiana.
Colorado has a unique system for awarding delegates. There is no statewide primary. Instead, delegates are elected at congressional district conventions and at the state convention on Saturday.
If delegates commit to a presidential candidate when they are running, they must vote for that candidate at the party's national convention this summer. If they don't commit, they are free to support the candidate of their choice.
Colorado has a total of 37 delegates, including the state's three Republican National Committee members.
The AP delegate count heading into the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday:
Trump: 737.
Cruz: 481.
John Kasich: 143.
Needed to win: 1,237.
___
5:42 p.m.
Bernie Sanders will appear on the Democratic primary ballot in the District of Columbia after lawmakers approved legislation clarifying that he met the filing deadline.
A mix-up between the city's Democratic Party and its elections board had left open the possibility that Sanders would be left off the primary ballot. Sanders paid a fee to get on the ballot, but the party didn't submit paperwork to the elections board until the day after the deadline. That led a local activist to file a challenge arguing that Sanders should be left off the ballot.
The District's primary is June 14, the last one before the Democratic convention.
The D.C. Council approved a bill Tuesday that guarantees Sanders' place on the ballot, and Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser says she'll sign it.
___
5:26 p.m.
Republican and Democratic voters in Wisconsin say the economy is weighing heavily on their minds as they head to the polls Tuesday.
Nearly three quarters of Democratic voters say they are worried about the direction of the country's economy, according to early results of exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks by Edison Research. More than a third say the economy and job is the most important issue facing the country and 3 in 10 consider income inequality to be of paramount concern.
The Republicans who came out to vote are even more troubled by the direction of the economy, the early exit polls show. More than 9 in 10 say they are either very or somewhat worried.
Similar to the Democrats, about 30 percent of Republicans consider the economy and jobs the country's top problem, and just about as many consider government spending the most important issue.
___
5:16 p.m.
Hillary Clinton is emphasizing her New York ties during a Tuesday campaign stop — and suggested that Donald Trump doesn't share his home city's values.
Appearing in Brooklyn, Clinton referenced the owner of Trump Tower and said: "The fellow who's from New York? I wish he'd get out of one of his towers and walk the streets."
Clinton, who represented the state for eight years in the Senate, later said she believes "the values of New York are the values of America."
Clinton's campaign is stressing the need to get a win in her adopted home state and has emphasized turning out African-American voters. She was joined onstage by minority women, including activists, elected officials and New York City mayor Bill de Blasio's wife, Chirlane McCray.
___
4:54 p.m.
Hillary Clinton is stressing her fight for more rights for women, including equal pay, during a New York City campaign stop.
Clinton eschewed going to Wisconsin, which is holding its primary on Tuesday and where she is down in the polls to Bernie Sanders. Instead, she is focusing on the next contest, which is being held in her adopted home state of New York in two weeks.
The ex-secretary of state appeared at Medgar Evers College, a public school named after the slain civil rights activist, in Brooklyn. Clinton pledged to "tirelessly fight" for women's causes, including abortion rights, and praised local officials for their efforts to help working women, especially the recent increase of the state's middle wage.
She also said she "loved" the U.S. national women's soccer team's lawsuit alleging wage discrimination.
___
2:50 p.m.
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus says the outcome of Wisconsin's election is important, not just for the individual who wins the delegates, but to the outcome of the race in general.
Priebus said in an interview Tuesday on WTMJ radio in Milwaukee that the outcome of Wisconsin's primary will play an important role in whether there is a contested GOP convention this summer in Cleveland. A win by Ted Cruz would make it more difficult for front-runner Donald Trump to get the 1,237 delegates needed by the end of the primary season to secure the nomination.
But Priebus says the outcome in Wisconsin is also important "on the narrative side." He says since no other state is voting Tuesday, the focus has been on Wisconsin for two weeks and how the outcome will influence the race going forward.
___
2:40 p.m.
Republican Ted Cruz is continuing his call for Ohio Gov. John Kasich to get out of the presidential race.
Cruz said in an interview Tuesday on WTMJ radio in Milwaukee that any candidate who doesn't have a path to winning should end their campaign.
"At this point," he said, "Kasich has been mathematically eliminated."
Cruz's comments come as Wisconsin voters cast ballots in that state primary. Cruz was leading in the polls, but Kasich was trying to win in at least one congressional district. The statewide winner gets 18 delegates, while three delegates are awarded to the winner of each of the state's eight congressional districts.
Republican front-runner Donald Trump has also called on Kasich to get out of the race. Both Cruz and Trump see their chances improving without Kasich taking votes, and delegates, away from them.
___
12:30 p.m.
President Barack Obama is responding to questions about Donald Trump's proposal to cut off billions of dollars in remittances sent by Mexican immigrants living in the U.S.
"Good luck with that," Obama said in a press briefing Tuesday, citing the dangers of what he described as "half-baked notions."
Obama told journalists that the proposal is "one more example of something that is not thought through and primarily put forward for political consumption."
Obama warned of the ramifications such a plan would have on the Mexican economy which, in turn, would drive more immigrants to flee to the U.S. in search of jobs.
"People around the world... don't expect half-baked notions coming out of the White House. We can't afford that."
According to a memo released by his campaign Tuesday, Trump would try to cut off funds sent to Mexico through money transfers known as remittances to compel its government to pay for a wall along the Southern border.
___
10:00 a.m.
Voters are lining up across Wisconsin to cast their ballots in the state's presidential primary.
The stakes are high in Tuesday's contest as candidates from both parties fight to win enough delegates to become their party nominees. Early polling signaled a tight race for both parties, with Republican Ted Cruz and Democrat Bernie Sanders are angling for victories.
Paul Lorentz, a 42-year-old project manager for Affiliated Engineers, was in line at 6:30 a.m. in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, to cast a vote for Republican John Kasich. Lorentz says he typically votes Democratic in the general election and Republican in Wisconsin's open primary, in order to sway that side to a better candidate.
Carrie-Ann Todd, a 39-year-old mother saddled with student debt, is voting for Bernie Sanders due to his efforts to address the cost of college.
"I'm paying more on my student loans than I am on my cars," Todd said.
___
8:30 a.m.
Donald Trump says he would force Mexico to pay for a border wall by threatening to cut off billions of dollars in remittances sent by immigrants living in the U.S.
According to a memo released by his campaign Tuesday, Trump would try to compel Mexico to pay for a 1,000-mile wall if he becomes president.
In his proposal, Trump threatened to change a rule under the USA Patriot Act, an anti-terrorism law, to cut off funds sent to Mexico through money transfers known as remittances. Trump said he would withdraw the threat if Mexico makes "a one-time payment of $5-10 billion" to finance the wall."
The billionaire businessman has estimated his proposed wall would cost between $10 billion and $12 billion, and has argued that it would protect the country from illegal border crossings as well as halting drug shipments.
The release of the memo was first reported by the Washington Post early Tuesday.
___
3:30 a.m.
Republican Ted Cruz and Democrat Bernie Sanders are angling for victories in Tuesday's Wisconsin presidential primaries that could give their campaigns a needed boost but still leave them with mathematically challenging paths to their parties' nominations.
While Sanders remains a powerful force in the Democratic primary, a win over Hillary Clinton would do little to significantly cut into her delegate lead. The stakes are higher for Cruz, who trails Donald Trump but sees Wisconsin as a crucial part of his effort to push the GOP race toward a convention fight.
Leaders in both parties are eager to turn their attention toward the general election. Clinton would enter the fall campaign saddled with persistent questions about her trustworthiness, but also demographic advantages that Democrats believe would be magnified against Trump. ||||| Bernie Sanders arrives at a campaign rally at the Wisconsin Convention Center on April 4, 2016 in Milwaukee, Wis. | Getty Bernie Sanders wins Wisconsin Democratic primary
Bernie Sanders has won the Wisconsin Democratic primary, according to three television networks.
The Vermont senator, who led former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by slim margins in the state’s most recent public polling, had been barnstorming the state in recent days as he sought to shore up his support among working-class voters.
Story Continued Below
With Tuesday’s win, Sanders will have claimed victory in seven of the last eight contests, but he faces a tougher road ahead with a series of closed primaries that are not as well suited for his candidacy.
Sanders also still faces a significant delegate gap with Clinton, who leads in not just pledged delegates but also superdelegates.
For Democrats, Wisconsin awards its 86 pledged delegates on a proportional basis.
View full results: http://politi.co/1oGcEFv
2016 delegate tracker: http://politi.co/2176fPm | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,552 |
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — A banquet room at The Mark Restaurant was filled with guests having dinner when patrons and workers alike noticed someone in distress.
"Next thing you know, my server J.R. hears, 'She's choking! She's choking!'" described Bo Fernandez, restaurant general manager and executive chef.
Former Kern County Supervisor Pauline Larwood, along with her husband Tom, had joined others Monday at the downtown spot for dinner after having attended a symposium on valley fever.
Larwood began choking on a piece of steak.
"Somebody tried to give her the Heimlich maneuver, and they weren't big enough," said Fernandez.
Restaurant supervisor J.R. Gonzalez also tried to help, but to no avail.
Fortunately for Larwood, there were numerous doctors in the house because of the Valley Fever Symposium. Among the diners was Dr. Royce Johnson, chief of infectious diseases at Kern Medical Center.
Johnson sprang into action to perform an emergency tracheotomy with makeshift tools he had at his disposal.
"The doctor said, 'Let's put her on the ground,'" Fernandez described, "and he made an incision with a knife." Fernandez motioned how the doctor inserted the knife to Larwood's throat area.
Johnson then inserted the hollow cylinder of a pen to act as a breathing tube, according to Fernandez.
"It took a little bit, but finally their gasp comes," he said.
Also helping out during the procedure were Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Paul Krogstad, who were participants at the Valley Fever Symposium, according to The Bakersfield Californian.
Larwood is recovering at a local hospital. ||||| The dramatic incident took place at a restaurant where top officials had gathered after leaving the landmark symposium on valley fever held in Bakersfield on Monday and Tuesday. Some of the nation’s most accomplished physicians were in the room.
A local doctor is being hailed as a hero after he used a folding pocket knife and pen to perform an emergency tracheotomy on a former Kern County supervisor at a downtown Bakersfield restaurant Monday night.
Pauline Larwood, who was Kern County’s first female supervisor and currently serves as a community college trustee, was eating dinner at The Mark restaurant with some of the doctors, experts, politicians and others in town for the symposium when she began choking.
After the Heimlich maneuver failed to open Larwood’s airway, witnesses said, Dr. Royce Johnson, professor of medicine at UCLA and Kern Medical Center’s chief of infectious diseases, used a friend’s knife to make an incision in Larwood’s throat to allow the insertion of the hollow cylinder of a pen as a breathing tube.
The procedure succeeded and Larwood was rushed to Mercy Hospital Downtown.
By Tuesday, her son said, she was doing fine.
Johnson had appeared onstage Monday at the valley fever conference with Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health.
The CDC chief monitored Larwood’s pulse during the incident. Collins was also present at the dinner.
Following a forum and survivors reception, about 55 people dined together in the downtown restaurant’s banquet room, including farming and business moguls Lynda and Stewart Resnick, and Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, said The Mark’s General Manager Ro Fernandez. At least two members of McCarthy’s security detail were also present.
The entrees had just been served — steak, chicken or salmon — but Fernandez said he wasn’t sure which dish Larwood had chosen.
Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, said she was seated at a table with the Larwoods when the incident occurred. She said her husband, Rick Grove, and state Sen. Jean Fuller, R-Bakersfield, were seated on the other side of the table.
Grove said her husband suddenly jumped up, ran to Pauline Larwood and tried to perform the Heimlich maneuver. He called for a doctor and Johnson attempted the technique as well.
“She had already started turning a real like blue, her fingers and her lips,” Grove said.
As Grove called 911, she watched in amazement as Larwood was laid back in a chair and Johnson began performing the emergency procedure.
“He didn’t scream; he just said, ‘I need a knife,’” Grove said.
Grove called Johnson a hero.
“It was really unreal how calm (the situation) was,” she said.
The folding knife Johnson used came from Dr. Thomas Farrell Jr., a retired physician and friend of Johnson’s, who said he always carries the knife.
Farrell said Larwood’s skin turned blue and she lost consciousness. Her teeth were clenched so tightly he could not work to clear the blockage.
As several physicians gathered around Larwood, Dr. Paul Krogstad, a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, said someone called for a pen, and when one was handed to him, he broke it in half and placed it in the incision Johnson had made.
“I was sort of looking at her breathing, Royce is blowing into this tracheotomy that he performed and the CDC director (Frieden) is checking her pulse,” Krogstad said. “She came around.”
"She was fortunate that somebody as bold as Dr. Johnson jumped in,” he added. “By the time I got there, he already had a plan going and Dr. Frieden and I just assisted."
Nevertheless, the doctors worked as a team.
Frieden called out that Larwood did not need chest compressions and that she had a good pulse, Krogstad recalled.
“I've never seen that done in public before but it made good sense,” Krogstad said of the tracheotomy.
It was ”a pretty drastic measure,” he added, but “everyone knew what they were doing.”
Before the ambulance even arrived, Larwood was sitting up, talking and fully conscious, Krogstad said.
“She pinked up, her skin looked good pretty quickly,” said David Larwood, Tom and Pauline Larwood's son.
Throughout the incident, Tom Larwood remained absolutely calm.
Johnson declined to comment.
David Larwood said his mother was taken to Mercy Hospital, where she stayed overnight. He said his father was with her Tuesday and she would probably be able to go home later that day.
Larwood, 71, served on the Kern County Board of Supervisors from 1983 to 1994. She currently serves on the Kern Community College District’s board of trustees, another elected position.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Fernandez complimented McCarthy’s security detail for keeping people calm and allowing rescuers to do what they needed to do.
The crisis and the arrival of an ambulance brought an early end to the evening, Fernandez said. But everyone was relieved that Larwood appeared to be OK.
“It must have been quite an evening for all of them,” he said. | – It's a regular occurrence in TV and movies, but a less common scene in real life: A doctor in Bakersfield, Calif., saved a choking woman's life at a restaurant by using a pocket knife and pen to perform an emergency tracheotomy, the Bakersfield Californian reports. If there is such a thing as ideal circumstances for choking, they're probably these: The incident happened during dinner on Monday after a medical symposium, so many top physicians—including CDC chief Dr. Thomas Frieden—were in the room when Pauline Larwood, a former county supervisor, started choking at a table (KBAK-KBFX reports that a piece of steak was the culprit). The Heimlich maneuver didn't work, so Dr. Royce Johnson—a professor of medicine at UCLA and the chief of infectious diseases at a local hospital—sprang into action. He borrowed a friend's pocket knife, made an incision in the 71-year-old's throat, and inserted a pen casing to use as a breathing tube. Frieden and Dr. Paul Krogstad, another UCLA medical professor, monitored her pulse and breathing. It worked—before the ambulance had even arrived, Larwood was reportedly sitting up and talking. The tracheotomy was "a pretty drastic measure," says Krogstad, but "everyone knew what they were doing." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — A banquet room at The Mark Restaurant was filled with guests having dinner when patrons and workers alike noticed someone in distress.
"Next thing you know, my server J.R. hears, 'She's choking! She's choking!'" described Bo Fernandez, restaurant general manager and executive chef.
Former Kern County Supervisor Pauline Larwood, along with her husband Tom, had joined others Monday at the downtown spot for dinner after having attended a symposium on valley fever.
Larwood began choking on a piece of steak.
"Somebody tried to give her the Heimlich maneuver, and they weren't big enough," said Fernandez.
Restaurant supervisor J.R. Gonzalez also tried to help, but to no avail.
Fortunately for Larwood, there were numerous doctors in the house because of the Valley Fever Symposium. Among the diners was Dr. Royce Johnson, chief of infectious diseases at Kern Medical Center.
Johnson sprang into action to perform an emergency tracheotomy with makeshift tools he had at his disposal.
"The doctor said, 'Let's put her on the ground,'" Fernandez described, "and he made an incision with a knife." Fernandez motioned how the doctor inserted the knife to Larwood's throat area.
Johnson then inserted the hollow cylinder of a pen to act as a breathing tube, according to Fernandez.
"It took a little bit, but finally their gasp comes," he said.
Also helping out during the procedure were Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Paul Krogstad, who were participants at the Valley Fever Symposium, according to The Bakersfield Californian.
Larwood is recovering at a local hospital. ||||| The dramatic incident took place at a restaurant where top officials had gathered after leaving the landmark symposium on valley fever held in Bakersfield on Monday and Tuesday. Some of the nation’s most accomplished physicians were in the room.
A local doctor is being hailed as a hero after he used a folding pocket knife and pen to perform an emergency tracheotomy on a former Kern County supervisor at a downtown Bakersfield restaurant Monday night.
Pauline Larwood, who was Kern County’s first female supervisor and currently serves as a community college trustee, was eating dinner at The Mark restaurant with some of the doctors, experts, politicians and others in town for the symposium when she began choking.
After the Heimlich maneuver failed to open Larwood’s airway, witnesses said, Dr. Royce Johnson, professor of medicine at UCLA and Kern Medical Center’s chief of infectious diseases, used a friend’s knife to make an incision in Larwood’s throat to allow the insertion of the hollow cylinder of a pen as a breathing tube.
The procedure succeeded and Larwood was rushed to Mercy Hospital Downtown.
By Tuesday, her son said, she was doing fine.
Johnson had appeared onstage Monday at the valley fever conference with Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health.
The CDC chief monitored Larwood’s pulse during the incident. Collins was also present at the dinner.
Following a forum and survivors reception, about 55 people dined together in the downtown restaurant’s banquet room, including farming and business moguls Lynda and Stewart Resnick, and Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, said The Mark’s General Manager Ro Fernandez. At least two members of McCarthy’s security detail were also present.
The entrees had just been served — steak, chicken or salmon — but Fernandez said he wasn’t sure which dish Larwood had chosen.
Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, said she was seated at a table with the Larwoods when the incident occurred. She said her husband, Rick Grove, and state Sen. Jean Fuller, R-Bakersfield, were seated on the other side of the table.
Grove said her husband suddenly jumped up, ran to Pauline Larwood and tried to perform the Heimlich maneuver. He called for a doctor and Johnson attempted the technique as well.
“She had already started turning a real like blue, her fingers and her lips,” Grove said.
As Grove called 911, she watched in amazement as Larwood was laid back in a chair and Johnson began performing the emergency procedure.
“He didn’t scream; he just said, ‘I need a knife,’” Grove said.
Grove called Johnson a hero.
“It was really unreal how calm (the situation) was,” she said.
The folding knife Johnson used came from Dr. Thomas Farrell Jr., a retired physician and friend of Johnson’s, who said he always carries the knife.
Farrell said Larwood’s skin turned blue and she lost consciousness. Her teeth were clenched so tightly he could not work to clear the blockage.
As several physicians gathered around Larwood, Dr. Paul Krogstad, a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, said someone called for a pen, and when one was handed to him, he broke it in half and placed it in the incision Johnson had made.
“I was sort of looking at her breathing, Royce is blowing into this tracheotomy that he performed and the CDC director (Frieden) is checking her pulse,” Krogstad said. “She came around.”
"She was fortunate that somebody as bold as Dr. Johnson jumped in,” he added. “By the time I got there, he already had a plan going and Dr. Frieden and I just assisted."
Nevertheless, the doctors worked as a team.
Frieden called out that Larwood did not need chest compressions and that she had a good pulse, Krogstad recalled.
“I've never seen that done in public before but it made good sense,” Krogstad said of the tracheotomy.
It was ”a pretty drastic measure,” he added, but “everyone knew what they were doing.”
Before the ambulance even arrived, Larwood was sitting up, talking and fully conscious, Krogstad said.
“She pinked up, her skin looked good pretty quickly,” said David Larwood, Tom and Pauline Larwood's son.
Throughout the incident, Tom Larwood remained absolutely calm.
Johnson declined to comment.
David Larwood said his mother was taken to Mercy Hospital, where she stayed overnight. He said his father was with her Tuesday and she would probably be able to go home later that day.
Larwood, 71, served on the Kern County Board of Supervisors from 1983 to 1994. She currently serves on the Kern Community College District’s board of trustees, another elected position.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Fernandez complimented McCarthy’s security detail for keeping people calm and allowing rescuers to do what they needed to do.
The crisis and the arrival of an ambulance brought an early end to the evening, Fernandez said. But everyone was relieved that Larwood appeared to be OK.
“It must have been quite an evening for all of them,” he said. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 34,627 |
Dead were mostly soldiers loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, according to military sources
An attack on an airbase in southern Libya has killed 141 people, mostly soldiers loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, according to a spokesman for his forces.
Khalifa Haftar: renegade general causing upheaval in Libya Read more
On Thursday, members of the Third Force militia loyal to the UN-backed government of national accord (GNA) in Tripoli attacked the base used by Haftar’s self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), according to military sources.
An LNA spokesman, Ahmad al-Mesmari, said that the victims included civilians who worked at the Brak al-Shati airbase or who were in the nearby area. “The soldiers were returning from a military parade. They weren’t armed. Most of them were executed,” he said.
The GNA said that a commission of inquiry had been set up to investigate the attack. It said it had decided to suspend its defence minister, Al-Mahdi al-Barghati, and the head of the Third Force from their duties until those responsible were identified.
The GNA and defence ministry condemned the assault and said they had not ordered any such action.
The unity government, the rival administration in eastern Libya and their respective backers are battling for influence in the north African country, which has been wracked by chaos since the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
The LNA does not recognise the authority of the GNA and instead supports the rival authorities based in the east.
The UN envoy to Libya voiced alarm at reports of the attack on the base, 650km (400 miles) south of Tripoli. “I am outraged by reports of significant numbers of fatalities, including civilians and by reports that summary executions may have taken place,” the UN envoy, Martin Kobler, said.
Britain’s ambassador to Libya, Peter Millett, also denounced the assault. “Disgusted by attack on Brak al-Shati & reports of mass executions. Perpetrators must be brought to justice,” he wrote on Twitter.
The incident at the base in Wadi al-Shati district took place a month after an attack by the LNA on the Tamenhant airbase controlled by the Third Force near the south’s main city of Sebha.
Trump aide drew plan on napkin to partition Libya into three Read more
That attack was called off after a reconciliation meeting between Haftar and the head of the unity government, Fayez al-Sarraj, in Abu Dhabi on 2 May.
The speaker of the eastern-based parliament, which is supported by the LNA, accused the Misrata-based Third Force of a “serious breach of the truce agreement reached in Abu Dhabi”. Aguila Saleh said there were a “number of martyrs” in LNA ranks, without giving a figure.
The speaker said he had given orders for the armed forces “to take the measures necessary to respond to the assault and defend the south and cleanse it of all outlaw militias”.
In Tripoli, the GNA called for an immediate ceasefire in the south where tribes and militias vie for control of lucrative smuggling routes with neighbouring Chad, Niger and Sudan. “We hope reason will prevail and that the escalation and provocation will stop,” it said.
The unity government’s defence ministry laid the blame on “those who started bombing Tamenhant base with warplanes and tanks,” referring to Haftar’s forces.
Elsewhere on Friday a pro-Haftar tribal chief, Sheikh Ibrayek Alwati, and five other people including a child were killed in a car bombing outside a mosque in the eastern city of Slouq, according to medical and security sources. ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Many of those killed were from the Libyan National Army, seen in action in this file photo
Reports suggest as many as 140 people, including civilians, may have died in an attack on an airbase in Libya.
It was originally thought 60 people died when a government-allied militia tried to take over the Brak al-Shati base on Thursday.
The UN-backed government's defence minister and the commander of the militia have both been suspended pending an investigation.
The prime minister's office has denied ordering the attack.
A militia spokesman said they had "liberated the base and destroyed all the forces inside".
The town's mayor said some aircraft had been set ablaze.
Most of the dead were soldiers of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), an alliance in the east of the country which does not recognise the government in the capital, Tripoli. That force has been in control of the airbase since December.
Its spokesman gave the new death toll of 140.
"The soldiers were returning from a military parade. They weren't armed. Most of them were executed," he said.
The UN's envoy to Libya, Martin Kobler, said he was "outraged" by reports of summary executions.
The attack breached an informal truce between the rival forces that was reached earlier this month when the LNA's commander, General Khalifa Haftar, met the UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj.
The Tripoli government has set up an investigative committee to present its findings to the prime minister within 15 days. | – An official in Libya says at least 140 people—including civilians—were killed in a strike on the Brak al-Shati airbase, more than doubling the original count from the attack Thursday, the BBC reports. According to the Guardian, the base was attacked by the Third Force militia, which is loyal to the UN-backed Libyan government. A spokesperson for the Third Force says they "liberated the base and destroyed all the forces inside." Brak al-Shati had been under the control of the Libyan National Army, a group that doesn't recognize the government and is loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, since December. An LNA spokesperson says most of the 140 casualties were unarmed soldiers returning from a military parade, adding most of them were "executed." The spokesperson says the dead also include civilians working on the base or in the vicinity. The UN-backed Libyan government condemned the attack, which it denied ordering. It says it has suspended the defense minister and the Third Force's commander pending an investigation. Martin Kobler, UN envoy to Libya, says the "unprovoked attack" could amount to a war crime, Al Jazeera reports. “I am outraged by reports of significant numbers of fatalities, including civilians and by reports that summary executions may have taken place,” Kobler says. The attack may also have breached a truce between Haftar and the government reached on May 2. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Dead were mostly soldiers loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, according to military sources
An attack on an airbase in southern Libya has killed 141 people, mostly soldiers loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, according to a spokesman for his forces.
Khalifa Haftar: renegade general causing upheaval in Libya Read more
On Thursday, members of the Third Force militia loyal to the UN-backed government of national accord (GNA) in Tripoli attacked the base used by Haftar’s self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), according to military sources.
An LNA spokesman, Ahmad al-Mesmari, said that the victims included civilians who worked at the Brak al-Shati airbase or who were in the nearby area. “The soldiers were returning from a military parade. They weren’t armed. Most of them were executed,” he said.
The GNA said that a commission of inquiry had been set up to investigate the attack. It said it had decided to suspend its defence minister, Al-Mahdi al-Barghati, and the head of the Third Force from their duties until those responsible were identified.
The GNA and defence ministry condemned the assault and said they had not ordered any such action.
The unity government, the rival administration in eastern Libya and their respective backers are battling for influence in the north African country, which has been wracked by chaos since the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
The LNA does not recognise the authority of the GNA and instead supports the rival authorities based in the east.
The UN envoy to Libya voiced alarm at reports of the attack on the base, 650km (400 miles) south of Tripoli. “I am outraged by reports of significant numbers of fatalities, including civilians and by reports that summary executions may have taken place,” the UN envoy, Martin Kobler, said.
Britain’s ambassador to Libya, Peter Millett, also denounced the assault. “Disgusted by attack on Brak al-Shati & reports of mass executions. Perpetrators must be brought to justice,” he wrote on Twitter.
The incident at the base in Wadi al-Shati district took place a month after an attack by the LNA on the Tamenhant airbase controlled by the Third Force near the south’s main city of Sebha.
Trump aide drew plan on napkin to partition Libya into three Read more
That attack was called off after a reconciliation meeting between Haftar and the head of the unity government, Fayez al-Sarraj, in Abu Dhabi on 2 May.
The speaker of the eastern-based parliament, which is supported by the LNA, accused the Misrata-based Third Force of a “serious breach of the truce agreement reached in Abu Dhabi”. Aguila Saleh said there were a “number of martyrs” in LNA ranks, without giving a figure.
The speaker said he had given orders for the armed forces “to take the measures necessary to respond to the assault and defend the south and cleanse it of all outlaw militias”.
In Tripoli, the GNA called for an immediate ceasefire in the south where tribes and militias vie for control of lucrative smuggling routes with neighbouring Chad, Niger and Sudan. “We hope reason will prevail and that the escalation and provocation will stop,” it said.
The unity government’s defence ministry laid the blame on “those who started bombing Tamenhant base with warplanes and tanks,” referring to Haftar’s forces.
Elsewhere on Friday a pro-Haftar tribal chief, Sheikh Ibrayek Alwati, and five other people including a child were killed in a car bombing outside a mosque in the eastern city of Slouq, according to medical and security sources. ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Many of those killed were from the Libyan National Army, seen in action in this file photo
Reports suggest as many as 140 people, including civilians, may have died in an attack on an airbase in Libya.
It was originally thought 60 people died when a government-allied militia tried to take over the Brak al-Shati base on Thursday.
The UN-backed government's defence minister and the commander of the militia have both been suspended pending an investigation.
The prime minister's office has denied ordering the attack.
A militia spokesman said they had "liberated the base and destroyed all the forces inside".
The town's mayor said some aircraft had been set ablaze.
Most of the dead were soldiers of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), an alliance in the east of the country which does not recognise the government in the capital, Tripoli. That force has been in control of the airbase since December.
Its spokesman gave the new death toll of 140.
"The soldiers were returning from a military parade. They weren't armed. Most of them were executed," he said.
The UN's envoy to Libya, Martin Kobler, said he was "outraged" by reports of summary executions.
The attack breached an informal truce between the rival forces that was reached earlier this month when the LNA's commander, General Khalifa Haftar, met the UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj.
The Tripoli government has set up an investigative committee to present its findings to the prime minister within 15 days. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 5,375 |
Over the weekend, a former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff under two presidents said the U.S. is closer to nuclear war with North Korea "than we have ever been." | AP Photo CDC briefing to focus on preparing for nuclear war
The CDC wants the public to be prepared for nuclear war.
The agency has posted a notice touting a Jan. 16 briefing about the work that federal, state and local governments are doing in case of a possible nuclear strike.
Story Continued Below
“While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps,” the notice states. “Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness.”
Presenters include Dan Sosin, CDC's deputy director and chief medical officer in the Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, and experts on radiation safety and environmental hazards.
The briefing comes amid rising tensions between the United States and North Korea. President Donald Trump earlier this week fired off a taunting tweet in which he bragged that his nuclear arsenal is more powerful than North Korea’s. The CDC notice preceded that message.
“North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the ‘Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times,’” Trump tweeted. “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”
POLITICO Pulse newsletter Get the latest on the health care fight, every weekday morning — in your inbox. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Trump's tweets have alarmed policy experts who say they could exacerbate tensions. Over the weekend, Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under both former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said the U.S. is closer to nuclear war with North Korea "than we have ever been."
CDC on Friday said that the event has been in the works since last April.
The briefing is part of the agency's monthly "Grand Rounds" sessions at its Atlanta headquarters. Upcoming briefings are mostly devoted to more conventional public health concerns, such as childhood vaccinations and hepatitis C. ||||| In what serves as a very sad commentary on the current state of geopolitical affairs, the US Centers for Disease Control will hold a special session later this month to discuss ways in which American citizens should plan and prepare for nuclear war.
The event, which the agency says it has been planning for months, is called “Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation” and will be held at the CDC’s Roybal Campus in Atlanta, Georgia on January 16th. The Ground Rounds session will explore what federal, state, and local governments are planning to do in the event of nuclear detonation, particularly in regards to public health programs. In grossly understated tones, the CDC says that “planning and preparation efforts for a nuclear detonation are similar and different from other emergency response planning efforts.”
If by “different” the CDC means preparing for injuries sustained by 1,000 km/hr winds, along with treating severe burns, flash blindness, and radiation sickness, then the CDC is spot on. Indeed, the demands placed on healthcare workers and the health infrastructure would be an order of magnitude greater than most disasters. In stoic manner, the CDC describes the challenges thusly:
While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps. Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness. For instance, most people don’t realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation. While federal, state, and local agencies will lead the immediate response efforts, public health will play a key role in responding.
Ah, it’s the Cold War all over again. Perhaps we’ll start teaching our kids how to hide under their desks again, and regularly suffer through programming interruptions as our TV calmly assures us it’s just performing a test of the emergency broadcast system. And maybe we’ll even start to litter our parks with nuclear warning sirens—oh, wait, they’ve already started doing that in Hawaii.
Advertisement
In all fairness, it’s obviously better to plan for a nuclear disaster than not. In this case, the CDC is holding a teaching session that will bring together doctors, nurses, pharmacists, veterinarians, health education specialists, lab scientists, and others. As a CDC spokesperson told STAT, “CDC participants felt it would be a good way to discuss public health preparedness and share resources with states and other partners. State and local partners also have expressed interest in this topic over time.” Topics to be discussed include “Preparing for the Unthinkable,” “Public Health Resources to Meet Critical Components of Preparedness,” and “Roadmap to Radiation Preparedness.”
The CDC held a similar event back in 2010, so it’s something the agency does on occasion. But given the escalating rhetoric between North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump, the event seems eerily timely. And necessary.
[CDC] ||||| CLOSE The Centers for Disease Control is holding a briefing on January 16 to detail what a public health response to a nuclear detonation would look like. Buzz60
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is based in Atlanta, has been under scrutiny because of a series of high-profile lab incidents. (Photo: Jessica McGowan, Getty Images)
As tensions between North Korea and the U.S. rise, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention want Americans to be prepared in case of a nuclear event.
The agency scheduled a briefing Jan. 16 titled "Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation," where federal, state and local officials will detail what preparations have been made in case of such an event.
"While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps," reads an excerpt from the CDC's website detailing the briefing. "For instance, most people don’t realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation."
DOCTOR: Get 'as far away from the roof and the walls as possible'
HOW TO:Survive a nuclear attack, according to Japanese manga
The briefing includes experts in radiation studies and public health officials who will explain how the U.S. has prepared for a nuclear event.
The timing of the briefing arrives as Americans grow concerned over heated rhetoric between the U.S. and North Korea. In October, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found 56% of Americas disapproved of President Donald Trump's handling of North Korea. A December poll from YouGov found nearly half of Americans believe it's very or fairly likely the U.S. will use military force against North Korea.
Both polls came before the most recent spat between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un: During his annual New Year's Day speech, Kim said he had a nuclear button on his desk, with the U.S. mainland within the range of his weapons.
Trump responded a day later, saying he also had a button, but it was "bigger & more powerful."
PREPPERS:Costco now sells $1,000 disaster food kit
Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.
Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2CKzXrU | – In what Gizmodo calls "a very sad commentary on the current state of geopolitical affairs," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will later this month hold a briefing on the government's preparedness for a nuclear attack on US soil. The presentation, called "Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation," will be held Jan. 16 and feature officials from all levels of government discussing US preparations for a nuclear blast, USA Today reports. It will also feature information from experts in radiation studies. "While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps," Politico quotes the CDC as stating on a website for the briefing. “Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness.” Topics for a teaching session being held along with the briefing include "Preparing for the Unthinkable" and "Roadmap to Radiation Preparedness." The briefing comes amid escalating tensions with North Korea. Last weekend, a former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff said nuclear war with North Korea is closer "than we have ever been." The CDC held a similar event in 2010. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Over the weekend, a former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff under two presidents said the U.S. is closer to nuclear war with North Korea "than we have ever been." | AP Photo CDC briefing to focus on preparing for nuclear war
The CDC wants the public to be prepared for nuclear war.
The agency has posted a notice touting a Jan. 16 briefing about the work that federal, state and local governments are doing in case of a possible nuclear strike.
Story Continued Below
“While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps,” the notice states. “Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness.”
Presenters include Dan Sosin, CDC's deputy director and chief medical officer in the Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, and experts on radiation safety and environmental hazards.
The briefing comes amid rising tensions between the United States and North Korea. President Donald Trump earlier this week fired off a taunting tweet in which he bragged that his nuclear arsenal is more powerful than North Korea’s. The CDC notice preceded that message.
“North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the ‘Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times,’” Trump tweeted. “Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”
POLITICO Pulse newsletter Get the latest on the health care fight, every weekday morning — in your inbox. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Trump's tweets have alarmed policy experts who say they could exacerbate tensions. Over the weekend, Mike Mullen, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under both former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said the U.S. is closer to nuclear war with North Korea "than we have ever been."
CDC on Friday said that the event has been in the works since last April.
The briefing is part of the agency's monthly "Grand Rounds" sessions at its Atlanta headquarters. Upcoming briefings are mostly devoted to more conventional public health concerns, such as childhood vaccinations and hepatitis C. ||||| In what serves as a very sad commentary on the current state of geopolitical affairs, the US Centers for Disease Control will hold a special session later this month to discuss ways in which American citizens should plan and prepare for nuclear war.
The event, which the agency says it has been planning for months, is called “Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation” and will be held at the CDC’s Roybal Campus in Atlanta, Georgia on January 16th. The Ground Rounds session will explore what federal, state, and local governments are planning to do in the event of nuclear detonation, particularly in regards to public health programs. In grossly understated tones, the CDC says that “planning and preparation efforts for a nuclear detonation are similar and different from other emergency response planning efforts.”
If by “different” the CDC means preparing for injuries sustained by 1,000 km/hr winds, along with treating severe burns, flash blindness, and radiation sickness, then the CDC is spot on. Indeed, the demands placed on healthcare workers and the health infrastructure would be an order of magnitude greater than most disasters. In stoic manner, the CDC describes the challenges thusly:
While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps. Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness. For instance, most people don’t realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation. While federal, state, and local agencies will lead the immediate response efforts, public health will play a key role in responding.
Ah, it’s the Cold War all over again. Perhaps we’ll start teaching our kids how to hide under their desks again, and regularly suffer through programming interruptions as our TV calmly assures us it’s just performing a test of the emergency broadcast system. And maybe we’ll even start to litter our parks with nuclear warning sirens—oh, wait, they’ve already started doing that in Hawaii.
Advertisement
In all fairness, it’s obviously better to plan for a nuclear disaster than not. In this case, the CDC is holding a teaching session that will bring together doctors, nurses, pharmacists, veterinarians, health education specialists, lab scientists, and others. As a CDC spokesperson told STAT, “CDC participants felt it would be a good way to discuss public health preparedness and share resources with states and other partners. State and local partners also have expressed interest in this topic over time.” Topics to be discussed include “Preparing for the Unthinkable,” “Public Health Resources to Meet Critical Components of Preparedness,” and “Roadmap to Radiation Preparedness.”
The CDC held a similar event back in 2010, so it’s something the agency does on occasion. But given the escalating rhetoric between North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump, the event seems eerily timely. And necessary.
[CDC] ||||| CLOSE The Centers for Disease Control is holding a briefing on January 16 to detail what a public health response to a nuclear detonation would look like. Buzz60
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is based in Atlanta, has been under scrutiny because of a series of high-profile lab incidents. (Photo: Jessica McGowan, Getty Images)
As tensions between North Korea and the U.S. rise, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention want Americans to be prepared in case of a nuclear event.
The agency scheduled a briefing Jan. 16 titled "Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation," where federal, state and local officials will detail what preparations have been made in case of such an event.
"While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps," reads an excerpt from the CDC's website detailing the briefing. "For instance, most people don’t realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation."
DOCTOR: Get 'as far away from the roof and the walls as possible'
HOW TO:Survive a nuclear attack, according to Japanese manga
The briefing includes experts in radiation studies and public health officials who will explain how the U.S. has prepared for a nuclear event.
The timing of the briefing arrives as Americans grow concerned over heated rhetoric between the U.S. and North Korea. In October, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found 56% of Americas disapproved of President Donald Trump's handling of North Korea. A December poll from YouGov found nearly half of Americans believe it's very or fairly likely the U.S. will use military force against North Korea.
Both polls came before the most recent spat between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un: During his annual New Year's Day speech, Kim said he had a nuclear button on his desk, with the U.S. mainland within the range of his weapons.
Trump responded a day later, saying he also had a button, but it was "bigger & more powerful."
PREPPERS:Costco now sells $1,000 disaster food kit
Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.
Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2CKzXrU | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 29,540 |
A state lawmaker has proposed legislation that would prohibit SeaWorld from using orcas in its San Diego shows, saying he is being driven to act by revelations in the disputed documentary “Blackfish.”
The film, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and was later aired by CNN to mass television audiences in October, has drawn worldwide attention to how SeaWorld treats killer whales and alleged trainer safety shortcomings at the parks. The film explores the 2010 death of Dawn Brancheau, a trainer at the Orlando, Fla. park, who was pulled into the pool by the orca Tilikum and drowned.
SeaWorld has been aggressively fighting back, issuing statements blasting the film as propaganda.
“There is no justification for the continued captive display of orcas for entertainment purposes,” Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica, said in remarks prepared for the bill's release Friday. These beautiful creatures are much too large and far too intelligent to be confined in small, concrete tanks for their entire lives.”
Do you support a bill that would ban orca shows at SeaWorld? Yes 66% (13761) No 34% (7177) 20938 total votes.
The legislation has three central objectives: end the use of performing orcas in theme shows, ban captive breeding and prohibit the import and export of the so-called “killer” whales. The park would still be allowed to put whales on exhibit in settings similar to aquariums, but not used for performance or entertainment purposes. The legislation would apply to any park in California that provides such entertainment, but SeaWorld currently is the only one.
The current shows still feature acrobatics, but a judge has ruled that trainers cannot be in the water with the orcas.
SeaWorld issued a response Friday morning that said, in part: "In addition to being one of the most respected members of the business community, SeaWorld also is a global leader in the zoological and animal welfare world. We are deeply committed to the health and well-being of all of our animals and killer whales are no exception."
SeaWorld's full response
The bill could face a rocky path to passage.
SeaWorld is a popular attraction in San Diego, drawing about 4.4 million visitors from across the globe, creating up to 4,000 jobs during the peak summer season and pumping millions of dollars into the economy. The city of San Diego, which as of January nets a minimum $10.4 million in annual rent for the 190 acres leased by the park, may be drawn into the fight as well.
(This story has been updated. The original post said the minimum annual rent was $9.6 million, which was based on a December 2013 SeaWorld report.)
The bill’s introduction could put election-year pressure on Democrats in the San Diego delegation, notably incoming Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins. SeaWorld is in her district.
Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, said on Twitter Thursday night that she is a likely “yes” vote on the bill.
“SeaWorld’s reputation of treating its workers poorly dates back to its opening 50 years ago,” she expounded in a Facebook post. “It’s about time we continue this conversation about job quality and workplace safety at SeaWorld — whether it involves groundskeepers, concessions workers or killer whale trainers. Recent evidence suggests its record with orcas isn’t much better. I’m looking forward to having an honest conversation about SeaWorld’s business practices and how they can really be an icon that makes San Diego proud.” ||||| SAN DIEGO -- A state legislator from Santa Monica is introducing a bill that would prohibit orca shows at SeaWorld in San Diego.
The bill by Assemblyman Richard Hershel Bloom, a Democrat, would make it illegal to use orcas "for performance or entertainment purposes." It would also ban captive breeding done at SeaWorld of orcas, also known as killer whales.
The bill is supported by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and is prompted by the documentary "Blackfish," which was highly critical of the use of orcas at SeaWorld parks and centered on the death of a trainer at the park in Orlando, Fla.
As state legislation, the bill would only apply to the San Diego park, the only park in the state with orca shows.
"These beautiful creatures are much too large and intelligent to be confined in small, concrete pens for their entire lives," Bloom said in a statement.
In a statement issued by SeaWorld, the park said the bill appears "to reflect the same sort of out-of-the-mainstream thinking" of activists who went to court in San Diego in an unsuccessful bid to have the orcas declared slaves under the U.S. Constitution's 13th Amendment.
SeaWorld is "one of the world's most respected zoological institutions [and] already operates under multiple federal, state and local animal welfare laws," the statement said.
The bill will most likely be opposed by some legislators and other officials with districts in San Diego, where SeaWorld is a major tourist attraction and economic driver for the region's economy.
SeaWorld is in the district of Assemblywoman Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). Atkins is set to become Assembly Speaker this summer.
Bloom, a former mayor of Santa Monica, is in his first term representing a district that includes much of West Los Angeles and Hollywood.
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[email protected]
Twitter: @LATsandiego ||||| Story highlights "The premise behind this proposed legislation is severely flawed," SeaWorld says
"Keeping orcas captive for human amusement must end," Bloom says
Bloom says "This is about greed and ... corporate exploitation," former SeaWorld trainer says
Assemblyman's bill comes in the wake of CNN's documentary "Blackfish"
A California state legislator is proposing to ban the captivity of killer whales for entertainment at SeaWorld in the wake of CNN's controversial documentary " Blackfish ."
"It is time that we embrace that the long-accepted practice of keeping orcas captive for human amusement must end," state Assemblyman Richard Bloom, a Democrat from Santa Monica, said at a press conference Friday at the city's oceanfront pier.
Bloom was joined by "Blackfish" director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, two former SeaWorld orca trainers and an animal welfare activist.
"This is about greed and this is about corporate exploitation, both of the whales and the trainers, but most importantly the whales," said John Hargrove, a former SeaWorld orca trainer who resigned in August 2012.
A Bloom statement described the proposal as "landmark legislation calling for comprehensive improvement to orca protection laws in California."
Photos: Killer whales in captivity Photos: Killer whales in captivity Lolita, a captive killer whale at the Miami Seaquarium, was added to the endangered species listing for Southern Resident Killer Whales by NOAA Fisheries in February. Although her species was already listed as endangered, Lolita was not previously included because there was an exemption for captive members of the population. Lolita has been at the Miami Seaquarium since 1970. Hide Caption 1 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity Killer whales, or orcas, were first put on public display in the 1960s. The best known killer whale shows in the United States are at SeaWorld Parks, which are synonymous with their "Shamu" killer whale shows, seen here. Hide Caption 2 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity SeaWorld's first park opened in San Diego, California, in March 1964 with only a handful of employees, a few dolphins, sea lions, and two aquariums. The park introduced orcas the next year, and they quickly became the stars of the park's shows. A steady stream of celebrities have posed with SeaWorld's killer whales, including actress Halle Berry, seen here in 2009. Hide Caption 3 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity SeaWorld opened its Orlando park in 1973, where the first killer whale was born in captivity in 1985. SeaWorld emphasizes that it is "dedicated to education, entertainment, research and conservation" of all its marine animals. Here, two orcas at SeaWorld Orlando perform in 2000. Hide Caption 4 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity The 1993 hit movie "Free Willy" captured hearts and sparked a massive campaign to free Keiko, the orca that played "Willy" in the movie, from the Mexican amusement park where he performed. Here, Keiko is being prepared to be released into the wild in 1998. In 2002, Keiko spent five weeks journeying across the Atlantic to Norway. He wasn't quite ready to be independent, finding companionship among the Norwegian fishermen and children. He died in December 2003, most likely from pneumonia. Hide Caption 5 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity A male killer whale, Bingo, is transported to the Nagoya Port Aquarium in Japan in December 2011, after the death of the aquarium's only other orca. Marine animal activists say the transfers of orcas between marine parks are unhealthy for these mammals because of the stress and trauma. Hide Caption 6 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity This female killer whale, Morgan, was taken in by a Dutch dolphinarium after being found starving in the shallow waters of the North Sea off the Netherlands coast. She is now performing at Loro Parque in Spain's Canary Islands -- despite an agreement that she would be released into the wild after her rehabilitation. Animal rights activists have mounted a legal challenge for her release. Hide Caption 7 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity Today, there are 45 captive orcas performing at about 10 parks across the world, most of them born in captivity. Here, orcas perform at the Marineland aquatic park in Antibes, in southeastern France. Hide Caption 8 of 8
Currently, there are no laws prohibiting the captive display of orcas, but there are federal laws governing the care, capture and research use of the killer whales, Bloom said.
The documentary, produced by Magnolia Pictures and acquired by CNN Films, recounts the 2010 death of longtime SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau by a killer whale named Tilikum, a 12,000-pound bull, in Orlando, Florida.
SeaWorld also offers orca shows at a third site, in San Antonio, Texas, but the California legislation would apply only to SeaWorld's San Diego facility.
The film challenges the concept of keeping killer whales for entertainment and implies Tilikum had been driven to madness by captivity.
Since then, a fiery controversy has erupted.
SeaWorld strongly disputes the allegations that "Blackfish" makes and called the film grossly one-sided and the product of animal activists.
On Friday, SeaWorld spokeswoman Becca Bides criticized the bill.
"The premise behind this proposed legislation is severely flawed on multiple levels, and its validity is highly questionable under the United States and California Constitutions," Bides said in a statement. "We trust that our leaders who are responsible for voting on this proposal will recognize the clear bias of those behind the bill."
Bides added the participants joining Bloom were well-known "extreme animal rights activists, many of whom regularly campaign against SeaWorld and other accredited marine mammal parks and institutions."
"Included in the group are some of the same activists that partnered with PETA in bringing the meritless claim that animals in human care should be considered slaves under the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution -- a clear publicity stunt. This legislation appears to reflect the same sort of out-of-the-mainstream thinking," Bides said in a statement. "We engage in business practices that are responsible, sustainable and reflective of the balanced values all Americans share."
The proposed law would end performance-based entertainment for all killer whales in California, captive breeding programs and the export and import of genetic material, and the import and export of orcas within the state.
Also, the proposal would retire all captive killer whales to sea pens if available and would allow retired orcas to be on display, but not perform. The bill would limit the amount of human interaction for trainer safety, according to Bloom's fact sheet.
"Like the elephant -- the largest land mammal in captivity -- we have realized that orcas are more complex than most other marine mammals and require more space, have a more complex social structure and most importantly need their family network (pod) for a happy and healthy life," said a fact sheet by Bloom.
Currently, California has 10 captive killer whales, and seven of them were captive-born, according to Bloom.
In the past 50 years, California has lost 14 orcas, 12 of which were caught in the wild, Bloom said.
"After the tragic death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau, the public has begun to question the moral justification of keeping orcas in captivity for our general entertainment," Bloom's fact sheet said. "As a state we should lead the way in ending captivity for entertainment purposes and should be ensuring our current captive population general welfare needs are taken care of, and that we end any future captivity whether it be by capture or captive breeding programs here in California."
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said the proposed legislation "has the potential to end the deep injustice of exhibitions of captive marine life," said spokesman David W. Perle.
"PETA and kind people around the world have called on SeaWorld to retire these deprived orcas to a seaside sanctuary, but the park continues to defend its overt cruelty," Perle said in a statement.
One animal trainer, Grey Stafford of Arizona's Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium, criticized the proposed law, which he said "collapses under its own weight of inconsistencies, particularly with respect to animal welfare and future breeding."
"We still have a lot to learn about the killer whales," said Stafford, who used to train orcas.
The killer whale shows ensure the animal and its ocean habitat remain in the public consciousness.
"I am more concerned about the welfare of all species," Stafford said. "Out of sight means out of mind." | – A lawmaker in California wants to put an end to SeaWorld's orca shows. Assemblyman Richard Bloom, a Santa Monica Democrat, proposed legislation that would prohibit the shows featuring trained killer whales, reports CNN. If passed, it would affect only the park in San Diego, not SeaWorld's other locations in Florida and Texas. Bloom says he was moved by the anti-SeaWorld documentary Blackfish, and the film's director, Gabriela Cowperthwaite, joined Bloom for the launch of what he called "landmark legislation," reports the San Diego Union-Tribune. The measure won't have an easy time of it in the legislature, however, because the park is a huge source of tourism revenue, notes the LA Times. “There is no justification for the continued captive display of orcas for entertainment purposes,” says Bloom. "These beautiful creatures are much too large and far too intelligent to be confined in small, concrete tanks for their entire lives.” SeaWorld, which is fighting back hard against the documentary's claims that it mistreats its whales, responded by lumping Bloom in with "extreme animal rights activists." The company is "one of the world's most respected zoological institutions [and] already operates under multiple federal, state and local animal welfare laws," it said. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary. A state lawmaker has proposed legislation that would prohibit SeaWorld from using orcas in its San Diego shows, saying he is being driven to act by revelations in the disputed documentary “Blackfish.”
The film, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and was later aired by CNN to mass television audiences in October, has drawn worldwide attention to how SeaWorld treats killer whales and alleged trainer safety shortcomings at the parks. The film explores the 2010 death of Dawn Brancheau, a trainer at the Orlando, Fla. park, who was pulled into the pool by the orca Tilikum and drowned.
SeaWorld has been aggressively fighting back, issuing statements blasting the film as propaganda.
“There is no justification for the continued captive display of orcas for entertainment purposes,” Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica, said in remarks prepared for the bill's release Friday. These beautiful creatures are much too large and far too intelligent to be confined in small, concrete tanks for their entire lives.”
Do you support a bill that would ban orca shows at SeaWorld? Yes 66% (13761) No 34% (7177) 20938 total votes.
The legislation has three central objectives: end the use of performing orcas in theme shows, ban captive breeding and prohibit the import and export of the so-called “killer” whales. The park would still be allowed to put whales on exhibit in settings similar to aquariums, but not used for performance or entertainment purposes. The legislation would apply to any park in California that provides such entertainment, but SeaWorld currently is the only one.
The current shows still feature acrobatics, but a judge has ruled that trainers cannot be in the water with the orcas.
SeaWorld issued a response Friday morning that said, in part: "In addition to being one of the most respected members of the business community, SeaWorld also is a global leader in the zoological and animal welfare world. We are deeply committed to the health and well-being of all of our animals and killer whales are no exception."
SeaWorld's full response
The bill could face a rocky path to passage.
SeaWorld is a popular attraction in San Diego, drawing about 4.4 million visitors from across the globe, creating up to 4,000 jobs during the peak summer season and pumping millions of dollars into the economy. The city of San Diego, which as of January nets a minimum $10.4 million in annual rent for the 190 acres leased by the park, may be drawn into the fight as well.
(This story has been updated. The original post said the minimum annual rent was $9.6 million, which was based on a December 2013 SeaWorld report.)
The bill’s introduction could put election-year pressure on Democrats in the San Diego delegation, notably incoming Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins. SeaWorld is in her district.
Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, said on Twitter Thursday night that she is a likely “yes” vote on the bill.
“SeaWorld’s reputation of treating its workers poorly dates back to its opening 50 years ago,” she expounded in a Facebook post. “It’s about time we continue this conversation about job quality and workplace safety at SeaWorld — whether it involves groundskeepers, concessions workers or killer whale trainers. Recent evidence suggests its record with orcas isn’t much better. I’m looking forward to having an honest conversation about SeaWorld’s business practices and how they can really be an icon that makes San Diego proud.” ||||| SAN DIEGO -- A state legislator from Santa Monica is introducing a bill that would prohibit orca shows at SeaWorld in San Diego.
The bill by Assemblyman Richard Hershel Bloom, a Democrat, would make it illegal to use orcas "for performance or entertainment purposes." It would also ban captive breeding done at SeaWorld of orcas, also known as killer whales.
The bill is supported by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and is prompted by the documentary "Blackfish," which was highly critical of the use of orcas at SeaWorld parks and centered on the death of a trainer at the park in Orlando, Fla.
As state legislation, the bill would only apply to the San Diego park, the only park in the state with orca shows.
"These beautiful creatures are much too large and intelligent to be confined in small, concrete pens for their entire lives," Bloom said in a statement.
In a statement issued by SeaWorld, the park said the bill appears "to reflect the same sort of out-of-the-mainstream thinking" of activists who went to court in San Diego in an unsuccessful bid to have the orcas declared slaves under the U.S. Constitution's 13th Amendment.
SeaWorld is "one of the world's most respected zoological institutions [and] already operates under multiple federal, state and local animal welfare laws," the statement said.
The bill will most likely be opposed by some legislators and other officials with districts in San Diego, where SeaWorld is a major tourist attraction and economic driver for the region's economy.
SeaWorld is in the district of Assemblywoman Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). Atkins is set to become Assembly Speaker this summer.
Bloom, a former mayor of Santa Monica, is in his first term representing a district that includes much of West Los Angeles and Hollywood.
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Third-grade student accused of sexually assaulting classmate
Two men injured in suspected 'hash oil' explosion in Commerce
Meth flowing in from Mexico through border crossings, report says
[email protected]
Twitter: @LATsandiego ||||| Story highlights "The premise behind this proposed legislation is severely flawed," SeaWorld says
"Keeping orcas captive for human amusement must end," Bloom says
Bloom says "This is about greed and ... corporate exploitation," former SeaWorld trainer says
Assemblyman's bill comes in the wake of CNN's documentary "Blackfish"
A California state legislator is proposing to ban the captivity of killer whales for entertainment at SeaWorld in the wake of CNN's controversial documentary " Blackfish ."
"It is time that we embrace that the long-accepted practice of keeping orcas captive for human amusement must end," state Assemblyman Richard Bloom, a Democrat from Santa Monica, said at a press conference Friday at the city's oceanfront pier.
Bloom was joined by "Blackfish" director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, two former SeaWorld orca trainers and an animal welfare activist.
"This is about greed and this is about corporate exploitation, both of the whales and the trainers, but most importantly the whales," said John Hargrove, a former SeaWorld orca trainer who resigned in August 2012.
A Bloom statement described the proposal as "landmark legislation calling for comprehensive improvement to orca protection laws in California."
Photos: Killer whales in captivity Photos: Killer whales in captivity Lolita, a captive killer whale at the Miami Seaquarium, was added to the endangered species listing for Southern Resident Killer Whales by NOAA Fisheries in February. Although her species was already listed as endangered, Lolita was not previously included because there was an exemption for captive members of the population. Lolita has been at the Miami Seaquarium since 1970. Hide Caption 1 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity Killer whales, or orcas, were first put on public display in the 1960s. The best known killer whale shows in the United States are at SeaWorld Parks, which are synonymous with their "Shamu" killer whale shows, seen here. Hide Caption 2 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity SeaWorld's first park opened in San Diego, California, in March 1964 with only a handful of employees, a few dolphins, sea lions, and two aquariums. The park introduced orcas the next year, and they quickly became the stars of the park's shows. A steady stream of celebrities have posed with SeaWorld's killer whales, including actress Halle Berry, seen here in 2009. Hide Caption 3 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity SeaWorld opened its Orlando park in 1973, where the first killer whale was born in captivity in 1985. SeaWorld emphasizes that it is "dedicated to education, entertainment, research and conservation" of all its marine animals. Here, two orcas at SeaWorld Orlando perform in 2000. Hide Caption 4 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity The 1993 hit movie "Free Willy" captured hearts and sparked a massive campaign to free Keiko, the orca that played "Willy" in the movie, from the Mexican amusement park where he performed. Here, Keiko is being prepared to be released into the wild in 1998. In 2002, Keiko spent five weeks journeying across the Atlantic to Norway. He wasn't quite ready to be independent, finding companionship among the Norwegian fishermen and children. He died in December 2003, most likely from pneumonia. Hide Caption 5 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity A male killer whale, Bingo, is transported to the Nagoya Port Aquarium in Japan in December 2011, after the death of the aquarium's only other orca. Marine animal activists say the transfers of orcas between marine parks are unhealthy for these mammals because of the stress and trauma. Hide Caption 6 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity This female killer whale, Morgan, was taken in by a Dutch dolphinarium after being found starving in the shallow waters of the North Sea off the Netherlands coast. She is now performing at Loro Parque in Spain's Canary Islands -- despite an agreement that she would be released into the wild after her rehabilitation. Animal rights activists have mounted a legal challenge for her release. Hide Caption 7 of 8 Photos: Killer whales in captivity Today, there are 45 captive orcas performing at about 10 parks across the world, most of them born in captivity. Here, orcas perform at the Marineland aquatic park in Antibes, in southeastern France. Hide Caption 8 of 8
Currently, there are no laws prohibiting the captive display of orcas, but there are federal laws governing the care, capture and research use of the killer whales, Bloom said.
The documentary, produced by Magnolia Pictures and acquired by CNN Films, recounts the 2010 death of longtime SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau by a killer whale named Tilikum, a 12,000-pound bull, in Orlando, Florida.
SeaWorld also offers orca shows at a third site, in San Antonio, Texas, but the California legislation would apply only to SeaWorld's San Diego facility.
The film challenges the concept of keeping killer whales for entertainment and implies Tilikum had been driven to madness by captivity.
Since then, a fiery controversy has erupted.
SeaWorld strongly disputes the allegations that "Blackfish" makes and called the film grossly one-sided and the product of animal activists.
On Friday, SeaWorld spokeswoman Becca Bides criticized the bill.
"The premise behind this proposed legislation is severely flawed on multiple levels, and its validity is highly questionable under the United States and California Constitutions," Bides said in a statement. "We trust that our leaders who are responsible for voting on this proposal will recognize the clear bias of those behind the bill."
Bides added the participants joining Bloom were well-known "extreme animal rights activists, many of whom regularly campaign against SeaWorld and other accredited marine mammal parks and institutions."
"Included in the group are some of the same activists that partnered with PETA in bringing the meritless claim that animals in human care should be considered slaves under the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution -- a clear publicity stunt. This legislation appears to reflect the same sort of out-of-the-mainstream thinking," Bides said in a statement. "We engage in business practices that are responsible, sustainable and reflective of the balanced values all Americans share."
The proposed law would end performance-based entertainment for all killer whales in California, captive breeding programs and the export and import of genetic material, and the import and export of orcas within the state.
Also, the proposal would retire all captive killer whales to sea pens if available and would allow retired orcas to be on display, but not perform. The bill would limit the amount of human interaction for trainer safety, according to Bloom's fact sheet.
"Like the elephant -- the largest land mammal in captivity -- we have realized that orcas are more complex than most other marine mammals and require more space, have a more complex social structure and most importantly need their family network (pod) for a happy and healthy life," said a fact sheet by Bloom.
Currently, California has 10 captive killer whales, and seven of them were captive-born, according to Bloom.
In the past 50 years, California has lost 14 orcas, 12 of which were caught in the wild, Bloom said.
"After the tragic death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau, the public has begun to question the moral justification of keeping orcas in captivity for our general entertainment," Bloom's fact sheet said. "As a state we should lead the way in ending captivity for entertainment purposes and should be ensuring our current captive population general welfare needs are taken care of, and that we end any future captivity whether it be by capture or captive breeding programs here in California."
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said the proposed legislation "has the potential to end the deep injustice of exhibitions of captive marine life," said spokesman David W. Perle.
"PETA and kind people around the world have called on SeaWorld to retire these deprived orcas to a seaside sanctuary, but the park continues to defend its overt cruelty," Perle said in a statement.
One animal trainer, Grey Stafford of Arizona's Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium, criticized the proposed law, which he said "collapses under its own weight of inconsistencies, particularly with respect to animal welfare and future breeding."
"We still have a lot to learn about the killer whales," said Stafford, who used to train orcas.
The killer whale shows ensure the animal and its ocean habitat remain in the public consciousness.
"I am more concerned about the welfare of all species," Stafford said. "Out of sight means out of mind." | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 22,225 |
Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Skip Ad Ad Loading... x Embed x Share Starting April 30, the Navy will allow service members to have larger tattoos on their bodies and allow smaller pieces of body art on their necks and behind their ears, according to a new directive issued Thursday. USA TODAY
Former sailor Popeye noted for anchor tattoos on his forearms. (Photo: NONE, XXX KING FEATURES)
WASHINGTON — Starting April 30, the Navy will allow service members to have larger tattoos on their bodies and allow smaller pieces of body art on their necks and behind their ears, according to a new directive issued Thursday.
"This policy change is about honest with ourselves, and putting policies in place that reflect tattoo realities in the nation we serve," Lt. Cdr. Nate Christensen, the spokesman for the chief of naval personnel, said. "It is also meant to ensure we don't miss opportunities to bring in talented young men and women willing to serve."
The new policy will allow members of the Navy to have a tattoo on the neck that "shall not exceed one inch in measurement in any dimension, (height/width)," the directive says. "Tattoos meeting these requirements are acceptable behind the ear."
Only tattoos on the neck or behind the ear will be limited in size, the directive says. Those elsewhere on the body "can be of any size."
The Navy prohibits tattoos that are obscene, symbolize membership in gangs, supremacist or extremist groups or advocate illegal drug use, Navy policy says.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1MWLuiM ||||| The Navy is easing its tattoo policy in a bid to recruit and retain more sailors from the millennial generation, of whom more than 1 in 3 sport body art.
Sailors will be allowed to have neck tattoos, sleeves and even markings behind their ears under the new policy, the most lenient of any military service. Only their heads are off limits under the new policy, which the Navy's top sailor has called a reality check on the permanent art favored by sailors .
It's a The move makes that puts the Navy's tattoo policies as arguably the most liberal of any of the military services in what the Navy's top enlisted sailor is calling a reality check in recognizing it's own fleet culture and that of the nation as a whole.
"We just got to the point where we realized we needed to be honest with ourselves and put something in place that was going to reflect the realities of our country and the needs of our Navy," Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (AW/NAC) Mike Stevens said in a March 30 interview. "We need to make sure that we're not missing any opportunities to recruit and retain the best and the brightest because of our policies."
The new rules, announced Thursday and taking effect April 30, will allow sailors to:
Have multiple or large tattoos below the elbow or knee, including the wrists and hands, effectively allowing sleeve tattoos that can be seen even while wearing short sleeve uniforms.
Have one tattoo on their neck, which includes behind the ear, and it may not exceed 1 inch in length or height in either or both directions.
Sailors with visible tattoos will now be eligible for recruiting duty or leading recruits at boot camp in Great Lakes, Illinois. These tough assignments often give sailors a leg up to make rank.
The rules do not change the Navy’s content guidelines that apply to body art "anywhere on the body," the policy says.
What do you think of the new tattoo rules and what other changes would you like to see to for permitted piercings, tattoos, and branding? Tell us at [email protected].
The service reiterated these in the updated policy, banning "tattoos that are obscene, sexually explicit, and or advocate discrimination based on sex, race, religion, ethnicity, or national origin."
"In addition, tattoos that symbolize affiliation with gangs, supremacist or extremist groups, or advocate illegal drug use are prohibited — waivers will not be given for tattoos with prohibited content," the service said.
The updated tattoo policy does not apply to Marines, even ones serving at Navy commands, according to a spokesman for Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller. The Marines are easing their tattoo rules but do not allow sleeves, which would be visible with short-sleeved uniforms like PT uniforms.
In 2015, the Army updated its rules to allow sleeve tattoos, but it does not permit soldiers to have ink on their necks or hands, which would be visible in the Army Service Uniform.
Sailors tattoos must be documented in the administrative remarks section of their service record .
Sailors found to have tattoos with prohibited content could face disciplinary action and even involuntary discharge. It’s left up to commanding officers to decide what crosses the line. Typically, sailors are allowed to have tattoos removed or modified to eliminate any banned content before they are disciplined.
Beyond what’s stated in the policy, don’t expect a laundry list of do's and don'ts.
"There are just so many variables when you look at tattoo language and tattoo art that it’s just not reasonable to try and identify a set list of what is and what isn’t acceptable," Stevens said. "This is one of those areas where we trust this senior leadership, our triads, to be able to look at something in it s context, using the chain of command and having discussions amongst themselves as to whether something is appropriate or not."
151214-N-IJ275-021 NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Dec 14, 2015) – Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Equipment) 3rd Class James Fisher,a Sailors assigned to the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), participates in a cable rereaving in the engine room, Dec. 14. Lincoln is undergoing a Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ciarra C. Thibodeaux/Released)
Tattoos are popular with sailors, especially millennials. New rules will allow more inked sailors to compete for career-enhancing jobs like recruiting duty. Here, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Equipment) 3rd Class James Fisher participates in a cable reweaving in the engine room of carrier Abraham Lincoln.
Photo Credit: MC3 Ciarra C. Thibodeaux/Navy
Stevens said the changes came from sailors' feedback, with many complaining that their body art unfairly barred them from jobs like recruit division commanders that can help them get advanced.
Stevens said he believes that society is more accepting of tattoos, with some estimates that as much as nearly half of the demographic the military recruits from has tattoos.
"This isn’t official, but in my research, I saw estimates that the percentage of people with tattoos in the 18 to 25 age group as being between 37 and 40 percent ," he said. That's not an insignificant number ."
That age group encompasses the majority of sailors in the fleet, Stevens said, and made the Navy's leadership realize a policy change was needed from the tougher rules enacted 13 years ago.
"It's a tough recruiting environment out there already and when you start putting up barriers that don't have any true rationale behind them, you create problems for yourself into the future," he said. "We've met [recruiting] goal for 105 straight months and our recruiting is strong, but you never want to get behind."
MCPON, who is wrapping up a 33-year career that is longer than most millennials' lives, would "neither confirm nor deny" when asked whether he has any tattoos. | – The brave men and women protecting our waters are now free to get all tatted up. The Navy announced Thursday it's easing tattoo restrictions for sailors, the Virginian-Pilot reports. Under the new guidelines, which go into effect April 30, sailors will be allowed one small tattoo on the neck and have free rein to go crazy below the knees and elbows. “This policy change is about being honest with ourselves, and putting policies in place that reflect tattoo realities in the nation we serve,” a Navy spokesperson says. Previously, tattoos below the knees and elbows had to be no larger than a sailor's hand. Sailors will now be allowed to sport full sleeve tattoos. According to USA Today, neck tattoos must be kept smaller than an inch. The Navy Times calls the new guidelines the "military's best tattoo rules" and points out that more than one in three millennials have tattoos."It’s a tough recruiting environment out there already, and when you start putting up barriers that don’t have any true rationale behind them, you create problems for yourself into the future," the Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy says. Many sailors had complained that their tattoos were keeping them from advancing their careers. For the first time, sailors with heavily tattooed arms will be allowed to train recruits and work in recruiting offices. But tattoos still must not be “prejudicial to good order, discipline, and morale, or be of a nature that brings discredit upon the naval service." And sorry, sailors, face tats are still a no-go. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Skip Ad Ad Loading... x Embed x Share Starting April 30, the Navy will allow service members to have larger tattoos on their bodies and allow smaller pieces of body art on their necks and behind their ears, according to a new directive issued Thursday. USA TODAY
Former sailor Popeye noted for anchor tattoos on his forearms. (Photo: NONE, XXX KING FEATURES)
WASHINGTON — Starting April 30, the Navy will allow service members to have larger tattoos on their bodies and allow smaller pieces of body art on their necks and behind their ears, according to a new directive issued Thursday.
"This policy change is about honest with ourselves, and putting policies in place that reflect tattoo realities in the nation we serve," Lt. Cdr. Nate Christensen, the spokesman for the chief of naval personnel, said. "It is also meant to ensure we don't miss opportunities to bring in talented young men and women willing to serve."
The new policy will allow members of the Navy to have a tattoo on the neck that "shall not exceed one inch in measurement in any dimension, (height/width)," the directive says. "Tattoos meeting these requirements are acceptable behind the ear."
Only tattoos on the neck or behind the ear will be limited in size, the directive says. Those elsewhere on the body "can be of any size."
The Navy prohibits tattoos that are obscene, symbolize membership in gangs, supremacist or extremist groups or advocate illegal drug use, Navy policy says.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1MWLuiM ||||| The Navy is easing its tattoo policy in a bid to recruit and retain more sailors from the millennial generation, of whom more than 1 in 3 sport body art.
Sailors will be allowed to have neck tattoos, sleeves and even markings behind their ears under the new policy, the most lenient of any military service. Only their heads are off limits under the new policy, which the Navy's top sailor has called a reality check on the permanent art favored by sailors .
It's a The move makes that puts the Navy's tattoo policies as arguably the most liberal of any of the military services in what the Navy's top enlisted sailor is calling a reality check in recognizing it's own fleet culture and that of the nation as a whole.
"We just got to the point where we realized we needed to be honest with ourselves and put something in place that was going to reflect the realities of our country and the needs of our Navy," Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (AW/NAC) Mike Stevens said in a March 30 interview. "We need to make sure that we're not missing any opportunities to recruit and retain the best and the brightest because of our policies."
The new rules, announced Thursday and taking effect April 30, will allow sailors to:
Have multiple or large tattoos below the elbow or knee, including the wrists and hands, effectively allowing sleeve tattoos that can be seen even while wearing short sleeve uniforms.
Have one tattoo on their neck, which includes behind the ear, and it may not exceed 1 inch in length or height in either or both directions.
Sailors with visible tattoos will now be eligible for recruiting duty or leading recruits at boot camp in Great Lakes, Illinois. These tough assignments often give sailors a leg up to make rank.
The rules do not change the Navy’s content guidelines that apply to body art "anywhere on the body," the policy says.
What do you think of the new tattoo rules and what other changes would you like to see to for permitted piercings, tattoos, and branding? Tell us at [email protected].
The service reiterated these in the updated policy, banning "tattoos that are obscene, sexually explicit, and or advocate discrimination based on sex, race, religion, ethnicity, or national origin."
"In addition, tattoos that symbolize affiliation with gangs, supremacist or extremist groups, or advocate illegal drug use are prohibited — waivers will not be given for tattoos with prohibited content," the service said.
The updated tattoo policy does not apply to Marines, even ones serving at Navy commands, according to a spokesman for Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller. The Marines are easing their tattoo rules but do not allow sleeves, which would be visible with short-sleeved uniforms like PT uniforms.
In 2015, the Army updated its rules to allow sleeve tattoos, but it does not permit soldiers to have ink on their necks or hands, which would be visible in the Army Service Uniform.
Sailors tattoos must be documented in the administrative remarks section of their service record .
Sailors found to have tattoos with prohibited content could face disciplinary action and even involuntary discharge. It’s left up to commanding officers to decide what crosses the line. Typically, sailors are allowed to have tattoos removed or modified to eliminate any banned content before they are disciplined.
Beyond what’s stated in the policy, don’t expect a laundry list of do's and don'ts.
"There are just so many variables when you look at tattoo language and tattoo art that it’s just not reasonable to try and identify a set list of what is and what isn’t acceptable," Stevens said. "This is one of those areas where we trust this senior leadership, our triads, to be able to look at something in it s context, using the chain of command and having discussions amongst themselves as to whether something is appropriate or not."
151214-N-IJ275-021 NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (Dec 14, 2015) – Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Equipment) 3rd Class James Fisher,a Sailors assigned to the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), participates in a cable rereaving in the engine room, Dec. 14. Lincoln is undergoing a Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ciarra C. Thibodeaux/Released)
Tattoos are popular with sailors, especially millennials. New rules will allow more inked sailors to compete for career-enhancing jobs like recruiting duty. Here, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Equipment) 3rd Class James Fisher participates in a cable reweaving in the engine room of carrier Abraham Lincoln.
Photo Credit: MC3 Ciarra C. Thibodeaux/Navy
Stevens said the changes came from sailors' feedback, with many complaining that their body art unfairly barred them from jobs like recruit division commanders that can help them get advanced.
Stevens said he believes that society is more accepting of tattoos, with some estimates that as much as nearly half of the demographic the military recruits from has tattoos.
"This isn’t official, but in my research, I saw estimates that the percentage of people with tattoos in the 18 to 25 age group as being between 37 and 40 percent ," he said. That's not an insignificant number ."
That age group encompasses the majority of sailors in the fleet, Stevens said, and made the Navy's leadership realize a policy change was needed from the tougher rules enacted 13 years ago.
"It's a tough recruiting environment out there already and when you start putting up barriers that don't have any true rationale behind them, you create problems for yourself into the future," he said. "We've met [recruiting] goal for 105 straight months and our recruiting is strong, but you never want to get behind."
MCPON, who is wrapping up a 33-year career that is longer than most millennials' lives, would "neither confirm nor deny" when asked whether he has any tattoos. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 8,842 |
After 32 years in production, the last Ford Crown Victoria will roll off the assembly line today. It's a record that surpasses all other North American vehicles, including the Model T. Its final destination, however, isn't a museum in Detroit or a American collector. It's being sent to Saudi Arabia.
Possibly the most profitable Ford car ever — thanks to bean-counting that denied it capital for major updates — Ford decided in 2009 that the cost of bringing the Panther platform to 21st-century standards and replacing its worn-out tooling was not worth the trouble.
Its factory in St. Thomas, Ontario, has slowly wound down over the past few months; workers were sent home early Wednesday with the final five cars on the assembly line because they didn't have enough parts. The city is looking for potential new buyers for the plant, but most of the 1,200 workers will either have to move or quit.
And with the death of the Crown Vic goes a whole slew of iconic vehicles from Ford's classic Police Interceptor — that will be replaced either by other automakers' cars or the new Taurus-based Ford Police Interceptor; to the New York City taxi cab — that will be replaced by either the Ford Transit Connect, a Nissan van (that our fearless leader hates) or some other random egg-shaped vehicle.
Thanks to those employees, we know that the final Crown Victoria will be built for a Saudi Arabian customer, painted white with a tan interior and optional rear seat air conditioning.
Advertisement
Advertisement
There's a lot that's sad about this, but for me, I think I'm most teary-eyed over the fact that when this four-door boat rolls onto the transport, destined for the far away Middle East, Ford's American dealers will be lacking a V8-powered sedan for the first time since 1932.
Today, the Ford Crown Victoria, a slope-nosed metal box with an unquenchable thirst for gas built with manufacturing methods Henry Ford would have recognized, died after 32 years of production. More »
You can keep up with Justin Hyde, the author of this post, on Twitter or Facebook. ||||| TALBOTVILLE, Ont. - It started early.
More than 600 workers left their homes before 6 a.m., driving to Ford's St. Thomas assembly plant.
Some stopped for breakfast at The Flying M next door-- a tradition.
They began this last day Thursday as they had so many before it -- with diner food and coffee, lots of coffee.
Then they filed into the plant on Hwy. 4 before the shift started at 7 a.m., only a few hours left in its last day.
Some were scheduled to work, others were retirees who came for the last day. And others who were not supposed to work showed up anyway, just to see some history and say goodbye.
"I felt funny yesterday when I left work, but I just went home and when I came back today I thought 'Oh my God, this is really the end', " said Denise Knutson, who worked in the paint shop for 11 years.
"I wanted to see for myself that there are no more cars. It was very emotional."
The assembly line needed only about 300 workers on this, its last day, but more than double that were on site watching the final white Crown Victoria roll down the line, ending at about 11:30 a.m.
"I saw my boss of 11 years crying, a full-grown man crying. The paint manager was crying. They were not ready to go. They are sad, because everyone takes pride in their work. We were like a family here."
Many of the workers signed the frame and underbody of the last car, although it will not be apparent to whomever buys it.
Then many headed to bars and restaurants in the area for their version of a wake.
"I got up at 5 a.m., had a quick coffee and was out the door, just like I used to everyday," said Fred Martellotti, who worked at the plant 30 years before retiring in 2007.
"My old supervisor shook my hand and was crying. It is a sad, empty feeling, to see the plant so empty. There no other cars, no one in other areas. I have never seen that before. It was a sick feeling. It was eery, like a ghost town."
Martellotti and Knutson were among a group of friends who gathered at the Wayside Inn in Talbotville after production ended.
"The first time I walked in I thought it was massive, a huge plant, and it was so clean," said Rick Hamm, who has 43 years' seniority, beginning work three weeks after the plant opened.
"There have been a lot of changes -- robots and technology -- that made it easier. I remember when in the body shop they used to have to sand by hand -- that was a tough job. But I have met a lot of men and women who are wonderful people, such good friends and a good work environment. I always liked coming to work, doing my job."
Since Aug. 31, cars made at the plant had to be shipped overseas because they didn't comply with new crash standards for sale in North America for the 2012 model year.
And that last car is headed to the Middle East, the workers said.
Outside the plant, standing in the parking lot in the early morning rain, Simon Jacco lifted his small camera to take a photograph of the workers' entrance to the plant, the entrance he walked through for 37 years.
"It is sad, very sad," said Jacco, who retired in 2007. "I just wanted to be here for the last time. This place paid my bills, put my kids through college. It was great. I feel lucky I was here, but I feel for these guys who are out of work. They have a good package, but they do not have a job."
[email protected]
END OF AN ERA
Ford of Canada St. Thomas assembly plant:
* Opened Dec. 16, 1967
* Closed Sept. 15, 2011
* Eight million cars, 16,000 workers passed through its gates
* First car off the line: Ford
* Last car off the line: Crown | – Bye-bye, Crown Vic: The last one rolled off a Ford assembly line in Canada yesterday, reports the Toronto Sun, bringing an end to a 32-year production line. No other North American car has had as long of a run, notes Justin Hyde at Jalopnik. The big car has been a staple for police departments and taxi companies, but it didn't mesh with Ford's future. The last one is destined for a buyer in Saudi Arabia. "There's a lot that's sad about this," writes Hyde, "but for me, I think I'm most teary-eyed over the fact that when this four-door boat rolls onto the transport, destined for the far away Middle East, Ford's American dealers will be lacking a V8-powered sedan for the first time since 1932." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.After 32 years in production, the last Ford Crown Victoria will roll off the assembly line today. It's a record that surpasses all other North American vehicles, including the Model T. Its final destination, however, isn't a museum in Detroit or a American collector. It's being sent to Saudi Arabia.
Possibly the most profitable Ford car ever — thanks to bean-counting that denied it capital for major updates — Ford decided in 2009 that the cost of bringing the Panther platform to 21st-century standards and replacing its worn-out tooling was not worth the trouble.
Its factory in St. Thomas, Ontario, has slowly wound down over the past few months; workers were sent home early Wednesday with the final five cars on the assembly line because they didn't have enough parts. The city is looking for potential new buyers for the plant, but most of the 1,200 workers will either have to move or quit.
And with the death of the Crown Vic goes a whole slew of iconic vehicles from Ford's classic Police Interceptor — that will be replaced either by other automakers' cars or the new Taurus-based Ford Police Interceptor; to the New York City taxi cab — that will be replaced by either the Ford Transit Connect, a Nissan van (that our fearless leader hates) or some other random egg-shaped vehicle.
Thanks to those employees, we know that the final Crown Victoria will be built for a Saudi Arabian customer, painted white with a tan interior and optional rear seat air conditioning.
Advertisement
Advertisement
There's a lot that's sad about this, but for me, I think I'm most teary-eyed over the fact that when this four-door boat rolls onto the transport, destined for the far away Middle East, Ford's American dealers will be lacking a V8-powered sedan for the first time since 1932.
Today, the Ford Crown Victoria, a slope-nosed metal box with an unquenchable thirst for gas built with manufacturing methods Henry Ford would have recognized, died after 32 years of production. More »
You can keep up with Justin Hyde, the author of this post, on Twitter or Facebook. ||||| TALBOTVILLE, Ont. - It started early.
More than 600 workers left their homes before 6 a.m., driving to Ford's St. Thomas assembly plant.
Some stopped for breakfast at The Flying M next door-- a tradition.
They began this last day Thursday as they had so many before it -- with diner food and coffee, lots of coffee.
Then they filed into the plant on Hwy. 4 before the shift started at 7 a.m., only a few hours left in its last day.
Some were scheduled to work, others were retirees who came for the last day. And others who were not supposed to work showed up anyway, just to see some history and say goodbye.
"I felt funny yesterday when I left work, but I just went home and when I came back today I thought 'Oh my God, this is really the end', " said Denise Knutson, who worked in the paint shop for 11 years.
"I wanted to see for myself that there are no more cars. It was very emotional."
The assembly line needed only about 300 workers on this, its last day, but more than double that were on site watching the final white Crown Victoria roll down the line, ending at about 11:30 a.m.
"I saw my boss of 11 years crying, a full-grown man crying. The paint manager was crying. They were not ready to go. They are sad, because everyone takes pride in their work. We were like a family here."
Many of the workers signed the frame and underbody of the last car, although it will not be apparent to whomever buys it.
Then many headed to bars and restaurants in the area for their version of a wake.
"I got up at 5 a.m., had a quick coffee and was out the door, just like I used to everyday," said Fred Martellotti, who worked at the plant 30 years before retiring in 2007.
"My old supervisor shook my hand and was crying. It is a sad, empty feeling, to see the plant so empty. There no other cars, no one in other areas. I have never seen that before. It was a sick feeling. It was eery, like a ghost town."
Martellotti and Knutson were among a group of friends who gathered at the Wayside Inn in Talbotville after production ended.
"The first time I walked in I thought it was massive, a huge plant, and it was so clean," said Rick Hamm, who has 43 years' seniority, beginning work three weeks after the plant opened.
"There have been a lot of changes -- robots and technology -- that made it easier. I remember when in the body shop they used to have to sand by hand -- that was a tough job. But I have met a lot of men and women who are wonderful people, such good friends and a good work environment. I always liked coming to work, doing my job."
Since Aug. 31, cars made at the plant had to be shipped overseas because they didn't comply with new crash standards for sale in North America for the 2012 model year.
And that last car is headed to the Middle East, the workers said.
Outside the plant, standing in the parking lot in the early morning rain, Simon Jacco lifted his small camera to take a photograph of the workers' entrance to the plant, the entrance he walked through for 37 years.
"It is sad, very sad," said Jacco, who retired in 2007. "I just wanted to be here for the last time. This place paid my bills, put my kids through college. It was great. I feel lucky I was here, but I feel for these guys who are out of work. They have a good package, but they do not have a job."
[email protected]
END OF AN ERA
Ford of Canada St. Thomas assembly plant:
* Opened Dec. 16, 1967
* Closed Sept. 15, 2011
* Eight million cars, 16,000 workers passed through its gates
* First car off the line: Ford
* Last car off the line: Crown | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 13,160 |
Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Just after dawn at Havre- Caumartin metro station, Paris's first commuters are stepping on and off half-empty trains. Then, at the end of the platform, a figure in black appears, head bowed and feet tapping with nerves.
Princess Hijab is Paris's most elusive street artist. Striking at night with dripping black paint she slaps black Muslim veils on the half-naked airbrushed women – and men – of the metro's fashion adverts. She calls it "hijabisation". Her guerrilla niqab art has been exhibited from New York to Vienna, sparking debates about feminism and fundamentalism – yet her identity remains a mystery.
In secular republican France, there can hardly be a more potent visual gag than scrawling graffitied veils on fashion ads. Six years after a law banned headscarves and all conspicuous religious symbols from state schools, Nicolas Sarkozy's government has banned the niqab from public spaces amid a fierce row over women's rights, islamophobia and civil liberties. The "burqa ban", approved last month, means that from next year it will be illegal for a woman to wear full-face Muslim veils in public, not just in government offices or on public transport, but in the streets, supermarkets and private businesses. The government says it is a way of protecting women's rights and stopping them being forced by men to cover their faces.
Already this has prompted extreme reactions. One female teacher in favour of the ban was last week given a month's suspended jail sentence for trying to rip a veil from the face of a 26-year-old Emirati tourist in a shop, then slapping, scratching and biting her. On the other side of the argument, two French women calling themselves "niqabitch" reproduced the classic visual mixed metaphor of walking around central Paris in niqabs, black hotpants, bare legs and high heels, posting a film of it online in order to highlight the "absurdity" of the ban.
But Princess Hijab got there first, and her simple, almost childlike acts of sabotage with a black marker pen still manage to be the most unsettling, with the widest audience abroad. Yet who is she? A French Muslim woman in hijab raging at the system? That would be a rare thing on Paris's male-dominated graffiti scene. Is she a religious fundamentalist making a point about female flesh? But she likes to leaves a witty smattering of buttock cheeks and midriff on display. If she's a leftwing feminist making a point about the exploitation of women, it's odd that she always flees the scene of her crimes. Is she even Muslim? Her fans like to imagine a young rebel outsider from Paris's suburban ghettos travelling to the capital to make her mark. But like Paris's greatest street artist, Blek le Rat — who inspired Britain's Bansky — she could turn out to be a fiftysomething white man who voted for Sarkozy.
The Princess winds through the corridors of Havre-Caumartin sizing up the advertising posters lining the walls. She has agreed to meet as she scours stations for targets for her next "niqab intervention". In Spandex tights, shorts and a hoodie, with a long black wig totally obscuring her face, one thing is clear; the twentysomething doesn't wear the niqab that has become her own signature. She won't say if she's a Muslim. In fact, it's more than likely that Princess Hijab isn't even a woman. There's a low note in her laughter, a slight broadness to her shoulders. But the androgynous figure in black won't confirm a gender. "The real identity behind Princess Hijab is of no importance," says the husky voice behind the wig. "The imagined self has taken the foreground, and anyway it's an artistic choice."
"I started doing this when I was 17," she says (I'll stick to "she" as the character is female, even if the person behind it is perhaps not).
"I'd been working on veils, making Spandex outfits that enveloped bodies, more classic art than fashion. And I'd been drawing veiled women on skate-boards and other graphic pieces, when I felt I wanted to confront the outside world. I'd read Naomi Klein's No Logo and it inspired me to risk intervening in public places, targeting advertising."
The Princess's first graffiti veil was in 2006, the "niqabisation" of the album poster of France's most famous female rapper, Diam's, who by strange coincidence has now converted to Islam herself. "It's intriguing because she's now wearing the veil," the Princess muses. Intially she graffitied men, women and children and then would stand around to gauge the public's response; now she does hit-and-runs. "I don't care about people's reactions. I can see this makes people feel awkward and ill at ease, I can understand that, you're on your way home after a tough day and suddenly you're confronted with this."
With the Paris metro protective of its advertising spaces, her work now usually stays up for only 45 minutes to an hour before being ripped down by officials. She has become highly selective, doing only four or five graffiti "interventions" in Paris a year. But each is carefully photographed and has its own afterlife circulating online. The "niqabised" range from Dolce & Gabbana men's underwear to risque adverts for Virgin bookshops.
Why does she do it? "I use veiled women as a challenge," she says, quick to add that she believes no one way of dressing is either good or bad. She's not defending the rights of any group and no one needs her as a spokesperson. "That's paternalistic. If veiled women want to make a point, they'd do it themselves. If feminists want to do something they're capable of doing it on their own." She later explains by email: "The veil has many hidden meanings, it can be as profane as it is sacred, consumerist and sanctimonious. From Arabic Gothicism to the condition of man. The interpretations are numerous and of course it carries great symbolism on race, sexuality and real and imagined geography."
Princess Hijab is deliberately cool and detached, but the one issue that really shakes her – and perhaps reveals a little of her true identity – is the place of minorities in France. Beyond the arguments about whether Muslim women should cover their heads, Sarkozy's new ministry of "immigration and national identity" and his national debate on what it means to be French has stigmatised the already discriminated and ghettoised young people of third- and fourth-generation immigrant descent. France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, but the prevailing anti-immigrant discourse, and what many view as a pointless burqa ban, has increased the feelings of marginalisation felt by young Muslims and minorities.
Princess Hijab sees herself as part of a new "graffiti of minorities" reclaiming the streets. "If it was only about the burqa ban, my work wouldn't have a resonance for very long. But I think the burqa ban has given a global visibility to the issue of integration in France," she says. "We definitely can't keep closing off and putting groups in boxes, always reducing them to the same old questions about religion or urban violence. Education levels are better and we can't have the old Manichean discourse any more."
She adds: "Liberty, equality, fraternity, that's a republican principle, but in reality the issue of minorities in French society hasn't really evolved in half a century. The outsiders in France are still the poor, the Arabs, black and of course, the Roma."
The Princess won't say what her own roots are. She simply says she sees her work as a kind of "cartography of crime" a mapping out of the underbelly of the city where "I bring inside everything that's been excreted out."
And yet her graffiti is particularly French in its anti-consumerism and ad-busting stance. For her, painting a veil on adverts works visually because the two are "dogmas that can be questioned". She feels young women wearing the hijab who were once stigmatised by French institutions are now being targeted for their purchasing power, the "perfect customers" in France's increasingly consumerist society.
Her next spree will focus on her favourite target brand, H&M. After all, its ad campaigns are plastered all over the Paris metro. She argues that the brand "democratised" fashion at low prices, women in hijab often shop there, and inking out H&M models is the perfect act of confrontation: "It's visually very striking because [the brand's] images are ideologically very present in the urban landscape."
So these blacked-out niqabs seem to represent everything but religion. "Am I religious?" she asks, hesitating. "The spiritual interests me, but that's personal, I don't think it bears on my work. Religion interests me, Muslims interest me and the impact they can have, artistically, aesthetically, in the codes that are all around us, particularly in fashion," she muses.
And with that, the graffiti performance artist scuttles off, kit-bag over her shoulder, to change out of her bizarre disguise and into her own everyday fashion and wander off above ground into the daylight. | – While France was debating its burka ban, graffiti artist "Princess Hijab" continued her jolting work covering up women—and men—in Paris metro ads with painted veils. The mysterious artist covers faces and sometimes entire bodies in black. She has dodged easy classification in decidedly elusive interviews, and it's not entirely clear if she's attacking Muslim discrimination, Islam, hyper-consumerism, the sexualization of women across cultures—or all of it, and more. She refers to her work as "hijabization" or "niqab intervention." The princess-with-a-black-marker first made her mark in 2006 on an album poster, "veiling" popular French singer Diam's, who, ironically, has since converted to Islam. Hijab's identity is unknown, and it's not clear if she's Muslim, or even if she is actually a she (the artist never reveals any skin in interviews or photos). "The veil has many hidden meanings, it can be as profane as it is sacred, consumerist and sanctimonious, from Arabic Gothicism to the condition of man," she tells the Guardian. "The interpretations are numerous, and it carries great symbolism on race, sexuality, and real and imagined geography." For more of the work, click here. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Just after dawn at Havre- Caumartin metro station, Paris's first commuters are stepping on and off half-empty trains. Then, at the end of the platform, a figure in black appears, head bowed and feet tapping with nerves.
Princess Hijab is Paris's most elusive street artist. Striking at night with dripping black paint she slaps black Muslim veils on the half-naked airbrushed women – and men – of the metro's fashion adverts. She calls it "hijabisation". Her guerrilla niqab art has been exhibited from New York to Vienna, sparking debates about feminism and fundamentalism – yet her identity remains a mystery.
In secular republican France, there can hardly be a more potent visual gag than scrawling graffitied veils on fashion ads. Six years after a law banned headscarves and all conspicuous religious symbols from state schools, Nicolas Sarkozy's government has banned the niqab from public spaces amid a fierce row over women's rights, islamophobia and civil liberties. The "burqa ban", approved last month, means that from next year it will be illegal for a woman to wear full-face Muslim veils in public, not just in government offices or on public transport, but in the streets, supermarkets and private businesses. The government says it is a way of protecting women's rights and stopping them being forced by men to cover their faces.
Already this has prompted extreme reactions. One female teacher in favour of the ban was last week given a month's suspended jail sentence for trying to rip a veil from the face of a 26-year-old Emirati tourist in a shop, then slapping, scratching and biting her. On the other side of the argument, two French women calling themselves "niqabitch" reproduced the classic visual mixed metaphor of walking around central Paris in niqabs, black hotpants, bare legs and high heels, posting a film of it online in order to highlight the "absurdity" of the ban.
But Princess Hijab got there first, and her simple, almost childlike acts of sabotage with a black marker pen still manage to be the most unsettling, with the widest audience abroad. Yet who is she? A French Muslim woman in hijab raging at the system? That would be a rare thing on Paris's male-dominated graffiti scene. Is she a religious fundamentalist making a point about female flesh? But she likes to leaves a witty smattering of buttock cheeks and midriff on display. If she's a leftwing feminist making a point about the exploitation of women, it's odd that she always flees the scene of her crimes. Is she even Muslim? Her fans like to imagine a young rebel outsider from Paris's suburban ghettos travelling to the capital to make her mark. But like Paris's greatest street artist, Blek le Rat — who inspired Britain's Bansky — she could turn out to be a fiftysomething white man who voted for Sarkozy.
The Princess winds through the corridors of Havre-Caumartin sizing up the advertising posters lining the walls. She has agreed to meet as she scours stations for targets for her next "niqab intervention". In Spandex tights, shorts and a hoodie, with a long black wig totally obscuring her face, one thing is clear; the twentysomething doesn't wear the niqab that has become her own signature. She won't say if she's a Muslim. In fact, it's more than likely that Princess Hijab isn't even a woman. There's a low note in her laughter, a slight broadness to her shoulders. But the androgynous figure in black won't confirm a gender. "The real identity behind Princess Hijab is of no importance," says the husky voice behind the wig. "The imagined self has taken the foreground, and anyway it's an artistic choice."
"I started doing this when I was 17," she says (I'll stick to "she" as the character is female, even if the person behind it is perhaps not).
"I'd been working on veils, making Spandex outfits that enveloped bodies, more classic art than fashion. And I'd been drawing veiled women on skate-boards and other graphic pieces, when I felt I wanted to confront the outside world. I'd read Naomi Klein's No Logo and it inspired me to risk intervening in public places, targeting advertising."
The Princess's first graffiti veil was in 2006, the "niqabisation" of the album poster of France's most famous female rapper, Diam's, who by strange coincidence has now converted to Islam herself. "It's intriguing because she's now wearing the veil," the Princess muses. Intially she graffitied men, women and children and then would stand around to gauge the public's response; now she does hit-and-runs. "I don't care about people's reactions. I can see this makes people feel awkward and ill at ease, I can understand that, you're on your way home after a tough day and suddenly you're confronted with this."
With the Paris metro protective of its advertising spaces, her work now usually stays up for only 45 minutes to an hour before being ripped down by officials. She has become highly selective, doing only four or five graffiti "interventions" in Paris a year. But each is carefully photographed and has its own afterlife circulating online. The "niqabised" range from Dolce & Gabbana men's underwear to risque adverts for Virgin bookshops.
Why does she do it? "I use veiled women as a challenge," she says, quick to add that she believes no one way of dressing is either good or bad. She's not defending the rights of any group and no one needs her as a spokesperson. "That's paternalistic. If veiled women want to make a point, they'd do it themselves. If feminists want to do something they're capable of doing it on their own." She later explains by email: "The veil has many hidden meanings, it can be as profane as it is sacred, consumerist and sanctimonious. From Arabic Gothicism to the condition of man. The interpretations are numerous and of course it carries great symbolism on race, sexuality and real and imagined geography."
Princess Hijab is deliberately cool and detached, but the one issue that really shakes her – and perhaps reveals a little of her true identity – is the place of minorities in France. Beyond the arguments about whether Muslim women should cover their heads, Sarkozy's new ministry of "immigration and national identity" and his national debate on what it means to be French has stigmatised the already discriminated and ghettoised young people of third- and fourth-generation immigrant descent. France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, but the prevailing anti-immigrant discourse, and what many view as a pointless burqa ban, has increased the feelings of marginalisation felt by young Muslims and minorities.
Princess Hijab sees herself as part of a new "graffiti of minorities" reclaiming the streets. "If it was only about the burqa ban, my work wouldn't have a resonance for very long. But I think the burqa ban has given a global visibility to the issue of integration in France," she says. "We definitely can't keep closing off and putting groups in boxes, always reducing them to the same old questions about religion or urban violence. Education levels are better and we can't have the old Manichean discourse any more."
She adds: "Liberty, equality, fraternity, that's a republican principle, but in reality the issue of minorities in French society hasn't really evolved in half a century. The outsiders in France are still the poor, the Arabs, black and of course, the Roma."
The Princess won't say what her own roots are. She simply says she sees her work as a kind of "cartography of crime" a mapping out of the underbelly of the city where "I bring inside everything that's been excreted out."
And yet her graffiti is particularly French in its anti-consumerism and ad-busting stance. For her, painting a veil on adverts works visually because the two are "dogmas that can be questioned". She feels young women wearing the hijab who were once stigmatised by French institutions are now being targeted for their purchasing power, the "perfect customers" in France's increasingly consumerist society.
Her next spree will focus on her favourite target brand, H&M. After all, its ad campaigns are plastered all over the Paris metro. She argues that the brand "democratised" fashion at low prices, women in hijab often shop there, and inking out H&M models is the perfect act of confrontation: "It's visually very striking because [the brand's] images are ideologically very present in the urban landscape."
So these blacked-out niqabs seem to represent everything but religion. "Am I religious?" she asks, hesitating. "The spiritual interests me, but that's personal, I don't think it bears on my work. Religion interests me, Muslims interest me and the impact they can have, artistically, aesthetically, in the codes that are all around us, particularly in fashion," she muses.
And with that, the graffiti performance artist scuttles off, kit-bag over her shoulder, to change out of her bizarre disguise and into her own everyday fashion and wander off above ground into the daylight. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 19,732 |
Double the love! Natalie Portman is ecstatic about her growing brood.
“Of course she is happy,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly of the star’s second pregnancy. “She loves her family and her life and is happy to add to it. Everyone is thrilled.”
Us Weekly confirmed the happy baby news on Thursday, September 8, when Portman, 35, stepped out at the premiere of her new film, Planetarium, at Italy's Venice Film Festival with a tiny bump visible through her white one-shoulder Dior dress.
The Oscar winner was positively radiant as she walked the red carpet, and an onlooker told Us that the Black Swan actress even rubbed her belly at the star-studded event.
Portman and husband Benjamin Millepied are already parents of son Aleph, 5, who they have carefully kept out of the spotlight. The Star Wars actress even recently told Jimmy Kimmel that she plans to keep her own celebrity status low-key around her son.
Jacopo Raule/FilmMagic
“He [hasn’t seen them], but he knows about it, of course,” Portman told Kimmel of her Star Wars films on Thursday, August 25. “It’s kind of a shame because, you know, when I made it, I was like, ‘This is going to be the coolest thing! One day when I have kids, I can show them.’ And boys, of course, are obsessed with it and know all about it before they’ve seen it. Then I realized: I die in the movies. I feel like it’s kind of a scary thing to show your kid.”
Portman played Queen Amidala in three of the franchise’s prequels, Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999), Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith (2005).
Portman and Millepied, 39, met on the 2010 set of Black Swan and tied the knot in 2012. They lived in Paris for two years before recently moving back to L.A.
Can't get enough of Us? Sign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter packed with the latest celeb news, hot pics and more!
||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| First of all, the 35-year-old actress isn't on social media. So, unlike so many stars, she doesn't voluntarily provide any behind-the-scenes peeks of what she's up to, at work or at home, to the hungry masses. We don't see her weighing in on world events or any other controversy within seconds, she doesn't live-tweet her favorite shows and she doesn't share baby pics. or engage in #TBTs.
No wonder she seems to "disappear" more than most.
But in addition to her nonexistent social media footprint, though she and Millepied just moved back to Los Angeles... Paris je t'aime, indeed.
Portman relocated to the City of Light with her French husband in 2014 when Millepied was appointed director of dance for the Paris Opera Ballet. Not only did that mean she was leaving the fishbowl life of being a celebrity in Los Angeles, but the family—which by then included then-3-year-old son Aleph, was able to take advantage of France's strict privacy laws.
In fact, though this hardly stops the rest of the world's media (or certain publications in France, either), it's against the law there to publish private information about a person without his or her express permission. Kinda puts a damper on the flow of information, but it's great if you're a star trying to maintain a semblance of privacy (not to mention, it's food for thought...).
"I get really bored reading about myself," Portman told Vanity Fair all the way back in 2006, and her give-when-necessary relationship with the media has never really changed. | – Natalie Portman "announced" her second pregnancy by walking the red carpet at the Venice Film Festival Thursday with a visible baby bump, the Huffington Post reports. Reports of the actress's second pregnancy from sources close to her soon followed, with one source telling Us that Portman and husband Benjamin Millepied are "thrilled" to be expecting a sibling for son Aleph, 5. E! notes that by staying off social media and living in France until recently, Portman was able to keep the beginning of her pregnancy quiet. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Double the love! Natalie Portman is ecstatic about her growing brood.
“Of course she is happy,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly of the star’s second pregnancy. “She loves her family and her life and is happy to add to it. Everyone is thrilled.”
Us Weekly confirmed the happy baby news on Thursday, September 8, when Portman, 35, stepped out at the premiere of her new film, Planetarium, at Italy's Venice Film Festival with a tiny bump visible through her white one-shoulder Dior dress.
The Oscar winner was positively radiant as she walked the red carpet, and an onlooker told Us that the Black Swan actress even rubbed her belly at the star-studded event.
Portman and husband Benjamin Millepied are already parents of son Aleph, 5, who they have carefully kept out of the spotlight. The Star Wars actress even recently told Jimmy Kimmel that she plans to keep her own celebrity status low-key around her son.
Jacopo Raule/FilmMagic
“He [hasn’t seen them], but he knows about it, of course,” Portman told Kimmel of her Star Wars films on Thursday, August 25. “It’s kind of a shame because, you know, when I made it, I was like, ‘This is going to be the coolest thing! One day when I have kids, I can show them.’ And boys, of course, are obsessed with it and know all about it before they’ve seen it. Then I realized: I die in the movies. I feel like it’s kind of a scary thing to show your kid.”
Portman played Queen Amidala in three of the franchise’s prequels, Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace (1999), Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith (2005).
Portman and Millepied, 39, met on the 2010 set of Black Swan and tied the knot in 2012. They lived in Paris for two years before recently moving back to L.A.
Can't get enough of Us? Sign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter packed with the latest celeb news, hot pics and more!
||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| First of all, the 35-year-old actress isn't on social media. So, unlike so many stars, she doesn't voluntarily provide any behind-the-scenes peeks of what she's up to, at work or at home, to the hungry masses. We don't see her weighing in on world events or any other controversy within seconds, she doesn't live-tweet her favorite shows and she doesn't share baby pics. or engage in #TBTs.
No wonder she seems to "disappear" more than most.
But in addition to her nonexistent social media footprint, though she and Millepied just moved back to Los Angeles... Paris je t'aime, indeed.
Portman relocated to the City of Light with her French husband in 2014 when Millepied was appointed director of dance for the Paris Opera Ballet. Not only did that mean she was leaving the fishbowl life of being a celebrity in Los Angeles, but the family—which by then included then-3-year-old son Aleph, was able to take advantage of France's strict privacy laws.
In fact, though this hardly stops the rest of the world's media (or certain publications in France, either), it's against the law there to publish private information about a person without his or her express permission. Kinda puts a damper on the flow of information, but it's great if you're a star trying to maintain a semblance of privacy (not to mention, it's food for thought...).
"I get really bored reading about myself," Portman told Vanity Fair all the way back in 2006, and her give-when-necessary relationship with the media has never really changed. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 22,450 |
CLOSE A second member of the Trump administration was hounded at a restaurant in less than a week. This time it was Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Susana Victoria Perez has more. Buzz60
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, left, and White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders. (Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP)
A couple of Arizona attorneys and lot of donors are apparently ruffling some feathers after they jumped in the middle of the dustup between the Red Hen restaurant in Virginia and the Trump Administration.
This was the restaurant that booted White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders because of the owner's opposition to the policy of separating migrant children from their parents. The move prompted some nasty tweets from President Donald Trump and a slew of pro and con Yelp reviews.
Phoenix attorney Jimmy Cool — who has no connection to the restaurant — said he decided to take action after seeing the negative Yelp, Google and Facebook reviews.
Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for @POTUS and I politely left. Her actions say far more about her than about me. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so — Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) June 23, 2018
"I worried these attacks would cause irreparable harm to the business simply for exercising its owner's First Amendment rights," Cool stated.
He created a GoFundMe account.
"I hope those of us who appreciate the owner's courage in the face of immoral tyranny could spare a few bucks to offset the cost of her courage and to send a message to other business that the good people of this nation will support them if they support us," Cool wrote.
Cool's friend, Sean Carter, decided to help by spreading the word on social media. The Mesa resident is a former attorney who now provides comedic educational seminars.
"Throwing Sarah Huckabee Sanders out of that restaurant is exactly what Dr. King was fighting for - an America in which people are judged not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character," Carter told The Arizona Republic.
He said actions of the Trump Administration, including separating families, is a representation of poor character.
The campaign raised more than $5,900 before the men shut it down. Most of the donations were $25 or less.
"Since starting the GoFundMe, I have received multiple threats of violence and an unrelenting stream of harassment on social media," Cool stated.
Carter said he isn't surprised at the backlash.
"There are a number of people who will be upset," he said. "It is always the case."
Carter said Cool was still trying to reach the Red Hen owners to try to give them the money. If the owners don't want the donations or he can't reach them, he said he will donate it to The Florence Project.
The nonprofit provides free legal services regarding immigration proceedings in Arizona.
READ MORE:
Want more news like this? Click here to subscribe to azcentral.com. Go to connect.azcentral.com for a staff list, for more information about the newsroom and for details about upcoming events.
Read or Share this story: https://azc.cc/2IubgyZ ||||| Last weekend, Diane Smith woke up to a flurry of crude messages directed at her Collingwood, Ont., restaurant's Facebook page.
The comments ranged from attacks on the Olde Red Hen's customer service, to bold statements about its lack of "patriotism."
Smith, co-owner of the restaurant, was confused until suddenly it clicked.
"I started googling everybody on Facebook and they were all from the states," said Smith.
Sure enough, the insulting messages were from supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump who had mistaken the Olde Red Hen for a restaurant in Virginia named The Red Hen.
That restaurant had recently denied service to White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to protest against the Trump administration's controversial policy of separating Central American migrants from their children at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Smith took to Facebook and made a post asking locals to defend the OIde Red Hen.
Diane Smith, co-owner of the Olde Red Hen in Collingwood, Ont. says the restaurant has been flooded with bad reviews online over the weekend. (CBC/ Grant Linton)
"I have responded to them all individually advising they have the wrong restaurant," the post read. "Please join us and reveiw (sic) us on our real 5 star merit."
Local diners come to The Olde Red Hen's defence
Smith says she was upset in the beginning; but she's come to realize it's "more of a political thing."
One person wrote on Facebook, "Intolerance is a sad thing. The only thing worse than than the intolerance at this restaurant is the service and the food."
On the same platform, another commenter wrote, "Terrible Hospitality and poor taste! Atmosphere devoid of love, compassion and patriotism!"
However, as negative comments started rolling in—positive ones surfaced, as well.
Heather Macdonald, a Collingwood native, wrote, "I have enjoyed many meals at the Olde Red Hen in Collingwood! I am so sorry people are confused with geography, and so saddened by all the negative comments."
Many Americans came to the comment section too and wrote apologies on behalf of those who wrote negative comments.
The Olde Red Hen's Facebook page has been inundated with angry comments and bad reviews. (CBC/ Grant Linton)
Michael Schmidt from Ohio wrote, "my apologies that a few of my fellow Americans have little comprehension that Collingwood Ontario Canada and the State of Virginia in the USA are two entirely different geographical locations approximately 650 miles of separation in distance."
Smith is reaching out to Facebook and Tripadvisor to figure out her options.
She says she's been told it's very difficult to deal with these kinds of situations. However, Smith says she not too worried about it considering The Olde Red Hen is advertised mostly through word of mouth.
Multiple 'Red Hen' restaurants get flak
The Olde Red Hen isn't the only restaurant facing angry comments from Trump supporters.
Since Trump posted a tweet in which he called the The Red Hen in Virginia "filthy" and "dirty," commenters have attacked unaffiliated establishments with similar names in Washington, D.C., New Jersey, and Connecticut.
The Red Hen in D.C., tweeted first thing Monday saying, "Good morning! @PressSec went to the unaffiliated @RedHenLex last night, not to our DC-based restaurant."
The owner of The Red Hen in Virginia, where Sanders was asked to leave, told The Washington Post, ""I would have done the same thing again. We just felt there are moments in time when people need to live their convictions. This appeared to be one." ||||| The owners of the Red Hen Restaurant in Lexington, VA refused service to White House Press Secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, in protest of the Trump Administration's "cruel and inhumane" policies.The #MAGA crowd is naturally organizing a boycott and posting negative reviews about the restaurant online.I hope those of us who appreciate the owner's courage in the face of immoral tyranny could spare a few bucks to offset the cost of her courage and to send a message to other business that the good people of this nation will support them if they support us.All donations will go to the restaurant. If they refuse or cannot accept for any reason, all donations will instead go to benefit immigrant families via a donation to Florence Project https://firrp.org/ Note: I am not affiliated with and do not represent Red Hen Restaurant. I'm just a citizen of another state who respects them for taking a stand and wants to create a network of support for people with the courage to fight peacefully for our democracy. ||||| See more of Sean Carter on Facebook ||||| With deep sadness we have experienced the loss of baby Nathan Luna in a tragedy we could have never imagined. A life gone too soon we ask that you can share this link with anyone and everyone for the unexpected funeral costs to his parents. As his mother is still recovering we wish to not burden...
Last donation 13m ago | – Amid a hectic few days that included scathing criticism of its canopies from the president of the United States, the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Va., received help from across the country. Phoenix attorney Jimmy Cool says he decided to start a fundraiser when the restaurant was inundated with bad Yelp reviews over its refusal to serve Sarah Sanders, the Arizona Republic reports. "I worried these attacks would cause irreparable harm to the business simply for exercising its owner's First Amendment rights," says Cool, whose friend, fellow Arizonan attorney Sean Carter, helped spread the word about the GoFundMe fundraiser to reward the owner's "courage in the face of immoral tyranny." The men closed the fundraiser down after it raised $900 more than its $5,000 target. In a Facebook post, Carter thanked supporters and provided a link to other Red Hen fundraisers, one of which has raised $8,000. He says they haven't been able to contact Red Hen owner Stephanie Wilkinson to arrange a transfer of funds yet. Cool says he has "received multiple threats of violence and an unrelenting stream of harassment on social media" since starting the fundraiser—and he isn't surprised. Other restaurants with the name Red Hen have also been targets for abuse online, including the Olde Red Hen in Collingwood, Ontario, which is 650 miles and one international border away from the Virginia eatery, the CBC reports. (A protester left chicken manure outside the Virginia restaurant Tuesday.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.CLOSE A second member of the Trump administration was hounded at a restaurant in less than a week. This time it was Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Susana Victoria Perez has more. Buzz60
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, left, and White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders. (Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP)
A couple of Arizona attorneys and lot of donors are apparently ruffling some feathers after they jumped in the middle of the dustup between the Red Hen restaurant in Virginia and the Trump Administration.
This was the restaurant that booted White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders because of the owner's opposition to the policy of separating migrant children from their parents. The move prompted some nasty tweets from President Donald Trump and a slew of pro and con Yelp reviews.
Phoenix attorney Jimmy Cool — who has no connection to the restaurant — said he decided to take action after seeing the negative Yelp, Google and Facebook reviews.
Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for @POTUS and I politely left. Her actions say far more about her than about me. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so — Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) June 23, 2018
"I worried these attacks would cause irreparable harm to the business simply for exercising its owner's First Amendment rights," Cool stated.
He created a GoFundMe account.
"I hope those of us who appreciate the owner's courage in the face of immoral tyranny could spare a few bucks to offset the cost of her courage and to send a message to other business that the good people of this nation will support them if they support us," Cool wrote.
Cool's friend, Sean Carter, decided to help by spreading the word on social media. The Mesa resident is a former attorney who now provides comedic educational seminars.
"Throwing Sarah Huckabee Sanders out of that restaurant is exactly what Dr. King was fighting for - an America in which people are judged not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character," Carter told The Arizona Republic.
He said actions of the Trump Administration, including separating families, is a representation of poor character.
The campaign raised more than $5,900 before the men shut it down. Most of the donations were $25 or less.
"Since starting the GoFundMe, I have received multiple threats of violence and an unrelenting stream of harassment on social media," Cool stated.
Carter said he isn't surprised at the backlash.
"There are a number of people who will be upset," he said. "It is always the case."
Carter said Cool was still trying to reach the Red Hen owners to try to give them the money. If the owners don't want the donations or he can't reach them, he said he will donate it to The Florence Project.
The nonprofit provides free legal services regarding immigration proceedings in Arizona.
READ MORE:
Want more news like this? Click here to subscribe to azcentral.com. Go to connect.azcentral.com for a staff list, for more information about the newsroom and for details about upcoming events.
Read or Share this story: https://azc.cc/2IubgyZ ||||| Last weekend, Diane Smith woke up to a flurry of crude messages directed at her Collingwood, Ont., restaurant's Facebook page.
The comments ranged from attacks on the Olde Red Hen's customer service, to bold statements about its lack of "patriotism."
Smith, co-owner of the restaurant, was confused until suddenly it clicked.
"I started googling everybody on Facebook and they were all from the states," said Smith.
Sure enough, the insulting messages were from supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump who had mistaken the Olde Red Hen for a restaurant in Virginia named The Red Hen.
That restaurant had recently denied service to White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to protest against the Trump administration's controversial policy of separating Central American migrants from their children at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Smith took to Facebook and made a post asking locals to defend the OIde Red Hen.
Diane Smith, co-owner of the Olde Red Hen in Collingwood, Ont. says the restaurant has been flooded with bad reviews online over the weekend. (CBC/ Grant Linton)
"I have responded to them all individually advising they have the wrong restaurant," the post read. "Please join us and reveiw (sic) us on our real 5 star merit."
Local diners come to The Olde Red Hen's defence
Smith says she was upset in the beginning; but she's come to realize it's "more of a political thing."
One person wrote on Facebook, "Intolerance is a sad thing. The only thing worse than than the intolerance at this restaurant is the service and the food."
On the same platform, another commenter wrote, "Terrible Hospitality and poor taste! Atmosphere devoid of love, compassion and patriotism!"
However, as negative comments started rolling in—positive ones surfaced, as well.
Heather Macdonald, a Collingwood native, wrote, "I have enjoyed many meals at the Olde Red Hen in Collingwood! I am so sorry people are confused with geography, and so saddened by all the negative comments."
Many Americans came to the comment section too and wrote apologies on behalf of those who wrote negative comments.
The Olde Red Hen's Facebook page has been inundated with angry comments and bad reviews. (CBC/ Grant Linton)
Michael Schmidt from Ohio wrote, "my apologies that a few of my fellow Americans have little comprehension that Collingwood Ontario Canada and the State of Virginia in the USA are two entirely different geographical locations approximately 650 miles of separation in distance."
Smith is reaching out to Facebook and Tripadvisor to figure out her options.
She says she's been told it's very difficult to deal with these kinds of situations. However, Smith says she not too worried about it considering The Olde Red Hen is advertised mostly through word of mouth.
Multiple 'Red Hen' restaurants get flak
The Olde Red Hen isn't the only restaurant facing angry comments from Trump supporters.
Since Trump posted a tweet in which he called the The Red Hen in Virginia "filthy" and "dirty," commenters have attacked unaffiliated establishments with similar names in Washington, D.C., New Jersey, and Connecticut.
The Red Hen in D.C., tweeted first thing Monday saying, "Good morning! @PressSec went to the unaffiliated @RedHenLex last night, not to our DC-based restaurant."
The owner of The Red Hen in Virginia, where Sanders was asked to leave, told The Washington Post, ""I would have done the same thing again. We just felt there are moments in time when people need to live their convictions. This appeared to be one." ||||| The owners of the Red Hen Restaurant in Lexington, VA refused service to White House Press Secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, in protest of the Trump Administration's "cruel and inhumane" policies.The #MAGA crowd is naturally organizing a boycott and posting negative reviews about the restaurant online.I hope those of us who appreciate the owner's courage in the face of immoral tyranny could spare a few bucks to offset the cost of her courage and to send a message to other business that the good people of this nation will support them if they support us.All donations will go to the restaurant. If they refuse or cannot accept for any reason, all donations will instead go to benefit immigrant families via a donation to Florence Project https://firrp.org/ Note: I am not affiliated with and do not represent Red Hen Restaurant. I'm just a citizen of another state who respects them for taking a stand and wants to create a network of support for people with the courage to fight peacefully for our democracy. ||||| See more of Sean Carter on Facebook ||||| With deep sadness we have experienced the loss of baby Nathan Luna in a tragedy we could have never imagined. A life gone too soon we ask that you can share this link with anyone and everyone for the unexpected funeral costs to his parents. As his mother is still recovering we wish to not burden...
Last donation 13m ago | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 9,322 |
(Page 2 of 2)
Rochelle added that Slater "watched his father die of Lou Gehrig's disease not long ago. Steven's under a lot of pressure."
Slater's MySpace page, packed with photos of him posing in his jetBlue uniform, says he beat "alcoholism and substance abuse."
He apparently reached his breaking point on Flight 1052 when a passenger tried to get a bag from the overhead compartment and it clocked Slater on the head, cops said. Words were exchanged, and the passenger cursed at Slater, they said.
After the plane arrived at the gate, he took over the intercom and began spewing abuse.
"We just looked at each other and said, 'What the heck was that about?' " said Catelinet. "I thought, 'Let me get off the plane before they stop us or something.' "
He said he was stunned when he ran into Slater on the AirTrain, bragging about his "take your plane and shove it" stunt.
"It's pretty much the craziest thing I've ever seen on a plane," Catelinet said.
The brother of Slater's partner said he was "dumbfounded" by the wacky incident.
"He's an everyday ordinary guy, a nice guy," said John Rochelle, 39.
Neighbor Janet Bavasso, an ex-flight attendant, said she couldn't imagine Slater going off.
"I just can't picture him running down the tarmac," she said.
A jetBlue co-worker who was on the flight called Slater a working-class hero.
"It's something we all fantasize about," she said. "But we have kids and a mortgage or are just too chicken - or sane - to go through with [it]."
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With Edgar Sandoval, Kerry Burke and Anjali Khosla Mullany |||||
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A flight attendant who was arrested after arguing with a passenger on a JetBlue flight -- making a grand exit from the aircraft by grabbing some beers and pulling the emergency chute -- posted $2,500 bail and is out of jail.
Jet Blue employee Steven Slater, 38, of Belle Harbor, Queens, was arraigned Tuesday on reckless endangerment and other charges after the dramatic incident Monday afternoon. Despite the felony charges, Slater's been elevated to folk-hero status by thousands who shrugged off allegations that he endangered others and praised him for his take-this-job-and-shove-it moment.
Slater's mother, Diane, even went so far as to seem proud of her son for his outburst.
"I can understand why he snapped. I would have snapped too," Diane Slater said Tuesday after Steven pleaded not guilty to the various charges against him. "I think he just had a very small meltdown, and I think he deserve to be able to have that meltdown."
Flight Attendant Steven Slater Speaks After Leaving Jail WATCH Flight Attendant Steven Slater Speaks After Leaving Jail See Video: Steven Slater's Boyfriend Seen Leaving Home WATCH See Video: Steven Slater's Boyfriend Seen Leaving Home JetBlue Flight Attendant Perp Walk WATCH JetBlue Flight Attendant Perp Walk
Steven Slater had little to say to reporters Tuesday night when he was released from custody. When asked how he felt about all the outpouring of support Slater said, "It's been very very appreciated. It seems like something here has resonated with a few people. That's kinda neat!"
Courthouse sources told NBCNewYork that Slater was overheard saying "he's not sure how quickly he can make bail." After failing to post bail, he was taken by bus to the Vernon C. Bain intake center in the South Bronx, a jail facility on a barge.
Slater was working on Flight 1052 from Pittsburgh to Kennedy Airport, which landed at around 12 p.m. Monday, when he got into a verbal altercation with a passenger -- a now legendary exploit, which has even been immortalized in a CGI video by the same Taiwanese company that make the Tiger Woods and Al Gore animations.
Following a heated exchange, the flight attendant told off the entire plane on the public address system, activated an emergency chute near the back of the plane and jumped down the evacuation slide and ran for it.
The Assistant District Attorney said the altercation began before the plane left Pittsburgh, when two passengers got in an argument over an oversized piece of luggage and the overhead compartments.
At the arraignment, defense attorney Howard Turman said Slater was under stress because his mother has lung cancer. Afterward, he provided reporters with a different account of what happened aboard the aircraft than the version initially offered by authorities.
Police had said Slater became angry when after a rule-breaking passenger defied requests to stay seated then accidentally hit him in the head with her luggage.
Turman said the dispute had begun earlier, when the flight was still waiting to take off from Pittsburgh, when two female passengers got into an argument over space in the overhead bins. That's when Slater was struck in the head, Turman said.
The dispute flared up again after the plane landed in New York when one of the women, who had been asked to gate-check her bag, was enraged that it wasn't immediately available.
"The woman was outraged and cursed him out a great deal," Turman said. "At some point, I think he just wanted to avoid conflict with her."
Slater asked for an apology but the irate passenger cursed him out, saying in effect "go f--k yourself" and calling him a "mo-fo," according to law enforcement source
Turman said the woman "cursed him out using the f-word both as a verb and an adjective."
Prosecutors said that at some point, Slater addressed the passengers on the intercom.
"Those of you who have shown dignity and respect these last 20 years, thanks for a great ride," he said, according to prosecutors.
Slater then activated the aircraft emergency slide on door R-2, proceeded to the chute, looked down to ensure that nobody was below it as he had been trained to do, and he deployed the device and went down it safely, his attorney said.
He also grabbed some beer from the galley before he took the plunge and then headed for the AirTrain, where other passengers from the flight reportedly saw him on the way home.
Slater was later arrested at his home in Belle Harbor by Port Authority officials. Police sources said that when authorities found Slater he seemed to be in the midst having sexual relations.
He is being charged with 2nd-and 4th-degree criminal mischief, 1st- and 2nd-degree reckless endangerment and criminal trespass in the 3rd degree, according to a spokeswoman for Queens DA Richard Brown. Slater faces up to 7 years in prison if convicted.
Judge Mary O'Donoghue also granted an order of protection preventing Slater from contacting the pilot of the flight or a JetBlue employee who investigated the incident.
Prosecutors said the emergency escape slide deploys at 3,000 pounds of pressure per square inch and "causes a risk of serious physical injury or death if it strikes people working under the aircraft." They also said the cost to replace the escape slide is $25,000, according to Jet Blue security.
But no one was injured in the incident and JetBlue, in a statement, added, "At no time was the security or safety of our customers or crew members at risk."
Slater, a 38-year-old airline veteran who lives steps from the Queens beach a few miles from the airport, had been flying long enough to see much of the gleam of the air travel experience tarnished by frayed nerves, rising fees, plummeting airline profits and packed cabins.
"One by one all of these niceties have been removed from the customer experience. I think subconsciously, it's causing passengers to be very angry,'' said Pauline Frommer, creator of the Pauline Frommer Guides and daughter of Arthur Frommer. "There's an us-versus-them mentality.''
Sentiment online appeared to fall in Slater's court. By early Tuesday afternoon, more than 20,000 people had declared themselves supporters of Slater on Facebook, and the number was growing by thousands every hour. At least one fan set up a legal fund on his behalf.
"Overwhelmingly people said it should have been the passenger who was ejected from the plane,'' said George Hobica, founder of AirfareWatchdog.com, speaking about response to his site's blog on the incident. "I've never seen such an outpouring of support for a flight attendant.''
Jonathan Dienst contributed to this report.
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First Published: Aug 9, 2010 2:40 PM EST | – Steven Slater, the flight attendant who blew a fuse yesterday on a JetBlue plane at JFK and took off down the emergency chute—but not before grabbing a couple of beers—is turning into a folk hero to masses of people who put up with rude customers and lie in bed dreaming up spectacular ways to quit crappy jobs (to be known henceforth as "pulling a Slater"). "It's something we all fantasize about," one admirer told the Daily News. "But we have kids and a mortgage or are just too chicken —or sane—to go through with it." Slater seemed quite happy after his mad-as-hell moment, reports a passenger on the plane who also rode with Slater on the AirTrain away from JFK. And he was still smiling as he was led out of his apartment building a few hours later by cops; maybe because he was apparently having sex with his partner when he was apprehended. No word on who the other guy in the video is here. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.(Page 2 of 2)
Rochelle added that Slater "watched his father die of Lou Gehrig's disease not long ago. Steven's under a lot of pressure."
Slater's MySpace page, packed with photos of him posing in his jetBlue uniform, says he beat "alcoholism and substance abuse."
He apparently reached his breaking point on Flight 1052 when a passenger tried to get a bag from the overhead compartment and it clocked Slater on the head, cops said. Words were exchanged, and the passenger cursed at Slater, they said.
After the plane arrived at the gate, he took over the intercom and began spewing abuse.
"We just looked at each other and said, 'What the heck was that about?' " said Catelinet. "I thought, 'Let me get off the plane before they stop us or something.' "
He said he was stunned when he ran into Slater on the AirTrain, bragging about his "take your plane and shove it" stunt.
"It's pretty much the craziest thing I've ever seen on a plane," Catelinet said.
The brother of Slater's partner said he was "dumbfounded" by the wacky incident.
"He's an everyday ordinary guy, a nice guy," said John Rochelle, 39.
Neighbor Janet Bavasso, an ex-flight attendant, said she couldn't imagine Slater going off.
"I just can't picture him running down the tarmac," she said.
A jetBlue co-worker who was on the flight called Slater a working-class hero.
"It's something we all fantasize about," she said. "But we have kids and a mortgage or are just too chicken - or sane - to go through with [it]."
[email protected]
With Edgar Sandoval, Kerry Burke and Anjali Khosla Mullany |||||
To view this video you must to have Flash Player 9.0 or later installed. Click to download the most recent version of Flash.
A flight attendant who was arrested after arguing with a passenger on a JetBlue flight -- making a grand exit from the aircraft by grabbing some beers and pulling the emergency chute -- posted $2,500 bail and is out of jail.
Jet Blue employee Steven Slater, 38, of Belle Harbor, Queens, was arraigned Tuesday on reckless endangerment and other charges after the dramatic incident Monday afternoon. Despite the felony charges, Slater's been elevated to folk-hero status by thousands who shrugged off allegations that he endangered others and praised him for his take-this-job-and-shove-it moment.
Slater's mother, Diane, even went so far as to seem proud of her son for his outburst.
"I can understand why he snapped. I would have snapped too," Diane Slater said Tuesday after Steven pleaded not guilty to the various charges against him. "I think he just had a very small meltdown, and I think he deserve to be able to have that meltdown."
Flight Attendant Steven Slater Speaks After Leaving Jail WATCH Flight Attendant Steven Slater Speaks After Leaving Jail See Video: Steven Slater's Boyfriend Seen Leaving Home WATCH See Video: Steven Slater's Boyfriend Seen Leaving Home JetBlue Flight Attendant Perp Walk WATCH JetBlue Flight Attendant Perp Walk
Steven Slater had little to say to reporters Tuesday night when he was released from custody. When asked how he felt about all the outpouring of support Slater said, "It's been very very appreciated. It seems like something here has resonated with a few people. That's kinda neat!"
Courthouse sources told NBCNewYork that Slater was overheard saying "he's not sure how quickly he can make bail." After failing to post bail, he was taken by bus to the Vernon C. Bain intake center in the South Bronx, a jail facility on a barge.
Slater was working on Flight 1052 from Pittsburgh to Kennedy Airport, which landed at around 12 p.m. Monday, when he got into a verbal altercation with a passenger -- a now legendary exploit, which has even been immortalized in a CGI video by the same Taiwanese company that make the Tiger Woods and Al Gore animations.
Following a heated exchange, the flight attendant told off the entire plane on the public address system, activated an emergency chute near the back of the plane and jumped down the evacuation slide and ran for it.
The Assistant District Attorney said the altercation began before the plane left Pittsburgh, when two passengers got in an argument over an oversized piece of luggage and the overhead compartments.
At the arraignment, defense attorney Howard Turman said Slater was under stress because his mother has lung cancer. Afterward, he provided reporters with a different account of what happened aboard the aircraft than the version initially offered by authorities.
Police had said Slater became angry when after a rule-breaking passenger defied requests to stay seated then accidentally hit him in the head with her luggage.
Turman said the dispute had begun earlier, when the flight was still waiting to take off from Pittsburgh, when two female passengers got into an argument over space in the overhead bins. That's when Slater was struck in the head, Turman said.
The dispute flared up again after the plane landed in New York when one of the women, who had been asked to gate-check her bag, was enraged that it wasn't immediately available.
"The woman was outraged and cursed him out a great deal," Turman said. "At some point, I think he just wanted to avoid conflict with her."
Slater asked for an apology but the irate passenger cursed him out, saying in effect "go f--k yourself" and calling him a "mo-fo," according to law enforcement source
Turman said the woman "cursed him out using the f-word both as a verb and an adjective."
Prosecutors said that at some point, Slater addressed the passengers on the intercom.
"Those of you who have shown dignity and respect these last 20 years, thanks for a great ride," he said, according to prosecutors.
Slater then activated the aircraft emergency slide on door R-2, proceeded to the chute, looked down to ensure that nobody was below it as he had been trained to do, and he deployed the device and went down it safely, his attorney said.
He also grabbed some beer from the galley before he took the plunge and then headed for the AirTrain, where other passengers from the flight reportedly saw him on the way home.
Slater was later arrested at his home in Belle Harbor by Port Authority officials. Police sources said that when authorities found Slater he seemed to be in the midst having sexual relations.
He is being charged with 2nd-and 4th-degree criminal mischief, 1st- and 2nd-degree reckless endangerment and criminal trespass in the 3rd degree, according to a spokeswoman for Queens DA Richard Brown. Slater faces up to 7 years in prison if convicted.
Judge Mary O'Donoghue also granted an order of protection preventing Slater from contacting the pilot of the flight or a JetBlue employee who investigated the incident.
Prosecutors said the emergency escape slide deploys at 3,000 pounds of pressure per square inch and "causes a risk of serious physical injury or death if it strikes people working under the aircraft." They also said the cost to replace the escape slide is $25,000, according to Jet Blue security.
But no one was injured in the incident and JetBlue, in a statement, added, "At no time was the security or safety of our customers or crew members at risk."
Slater, a 38-year-old airline veteran who lives steps from the Queens beach a few miles from the airport, had been flying long enough to see much of the gleam of the air travel experience tarnished by frayed nerves, rising fees, plummeting airline profits and packed cabins.
"One by one all of these niceties have been removed from the customer experience. I think subconsciously, it's causing passengers to be very angry,'' said Pauline Frommer, creator of the Pauline Frommer Guides and daughter of Arthur Frommer. "There's an us-versus-them mentality.''
Sentiment online appeared to fall in Slater's court. By early Tuesday afternoon, more than 20,000 people had declared themselves supporters of Slater on Facebook, and the number was growing by thousands every hour. At least one fan set up a legal fund on his behalf.
"Overwhelmingly people said it should have been the passenger who was ejected from the plane,'' said George Hobica, founder of AirfareWatchdog.com, speaking about response to his site's blog on the incident. "I've never seen such an outpouring of support for a flight attendant.''
Jonathan Dienst contributed to this report.
Follow us on Twitter @NBCNewYork,and on Facebook/NBCNewYork, and sign up for breaking news SMS alerts on your phone by texting “NYBREAKING” to 639710.
First Published: Aug 9, 2010 2:40 PM EST | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 30,228 |
This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after... (Associated Press)
This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her buttocks. Police Chief Levi Ritter said surveillance video... (Associated Press)
This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her buttocks. Police Chief Levi Ritter said surveillance video... (Associated Press) This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after... (Associated Press)
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — Police have released a New York nightclub's surveillance video showing a 5-foot-1, 125-pound woman choking a bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her on the bottom.
The Oct. 20 video released Thursday by Plattsburgh police shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, approaching the bouncer from behind near the Five1Eight nightclub's dance floor and putting her arms around his neck.
After a few seconds they both fall to the floor.
The video also shows Lagrave dancing next to a female friend at the bar seconds earlier. The friend then slaps Lagrave's behind after she turns away.
Lagrave immediately turned around and went for the much taller bouncer. Police say he didn't resist because he thought it was one of his friends playing a joke.
Lagrave was charged with strangling and then released. Her lawyer isn't commenting. ||||| An upstate New York woman is facing a felony charge after she allegedly claimed she attacked a man who groped her at a club, even though evidence indicates that he did no such thing.
Kierah Lagrave was at the Five1Eight nightclub in Plattsburgh, New York, where she worked, when surveillance video appears to show her coming up from behind one of the bouncers, grabbing him around the neck, and swiftly taking him down to the ground.
City Police Chief Levi Ritter told the Press-Republican that Lagrave admitted to officers that she attacked the man, saying he grabbed her beforehand. According to cops, however, no such thing happened.
“The surveillance video clearly shows that Lagrave’s friend slapped her on the buttocks,” Ritter said.
Indeed, video obtained by the New York Post and others shows Lagrave standing next to another woman, who appears to quickly and surreptitiously slap Lagrave’s rear end. Lagrave immediately turned around, saw a man walking, and went right after him. The friend can be seen observing Lagrave’s reaction, but not doing much about it, tossing her hair and then finally walking over as the damage was done.
The unidentified man reported the incident on October 20, but Lagrave was not arrested until two days later. She was arraigned on Friday, October 26, on a felony charge of second-degree strangulation. Judge Mark Rogers released Lagrave on her own recognizance, and she is required to come back to court for an appearance currently scheduled for November 20.
[Image of Kierah Lagrave via Plattsburgh Police Department] | – In a slight case of mistaken identity—and strangulation—a woman allegedly assaulted a nightclub bouncer she wrongly believed had grabbed her buttocks, the AP reports. Kierah LaGrave was arrested Thursday in Plattsburgh, New York, on second-degree strangulation charges after the alleged victim reported the assault on Oct. 20. Police say the 22-year-old admitted to choking the bouncer into unconsciousness at Five1Eight nightclub but did it because he had grabbed her, per the Press Republican. But surveillance video suggests that the real perpetrator was a friend of Lagrave's. LaGrave, who also works at the club, can be seen on video talking to a female friend at the bar before turning to dance—which is when her friend playfully slapped LaGrave's behind, per the New York Post. The 125-pound LaGrave then spotted the bouncer walking by and put him in a chokehold until he fell to the floor unconscious. Law And Crime notes that LaGrave's friend can be seen glancing at the assault and tossing her hair, then walking over when the bouncer was about to fall over. Released on her own recognizance, LaGrave is slated to return to court Nov. 20. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after... (Associated Press)
This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her buttocks. Police Chief Levi Ritter said surveillance video... (Associated Press)
This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her buttocks. Police Chief Levi Ritter said surveillance video... (Associated Press) This photo provided on Oct. 31, 2018 by the Plattsburgh Police Department shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, N.Y., who authorities say choked a nightclub bouncer into unconsciousness after... (Associated Press)
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (AP) — Police have released a New York nightclub's surveillance video showing a 5-foot-1, 125-pound woman choking a bouncer into unconsciousness after she mistakenly thought he had slapped her on the bottom.
The Oct. 20 video released Thursday by Plattsburgh police shows 22-year-old Kierah Lagrave, of Plattsburgh, approaching the bouncer from behind near the Five1Eight nightclub's dance floor and putting her arms around his neck.
After a few seconds they both fall to the floor.
The video also shows Lagrave dancing next to a female friend at the bar seconds earlier. The friend then slaps Lagrave's behind after she turns away.
Lagrave immediately turned around and went for the much taller bouncer. Police say he didn't resist because he thought it was one of his friends playing a joke.
Lagrave was charged with strangling and then released. Her lawyer isn't commenting. ||||| An upstate New York woman is facing a felony charge after she allegedly claimed she attacked a man who groped her at a club, even though evidence indicates that he did no such thing.
Kierah Lagrave was at the Five1Eight nightclub in Plattsburgh, New York, where she worked, when surveillance video appears to show her coming up from behind one of the bouncers, grabbing him around the neck, and swiftly taking him down to the ground.
City Police Chief Levi Ritter told the Press-Republican that Lagrave admitted to officers that she attacked the man, saying he grabbed her beforehand. According to cops, however, no such thing happened.
“The surveillance video clearly shows that Lagrave’s friend slapped her on the buttocks,” Ritter said.
Indeed, video obtained by the New York Post and others shows Lagrave standing next to another woman, who appears to quickly and surreptitiously slap Lagrave’s rear end. Lagrave immediately turned around, saw a man walking, and went right after him. The friend can be seen observing Lagrave’s reaction, but not doing much about it, tossing her hair and then finally walking over as the damage was done.
The unidentified man reported the incident on October 20, but Lagrave was not arrested until two days later. She was arraigned on Friday, October 26, on a felony charge of second-degree strangulation. Judge Mark Rogers released Lagrave on her own recognizance, and she is required to come back to court for an appearance currently scheduled for November 20.
[Image of Kierah Lagrave via Plattsburgh Police Department] | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 41,339 |
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/ Updated By Maggie Fox and Erika Edwards
Zika virus is going to start spreading in the U.S. and the country’s not ready for it, experts said Tuesday.
It probably won’t spread much — most U.S. areas don’t have the right conditions for widespread transmission of the virus — but even a little is too much, the officials said.
New Map Finds 2 Billion People At Risk of Zika Virus eLife, Oxford University and the University of Washington
And preparations are uneven, said Scott Weaver of the University of Texas Medical Branch.
“One of the problems in the United States is that we have a patchwork of mosquito control programs that are generally run at the county level,” Weaver said at a news conference at the end of a meeting of Zika experts at Emory University in Atlanta.
“We have nothing at the national level other than advice from the CDC and most states do not even coordinate their programs at the county level very well so. Some very poor communities have virtually nothing available. Some wealthy counties have very sophisticated programs.”
Related: U.S. Isn't Ready for Zika
Zika is spread mainly by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also spreads yellow fever, dengue virus and chikungunya virus. There’s a vaccine against yellow fever, but none against Zika, dengue or chikungunya and there have already been several small outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya in the southern U.S.
Plus the virus spreads sexually, although mosquitoes spread it faster.
"It's not just enough to put signs in the airport."
Hundreds of travelers have also brought Zika back with them from areas where it’s spreading fast – central and South America, the Caribbean and parts of the South Pacific. Once mosquito season starts, the U.S. could have small, local outbreaks.
“Very likely we will,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told a separate briefing at the Pan American Health Organization’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Related: Zika Virus Birth Defects May be Tip of the Iceberg
Zika can also be spread by Aedes albopictus mosquitoes – the Asian tiger mosquito that is becoming far more common in northern states.
“In the U.S., the range of Aedes albopticus occupies more states than Aedes aegypti,” Fauci said. But he doubts it will spread Zika much. Aedes aegypti has usually been the main spreader of Zika, he said.
“I think that the risk of Zika virus beginning to circulate in the United States in the mainland — it's already in Puerto Rico of course — is going to be peaking during the next few weeks,” Weaver said.
“That's because the number of travelers coming into the U.S. with Zika is very high, the temperatures are permissive now for mosquito transmission and populations of mosquitos are growing. With rainy seasons coming on in central America and the Caribbean, that could even increase the number of imported cases more.”
Related: Should I Worry About Zika?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health and their parent Department of Health and Human Services say they need money to help state and local governments prepare. They need money for better Zika tests, for research on treatments and to help develop a vaccine.
"It's not just enough to put signs in the airport," said Emory University's Dr. Raymond Schinazi.
They also need to study Zika, which causes often catastrophic birth defects as well as neurological problems such as the paralyzing Guillain-Barre syndrome. Zika killed a man in Puerto Rico last week.
But the White House is in a battle with Congress over paying for all this. President Barack Obama has asked for $1.9 billion in emergency funding for the work. Republicans in Congress say they don’t think that’s the best way to do it and want more accountability for the money, perhaps through the regular appropriations process, which can be extremely slow.
“This is absolutely essential,” Fauci said. “We need the $1.9 billion.”
Fauci has said he is raiding other funds for now, but may have to cut back on spending to fight malaria, tuberculosis and other diseases if Congress doesn’t approve the money soon. One bit of progress: a Zika vaccine could start being tested in people in September.
“Unfortunately a lot of the scientists in the United States are waiting for the floodgates to be opened with funding because a lot of the work that has been done so far has been done with a shoestring budget,” Schinazi said.
Much of the immediate effort should focus on getting rid of mosquitoes, the World Health Organization says.
Brazil, where the epidemic is worst, had eliminated the Aedes mosquitoes in the middle of the last century. But it required heavy use of DDT to do it, and the effects on wildlife were devastating. DDT spraying is no longer done in the United States.
Related: Baseball May Postpone Puerto Rico Series Due to Zika Fears
And Weaver says current mosquito-control methods just don’t work well against Aedes aegypti, which live very close to people. They tend to breed in homes and yards.
“If you just spray an aerosol of insecticides up and down the streets, like we typically do in the U.S. or out of airplanes in some locations, those insecticides are not likely to penetrate into people's houses where the mosquitoes are resting,” Weaver said.
“We need the $1.9 billion.”
“So we have to use very different strategies. We have to first of all get people to remove standing water containers from their yard,” Weaver added.
“The best kind is to go inside people's houses and spray residual insecticides on the walls and their closets in dark places where mosquitoes like to rest, which is extremely labor intensive.”
Plus the CDC says the mosquitoes have developed resistance to some of the insecticides.
“Aedes aegypti is a very difficult mosquito to control and eliminate. It will require a very aggressive and concerted effort,” Fauci said. ||||| Once Zika virus arrives in the United States, it will be here to stay. Leading experts now predict that the mosquito-borne disease will become a constant low-level threat that Americans will need to be vaccinated against routinely—as we do now for rubella, a virus that, like Zika, causes birth defects.
That is, once there is a vaccine for Zika. The earliest possible deployment of Zika vaccines could be several years away, researchers from around the globe predicted at an Atlanta conference Tuesday, the annual meeting of the Global Virus Network.
Overall, they said, Zika should be understood not as an epidemic wave that will pass over the world and then vanish, but rather as a permanent problem that will wax and wane, as West Nile virus has.
“We don’t know the future course of the epidemic of Zika, but we have to be prepared for the virus to be present for years,” José Esparza of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, current president of the Global Virus Network, said at the conference. “Without a vaccine, we will not be able to control the future course of this epidemic.”
Race for a Vaccine
Everyone reluctantly accepts that vaccines will take some time, while also expecting that infections could reach the United States soon. “The risk of Zika virus beginning to circulate in the United States on the mainland—it’s already in Puerto Rico, of course—is going to be peaking during the next few weeks,” said Scott Weaver, a virologist from the University of Texas Medical Branch.
“The number of travelers coming into the U.S. with Zika is very high, the temperatures are permissive now for mosquito transmission, and populations of mosquitos are growing,” he said.
A vaccine is most needed to protect women who are pregnant or planning to be, because the virus causes devastating birth defects that seem to appear late in pregnancy, and may also cause more subtle problems as children get older.
“We have no information to believe there are any long-term consequences from infection to healthy adults or healthy children,” Weaver said.
While a small vaccine trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health could begin as early as next fall, expanding that research into trials with thousands of participants could be complicated by the rapid growth of the epidemic, which is both infecting people and also rendering them immune once they recover.
The first Zika vaccines to be developed probably won’t go to everyone, Weaver predicted. “I think initially there will be some vaccines developed and licensed that are not optimal for vaccinating large populations, that will require multiple doses,” he said. “Those will probably be targeted to girls before they reach childbearing age, or women … if we can determine that they are not immune, if we have the diagnostics to do that.
“And then eventually we should be able to develop a live attenuated vaccine, like the one we have now for yellow fever that has been available for many decades in South America,” Weaver said. Then, he added, doctors can vaccinate children, and the population will develop what we think of as “herd” immunity that protects even the unvaccinated.
Introducing a Zika vaccine in that manner would follow the path that rubella vaccine took in the 1960s. Before the vaccine existed, epidemics of rubella (also known as “German measles”) caused only mild illness in adults; but the virus had devastating effects when it infected pregnant women. In 1964-65, the last such epidemic, 11,000 U.S. children were born deaf, 3,500 were born blind, 1,800 were born with developmental abnormalities, and women suffered 2,100 stillbirths—along with more than 11,000 miscarriages and elective abortions.
The vaccine was introduced in 1969 and put on the childhood vaccination schedule that is composed by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, an expert panel that assists the CDC; it is part of the MMR (“measles, mumps, rubella”) shot given at 12-15 months and 4-6 years. Since the vaccine was introduced, there have been only a few cases of rubella in the United States each year.
While the Zika vaccine hunt proceeds, scientists said at the Atlanta conference, it’s imperative to create easy-to-use tests to identify infected people, most of whom show no symptoms. Right now, it is difficult even to ascertain how many people in the Zika zone are already immune, since the current tests for diagnosing Zika infection, which were developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are not commercially or widely available.
Zika’s Imminent Arrival
Travelers to the United States, whether visitors or residents returning home, are likely to be the reason that Zika ignites in the U.S. Weaver urged anyone traveling in the Zika zone to be scrupulous with mosquito repellent not just while there, but also for two weeks after they return, to be sure that they do not accidentally transmit the disease to U.S. mosquitos.
“It only takes one infected person to arrive and be bitten and the transmission cycle takes off,” Weaver said.
In the gap before a vaccine can arrive, the researchers said it’s important to achieve antiviral drugs that can work against the virus, and research presented at the conference suggests that combinations of drugs already on the market could be used in the short term.
“These are drugs that have been used for a long time in people, so the safety issue is not a problem,” said Glaucius Oliva, a structural biologist from the Sao Carlos Institute of Physics at the University of Sao Paulo. “Repurposing drugs could begin in a year or two, whereas new drugs will take longer—10 years, maybe eight.”
Because so much research is needed, scientists sounded especially concerned that funding for Zika work in the U.S. has not yet been authorized. Congress went on recess without approving a White House request for more funds.
“A lot of the scientists in the U.S. are waiting for the floodgates to be opened with funding; a lot of the work that has been done so far has been done with shoestring budgets,” Raymond Schinazi, director of Emory’s Laboratory of Biochemical Pharmacology, said.
“This takes fuel, and the fuel unfortunately is very limited right now.” | – A Zika vaccination is likely in your future, and in the futures of your children and grandchildren. Once the virus reaches the US, it will become a permanent, low-level threat, like the West Nile virus, according to researchers at this week's annual meeting of the Global Virus Network in Atlanta, per National Geographic. The post suggests that a Zika shot will become as routine as the current vaccine for rubella. Anthony Fauci of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases tells NBC News that small, local outbreaks are "very likely" in the US by summer and thus pressure to develop a vaccine is growing. A small vaccine trial is expected to begin next fall, with a working vaccine possible by early 2018 at best, reports MIT Technology Review. Congress has yet to approve $1.9 billion in emergency funding for Zika work, and the funds are "absolutely essential," says Fauci. As to why: "The number of travelers coming into the US with Zika is very high, the temperatures are permissive now for mosquito transmission, and populations of mosquitos are growing," says a University of Texas virologist. "It only takes one infected person to arrive and be bitten and the transmission cycle takes off." He predicts the first vaccines will require multiple doses and will be given to women and girls reaching childbearing age to prevent birth defects. Antiviral drugs could be used in the meantime. "We have no information to believe there are any long-term consequences from infection to healthy adults or healthy children," he says. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.
/ Updated By Maggie Fox and Erika Edwards
Zika virus is going to start spreading in the U.S. and the country’s not ready for it, experts said Tuesday.
It probably won’t spread much — most U.S. areas don’t have the right conditions for widespread transmission of the virus — but even a little is too much, the officials said.
New Map Finds 2 Billion People At Risk of Zika Virus eLife, Oxford University and the University of Washington
And preparations are uneven, said Scott Weaver of the University of Texas Medical Branch.
“One of the problems in the United States is that we have a patchwork of mosquito control programs that are generally run at the county level,” Weaver said at a news conference at the end of a meeting of Zika experts at Emory University in Atlanta.
“We have nothing at the national level other than advice from the CDC and most states do not even coordinate their programs at the county level very well so. Some very poor communities have virtually nothing available. Some wealthy counties have very sophisticated programs.”
Related: U.S. Isn't Ready for Zika
Zika is spread mainly by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also spreads yellow fever, dengue virus and chikungunya virus. There’s a vaccine against yellow fever, but none against Zika, dengue or chikungunya and there have already been several small outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya in the southern U.S.
Plus the virus spreads sexually, although mosquitoes spread it faster.
"It's not just enough to put signs in the airport."
Hundreds of travelers have also brought Zika back with them from areas where it’s spreading fast – central and South America, the Caribbean and parts of the South Pacific. Once mosquito season starts, the U.S. could have small, local outbreaks.
“Very likely we will,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told a separate briefing at the Pan American Health Organization’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Related: Zika Virus Birth Defects May be Tip of the Iceberg
Zika can also be spread by Aedes albopictus mosquitoes – the Asian tiger mosquito that is becoming far more common in northern states.
“In the U.S., the range of Aedes albopticus occupies more states than Aedes aegypti,” Fauci said. But he doubts it will spread Zika much. Aedes aegypti has usually been the main spreader of Zika, he said.
“I think that the risk of Zika virus beginning to circulate in the United States in the mainland — it's already in Puerto Rico of course — is going to be peaking during the next few weeks,” Weaver said.
“That's because the number of travelers coming into the U.S. with Zika is very high, the temperatures are permissive now for mosquito transmission and populations of mosquitos are growing. With rainy seasons coming on in central America and the Caribbean, that could even increase the number of imported cases more.”
Related: Should I Worry About Zika?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health and their parent Department of Health and Human Services say they need money to help state and local governments prepare. They need money for better Zika tests, for research on treatments and to help develop a vaccine.
"It's not just enough to put signs in the airport," said Emory University's Dr. Raymond Schinazi.
They also need to study Zika, which causes often catastrophic birth defects as well as neurological problems such as the paralyzing Guillain-Barre syndrome. Zika killed a man in Puerto Rico last week.
But the White House is in a battle with Congress over paying for all this. President Barack Obama has asked for $1.9 billion in emergency funding for the work. Republicans in Congress say they don’t think that’s the best way to do it and want more accountability for the money, perhaps through the regular appropriations process, which can be extremely slow.
“This is absolutely essential,” Fauci said. “We need the $1.9 billion.”
Fauci has said he is raiding other funds for now, but may have to cut back on spending to fight malaria, tuberculosis and other diseases if Congress doesn’t approve the money soon. One bit of progress: a Zika vaccine could start being tested in people in September.
“Unfortunately a lot of the scientists in the United States are waiting for the floodgates to be opened with funding because a lot of the work that has been done so far has been done with a shoestring budget,” Schinazi said.
Much of the immediate effort should focus on getting rid of mosquitoes, the World Health Organization says.
Brazil, where the epidemic is worst, had eliminated the Aedes mosquitoes in the middle of the last century. But it required heavy use of DDT to do it, and the effects on wildlife were devastating. DDT spraying is no longer done in the United States.
Related: Baseball May Postpone Puerto Rico Series Due to Zika Fears
And Weaver says current mosquito-control methods just don’t work well against Aedes aegypti, which live very close to people. They tend to breed in homes and yards.
“If you just spray an aerosol of insecticides up and down the streets, like we typically do in the U.S. or out of airplanes in some locations, those insecticides are not likely to penetrate into people's houses where the mosquitoes are resting,” Weaver said.
“We need the $1.9 billion.”
“So we have to use very different strategies. We have to first of all get people to remove standing water containers from their yard,” Weaver added.
“The best kind is to go inside people's houses and spray residual insecticides on the walls and their closets in dark places where mosquitoes like to rest, which is extremely labor intensive.”
Plus the CDC says the mosquitoes have developed resistance to some of the insecticides.
“Aedes aegypti is a very difficult mosquito to control and eliminate. It will require a very aggressive and concerted effort,” Fauci said. ||||| Once Zika virus arrives in the United States, it will be here to stay. Leading experts now predict that the mosquito-borne disease will become a constant low-level threat that Americans will need to be vaccinated against routinely—as we do now for rubella, a virus that, like Zika, causes birth defects.
That is, once there is a vaccine for Zika. The earliest possible deployment of Zika vaccines could be several years away, researchers from around the globe predicted at an Atlanta conference Tuesday, the annual meeting of the Global Virus Network.
Overall, they said, Zika should be understood not as an epidemic wave that will pass over the world and then vanish, but rather as a permanent problem that will wax and wane, as West Nile virus has.
“We don’t know the future course of the epidemic of Zika, but we have to be prepared for the virus to be present for years,” José Esparza of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, current president of the Global Virus Network, said at the conference. “Without a vaccine, we will not be able to control the future course of this epidemic.”
Race for a Vaccine
Everyone reluctantly accepts that vaccines will take some time, while also expecting that infections could reach the United States soon. “The risk of Zika virus beginning to circulate in the United States on the mainland—it’s already in Puerto Rico, of course—is going to be peaking during the next few weeks,” said Scott Weaver, a virologist from the University of Texas Medical Branch.
“The number of travelers coming into the U.S. with Zika is very high, the temperatures are permissive now for mosquito transmission, and populations of mosquitos are growing,” he said.
A vaccine is most needed to protect women who are pregnant or planning to be, because the virus causes devastating birth defects that seem to appear late in pregnancy, and may also cause more subtle problems as children get older.
“We have no information to believe there are any long-term consequences from infection to healthy adults or healthy children,” Weaver said.
While a small vaccine trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health could begin as early as next fall, expanding that research into trials with thousands of participants could be complicated by the rapid growth of the epidemic, which is both infecting people and also rendering them immune once they recover.
The first Zika vaccines to be developed probably won’t go to everyone, Weaver predicted. “I think initially there will be some vaccines developed and licensed that are not optimal for vaccinating large populations, that will require multiple doses,” he said. “Those will probably be targeted to girls before they reach childbearing age, or women … if we can determine that they are not immune, if we have the diagnostics to do that.
“And then eventually we should be able to develop a live attenuated vaccine, like the one we have now for yellow fever that has been available for many decades in South America,” Weaver said. Then, he added, doctors can vaccinate children, and the population will develop what we think of as “herd” immunity that protects even the unvaccinated.
Introducing a Zika vaccine in that manner would follow the path that rubella vaccine took in the 1960s. Before the vaccine existed, epidemics of rubella (also known as “German measles”) caused only mild illness in adults; but the virus had devastating effects when it infected pregnant women. In 1964-65, the last such epidemic, 11,000 U.S. children were born deaf, 3,500 were born blind, 1,800 were born with developmental abnormalities, and women suffered 2,100 stillbirths—along with more than 11,000 miscarriages and elective abortions.
The vaccine was introduced in 1969 and put on the childhood vaccination schedule that is composed by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, an expert panel that assists the CDC; it is part of the MMR (“measles, mumps, rubella”) shot given at 12-15 months and 4-6 years. Since the vaccine was introduced, there have been only a few cases of rubella in the United States each year.
While the Zika vaccine hunt proceeds, scientists said at the Atlanta conference, it’s imperative to create easy-to-use tests to identify infected people, most of whom show no symptoms. Right now, it is difficult even to ascertain how many people in the Zika zone are already immune, since the current tests for diagnosing Zika infection, which were developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are not commercially or widely available.
Zika’s Imminent Arrival
Travelers to the United States, whether visitors or residents returning home, are likely to be the reason that Zika ignites in the U.S. Weaver urged anyone traveling in the Zika zone to be scrupulous with mosquito repellent not just while there, but also for two weeks after they return, to be sure that they do not accidentally transmit the disease to U.S. mosquitos.
“It only takes one infected person to arrive and be bitten and the transmission cycle takes off,” Weaver said.
In the gap before a vaccine can arrive, the researchers said it’s important to achieve antiviral drugs that can work against the virus, and research presented at the conference suggests that combinations of drugs already on the market could be used in the short term.
“These are drugs that have been used for a long time in people, so the safety issue is not a problem,” said Glaucius Oliva, a structural biologist from the Sao Carlos Institute of Physics at the University of Sao Paulo. “Repurposing drugs could begin in a year or two, whereas new drugs will take longer—10 years, maybe eight.”
Because so much research is needed, scientists sounded especially concerned that funding for Zika work in the U.S. has not yet been authorized. Congress went on recess without approving a White House request for more funds.
“A lot of the scientists in the U.S. are waiting for the floodgates to be opened with funding; a lot of the work that has been done so far has been done with shoestring budgets,” Raymond Schinazi, director of Emory’s Laboratory of Biochemical Pharmacology, said.
“This takes fuel, and the fuel unfortunately is very limited right now.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 40,676 |
Justin Bieber is the new face of Calvin Klein underwear and the latest ad campaign could mean a brand revival for both.
"Beliebers" went crazy with the hashtag #MyCalvins, putting the superstar in almost every social media platform’s trending list.
Calvin Klein’s initial tweet has been retweeted tens of thousands of times:
The campaign is called "It Begins," so there may be more Bieber headed your way. For now though, these two ads show quite a lot of him already:
And then there's the more Bieber-centric :15 second version:
Other Calvin Klein underwear celeb spokesbods have included Mark Wahlberg and, of course, Brooke Shields. The then-16-year-old famously announced, "You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing."
Today's must-see, must-share stories are in the daily speed feed.
Morning Express with Robin Meade airs Monday through Friday at 6 a.m. ET on HLN. Like the show on Facebook, and follow on Twitter: @MorningExp
Radar Online: Scott Disick seeking addiction specialist to save family with Kourtney Kardashian ||||| The singer strips down to his skivvies and poses with Lara Stone in the brand's latest campaign
Beliebers rejoice: After what feels like an eternity of seeing Justin Bieber show off his undergarments on Instagram, the Canadian-born pop star officially scored a paid gig doing so, as he's been named the face of the My Calvins campaign.
Maybe the 20-year-old was campaigning for the job when he stripped down to only his black-and-red Calvin Klein boxers while presenting with ad co-star Lara Stone during the Fashion Rocks concert in September (though the stunt was met with a slew of boos from the audience). Whatever the case may be, it looks like the stunt worked out in his favor.
In one ad, Bieber broods while showing off his six-pack and tattoos in only boxers, while in another, he wears denim pants sans shirt with Stone draped across his back.
The brand tweeted out a video teaser on Tuesday of a shadowed drummer before officially announcing Bieber as the campaign star, followed by Bieber himself tweeting out the good news.
The brand is no stranger to using musical men in their ads, as Mark Wahlberg (aka Marky Mark) famously dropped his pants for the campaign in the '90s. What do you think, can Bieber be the new Wahlberg? | – Justin Bieber: pop singer, heartthrob, frequent troublemaker, enemy of the Vatican, and now, Calvin Klein underwear model. Yes, as the Hollywood Reporter points out, Bieber is finally being paid to take off his shirt. Bieber is the face of the My Calvins campaign, which, of course, required him to strip down to just his boxers alongside model Lara Stone. Click to see the ad campaign. Or don't. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Justin Bieber is the new face of Calvin Klein underwear and the latest ad campaign could mean a brand revival for both.
"Beliebers" went crazy with the hashtag #MyCalvins, putting the superstar in almost every social media platform’s trending list.
Calvin Klein’s initial tweet has been retweeted tens of thousands of times:
The campaign is called "It Begins," so there may be more Bieber headed your way. For now though, these two ads show quite a lot of him already:
And then there's the more Bieber-centric :15 second version:
Other Calvin Klein underwear celeb spokesbods have included Mark Wahlberg and, of course, Brooke Shields. The then-16-year-old famously announced, "You want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing."
Today's must-see, must-share stories are in the daily speed feed.
Morning Express with Robin Meade airs Monday through Friday at 6 a.m. ET on HLN. Like the show on Facebook, and follow on Twitter: @MorningExp
Radar Online: Scott Disick seeking addiction specialist to save family with Kourtney Kardashian ||||| The singer strips down to his skivvies and poses with Lara Stone in the brand's latest campaign
Beliebers rejoice: After what feels like an eternity of seeing Justin Bieber show off his undergarments on Instagram, the Canadian-born pop star officially scored a paid gig doing so, as he's been named the face of the My Calvins campaign.
Maybe the 20-year-old was campaigning for the job when he stripped down to only his black-and-red Calvin Klein boxers while presenting with ad co-star Lara Stone during the Fashion Rocks concert in September (though the stunt was met with a slew of boos from the audience). Whatever the case may be, it looks like the stunt worked out in his favor.
In one ad, Bieber broods while showing off his six-pack and tattoos in only boxers, while in another, he wears denim pants sans shirt with Stone draped across his back.
The brand tweeted out a video teaser on Tuesday of a shadowed drummer before officially announcing Bieber as the campaign star, followed by Bieber himself tweeting out the good news.
The brand is no stranger to using musical men in their ads, as Mark Wahlberg (aka Marky Mark) famously dropped his pants for the campaign in the '90s. What do you think, can Bieber be the new Wahlberg? | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 25,189 |
Chinese navy ships off Alaska in recent days weren’t just operating in the area for the first time: They also came within 12 nautical miles of the coast, making a rare foray into U.S. territorial waters, according to the Pentagon.
Pentagon officials said late Thursday that the five Chinese navy ships had passed through U.S. territorial waters as they transited the Aleutian Islands, but said they had complied with international law... ||||| WASHINGTON Five Chinese Navy ships sighted in the Bering Sea off Alaska during a visit to the region by U.S. President Barack Obama have begun their "return transit," the U.S. Navy's top uniformed officer told Reuters on Thursday.
Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert said he did not view the incident, an apparent first for China's military, as unexpected or alarming.
"They already had one of their icebreakers up in that area, and they weren't that far away with an exercise, and they've already started their return transit," he told Reuters in an interview.
Greenert said the ships had been seen in the Bering Sea, close to some Alaskan atolls, on Wednesday, but gave no further details.
The Pentagon confirmed on Wednesday the ships had been sailing in international waters.
China's Defense Ministry, in a statement sent to Reuters on Thursday, said the ships were in the Bering Sea as part of a routine drill following the completion of military exercises with Russia.
"This is a routine arrangement as part of annual plans, and is not aimed at any set country or goal," it said, without providing any other details.
China has ramped up defense spending to modernize its forces and develop a navy capable of defending its growing interests as the world's second-largest economy.
At a regular State Department briefing in Washington on Thursday, spokesman Mark Toner said: "This is certainly the first time we have observed Chinese navy ships in the Bering Sea, but that said, we do certainly respect the freedom of all nations to operate military vessels in international waters in accordance with international law."
Pentagon spokesman Commander Bill Urban said the Chinese ships were now south of the Aleutian Islands, a chain of islands bounding the south side of the Bering Sea. He had no additional information.
U.S. defense officials said the Pentagon was continuing to monitor the movement of the ships, which appeared to be heading away from the region.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Editing by Peter Cooney and Dean Yates) | – Chinese warships weren't just exploring international waters when they ventured close to Alaska on Tuesday. The five ships came within 12 nautical miles of the coast, the Pentagon says, meaning they penetrated US territorial waters, reports the Wall Street Journal. China says its ships sailed to the Bering Sea in a "routine arrangement ... not aimed at any particular country and target" after participating in joint exercises with Russia. The Pentagon says the ships kept to international law as per the principle of "innocent passage." But the venture is interesting because Beijing opposes any US Navy presence in Chinese waters or the international waters just beyond. "These operations are a big step forward for US interests in that Beijing now has no basis to object to similar passage through China's territorial sea by the US, for instance in vicinity of China's islands in the South China Sea," says an expert at the US Naval War College. He adds China's operations near Alaska "are also a big step forward in that China's blue-water navy has announced its arrival as a global force." Indeed, before 2006, China's ships rarely left their own shores. They've since been used off Libya and Indonesia and in exercises in Hawaii. Officials tell Reuters that the Pentagon is continuing to monitor the Chinese ships, which as of yesterday were on their way home. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Chinese navy ships off Alaska in recent days weren’t just operating in the area for the first time: They also came within 12 nautical miles of the coast, making a rare foray into U.S. territorial waters, according to the Pentagon.
Pentagon officials said late Thursday that the five Chinese navy ships had passed through U.S. territorial waters as they transited the Aleutian Islands, but said they had complied with international law... ||||| WASHINGTON Five Chinese Navy ships sighted in the Bering Sea off Alaska during a visit to the region by U.S. President Barack Obama have begun their "return transit," the U.S. Navy's top uniformed officer told Reuters on Thursday.
Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert said he did not view the incident, an apparent first for China's military, as unexpected or alarming.
"They already had one of their icebreakers up in that area, and they weren't that far away with an exercise, and they've already started their return transit," he told Reuters in an interview.
Greenert said the ships had been seen in the Bering Sea, close to some Alaskan atolls, on Wednesday, but gave no further details.
The Pentagon confirmed on Wednesday the ships had been sailing in international waters.
China's Defense Ministry, in a statement sent to Reuters on Thursday, said the ships were in the Bering Sea as part of a routine drill following the completion of military exercises with Russia.
"This is a routine arrangement as part of annual plans, and is not aimed at any set country or goal," it said, without providing any other details.
China has ramped up defense spending to modernize its forces and develop a navy capable of defending its growing interests as the world's second-largest economy.
At a regular State Department briefing in Washington on Thursday, spokesman Mark Toner said: "This is certainly the first time we have observed Chinese navy ships in the Bering Sea, but that said, we do certainly respect the freedom of all nations to operate military vessels in international waters in accordance with international law."
Pentagon spokesman Commander Bill Urban said the Chinese ships were now south of the Aleutian Islands, a chain of islands bounding the south side of the Bering Sea. He had no additional information.
U.S. defense officials said the Pentagon was continuing to monitor the movement of the ships, which appeared to be heading away from the region.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Editing by Peter Cooney and Dean Yates) | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 20,269 |
Yes, I would like to receive periodic Breaking News alerts.
Yes, I would like to receive the daily Newsletter email. ||||| The Florida woman accused of killing a puppy at Central Nebraska Regional Airport has met with a judge and been given a $10,000 bond.
On Thursday, Cynthia Anderson attempted to board a plane at Central Nebraska Regional Airport back to Florida with two dogs and three puppies. However, she was denied access because of the puppies, missing her flight.
She returned to the airport on Friday after giving two puppies to her parents in Stamford, Nebraska. She was denied again.
"She was observed going to the restroom, and then the witness found the puppy they believed had been in her possession drowned in the toilet," Grand Island Police Department's Sergeant Stanley Steele said.
Anderson was arrested shortly after thanks to the help of witnesses in the airport.
"The red flag were passengers paying attention to what was going on in the luggage, notifying airport staff, TSA, TSA responding by calling the Animal Control Authority," Laurie Dethloff with the Central Nebraska Humane Society sad.
Dethloff says proper procedures should be taken before boarding a flight. This includes checking with a veterinarian and the airline.
"Each airline has criteria for crate sizes, where they can fly, when they can fly," said Dethloff. "So that's determined by the airline."
Anderson has been charged with a felony count of cruel neglect of animals, which could see up to five years in jail. Her next court date is February 10th. ||||| Choose the plan that’s right for you. Digital access or digital and print delivery. | – There are awful stories and then there are awful stories. Brace yourself for the latter. Nebraska police say a Florida woman who wasn't permitted to board a flight with a puppy not yet two weeks old may have drowned the animal in a bathroom at the Central Nebraska Regional Airport. The Grand Island Independent has the alleged timeline: It reports Cynthia V. Anderson, 56, attempted to board a plane on Thursday with two dogs in "proper kennels" and three puppies—two Yorkies and a Doberman—in a carry-on. The Edgewater, Fla., woman was told she couldn't fly with dogs so young that Grand Island Police Captain Dean Elliot notes "their eyes weren't even open." The Orlando Sentinel reports dogs must be at least 8 weeks old to fly; a Central Nebraska Humane Society rep says each airline has its own criteria that passengers should reference in advance. Anderson's parents, who live in western Nebraska, reportedly relieved her of the Yorkies, and she allegedly tried to again get on a flight the next day with the Doberman puppy hidden in her carry-on bag, reports the Daytona Beach News-Journal. She wasn't permitted to board. Police say Anderson was spotted entering an airport bathroom; after she exited, a bathroom user reported a dead puppy in a toilet. "The cause of death was determined to be drowning," says Grand Island Police Sgt. Stan Steele following an autopsy. NBC Nebraska reports Anderson faces charges of recklessly abandoning an animal, a felony punishable by up to five years in jail. She has a court date set for early next month. (Here's a much more uplifting dog story.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Yes, I would like to receive periodic Breaking News alerts.
Yes, I would like to receive the daily Newsletter email. ||||| The Florida woman accused of killing a puppy at Central Nebraska Regional Airport has met with a judge and been given a $10,000 bond.
On Thursday, Cynthia Anderson attempted to board a plane at Central Nebraska Regional Airport back to Florida with two dogs and three puppies. However, she was denied access because of the puppies, missing her flight.
She returned to the airport on Friday after giving two puppies to her parents in Stamford, Nebraska. She was denied again.
"She was observed going to the restroom, and then the witness found the puppy they believed had been in her possession drowned in the toilet," Grand Island Police Department's Sergeant Stanley Steele said.
Anderson was arrested shortly after thanks to the help of witnesses in the airport.
"The red flag were passengers paying attention to what was going on in the luggage, notifying airport staff, TSA, TSA responding by calling the Animal Control Authority," Laurie Dethloff with the Central Nebraska Humane Society sad.
Dethloff says proper procedures should be taken before boarding a flight. This includes checking with a veterinarian and the airline.
"Each airline has criteria for crate sizes, where they can fly, when they can fly," said Dethloff. "So that's determined by the airline."
Anderson has been charged with a felony count of cruel neglect of animals, which could see up to five years in jail. Her next court date is February 10th. ||||| Choose the plan that’s right for you. Digital access or digital and print delivery. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 14,385 |
Click here to tell the artists to #TakeAKnee during their halftime set in solidarity with Kaepernick.
Rihanna has reportedly turned down the opportunity to perform in front of over 100 million people at the 2019 Super Bowl halftime show. Why? She supports Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who has been exiled from the NFL because of his decision to kneel during the national anthem.
Kaepernick risked his career to take a knee for equality, and the NFL punished him for it. Until the league changes their policy and support players’ constitutional right to protest, no artists should agree to work with the NFL. Join me in asking Maroon 5 to drop out of the 2019 Super Bowl halftime show.
Rihanna is not the first major artist to turn down the Super Bowl halftime show. Jay-Z turned down a request to perform at the 2017 Super Bowl, and even addressed it in his 2018 song “Apesh*t.” The lyrics say, “I said no to the Super Bowl: you need me, I don't need you. Every night we in the endzone, tell the NFL we in stadiums too," while the music video shows a line of men on one knee.
Comedian Amy Schumer has also weighed in, praising Rihanna and encouraging Maroon 5 to follow her lead and step down. Schumer also said that she will refuse to do any commercials that would air during the big game. “Hitting the NFL with the advertisers is the only way to really hurt them," she said.
Maroon 5 has made music over the years featuring artists from all genres, including Rihanna, Cardi B and Kendrick Lamar — all of whom have publicly supported Kaepernick in his decision to protest the violent racism sweeping the United States. Maroon 5 must do the same. The band has a chance to stand on the right side of history. If they don’t, they will be remembered for choosing to side with the NFL over its players.
The band’s lead singer, Adam Levine, has not shied away from politics in the past. He has been a strong supporter of same sex marriage and LGBT rights. The band even changed the location of a show because the venue supported anti-gay marriage laws. If the band can take a stand for LGBT rights, they should do the same for these players.
Colin Kaepernick has sacrificed his NFL career to call out violent racism in America, and players across the country have followed his lead. Rihanna, Jay-Z, Amy Schumer and others have refused to work with the NFL. Maroon 5: Americans look to artists and celebrities as leaders, and you have huge opportunity to use your influence to take a stand.
Sign to tell Maroon 5 to drop out of the Super Bowl halftime show in solidarity with Kaepernick and players who #TakeAKnee. ||||| Adam Levine and Maroon 5 are being urged to pull out of performing at the Super Bowl halftime show in support of former NFL player Colin Kaepernick.
More than 44,000 people have signed a petition on change.org calling on the group to cancel their plans to perform at the sporting event in Atlanta on February 3 next year.
According to the petition, “Kaepernick risked his career to take a knee for equality, and the NFL punished him for it. Until the league changes their policy and support players’ constitutional right to protest, no artists should agree to work with the NFL.”
The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, 31, was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem in a peaceful protest against police brutality and racial inequality in 2016. He has not played since that season and last year filed a grievance against the league and its owners, accusing them of colluding to keep him off the field.
US Weekly exclusively revealed in September that the Grammy-winning band had accepted an offer to perform at the Super Bowl, with multiple sources later telling Us that Cardi B is “being considered” as a special guest.
Maroon 5 have yet to officially confirm their involvement, but Levine, 39, did little to dispel the rumors during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Friday, November 16.
“It’s definitely a rumor. And the rumor’s a rumor that everyone seems to be discussing. It’s the Super Bowl. It’s a great event and there’s gonna be a band performing — or an artist of some kind — at halftime. And it’s gonna be great, regardless of who it is,” the Voice judge said. “Whoever is lucky enough to get that gig is probably gonna crush it. … Whoever does it is probably equal parts nervous and excited. This is all speculative ‘cause I don’t know who I’m talking about.”
In October, Amy Schumer urged the band to reconsider performing at the show, while Us exclusively reported that Rihanna had decided to skip performing at the Super Bowl because she “supports Colin Kaepernick.”
Jay Z also claimed on his song “Apes—t” that he had also turned down an offer to headline the show, and Pink, who sang the national anthem at the Super Bowl this year, also reportedly said no.
For all the inside details on the biggest celebrity stories and scoop this week, subscribe to our new podcast "Us Weekly's Hot Hollywood" below!
Sign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter to get breaking celebrity news, hot pics and more delivered straight to your inbox!
Want stories like these delivered straight to your phone? Download the Us Weekly iPhone app now! | – Thousands of people are not on board with Maroon 5 headlining the Super Bowl halftime show. At least 48,541 people, to be exact. That's how many people, as of this writing, had signed a Change.org petition asking the band to drop out of the performance. But no, not because they have anything against the band. Rather, the petition claims that Rihanna turned down the opportunity to perform because she supports Colin Kaepernick, and Maroon 5 should do the same. "Kaepernick risked his career to take a knee for equality, and the NFL punished him for it. Until the league changes their policy and support players’ constitutional right to protest, no artists should agree to work with the NFL," the petition reads. Maroon 5 has yet to officially confirm the rumor that it is this season's halftime headliner, Us reports. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Click here to tell the artists to #TakeAKnee during their halftime set in solidarity with Kaepernick.
Rihanna has reportedly turned down the opportunity to perform in front of over 100 million people at the 2019 Super Bowl halftime show. Why? She supports Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who has been exiled from the NFL because of his decision to kneel during the national anthem.
Kaepernick risked his career to take a knee for equality, and the NFL punished him for it. Until the league changes their policy and support players’ constitutional right to protest, no artists should agree to work with the NFL. Join me in asking Maroon 5 to drop out of the 2019 Super Bowl halftime show.
Rihanna is not the first major artist to turn down the Super Bowl halftime show. Jay-Z turned down a request to perform at the 2017 Super Bowl, and even addressed it in his 2018 song “Apesh*t.” The lyrics say, “I said no to the Super Bowl: you need me, I don't need you. Every night we in the endzone, tell the NFL we in stadiums too," while the music video shows a line of men on one knee.
Comedian Amy Schumer has also weighed in, praising Rihanna and encouraging Maroon 5 to follow her lead and step down. Schumer also said that she will refuse to do any commercials that would air during the big game. “Hitting the NFL with the advertisers is the only way to really hurt them," she said.
Maroon 5 has made music over the years featuring artists from all genres, including Rihanna, Cardi B and Kendrick Lamar — all of whom have publicly supported Kaepernick in his decision to protest the violent racism sweeping the United States. Maroon 5 must do the same. The band has a chance to stand on the right side of history. If they don’t, they will be remembered for choosing to side with the NFL over its players.
The band’s lead singer, Adam Levine, has not shied away from politics in the past. He has been a strong supporter of same sex marriage and LGBT rights. The band even changed the location of a show because the venue supported anti-gay marriage laws. If the band can take a stand for LGBT rights, they should do the same for these players.
Colin Kaepernick has sacrificed his NFL career to call out violent racism in America, and players across the country have followed his lead. Rihanna, Jay-Z, Amy Schumer and others have refused to work with the NFL. Maroon 5: Americans look to artists and celebrities as leaders, and you have huge opportunity to use your influence to take a stand.
Sign to tell Maroon 5 to drop out of the Super Bowl halftime show in solidarity with Kaepernick and players who #TakeAKnee. ||||| Adam Levine and Maroon 5 are being urged to pull out of performing at the Super Bowl halftime show in support of former NFL player Colin Kaepernick.
More than 44,000 people have signed a petition on change.org calling on the group to cancel their plans to perform at the sporting event in Atlanta on February 3 next year.
According to the petition, “Kaepernick risked his career to take a knee for equality, and the NFL punished him for it. Until the league changes their policy and support players’ constitutional right to protest, no artists should agree to work with the NFL.”
The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, 31, was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem in a peaceful protest against police brutality and racial inequality in 2016. He has not played since that season and last year filed a grievance against the league and its owners, accusing them of colluding to keep him off the field.
US Weekly exclusively revealed in September that the Grammy-winning band had accepted an offer to perform at the Super Bowl, with multiple sources later telling Us that Cardi B is “being considered” as a special guest.
Maroon 5 have yet to officially confirm their involvement, but Levine, 39, did little to dispel the rumors during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Friday, November 16.
“It’s definitely a rumor. And the rumor’s a rumor that everyone seems to be discussing. It’s the Super Bowl. It’s a great event and there’s gonna be a band performing — or an artist of some kind — at halftime. And it’s gonna be great, regardless of who it is,” the Voice judge said. “Whoever is lucky enough to get that gig is probably gonna crush it. … Whoever does it is probably equal parts nervous and excited. This is all speculative ‘cause I don’t know who I’m talking about.”
In October, Amy Schumer urged the band to reconsider performing at the show, while Us exclusively reported that Rihanna had decided to skip performing at the Super Bowl because she “supports Colin Kaepernick.”
Jay Z also claimed on his song “Apes—t” that he had also turned down an offer to headline the show, and Pink, who sang the national anthem at the Super Bowl this year, also reportedly said no.
For all the inside details on the biggest celebrity stories and scoop this week, subscribe to our new podcast "Us Weekly's Hot Hollywood" below!
Sign up now for the Us Weekly newsletter to get breaking celebrity news, hot pics and more delivered straight to your inbox!
Want stories like these delivered straight to your phone? Download the Us Weekly iPhone app now! | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 43,218 |
Elizabeth Silva says the man who has been charged with being the Golden State Killer and East Area Rapist sexually assaulted her while living in Visalia.
As Joseph James DeAngelo sat in a wheelchair during his first appearance in court, Elizabeth Silva stood outside the Sacramento County Jail with a sign that read, "Victim."
Silva says the man who has been charged with being the Golden State Killer and East Area Rapist sexually assaulted her while living in Visalia. At the time, she was three months shy of turning 13.
The alleged attack happened two years before investigators say he committed his first crimes in Northern California.
"He violently raped me and took everything from me,” she said, “and now that they have the key to his cell, I can talk. I can say something now."
Silva, now 56, says DeAngelo wore a police uniform from the city of Exeter, where he worked from 1973-76. Exeter is adjacent to the city of Visalia.
She says he picked her up for skipping school. "He said he was going to take me to my dad and I was in the back of his cop car handcuffed and he took me to St. John's River” north of Visalia, she recalled. She alleges that DeAngelo assaulted her inside his patrol car.
She says the suspected Golden State Killer kept a memento after he assaulted her. "I hope they [law enforcement] find my buttons in his backyard to my pants. That will show my truth,” she said.
Last week, Silva filed a police report with the Los Rios Police Department, which forwarded it to the Visalia Police Department, Sacramento County Sheriff's Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Four decades after the assault, she insists she was 13 years old at the time, but is unsure as to whether it occurred in March of 1973 or 1974.
She says she is speaking out now “for anyone who can't stand up and come out of hiding. They need to come out of hiding."
DeAngelo was arrested last week and is charged with killing eight people in Sacramento, Ventura and Orange counties. Investigators working those cases say they linked him to nearly 50 rapes and three attempted sexual assaults from 1976 to 1986.
Silva says DeAngelo threatened to kill her and her family if she told anyone about the assault. She says she kept it a secret until he was arrested last week.
A request for comment to DeAngelo’s public defender, Diane Howard, has not been returned.
On Friday after his arraignment, she said she has not seen his mug shot, but came forward when she saw an old photo of him published in the Visalia Times Delta.
Her stepfather, Joe Collins, was an officer with the Visalia Police Department at the time of the attack. He says Silva's behavior changed dramatically around that time.
"She got wild,” Collins said. “She totally became a different person. We didn't know what the reason was behind the behavior of change. She totally changed into another person.”
Collins says Exeter police officers were often in Visalia because it is the site of the Tulare County Jail.
Police in Visalia are trying to determine if DeAngelo is responsible for the August 1975 murder of a college professor, who was shot and killed while stopping the kidnapping of his 16-year-old daughter.
The department believes the same suspect shot at a Visalia police officer in December of that year as he tried to arrest a man for breaking into a home.
The suspect in those cases has only been known as the “Visalia Ransacker,” who the department believes also committed 100 burglaries but has not previously been linked any sexual assaults.
Damon Maurice with the Visalia Police Department says they are reviewing the cases. “We don't have any DNA evidence to go on,” he said, “but we are working through some physical evidence that was gathered at those crime scenes, specifically in regards to the homicide that occurred, and we're trying to see if that will connect Mr. DeAngelo to the kidnapping, murder and attempted murder.”
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department says DeAngelo is being held on the medical wing of the downtown jail and is on suicide watch, “which is standard for all persons brought into our facility for charges of this magnitude,” according to Sgt. Shaun Hampton. ||||| Detectives had searched for four decades for the clue that would unlock the identity of the Golden State Killer, the predator who terrorized California top to bottom with a string of horrific rapes and homicides in the 1970s and ’80s.
Criminal DNA databases produced no hits, sweeps of crime scenes no fingerprints and hefty rewards no definitive tips. But Paul Holes, an investigator and DNA expert, had a hunch he could create a road map to the killer through his genetics.
Holes used DNA recovered from a crime scene to find the killer’s great-great-great grandparents, who lived in the early 1800s. Branch by painstaking branch, he and a team created about 25 family trees containing thousands of relatives down to the present day.
One fork led to a 72-year-old retiree who was quietly living out his golden years in the Sacramento suburb of Citrus Heights. Holes was intrigued after learning the man was a disgraced cop who had bought guns during two bursts of activity by the killer.
The test of Holes’s novel sleuthing would come in mid-April, when officers scooped up an item discarded by the man that contained his DNA and tested the genetic material against the killer’s. The shot in the dark produced a match — an improbable ending fit for detective fiction.
Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested in Citrus Heights on April 24.
Joseph James DeAngelo, 72, who authorities suspect is the so-called Golden State Killer. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)
“Everything else up to this time had failed,” Holes said. “For 44 years, law enforcement has been trying to solve this case. No other case has had more resources poured into it in the history of California. I was just stunned.”
The role of genetics in the case is well known, but this account reveals for the first time the massive scope, intricate science and sheer doggedness of the effort to catch one of the nation’s worst serial predators.
Initial DNA work identified distant relatives — not a suspect. Holes said a team of five investigators spent four months building out family trees, name by name. They pored over census records, newspaper obituaries, gravesite locaters, and police and commercial databases to find each relative and, ultimately, DeAngelo.
[Data on a genealogy site led police to the ‘Golden State Killer’ suspect. Now others worry about a ‘treasure trove of data’]
The Golden State Killer was as clever a criminal as he was sadistic, taunting authorities and staying one step ahead as police say he killed at least 12 people, raped more than 50 and committed 100 burglaries between 1974 and 1986, when his crimes appeared to mysteriously end.
His mayhem touched 10 counties, and he was variously called the East Area Rapist, Original Nightstalker, Diamond Knot Killer and Visalia Ransacker before authorities discovered that the various strings of crimes appeared to be the work of a single man.
He instilled fear like few others.
Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert was a child when dozens of seemingly related rapes occurred in the Sacramento area in 1976 and 1977. Schubert said her mother put a weapon under her pillow.
“It changed this community,” Schubert said. “People referred to him as the boogeyman. It wasn’t a matter of if he was coming, it was when, because it happened so much and it went on for so long.”
The boogeyman
The horror began with the flash of a blinding light.
Linda O’Dell, then 22, said she and her husband were woken about 1 or 2 a.m. on May 14, 1977, by an intruder shining a flashlight on their bed.
“Don’t move,” the man barked.
He threw string to O’Dell and ordered her to tie up her husband. Then the intruder tied O’Dell up himself. He piled plates and bowls on her husband’s back and stalked around the house yelling and drinking the couple’s beer. Finally, he moved O’Dell to the living room, where he raped her.
“He told me he would cut my husband’s ear off and bring it to me if there was any noise,” she said.
He eventually took O’Dell’s wedding ring, possibly as a souvenir, then slipped out into the night.
The three-hour ordeal bore the terrible hallmarks of a predator who came to be dubbed the East Area Rapist. The rape of O’Dell was No. 21 attributed to the same man in the Sacramento area in 1976 and 1977. Thirty more would follow there and in other communities in Northern California.
Carol Daly and Richard Shelby were two of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department detectives assigned to the East Area Rapist case early on. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
“This was the most heinous rapist I had ever known,” said former detective Carol Daly, who was one of the first to investigate the case for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. “The attacks were bizarre, cruel and long-lasting.”
They were also cunning, said Richard Shelby, another former detective with the department. Shelby said the East Area Rapist planned meticulously. He watched the victims, broke into their homes and even called them to learn their routines before striking. He always seemed to have an escape route via a stream, trail or field.
With each attack, fear ratcheted higher.
Sales of locks, dogs and guns soared — doubling in Sacramento County between 1976 and 1977, according to the Sacramento Bee. Daly said burglaries nose-dived during that era; she surmised it was because of the gun sales and burglars knowing that residents were on edge.
But what truly seemed to set the East Area Rapist apart, Daly said, was his apparent delight in stoking this public terror.
At a forum on the rapes in 1977, Daly recalled that a man rose and said he doubted a rapist would be able to rape a woman in front of her husband, since the man would retaliate. Several months later, that man’s wife was raped while he was at home, Daly said.
“I can’t positively say, but I think the rapist was in the meeting that night,” she said.
Despite intense searches, Shelby said, the East Side Rapist seemed to anticipate police moves and slip away. At the time, DeAngelo was a police officer in the small Northern California town of Auburn.
If DeAngelo is the East Side Rapist, Shelby thinks his police training may have given him an edge. His police radio may have even allowed him to listen in as police investigated.
The violence grew.
In February 1978, a young couple from Rancho Cordova, Brian and Katie Maggiore, were shot dead when they fled a confrontation on the street while walking their dog. The killings eventually became the first attributed to the East Area Rapist.
The year after the killings, DeAngelo was dismissed from the Auburn force for shoplifting a can of dog repellent and a hammer from a drugstore.
A map with numbered thumbtacks indicating attacks shows how the East Area Rapist would cluster his targets. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
A drainage canal where police say the East Area Rapist would hide to elude authorities. It is in Rancho Cordova, Calif., east of Sacramento. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
The terror soon shifted to Southern California, although it’s unclear what DeAngelo was doing or where he was living.
Shortly after Christmas in 1979, a surgeon and a psychologist were shot and killed in their Santa Barbara County apartment. In March 1980, a couple was fatally bludgeoned with a piece of firewood in their Ventura County home. The woman was raped. Six more homicides would follow, all believed to be the work of a killer who was dubbed the Original Nightstalker.
By 1986, that wave of crimes appeared to abruptly end.
The reason remains unknown, but Daly and Shelby think the killer may have grown too old to continue the physically demanding attacks and flights. In 2001, DNA evidence linked the East Area Rapist and Original Nightstalker cases.
The search for the Golden State Killer helped spur advances in criminal justice. The brother of one victim successfully lobbied to expand the collection of DNA from criminals in California, and the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department added a dedicated sex-crimes unit.
The final push to find the killer would spawn one more investigative innovation.
Road map to a killer
Paul Holes had been tracking the Golden State Killer for 24 years, but time was running out. He had nine months before he retired as an investigator for the Contra Costa County district attorney’s office, and he desperately wanted to crack his biggest case.
Holes had been obsessed with the Golden State Killer since coming across the case file in the mid-90s while working as a forensic scientist. Holes had handled serial predator cases, but the Golden State Killer stood out even among these hardened offenders.
“I was struck by the lengths this predator would go to to instill fear in his victims,” Holes said. “It was psychological terror.”
A detective told Holes about a 2002 case in which a young kidnapping victim was identified using her DNA and a genealogy website. Holes wondered: Could he do the same with the Golden State Killer?
[‘We found the needle in the haystack’: Golden State Killer suspect arrested after sudden DNA match]
Holes began researching and hit upon a novel tool in GEDmatch, a no-frills website that allows users to upload their genetic information and search a database of roughly 1 million profiles for possible family connections.
He prepared to sell the unorthodox idea to officials to get a sample of the killer’s DNA.
“We ended up going on a road show,” Holes said.
Holes and an FBI lawyer found a partner in Ventura County last summer. A meticulous pathologist had put a duplicate evidence kit from the rape and murder of Charlene and Lyman Smith in a freezer in 1980. Many other DNA samples from the case had been depleted over the years.
This undated photo shows renderings produced during the investigations. (FBI/AP)
A lab converted the sample into a format that could be read by GEDmatch, which analyzes hundreds of thousands of DNA datapoints to determine relatedness. Holes waited anxiously as he fed in the killer’s profile.
Holes, prepared for another dead end, was heartened when the analysis returned. It wasn’t a close match, but the site found 10 to 20 distant relatives of the killer, roughly the equivalent of third cousins.
Holes knew that if he traced back the lineages of distant cousins far enough, he could find a common ancestor they shared with the killer. That turned out to be great-great-great grandparents from the early 1800s.
A daunting task lay ahead as Holes and his team began to trace offspring to the present day to find potential suspects. That meant filling in thousands of blanks.
“When you go that far back in time, you have trees that grow huge,” Holes said.
They used census data, old newspaper clippings and a gravesite locator to find the deceased relatives. When they got to the current day, they turned to police databases and websites such as LexisNexis.
Holes created his family trees using a tool on Ancestry.com. His team stole time on weekends and during meetings to plug the holes one by one. It was tedious work, and it wasn’t their full-time focus.
By April, they had pieced together about 25 distinct family trees from the great-great-great grandparents. There were roughly 1,000 family members just in the one that included DeAngelo.
The team began scouring the trees for potential suspects, men about the killer’s age who had connections to Sacramento and other locations of the crimes.
A bystander takes a photo of the home of Joseph James DeAngelo, the suspect in the Golden State Killer crimes. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
They found two.
Holes said the other suspect looked promising on paper but was eventually eliminated by a DNA test of a relative. That left DeAngelo.
Holes had doubts.
“How could this guy be a full-time law enforcement officer and be committing all these attacks across Northern California?” he said. “I had my reservations that it was him.”
Sacramento sheriff’s deputies put DeAngelo under surveillance and picked up the discarded item containing his DNA. After the match, they arrested DeAngelo at his home, not far from where he allegedly carried out many of the crimes. He now faces eight counts of murder.
On Friday, DeAngelo, whose attorney did not return calls seeking comment for this article, was pushed into a Sacramento courtroom in a wheelchair to face arraignment. He appeared frail in an orange jumpsuit, answering a judge's questions in a thin, raspy voice.
Holes said he was gratified to finally put a face to the ghost he chased for so many years.
“Thousands of nightmares and thousands of sleepless nights have been put to an end with the capture of this rapist,” Carol Daly said.
Magda Jean-Louis contributed to this report. | – In 1977, at a public forum about a series of rapes in Northern California, a man expressed doubt that a serial rapist could assault a woman in front of her husband without him retaliating. Months later, the man's wife was raped while he was home. "I can't positively say, but I think the rapist was in the meeting that night," a former detective tells the Washington Post. It was this penchant for "psychological terror" that kept Paul Holes hunting the Golden State Killer for almost 25 years. The investigator's victory came only months before his retirement. Holes used data points from the killer's DNA, taken from the scene of a 1980 rape and murder, to find his great-great-great grandparents on GEDmatch. From there, detectives spent four months tracing their lineage from the early 1800s, using police databases, census records, and obituaries. In the end, they had 25 family trees and a branch leading to a 72-year-old ex-cop living near Sacramento. Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. is now suspected in 12 murders and at least 45 rapes, with more possible. Simi Valley police chief David Livingstone says the 1978 rape and murder of 24-year-old Rhonda Wicht, whose 4-year-old son was smothered in his bed, has "similarities" to the Golden State Killer's crimes. A woman also claims DeAngelo raped her in Exeter, where DeAngelo worked as a police officer, in 1973 or 1974—years before the first crimes police attribute to him, per KXJZ. "I was struck by the lengths this predator would go to to instill fear in his victims," says another detective on the case. "It was psychological terror." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Elizabeth Silva says the man who has been charged with being the Golden State Killer and East Area Rapist sexually assaulted her while living in Visalia.
As Joseph James DeAngelo sat in a wheelchair during his first appearance in court, Elizabeth Silva stood outside the Sacramento County Jail with a sign that read, "Victim."
Silva says the man who has been charged with being the Golden State Killer and East Area Rapist sexually assaulted her while living in Visalia. At the time, she was three months shy of turning 13.
The alleged attack happened two years before investigators say he committed his first crimes in Northern California.
"He violently raped me and took everything from me,” she said, “and now that they have the key to his cell, I can talk. I can say something now."
Silva, now 56, says DeAngelo wore a police uniform from the city of Exeter, where he worked from 1973-76. Exeter is adjacent to the city of Visalia.
She says he picked her up for skipping school. "He said he was going to take me to my dad and I was in the back of his cop car handcuffed and he took me to St. John's River” north of Visalia, she recalled. She alleges that DeAngelo assaulted her inside his patrol car.
She says the suspected Golden State Killer kept a memento after he assaulted her. "I hope they [law enforcement] find my buttons in his backyard to my pants. That will show my truth,” she said.
Last week, Silva filed a police report with the Los Rios Police Department, which forwarded it to the Visalia Police Department, Sacramento County Sheriff's Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Four decades after the assault, she insists she was 13 years old at the time, but is unsure as to whether it occurred in March of 1973 or 1974.
She says she is speaking out now “for anyone who can't stand up and come out of hiding. They need to come out of hiding."
DeAngelo was arrested last week and is charged with killing eight people in Sacramento, Ventura and Orange counties. Investigators working those cases say they linked him to nearly 50 rapes and three attempted sexual assaults from 1976 to 1986.
Silva says DeAngelo threatened to kill her and her family if she told anyone about the assault. She says she kept it a secret until he was arrested last week.
A request for comment to DeAngelo’s public defender, Diane Howard, has not been returned.
On Friday after his arraignment, she said she has not seen his mug shot, but came forward when she saw an old photo of him published in the Visalia Times Delta.
Her stepfather, Joe Collins, was an officer with the Visalia Police Department at the time of the attack. He says Silva's behavior changed dramatically around that time.
"She got wild,” Collins said. “She totally became a different person. We didn't know what the reason was behind the behavior of change. She totally changed into another person.”
Collins says Exeter police officers were often in Visalia because it is the site of the Tulare County Jail.
Police in Visalia are trying to determine if DeAngelo is responsible for the August 1975 murder of a college professor, who was shot and killed while stopping the kidnapping of his 16-year-old daughter.
The department believes the same suspect shot at a Visalia police officer in December of that year as he tried to arrest a man for breaking into a home.
The suspect in those cases has only been known as the “Visalia Ransacker,” who the department believes also committed 100 burglaries but has not previously been linked any sexual assaults.
Damon Maurice with the Visalia Police Department says they are reviewing the cases. “We don't have any DNA evidence to go on,” he said, “but we are working through some physical evidence that was gathered at those crime scenes, specifically in regards to the homicide that occurred, and we're trying to see if that will connect Mr. DeAngelo to the kidnapping, murder and attempted murder.”
The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department says DeAngelo is being held on the medical wing of the downtown jail and is on suicide watch, “which is standard for all persons brought into our facility for charges of this magnitude,” according to Sgt. Shaun Hampton. ||||| Detectives had searched for four decades for the clue that would unlock the identity of the Golden State Killer, the predator who terrorized California top to bottom with a string of horrific rapes and homicides in the 1970s and ’80s.
Criminal DNA databases produced no hits, sweeps of crime scenes no fingerprints and hefty rewards no definitive tips. But Paul Holes, an investigator and DNA expert, had a hunch he could create a road map to the killer through his genetics.
Holes used DNA recovered from a crime scene to find the killer’s great-great-great grandparents, who lived in the early 1800s. Branch by painstaking branch, he and a team created about 25 family trees containing thousands of relatives down to the present day.
One fork led to a 72-year-old retiree who was quietly living out his golden years in the Sacramento suburb of Citrus Heights. Holes was intrigued after learning the man was a disgraced cop who had bought guns during two bursts of activity by the killer.
The test of Holes’s novel sleuthing would come in mid-April, when officers scooped up an item discarded by the man that contained his DNA and tested the genetic material against the killer’s. The shot in the dark produced a match — an improbable ending fit for detective fiction.
Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested in Citrus Heights on April 24.
Joseph James DeAngelo, 72, who authorities suspect is the so-called Golden State Killer. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)
“Everything else up to this time had failed,” Holes said. “For 44 years, law enforcement has been trying to solve this case. No other case has had more resources poured into it in the history of California. I was just stunned.”
The role of genetics in the case is well known, but this account reveals for the first time the massive scope, intricate science and sheer doggedness of the effort to catch one of the nation’s worst serial predators.
Initial DNA work identified distant relatives — not a suspect. Holes said a team of five investigators spent four months building out family trees, name by name. They pored over census records, newspaper obituaries, gravesite locaters, and police and commercial databases to find each relative and, ultimately, DeAngelo.
[Data on a genealogy site led police to the ‘Golden State Killer’ suspect. Now others worry about a ‘treasure trove of data’]
The Golden State Killer was as clever a criminal as he was sadistic, taunting authorities and staying one step ahead as police say he killed at least 12 people, raped more than 50 and committed 100 burglaries between 1974 and 1986, when his crimes appeared to mysteriously end.
His mayhem touched 10 counties, and he was variously called the East Area Rapist, Original Nightstalker, Diamond Knot Killer and Visalia Ransacker before authorities discovered that the various strings of crimes appeared to be the work of a single man.
He instilled fear like few others.
Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert was a child when dozens of seemingly related rapes occurred in the Sacramento area in 1976 and 1977. Schubert said her mother put a weapon under her pillow.
“It changed this community,” Schubert said. “People referred to him as the boogeyman. It wasn’t a matter of if he was coming, it was when, because it happened so much and it went on for so long.”
The boogeyman
The horror began with the flash of a blinding light.
Linda O’Dell, then 22, said she and her husband were woken about 1 or 2 a.m. on May 14, 1977, by an intruder shining a flashlight on their bed.
“Don’t move,” the man barked.
He threw string to O’Dell and ordered her to tie up her husband. Then the intruder tied O’Dell up himself. He piled plates and bowls on her husband’s back and stalked around the house yelling and drinking the couple’s beer. Finally, he moved O’Dell to the living room, where he raped her.
“He told me he would cut my husband’s ear off and bring it to me if there was any noise,” she said.
He eventually took O’Dell’s wedding ring, possibly as a souvenir, then slipped out into the night.
The three-hour ordeal bore the terrible hallmarks of a predator who came to be dubbed the East Area Rapist. The rape of O’Dell was No. 21 attributed to the same man in the Sacramento area in 1976 and 1977. Thirty more would follow there and in other communities in Northern California.
Carol Daly and Richard Shelby were two of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department detectives assigned to the East Area Rapist case early on. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
“This was the most heinous rapist I had ever known,” said former detective Carol Daly, who was one of the first to investigate the case for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. “The attacks were bizarre, cruel and long-lasting.”
They were also cunning, said Richard Shelby, another former detective with the department. Shelby said the East Area Rapist planned meticulously. He watched the victims, broke into their homes and even called them to learn their routines before striking. He always seemed to have an escape route via a stream, trail or field.
With each attack, fear ratcheted higher.
Sales of locks, dogs and guns soared — doubling in Sacramento County between 1976 and 1977, according to the Sacramento Bee. Daly said burglaries nose-dived during that era; she surmised it was because of the gun sales and burglars knowing that residents were on edge.
But what truly seemed to set the East Area Rapist apart, Daly said, was his apparent delight in stoking this public terror.
At a forum on the rapes in 1977, Daly recalled that a man rose and said he doubted a rapist would be able to rape a woman in front of her husband, since the man would retaliate. Several months later, that man’s wife was raped while he was at home, Daly said.
“I can’t positively say, but I think the rapist was in the meeting that night,” she said.
Despite intense searches, Shelby said, the East Side Rapist seemed to anticipate police moves and slip away. At the time, DeAngelo was a police officer in the small Northern California town of Auburn.
If DeAngelo is the East Side Rapist, Shelby thinks his police training may have given him an edge. His police radio may have even allowed him to listen in as police investigated.
The violence grew.
In February 1978, a young couple from Rancho Cordova, Brian and Katie Maggiore, were shot dead when they fled a confrontation on the street while walking their dog. The killings eventually became the first attributed to the East Area Rapist.
The year after the killings, DeAngelo was dismissed from the Auburn force for shoplifting a can of dog repellent and a hammer from a drugstore.
A map with numbered thumbtacks indicating attacks shows how the East Area Rapist would cluster his targets. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
A drainage canal where police say the East Area Rapist would hide to elude authorities. It is in Rancho Cordova, Calif., east of Sacramento. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
The terror soon shifted to Southern California, although it’s unclear what DeAngelo was doing or where he was living.
Shortly after Christmas in 1979, a surgeon and a psychologist were shot and killed in their Santa Barbara County apartment. In March 1980, a couple was fatally bludgeoned with a piece of firewood in their Ventura County home. The woman was raped. Six more homicides would follow, all believed to be the work of a killer who was dubbed the Original Nightstalker.
By 1986, that wave of crimes appeared to abruptly end.
The reason remains unknown, but Daly and Shelby think the killer may have grown too old to continue the physically demanding attacks and flights. In 2001, DNA evidence linked the East Area Rapist and Original Nightstalker cases.
The search for the Golden State Killer helped spur advances in criminal justice. The brother of one victim successfully lobbied to expand the collection of DNA from criminals in California, and the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department added a dedicated sex-crimes unit.
The final push to find the killer would spawn one more investigative innovation.
Road map to a killer
Paul Holes had been tracking the Golden State Killer for 24 years, but time was running out. He had nine months before he retired as an investigator for the Contra Costa County district attorney’s office, and he desperately wanted to crack his biggest case.
Holes had been obsessed with the Golden State Killer since coming across the case file in the mid-90s while working as a forensic scientist. Holes had handled serial predator cases, but the Golden State Killer stood out even among these hardened offenders.
“I was struck by the lengths this predator would go to to instill fear in his victims,” Holes said. “It was psychological terror.”
A detective told Holes about a 2002 case in which a young kidnapping victim was identified using her DNA and a genealogy website. Holes wondered: Could he do the same with the Golden State Killer?
[‘We found the needle in the haystack’: Golden State Killer suspect arrested after sudden DNA match]
Holes began researching and hit upon a novel tool in GEDmatch, a no-frills website that allows users to upload their genetic information and search a database of roughly 1 million profiles for possible family connections.
He prepared to sell the unorthodox idea to officials to get a sample of the killer’s DNA.
“We ended up going on a road show,” Holes said.
Holes and an FBI lawyer found a partner in Ventura County last summer. A meticulous pathologist had put a duplicate evidence kit from the rape and murder of Charlene and Lyman Smith in a freezer in 1980. Many other DNA samples from the case had been depleted over the years.
This undated photo shows renderings produced during the investigations. (FBI/AP)
A lab converted the sample into a format that could be read by GEDmatch, which analyzes hundreds of thousands of DNA datapoints to determine relatedness. Holes waited anxiously as he fed in the killer’s profile.
Holes, prepared for another dead end, was heartened when the analysis returned. It wasn’t a close match, but the site found 10 to 20 distant relatives of the killer, roughly the equivalent of third cousins.
Holes knew that if he traced back the lineages of distant cousins far enough, he could find a common ancestor they shared with the killer. That turned out to be great-great-great grandparents from the early 1800s.
A daunting task lay ahead as Holes and his team began to trace offspring to the present day to find potential suspects. That meant filling in thousands of blanks.
“When you go that far back in time, you have trees that grow huge,” Holes said.
They used census data, old newspaper clippings and a gravesite locator to find the deceased relatives. When they got to the current day, they turned to police databases and websites such as LexisNexis.
Holes created his family trees using a tool on Ancestry.com. His team stole time on weekends and during meetings to plug the holes one by one. It was tedious work, and it wasn’t their full-time focus.
By April, they had pieced together about 25 distinct family trees from the great-great-great grandparents. There were roughly 1,000 family members just in the one that included DeAngelo.
The team began scouring the trees for potential suspects, men about the killer’s age who had connections to Sacramento and other locations of the crimes.
A bystander takes a photo of the home of Joseph James DeAngelo, the suspect in the Golden State Killer crimes. (Nick Otto/For The Washington Post)
They found two.
Holes said the other suspect looked promising on paper but was eventually eliminated by a DNA test of a relative. That left DeAngelo.
Holes had doubts.
“How could this guy be a full-time law enforcement officer and be committing all these attacks across Northern California?” he said. “I had my reservations that it was him.”
Sacramento sheriff’s deputies put DeAngelo under surveillance and picked up the discarded item containing his DNA. After the match, they arrested DeAngelo at his home, not far from where he allegedly carried out many of the crimes. He now faces eight counts of murder.
On Friday, DeAngelo, whose attorney did not return calls seeking comment for this article, was pushed into a Sacramento courtroom in a wheelchair to face arraignment. He appeared frail in an orange jumpsuit, answering a judge's questions in a thin, raspy voice.
Holes said he was gratified to finally put a face to the ghost he chased for so many years.
“Thousands of nightmares and thousands of sleepless nights have been put to an end with the capture of this rapist,” Carol Daly said.
Magda Jean-Louis contributed to this report. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 16,022 |
A young Pleasant Grove mother and heroin addict who has been at the center of debate over the care and punishment of pregnant addicts gave birth Tuesday, and now her lawyers are asking that her bond be reinstated.
Alexandra Laird, 21, was indicted in 2016 after her newborn baby girl was born addicted to heroin. Pregnant for a second time, Laird was arrested again last year after authorities say she admitted to using heroin three times a day during the most recent pregnancy.
A Jefferson County grand jury on April 15, 2016 indicted Laird on the first chemical endangerment of a child charge. She was initially arrested May 1, 2015 and had remained free on bond since then. Laird on March 29, 2015 gave birth to a baby girl at UAB Medical West, court records show. Routine newborn testing performed on the day the baby was born turned up positive for opiates and amphetamines, both controlled substances. The baby on April 6, 2015 was transferred to Princeton Baptist Medical Center where she received treatment for the withdrawals and spent one month in the Intensive Care Unit.
In that case, Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid said Laird later admitted to detectives that she used heroin one to two times a week for at least five months of her pregnancy. Because of the severity of the baby's illness, Reid sought, and received, an enhanced charge of chemical endangerment of a child against Laird, which is a Class B felony. Laird does not have custody of her daughter.
In late August 2016, Laird was arrested again for failure to appear in court. A condition of her previous child endangerment charge required her to not commit any other crimes while out on bond, which Pleasant Grove police Reid said she did when she failed to show up for a court hearing. She then went before a judge who revoked her bond and administered a court-ordered drug test, which was positive.
She was remanded to jail in the Bessemer Cutoff on Sept. 8. It was then she admitted to using heroin three times a day, Reid said, and admitted to being pregnant which authorities confirmed with a pregnancy test. Reid went before Jefferson County Circuit Judge David Hobdy and argued for no bond, claiming that the unborn baby's life is in danger of continued heroin exposure.
Jefferson County Judge David Hobdy agreed with prosecutors and police and ordered her held, but Laird's doctors at UAB Hospital decided to keep her in the hospital for the duration of her pregnancy rather than send her back to jail.
Laird's attorney, Thomas J. Huseman, on Tuesday filed a motion to reinstate bond. His request noted that Laird had been receiving Subutex prior to delivery and, if bond is granted, will remain under the care of Dr. Peter Lane, medical director of the Addiction Recovery Program at UAB, for detoxification and be housed on the psychiatric unit.
Lane, in court documents, outlined his post-partum plan for Laird. He said she would be detoxified from the Subutex, and once that process is complete, she will move to the Fellowship House and continue in the Partial Hospitalization Program at Addiction Recovery Program for two additional weeks. Once she is discharged from the Addiction Recovery Program, the Fellowship House will become her primary treatment program and the provider for her care and substance abuse issue.
The judge has not yet ruled on the request for bond, but police said they will not oppose bond since the baby has been born. Privacy laws prevent information from being released about the baby.
Laird is set to go to court on the child endangerment charge on March 13. ||||| WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law a measure that pledges greater efforts to protect drug-dependent newborns and assist their parents.
A sign marks the entrance to the Neonatal Therapeutic Unit at Cabell Huntington Hospital, where staff members have acted to treat an alarming number of drug-dependent newborns, in Huntington, West Virginia, October 19, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act also stresses drug treatment and overdose prevention to help stanch the nation’s heroin and opioid drug epidemic.
Obama said in a statement that 78 Americans die from opioid overdose every day, and noted that the legislation included only modest steps to address the epidemic.
“I am deeply disappointed that Republicans failed to provide any real resources for those seeking addiction treatment to get the care that they need,” Obama said. “In fact, they blocked efforts by Democrats to include $920 million in treatment funding.”
The bill was passed nearly unanimously by both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Efforts to enforce provisions to protect newborns and help their parents come in response to a Reuters investigation last year titled “Helpless & Hooked.”
The new law requires that the federal government and every state follow a 2003 law that was routinely ignored. That law called on states to require hospitals and social services to report, track and assist drug-dependent newborns and their families.
Reuters found that no more than nine states were following that requirement. Most children born to addicted mothers, including many mothers who were taking prescribed methadone, were not being reported by hospitals as required by law. Often, that was because medical workers feared involving child protective services, as the existing law requires. When cases were reported to social services, Reuters found, efforts to protect the child and help the parents often were limited.
The failures came at a cost. Reuters found more than 110 babies since 2010 died under preventable circumstances after being sent home to families ill-equipped to care for them. Experts said far more children have likely died but gone uncounted.
The new law promises a non-punitive approach that includes “safe care plans” aimed at keeping newborns at home with their parents, who will receive additional help.
“This is a step forward for vulnerable babies who, due to an opioid dependency, will begin their lives facing enormous challenges,” said Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, the ranking Democrat on the Senate subcommittee on children and families. “Reuters’ initial reporting shined a light on a darkness that had enveloped far too many lives. There is much more work to do but this is a genuine step forward.”
Representative John Kline, a Minnesota Republican who chairs the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, which initiated the measure, said it will track state actions.
“These reforms are an important part of our broader efforts to combat the nation’s opioid epidemic and provide these vulnerable families a better chance at a brighter future,” Kline said in a statement.
In 2013, the latest year with nationwide hospital reporting, 27,315 babies were diagnosed with newborn drug withdrawal syndrome, a five-fold increase from a decade earlier.
Reuters found that one drug-dependent baby was born on average every 19 minutes in the United States. Some suffer shaking, crying and feeding problems as they battle withdrawal.
Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said the broader addiction law was “no more than a half measure” without more funding. Wyden has co-sponsored a measure setting aside money for substance abuse treatment for parents in danger of losing their children. It passed the House but stalled in the Senate.
Jim Greenwood, a former Pennsylvania congressman who championed the 2003 law, said the deaths Reuters revealed represent “a national disgrace and glaring failure at the federal, state and local level to implement Plans of Safe Care for infants.” Greenwood, now president of a Washington, D.C.-based biotechnology group, applauded the new measure “to improve the health and safety of these babies and their families.”
Stephen Patrick, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Vanderbilt University and leading researcher on the condition, said the new law is “good news” but added: “Wish there was funding that came with it.” | – A pregnant drug addict who made headlines last year when a judge sent her to jail to protect her fetus has given birth, AL.com reports. Lawyers for Alexandra Nicole Laird, 21, moved to have the new mom released on bond to a detox program following Tuesday's birth. Laird was arrested after giving birth to a daughter in March 2016 who was found to be addicted to opiates. The newborn spent a month in the ICU for withdrawal, and Laird allegedly admitted to using heroin throughout that pregnancy. She was free on bond in that case when she was arrested for failure to appear in court in August; in September, she told authorities she was pregnant again. When she admitted she had been using heroin daily, authorities moved to lock her up until she delivered. The move touched off a debate over the treatment of pregnant addicts. "I'm doing my damndest to try to prevent any further damage to this child, since it's obvious the mother doesn't seem to care,'' Pleasant Grove Police Lt. Danny Reid told a judge at the time. Reactions are still strong, according to comments posted on AL.com, with one reader calling the case "unbelievably sad." A drug-addicted baby is born in the US every 19 minutes, per Reuters. Laird spent the duration of her pregnancy at UAB Hospital. After she gave birth on Tuesday, her lawyer filed a papers seeking her release on bond but indicating she would remain in the hospital's detox program. Police did not oppose Laird's release since she has given birth, but the judge has not yet ruled on the motion. Authorities did not release information on the baby, citing privacy laws. Laird, who does not have custody of her first child, still faces child endangerment charges. (A mom's viral photo shows the harsh reality of heroin.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.A young Pleasant Grove mother and heroin addict who has been at the center of debate over the care and punishment of pregnant addicts gave birth Tuesday, and now her lawyers are asking that her bond be reinstated.
Alexandra Laird, 21, was indicted in 2016 after her newborn baby girl was born addicted to heroin. Pregnant for a second time, Laird was arrested again last year after authorities say she admitted to using heroin three times a day during the most recent pregnancy.
A Jefferson County grand jury on April 15, 2016 indicted Laird on the first chemical endangerment of a child charge. She was initially arrested May 1, 2015 and had remained free on bond since then. Laird on March 29, 2015 gave birth to a baby girl at UAB Medical West, court records show. Routine newborn testing performed on the day the baby was born turned up positive for opiates and amphetamines, both controlled substances. The baby on April 6, 2015 was transferred to Princeton Baptist Medical Center where she received treatment for the withdrawals and spent one month in the Intensive Care Unit.
In that case, Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid said Laird later admitted to detectives that she used heroin one to two times a week for at least five months of her pregnancy. Because of the severity of the baby's illness, Reid sought, and received, an enhanced charge of chemical endangerment of a child against Laird, which is a Class B felony. Laird does not have custody of her daughter.
In late August 2016, Laird was arrested again for failure to appear in court. A condition of her previous child endangerment charge required her to not commit any other crimes while out on bond, which Pleasant Grove police Reid said she did when she failed to show up for a court hearing. She then went before a judge who revoked her bond and administered a court-ordered drug test, which was positive.
She was remanded to jail in the Bessemer Cutoff on Sept. 8. It was then she admitted to using heroin three times a day, Reid said, and admitted to being pregnant which authorities confirmed with a pregnancy test. Reid went before Jefferson County Circuit Judge David Hobdy and argued for no bond, claiming that the unborn baby's life is in danger of continued heroin exposure.
Jefferson County Judge David Hobdy agreed with prosecutors and police and ordered her held, but Laird's doctors at UAB Hospital decided to keep her in the hospital for the duration of her pregnancy rather than send her back to jail.
Laird's attorney, Thomas J. Huseman, on Tuesday filed a motion to reinstate bond. His request noted that Laird had been receiving Subutex prior to delivery and, if bond is granted, will remain under the care of Dr. Peter Lane, medical director of the Addiction Recovery Program at UAB, for detoxification and be housed on the psychiatric unit.
Lane, in court documents, outlined his post-partum plan for Laird. He said she would be detoxified from the Subutex, and once that process is complete, she will move to the Fellowship House and continue in the Partial Hospitalization Program at Addiction Recovery Program for two additional weeks. Once she is discharged from the Addiction Recovery Program, the Fellowship House will become her primary treatment program and the provider for her care and substance abuse issue.
The judge has not yet ruled on the request for bond, but police said they will not oppose bond since the baby has been born. Privacy laws prevent information from being released about the baby.
Laird is set to go to court on the child endangerment charge on March 13. ||||| WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law a measure that pledges greater efforts to protect drug-dependent newborns and assist their parents.
A sign marks the entrance to the Neonatal Therapeutic Unit at Cabell Huntington Hospital, where staff members have acted to treat an alarming number of drug-dependent newborns, in Huntington, West Virginia, October 19, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act also stresses drug treatment and overdose prevention to help stanch the nation’s heroin and opioid drug epidemic.
Obama said in a statement that 78 Americans die from opioid overdose every day, and noted that the legislation included only modest steps to address the epidemic.
“I am deeply disappointed that Republicans failed to provide any real resources for those seeking addiction treatment to get the care that they need,” Obama said. “In fact, they blocked efforts by Democrats to include $920 million in treatment funding.”
The bill was passed nearly unanimously by both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Efforts to enforce provisions to protect newborns and help their parents come in response to a Reuters investigation last year titled “Helpless & Hooked.”
The new law requires that the federal government and every state follow a 2003 law that was routinely ignored. That law called on states to require hospitals and social services to report, track and assist drug-dependent newborns and their families.
Reuters found that no more than nine states were following that requirement. Most children born to addicted mothers, including many mothers who were taking prescribed methadone, were not being reported by hospitals as required by law. Often, that was because medical workers feared involving child protective services, as the existing law requires. When cases were reported to social services, Reuters found, efforts to protect the child and help the parents often were limited.
The failures came at a cost. Reuters found more than 110 babies since 2010 died under preventable circumstances after being sent home to families ill-equipped to care for them. Experts said far more children have likely died but gone uncounted.
The new law promises a non-punitive approach that includes “safe care plans” aimed at keeping newborns at home with their parents, who will receive additional help.
“This is a step forward for vulnerable babies who, due to an opioid dependency, will begin their lives facing enormous challenges,” said Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, the ranking Democrat on the Senate subcommittee on children and families. “Reuters’ initial reporting shined a light on a darkness that had enveloped far too many lives. There is much more work to do but this is a genuine step forward.”
Representative John Kline, a Minnesota Republican who chairs the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, which initiated the measure, said it will track state actions.
“These reforms are an important part of our broader efforts to combat the nation’s opioid epidemic and provide these vulnerable families a better chance at a brighter future,” Kline said in a statement.
In 2013, the latest year with nationwide hospital reporting, 27,315 babies were diagnosed with newborn drug withdrawal syndrome, a five-fold increase from a decade earlier.
Reuters found that one drug-dependent baby was born on average every 19 minutes in the United States. Some suffer shaking, crying and feeding problems as they battle withdrawal.
Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said the broader addiction law was “no more than a half measure” without more funding. Wyden has co-sponsored a measure setting aside money for substance abuse treatment for parents in danger of losing their children. It passed the House but stalled in the Senate.
Jim Greenwood, a former Pennsylvania congressman who championed the 2003 law, said the deaths Reuters revealed represent “a national disgrace and glaring failure at the federal, state and local level to implement Plans of Safe Care for infants.” Greenwood, now president of a Washington, D.C.-based biotechnology group, applauded the new measure “to improve the health and safety of these babies and their families.”
Stephen Patrick, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Vanderbilt University and leading researcher on the condition, said the new law is “good news” but added: “Wish there was funding that came with it.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 8,876 |
At the groundbreaking of his new restaurant in Toronto on Monday, actor Robert De Niro did not hold back when it came to criticizing U.S. President Donald Trump. “A note of apology for the idiotic behaviour of my president. It’s a disgrace and I apologize to Justin Trudeau and the other people at G7. It’s disgusting,” It’s De Niro said to applause outside what will be Nobu Restaurant, Hotel and Residences on Mercer St.
Actor Robert De Niro signs autographs in Toronto on Monday. The Academy Award-winning actor was in town for groundbreaking of his Nobu Restaurant, Hotel and Residences on Mercer St. ( Randy Risling / toronto star )
De Niro’s statement followed his appearance at the Tony Awards on Sunday night, where he received a standing ovation after a screed in which he declared, “F--- Trump,” and a tumultuous weekend at the G7 summit in Quebec. Related stories: What led to Trump’s outburst against Trudeau: Behind the scenes at the G7
Article Continued Below
Robert De Niro gets standing ovation for Trump F-bomb at Tony Awards Mayor John Tory was among the dignitaries at Monday’s groundbreaking, and couldn’t resist referencing Sunday’s outburst by the Academy Award-winning actor. “Sir, with regard to the comments in the news today, I have only two words to say: Thank you,” Tory said to De Niro. Jazz and Motown music played as guests waited for De Niro, chef Nobu Matsuhisa and other Nobu executives to arrive. The carefully orchestrated event was overseen by security guards and police officers, and Japanese drummers got it off to a banging start. The residences associated with the restaurant development sold out in three months, said CEO Trevor Horwell.
Afterwards, Tory told reporters De Niro’s “strongly held views” resonated with Canadians. “A lot of Canadians would be more than a bit upset at the kind of attitude portrayed towards Canada,” Tory said, referring to what Trump and White House officials said following the G7 summit. “When somebody is taking on Canada, they’re taking Toronto on too ... but you won’t hear any f-bombs from me.”
Article Continued Below
Tory attempted to keep the news conference on track and, despite questions about Trump and Ontario premier-elect Doug Ford, said Monday was about “celebrating” the Nobu project investment. He did concede De Niro, with his “strongly held views” about Trump, deserves “earnest consideration” for a key to the city. Tory also spoke highly of Ford, with whom he had a “cordial” telephone conversation on Friday. The two text regularly. “He lives in Toronto. I live in Toronto. He wants to build transit. I want to build transit. I think that’s a really good prescription to get things built,” said Tory. The mayor said he has seen many De Niro movies, including Goodfellas, but his top pick isn’t one he expects “cultural snobs” to like. “My favourite is Meet the Parents because I love movies that make me laugh.” As for Nobu food, he didn’t get a chance to taste any, as he was headed back to work. “I did try a bit of the sake,” he said, referring to the Japanese alcoholic beverage, “but don’t get me trouble for that. It was just a taste.”
Read more about: ||||| As we told you last night, the Tony Awards crowd gave Robert DeNiro a standing ovation for saying “f**k Trump” in front of the room full of like-minded liberals. Actor Mark Hamill was among those offering his support for DeNiro:
How to get a STANDING OVATION at The Tonys? Give the people what they want…always a crowd pleaser!!! #SpeakingTruthToPower #TuckFrump. https://t.co/EkTwqppMxK — Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) June 11, 2018
That kind of talk obviously played great inside the room. How it all plays outside the room remains to be seen.
The Trump 2020 campaign thanks you. — JWF (@JammieWF) June 11, 2018
Stay tuned! ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more | – He got bleeped during the Tony's broadcast Sunday night for his expletive-ridden denunciation of President Trump, and Robert De Niro kept things rolling on Monday. While in Toronto for the groundbreaking of a Nobu hotel, the actor apologized to Canadians for the "idiotic behavior of my president," reports the AP. His remarks come just days after Trump belittled Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as "weak" and "dishonest" while pulling the US out of a joint communique issued by other members of the G-7. “A note of apology for the idiotic behavior of my president," said De Niro, as quoted by the Toronto Star. "It’s a disgrace and I apologize to Justin Trudeau and the other people at G-7. It's disgusting." The newspaper notes that Toronto Mayor John Tory attended the groundbreaking and made reference to the headlines from Sunday night. “With regards to the news today, sir, I have only two words for you: Thank you,” the mayor said to De Niro. But one sentiment making the rounds is that De Niro did nothing but solidify Trump's support with his base. "The Trump 2020 campaign thanks you," is how one Twitter user put it in a tweet spotted at Twitchy. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.At the groundbreaking of his new restaurant in Toronto on Monday, actor Robert De Niro did not hold back when it came to criticizing U.S. President Donald Trump. “A note of apology for the idiotic behaviour of my president. It’s a disgrace and I apologize to Justin Trudeau and the other people at G7. It’s disgusting,” It’s De Niro said to applause outside what will be Nobu Restaurant, Hotel and Residences on Mercer St.
Actor Robert De Niro signs autographs in Toronto on Monday. The Academy Award-winning actor was in town for groundbreaking of his Nobu Restaurant, Hotel and Residences on Mercer St. ( Randy Risling / toronto star )
De Niro’s statement followed his appearance at the Tony Awards on Sunday night, where he received a standing ovation after a screed in which he declared, “F--- Trump,” and a tumultuous weekend at the G7 summit in Quebec. Related stories: What led to Trump’s outburst against Trudeau: Behind the scenes at the G7
Article Continued Below
Robert De Niro gets standing ovation for Trump F-bomb at Tony Awards Mayor John Tory was among the dignitaries at Monday’s groundbreaking, and couldn’t resist referencing Sunday’s outburst by the Academy Award-winning actor. “Sir, with regard to the comments in the news today, I have only two words to say: Thank you,” Tory said to De Niro. Jazz and Motown music played as guests waited for De Niro, chef Nobu Matsuhisa and other Nobu executives to arrive. The carefully orchestrated event was overseen by security guards and police officers, and Japanese drummers got it off to a banging start. The residences associated with the restaurant development sold out in three months, said CEO Trevor Horwell.
Afterwards, Tory told reporters De Niro’s “strongly held views” resonated with Canadians. “A lot of Canadians would be more than a bit upset at the kind of attitude portrayed towards Canada,” Tory said, referring to what Trump and White House officials said following the G7 summit. “When somebody is taking on Canada, they’re taking Toronto on too ... but you won’t hear any f-bombs from me.”
Article Continued Below
Tory attempted to keep the news conference on track and, despite questions about Trump and Ontario premier-elect Doug Ford, said Monday was about “celebrating” the Nobu project investment. He did concede De Niro, with his “strongly held views” about Trump, deserves “earnest consideration” for a key to the city. Tory also spoke highly of Ford, with whom he had a “cordial” telephone conversation on Friday. The two text regularly. “He lives in Toronto. I live in Toronto. He wants to build transit. I want to build transit. I think that’s a really good prescription to get things built,” said Tory. The mayor said he has seen many De Niro movies, including Goodfellas, but his top pick isn’t one he expects “cultural snobs” to like. “My favourite is Meet the Parents because I love movies that make me laugh.” As for Nobu food, he didn’t get a chance to taste any, as he was headed back to work. “I did try a bit of the sake,” he said, referring to the Japanese alcoholic beverage, “but don’t get me trouble for that. It was just a taste.”
Read more about: ||||| As we told you last night, the Tony Awards crowd gave Robert DeNiro a standing ovation for saying “f**k Trump” in front of the room full of like-minded liberals. Actor Mark Hamill was among those offering his support for DeNiro:
How to get a STANDING OVATION at The Tonys? Give the people what they want…always a crowd pleaser!!! #SpeakingTruthToPower #TuckFrump. https://t.co/EkTwqppMxK — Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) June 11, 2018
That kind of talk obviously played great inside the room. How it all plays outside the room remains to be seen.
The Trump 2020 campaign thanks you. — JWF (@JammieWF) June 11, 2018
Stay tuned! ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 8,418 |
Despite the protestations of some media figures, a rapper performed in front of schoolchildren Wednesday evening at the White House. Somehow, the Earth kept turning.
The Grammy-winning hip-hop stalwart Common was one of several artists who celebrated poetry and the spoken word before an audience of dozens of high-schoolers, President Obama and the first lady.
“I woke up with the sunshine, a sunshine I had never seen,” Common rapped gently over a twinkling piano accompaniment. “There was light at the end of it, reminding me to forever dream. I was dreaming I walked into the White House with love on my sleeve and love for each and every one of you, reminding you to believe.”
The whole event — part of Michelle Obama’s White House Music Series — was a PG-rated PSA for poetry and arts education, but the media conjured a controversy before it even happened.
This week, Common was deemed a “vile,” “cop killer rapper” in headlines on Fox Nation, a Web site run by Fox News. Criticism sprang from other conservative fountainheads, including former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (who tweeted her disapproval), the Daily Caller (which excerpted lyrics through which Common bemoaned police conduct and President George W. Bush’s initiation of the war in Iraq) and Fox News anchor Sean Hannity (who Tuesday devoted 10 minutes of his show to what the network branded “The Invitation”).
Audience members applaud as President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrive to host a celebration of American poetry and prose at the White House, (Carolyn Kaster/AP)
The noise of outside outrage didn’t penetrate the relaxed, melodic atmosphere of the East Room, where Common was just another member of a varied cast of poets: singer-songwriters Aimee Mann and Jill Scott; former U.S. poets laureate Rita Dove and Billy Collins; avant-garde poets Alison Knowles and Kenneth Goldsmith; and comedian-banjoist Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers. The music series has previously hosted acts from the genres of country music, classical music, Latin music and Motown.
With a stage washed in teal lighting and cabaret-style seating adorned with candles, the East Room looked more like a Rat Pack-era nightclub than the reception area of a head of state.
Mann strummed her signature tune “Save Me”: “You look like a perfect fit. For a girl in need of a tourniquet.”
Scott, through spoken word, implored students to put pen to paper: “Ah children, please write. Paste your thoughts on our thoughts for a while.”
Collins recited an ode to forgetfulness: “It is as if one by one the memories you used to harbor decide to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain to a little fishing village where there are no phones.”
Common, sitting on a stool and wearing a light-gray suit, mourned — in quiet rhythmic verse — young people who suffer and die in a society hobbled by poverty and retribution.
“Destiny’s children — survivors, soldiers — in front of buildings their eyes look older,” he rapped. “It’s hard to see blessings in a violent culture.”
Before the event, debate simmered over Common’s lyrics.
“I’m talking about judgment, and who you bring into [the White House] as the president and first lady, and the image you send out to children,” argued radio host David Webb on Hannity’s TV show.
“And the image Common is sending out to children is there’s an arc of adulthood,” countered Bucknell University professor James Peterson. “He has matured and developed his lyrics. . . . Look at his social outreach.”
Hannity, wrapping up the segment, said: “This is not a guy we want our kids to listen to.”
Critics were swift to pinpoint lyrics that support such controversial figures as Assata Shakur, a Black Liberation Army leader who was convicted in 1977 of killing a New Jersey state trooper. On the other side, Common’s defenders asserted that such songs are civic-minded protests of corrupt law enforcement and unjust legal proceedings.
The media tug of war ensued despite Common’s reputation as a morally engaged lyricist who condemns violence and has written children’s books and started a foundation to promote leadership among urban youths.
But the punditry’s snit raises the question: Is an invitation to the White House an endorsement of an artist’s entire oeuvre, of a person’s whole being?
Addressing Common’s invitation, White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a media briefing earlier in the day: The president has spoken out “against those kinds of lyrics and he opposes them, but he does not think that is the sum total of this particular artist’s work. . . .
“It’s ironic to pick out those particular lyrics about this particular artist when in fact he’s known as a socially conscious hip-hop artist and rapper and has done a lot of good things. You can oppose some of what he’s done and appreciate some of the other things.”
Or, as the president put it during his opening remarks: “A great poem is one that resonates with us, that challenges us, and that teaches us something about ourselves and the world that we live in.” ||||| Daily Show: Recap - Week of 3/10/14 Samantha Bee wrangles a penis pump, and Fox News gets a lesson in their own programing.
Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 2 Anita Hill discusses finding herself an unexpected national figure on workplace sexual harassment.
Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 1 Anita Hill shares her experience testifying to the Senate about workplace sexual harassment.
2014: A Waste Odyssey Fox News commentator Eric Bolling explains how taxpayer dollars are not all created equal.
| Views: 242,727 #McConnelling With new background music, Mitch McConnell's campaign ad becomes much more interesting. (04:21)
| Views: 135,219 2014: A Waste Odyssey Fox News holds America's poor and its corporations to different standards, and JPMorgan Chase makes a quick buck in the food stamp debit card business. (05:33)
| Views: 27,682 Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 1 In this extended, exclusive interview, Professor Anita Hill recounts her involvement in a landmark sexual harassment case, the topic of the new documentary "Anita." (05:54)
| Views: 20,989 Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 2 Anita Hill recalls finding the courage to testify against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas on workplace sexual harassment in the landmark 1991 testimony. (06:59)
| Views: 265,766 Fox News Welfare Academy Fox News resorts to hyperbole and anecdotal evidence to make a point about public assistance abuse and food stamps fraud. (04:58) | – Rapper Common was among several artists who performed at a poetry event at the White House last night—and he didn't shoot any cops. The rapper, whose presence at the event infuriated conservative pundits who seized upon some of his controversial lyrics, gently recited verses about love and the suffering of young people in a violent culture, reports the Washington Post. Other guests included singer-songwriters Aimee Mann and Jill Scott and former poets laureate Rita Dove and Billy Collins Jon Stewart, meanwhile, noted that Common—"a Grammy-winning vegetarian"—is actually a very mainstream rapper. The Daily Show host accused Fox pundits of hypocrisy for attacking Common but not going after artists like Johnny Cash, who wrote his share of violent lyrics and was honored by George W. Bush, or Ted Nugent, who has made violent remarks about Obama and Hillary Clinton but whom Sean Hannity calls a friend. Stewart then launched into an anti-Fox rap of his own. Sample lyric: "The truth that you're stretching leaves me retching." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Despite the protestations of some media figures, a rapper performed in front of schoolchildren Wednesday evening at the White House. Somehow, the Earth kept turning.
The Grammy-winning hip-hop stalwart Common was one of several artists who celebrated poetry and the spoken word before an audience of dozens of high-schoolers, President Obama and the first lady.
“I woke up with the sunshine, a sunshine I had never seen,” Common rapped gently over a twinkling piano accompaniment. “There was light at the end of it, reminding me to forever dream. I was dreaming I walked into the White House with love on my sleeve and love for each and every one of you, reminding you to believe.”
The whole event — part of Michelle Obama’s White House Music Series — was a PG-rated PSA for poetry and arts education, but the media conjured a controversy before it even happened.
This week, Common was deemed a “vile,” “cop killer rapper” in headlines on Fox Nation, a Web site run by Fox News. Criticism sprang from other conservative fountainheads, including former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (who tweeted her disapproval), the Daily Caller (which excerpted lyrics through which Common bemoaned police conduct and President George W. Bush’s initiation of the war in Iraq) and Fox News anchor Sean Hannity (who Tuesday devoted 10 minutes of his show to what the network branded “The Invitation”).
Audience members applaud as President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrive to host a celebration of American poetry and prose at the White House, (Carolyn Kaster/AP)
The noise of outside outrage didn’t penetrate the relaxed, melodic atmosphere of the East Room, where Common was just another member of a varied cast of poets: singer-songwriters Aimee Mann and Jill Scott; former U.S. poets laureate Rita Dove and Billy Collins; avant-garde poets Alison Knowles and Kenneth Goldsmith; and comedian-banjoist Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers. The music series has previously hosted acts from the genres of country music, classical music, Latin music and Motown.
With a stage washed in teal lighting and cabaret-style seating adorned with candles, the East Room looked more like a Rat Pack-era nightclub than the reception area of a head of state.
Mann strummed her signature tune “Save Me”: “You look like a perfect fit. For a girl in need of a tourniquet.”
Scott, through spoken word, implored students to put pen to paper: “Ah children, please write. Paste your thoughts on our thoughts for a while.”
Collins recited an ode to forgetfulness: “It is as if one by one the memories you used to harbor decide to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain to a little fishing village where there are no phones.”
Common, sitting on a stool and wearing a light-gray suit, mourned — in quiet rhythmic verse — young people who suffer and die in a society hobbled by poverty and retribution.
“Destiny’s children — survivors, soldiers — in front of buildings their eyes look older,” he rapped. “It’s hard to see blessings in a violent culture.”
Before the event, debate simmered over Common’s lyrics.
“I’m talking about judgment, and who you bring into [the White House] as the president and first lady, and the image you send out to children,” argued radio host David Webb on Hannity’s TV show.
“And the image Common is sending out to children is there’s an arc of adulthood,” countered Bucknell University professor James Peterson. “He has matured and developed his lyrics. . . . Look at his social outreach.”
Hannity, wrapping up the segment, said: “This is not a guy we want our kids to listen to.”
Critics were swift to pinpoint lyrics that support such controversial figures as Assata Shakur, a Black Liberation Army leader who was convicted in 1977 of killing a New Jersey state trooper. On the other side, Common’s defenders asserted that such songs are civic-minded protests of corrupt law enforcement and unjust legal proceedings.
The media tug of war ensued despite Common’s reputation as a morally engaged lyricist who condemns violence and has written children’s books and started a foundation to promote leadership among urban youths.
But the punditry’s snit raises the question: Is an invitation to the White House an endorsement of an artist’s entire oeuvre, of a person’s whole being?
Addressing Common’s invitation, White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a media briefing earlier in the day: The president has spoken out “against those kinds of lyrics and he opposes them, but he does not think that is the sum total of this particular artist’s work. . . .
“It’s ironic to pick out those particular lyrics about this particular artist when in fact he’s known as a socially conscious hip-hop artist and rapper and has done a lot of good things. You can oppose some of what he’s done and appreciate some of the other things.”
Or, as the president put it during his opening remarks: “A great poem is one that resonates with us, that challenges us, and that teaches us something about ourselves and the world that we live in.” ||||| Daily Show: Recap - Week of 3/10/14 Samantha Bee wrangles a penis pump, and Fox News gets a lesson in their own programing.
Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 2 Anita Hill discusses finding herself an unexpected national figure on workplace sexual harassment.
Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 1 Anita Hill shares her experience testifying to the Senate about workplace sexual harassment.
2014: A Waste Odyssey Fox News commentator Eric Bolling explains how taxpayer dollars are not all created equal.
| Views: 242,727 #McConnelling With new background music, Mitch McConnell's campaign ad becomes much more interesting. (04:21)
| Views: 135,219 2014: A Waste Odyssey Fox News holds America's poor and its corporations to different standards, and JPMorgan Chase makes a quick buck in the food stamp debit card business. (05:33)
| Views: 27,682 Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 1 In this extended, exclusive interview, Professor Anita Hill recounts her involvement in a landmark sexual harassment case, the topic of the new documentary "Anita." (05:54)
| Views: 20,989 Exclusive - Anita Hill Extended Interview Pt. 2 Anita Hill recalls finding the courage to testify against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas on workplace sexual harassment in the landmark 1991 testimony. (06:59)
| Views: 265,766 Fox News Welfare Academy Fox News resorts to hyperbole and anecdotal evidence to make a point about public assistance abuse and food stamps fraud. (04:58) | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 10,238 |
Jenna Jameson Arrested For Battery
Jenna Jameson Arrested For Battery
EXCLUSIVE
's bday celebrations got off to a rocky start -- the XXX star was arrested for battery Saturday night ... before her shindig even kicked off.Law enforcement sources tells us ... Jameson was hanging out in the Balboa Peninsula neighborhood of Newport Beach around 8 pm ... when she allegedly battered someone.We're told the alleged victim put Jameson under citizen's arrest and then flagged down a police officer. The cop arrived and cited Jenna for battery. She was later released.Jenna was supposed to attend an early birthday party at Heat Ultra Lounge in Anaheim later that night (real bday is April 9). No word if she made it or not.Jenna's no stranger to handcuffs ... she was arrested for a DUI last year, after crashing her car into a light pole. ||||| Los Angeles (CNN) -- Former porn star Jenna Jameson was charged with battery over the weekend after police said she assaulted someone.
The incident took place in Orange County on Saturday evening, police said.
Authorities released bare-bones information about the incident Sunday night, saying little more than the person who was assaulted made a citizen's arrest and called officers.
Jameson, 38, knows the person, but Newport Beach Police Lt. Evan Sailor said he didn't know what their relationship was.
Police took Jameson to the Newport Beach Police Jail. She was later released without having to post bail.
The battery charge is a misdemeanor.
No one from the Jameson camp was available for comment.
On Sunday afternoon, however, Jameson took to Twitter to offer a post that said she was robbed by a friend who "broke into my home and took everything."
Jameson added that the friend "accused me of gusting her."
At the height of her success, Jameson was an industry unto herself. She appeared in countless adult films, magazines, and strip clubs -- and as CEO of ClubJenna Inc., launched a film production and online licensing company.
In a 2004 interview with CNN following the publication of her book, "How to Make Love Like a Porn Star: A Cautionary Tale," Jameson said she chose the right profession.
"I mean, I've always been so overtly sexual. And I've always been driven to succeed at something that hasn't always been accepted by the American public," she told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "So I think I chose the right profession."
She retired from porn in 2008.
In recent years, the mother of twins has found herself in the headlines for her brushes with the law.
Last May, she crashed her Range Rover into a light pole in Orange County. Police charged her with driving under the influence.
In April 2010, the father of her twin boys, mixed martial artist Tito Ortiz, was charged with domestic violence when Jameson's father called police as Ortiz and Jameson argued.
Ortiz and his lawyer told reporters later that he was upset because he thought Jameson had relapsed in her rehabilitation from a prescription drug addiction.
Four days after the incident, Jameson was captured by cameras alternately saying Ortiz was "the sweetest, most amazing man" and saying that he had beaten her. | – Retired porn superstar Jenna Jameson was arrested for battery during a birthday celebration Saturday night, sources tell TMZ. The person allegedly assaulted by the 38-year-old made a citizen's arrest and flagged down a police car, sources say. She was taken to a police station in Newport Beach, California, and was later released without having to post bail, CNN reports. In a tweet the next day that has since been deleted, Jameson, who is on probation for a DUI bust last year, claimed she had been robbed by a friend who "broke into my home and took everything." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Jenna Jameson Arrested For Battery
Jenna Jameson Arrested For Battery
EXCLUSIVE
's bday celebrations got off to a rocky start -- the XXX star was arrested for battery Saturday night ... before her shindig even kicked off.Law enforcement sources tells us ... Jameson was hanging out in the Balboa Peninsula neighborhood of Newport Beach around 8 pm ... when she allegedly battered someone.We're told the alleged victim put Jameson under citizen's arrest and then flagged down a police officer. The cop arrived and cited Jenna for battery. She was later released.Jenna was supposed to attend an early birthday party at Heat Ultra Lounge in Anaheim later that night (real bday is April 9). No word if she made it or not.Jenna's no stranger to handcuffs ... she was arrested for a DUI last year, after crashing her car into a light pole. ||||| Los Angeles (CNN) -- Former porn star Jenna Jameson was charged with battery over the weekend after police said she assaulted someone.
The incident took place in Orange County on Saturday evening, police said.
Authorities released bare-bones information about the incident Sunday night, saying little more than the person who was assaulted made a citizen's arrest and called officers.
Jameson, 38, knows the person, but Newport Beach Police Lt. Evan Sailor said he didn't know what their relationship was.
Police took Jameson to the Newport Beach Police Jail. She was later released without having to post bail.
The battery charge is a misdemeanor.
No one from the Jameson camp was available for comment.
On Sunday afternoon, however, Jameson took to Twitter to offer a post that said she was robbed by a friend who "broke into my home and took everything."
Jameson added that the friend "accused me of gusting her."
At the height of her success, Jameson was an industry unto herself. She appeared in countless adult films, magazines, and strip clubs -- and as CEO of ClubJenna Inc., launched a film production and online licensing company.
In a 2004 interview with CNN following the publication of her book, "How to Make Love Like a Porn Star: A Cautionary Tale," Jameson said she chose the right profession.
"I mean, I've always been so overtly sexual. And I've always been driven to succeed at something that hasn't always been accepted by the American public," she told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "So I think I chose the right profession."
She retired from porn in 2008.
In recent years, the mother of twins has found herself in the headlines for her brushes with the law.
Last May, she crashed her Range Rover into a light pole in Orange County. Police charged her with driving under the influence.
In April 2010, the father of her twin boys, mixed martial artist Tito Ortiz, was charged with domestic violence when Jameson's father called police as Ortiz and Jameson argued.
Ortiz and his lawyer told reporters later that he was upset because he thought Jameson had relapsed in her rehabilitation from a prescription drug addiction.
Four days after the incident, Jameson was captured by cameras alternately saying Ortiz was "the sweetest, most amazing man" and saying that he had beaten her. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 14,167 |
Rabbi Rosenberg said he believed the attack against him was related to Mr. Weberman’s conviction, as well as to a claim that he made on his telephone call-in line last week claiming that another ultra-Orthodox man was also a molester. “Everyone is so crazy right now,” Rabbi Rosenberg said.
A Police Department spokesman said there appeared to be no connection to the verdict.
A law enforcement official said that the police were still determining what substance had been thrown at Rabbi Rosenberg, but confirmed that he had been burned. Detectives interviewed Rabbi Rosenberg at the hospital and said they would take his clothing for chemical analysis.
Photo
Charles J. Hynes, the Brooklyn district attorney, has vowed in recent months to crack down against intimidation of sexual abuse victims and their supporters in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, where he has said people trying to cover up cases use tactics similar to those employed by organized crime. On Monday, the district attorney warned that people acting like “thugs” in the community would be punished.
Jerry Schmetterer, a spokesman for Mr. Hynes, said on Tuesday that his office was investigating the attack on Rabbi Rosenberg.
Primo Santiago, the manager of Roebling Liquors, at 311 Roebling Street, said that he saw the attack take place. He said he was unlocking his store when he saw a man rushing across the street with a cup of liquid.
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“I saw the one guy throw something at the other guy’s face,” he said. Rabbi Rosenberg, 62, has been confronted before. In 2008, after he began talking publicly about ultra-Orthodox Jews who he believed were molesters, he was formally ostracized by a group of rabbis and religious judges, and barred from local synagogues.
“The public must beware, and stay away from him, and push him out of our camp,” that ban, printed in local newspapers, said in Hebrew. Rabbi Rosenberg also said he was grazed in the forehead by a bullet from a pellet gun shortly afterward.
Through it all, Rabbi Rosenberg has refused to tone down his advocacy. He has accused some top rabbis within the Satmar community of covering up abuse or being molesters themselves.
On Monday, he attended the Weberman trial and gave interviews to the news media praising the guilty verdict.
Advertisement Continue reading the main story
“Eventually, we are going to be a normal community, that everyone who is molested can come forward,” he said. ||||| A respected religious counselor in New York's ultra-orthodox Jewish community was convicted Monday of repeatedly sexually abusing a young girl who had come to him with questions about her faith.
The Brooklyn courtroom was silent as the foreman said jurors had found Nechemya Weberman guilty of 59 counts, including sustained sex abuse of a child, endangering the welfare of a child and sexual abuse. He faces 25 years in prison on the top charge and may get more time when he is sentenced on Jan. 9.
The 54-year-old defendant looked down as the verdict was announced and glanced briefly back at his family, who held hands, as he was handcuffed and led from the courtroom. Some of the accusers' supporters smiled quietly. The girl's mother, who was not in the courtroom at the time, said later she was weeping tears of joy, according to her friend.
Defense lawyers said the jurors, who deliberated about half a day, did not properly grasp the complicated issues. They plan to appeal.
"We firmly believe that the jury got an unfairly sanitized version of the facts," attorney George Farkas said. "As a result, the truth did not come out and the struggle continues in full force to free this innocent man."
The trial put a spotlight on the insular Satmar Hasidic sect, and its strict rules that govern clothing, social customs and interaction with the outside world.
The accuser, now 18, told authorities that Weberman abused her repeatedly behind his locked office door from the time she was 12 until she was 15. She had been ordered to see him by her school because she had been asking questions about her religion and was dressing immodestly according to the sect's customs, and she needed to be helped back on the right path. Weberman was not a licensed counselor but spent decades working with couples and families in his community.
Assistant District Attorney Linda Weinman said Weberman abused his role as a confidant and teacher, intimidating the girl to satisfy his sexual needs.
"The defendant took this young girl with a fiery spirit and he broke her," Weinman said.
But there was no physical evidence regarding the suspected abuse. Defense attorney Stacey Richman said the case boiled down to a simple "he said," `'she said," and the girl was a petulant, calculating liar.
"The only evidence in this case of sexual abuse is the word of (the girl)," Richman said. "She's making things up in front of you as they occur."
The Associated Press typically doesn't identify people who say they are the victims of sexual assault.
Brooklyn is home to the largest community of ultra-orthodox Jews outside Israel, more than 250,000, and the Satmar sect is one faction clustered mostly in the Williamsburg neighborhood. The group has its own ambulances, volunteer police and rabbinical courts. Women dress modestly and cover their heads. Men wear earlocks and dark clothing. Men and women rarely interact in public; in the packed courtroom, the women sat in one row and the men another even though it often meant Weberman's family sat next to supporters of the girl.
"It's really a sad day for our community that a person did such heinous deeds," said Judy Genut, a Hasidic woman who had been to court to support the young woman. "We are a wonderful people, and a wonderful community, and this has been embarrassing."
Questioning faith or customs is strictly forbidden, according to trial testimony, and the sect has what's known as a "modesty squad" that admonishes followers who break the rules.
The girl, who is now married, testified for four days, chronicling abuse that she said lasted for three years. Weberman would take off her clothes and touch her, force her to perform oral sex and re-enact scenes from porn films, she said. She didn't know what to do; he was a well-respected member of the community, and she was "a piece of dirt," she said.
"My body just froze. I didn't know how to respond," she said. "I just felt I wanted to die."
The allegations surfaced last year when the girl told a guidance counselor at a different school that she'd been molested, and later that she was molested by Weberman. She eventually went to police.
Weberman also testified, saying he "never, ever" abused the girl. Defense attorneys said she was angry that he had betrayed her trust, telling her parents about a boyfriend, and had conspired to help get the boy arrested. The charges were later dropped, and the girl then accused Weberman of sex abuse out of revenge, and a hatred for her community, the defense said.
The guarded society strongly discourages going to outside authorities. The girl testified she was branded a traitor and was shunned for going to police. Her father lost his job and her nieces were kicked out of school, she said. Three men were charged with criminal contempt for photographing the girl and posting her picture online during her testimony. Before the trial, District Attorney Charles Hynes charged other men with trying to bribe her with $500,000 to drop the case.
Genut and other supporters were doubtful that the case would make it easier for others to come forward _ but remained hopeful.
"I don't know how it will change," Genut said.
"There is such intimidation to sweep it under the rug," she said. "But it only takes one pioneer."
Hynes said he hoped the courage of the girl, and the trial outcome, would encourage other victims to come forward, and he urged the Satmar community to reform its rules restricting families to go to outside authorities. He said he's not clear how widespread sexual abuse is in the community, but there was at least one more victim of Weberman's who has not come forward.
"What the leaders have to understand is we will never get to the bottom of this until there is total cooperation," he said. | – More woes on the streets of New York: A rabbi and outspoken advocate for victims of sex abuse was injured in an apparent chemical attack as he was walking in Williamsburg yesterday, reports the New York Times. Rabbi Nuchem Rosenberg runs a website and hotline that make public accusations of abuse within his Satmar Hasidic community. In an interview from the hospital where he was treated, he said a man he knew came up behind him, tapped him on the shoulder, and said "whoops" as he threw a cup of what may have been bleach in his face. Rosenberg was treated for chemical burns around his eye as well as a corneal abrasion, but is expected to make a full recovery. The attack came just a day after Nechemya Weberman was convicted of sexually abusing a young girl. Many in their shared community believe he's innocent, and Rosenberg says the conviction may have partly triggered the attack, though an NYPD rep has said there's no evidence of that. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Rabbi Rosenberg said he believed the attack against him was related to Mr. Weberman’s conviction, as well as to a claim that he made on his telephone call-in line last week claiming that another ultra-Orthodox man was also a molester. “Everyone is so crazy right now,” Rabbi Rosenberg said.
A Police Department spokesman said there appeared to be no connection to the verdict.
A law enforcement official said that the police were still determining what substance had been thrown at Rabbi Rosenberg, but confirmed that he had been burned. Detectives interviewed Rabbi Rosenberg at the hospital and said they would take his clothing for chemical analysis.
Photo
Charles J. Hynes, the Brooklyn district attorney, has vowed in recent months to crack down against intimidation of sexual abuse victims and their supporters in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, where he has said people trying to cover up cases use tactics similar to those employed by organized crime. On Monday, the district attorney warned that people acting like “thugs” in the community would be punished.
Jerry Schmetterer, a spokesman for Mr. Hynes, said on Tuesday that his office was investigating the attack on Rabbi Rosenberg.
Primo Santiago, the manager of Roebling Liquors, at 311 Roebling Street, said that he saw the attack take place. He said he was unlocking his store when he saw a man rushing across the street with a cup of liquid.
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“I saw the one guy throw something at the other guy’s face,” he said. Rabbi Rosenberg, 62, has been confronted before. In 2008, after he began talking publicly about ultra-Orthodox Jews who he believed were molesters, he was formally ostracized by a group of rabbis and religious judges, and barred from local synagogues.
“The public must beware, and stay away from him, and push him out of our camp,” that ban, printed in local newspapers, said in Hebrew. Rabbi Rosenberg also said he was grazed in the forehead by a bullet from a pellet gun shortly afterward.
Through it all, Rabbi Rosenberg has refused to tone down his advocacy. He has accused some top rabbis within the Satmar community of covering up abuse or being molesters themselves.
On Monday, he attended the Weberman trial and gave interviews to the news media praising the guilty verdict.
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“Eventually, we are going to be a normal community, that everyone who is molested can come forward,” he said. ||||| A respected religious counselor in New York's ultra-orthodox Jewish community was convicted Monday of repeatedly sexually abusing a young girl who had come to him with questions about her faith.
The Brooklyn courtroom was silent as the foreman said jurors had found Nechemya Weberman guilty of 59 counts, including sustained sex abuse of a child, endangering the welfare of a child and sexual abuse. He faces 25 years in prison on the top charge and may get more time when he is sentenced on Jan. 9.
The 54-year-old defendant looked down as the verdict was announced and glanced briefly back at his family, who held hands, as he was handcuffed and led from the courtroom. Some of the accusers' supporters smiled quietly. The girl's mother, who was not in the courtroom at the time, said later she was weeping tears of joy, according to her friend.
Defense lawyers said the jurors, who deliberated about half a day, did not properly grasp the complicated issues. They plan to appeal.
"We firmly believe that the jury got an unfairly sanitized version of the facts," attorney George Farkas said. "As a result, the truth did not come out and the struggle continues in full force to free this innocent man."
The trial put a spotlight on the insular Satmar Hasidic sect, and its strict rules that govern clothing, social customs and interaction with the outside world.
The accuser, now 18, told authorities that Weberman abused her repeatedly behind his locked office door from the time she was 12 until she was 15. She had been ordered to see him by her school because she had been asking questions about her religion and was dressing immodestly according to the sect's customs, and she needed to be helped back on the right path. Weberman was not a licensed counselor but spent decades working with couples and families in his community.
Assistant District Attorney Linda Weinman said Weberman abused his role as a confidant and teacher, intimidating the girl to satisfy his sexual needs.
"The defendant took this young girl with a fiery spirit and he broke her," Weinman said.
But there was no physical evidence regarding the suspected abuse. Defense attorney Stacey Richman said the case boiled down to a simple "he said," `'she said," and the girl was a petulant, calculating liar.
"The only evidence in this case of sexual abuse is the word of (the girl)," Richman said. "She's making things up in front of you as they occur."
The Associated Press typically doesn't identify people who say they are the victims of sexual assault.
Brooklyn is home to the largest community of ultra-orthodox Jews outside Israel, more than 250,000, and the Satmar sect is one faction clustered mostly in the Williamsburg neighborhood. The group has its own ambulances, volunteer police and rabbinical courts. Women dress modestly and cover their heads. Men wear earlocks and dark clothing. Men and women rarely interact in public; in the packed courtroom, the women sat in one row and the men another even though it often meant Weberman's family sat next to supporters of the girl.
"It's really a sad day for our community that a person did such heinous deeds," said Judy Genut, a Hasidic woman who had been to court to support the young woman. "We are a wonderful people, and a wonderful community, and this has been embarrassing."
Questioning faith or customs is strictly forbidden, according to trial testimony, and the sect has what's known as a "modesty squad" that admonishes followers who break the rules.
The girl, who is now married, testified for four days, chronicling abuse that she said lasted for three years. Weberman would take off her clothes and touch her, force her to perform oral sex and re-enact scenes from porn films, she said. She didn't know what to do; he was a well-respected member of the community, and she was "a piece of dirt," she said.
"My body just froze. I didn't know how to respond," she said. "I just felt I wanted to die."
The allegations surfaced last year when the girl told a guidance counselor at a different school that she'd been molested, and later that she was molested by Weberman. She eventually went to police.
Weberman also testified, saying he "never, ever" abused the girl. Defense attorneys said she was angry that he had betrayed her trust, telling her parents about a boyfriend, and had conspired to help get the boy arrested. The charges were later dropped, and the girl then accused Weberman of sex abuse out of revenge, and a hatred for her community, the defense said.
The guarded society strongly discourages going to outside authorities. The girl testified she was branded a traitor and was shunned for going to police. Her father lost his job and her nieces were kicked out of school, she said. Three men were charged with criminal contempt for photographing the girl and posting her picture online during her testimony. Before the trial, District Attorney Charles Hynes charged other men with trying to bribe her with $500,000 to drop the case.
Genut and other supporters were doubtful that the case would make it easier for others to come forward _ but remained hopeful.
"I don't know how it will change," Genut said.
"There is such intimidation to sweep it under the rug," she said. "But it only takes one pioneer."
Hynes said he hoped the courage of the girl, and the trial outcome, would encourage other victims to come forward, and he urged the Satmar community to reform its rules restricting families to go to outside authorities. He said he's not clear how widespread sexual abuse is in the community, but there was at least one more victim of Weberman's who has not come forward.
"What the leaders have to understand is we will never get to the bottom of this until there is total cooperation," he said. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 19,932 |
Just a week after saying that Glenn Beck was right when he called President Obama a racist, Rupert Murdoch has made another negative comment about a black, Democratic politican.
At Tuesday's Wall Street Journal's CEO Council, Murdoch was asked about the state of civil discourse, but he wanted to speak about the problems in American politics. In doing so, he trashed New York Governor David Paterson by describing him as "a very nice, honest man who's blind and can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on."
"Look at New York State," he said. "It's unbelievable. The congress there, the state assembly and the senate, are totally incompetent. With a governor who's a very nice, honest man who's blind and can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on. It's not a joke, it's a tragedy we're facing at the moment."
Murdoch biographer Michael Wolff writes at Newser that "Murdoch's strange, unmediated interview last week in Australia" — the one in which he agreed with Glenn Beck — suggests that News Corp PR chief, Executive VP of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs Gary Ginsberg, was "already off the job." News Corp announced Tuesday that Ginsberg will be leaving the company at the end of the year. ||||| If Arthur Miller were at it again, he’d call the play Death of a PR Guy.Gary Ginsberg, Murdoch’s PR guy who got the ax yesterday, used to beg me not to call him a PR Guy—his official title was Executive VP of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs—but that was his job: making Murdoch look good.If not good, less bad.Here’s the job description: Take one of the least sympathetic people on earth—cold, hostile, mean, old, almost pathologically opportunistic, and basically unconcerned with what anybody thinks about him—and run behind him and make sure he doesn’t say something cold, hostile, mean, or pathologically opportunistic that gets in the newspaper. (Murdoch’s strange, unmediated interview last week in Australia suggests Ginsberg had already been off the job.)Oh yes, and along the way, he treats you in a cold, hostile, and mean way. Not to mention he’s not above just a little touch of…well, call it what you will: One Christmas Murdoch has little crèches put on the desks in the executives offices just to rankle Ginsberg, a conscientious Jew.Or, when Ginsberg told his boss he was going to a wedding of a friend who worked for Bill Clinton and that Clinton would be there, too, Murdoch, sensing some possible Clinton hijinks, sent a reporter from the New York Post to spy on the festivities.Ginsberg’s deal with the devil was a clear one. He was not only a Clinton Democrat (although when Clinton became much less popular he tried to downplay his connection), but a Kennedy Democrat. He was JFK Jr.’s best friend and aide de camp. Working for Murdoch must have seemed, at least in the beginning, like some adventure on the other side.But then, of course, Ginsberg got to like his imputed power: He spoke for Murdoch. He liked the toughness of speaking for Murdoch. He liked the lack of pretense and sentimentality. Murdoch wielded raw power. If you wanted to screw with someone, you screwed with them. Still, the sheer brutality of the job, the absurdity or madness of covering for Murdoch, the mind-bending details of having to reinvent reality on Murdoch’s behalf—of having to relentlessly scrub the facts of his affair with his third wife Wendi even after the world knew the details—the constant specter of Fox News, oh, and the family, dealing everyday with the demands of the Murdoch children, could get you down. Ginsberg bonded with Peter Chernin, the number two in the company and the other Democrat. Together they saw themselves fighting a good fight—News Corp. reformers.But earlier this year Chernin got pushed out. And then the writing was on the wall for Ginsberg. Both Ginsberg and Chernin had a common enemy: Fox News Chief Roger Ailes, evil incarnate at News Corp. At times it even seemed like they were making progress pulling Murdoch away from Ailes. Of even making Murdoch more liberal (Ginsberg believed in his boss’s mellowing—and that he deserved the credit). But then the recession happened. All of News Corp. became a financial wasteland, except for Fox News. Fox News and Roger Ailes were floating Murdoch.And Ailes wanted Ginsberg’s head.Ginsberg believed he could go to work for the devil and help tame him. But the politics of hell are tough to play.More of Newser founder Michael Wolff's articles and commentary can be found at VanityFair.com , where he writes a regular column. He can be emailed at [email protected]. You can also follow him on Twitter: www.twitter.com/NewserColumns | – Continuing his streak of casually slamming black Democrats, Rupert Murdoch yesterday said New York's blind governor, David Paterson, "can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on." Murdoch's comments about Paterson, coming a week after he agreed with Glenn Beck that President Obama is a racist, support Michael Wolff's claim on Newser that Murdoch PR chief Gary Ginsburg has ditched his post, leaving Murdoch unscripted and drifting into dangerous territory, the HuffPo reports. At a Wall Street Journal-sponsored conference of CEOs, Murdoch decried the state of New York politics, saying, "The congress there, the state assembly and the senate, are totally incompetent. With a governor who's a very nice, honest man who's blind and can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on. It's not a joke, it's a tragedy we're facing at the moment." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Just a week after saying that Glenn Beck was right when he called President Obama a racist, Rupert Murdoch has made another negative comment about a black, Democratic politican.
At Tuesday's Wall Street Journal's CEO Council, Murdoch was asked about the state of civil discourse, but he wanted to speak about the problems in American politics. In doing so, he trashed New York Governor David Paterson by describing him as "a very nice, honest man who's blind and can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on."
"Look at New York State," he said. "It's unbelievable. The congress there, the state assembly and the senate, are totally incompetent. With a governor who's a very nice, honest man who's blind and can't read braille and doesn't really know what's going on. It's not a joke, it's a tragedy we're facing at the moment."
Murdoch biographer Michael Wolff writes at Newser that "Murdoch's strange, unmediated interview last week in Australia" — the one in which he agreed with Glenn Beck — suggests that News Corp PR chief, Executive VP of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs Gary Ginsberg, was "already off the job." News Corp announced Tuesday that Ginsberg will be leaving the company at the end of the year. ||||| If Arthur Miller were at it again, he’d call the play Death of a PR Guy.Gary Ginsberg, Murdoch’s PR guy who got the ax yesterday, used to beg me not to call him a PR Guy—his official title was Executive VP of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs—but that was his job: making Murdoch look good.If not good, less bad.Here’s the job description: Take one of the least sympathetic people on earth—cold, hostile, mean, old, almost pathologically opportunistic, and basically unconcerned with what anybody thinks about him—and run behind him and make sure he doesn’t say something cold, hostile, mean, or pathologically opportunistic that gets in the newspaper. (Murdoch’s strange, unmediated interview last week in Australia suggests Ginsberg had already been off the job.)Oh yes, and along the way, he treats you in a cold, hostile, and mean way. Not to mention he’s not above just a little touch of…well, call it what you will: One Christmas Murdoch has little crèches put on the desks in the executives offices just to rankle Ginsberg, a conscientious Jew.Or, when Ginsberg told his boss he was going to a wedding of a friend who worked for Bill Clinton and that Clinton would be there, too, Murdoch, sensing some possible Clinton hijinks, sent a reporter from the New York Post to spy on the festivities.Ginsberg’s deal with the devil was a clear one. He was not only a Clinton Democrat (although when Clinton became much less popular he tried to downplay his connection), but a Kennedy Democrat. He was JFK Jr.’s best friend and aide de camp. Working for Murdoch must have seemed, at least in the beginning, like some adventure on the other side.But then, of course, Ginsberg got to like his imputed power: He spoke for Murdoch. He liked the toughness of speaking for Murdoch. He liked the lack of pretense and sentimentality. Murdoch wielded raw power. If you wanted to screw with someone, you screwed with them. Still, the sheer brutality of the job, the absurdity or madness of covering for Murdoch, the mind-bending details of having to reinvent reality on Murdoch’s behalf—of having to relentlessly scrub the facts of his affair with his third wife Wendi even after the world knew the details—the constant specter of Fox News, oh, and the family, dealing everyday with the demands of the Murdoch children, could get you down. Ginsberg bonded with Peter Chernin, the number two in the company and the other Democrat. Together they saw themselves fighting a good fight—News Corp. reformers.But earlier this year Chernin got pushed out. And then the writing was on the wall for Ginsberg. Both Ginsberg and Chernin had a common enemy: Fox News Chief Roger Ailes, evil incarnate at News Corp. At times it even seemed like they were making progress pulling Murdoch away from Ailes. Of even making Murdoch more liberal (Ginsberg believed in his boss’s mellowing—and that he deserved the credit). But then the recession happened. All of News Corp. became a financial wasteland, except for Fox News. Fox News and Roger Ailes were floating Murdoch.And Ailes wanted Ginsberg’s head.Ginsberg believed he could go to work for the devil and help tame him. But the politics of hell are tough to play.More of Newser founder Michael Wolff's articles and commentary can be found at VanityFair.com , where he writes a regular column. He can be emailed at [email protected]. You can also follow him on Twitter: www.twitter.com/NewserColumns | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 31,911 |
The annual Chapman University Survey of American Fears provides an in-depth examination into the concerns of average Americans, tracking changes and trends over the years. The survey asks about topics ranging from government, health and environmental matters, to disaster preparedness, the paranormal and personal anxieties.
More Americans are afraid than ever, according to the 5th annual Chapman University Survey of American Fears. The 2018 survey revealed that government corruption remains Americans’ primary concern, and the state of the environment, which for the first time represents fully half of Americans’ top 10 fears. Learn more through the articles below.
View infographic |||||
The Chapman University Survey of American Fears, Wave 2 (2015) provides an unprecedented look into the fears of average Americans. In April of 2015, a random sample of 1,541 adults from across the United States were asked their level of fear about eighty-eight different fears across a huge variety of topics ranging from crime, the government, disasters, personal anxieties, technology and many others.
Domains of Fear
There were 10 major “domains” of fear addressed by the survey, including:
Fear Domain Types of Questions Included Crime Murder, rape, theft, burglary, fraud, identity theft Daily Life Romantic rejection, ridicule, talking to strangers Environment Global warming, overpopulation, pollution Government Government corruption, Obamacare, drones, gun control, immigration issues Judgment of others Appearance, weight, age, race Man-Made Disasters Bio-warfare, terrorism, nuclear attacks Natural Disasters Earthquakes, droughts, floods, hurricanes Personal Anxieties Tight spaces, public speaking, clowns, vaccines Personal Future Dying, illness, running out of money, unemployment Technology Artificial intelligence, robots, cyber-terrorism
Top Fear Domains, 2015
Each fear question asks Americans to rate their level of fear on a scale ranging from 1 (not afraid) to 4 (very afraid). The average score for each domain of fear provides insight into what types of fear are of greatest concern to Americans in 2015.
On average, Americans expressed the highest levels of fear about man-made disasters, such as terrorist attacks, followed by fears about technology, including corporate and government tracing of personal data and fears about the government (such as government corruption and ObamaCare). The complete, ranked list of Domains of Fear follows:
Domain of Fear Average Fear Score (out of 4) Man-Made Disasters 2.15 Technology 2.07 Government 2.06 Environment 1.97 Personal Future 1.95 Natural Disasters 1.95 Crime 1.72 Personal Anxieties 1.63 Daily Life 1.51 Judgment of Others 1.31
Top 10 Fears of 2015
Below is a list of the 10 fears for which the highest percentage of Americans reported being “Afraid,” or “Very Afraid.”
Fear Fear Domain Afraid or Very Afraid Corruption of Government Officials Government 58.0% Cyber-terrorism Technology 44.8% Corporate Tracking of Personal Information Technology 44.6% Terrorist Attacks Man-Made Disasters 44.4% Government Tracking of Personal Information Technology 41.4% Bio-Warfare Man-Made Disasters 40.9% Identity Theft Crime 39.6% Economic Collapse Man-Made Disasters 39.2% Running of out Money in the Future Personal Future 37.4% Credit Card Fraud Crime 36.9%
The Complete List of Fears, 2015
The following is a complete, list of all of the fears addressed by the Chapman Survey of American Fears, Wave 2 (2015), including the percent of Americans who reported being afraid or very afraid.
Sorted by Percent Afraid/Very Afraid
Fear Fear Domain % Afraid or Very Afraid Corruption Government 58.0 Cyber-terrorism Technology 44.8 Corporate Tracking of Personal Data Technology 44.6 Terrorist Attack Man-made Disasters 44.4 Government Tracking of Personal Data Technology 41.4 Bio-warfare Man-made Disasters 40.9 Identity Theft Crime 39.6 Economic Collapse Man-made Disasters 39.2 Running out of Money Personal Future 37.4 Credit Card Fraud Crime 36.9 Gun Control Government 36.5 War Man-made Disasters 35.8 Obamacare Government 35.7 Illness Personal Future 34.4 Pandemic Natural Disasters 34.3 Nuclear Attack Man-made Disasters 33.6 Reptiles Personal Anxieties 33.0 Meltdown Man-made Disasters 32.3 Civil Unrest Man-made Disasters 32.0 Tornado Natural Disasters 31.4 Global Warming Environment 30.7 Grid attack Man-made Disasters 29.8 Illegal Immigration Government 29.7 Drought Natural Disasters 29.4 Robots Replacing Workforce Technology 28.9 Public Speaking Personal Anxieties 28.4 Property Damage Natural Disasters 27.7 Heights Personal Anxieties 27.4 Pollution of rivers and streams Environment 26.9 Earthquake Natural Disasters 26.7 Drunk Driver Crime 26.5 Flood Natural Disasters 26.5 Hurricane Natural Disasters 26.4 Trusting Artificial Intelligence to do work Technology 25.8 Insects Personal Anxieties 25.5 Blizzard Natural Disasters 25.0 Overpopulation Environment 24.0 Robots Technology 23.9 Unemployment Personal Future 23.8 Artificial Intelligence Technology 22.2 Break ins Crime 22.2 Loneliness Personal Future 22.0 Dying Personal Future 21.9 Theft Crime 21.6 Water Personal Anxieties 21.0 Drones Government 20.4 Claustrophobia Personal Anxieties 19.9 Volcano Natural Disasters 19.7 Aging Personal Future 19.6 Ponzi Schemes and other financial crimes Crime 19.0 Technology I don’t understand Technology 19.0 Needles Personal Anxieties 18.5 Whites no longer majority Government 18.2 Dying Daily Life 16.8 Germs Personal Anxieties 16.5 Mass Shooting Crime 16.4 Walking Along at Night Daily Life 16.4 Murder by a stranger Crime 16.0 Mugging Crime 15.8 Police Brutality Crime 15.4 Flying Personal Anxieties 15.2 Rape by a stranger Crime 14.5 Gangs Crime 14.1 Whooping Cough Personal Anxieties 13.5 Kidnapping Crime 13.0 Mammals (Dogs, rats or other animals) Personal Anxieties 12.9 Measles Personal Anxieties 12.7 Stalking Crime 12.7 Dismissed by Others Daily Life 12.5 Blood Personal Anxieties 12.2 Hate Crime Crime 12.2 Weight Judgment of Others 11.4 Rape by someone you know Crime 11.3 Murder by someone you know Crime 10.9 Ridicule Daily Life 10.6 Romantic Rejection Daily Life 10.4 Expressing Opinion Daily Life 9.7 Ghosts Personal Anxieties 9.7 Talking to Stranger Daily Life 9.7 Gossip Daily Life 9.6 Dark Personal Anxieties 9.3 Appearance Judgment of Others 8.7 Zombies Personal Anxieties 8.5 Vaccines Personal Anxieties 8.4 Clowns Personal Anxieties 6.8 Age Judgment of Others 5.9 Race Judgment of Others 5.6 Gender Judgment of Others 4.5 Dress Judgment of Others 4.2
Sorted Alphabetically
| – "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"—well, that and almost 90 other things. California's Chapman University last week came out with its second annual Survey of American Fears. The 1,541 adults who were polled were asked about 89 (by our count) fears that fall into what the university describes as four basic categories: personal fears, natural disasters, paranormal fears, and drivers of fear behavior. Participants were asked to assign a number to each fear ranging from 1 (not afraid) to 4 (very afraid), explains the school in a blog post. The following top 10 fears represent those in which the highest percentage of adults said they were "afraid" or "very afraid." Corruption of government officials: 58.0% Cyber-terrorism: 44.8% Corporate tracking of personal information: 44.6% Terrorist attacks: 44.4% Government tracking of personal information: 41.4% Bio-warfare: 40.9% Identity theft: 39.6% Economic collapse: 39.2% Running of out money in the future: 37.4% Credit-card fraud: 36.9% Our top personal anxiety (at No. 17) is reptiles; public speaking comes in at No. 26, with heights just behind at 28; drones occupy No. 46; and we're more afraid of romantic rejection (No. 76) than we are ghosts (No. 78) and zombies (No. 83). What occupies the final slot? That would be others judging the way we dress, at 4.2%. Full list here. (Meet a woman who literally has no fear.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The annual Chapman University Survey of American Fears provides an in-depth examination into the concerns of average Americans, tracking changes and trends over the years. The survey asks about topics ranging from government, health and environmental matters, to disaster preparedness, the paranormal and personal anxieties.
More Americans are afraid than ever, according to the 5th annual Chapman University Survey of American Fears. The 2018 survey revealed that government corruption remains Americans’ primary concern, and the state of the environment, which for the first time represents fully half of Americans’ top 10 fears. Learn more through the articles below.
View infographic |||||
The Chapman University Survey of American Fears, Wave 2 (2015) provides an unprecedented look into the fears of average Americans. In April of 2015, a random sample of 1,541 adults from across the United States were asked their level of fear about eighty-eight different fears across a huge variety of topics ranging from crime, the government, disasters, personal anxieties, technology and many others.
Domains of Fear
There were 10 major “domains” of fear addressed by the survey, including:
Fear Domain Types of Questions Included Crime Murder, rape, theft, burglary, fraud, identity theft Daily Life Romantic rejection, ridicule, talking to strangers Environment Global warming, overpopulation, pollution Government Government corruption, Obamacare, drones, gun control, immigration issues Judgment of others Appearance, weight, age, race Man-Made Disasters Bio-warfare, terrorism, nuclear attacks Natural Disasters Earthquakes, droughts, floods, hurricanes Personal Anxieties Tight spaces, public speaking, clowns, vaccines Personal Future Dying, illness, running out of money, unemployment Technology Artificial intelligence, robots, cyber-terrorism
Top Fear Domains, 2015
Each fear question asks Americans to rate their level of fear on a scale ranging from 1 (not afraid) to 4 (very afraid). The average score for each domain of fear provides insight into what types of fear are of greatest concern to Americans in 2015.
On average, Americans expressed the highest levels of fear about man-made disasters, such as terrorist attacks, followed by fears about technology, including corporate and government tracing of personal data and fears about the government (such as government corruption and ObamaCare). The complete, ranked list of Domains of Fear follows:
Domain of Fear Average Fear Score (out of 4) Man-Made Disasters 2.15 Technology 2.07 Government 2.06 Environment 1.97 Personal Future 1.95 Natural Disasters 1.95 Crime 1.72 Personal Anxieties 1.63 Daily Life 1.51 Judgment of Others 1.31
Top 10 Fears of 2015
Below is a list of the 10 fears for which the highest percentage of Americans reported being “Afraid,” or “Very Afraid.”
Fear Fear Domain Afraid or Very Afraid Corruption of Government Officials Government 58.0% Cyber-terrorism Technology 44.8% Corporate Tracking of Personal Information Technology 44.6% Terrorist Attacks Man-Made Disasters 44.4% Government Tracking of Personal Information Technology 41.4% Bio-Warfare Man-Made Disasters 40.9% Identity Theft Crime 39.6% Economic Collapse Man-Made Disasters 39.2% Running of out Money in the Future Personal Future 37.4% Credit Card Fraud Crime 36.9%
The Complete List of Fears, 2015
The following is a complete, list of all of the fears addressed by the Chapman Survey of American Fears, Wave 2 (2015), including the percent of Americans who reported being afraid or very afraid.
Sorted by Percent Afraid/Very Afraid
Fear Fear Domain % Afraid or Very Afraid Corruption Government 58.0 Cyber-terrorism Technology 44.8 Corporate Tracking of Personal Data Technology 44.6 Terrorist Attack Man-made Disasters 44.4 Government Tracking of Personal Data Technology 41.4 Bio-warfare Man-made Disasters 40.9 Identity Theft Crime 39.6 Economic Collapse Man-made Disasters 39.2 Running out of Money Personal Future 37.4 Credit Card Fraud Crime 36.9 Gun Control Government 36.5 War Man-made Disasters 35.8 Obamacare Government 35.7 Illness Personal Future 34.4 Pandemic Natural Disasters 34.3 Nuclear Attack Man-made Disasters 33.6 Reptiles Personal Anxieties 33.0 Meltdown Man-made Disasters 32.3 Civil Unrest Man-made Disasters 32.0 Tornado Natural Disasters 31.4 Global Warming Environment 30.7 Grid attack Man-made Disasters 29.8 Illegal Immigration Government 29.7 Drought Natural Disasters 29.4 Robots Replacing Workforce Technology 28.9 Public Speaking Personal Anxieties 28.4 Property Damage Natural Disasters 27.7 Heights Personal Anxieties 27.4 Pollution of rivers and streams Environment 26.9 Earthquake Natural Disasters 26.7 Drunk Driver Crime 26.5 Flood Natural Disasters 26.5 Hurricane Natural Disasters 26.4 Trusting Artificial Intelligence to do work Technology 25.8 Insects Personal Anxieties 25.5 Blizzard Natural Disasters 25.0 Overpopulation Environment 24.0 Robots Technology 23.9 Unemployment Personal Future 23.8 Artificial Intelligence Technology 22.2 Break ins Crime 22.2 Loneliness Personal Future 22.0 Dying Personal Future 21.9 Theft Crime 21.6 Water Personal Anxieties 21.0 Drones Government 20.4 Claustrophobia Personal Anxieties 19.9 Volcano Natural Disasters 19.7 Aging Personal Future 19.6 Ponzi Schemes and other financial crimes Crime 19.0 Technology I don’t understand Technology 19.0 Needles Personal Anxieties 18.5 Whites no longer majority Government 18.2 Dying Daily Life 16.8 Germs Personal Anxieties 16.5 Mass Shooting Crime 16.4 Walking Along at Night Daily Life 16.4 Murder by a stranger Crime 16.0 Mugging Crime 15.8 Police Brutality Crime 15.4 Flying Personal Anxieties 15.2 Rape by a stranger Crime 14.5 Gangs Crime 14.1 Whooping Cough Personal Anxieties 13.5 Kidnapping Crime 13.0 Mammals (Dogs, rats or other animals) Personal Anxieties 12.9 Measles Personal Anxieties 12.7 Stalking Crime 12.7 Dismissed by Others Daily Life 12.5 Blood Personal Anxieties 12.2 Hate Crime Crime 12.2 Weight Judgment of Others 11.4 Rape by someone you know Crime 11.3 Murder by someone you know Crime 10.9 Ridicule Daily Life 10.6 Romantic Rejection Daily Life 10.4 Expressing Opinion Daily Life 9.7 Ghosts Personal Anxieties 9.7 Talking to Stranger Daily Life 9.7 Gossip Daily Life 9.6 Dark Personal Anxieties 9.3 Appearance Judgment of Others 8.7 Zombies Personal Anxieties 8.5 Vaccines Personal Anxieties 8.4 Clowns Personal Anxieties 6.8 Age Judgment of Others 5.9 Race Judgment of Others 5.6 Gender Judgment of Others 4.5 Dress Judgment of Others 4.2
Sorted Alphabetically
| According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 18,051 |
Florida’s Department of Children and Families has an open investigation that it is actively pursuing into a possible domestic violence incident – with a weapon — between Tiger Woods and his wife, RadarOnline.com has learned exclusively.
RadarOnline.com has exclusively obtained a police document that provides proof and details of the investigation and DCF’s attempt to make an in-home visit to the Woods’ residence just days ago.
The document – police dispatch notes – details that the investigation centers on possible domestic violence between Tiger and his wife taking place in front of their young children. Using police code, it also spells out that a unknown weapon may have been involved. A source close to the situation told RadarOnline.com that the weapon is a golf club.
EXCLUSIVE DOCUMENT: Click Here to See the Police Dispatch Notes
It’s blockbuster proof that Tiger’s legal woes are not behind him – even though there is no ongoing police investigation into any aspect of the case.
PHOTOS: See Tiger’s Beautiful Wife in a Bikini in Barbados
DCF is responsible for assessing the safety of children in a home where domestic violence may have occurred. By state law the agency is not allowed to confirm open cases, but a source close to the situation told RadarOnline.com that the investigation remains open.
TOPLESS PHOTOS of Tiger’s Mistress Rachel Uchitel
RadarOnline.com has also learned that it was a DCF supervisor who attempted to talk to Tiger and his wife at their home on Friday but was not able to make contact.
The police document details how Orange County Sherriff’s deputies assisted the agency as it followed up on the possible “domestic in front of children” involving a weapon. Deputies first had contact with DCF at 2:41 p.m. Friday and were asked to assist the agency in getting to Tiger’s house, which is in an exclusive gated community.
INTERVIEW: Tiger’s Caddy Admits He Has a Problem
Deputies were on scene at 3:19 pm and the police involvement was over by 4:17 pm with the report noting “negative contact.” The report also notes the police case is closed.
Two of the deputies from the Orange County Sherrif’s department who were on the scene to assist are domestic violence specialists, RadarOnline.com learned.
Read Tiger’s Emails and Texts to Other Women
Tiger’s serial cheating led to an explosive and possibly violent argument between the golfer and his wife on Thanksgiving, and ended with Tiger crashing his car into a fire hydrant and tree. Woods’ two-year-old daughter Sam and 10-month-old son Charlie were at home during the incident, prompting DCF’s involvement.
An earlier report stated that the DCF attempted visit took place Saturday but that has now been clarified to note the exact time events occurred on Friday.
PHOTOS: Tiger Mistress Jamie Jungers in a Bikini
It is typical for DCF investigators to evaluate the safety of children in a home where domestic violence is suspected. Ducking DCF’s investigation likely will not be as easy for Woods as his refusal to give Florida Highway Patrol a follow-up interview after his one-car crash.
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of Tiger Mistress Jaimee Grubbs
Capt. Angelo Nieves of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department confirmed to RadarOnline.com that his deputes met with DCF but said the details were being kept secret.
Florida law prohibits DCF from officially confirming ongoing investigations. Agency spokeswoman Carrie Hoeppner said: “I’m just not able, by law, to give confirmation about whether we visited the children.”
EXCLUSIVE: Tiger Paid for Uchitel to Meet Him in Australia
It is not unusual for the agency to take this long to make a home visit after a suspected incident.
The exclusive document proves that the agency is actively pursuing the case. ||||| Courtney Hazlett reports on the death of British fashion superstar Alexander McQueen as well as the mouth that roared, John Mayer.
Dec. 15: Msnbc.com's Courtney Hazlett has the scoop on the monthly money transfers Tiger Woods had been making to his girlfriends, and why his cell phone may be missing.
By Courtney Hazlett The Scoop msnbc.com
Courtney Hazlett The Scoop
Despite claims that Tiger Woods was cheap when it came to spending money on the women with whom he had relationships, some did benefit financially and continue to do so.
According to several women who were involved with the golfer, Woods wired money to them on a monthly basis. The dollar amounts they cite range from $5,000 to $10,000 per month, and there’s talk among those women that someone out there might be getting as much as $20,000 per month.
“The money comes via a wire transfer,” said one woman. “There’s no contract about it, there’s no discussion about what it’s for, but it’s implied that it’s in exchange for keeping quiet about his affair.”
According to that same woman, Woods continued to be in touch in the days following his Thanksgiving night car accident. “Elin took his cell phone away, so he had to call from his land line at home,” said one. “He hasn’t called in at least a week though.”
J.Lo sees an upside in paparazzi’s lost interest
Jennifer Lopez’s days of dodging paparazzi are behind her, and she says it’s because when they do take photos of her, they can’t sell them for much money.
“It’s a business. Once they stop making money off of you they stop coming around,” Lopez told Allure magazine.
Slideshow Celebrity sightings
Julianne Moore is honored at Santa Barbara film fest, Ewan McGregor launches new film in Berlin, Gwen Stefani works Fashion Week and more. more photos
Not having to dodge photographers leaves time for other endeavors, such as chatting up Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Lopez told Allure that she and the court’s first Latina judge have “discussed being famous, and I told her, ‘Life is about inspiration, and you inspire people by achieving what you achieve. You make me want to do better things.’ She’s awesome, she’s a very smart woman, though I think she’s been overwhelmed by all the attention she’s getting.”
New home for former ‘House’ star
“House” star Jennifer Morrison was just as surprised as everyone else when her character, Dr. Allison Cameron, was abruptly written off the show earlier this season.
Although show producers left the door open for her return, Morrison is moving on. She’ll make her Broadway debut in the revival of “The Miracle Worker,” where she’ll play Kate Keller, mother of Helen. The show co-stars Abigail Breslin as Helen and Matthew Modine as her father, Captain Arthur Keller. Previews begin Feb. 12, and the show opens March 3.
Golden Globe tweet-up
Come hang out with me on Twitter for the Golden Globe nominations Tuesday at 8:20 a.m. ET, where I’ll comment on the nominees as they’re announced. You can find me @courtneyatmsnbc.
Courtney Hazlett delivers the Scoop Monday through Friday on msnbc.com. Follow Scoop on Twitter @courtneyatmsnbc
© 2010 msnbc.com Reprints ||||| Meet Gloria Allred‘s new client.
Theresa Rogers, a beauty with a home in Wellington, Florida, is the 14th mistress linked to Tiger Woods, RadarOnline.com is reporting exclusively.
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of All of Tiger’s Women
Rogers is the mystery client who hired power attorney Gloria Allred, a story reported first by RadarOnline.com last week.
Intriguingly, her affair with Tiger occurred both before AND after he married Elin, making her the mistress with the most longevity. She also is apparently the oldest of Tiger’s women, and is in her 40s.
PHOTOS: Tiger and Wife Through the Years
Sources tell RadarOnline.com that Rogers traveled with Tiger extensively during the past five years. She met him in various cities for sexual hookups. She is the only known woman who started sleeping with Tiger before he got married and continued after he wed Elin.
Official Police Photos of Tiger’s Wrecked Car
She has refused comment on her connection to Tiger. When asked by RadarOnine.com if she represents Rogers, Allred refused comment.
Here are the 14 women identified by various press accounts as Tiger mistresses:
1.) Rachel Uchitel
2.) Jaimee Grubbs
3.) Kalika Moquin
4.) Cori Rist
5.) Jamie Jungers
6.) Mindy Lawton
7.) Holly Sampson
8.) Joslyn James
9.) Loredena Jolie
10). Unidentified alleged mistress number 10 is a former cocktail waitress from Orlando now represented by lawyer.
11.) Unidentified Alleged Mistress No. 11 is reported to be a “sexy” British TV presenter who was single at the time, but is now married.
12.) Unidentified Alleged Mistress No. 12. is reported in a UK paper to be a “sex-addicted cougar.”
13.) Julie Postle. Named by the New York Post, through her ex-boyfriend.
14.) Theresa Rogers
MORE TIGER ARTICLES:
VIDEO INTERVIEW: Castmate Reveals Tiger Mistress Wanted George Clooney
AUDIO: Neighbor Says Tiger Snored While Wife Stayed Silent After Crash
EXCLUSIVE: Tiger Paid for Uchitel to Meet Him in Australia
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of Tiger Mistress Jaimee Grubbs
INTERVIEW: Tiger’s Caddy Admits He Has a Problem ||||| Tiger's tale keeps getting longer - not that Julie Postle is exactly fresh meat for the media grinder. We've heard of her before, though not until now do we know the name of the "Unidentified Orlando Cocktail Waitress." But she's just one of a couple ladies hitting headlines today who are or have been involved in scurrilous sex scandals. Ashley Dupre , former Governor Eliot Spitzer 's high class call girl is back in the news today. She's performing a new job, but it's surprisingly chaste... at least, compared to her former career. | – Tiger Woods’ 14th alleged mistress—or 16th, depending on who’s counting—has emerged: Theresa Rogers is both the oldest and the longest-lasting of the golfer’s galpals, and has already hired the same attorney as Rachel Uchitel, AKA mistress No. 1. Rogers, who is in her 40s, began her affair with Tiger before he married Elin Nordegren and has traveled with him over the past five years, sources tell Radar. More on the scandal: If you hear the name Julie Postle, don’t worry: She’s not really a new Tiger mistress, she’s actually mistress No. 4—or, according to Popeater’s count, No. 8 or 9—but was unidentified before her ex recently outed her. Underscoring just how loaded Woods is, he was paying off many members of his alleged harem—to the tune of $5,000 to $10,000 per month, possibly even up to $20,000 per month for one very special lady. The money, via wire transfer, comes without contract or discussion—“but it’s implied that it’s in exchange for keeping quiet about his affair,” one galpal tells MSNBC. Remember the Department of Children and Families’ visit to Tiger Woods’ house? We haven’t heard the last of that yet: Radar has documents showing that the department is still investigating a possible domestic violence incident between Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren that happened in front of their children. The weapon involved? A golf club, says a source. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Florida’s Department of Children and Families has an open investigation that it is actively pursuing into a possible domestic violence incident – with a weapon — between Tiger Woods and his wife, RadarOnline.com has learned exclusively.
RadarOnline.com has exclusively obtained a police document that provides proof and details of the investigation and DCF’s attempt to make an in-home visit to the Woods’ residence just days ago.
The document – police dispatch notes – details that the investigation centers on possible domestic violence between Tiger and his wife taking place in front of their young children. Using police code, it also spells out that a unknown weapon may have been involved. A source close to the situation told RadarOnline.com that the weapon is a golf club.
EXCLUSIVE DOCUMENT: Click Here to See the Police Dispatch Notes
It’s blockbuster proof that Tiger’s legal woes are not behind him – even though there is no ongoing police investigation into any aspect of the case.
PHOTOS: See Tiger’s Beautiful Wife in a Bikini in Barbados
DCF is responsible for assessing the safety of children in a home where domestic violence may have occurred. By state law the agency is not allowed to confirm open cases, but a source close to the situation told RadarOnline.com that the investigation remains open.
TOPLESS PHOTOS of Tiger’s Mistress Rachel Uchitel
RadarOnline.com has also learned that it was a DCF supervisor who attempted to talk to Tiger and his wife at their home on Friday but was not able to make contact.
The police document details how Orange County Sherriff’s deputies assisted the agency as it followed up on the possible “domestic in front of children” involving a weapon. Deputies first had contact with DCF at 2:41 p.m. Friday and were asked to assist the agency in getting to Tiger’s house, which is in an exclusive gated community.
INTERVIEW: Tiger’s Caddy Admits He Has a Problem
Deputies were on scene at 3:19 pm and the police involvement was over by 4:17 pm with the report noting “negative contact.” The report also notes the police case is closed.
Two of the deputies from the Orange County Sherrif’s department who were on the scene to assist are domestic violence specialists, RadarOnline.com learned.
Read Tiger’s Emails and Texts to Other Women
Tiger’s serial cheating led to an explosive and possibly violent argument between the golfer and his wife on Thanksgiving, and ended with Tiger crashing his car into a fire hydrant and tree. Woods’ two-year-old daughter Sam and 10-month-old son Charlie were at home during the incident, prompting DCF’s involvement.
An earlier report stated that the DCF attempted visit took place Saturday but that has now been clarified to note the exact time events occurred on Friday.
PHOTOS: Tiger Mistress Jamie Jungers in a Bikini
It is typical for DCF investigators to evaluate the safety of children in a home where domestic violence is suspected. Ducking DCF’s investigation likely will not be as easy for Woods as his refusal to give Florida Highway Patrol a follow-up interview after his one-car crash.
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of Tiger Mistress Jaimee Grubbs
Capt. Angelo Nieves of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department confirmed to RadarOnline.com that his deputes met with DCF but said the details were being kept secret.
Florida law prohibits DCF from officially confirming ongoing investigations. Agency spokeswoman Carrie Hoeppner said: “I’m just not able, by law, to give confirmation about whether we visited the children.”
EXCLUSIVE: Tiger Paid for Uchitel to Meet Him in Australia
It is not unusual for the agency to take this long to make a home visit after a suspected incident.
The exclusive document proves that the agency is actively pursuing the case. ||||| Courtney Hazlett reports on the death of British fashion superstar Alexander McQueen as well as the mouth that roared, John Mayer.
Dec. 15: Msnbc.com's Courtney Hazlett has the scoop on the monthly money transfers Tiger Woods had been making to his girlfriends, and why his cell phone may be missing.
By Courtney Hazlett The Scoop msnbc.com
Courtney Hazlett The Scoop
Despite claims that Tiger Woods was cheap when it came to spending money on the women with whom he had relationships, some did benefit financially and continue to do so.
According to several women who were involved with the golfer, Woods wired money to them on a monthly basis. The dollar amounts they cite range from $5,000 to $10,000 per month, and there’s talk among those women that someone out there might be getting as much as $20,000 per month.
“The money comes via a wire transfer,” said one woman. “There’s no contract about it, there’s no discussion about what it’s for, but it’s implied that it’s in exchange for keeping quiet about his affair.”
According to that same woman, Woods continued to be in touch in the days following his Thanksgiving night car accident. “Elin took his cell phone away, so he had to call from his land line at home,” said one. “He hasn’t called in at least a week though.”
J.Lo sees an upside in paparazzi’s lost interest
Jennifer Lopez’s days of dodging paparazzi are behind her, and she says it’s because when they do take photos of her, they can’t sell them for much money.
“It’s a business. Once they stop making money off of you they stop coming around,” Lopez told Allure magazine.
Slideshow Celebrity sightings
Julianne Moore is honored at Santa Barbara film fest, Ewan McGregor launches new film in Berlin, Gwen Stefani works Fashion Week and more. more photos
Not having to dodge photographers leaves time for other endeavors, such as chatting up Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Lopez told Allure that she and the court’s first Latina judge have “discussed being famous, and I told her, ‘Life is about inspiration, and you inspire people by achieving what you achieve. You make me want to do better things.’ She’s awesome, she’s a very smart woman, though I think she’s been overwhelmed by all the attention she’s getting.”
New home for former ‘House’ star
“House” star Jennifer Morrison was just as surprised as everyone else when her character, Dr. Allison Cameron, was abruptly written off the show earlier this season.
Although show producers left the door open for her return, Morrison is moving on. She’ll make her Broadway debut in the revival of “The Miracle Worker,” where she’ll play Kate Keller, mother of Helen. The show co-stars Abigail Breslin as Helen and Matthew Modine as her father, Captain Arthur Keller. Previews begin Feb. 12, and the show opens March 3.
Golden Globe tweet-up
Come hang out with me on Twitter for the Golden Globe nominations Tuesday at 8:20 a.m. ET, where I’ll comment on the nominees as they’re announced. You can find me @courtneyatmsnbc.
Courtney Hazlett delivers the Scoop Monday through Friday on msnbc.com. Follow Scoop on Twitter @courtneyatmsnbc
© 2010 msnbc.com Reprints ||||| Meet Gloria Allred‘s new client.
Theresa Rogers, a beauty with a home in Wellington, Florida, is the 14th mistress linked to Tiger Woods, RadarOnline.com is reporting exclusively.
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of All of Tiger’s Women
Rogers is the mystery client who hired power attorney Gloria Allred, a story reported first by RadarOnline.com last week.
Intriguingly, her affair with Tiger occurred both before AND after he married Elin, making her the mistress with the most longevity. She also is apparently the oldest of Tiger’s women, and is in her 40s.
PHOTOS: Tiger and Wife Through the Years
Sources tell RadarOnline.com that Rogers traveled with Tiger extensively during the past five years. She met him in various cities for sexual hookups. She is the only known woman who started sleeping with Tiger before he got married and continued after he wed Elin.
Official Police Photos of Tiger’s Wrecked Car
She has refused comment on her connection to Tiger. When asked by RadarOnine.com if she represents Rogers, Allred refused comment.
Here are the 14 women identified by various press accounts as Tiger mistresses:
1.) Rachel Uchitel
2.) Jaimee Grubbs
3.) Kalika Moquin
4.) Cori Rist
5.) Jamie Jungers
6.) Mindy Lawton
7.) Holly Sampson
8.) Joslyn James
9.) Loredena Jolie
10). Unidentified alleged mistress number 10 is a former cocktail waitress from Orlando now represented by lawyer.
11.) Unidentified Alleged Mistress No. 11 is reported to be a “sexy” British TV presenter who was single at the time, but is now married.
12.) Unidentified Alleged Mistress No. 12. is reported in a UK paper to be a “sex-addicted cougar.”
13.) Julie Postle. Named by the New York Post, through her ex-boyfriend.
14.) Theresa Rogers
MORE TIGER ARTICLES:
VIDEO INTERVIEW: Castmate Reveals Tiger Mistress Wanted George Clooney
AUDIO: Neighbor Says Tiger Snored While Wife Stayed Silent After Crash
EXCLUSIVE: Tiger Paid for Uchitel to Meet Him in Australia
PHOTOS: Sexy Pics of Tiger Mistress Jaimee Grubbs
INTERVIEW: Tiger’s Caddy Admits He Has a Problem ||||| Tiger's tale keeps getting longer - not that Julie Postle is exactly fresh meat for the media grinder. We've heard of her before, though not until now do we know the name of the "Unidentified Orlando Cocktail Waitress." But she's just one of a couple ladies hitting headlines today who are or have been involved in scurrilous sex scandals. Ashley Dupre , former Governor Eliot Spitzer 's high class call girl is back in the news today. She's performing a new job, but it's surprisingly chaste... at least, compared to her former career. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 22,007 |
In the run-up to the release of a deliberately misleading memo, some Republicans hyped the underlying scandal as "worse than Watergate." When it was published, however, it delivered none of the salacious evidence of systemic abuse that it promised—only a cherry-picking of information from a single FISA court application. The memo’s release provided none of the vindication the President sought or would claim, but it was hugely consequential nonetheless, in how it undermined the system of checks and balances designed to insulate the FBI from White House meddling established in the wake of Watergate.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
The years after the Watergate scandal saw multiple Congressional investigations into misuses of law enforcement and intelligence powers. Under the leadership of Director J. Edgar Hoover, who served in that role for nearly 40 years, the FBI targeted domestic political groups it deemed to be “subversive” for unconstitutional surveillance and covert actions. The targets of these actions included socialist groups, anti-war protesters, and civil rights groups and leaders, among them Martin Luther King, Jr.
Getty Images
Jimmy Carter campaigned for President in 1976 promising a scandal-weary nation that he would wall off the Department of Justice and FBI from political influence and direction. As President, Carter did just that, for the first time putting in place formal rules to govern interactions between the Department of Justice and the White House. Perhaps more important, he established an expectation that the extraordinary powers of the Department of Justice and the FBI would not be wielded as a cudgel against the political opponents of the president. As new checks and balances were added in the Executive Branch, new oversight mechanisms were established in Congress and the courts as well.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
President Trump is seeking nothing less than to destroy the institutions and norms that shield the Department of Justice from his direction.
For the first time, the intelligence committees in the House and Senate allowed a select group of democratically elected representatives to oversee the most sensitive work of the intelligence agencies, and to be read into the most closely-guarded national security secrets and programs. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court was established in 1978 to supervise and provide an additional check on highly-classified counterintelligence surveillance processes. The norms and institutions protecting the Department of Justice from political interference in the years since have been tested, but never before as they are under President Donald Trump.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
What we have witnessed during the first year of the Trump Administration is a determined effort to demolish the separation between politics and the fair administration of justice—an attempt to turn the DOJ’s investigative powers into the personal political tool of the president. Some have attempted to dismiss the president’s conduct as the actions of a new president, a free-wheeling businessman unaccustomed and unacquainted with the finer points of the office and government in general.
However, a year later, it has become clear that the president views the idea that the DOJ should be anything other than an extension of his political operation as an unacceptable constraint on his authority. He told a reporter in December that he has “the absolute right” to do whatever he wants with “his” Department of Justice. The president has sought to put that statement into action from the very day he was inaugurated.
Getty Images
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Early in his tenure, President Trump demanded former FBI Director James Comey’s “loyalty,” and fired him when he did not get it in the form of ending the Flynn investigation and removing the cloud of the Russia probe. He has repeatedly called for the reopening of the investigation into his 2016 opponent, Secretary Clinton. He publicly berated Attorney General Jeff Sessions for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, a step recommended by the Department’s professional ethics staff. Finally, just in the past week it was reported that the president asked Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the official responsible for overseeing the Special Counsel’s investigation, whether he was “on my team,” and then-Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe if he voted for the president.
Both the president’s public statements and his private actions make it clear that he is seeking nothing less than to destroy the institutions and norms that shield the Department of Justice from his direction. This is all the more pernicious considering the fact that his own campaign is under investigation for possible collusion with the Russians in their interference in the presidential election. He would take the reins of the FBI to protect himself and to deploy their immense investigative powers against his political opponents at will.
Getty Images
During numerous oversight hearings over the years, I had many occasions to question former FBI Director Robert Mueller about the Bureau’s important work. Director Mueller frequently referenced in his testimony a little-known requirement for FBI trainees—each class of FBI agents would visit the Holocaust Museum to get a visceral look at what can result when law enforcement becomes a tool of repression, or worse.
For more inside looks on how Washington works, SUBSCRIBE to Esquire.
As they launch their all-out assault on the pillars of the rule of law in this country, Republicans would do well to remember the abuses that prompted the creation of the wall between the DOJ and the White House, and the stakes if the FBI becomes simply another instrument of the President's power.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) is the Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee. ||||| For a party halfway in the grave, the news thudded like another shovelful of dirt — thwack! — heaved atop its coffin: The Republican Party may soon slip into third place among registered California voters, trailing Democrats and self-declared independents.
The decline of the GOP — now barely a quarter of the state's electorate — has been a precipitous one in this formerly deep-red redoubt, a decline all the more striking given the provenance of figures like Earl Warren, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. Between them, they represented California on the national ticket in 8 out of 10 presidential races over a nearly 40-year span. ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Little Adam Schiff, who is desperate to run for higher office, is one of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington, right up there with Comey, Warner, Brennan and Clapper! Adam leaves closed committee hearings to illegally leak confidential information. Must be stopped! | – The ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee has fallen into President Trump's crosshairs after attacking the president over the weekend. "Little Adam Schiff, who is desperate to run for higher office, is one of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington," Trump tweeted Monday, adding Schiff is "right up there" with previous Trump targets, including former FBI Director James Comey and former CIA Director John Brennan. Schiff "leaves closed committee hearings to illegally leak confidential information. Must be stopped!" Trump added. Schiff was among those to oppose a GOP memo accusing the FBI and Justice Department of malfeasance, which received Trump's approval for release on Friday. In an Esquire op-ed published a day later, Schiff accused Trump of trying to turn the DOJ into his "personal political tool." Trump views the idea "that the DOJ should be anything other than an extension of his political operation as an unacceptable constraint on his authority," the California Democrat wrote. Schiff—who cited Trump's alleged attempts to secure the loyalty of Comey and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein—also said Trump "would take the reins of the FBI to protect himself and to deploy their immense investigative powers against his political opponents at will." Following Trump's rebuttal, Schiff tweeted, "Instead of tweeting false smears, the American people would appreciate it if you turned off the TV" and did "anything else." Schiff is expected to push for the release of a Democrat memo to counter the GOP version on Monday, per the Los Angeles Times. If Trump disapproves of its release, "it would force the House into a full, closed session to override him," says Politico's Kyle Cheney. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.In the run-up to the release of a deliberately misleading memo, some Republicans hyped the underlying scandal as "worse than Watergate." When it was published, however, it delivered none of the salacious evidence of systemic abuse that it promised—only a cherry-picking of information from a single FISA court application. The memo’s release provided none of the vindication the President sought or would claim, but it was hugely consequential nonetheless, in how it undermined the system of checks and balances designed to insulate the FBI from White House meddling established in the wake of Watergate.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
The years after the Watergate scandal saw multiple Congressional investigations into misuses of law enforcement and intelligence powers. Under the leadership of Director J. Edgar Hoover, who served in that role for nearly 40 years, the FBI targeted domestic political groups it deemed to be “subversive” for unconstitutional surveillance and covert actions. The targets of these actions included socialist groups, anti-war protesters, and civil rights groups and leaders, among them Martin Luther King, Jr.
Getty Images
Jimmy Carter campaigned for President in 1976 promising a scandal-weary nation that he would wall off the Department of Justice and FBI from political influence and direction. As President, Carter did just that, for the first time putting in place formal rules to govern interactions between the Department of Justice and the White House. Perhaps more important, he established an expectation that the extraordinary powers of the Department of Justice and the FBI would not be wielded as a cudgel against the political opponents of the president. As new checks and balances were added in the Executive Branch, new oversight mechanisms were established in Congress and the courts as well.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
President Trump is seeking nothing less than to destroy the institutions and norms that shield the Department of Justice from his direction.
For the first time, the intelligence committees in the House and Senate allowed a select group of democratically elected representatives to oversee the most sensitive work of the intelligence agencies, and to be read into the most closely-guarded national security secrets and programs. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court was established in 1978 to supervise and provide an additional check on highly-classified counterintelligence surveillance processes. The norms and institutions protecting the Department of Justice from political interference in the years since have been tested, but never before as they are under President Donald Trump.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
What we have witnessed during the first year of the Trump Administration is a determined effort to demolish the separation between politics and the fair administration of justice—an attempt to turn the DOJ’s investigative powers into the personal political tool of the president. Some have attempted to dismiss the president’s conduct as the actions of a new president, a free-wheeling businessman unaccustomed and unacquainted with the finer points of the office and government in general.
However, a year later, it has become clear that the president views the idea that the DOJ should be anything other than an extension of his political operation as an unacceptable constraint on his authority. He told a reporter in December that he has “the absolute right” to do whatever he wants with “his” Department of Justice. The president has sought to put that statement into action from the very day he was inaugurated.
Getty Images
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Early in his tenure, President Trump demanded former FBI Director James Comey’s “loyalty,” and fired him when he did not get it in the form of ending the Flynn investigation and removing the cloud of the Russia probe. He has repeatedly called for the reopening of the investigation into his 2016 opponent, Secretary Clinton. He publicly berated Attorney General Jeff Sessions for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, a step recommended by the Department’s professional ethics staff. Finally, just in the past week it was reported that the president asked Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the official responsible for overseeing the Special Counsel’s investigation, whether he was “on my team,” and then-Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe if he voted for the president.
Both the president’s public statements and his private actions make it clear that he is seeking nothing less than to destroy the institutions and norms that shield the Department of Justice from his direction. This is all the more pernicious considering the fact that his own campaign is under investigation for possible collusion with the Russians in their interference in the presidential election. He would take the reins of the FBI to protect himself and to deploy their immense investigative powers against his political opponents at will.
Getty Images
During numerous oversight hearings over the years, I had many occasions to question former FBI Director Robert Mueller about the Bureau’s important work. Director Mueller frequently referenced in his testimony a little-known requirement for FBI trainees—each class of FBI agents would visit the Holocaust Museum to get a visceral look at what can result when law enforcement becomes a tool of repression, or worse.
For more inside looks on how Washington works, SUBSCRIBE to Esquire.
As they launch their all-out assault on the pillars of the rule of law in this country, Republicans would do well to remember the abuses that prompted the creation of the wall between the DOJ and the White House, and the stakes if the FBI becomes simply another instrument of the President's power.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) is the Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee. ||||| For a party halfway in the grave, the news thudded like another shovelful of dirt — thwack! — heaved atop its coffin: The Republican Party may soon slip into third place among registered California voters, trailing Democrats and self-declared independents.
The decline of the GOP — now barely a quarter of the state's electorate — has been a precipitous one in this formerly deep-red redoubt, a decline all the more striking given the provenance of figures like Earl Warren, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. Between them, they represented California on the national ticket in 8 out of 10 presidential races over a nearly 40-year span. ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Little Adam Schiff, who is desperate to run for higher office, is one of the biggest liars and leakers in Washington, right up there with Comey, Warner, Brennan and Clapper! Adam leaves closed committee hearings to illegally leak confidential information. Must be stopped! | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 39,808 |
Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — The government is releasing a once-classified chapter of a congressional report about the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that questions whether Saudi nationals who were in contact with the hijackers after they arrived in the U.S. knew what they were planning.
Later investigations found no evidence that the Saudi government or senior Saudi officials knowingly supported those who orchestrated the attacks. But lawmakers and relatives of victims, who don't believe all Saudi links to the attackers were thoroughly investigated, pushed for more than 13 years to get the pages released.
Former President George W. Bush classified the chapter to protect intelligence sources and methods and perhaps to avoid upsetting Saudi Arabia, a close U.S. ally. President Barack Obama ordered a declassification review of the chapter, which Congress released on Friday. | – The government is releasing a once-classified chapter of a congressional report about the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that questions whether Saudi nationals who were in contact with the hijackers after they arrived in the US knew what they were planning. Later investigations found no evidence that the Saudi government or senior Saudi officials knowingly supported those who orchestrated the attacks. But lawmakers and relatives of victims, who don't believe all Saudi links to the attackers were thoroughly investigated, pushed for more than 13 years to get the pages released. Former President George W. Bush classified the chapter to protect intelligence sources and methods and perhaps to avoid upsetting Saudi Arabia, a close US ally. President Barack Obama ordered a declassification review of the chapter, which Congress released on Friday, the AP reports. CNN clarifies that "the 28 pages," as the chapter has long been known, is actually 29 pages long. Read it here. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — The government is releasing a once-classified chapter of a congressional report about the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that questions whether Saudi nationals who were in contact with the hijackers after they arrived in the U.S. knew what they were planning.
Later investigations found no evidence that the Saudi government or senior Saudi officials knowingly supported those who orchestrated the attacks. But lawmakers and relatives of victims, who don't believe all Saudi links to the attackers were thoroughly investigated, pushed for more than 13 years to get the pages released.
Former President George W. Bush classified the chapter to protect intelligence sources and methods and perhaps to avoid upsetting Saudi Arabia, a close U.S. ally. President Barack Obama ordered a declassification review of the chapter, which Congress released on Friday. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 10,990 |
Chris Pratt plays a lovable dunce Andy Dwyer in "Parks and Recreation," but he knew exactly what he was doing when he took to Twitter to solve his pet problem on Monday.
The actor tweeted that he was giving his and wife Anna Faris's old, incontinent cat up for adoption, asking his followers if any had interest in taking in the animal. He soon heard back and passed along the feline, but was struck by the negative backlash he received.
Taking to his blog to clear up the situation, Pratt wrote that he was sensitive to the criticism and assured fans that he had found the cat a good home.
Read excerpts from the blog below; for the rest, click over to Pratt's site: ||||| What’s a guy with 53,000 Twitter fans to do when his really senior cat gets to be too much? If you’re Chris Pratt, you leverage that social media clout to find her a new home.
The comic actor, starring on small screens in Parks & Recreation and on big ones in Moneyball, shares a “19-or-so”-year-old cat with wife Anna Faris. The feline, Mrs. White, had once enjoyed a show business career herself, starring in Stuart Little as Snowbell, and after she grew old and retired, Faris adopted her.
Now it seems Mrs. White needs a new place to call home. “Anyone in the LA area want a cat?” Pratt wrote Monday on Twitter. “Full disclosure, she’s old and prone to accidents. So sweet though.”
In the next hour, Pratt had already gotten offers from his followers. “Really?” he replied. “She is very sweet and needs a good home. We have pugs and she’s too old to deal. She needs one on one attention.”
While his method might be unorthodox, Pratt conveyed a genuine affection for old Mrs. White. Then, as the rest of the world reacted to Amanda Knox’s appeal verdict, Pratt joined with a joke. “#amandaknox so happy for you and your family!!! Want a cat?”
[RELATED_TEXT “Can’t get enough pet news? See more on PEOPLE Pets
Elisabetta Canalis Helps an Injured Pigeon
Minka Kelly Feeds a Baby Camel!” “” ] ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Anna Faris' husband, fellow actor (and Parks and Rec costar) Chris Pratt, is getting a lot of heat on Twitter because he used the social networking Penny Saver to give away the couple's 15-year-old cat away. Now that all the friends of felines are hitting him back, he's making it even worse.
Now, you have to admit that giving up a 15-year-old beloved pet on Twitter because it's old and incontinent seems crass on face value, right Chris? Also, the cat was in the movie Stuart Little which makes her practically famous! While he deleted the original Tweet, here is his explanation to all the haters out there:
Bottom line, and not that this is any of your fucking business weirdos, but my wife and I want to start a family and we ABSOLUTELY CANNOT have an animal that shits all over the house. Sorry. If you are a parent you will understand. And if not, that probably explains why you have such a hard on for cats. Just sayin'.
OK, first of all, as soon as you tweeted that you were looking for a new home for your cat, you pretty much made it everyone's business. So there's that. It's like asking for a light outside a nightclub and then being pissed that people are showing up with matches. Secondly, that is a very good reason to get rid of the cat, so maybe you should have made that clear in the first place. However don't use the parent defense. You know when parents say, "It's for the good of the kids," and you're supposed to excuse any sort of rude or bad (or seemingly bad) behavior because there are kids involved? That's bullshit. Also, there isn't even a baby yet. Good job, Chris, you just basically just got every editor at every tabloid to start hounding your wife about her stupid "baby bump." Couldn't you at least waited for conception?
Guess what, he actually found someone to take the cat.
So what I used twitter to give away our pet? I have some people who follow me and I thought maybe somebody would be thrilled to have my old cat. And guess what… Somebody was! Her name is Meghan and as far as I could tell she is a perfectly reasonable, sweet and friendly cat lover.
So, wait. You gave your old, feeble cat that has given you nothing but love (and probably made you some money with all those acting roles) away to a total stranger you met off the internet? Is this how you're going to find babysitters too? "Hey, everyone. Anna and I have a premiere tonight, DM me if you want to watch the kid!" No, that's not how this show work. And if you start talking about her "farm upstate" we're all going to know that this Meghan character doesn't exist.
Pratt's rambling blog post then tries to poke fun at the cat lovers who are tweeting at him trying to shame him. Oh, Chris. This is such a bad idea! While I'm totally on your side, you are not handling this thing well at all. Yes, you're just making this whole thing worse. Do not mess with cat people. Do not poke at them and call them names. Don't try to rationalize with them. They are crazy and they will not get your jokes. The only recourse you have is to apologize and try to move on. Just let the cat people have their outrage. They are not people like you and me, but they are fierce and will never forget. So instead of lashing out, just apologize, send them some pictures of the cat playing a keyboard with it's new owner, and try to patch things up with all the human Cathy cartoons out there. Admitting wrongdoing is the first step. I mean, seriously, dude. You just gave your cat away on Twitter.
[Image via Getty] ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Michael Buckner/Getty Images
Death threats? Really? Yes.
It turns out a lot of tweeters aren't fond of people using Twitter as a way to find a new home for their pet, as actor Chris Pratt was quick to find out.
Anna Faris' other half took to the social media website to try and find an adoptive parent for his old cat, saying, "Anyone in the L.A. area want a cat? Full disclosure, she's old and prone to accidents. So sweet though."
Harmless. Or so we thought.
READ: Furry Harry Potter Star Is Up for Adoption!
Pet fanatics lovers started going crazy on the Twitterverse, sending Pratt death threats. Well, this guy was not about to sit back and take it.
"Bottom line, and not that this is any of your f--king business weirdos, but my wife and I want to start a family and we ABSOLUTELY CANNOT have an animal that s--ts all over the house," the Parks and Recreation star fired back on his personal website. "Sorry. If you are a parent you will understand. And if not, that probably explains why you have such a hard on for cats. Just sayin'."
Pratt was able to find a "perfectly reasonable, sweet and friendly cat lover" to take care of his feline, but there's something bigger going on here.
Let the Faris baby bump watch begin!
PHOTOS: Very Important Pets | – Here's an example of a bad idea: You're a famous actor with more than 54,000 followers on Twitter, so when you decide you can no longer keep your cat, you give her away ... on Twitter. That's what Chris Pratt did, and he's now facing the wrath of cat lovers on the Internet, Gawker notes. It all started when Pratt tweeted, "Anyone in the LA area want a cat? Full disclosure, she's old and prone to accidents. So sweet though. And was in Stuart Little. (literally)." The tweet has since been deleted, but People has a screenshot. It seems the cat, Mrs. White, was adopted by Pratt's wife, Anna Faris, after the cat's showbiz career ended. But Mrs. White has since gotten old, and is apparently no longer using the litterbox, hence Pratt's offer. But after he got a taker, Pratt started getting something else: death threats, E! notes. Pratt took to his blog, where he made another ill-advised decision by informing the world that he and Faris are getting rid of the cat because they "want to start a family" and "ABSOLUTELY CANNOT have an animal that s**ts all over the house." (Let the baby bump watch begin!) For more from the blog, which also appears to have been taken down, see the Huffington Post. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Chris Pratt plays a lovable dunce Andy Dwyer in "Parks and Recreation," but he knew exactly what he was doing when he took to Twitter to solve his pet problem on Monday.
The actor tweeted that he was giving his and wife Anna Faris's old, incontinent cat up for adoption, asking his followers if any had interest in taking in the animal. He soon heard back and passed along the feline, but was struck by the negative backlash he received.
Taking to his blog to clear up the situation, Pratt wrote that he was sensitive to the criticism and assured fans that he had found the cat a good home.
Read excerpts from the blog below; for the rest, click over to Pratt's site: ||||| What’s a guy with 53,000 Twitter fans to do when his really senior cat gets to be too much? If you’re Chris Pratt, you leverage that social media clout to find her a new home.
The comic actor, starring on small screens in Parks & Recreation and on big ones in Moneyball, shares a “19-or-so”-year-old cat with wife Anna Faris. The feline, Mrs. White, had once enjoyed a show business career herself, starring in Stuart Little as Snowbell, and after she grew old and retired, Faris adopted her.
Now it seems Mrs. White needs a new place to call home. “Anyone in the LA area want a cat?” Pratt wrote Monday on Twitter. “Full disclosure, she’s old and prone to accidents. So sweet though.”
In the next hour, Pratt had already gotten offers from his followers. “Really?” he replied. “She is very sweet and needs a good home. We have pugs and she’s too old to deal. She needs one on one attention.”
While his method might be unorthodox, Pratt conveyed a genuine affection for old Mrs. White. Then, as the rest of the world reacted to Amanda Knox’s appeal verdict, Pratt joined with a joke. “#amandaknox so happy for you and your family!!! Want a cat?”
[RELATED_TEXT “Can’t get enough pet news? See more on PEOPLE Pets
Elisabetta Canalis Helps an Injured Pigeon
Minka Kelly Feeds a Baby Camel!” “” ] ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Anna Faris' husband, fellow actor (and Parks and Rec costar) Chris Pratt, is getting a lot of heat on Twitter because he used the social networking Penny Saver to give away the couple's 15-year-old cat away. Now that all the friends of felines are hitting him back, he's making it even worse.
Now, you have to admit that giving up a 15-year-old beloved pet on Twitter because it's old and incontinent seems crass on face value, right Chris? Also, the cat was in the movie Stuart Little which makes her practically famous! While he deleted the original Tweet, here is his explanation to all the haters out there:
Bottom line, and not that this is any of your fucking business weirdos, but my wife and I want to start a family and we ABSOLUTELY CANNOT have an animal that shits all over the house. Sorry. If you are a parent you will understand. And if not, that probably explains why you have such a hard on for cats. Just sayin'.
OK, first of all, as soon as you tweeted that you were looking for a new home for your cat, you pretty much made it everyone's business. So there's that. It's like asking for a light outside a nightclub and then being pissed that people are showing up with matches. Secondly, that is a very good reason to get rid of the cat, so maybe you should have made that clear in the first place. However don't use the parent defense. You know when parents say, "It's for the good of the kids," and you're supposed to excuse any sort of rude or bad (or seemingly bad) behavior because there are kids involved? That's bullshit. Also, there isn't even a baby yet. Good job, Chris, you just basically just got every editor at every tabloid to start hounding your wife about her stupid "baby bump." Couldn't you at least waited for conception?
Guess what, he actually found someone to take the cat.
So what I used twitter to give away our pet? I have some people who follow me and I thought maybe somebody would be thrilled to have my old cat. And guess what… Somebody was! Her name is Meghan and as far as I could tell she is a perfectly reasonable, sweet and friendly cat lover.
So, wait. You gave your old, feeble cat that has given you nothing but love (and probably made you some money with all those acting roles) away to a total stranger you met off the internet? Is this how you're going to find babysitters too? "Hey, everyone. Anna and I have a premiere tonight, DM me if you want to watch the kid!" No, that's not how this show work. And if you start talking about her "farm upstate" we're all going to know that this Meghan character doesn't exist.
Pratt's rambling blog post then tries to poke fun at the cat lovers who are tweeting at him trying to shame him. Oh, Chris. This is such a bad idea! While I'm totally on your side, you are not handling this thing well at all. Yes, you're just making this whole thing worse. Do not mess with cat people. Do not poke at them and call them names. Don't try to rationalize with them. They are crazy and they will not get your jokes. The only recourse you have is to apologize and try to move on. Just let the cat people have their outrage. They are not people like you and me, but they are fierce and will never forget. So instead of lashing out, just apologize, send them some pictures of the cat playing a keyboard with it's new owner, and try to patch things up with all the human Cathy cartoons out there. Admitting wrongdoing is the first step. I mean, seriously, dude. You just gave your cat away on Twitter.
[Image via Getty] ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Michael Buckner/Getty Images
Death threats? Really? Yes.
It turns out a lot of tweeters aren't fond of people using Twitter as a way to find a new home for their pet, as actor Chris Pratt was quick to find out.
Anna Faris' other half took to the social media website to try and find an adoptive parent for his old cat, saying, "Anyone in the L.A. area want a cat? Full disclosure, she's old and prone to accidents. So sweet though."
Harmless. Or so we thought.
READ: Furry Harry Potter Star Is Up for Adoption!
Pet fanatics lovers started going crazy on the Twitterverse, sending Pratt death threats. Well, this guy was not about to sit back and take it.
"Bottom line, and not that this is any of your f--king business weirdos, but my wife and I want to start a family and we ABSOLUTELY CANNOT have an animal that s--ts all over the house," the Parks and Recreation star fired back on his personal website. "Sorry. If you are a parent you will understand. And if not, that probably explains why you have such a hard on for cats. Just sayin'."
Pratt was able to find a "perfectly reasonable, sweet and friendly cat lover" to take care of his feline, but there's something bigger going on here.
Let the Faris baby bump watch begin!
PHOTOS: Very Important Pets | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 29,565 |
Mark Zuckerberg became the sixth-richest person on Earth today.
To continue reading this article you must be a Bloomberg Professional Service Subscriber.
If you believe that you may have received this message in error please let us know. ||||| Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has passed Charles and David Koch to become the sixth richest person on the planet, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
No, Zuck didn't win the Powerball. Facebook reported record revenue on Wednesday during its fourth quarter earnings call, thanks largely to mobile growth.
Play Facebook
Twitter
Embed Mark Zuckerberg reveals what's in his closet (yes, lots of hoodies) 0:59 autoplay autoplay Copy this code to your website or blog
That boosted Zuckerberg's net worth by $5.5 billion to a new grand total of $47 billion — placing him ahead of the Koch brothers, who are currently worth $45.3 billion, according to Bloomberg. Zuckerberg still has some work to do to crack the top five.
Bill Gates ($77.9 billion) Amancio Ortega ($70.2 billion) Warren Buffett ($59.1 billion) Jeff Bezos ($51.9 billion) Carlos Slim ($47.1 billion)
Zuckerberg has promised to give most of his fortune away through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a private limited liability company (LLC) he set up with his wife, Priscilla Chan, to fund philanthropic causes, lobby for political change, and invest in companies.
Related: Mark Zuckerberg's 'Initiative' Adds New Wrinkle to Tech Philanthropy
One place Zuckerberg isn't spending money is on a personal stylist. On Monday, Zuckerberg announced he was returning from paternity leave after the birth of his daughter, Max, with a post showing off his monochromatic wardrobe. ||||| Mark Zuckerberg is not the same guy that Jesse Eisenberg famously (and unflatteringly) played in "The Social Network."
Yes, the Facebook (FB, Tech30) co-founder may still have an unhealthy affinity for grey hoodies. But he's now a philanthropist, education investor, aspiring artificial intelligence creator and a new dad.
He also just might be the best CEO in America.
Facebook's stock soared on Thursday after the company reported sales and profits that blew away Wall Street's expectations.
Remember when the company went public in 2012 and people were worried that Facebook didn't get mobile?
Facebook now generates 80% of its overall ad revenue from mobile and more than 930 million people access Facebook on a mobile device every day.
Related: Facebook is making more money off you than ever before
The acquisition of Instagram, once mocked because it cost a then whopping $1 billion, has turned out to be an amazing bargain. The same may eventually be said about Facebook's purchases of WhatsApp and virtual reality company Oculus as well.
But is Zuckerberg the best CEO around? Although you could make a strong case for him, I'm not sure he deserves that honor just yet.
For what it's worth, I chose Costco (COST) CEO Craig Jelinek as CEO of the year in 2015 for how he's been able to hurt Walmart (WMT) and also fend off Amazon.
Related: These were the best CEOs of 2015
And I declared in a 2013 piece that Starbucks (SBUX) chief Howard Schultz may be the best CEO of all-time.
What do you think? I asked my followers on Twitter. (And yes, I realize the irony of doing this on Twitter instead of Facebook.)
In the first few hours after I set up the poll, a little less than half of the respondents said they thought Zuck was numero uno.
Feel strange asking this on Twitter. But here goes. Is Mark Zuckerberg the best CEO in America? If no, then who? — Paul R. La Monica (@LaMonicaBuzz) January 28, 2016
Several people said Schultz was the best.
Others thought the honor should go to Disney's (DIS) Bob Iger, Google's (GOOGL, Tech30) Larry Page, Amazon's (AMZN, Tech30) Jeff Bezos, T-Mobile's (TMUS) John Legere, Netflix's (NFLX, Tech30) Reed Hastings, Under Armour's (UA) Kevin Plank or Tesla's (TSLA) Elon Musk.
@LaMonicaBuzz @JeffBezos is pretty incredible. He is also sending things to outer space and he may crush $WMT. he gets my vote. — RR (@RRBU81) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz Shultz/Hastings/the Zuck/etc. I love CEOs that are 110% focused on their company and are competitive enough to win. — King Buffett (@Fake_Buffett) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz Mark Zuckerberg is great, but other candidates: Howard Schultz, Bob Iger, Kevin Plank, John Legere, and Larry Page. — Sheraz (@nybigtymer) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz I have to go with John Legere of $TMUS. I'm on their crappy network and am amazed at what he does despite it. — Michael Goldman (@michaelg0428) January 28, 2016
I think many of these CEOs deserve to be in the conversation. I'd add Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) CEO Satya Nadella, Southwest's (LUV) Gary Kelly and Pepsi's (PEP) Indra Nooyi to the list too.
But it's also worth noting that Zuckerberg is only 31 years old. If Facebook maintains this momentum, then he may be a no-brainer choice as best CEO a few years from now.
Plus, Facebook as a company is still relatively young. It's going to turn 12 on February 4.
Zuckerberg posted earlier this month that he wants this to be known as #friendsday.
February 4 is Facebook’s 12th birthday!Our anniversary has a lot of meaning to me as an opportunity to reflect on how... Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday, January 12, 2016
He should celebrate. Facebook clearly has a lot of friends. And the company is worth more than $300 billion. Not bad for a tween. | – Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg returned from paternity leave this week, NBC News reports. As a welcome-back gift, he officially became the world's sixth-richest person on Thursday. According to Bloomberg, his net worth increased by $6 billion on the stock market Thursday, lifting him past the Koch brothers. The 31-year-old is now worth $47.5 billion. He's currently behind only Bill Gates ($77.9 billion), Amancio Ortega ($70.2 billion), Warren Buffett ($59.1 billion), Jeff Bezos ($51.9 billion), and Carlos Slim ($48.6 billion). But those five have all lost money this year to the tune of a combined $19 billion. The news prompted CNN to raise the possibility that Zuckerberg "might be the best CEO in America." Facebook is less than 12 years old but is worth more than $300 billion. The $1 billion it paid for Instagram "has turned out to be an amazing bargain." And it's seemingly mastered mobile, with 80% of its ad revenue coming from that sector. According to Bloomberg, Facebook announced Wednesday that sales were up 52% in the fourth quarter and it had more than doubled its net income over the previous year. NBC points out Zuckerberg has promised to give most of his fortune away. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Mark Zuckerberg became the sixth-richest person on Earth today.
To continue reading this article you must be a Bloomberg Professional Service Subscriber.
If you believe that you may have received this message in error please let us know. ||||| Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has passed Charles and David Koch to become the sixth richest person on the planet, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
No, Zuck didn't win the Powerball. Facebook reported record revenue on Wednesday during its fourth quarter earnings call, thanks largely to mobile growth.
Play Facebook
Twitter
Embed Mark Zuckerberg reveals what's in his closet (yes, lots of hoodies) 0:59 autoplay autoplay Copy this code to your website or blog
That boosted Zuckerberg's net worth by $5.5 billion to a new grand total of $47 billion — placing him ahead of the Koch brothers, who are currently worth $45.3 billion, according to Bloomberg. Zuckerberg still has some work to do to crack the top five.
Bill Gates ($77.9 billion) Amancio Ortega ($70.2 billion) Warren Buffett ($59.1 billion) Jeff Bezos ($51.9 billion) Carlos Slim ($47.1 billion)
Zuckerberg has promised to give most of his fortune away through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a private limited liability company (LLC) he set up with his wife, Priscilla Chan, to fund philanthropic causes, lobby for political change, and invest in companies.
Related: Mark Zuckerberg's 'Initiative' Adds New Wrinkle to Tech Philanthropy
One place Zuckerberg isn't spending money is on a personal stylist. On Monday, Zuckerberg announced he was returning from paternity leave after the birth of his daughter, Max, with a post showing off his monochromatic wardrobe. ||||| Mark Zuckerberg is not the same guy that Jesse Eisenberg famously (and unflatteringly) played in "The Social Network."
Yes, the Facebook (FB, Tech30) co-founder may still have an unhealthy affinity for grey hoodies. But he's now a philanthropist, education investor, aspiring artificial intelligence creator and a new dad.
He also just might be the best CEO in America.
Facebook's stock soared on Thursday after the company reported sales and profits that blew away Wall Street's expectations.
Remember when the company went public in 2012 and people were worried that Facebook didn't get mobile?
Facebook now generates 80% of its overall ad revenue from mobile and more than 930 million people access Facebook on a mobile device every day.
Related: Facebook is making more money off you than ever before
The acquisition of Instagram, once mocked because it cost a then whopping $1 billion, has turned out to be an amazing bargain. The same may eventually be said about Facebook's purchases of WhatsApp and virtual reality company Oculus as well.
But is Zuckerberg the best CEO around? Although you could make a strong case for him, I'm not sure he deserves that honor just yet.
For what it's worth, I chose Costco (COST) CEO Craig Jelinek as CEO of the year in 2015 for how he's been able to hurt Walmart (WMT) and also fend off Amazon.
Related: These were the best CEOs of 2015
And I declared in a 2013 piece that Starbucks (SBUX) chief Howard Schultz may be the best CEO of all-time.
What do you think? I asked my followers on Twitter. (And yes, I realize the irony of doing this on Twitter instead of Facebook.)
In the first few hours after I set up the poll, a little less than half of the respondents said they thought Zuck was numero uno.
Feel strange asking this on Twitter. But here goes. Is Mark Zuckerberg the best CEO in America? If no, then who? — Paul R. La Monica (@LaMonicaBuzz) January 28, 2016
Several people said Schultz was the best.
Others thought the honor should go to Disney's (DIS) Bob Iger, Google's (GOOGL, Tech30) Larry Page, Amazon's (AMZN, Tech30) Jeff Bezos, T-Mobile's (TMUS) John Legere, Netflix's (NFLX, Tech30) Reed Hastings, Under Armour's (UA) Kevin Plank or Tesla's (TSLA) Elon Musk.
@LaMonicaBuzz @JeffBezos is pretty incredible. He is also sending things to outer space and he may crush $WMT. he gets my vote. — RR (@RRBU81) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz Shultz/Hastings/the Zuck/etc. I love CEOs that are 110% focused on their company and are competitive enough to win. — King Buffett (@Fake_Buffett) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz Mark Zuckerberg is great, but other candidates: Howard Schultz, Bob Iger, Kevin Plank, John Legere, and Larry Page. — Sheraz (@nybigtymer) January 28, 2016
@LaMonicaBuzz I have to go with John Legere of $TMUS. I'm on their crappy network and am amazed at what he does despite it. — Michael Goldman (@michaelg0428) January 28, 2016
I think many of these CEOs deserve to be in the conversation. I'd add Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) CEO Satya Nadella, Southwest's (LUV) Gary Kelly and Pepsi's (PEP) Indra Nooyi to the list too.
But it's also worth noting that Zuckerberg is only 31 years old. If Facebook maintains this momentum, then he may be a no-brainer choice as best CEO a few years from now.
Plus, Facebook as a company is still relatively young. It's going to turn 12 on February 4.
Zuckerberg posted earlier this month that he wants this to be known as #friendsday.
February 4 is Facebook’s 12th birthday!Our anniversary has a lot of meaning to me as an opportunity to reflect on how... Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday, January 12, 2016
He should celebrate. Facebook clearly has a lot of friends. And the company is worth more than $300 billion. Not bad for a tween. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 25,482 |
Southeast Michigan residents might get a visual treat tonight.
The aurora borealis, or northern lights, could be visible in the Detroit area if conditions are right, said to Debra Elliott, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in White Lake Township.
The best viewing likely would be shortly after midnight, Elliot said.
“I think the greater potential is for the Upper Peninsula area, but there is the possibility we could see it here if it remains cloud-free,” Elliot said.
The effect, which is caused by solar flares, could be visible at night until 7 p.m. on Friday, but viewing is not likely here after tonight because of clouds in the forecast. The northern lights could potentially be visible as far south as Pennsylvania, Iowa and Oregon.
Elliot, who is from Alaska, said the northern lights often appear as a beautiful, glowing, greenish haze, although they can also ripple with multiple colors.
“It’s a very faint glow in the sky. If it makes it down here, it would probably have a greenish cast to it,” she said.
The northern lights are most common in far northern areas but have been recorded as far south as Texas and Arizona on rare occasions, according to the National Weather Service. ||||| The green, shimmering northern lights could appear in U.S. skies Thursday and Friday morning, though space weather experts can't say for certain.
A solar flare erupted from the sun's surface Jan. 7. It expelled a cloud of gas that will intersect with the Earth's atmosphere Jan. 9 and 10, possibly causing the appearance of the aurora borealis. (Photo: Solar & Heliospheric Observatory, NASA) Story Highlights The northern lights may be visible in parts of the USA
They'll be caused by a giant cloud of solar particles, which erupted from the sun
Also called the aurora borealis, the spectacle appears as shimmering lines and waves of light
The polar vortex may be gone, but another extreme event is coming. Space weather experts say northern states may be able to see the aurora borealis, or northern lights, Thursday and Friday morning.
"We're hoping," said Joe Kunches with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colo. "The sun has done its part, it produced a fast, energetic eruption about the middle of the day Tuesday."
That eruption blew off a piece of the solar atmosphere that is winging its way toward Earth, said Jeffrey Newmark, a solar physicist with NASA. It will take about two days to reach us.
The northern lights appear when atoms in the Earth's high-altitude atmosphere collide with energetic charged particles from the sun. They usually appear as shimmering green waves of light in the nighttime sky in polar latitudes. Much more rarely, they can be red and even blue.
A solar storm is when "the (sun's) magnetic field gets twisted up in a high-energy state and it relaxes, and that releases a tremendous amount of energy," Newmark said.
First there is a solar flare, a release of light and high-energy particles. The light reaches the Earth in eight minutes, the high-energy particles about an hour later, Newmark said.
At the same time, there is a "coronal mass ejection," sometimes called a solar storm. It contains billions of tons of energetic hydrogen and helium ions as well as protons and electrons ejected from the sun's surface.
Predicting exactly when the energy will arrive is difficult.
NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer satellite sits about 1 million miles away from the Earth, picking up readings of solar bombardments. Even at that distance, "as the wave passes the satellite, we have only half an hour's warnings before it gets here," Kunches said.
It takes the Earth up to 36 hours to pass through the cloud, so it is possible there may be lights Wednesday night going into Thursday morning, said Mark Paquette with AccuWeather in State College, Pa. The clearest skies and best viewing will be in the Northeast and the Great Lakes region, he said.
It's more likely the lights, should they appear, will be visible Thursday night going into Friday morning, he said.
The energetic particles can affect spacecraft, communication and power grids, GPS satellites and even planes flying near the poles.
Because aircraft can't be guaranteed undisturbed communication as they fly at high altitudes, air-traffic control might push them down a little more toward the equator, Kunches said.
Astronauts at the International Space Station "will be told to stay indoors," Newmark said.
These kinds of solar storms are a normal part of the sun's activity. They ebb and flow on a roughly 11-year cycle, Newmark said. This is a moderate one, and the flare came from a region of the sun's surface directly facing the Earth.
"In July of 2012, there was a much larger event, but it was on the back side of the sun facing away from us, so we barely felt it," he said.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1erR1gv ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — Northerners thawing out from a bitter freeze may get rewarded with shimmering northern lights the next couple days.
In this Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2014 image made available by NASA, a giant cloud of solar particles, a coronal mass ejection, explodes off the sun, lower right, captured by the European Space Agency and NASA's... (Associated Press)
Federal space weather forecaster Joe Kunches said the sun shot out a strong solar flare late Tuesday, which should arrive at Earth early Thursday. It should shake up Earth's magnetic field and expand the Aurora Borealis south, possibly as far south as Colorado and central Illinois. He said best viewing would probably be Thursday evening, weather permitting.
The University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute predicts much of Canada and the northern fringes of the U.S. should see the northern lights. Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Seattle and Des Moines might see the shimmering colors low on the horizon.
The solar storm is already diverting airline flights around the poles and may disrupt GPS devices Thursday. ||||| NOAA / Space Weather Prediction Center
Tips on Viewing the Aurora
Being able to see the Aurora depends mainly on two factors, geomagnetic activity (the degree of disturbance of the earth's magnetic field at the time) and your geographic location. Further considerations are the weather at your location, and light pollution from city lights, full moon and so forth.
Geomagnetic Activity -- The Kp Index and the NOAA POES Auroral Activity Level
In order to know whether you have a chance of seeing an aurora, you need to know the level of geomagnetic activity at the time you are viewing. There is a simple index called Kp, a number from 0 to 9, which is used to refer to geomagnetic activity for a 3-hour period. Check the Space Weather Prediction Center's bar plot of Estimated Planetary Kp to see what has been happening during the past couple of days. This plot updates every 3 hours with the latest Kp value. The Space Weather Prediction Center's Solar-Geophysical Forecast for the next 24 hours (see SWPC's Today's Space Weather page) might also be of help. If the GEOPHYSICAL ACTIVITY FORECAST is for "storm" levels SWPC expects Kp indices of 5 or greater. Another indication of geomagnetic activity is the NOAA POES Auroral Activity Level, which is a number from 1 to 10. Further down on this page is a table that shows how Kp and the Auroral Activity Level compare with each other. Take a look at SWPC's POES Auroral Activity page to see the latest Activity Level. Moon phases can also be found on the web.
Location, location, location!
In general, you are more likely to see an aurora if you are at a high latitude, i.e. closer to the north (or south) pole. However, there is a catch to this. The earth's magnetic poles are not exactly in line with the geographic poles, so the latitude of interest would really be the magnetic latitude. Note that it is not necessary for the equatorward boundary of the aurora to reach all the way down to your magnetic latitude for you to see it. The aurora is easily visible even when its boundary is 4 or 5 degrees poleward of your location. So, how do you know what your magnetic latitude is? We have several methods to help you:
In the table below, find a city not far from where you live, and make a note of its magnetic latitude.
Select a city from the drop-down list to see it's magnetic latitude.
Read below about clickable Kp maps that will give you the magnetic latitude at a location on the globe.
North America Europe and Asia Southern Hemisphere City Magnetic Latitude* City Magnetic Latitude* City Magnetic Latitude* Atlanta 44.5 Athens 31.3 Adelaide 45.9 Boston 51.7 Berlin 48.3 Buenos Aires, Argentina 23.3 Chicago 52.2 Copenhagen 51.9 Capetown 41.5 Dallas 42.7 Edinburgh 53.0 Christchurch 49.9 Denver 48.3 London 47.5 Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina 32.1 Great Falls, MT 54.9 Madrid 33.3 Concepcion, Chile 23.2 Havana 34.1 Moscow 51.8 Dunedin 53.0 Los Angeles 39.8 Paris 44.2 Durban 38.8 Mexico City 29.1 Perm 53.8 East London 41.1 Minneapolis 55.1 Prague 45.5 Hobart 53.6 New York 50.6 Rome 35.5 Melbourne 48.4 Quebec City 56.2 St. Petersburg 56.1 Perth 43.9 San Francisco 42.5 Warsaw 46.7 Punta Arenas, Chile 38.6 Seattle 52.7 Beijing 34.1 Sydney 43.5 St. Louis 49.2 Irkutsk 47.0 Toronto 53.9 Seoul 31.0 Washington, DC 49.1 Tokyo 29.0 Winnipeg 59.5 Vladivostok 36.5
When geomagnetic activity is low, the aurora typically is located, in the hours around midnight, at about 67 degrees magnetic latitude*. As activity increases, the region of aurora expands toward the equator. When geomagnetic activity is very high, the aurora may be seen at mid and low latitude locations around the earth that would otherwise rarely experience the polar lights.
Kp maps of midnight equatorward boundaries
* Corrected magnetic latitude
**The Handbook of Geophysics and the Space Environment, Air Force Geophysics Laboratory, 1985
Putting It All Together -- Can I, or can't I, see the Aurora?
Once you know your magnetic latitude, and how high the Kp index needs to be for you to see the aurora at your magnetic latitude, it comes down to choosing a viewing time of high magnetic activity by frequently checking the Kp index and SWPC forecast. It could also be worthwhile to check the POES Auroral Activity page, which might or might not be more up-to-date than the Kp, depending on the time of the most recent polar pass of the POES satellite. (The table below will help you relate the POES Auroral Activity Level to the Kp index.) Of course, for you to see the aurora it will also have to be a clear night without interference from city lights or moonlight. | – Think of it as a little payback from Mother Nature for this week's misery: She might put on a show in the form of the northern lights, or aurora borealis, over the next few nights. Thanks to a solar flare from the sun on Tuesday, the shimmering green (and sometimes red) lights might show up low on the horizon tonight. The Detroit Free Press, for instance, is advising locals to take a look after midnight. The AP says the best viewing for most of the "northern fringes" of the US will be tomorrow evening, and it notes that the lights might show up as far south as Colorado. USA Today, which has a detailed explanation of the phenomenon, says the lights could extend into Friday morning. You can suss out your own viewing probabilities via this NOAA page. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Southeast Michigan residents might get a visual treat tonight.
The aurora borealis, or northern lights, could be visible in the Detroit area if conditions are right, said to Debra Elliott, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in White Lake Township.
The best viewing likely would be shortly after midnight, Elliot said.
“I think the greater potential is for the Upper Peninsula area, but there is the possibility we could see it here if it remains cloud-free,” Elliot said.
The effect, which is caused by solar flares, could be visible at night until 7 p.m. on Friday, but viewing is not likely here after tonight because of clouds in the forecast. The northern lights could potentially be visible as far south as Pennsylvania, Iowa and Oregon.
Elliot, who is from Alaska, said the northern lights often appear as a beautiful, glowing, greenish haze, although they can also ripple with multiple colors.
“It’s a very faint glow in the sky. If it makes it down here, it would probably have a greenish cast to it,” she said.
The northern lights are most common in far northern areas but have been recorded as far south as Texas and Arizona on rare occasions, according to the National Weather Service. ||||| The green, shimmering northern lights could appear in U.S. skies Thursday and Friday morning, though space weather experts can't say for certain.
A solar flare erupted from the sun's surface Jan. 7. It expelled a cloud of gas that will intersect with the Earth's atmosphere Jan. 9 and 10, possibly causing the appearance of the aurora borealis. (Photo: Solar & Heliospheric Observatory, NASA) Story Highlights The northern lights may be visible in parts of the USA
They'll be caused by a giant cloud of solar particles, which erupted from the sun
Also called the aurora borealis, the spectacle appears as shimmering lines and waves of light
The polar vortex may be gone, but another extreme event is coming. Space weather experts say northern states may be able to see the aurora borealis, or northern lights, Thursday and Friday morning.
"We're hoping," said Joe Kunches with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center in Boulder, Colo. "The sun has done its part, it produced a fast, energetic eruption about the middle of the day Tuesday."
That eruption blew off a piece of the solar atmosphere that is winging its way toward Earth, said Jeffrey Newmark, a solar physicist with NASA. It will take about two days to reach us.
The northern lights appear when atoms in the Earth's high-altitude atmosphere collide with energetic charged particles from the sun. They usually appear as shimmering green waves of light in the nighttime sky in polar latitudes. Much more rarely, they can be red and even blue.
A solar storm is when "the (sun's) magnetic field gets twisted up in a high-energy state and it relaxes, and that releases a tremendous amount of energy," Newmark said.
First there is a solar flare, a release of light and high-energy particles. The light reaches the Earth in eight minutes, the high-energy particles about an hour later, Newmark said.
At the same time, there is a "coronal mass ejection," sometimes called a solar storm. It contains billions of tons of energetic hydrogen and helium ions as well as protons and electrons ejected from the sun's surface.
Predicting exactly when the energy will arrive is difficult.
NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer satellite sits about 1 million miles away from the Earth, picking up readings of solar bombardments. Even at that distance, "as the wave passes the satellite, we have only half an hour's warnings before it gets here," Kunches said.
It takes the Earth up to 36 hours to pass through the cloud, so it is possible there may be lights Wednesday night going into Thursday morning, said Mark Paquette with AccuWeather in State College, Pa. The clearest skies and best viewing will be in the Northeast and the Great Lakes region, he said.
It's more likely the lights, should they appear, will be visible Thursday night going into Friday morning, he said.
The energetic particles can affect spacecraft, communication and power grids, GPS satellites and even planes flying near the poles.
Because aircraft can't be guaranteed undisturbed communication as they fly at high altitudes, air-traffic control might push them down a little more toward the equator, Kunches said.
Astronauts at the International Space Station "will be told to stay indoors," Newmark said.
These kinds of solar storms are a normal part of the sun's activity. They ebb and flow on a roughly 11-year cycle, Newmark said. This is a moderate one, and the flare came from a region of the sun's surface directly facing the Earth.
"In July of 2012, there was a much larger event, but it was on the back side of the sun facing away from us, so we barely felt it," he said.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1erR1gv ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — Northerners thawing out from a bitter freeze may get rewarded with shimmering northern lights the next couple days.
In this Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2014 image made available by NASA, a giant cloud of solar particles, a coronal mass ejection, explodes off the sun, lower right, captured by the European Space Agency and NASA's... (Associated Press)
Federal space weather forecaster Joe Kunches said the sun shot out a strong solar flare late Tuesday, which should arrive at Earth early Thursday. It should shake up Earth's magnetic field and expand the Aurora Borealis south, possibly as far south as Colorado and central Illinois. He said best viewing would probably be Thursday evening, weather permitting.
The University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute predicts much of Canada and the northern fringes of the U.S. should see the northern lights. Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Seattle and Des Moines might see the shimmering colors low on the horizon.
The solar storm is already diverting airline flights around the poles and may disrupt GPS devices Thursday. ||||| NOAA / Space Weather Prediction Center
Tips on Viewing the Aurora
Being able to see the Aurora depends mainly on two factors, geomagnetic activity (the degree of disturbance of the earth's magnetic field at the time) and your geographic location. Further considerations are the weather at your location, and light pollution from city lights, full moon and so forth.
Geomagnetic Activity -- The Kp Index and the NOAA POES Auroral Activity Level
In order to know whether you have a chance of seeing an aurora, you need to know the level of geomagnetic activity at the time you are viewing. There is a simple index called Kp, a number from 0 to 9, which is used to refer to geomagnetic activity for a 3-hour period. Check the Space Weather Prediction Center's bar plot of Estimated Planetary Kp to see what has been happening during the past couple of days. This plot updates every 3 hours with the latest Kp value. The Space Weather Prediction Center's Solar-Geophysical Forecast for the next 24 hours (see SWPC's Today's Space Weather page) might also be of help. If the GEOPHYSICAL ACTIVITY FORECAST is for "storm" levels SWPC expects Kp indices of 5 or greater. Another indication of geomagnetic activity is the NOAA POES Auroral Activity Level, which is a number from 1 to 10. Further down on this page is a table that shows how Kp and the Auroral Activity Level compare with each other. Take a look at SWPC's POES Auroral Activity page to see the latest Activity Level. Moon phases can also be found on the web.
Location, location, location!
In general, you are more likely to see an aurora if you are at a high latitude, i.e. closer to the north (or south) pole. However, there is a catch to this. The earth's magnetic poles are not exactly in line with the geographic poles, so the latitude of interest would really be the magnetic latitude. Note that it is not necessary for the equatorward boundary of the aurora to reach all the way down to your magnetic latitude for you to see it. The aurora is easily visible even when its boundary is 4 or 5 degrees poleward of your location. So, how do you know what your magnetic latitude is? We have several methods to help you:
In the table below, find a city not far from where you live, and make a note of its magnetic latitude.
Select a city from the drop-down list to see it's magnetic latitude.
Read below about clickable Kp maps that will give you the magnetic latitude at a location on the globe.
North America Europe and Asia Southern Hemisphere City Magnetic Latitude* City Magnetic Latitude* City Magnetic Latitude* Atlanta 44.5 Athens 31.3 Adelaide 45.9 Boston 51.7 Berlin 48.3 Buenos Aires, Argentina 23.3 Chicago 52.2 Copenhagen 51.9 Capetown 41.5 Dallas 42.7 Edinburgh 53.0 Christchurch 49.9 Denver 48.3 London 47.5 Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina 32.1 Great Falls, MT 54.9 Madrid 33.3 Concepcion, Chile 23.2 Havana 34.1 Moscow 51.8 Dunedin 53.0 Los Angeles 39.8 Paris 44.2 Durban 38.8 Mexico City 29.1 Perm 53.8 East London 41.1 Minneapolis 55.1 Prague 45.5 Hobart 53.6 New York 50.6 Rome 35.5 Melbourne 48.4 Quebec City 56.2 St. Petersburg 56.1 Perth 43.9 San Francisco 42.5 Warsaw 46.7 Punta Arenas, Chile 38.6 Seattle 52.7 Beijing 34.1 Sydney 43.5 St. Louis 49.2 Irkutsk 47.0 Toronto 53.9 Seoul 31.0 Washington, DC 49.1 Tokyo 29.0 Winnipeg 59.5 Vladivostok 36.5
When geomagnetic activity is low, the aurora typically is located, in the hours around midnight, at about 67 degrees magnetic latitude*. As activity increases, the region of aurora expands toward the equator. When geomagnetic activity is very high, the aurora may be seen at mid and low latitude locations around the earth that would otherwise rarely experience the polar lights.
Kp maps of midnight equatorward boundaries
* Corrected magnetic latitude
**The Handbook of Geophysics and the Space Environment, Air Force Geophysics Laboratory, 1985
Putting It All Together -- Can I, or can't I, see the Aurora?
Once you know your magnetic latitude, and how high the Kp index needs to be for you to see the aurora at your magnetic latitude, it comes down to choosing a viewing time of high magnetic activity by frequently checking the Kp index and SWPC forecast. It could also be worthwhile to check the POES Auroral Activity page, which might or might not be more up-to-date than the Kp, depending on the time of the most recent polar pass of the POES satellite. (The table below will help you relate the POES Auroral Activity Level to the Kp index.) Of course, for you to see the aurora it will also have to be a clear night without interference from city lights or moonlight. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 9,885 |
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This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. ||||| A new appearance from Meryl Streep on The Graham Norton Show last Friday presents an intriguing paradox. Working from the basic premise that Meryl Streep is a corporeal embodiment of perfection — everyone knows this, it is common knowledge — how can a thinker reconcile that with her admission that she remains unsatisfied with one of her past performances? One could posit that this self-effacing comment serves only to reinforce how perfect Meryl Streep is by humanizing her and not putting her at the overbearing level of perfection that can grate on the public, but even in that case, this still presupposes the shocking and unheard-of presumption that Meryl Streep has given a bad performance. (The early days of Streep's legendary career are profiled in Vanity Fair’s new cover feature.)
Full ScreenPhotos: 1 / 8 Photos: Meryl Streep Before She Was a Star Photo: Photograph by Duane Michals; From the DC Moore Gallery, New York. Previous Next Meryl Streep in New York City’s Theater District,1978. Photograph by Duane Michals; From the DC Moore Gallery, New York. John Cazale and Streep during the filming of The Deer Hunter, 1977. From the Core Collection Production Files of The Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Justin Henry and Dustin Hoffman in 1979. Photograph by Brigitte Lacombe. Streep in the film’s climactic courtroom sequence. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Hoffman and Henry in the film. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Hoffman, Streep, director-screenwriter Robert Benton, and producer Stanley Jaffe with their Academy Awards, 1980 © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman while filming 1979’s Kramer vs. Kramer. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Streep in New York City, 1979. By Theo Westenberger/Theo Westenberger Archives, 1974-2008, Autry Museum, Los Angeles.
But which film is it that Her Streepness wishes she could go back and re-do? She confided in Norton that her performance in the 1981 film The French Lieutenant’s Wife doesn’t sit well with her, despite the wide acclaim and awards hardware heaped upon her for it. She earned one of her many Academy Award nominations for portraying dual roles in the diptych about couples conducting affairs, acting opposite Jeremy Irons in a Victorian costume drama as well as a modern-day filmed reenactment of the same story. She admitted, “I’m giving myself an out, but part of it was, the structure of it was sort of artificial because I was the actress playing ‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’. At the same time I was an American actress playing a British woman.”
“I didn’t feel I was living it,” she said. “You always want to do something better after the fact.”
That perfectionist spirit is surely what’s driven her to continue producing challenging, mature work year in and year out. And ain’t that just the truth about wishing you could go back and erase all your mistakes. Just a little profound truth from Meryl Streep for a Sunday afternoon. | – Even actors universally regarded as brilliant have off days: During an appearance on Britain's Graham Norton Show Friday picked up by Vanity Fair, Meryl Streep revealed that there is one performance she's not entirely happy with. "It was The French Lieutenant's Woman," Streep said, noting that she felt her performance in the 1981 film was too obviously "an act," with her, an American actress, clearly playing the role as opposed to really inhabiting the role. "I didn't feel like I was living it," she said. "You always want to do something better after the fact." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The interactive transcript could not be loaded.
Rating is available when the video has been rented.
This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. ||||| A new appearance from Meryl Streep on The Graham Norton Show last Friday presents an intriguing paradox. Working from the basic premise that Meryl Streep is a corporeal embodiment of perfection — everyone knows this, it is common knowledge — how can a thinker reconcile that with her admission that she remains unsatisfied with one of her past performances? One could posit that this self-effacing comment serves only to reinforce how perfect Meryl Streep is by humanizing her and not putting her at the overbearing level of perfection that can grate on the public, but even in that case, this still presupposes the shocking and unheard-of presumption that Meryl Streep has given a bad performance. (The early days of Streep's legendary career are profiled in Vanity Fair’s new cover feature.)
Full ScreenPhotos: 1 / 8 Photos: Meryl Streep Before She Was a Star Photo: Photograph by Duane Michals; From the DC Moore Gallery, New York. Previous Next Meryl Streep in New York City’s Theater District,1978. Photograph by Duane Michals; From the DC Moore Gallery, New York. John Cazale and Streep during the filming of The Deer Hunter, 1977. From the Core Collection Production Files of The Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Justin Henry and Dustin Hoffman in 1979. Photograph by Brigitte Lacombe. Streep in the film’s climactic courtroom sequence. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Hoffman and Henry in the film. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Hoffman, Streep, director-screenwriter Robert Benton, and producer Stanley Jaffe with their Academy Awards, 1980 © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman while filming 1979’s Kramer vs. Kramer. © Columbia Pictures/Photofest. Streep in New York City, 1979. By Theo Westenberger/Theo Westenberger Archives, 1974-2008, Autry Museum, Los Angeles.
But which film is it that Her Streepness wishes she could go back and re-do? She confided in Norton that her performance in the 1981 film The French Lieutenant’s Wife doesn’t sit well with her, despite the wide acclaim and awards hardware heaped upon her for it. She earned one of her many Academy Award nominations for portraying dual roles in the diptych about couples conducting affairs, acting opposite Jeremy Irons in a Victorian costume drama as well as a modern-day filmed reenactment of the same story. She admitted, “I’m giving myself an out, but part of it was, the structure of it was sort of artificial because I was the actress playing ‘The French Lieutenant’s Woman’. At the same time I was an American actress playing a British woman.”
“I didn’t feel I was living it,” she said. “You always want to do something better after the fact.”
That perfectionist spirit is surely what’s driven her to continue producing challenging, mature work year in and year out. And ain’t that just the truth about wishing you could go back and erase all your mistakes. Just a little profound truth from Meryl Streep for a Sunday afternoon. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 30,039 |
Television Reviews
The Wanda Sykes Show -- TV Review
"The Wanda Sykes Show"
Bottom Line: Political humor with diminishing returns.
Is "The Wanda Sykes Show" an uproarious, biting and insightful look at politics and the events of the previous week? Yes and no. Yes in the first half-hour and no in the second.Picking up from where she left off at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in May (where she hoped for the failure of Rush Limbaugh's kidneys in response to his hope for the failure of Obama's presidency), Sykes presented a spirited and well-crafted defense of the new administration.Though it lacked some of the subtle wit and sophistication found on Jon Stewart's "Daily Show," it nonetheless provided a worthwhile perspective on where American is today compared to where it was at the end of the Bush presidency.The political riff was preceded by an ineffective jab at shrill conservative Ann Coulter. In a taped piece, Coulter was shown making pounding noises each time she batted her eyelashes. Given the sheer volume of Coulter's specious and outrageous comments, it's hard to believe the show's writers thought she would be most vulnerable to eyebrow humor.In a segment called "Wanderama," Sykes touched on the meaning, or lack thereof, of last week's scattered elections, the financial distress of Nicolas Cage and Sen. Joseph Lieberman's threat to filibuster health reform in the Senate. On a lighter -- but funnier -- note, Sykes threw in a taped piece on possible ways the adult industry could be more environmentally conscious.It was, overall, a smart start, though it had a few potholes, as well. The biggest of these was the inclusion of Sykes' friend and comic Keith Robinson as a quasi-sidekick. In that capacity, he was about as useful as an echo chamber.The second half featured Sykes with a panel comprised of Daryl Chill Mitchell (from Fox's "Brothers"), Mary Lynn Rajskub (from Fox's "24") and Phil Keoghan (from CBS' "The Amazing Race"). On his HBO show, Bill Maher often elicits pointed and thought-provoking comments from this type of panel. Sykes never tried.Guests were asked to weigh in on a news story that said parents are replacing spankings with screaming. When that topic was beyond exhausted, panelists commented on the idea of a space hotel in 2012. You could have found more insight on "Hollywood Squares."The show ended with the panel taking part in a segment called "Inappropriate Games." In this week's game, "Know Your Asian," panelists guessed the correct Asian country of birth for Yankee slugger Hideki Matsui and actress Ming Na. Inappropriate? Not as much as it was insipid. ||||| Wanda Sykes is terrific: at ease and bawdy; The Wanda Sykes Show is awkward: self-conscious and constrained.
At least, that’s what last night’s premiere episode was like. Sykes delivered a scattershot, eight-minute opening monologue that tried to establish her rebel credentials by attacking the network on which she appears: “Let me be the first person on Fox not to pick on President Obama.” (Intentionally confusing the Fox entertainment network with the Fox News Channel didn’t help the weakness of the joke.)
A lot of pro-Obama jokes followed, which fit the definition of the cliche, “preaching to the choir”: her studio audience clapped dutifully at every slap at targets like Rush Limbaugh and George W. Bush, but they didn’t really laugh very hard. Sykes also made the mistake that The Jay Leno Show does too frequently: illustrating punchlines with big pictures behind the comedian. That’s just beating an already-dead horse.
Speaking of horse cliches, Sykes did an out-of-the-studio sketch about buying environmentally-sound sex-toys. Sykes invented a “solar-powered vibrator” and “reuseable condoms,” saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him use a reuseable condom.”
The final segment was a panel of guests consisting of 24‘s Mary Lynn Rajskub, Brothers‘ Daryl “Chill” Mitchell, and Amazing Race host Phil Keoghan. Unlike Bill Maher or Chelsea Handler’s similar panels, these guests were permitted to sip alcoholic beverages, but the martinis and wine did help the quality of the humor. Ostensibly playing off events in the news, topics included rich people using their wealth to travel in outer space. Mitchell’s comment was that if he had that kind of money, he wouldn’t leave Earth’s orbit, he’d “spend it on weed and hookers.”
One should never count out Wanda Sykes; she’s too talented. But she’s got to get away from the way her monologue looks (so choppily edited) and sounds (even if that was real laughter, some of it sounded “enhanced” with some of the canned stuff). And find better topics for her boozy panel discussions. A debate on “Is screaming the new spanking?” just won’t cut it at 11 p.m. on Saturday nights.
Did you watch the first Wanda Sykes Show? What did you think? | – Viewers expecting something fresh and new out of The Wanda Sykes Show—as the unlikely combination of Fox and an African-American lesbian might seem to promise—were sorely disappointed, writes Ken Tucker. The comedian and actor "is terrific: at ease and bawdy," he writes for Entertainment Weekly. But last night's premiere was "awkward: self-conscious and constrained." The first half of the hour-long show sat better with Barry Garron of the Hollywood Reporter. He found the politically tinged late-night offering "a smart start, though it had a few potholes." As for the second half, a boozy panel discussion of not-particularly-topical topics, "You could have found more insight on Hollywood Squares." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Television Reviews
The Wanda Sykes Show -- TV Review
"The Wanda Sykes Show"
Bottom Line: Political humor with diminishing returns.
Is "The Wanda Sykes Show" an uproarious, biting and insightful look at politics and the events of the previous week? Yes and no. Yes in the first half-hour and no in the second.Picking up from where she left off at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in May (where she hoped for the failure of Rush Limbaugh's kidneys in response to his hope for the failure of Obama's presidency), Sykes presented a spirited and well-crafted defense of the new administration.Though it lacked some of the subtle wit and sophistication found on Jon Stewart's "Daily Show," it nonetheless provided a worthwhile perspective on where American is today compared to where it was at the end of the Bush presidency.The political riff was preceded by an ineffective jab at shrill conservative Ann Coulter. In a taped piece, Coulter was shown making pounding noises each time she batted her eyelashes. Given the sheer volume of Coulter's specious and outrageous comments, it's hard to believe the show's writers thought she would be most vulnerable to eyebrow humor.In a segment called "Wanderama," Sykes touched on the meaning, or lack thereof, of last week's scattered elections, the financial distress of Nicolas Cage and Sen. Joseph Lieberman's threat to filibuster health reform in the Senate. On a lighter -- but funnier -- note, Sykes threw in a taped piece on possible ways the adult industry could be more environmentally conscious.It was, overall, a smart start, though it had a few potholes, as well. The biggest of these was the inclusion of Sykes' friend and comic Keith Robinson as a quasi-sidekick. In that capacity, he was about as useful as an echo chamber.The second half featured Sykes with a panel comprised of Daryl Chill Mitchell (from Fox's "Brothers"), Mary Lynn Rajskub (from Fox's "24") and Phil Keoghan (from CBS' "The Amazing Race"). On his HBO show, Bill Maher often elicits pointed and thought-provoking comments from this type of panel. Sykes never tried.Guests were asked to weigh in on a news story that said parents are replacing spankings with screaming. When that topic was beyond exhausted, panelists commented on the idea of a space hotel in 2012. You could have found more insight on "Hollywood Squares."The show ended with the panel taking part in a segment called "Inappropriate Games." In this week's game, "Know Your Asian," panelists guessed the correct Asian country of birth for Yankee slugger Hideki Matsui and actress Ming Na. Inappropriate? Not as much as it was insipid. ||||| Wanda Sykes is terrific: at ease and bawdy; The Wanda Sykes Show is awkward: self-conscious and constrained.
At least, that’s what last night’s premiere episode was like. Sykes delivered a scattershot, eight-minute opening monologue that tried to establish her rebel credentials by attacking the network on which she appears: “Let me be the first person on Fox not to pick on President Obama.” (Intentionally confusing the Fox entertainment network with the Fox News Channel didn’t help the weakness of the joke.)
A lot of pro-Obama jokes followed, which fit the definition of the cliche, “preaching to the choir”: her studio audience clapped dutifully at every slap at targets like Rush Limbaugh and George W. Bush, but they didn’t really laugh very hard. Sykes also made the mistake that The Jay Leno Show does too frequently: illustrating punchlines with big pictures behind the comedian. That’s just beating an already-dead horse.
Speaking of horse cliches, Sykes did an out-of-the-studio sketch about buying environmentally-sound sex-toys. Sykes invented a “solar-powered vibrator” and “reuseable condoms,” saying, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him use a reuseable condom.”
The final segment was a panel of guests consisting of 24‘s Mary Lynn Rajskub, Brothers‘ Daryl “Chill” Mitchell, and Amazing Race host Phil Keoghan. Unlike Bill Maher or Chelsea Handler’s similar panels, these guests were permitted to sip alcoholic beverages, but the martinis and wine did help the quality of the humor. Ostensibly playing off events in the news, topics included rich people using their wealth to travel in outer space. Mitchell’s comment was that if he had that kind of money, he wouldn’t leave Earth’s orbit, he’d “spend it on weed and hookers.”
One should never count out Wanda Sykes; she’s too talented. But she’s got to get away from the way her monologue looks (so choppily edited) and sounds (even if that was real laughter, some of it sounded “enhanced” with some of the canned stuff). And find better topics for her boozy panel discussions. A debate on “Is screaming the new spanking?” just won’t cut it at 11 p.m. on Saturday nights.
Did you watch the first Wanda Sykes Show? What did you think? | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 27,501 |
Thank you for your contribution to the restoration of the Cathedral. The Friends of Notre-Dame is a 501c3 public charity; all gifts are tax deductible in the United States. ||||| On an average summer day in Paris, about 50,000 tourists pass through Notre Dame cathedral, one of the finest buildings of the medieval era still standing. Visitors from dozens of countries gaze up at the spectacular stained-glass windows, tiptoe through its vast choir and nave and whisper in awe at the centuries-old sculptures and paintings that line the walls.
Notre Dame, which looms over the capital from an island in the center of the city, is a constant reminder of Paris’ history. It has seen more than its share of epic dramas, including the French Revolution and two world wars. But now there is another challenge. Some 854 years after construction began, one of Europe’s most visited sites, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weather have worn away at the stone. The fumes from decades of gridlock have only worsened the damage. “Pollution is the biggest culprit,” says Philippe Villeneuve, architect in chief of historic monuments in France. “We need to replace the ruined stones. We need to replace the joints with traditional materials. This is going to be extensive.”
It will be expensive too, and it’s not at all clear who is prepared to foot the bill. Under France’s strict secular laws, the government owns the cathedral, and the Catholic archdiocese of Paris uses it permanently for free. The priests for years believed the government should pay for repairs, since it owned the building. But under the terms of the government’s agreement, the archdiocese is responsible for Notre Dame’s upkeep, with the Ministry of Culture giving it about €2 million ($2.28 million) a year for that purpose. Staff say that money covers only basic repairs, far short of what is needed. Without a serious injection of cash, some believe, the building will not be safe for visitors in the future. Now the archdiocese is seeking help to save Notre Dame from yielding to the ravages of time.
Many of Notre Dame's gargoyles, which act as rain spouts, have corroded and been replaced with PVC tubes, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME
The architects of Notre Dame knew all too well about lengthy building work; it took more than a century to build the cathedral, beginning in 1163. It was periodically vandalized over the turbulent centuries that followed. Rioting Huguenots damaged parts of the building they believed to be idolatrous in the mid–16th century. During the French Revolution, mobs of people carted off or smashed some of its paintings and statues. The hated royalty suffered the brunt of the carnage, with crowds destroying 28 statues of monarchs from the building’s Gallery of Kings. After that, Notre Dame languished in neglect.
Then in 1831 came Victor Hugo’s book The Hunchback of Notre Dame, whose hero was the disfigured bell ringer Quasimodo. In it, France’s beloved writer raised alarm about the building’s decay, describing “mutilations, amputations, dislocations of the joints.” “Beside each wrinkle on the face of this old queen of our cathedrals,” he wrote, “you will find a scar.”
But for Notre Dame, Hugo’s book sparked fresh problems. The best seller inspired a restoration in 1844, which used low-quality stone and even cement, since France at the time could not produce the quantities of high-grade material that the job required.
Stonework has fallen from Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Low-quality stone and cement were used in a restoration in 1844. Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though some of the painstaking medieval construction is in better shape). Vincent Fournier for TIME
Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though the medieval construction is mostly in better shape). One blazing hot day in early July, a staff member unlocked an old door off the choir and led TIME up a stone spiral staircase and out onto the roof, high above the crowds. Here, the site seemed not spiritually uplifting but distressing. Chunks of limestone lay on the ground, having fallen from the upper part of the chevet, or the eastern end of the Gothic church. One small piece had a clean slice down one side, showing how recently it had fallen. Two sections of a wall were missing, propped up with wood. And the features of Notre Dame’s famous gargoyles looked as worn away as the face of Voldemort. “They are like ice cream in the sun, melting,” says Michel Picaud, head of the nonprofit Friends of Notre Dame de Paris, looking up at them.
What is more, some fear the problem is getting worse. “The damage can only accelerate,” says Andrew Tallon, an associate professor of art at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and an expert on Gothic architecture. Having carefully studied the damage, he says the restoration work is urgent. If the cathedral is left alone, its structural integrity could be at risk. “The flying buttresses, if they are not in place, the choir could come down,” he says. “The more you wait, the more you need to take down and replace.”
The church was not fully aware of the extent of the problem, say those at Notre Dame. Until a few years ago, the government effectively made the private areas off-limits. “There used to be about 200 old keys, so it was very, very difficult,” says André Finot, a spokesman for Notre Dame. Eventually, the government standardized the keys and allowed its tenants to climb the hidden stone staircases and access the upper levels. “We were shocked when we got up there,” Finot says.
Some 854 years after construction began, Europe's most visited site, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weathering have worn away at the stone with pollution being the biggest culprit, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME
The government hasn’t completely ignored the cathedral’s plight. In 2012, its bells were replaced to mark its 850th birthday. This year, authorities budgeted an extra €6 million ($6.84 million) to restore the spire. Water damage to the spire’s covering is threatening the wood-timber roof, which the medieval craftsmen built using 5,000 oak trees. The restoration will begin in the fall. But a Ministry of Culture official says Notre Dame should not expect regular help of this kind. To the government, the cathedral is just one of many old buildings in need of care. “France has thousands of monuments,” says the official, who was not authorized to speak to the media. Among them, Notre Dame is not necessarily the most pressing case. “It will not fall down,” she says.
Still, there is plenty of alarm in the church. Finally accepting that the government would not pay to restore the cathedral, the archdiocese launched Friends of Notre Dame in October to appeal for help. It hopes to raise €100 million ($114 million) in the next five to 10 years. “There is no part of the building untouched by the irreparable loss of sculptural and decorative elements, let alone the alarming deterioration of structural elements,” the organization says on its website. The cathedral, it says, “is in desperate need of attention.”
Picaud, a retired software executive who heads the fundraising effort, says he is planning a marketing drive in Paris in November. But he believes the bulk of the money will come not from the French but from Americans, millions of whom know Notre Dame and who are less hesitant than the French about giving money to the church. “People don’t want to give money because of laïcité,” says Finot, referring to the strict secularism that infuses French law. “So our message is, This is not about religion. It is about our heritage. Notre Dame is open to Muslims, and everyone.” Finot and Picaud expect to raise most of the funds through large donations and are discussing with government officials whether to acknowledge that generosity with a plaque at Notre Dame.
In April, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service granted Friends of Notre Dame tax-free status, and the organization is planning to hold a five-city American road show in spring 2018 in an all-out push to raise the money. By the time serious renovation work begins–perhaps sometime before the end of this decade–the damage could be worse than it is today. But at Notre Dame, history is counted not in years but in centuries. “We hope it will last forever,” Picaud says. “But it cannot last forever without this renovation.”
This appears in the August 07, 2017 issue of TIME. ||||| An integral and defining part of the Paris landscape, the world famous Gothic cathedral has weathered a revolution, two world wars and a topless feminist stunt ...and she's showing signs of the strain.
Vital repair work needs to be carried out to fix, among other things, a toppling gargoyle, cracks on the facade and the support structure for the church's famed stained glass windows. The list goes on...and on.
While an appeal for donations has already been launched in France, a foundation set up by the Archbishop of Paris last year -- Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris -- is now specifically targeting American donors.
After the foundation received charity status at beginning of May from the American tax authorities, it can now receive untaxed donations and so the project is well and truly underway.
The cathedral is looking for a total of around €150 million for repairs while the government currently donates €2 million a year.
Senior Advisor Fundraising for Friends of Notre-Dame, Michel Picaud told The Local that turning to Americans for financial help was an obvious move given the amount of interest in the cathedral from across the pond.
"It was put it to us that Notre-Dame is a world monument and we could look to raise money for its repair from outside of France," Picaud said.
"We receive many requests from Americans wanting to know if there is a channel they can use to donate," he said. "The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city."
Friends of Notre-Dame will hold fundraising events in Paris as well as go on a US trip next spring, when it will visit Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington, DC in an attempt to raise funds.
When Paris was liberated from occupying forces by French and American troops, the celebrations took place in front of Notre Dame, and today it is a stone's throw from legendary English bookshop Shakespeare and Company.
The good news for Notre-Dame is that Americans have a history of stepping in to save historic churches in France. In 2013, THe Local reported on the story of a Texas oilman donated $100,000 to fix the roof of a 13th-century church in the southwestern French town of Aurignac.
To donate to the renovations and find out more about Friends of Notre-Dame, you can visit their website here. ||||| Fundraising campaign launched to restore Paris landmark amid fears that parts of its exterior could fall
The archbishop of Paris is on a €100m fundraising drive to save the crumbling gargoyles and gothic arches of Notre Dame cathedral.
Each year up to 14 million people visit the 12th-century Paris landmark on an island in the Seine river. Building began about 850 years ago, but pollution and the passing of time have chipped off large chunks of stone.
“If we don’t do these restoration works, we’ll risk seeing parts of the exterior structure begin to fall. This is a very serious risk,” said Michel Picaud, president of the Friends of Notre Dame charity set up by the archbishop.
Church officials, who have created what they are calling a “stone cemetery” from fallen masonry, say the cathedral remains safe to visit.
Entry is free and the French state, which owns the building, devotes €2m (£1.9m) a year to repairs. But that is not enough to embark on major restoration works, the last of which were carried out during the 1800s, officials at the cathedral and charity said.
Notre Dame has long drawn tourists from around the world. It is most famous in popular culture as the setting for 19th-century author Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and films of the same name including the 1939 classic with Charles Laughton and the 1996 Disney musical animation.
The latter in particular raised the cathedral’s profile for modern-day tourists from across the world.
“It’s the movie for me, I just think of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and the book as well. After reading that book I actually really wanted to come see it,” said American Claire Huber as she visited the cathedral.
Church authorities hope the cathedral’s worldwide fame will attract donors, particularly from the US.
“Gargoyles are what people want to see when they come to Paris. If there are no more gargoyles, what will they see?” said Andre Finot, Notre Dame’s communications chief. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. | – Attention, Americans: Notre Dame needs your help. A $120 million fundraising drive is underway to save the Gothic cathedral's famous façade and sneering gargoyles. The target audience: the 14 million visitors who flock to the 850-year-old landmark each year, a huge chunk of them from the US. "The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city," Michel Picard, the head of the Friends of Notre Dame foundation, told the Local in June. The foundation, created last year by the archbishop of Paris, gained tax-exempt status in the US in May, and the charity is planning a fundraising trip next spring to several US cities, including Boston, Chicago, and LA. The French government contributes about $2.4 million annually for the upkeep of the double-towered edifice, an amount that can't fund the major restoration needed. A "stone cemetery" of toppled masonry is a testament to the "serious risk" the cathedral is facing if repairs don't happen soon to the worn and degraded exterior, Picard tells Reuters. Otherwise, "we’ll risk seeing parts of the exterior structure begin to fall," he says. Time looks at two reasons for the deterioration: Traffic-related "pollution is the biggest culprit," per the architect in chief of historic monuments in France. The other is a bit counter-intuitive: Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame drew attention to the building's then-deteriorating condition and spurred an 1844 restoration—but low-quality materials were used that haven't withstood the test of time. You can donate here. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Thank you for your contribution to the restoration of the Cathedral. The Friends of Notre-Dame is a 501c3 public charity; all gifts are tax deductible in the United States. ||||| On an average summer day in Paris, about 50,000 tourists pass through Notre Dame cathedral, one of the finest buildings of the medieval era still standing. Visitors from dozens of countries gaze up at the spectacular stained-glass windows, tiptoe through its vast choir and nave and whisper in awe at the centuries-old sculptures and paintings that line the walls.
Notre Dame, which looms over the capital from an island in the center of the city, is a constant reminder of Paris’ history. It has seen more than its share of epic dramas, including the French Revolution and two world wars. But now there is another challenge. Some 854 years after construction began, one of Europe’s most visited sites, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weather have worn away at the stone. The fumes from decades of gridlock have only worsened the damage. “Pollution is the biggest culprit,” says Philippe Villeneuve, architect in chief of historic monuments in France. “We need to replace the ruined stones. We need to replace the joints with traditional materials. This is going to be extensive.”
It will be expensive too, and it’s not at all clear who is prepared to foot the bill. Under France’s strict secular laws, the government owns the cathedral, and the Catholic archdiocese of Paris uses it permanently for free. The priests for years believed the government should pay for repairs, since it owned the building. But under the terms of the government’s agreement, the archdiocese is responsible for Notre Dame’s upkeep, with the Ministry of Culture giving it about €2 million ($2.28 million) a year for that purpose. Staff say that money covers only basic repairs, far short of what is needed. Without a serious injection of cash, some believe, the building will not be safe for visitors in the future. Now the archdiocese is seeking help to save Notre Dame from yielding to the ravages of time.
Many of Notre Dame's gargoyles, which act as rain spouts, have corroded and been replaced with PVC tubes, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME
The architects of Notre Dame knew all too well about lengthy building work; it took more than a century to build the cathedral, beginning in 1163. It was periodically vandalized over the turbulent centuries that followed. Rioting Huguenots damaged parts of the building they believed to be idolatrous in the mid–16th century. During the French Revolution, mobs of people carted off or smashed some of its paintings and statues. The hated royalty suffered the brunt of the carnage, with crowds destroying 28 statues of monarchs from the building’s Gallery of Kings. After that, Notre Dame languished in neglect.
Then in 1831 came Victor Hugo’s book The Hunchback of Notre Dame, whose hero was the disfigured bell ringer Quasimodo. In it, France’s beloved writer raised alarm about the building’s decay, describing “mutilations, amputations, dislocations of the joints.” “Beside each wrinkle on the face of this old queen of our cathedrals,” he wrote, “you will find a scar.”
But for Notre Dame, Hugo’s book sparked fresh problems. The best seller inspired a restoration in 1844, which used low-quality stone and even cement, since France at the time could not produce the quantities of high-grade material that the job required.
Stonework has fallen from Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Low-quality stone and cement were used in a restoration in 1844. Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though some of the painstaking medieval construction is in better shape). Vincent Fournier for TIME
Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though the medieval construction is mostly in better shape). One blazing hot day in early July, a staff member unlocked an old door off the choir and led TIME up a stone spiral staircase and out onto the roof, high above the crowds. Here, the site seemed not spiritually uplifting but distressing. Chunks of limestone lay on the ground, having fallen from the upper part of the chevet, or the eastern end of the Gothic church. One small piece had a clean slice down one side, showing how recently it had fallen. Two sections of a wall were missing, propped up with wood. And the features of Notre Dame’s famous gargoyles looked as worn away as the face of Voldemort. “They are like ice cream in the sun, melting,” says Michel Picaud, head of the nonprofit Friends of Notre Dame de Paris, looking up at them.
What is more, some fear the problem is getting worse. “The damage can only accelerate,” says Andrew Tallon, an associate professor of art at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and an expert on Gothic architecture. Having carefully studied the damage, he says the restoration work is urgent. If the cathedral is left alone, its structural integrity could be at risk. “The flying buttresses, if they are not in place, the choir could come down,” he says. “The more you wait, the more you need to take down and replace.”
The church was not fully aware of the extent of the problem, say those at Notre Dame. Until a few years ago, the government effectively made the private areas off-limits. “There used to be about 200 old keys, so it was very, very difficult,” says André Finot, a spokesman for Notre Dame. Eventually, the government standardized the keys and allowed its tenants to climb the hidden stone staircases and access the upper levels. “We were shocked when we got up there,” Finot says.
Some 854 years after construction began, Europe's most visited site, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weathering have worn away at the stone with pollution being the biggest culprit, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME
The government hasn’t completely ignored the cathedral’s plight. In 2012, its bells were replaced to mark its 850th birthday. This year, authorities budgeted an extra €6 million ($6.84 million) to restore the spire. Water damage to the spire’s covering is threatening the wood-timber roof, which the medieval craftsmen built using 5,000 oak trees. The restoration will begin in the fall. But a Ministry of Culture official says Notre Dame should not expect regular help of this kind. To the government, the cathedral is just one of many old buildings in need of care. “France has thousands of monuments,” says the official, who was not authorized to speak to the media. Among them, Notre Dame is not necessarily the most pressing case. “It will not fall down,” she says.
Still, there is plenty of alarm in the church. Finally accepting that the government would not pay to restore the cathedral, the archdiocese launched Friends of Notre Dame in October to appeal for help. It hopes to raise €100 million ($114 million) in the next five to 10 years. “There is no part of the building untouched by the irreparable loss of sculptural and decorative elements, let alone the alarming deterioration of structural elements,” the organization says on its website. The cathedral, it says, “is in desperate need of attention.”
Picaud, a retired software executive who heads the fundraising effort, says he is planning a marketing drive in Paris in November. But he believes the bulk of the money will come not from the French but from Americans, millions of whom know Notre Dame and who are less hesitant than the French about giving money to the church. “People don’t want to give money because of laïcité,” says Finot, referring to the strict secularism that infuses French law. “So our message is, This is not about religion. It is about our heritage. Notre Dame is open to Muslims, and everyone.” Finot and Picaud expect to raise most of the funds through large donations and are discussing with government officials whether to acknowledge that generosity with a plaque at Notre Dame.
In April, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service granted Friends of Notre Dame tax-free status, and the organization is planning to hold a five-city American road show in spring 2018 in an all-out push to raise the money. By the time serious renovation work begins–perhaps sometime before the end of this decade–the damage could be worse than it is today. But at Notre Dame, history is counted not in years but in centuries. “We hope it will last forever,” Picaud says. “But it cannot last forever without this renovation.”
This appears in the August 07, 2017 issue of TIME. ||||| An integral and defining part of the Paris landscape, the world famous Gothic cathedral has weathered a revolution, two world wars and a topless feminist stunt ...and she's showing signs of the strain.
Vital repair work needs to be carried out to fix, among other things, a toppling gargoyle, cracks on the facade and the support structure for the church's famed stained glass windows. The list goes on...and on.
While an appeal for donations has already been launched in France, a foundation set up by the Archbishop of Paris last year -- Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris -- is now specifically targeting American donors.
After the foundation received charity status at beginning of May from the American tax authorities, it can now receive untaxed donations and so the project is well and truly underway.
The cathedral is looking for a total of around €150 million for repairs while the government currently donates €2 million a year.
Senior Advisor Fundraising for Friends of Notre-Dame, Michel Picaud told The Local that turning to Americans for financial help was an obvious move given the amount of interest in the cathedral from across the pond.
"It was put it to us that Notre-Dame is a world monument and we could look to raise money for its repair from outside of France," Picaud said.
"We receive many requests from Americans wanting to know if there is a channel they can use to donate," he said. "The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city."
Friends of Notre-Dame will hold fundraising events in Paris as well as go on a US trip next spring, when it will visit Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington, DC in an attempt to raise funds.
When Paris was liberated from occupying forces by French and American troops, the celebrations took place in front of Notre Dame, and today it is a stone's throw from legendary English bookshop Shakespeare and Company.
The good news for Notre-Dame is that Americans have a history of stepping in to save historic churches in France. In 2013, THe Local reported on the story of a Texas oilman donated $100,000 to fix the roof of a 13th-century church in the southwestern French town of Aurignac.
To donate to the renovations and find out more about Friends of Notre-Dame, you can visit their website here. ||||| Fundraising campaign launched to restore Paris landmark amid fears that parts of its exterior could fall
The archbishop of Paris is on a €100m fundraising drive to save the crumbling gargoyles and gothic arches of Notre Dame cathedral.
Each year up to 14 million people visit the 12th-century Paris landmark on an island in the Seine river. Building began about 850 years ago, but pollution and the passing of time have chipped off large chunks of stone.
“If we don’t do these restoration works, we’ll risk seeing parts of the exterior structure begin to fall. This is a very serious risk,” said Michel Picaud, president of the Friends of Notre Dame charity set up by the archbishop.
Church officials, who have created what they are calling a “stone cemetery” from fallen masonry, say the cathedral remains safe to visit.
Entry is free and the French state, which owns the building, devotes €2m (£1.9m) a year to repairs. But that is not enough to embark on major restoration works, the last of which were carried out during the 1800s, officials at the cathedral and charity said.
Notre Dame has long drawn tourists from around the world. It is most famous in popular culture as the setting for 19th-century author Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and films of the same name including the 1939 classic with Charles Laughton and the 1996 Disney musical animation.
The latter in particular raised the cathedral’s profile for modern-day tourists from across the world.
“It’s the movie for me, I just think of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and the book as well. After reading that book I actually really wanted to come see it,” said American Claire Huber as she visited the cathedral.
Church authorities hope the cathedral’s worldwide fame will attract donors, particularly from the US.
“Gargoyles are what people want to see when they come to Paris. If there are no more gargoyles, what will they see?” said Andre Finot, Notre Dame’s communications chief. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,160 |
A mother convicted of murder after her foster child died of salt poisoning has been freed on bail, allowing her to spend Christmas with her family after seven years in prison.
There were hugs and tears in a south Texas courtroom on Tuesday when a judge set bail of $50,000 (£32,000) for Hannah Overton, who has maintained her innocence since she was found culpable in the death of a four-year-old boy. Her 2007 trial attracted nationwide attention and prompted claims that she was wrongfully convicted.
Members of Overton’s church were organising payment of the bail amount, according to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, which first reported the hearing’s outcome. The prosecution had reportedly sought a $250,000 bond.
The judge, Mario Ramirez Jr, did not set a restriction limiting Overton’s contact with her children after hearing several hours of testimony from witnesses who praised her character.
In prison she was allowed to see her family once a month but not make physical contact. Ramirez ordered those involved in the case not to speak to the media.
Overton’s conviction for capital murder was overturned in September by the Texas court of criminal appeals, which found that the defence’s failure to present testimony from a sodium poisoning expert seriously undermined the original trial’s outcome.
Her family’s joy at the news was tempered when in response, rather than seek a lesser charge or dismiss the case, the Nueces County district attorney, Mark Skurka, opted to prosecute again on the same charge. A trial is expected to take place next year.
“No jury, no trial judge and no appellate court has ever found that defendant Hannah Overton is not responsible for the death of Andrew Burd,” Skurka said in October.
Andrew had been living in Corpus Christi with Hannah and Larry Overton pending formal completion of his adoption by the pair, a devout Christian couple with no prior criminal history. The boy, who had behavioural problems, suddenly developed breathing difficulties, fell into a coma and died in hospital in October 2006.
Prosecutors alleged the Overtons were culpable for his death, arguing at a televised trial that Hannah was an ill-tempered parent who disciplined the child for bad behaviour by fatally force-feeding him with spicy seasoning.
Larry Overton pleaded no contest to criminally negligent homicide so that he could avoid prison and take care of their five children. Hannah, who at the time of the boy’s death was aged 29 and was six months pregnant, was convicted of capital murder and given life without parole.
A jury found her guilty of murder “by omission” on the basis that she had supposedly failed to seek adequate medical help for the child, even though the couple took him to an urgent care clinic.
Her original defence team did not use testimony from Dr Michael Moritz, a salt intoxication expert who concluded that Overton did not poison Andrew, a compulsive eater who may have had an undiagnosed eating disorder.
Moritz also said that early salt poisoning symptoms are often mild and would not necessarily give anyone reason to suspect a victim is seriously ill. ||||| A Texas mom convicted of capital murder in her foster son's sodium poisoning death was released Tuesday after seven years in prison, but her freedom may not last.
A Nueces County judge granted Hannah Overton's bond of $50,000, and she was released from the county jail, ABC News reports. The decision comes more than two months after a Texas appellate court granted Overton a new trial and overturned her life sentence.
There's no date set for the new trial in the death of 4-year-old Andrew Burd -- a foster child who Overton and her husband Larry were adopting -- but Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka vowed to try her again on capital murder charges.
Overton, a 37-year-old mother of five from Corpus Christi, reveled in the small victory as she was released Tuesday afternoon.
"I just want to hug my kids," she told ABC News. "I know we’ll make up for it, but I don’t know [that] we’ll be able to catch up for seven years. That’s-- it’s gone, and taken from us."
Overton, who was found guilty of capital murder in 2007, maintains her innocence, and her current attorney says Burd's death was accidental. The conviction -- which carried an automatic life sentence -- came after Burd was found dead in the family's kitchen pantry.
At trial, prosecutors claimed that Overton fed the child a mixture of water and Cajun seasoning, which led to sodium poisoning, according to the Corpus Christi Caller Times. But she wasn't convicted for force-feeding Burd salt -- she was found guilty of neglecting to seek help quickly enough.
In September, an appellate court found that Overton deserved a new trial because her attorneys gave ineffective counsel. Three judges issued a concurring opinion, stating that the case proceedings were "problematic from the beginning."
"Because the defense counsel’s performance fell below a reasonable standard and there is a reasonable probability that the outcome of [the] trial would have been different but for that performance, we grant relief," the court wrote.
While she awaits her new trial, Overton plans on spending Christmas with the family she only saw behind Plexiglass, once per month for the past seven years, the Caller Times reports.
"The outcome of this case still keeps me up at night after seven years," said Dr. Alex Rotta, a pediatrician who treated Burd but was never called to the stand to testify. "I believe Mrs. Overton has more than served the punishment for what was at worst child endangerment or involuntary manslaughter but made into capital murder due to a botched trial and a profoundly ineffective counsel."
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||||| Hannah Overton, who has spent seven years in a Texas prison for the murder of a young foster child she says she didn't commit, has finally won her freedom and will be spending this Christmas with her family.
A Nueces County judge granted Overton's bond at a hearing Tuesday afternoon for $50,000 and she was released from the county jail.
The district attorney of Nueces County, Mark Skurka, has already announced his intention to try Overton again on capital murder charges. That trial currently has no date set.
Her release, pending a new trial, comes over two months after the highest appellate court in Texas overturned her murder conviction and life sentence for the death of 4-year-old Andrew Burd, a foster child Overton and her husband, Larry, were in the process of adopting.
Overton sat down with ABC News for an exclusive interview from behind prison bars after she got word via email that the appellate court had ruled in her favor.
‘[The email] said, ‘Congratulations. The court of criminal appeals voted on your behalf, seven to two, and you’ll be going home,’” Overton said.
“I said, ‘is this real?’ and I started tearing up,” she continued. “I was like, ‘does this say what I think it says?’ … I gave it to a friend, and she looked at it and she started crying, and then I was like, ‘OK, it does say what I think it says.’”
Overton, a 37-year-old mother of five from Corpus Christi, Texas, was convicted in 2007 after being accused of force-feeding Andrew enough salt to kill him, even though she had no previous problems with the law and was raising four children and was pregnant with a fifth.
When Hannah was convicted, her daughter, Emma, was still a breastfeeding newborn. Now, she is seven years old. In a 2012 interview from her Texas prison Overton told ABC News that during one of the monthly visitations with her children, “[Emma] took her first step, I was there. So I got to see that.” But there were many other things she had missed from behind bars. “Loose teeth, first day of kindergarten, last day of kindergarten. My son’s in high school now. I’ve missed, you know, so many things.”
“The last time he hugged his mom, he was putting arms around her waist, and when he hugs her this time she’ll be putting arms around his waist,” said Larry Overton about his teenage son, Isaac.
Larry, who has been raising the children on his own since his wife’s conviction said the reunion would be joyful, but not without its challenges. “You know, for me it’s just like it’s been so much that’s changed in the past seven years for them that they have time to catch up for that, but I think there’s going to be a lot of things like that. It’s going to be tough for them.”
The original prosecutor in the Overton case, Sandra Eastwood, was terminated for reasons unrelated to this case years after the trial concluded. Overton has accused Eastwood of acting unethically in her case, something Eastwood has denied repeatedly.
The appellate court did not rule specifically on Overton's claims of prosecutorial misconduct, saying that she deserved a new trial on claims of ineffective counsel. However, three of the judges issued a concurring opinion saying the proceedings in the case were "problematic from the beginning."
But Overton says she doesn’t blame her attorneys and forgives the former prosecutor.
“I don’t know what her intentions were, what her motive was behind it, but I’ve chosen to forgive her because I can’t hold onto that bitterness,” Overton said.
ABC News has followed Overton and her husband Larry Overton’s story since her conviction. Larry Overton was also charged with murder, but after his wife's conviction, he was offered a plea deal and was given probation. After he completed his probation, the charges were dismissed.
Their arrests came so quickly after Burd died, they said, that they had no time to grieve for the boy they hoped to permanently make a part of their family. “It’s somebody’s worst nightmare,” Hannah Overton said. “After your child dies to be told that somebody think it’s your fault.”
“We were just waiting for someone to look at it and say this is just an accident,” Larry Overton added. “Instead we were arrested.”
At Hannah Overton’s original trial in 2007, the prosecution portrayed her as a mother who had lost control. Frustrated with a naughty child, prosecutors said, she tried to punish him with seasoning mixed in water.
“Andrew had an enraged mother who didn’t-- I don’t think loved him the way that she loved her own biological children,” said former Nueces County prosecutor Sandra Eastwood.
“The case boils down to a woman who basically tortured a child,” Eastwood continued. “Making him sleep on plywood… burning sheets, becoming so enraged she forced him to have 23 teaspoons of hot pepper, and then watched him die in agony.
The defense presented the jury with a medical mystery. They speculated Andrew might have had pica, an eating disorder characterized by an obsessive appetite and that Andrew accidentally poisoned himself by consuming a fatal amount of sodium. Witnesses outside the home said they had seen Andrew's bizarre habits, too. The day Andrew died Hannah said she found him in the kitchen pantry but could not determine what he had consumed, if anything.
To find Hannah guilty, jurors had to believe either of two scenarios: that Hannah Overton force-fed Andrew salt knowing it would kill him or that she neglected to get medical help fast enough knowing that it would kill him. They convicted her based on the latter argument, that she did not seek help quickly enough. Overton was convicted of capital murder, an automatic life sentence in Texas because the child was under the age of 6.
Her new lawyer Cynthia Orr worked tirelessly to win her release, as Overton’s husband raised their five children back at home in Corpus Christi.
As for Overton and her family, her release is a new chance to start their lives together.
“I just want to hug my kids,” she said. “I know we’ll make up for it, but I don’t know what we’ll be able to catch up for seven years. That’s-- it’s gone, and taken from us.” | – For the first time in seven years, Hannah Overton will be able to hug her five kids instead of waving to them through plexiglass. The Corpus Christi mother, who has been in prison since 2007, was released on $50,000 bond yesterday, more than two months after a Texas appellate court threw out her life sentence for the murder of 4-year-old foster son Andrew Burd and ordered a new trial, ABC News reports. The appellate court said the performance of her original defense team "fell below a reasonable standard," the Huffington Post reports. Overton was convicted of poisoning Andrew in 2006 with seasoning, with prosecutors painting her as an out-of-control mom who "forced him to have 23 teaspoons of hot pepper and then watched him die in agony." Overton's defense team contended that Andrew may have wandered into the kitchen pantry and accidentally ingested the seasoning himself. Overton had been convicted based on not getting timely help for Andrew. But Overton and her husband had taken Andrew to an urgent-care clinic, and a salt intoxication expert whose testimony wasn't used in the original trial said poisoning symptoms initially are mild and wouldn't have roused suspicion right away, the Guardian reports. Several witnesses testified to Overton's character at yesterday's hearing, KRIS TV notes, including a pastor who said Overton went on mission trips to help kids in Mexico, and a man who said Overton had been "the best caregiver he ever had" for his disabled son. As Overton awaits a new trial, she's just happy to spend time with her family. "I know we'll make up for it, but I don't know what we'll be able to catch up for seven years," Overton tells ABC. (A New York mom says her 5-year-old son may have accidentally poisoned himself and died.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.A mother convicted of murder after her foster child died of salt poisoning has been freed on bail, allowing her to spend Christmas with her family after seven years in prison.
There were hugs and tears in a south Texas courtroom on Tuesday when a judge set bail of $50,000 (£32,000) for Hannah Overton, who has maintained her innocence since she was found culpable in the death of a four-year-old boy. Her 2007 trial attracted nationwide attention and prompted claims that she was wrongfully convicted.
Members of Overton’s church were organising payment of the bail amount, according to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, which first reported the hearing’s outcome. The prosecution had reportedly sought a $250,000 bond.
The judge, Mario Ramirez Jr, did not set a restriction limiting Overton’s contact with her children after hearing several hours of testimony from witnesses who praised her character.
In prison she was allowed to see her family once a month but not make physical contact. Ramirez ordered those involved in the case not to speak to the media.
Overton’s conviction for capital murder was overturned in September by the Texas court of criminal appeals, which found that the defence’s failure to present testimony from a sodium poisoning expert seriously undermined the original trial’s outcome.
Her family’s joy at the news was tempered when in response, rather than seek a lesser charge or dismiss the case, the Nueces County district attorney, Mark Skurka, opted to prosecute again on the same charge. A trial is expected to take place next year.
“No jury, no trial judge and no appellate court has ever found that defendant Hannah Overton is not responsible for the death of Andrew Burd,” Skurka said in October.
Andrew had been living in Corpus Christi with Hannah and Larry Overton pending formal completion of his adoption by the pair, a devout Christian couple with no prior criminal history. The boy, who had behavioural problems, suddenly developed breathing difficulties, fell into a coma and died in hospital in October 2006.
Prosecutors alleged the Overtons were culpable for his death, arguing at a televised trial that Hannah was an ill-tempered parent who disciplined the child for bad behaviour by fatally force-feeding him with spicy seasoning.
Larry Overton pleaded no contest to criminally negligent homicide so that he could avoid prison and take care of their five children. Hannah, who at the time of the boy’s death was aged 29 and was six months pregnant, was convicted of capital murder and given life without parole.
A jury found her guilty of murder “by omission” on the basis that she had supposedly failed to seek adequate medical help for the child, even though the couple took him to an urgent care clinic.
Her original defence team did not use testimony from Dr Michael Moritz, a salt intoxication expert who concluded that Overton did not poison Andrew, a compulsive eater who may have had an undiagnosed eating disorder.
Moritz also said that early salt poisoning symptoms are often mild and would not necessarily give anyone reason to suspect a victim is seriously ill. ||||| A Texas mom convicted of capital murder in her foster son's sodium poisoning death was released Tuesday after seven years in prison, but her freedom may not last.
A Nueces County judge granted Hannah Overton's bond of $50,000, and she was released from the county jail, ABC News reports. The decision comes more than two months after a Texas appellate court granted Overton a new trial and overturned her life sentence.
There's no date set for the new trial in the death of 4-year-old Andrew Burd -- a foster child who Overton and her husband Larry were adopting -- but Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka vowed to try her again on capital murder charges.
Overton, a 37-year-old mother of five from Corpus Christi, reveled in the small victory as she was released Tuesday afternoon.
"I just want to hug my kids," she told ABC News. "I know we’ll make up for it, but I don’t know [that] we’ll be able to catch up for seven years. That’s-- it’s gone, and taken from us."
Overton, who was found guilty of capital murder in 2007, maintains her innocence, and her current attorney says Burd's death was accidental. The conviction -- which carried an automatic life sentence -- came after Burd was found dead in the family's kitchen pantry.
At trial, prosecutors claimed that Overton fed the child a mixture of water and Cajun seasoning, which led to sodium poisoning, according to the Corpus Christi Caller Times. But she wasn't convicted for force-feeding Burd salt -- she was found guilty of neglecting to seek help quickly enough.
In September, an appellate court found that Overton deserved a new trial because her attorneys gave ineffective counsel. Three judges issued a concurring opinion, stating that the case proceedings were "problematic from the beginning."
"Because the defense counsel’s performance fell below a reasonable standard and there is a reasonable probability that the outcome of [the] trial would have been different but for that performance, we grant relief," the court wrote.
While she awaits her new trial, Overton plans on spending Christmas with the family she only saw behind Plexiglass, once per month for the past seven years, the Caller Times reports.
"The outcome of this case still keeps me up at night after seven years," said Dr. Alex Rotta, a pediatrician who treated Burd but was never called to the stand to testify. "I believe Mrs. Overton has more than served the punishment for what was at worst child endangerment or involuntary manslaughter but made into capital murder due to a botched trial and a profoundly ineffective counsel."
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||||| Hannah Overton, who has spent seven years in a Texas prison for the murder of a young foster child she says she didn't commit, has finally won her freedom and will be spending this Christmas with her family.
A Nueces County judge granted Overton's bond at a hearing Tuesday afternoon for $50,000 and she was released from the county jail.
The district attorney of Nueces County, Mark Skurka, has already announced his intention to try Overton again on capital murder charges. That trial currently has no date set.
Her release, pending a new trial, comes over two months after the highest appellate court in Texas overturned her murder conviction and life sentence for the death of 4-year-old Andrew Burd, a foster child Overton and her husband, Larry, were in the process of adopting.
Overton sat down with ABC News for an exclusive interview from behind prison bars after she got word via email that the appellate court had ruled in her favor.
‘[The email] said, ‘Congratulations. The court of criminal appeals voted on your behalf, seven to two, and you’ll be going home,’” Overton said.
“I said, ‘is this real?’ and I started tearing up,” she continued. “I was like, ‘does this say what I think it says?’ … I gave it to a friend, and she looked at it and she started crying, and then I was like, ‘OK, it does say what I think it says.’”
Overton, a 37-year-old mother of five from Corpus Christi, Texas, was convicted in 2007 after being accused of force-feeding Andrew enough salt to kill him, even though she had no previous problems with the law and was raising four children and was pregnant with a fifth.
When Hannah was convicted, her daughter, Emma, was still a breastfeeding newborn. Now, she is seven years old. In a 2012 interview from her Texas prison Overton told ABC News that during one of the monthly visitations with her children, “[Emma] took her first step, I was there. So I got to see that.” But there were many other things she had missed from behind bars. “Loose teeth, first day of kindergarten, last day of kindergarten. My son’s in high school now. I’ve missed, you know, so many things.”
“The last time he hugged his mom, he was putting arms around her waist, and when he hugs her this time she’ll be putting arms around his waist,” said Larry Overton about his teenage son, Isaac.
Larry, who has been raising the children on his own since his wife’s conviction said the reunion would be joyful, but not without its challenges. “You know, for me it’s just like it’s been so much that’s changed in the past seven years for them that they have time to catch up for that, but I think there’s going to be a lot of things like that. It’s going to be tough for them.”
The original prosecutor in the Overton case, Sandra Eastwood, was terminated for reasons unrelated to this case years after the trial concluded. Overton has accused Eastwood of acting unethically in her case, something Eastwood has denied repeatedly.
The appellate court did not rule specifically on Overton's claims of prosecutorial misconduct, saying that she deserved a new trial on claims of ineffective counsel. However, three of the judges issued a concurring opinion saying the proceedings in the case were "problematic from the beginning."
But Overton says she doesn’t blame her attorneys and forgives the former prosecutor.
“I don’t know what her intentions were, what her motive was behind it, but I’ve chosen to forgive her because I can’t hold onto that bitterness,” Overton said.
ABC News has followed Overton and her husband Larry Overton’s story since her conviction. Larry Overton was also charged with murder, but after his wife's conviction, he was offered a plea deal and was given probation. After he completed his probation, the charges were dismissed.
Their arrests came so quickly after Burd died, they said, that they had no time to grieve for the boy they hoped to permanently make a part of their family. “It’s somebody’s worst nightmare,” Hannah Overton said. “After your child dies to be told that somebody think it’s your fault.”
“We were just waiting for someone to look at it and say this is just an accident,” Larry Overton added. “Instead we were arrested.”
At Hannah Overton’s original trial in 2007, the prosecution portrayed her as a mother who had lost control. Frustrated with a naughty child, prosecutors said, she tried to punish him with seasoning mixed in water.
“Andrew had an enraged mother who didn’t-- I don’t think loved him the way that she loved her own biological children,” said former Nueces County prosecutor Sandra Eastwood.
“The case boils down to a woman who basically tortured a child,” Eastwood continued. “Making him sleep on plywood… burning sheets, becoming so enraged she forced him to have 23 teaspoons of hot pepper, and then watched him die in agony.
The defense presented the jury with a medical mystery. They speculated Andrew might have had pica, an eating disorder characterized by an obsessive appetite and that Andrew accidentally poisoned himself by consuming a fatal amount of sodium. Witnesses outside the home said they had seen Andrew's bizarre habits, too. The day Andrew died Hannah said she found him in the kitchen pantry but could not determine what he had consumed, if anything.
To find Hannah guilty, jurors had to believe either of two scenarios: that Hannah Overton force-fed Andrew salt knowing it would kill him or that she neglected to get medical help fast enough knowing that it would kill him. They convicted her based on the latter argument, that she did not seek help quickly enough. Overton was convicted of capital murder, an automatic life sentence in Texas because the child was under the age of 6.
Her new lawyer Cynthia Orr worked tirelessly to win her release, as Overton’s husband raised their five children back at home in Corpus Christi.
As for Overton and her family, her release is a new chance to start their lives together.
“I just want to hug my kids,” she said. “I know we’ll make up for it, but I don’t know what we’ll be able to catch up for seven years. That’s-- it’s gone, and taken from us.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 23,123 |
Crawl of outlinks from wikipedia.org started March, 2016. These files are currently not publicly accessible. Properties of this collection. It has been several years since the last time we did this. For this collection, several things were done: 1. Turned off duplicate detection. This collection will be complete, as there is a good chance we will share the data, and sharing data with pointers to random other collections, is a complex problem. 2. For the first time, did all the different wikis. The original runs were just against the enwiki. This one, the seed list was built from all 865 collections. ||||| RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Luke Martin Jr., the son of an ex-slave and Civil War Union soldier, has died — 179 years after his father was born.
In this Nov. 8, 2013 photo, Luke Martin Jr., stands during the unveiling a historic marker in New Bern, N.C., honoring his father's regiment. Martin, the son of an ex-slave and Civil War Union soldier,... (Associated Press)
Martin was 97 when he died Sunday at his home in New Bern, North Carolina, said his daughter, Fannie Martin-Williams. Her father, who suffered from congestive heart failure and other ailments, had been in declining health for several months, she said.
"He had a long, full life," Martin-Williams said of her father, with whom she lived in the house where he was born — a house his father built in the 1890s. "He enjoyed every minute of it."
Martin had little memory of his father, Luke Martin Sr., who died at age 84 in 1920 when the son was just a few years old, according to Martin-Williams. The elder Martin, who was born in 1836, was married twice, the second time to a much younger woman.
According to multiple historical references, Luke Martin Sr. was enslaved at a plantation near Plymouth, North Carolina, but escaped and became a member of the 1st North Carolina Colored Volunteers, later called the 35th U.S. Colored Troops. The U.S. Colored Troops were established in 1863 and by the end of the Civil War, black soldiers comprised 10 percent of the Union Army.
The son was a master brick mason, contractor and teacher. He served as one of the lead brick masons at Tryon Palace, North Carolina's first permanent state Capitol. He also worked as a funeral attendant at Oscar's Mortuary from 1960 until August.
In recent years, Martin Jr. had received multiple accolades, including the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina's highest civilian honor. In addition, Craven County also designated Sept. 18, 2014, as "Luke P. Martin Jr. Day." Two days earlier, Rep. G.K. Butterfield had honored Martin Jr. on the floor of the U.S. House.
Martin, a member of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, also attended the 2013 unveiling of a historical marker at New Bern Academy that honors his father's regiment. The group's website said in announcing his membership last year that he was one of an estimated nine first-generation sons of Civil War veterans. One other man on that list died earlier in January.
All the recognition pleased her father, Martin-Williams said. "He was glad that he lived long enough to be recognized," she said.
In June, the Martin family loaned the elder Martin's Springfield rifle and a German-made Confederate sword to the state for one year. The items were part of a tour that also included North Carolina's original copy of the 13th Amendment.
"He was a kind, generous man. He was a hard-working man," Martin-Williams said. "Everyone respected him. He loved his church; he loved his community; he loved his family. ... He met no strangers. And he left no task undone."
His funeral will be held Thursday at St. John Missionary Baptist Church in New Bern with burial in Greenwood Cemetery.
Martin is the second child of a slave to die in North Carolina in recent months. In September, Mattie Clyburn Rice, daughter of Weary Clyburn, died at age 91 in High Point.
___
Martha Waggoner can be reached at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc | – Luke Martin Jr. was born to a former Civil War soldier in 1917, when the father was in his 80s. Now, at 97, Martin has died, meaning the world has lost one of the last surviving sons of a Civil War veteran; only eight remain, according to a roster. His death comes 179 years after his father, Luke Martin Sr., was born, the AP reports. The elder Martin escaped slavery in Hertford, North Carolina, heading to New Bern after Union soldiers had taken it. He enlisted with one of the first black regiments and was wounded in battle in Florida. Later, he worked as a mason; Martin was his youngest child, the Wilmington Star-News reports. Martin Jr. was born in New Bern—and he died in the same house, which his father built, the Star-News reports. Growing up, he took work in tobacco fields and later in masonry as New Bern's first black contractor. Having been born just before the US entered World War I, he saw every major US war this century and last; he also saw Jim Crow fall and the triumphs of the Civil Rights movement. A beloved figure in his town, he had a day named after him last year and an exhibit of his family's belongings in September. He also received the state's highest honor, the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, and was celebrated on the US House floor. His take on his humble beginnings: "It was hard, but we didn’t know it. I don’t remember no hard times; all my times were good." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Crawl of outlinks from wikipedia.org started March, 2016. These files are currently not publicly accessible. Properties of this collection. It has been several years since the last time we did this. For this collection, several things were done: 1. Turned off duplicate detection. This collection will be complete, as there is a good chance we will share the data, and sharing data with pointers to random other collections, is a complex problem. 2. For the first time, did all the different wikis. The original runs were just against the enwiki. This one, the seed list was built from all 865 collections. ||||| RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Luke Martin Jr., the son of an ex-slave and Civil War Union soldier, has died — 179 years after his father was born.
In this Nov. 8, 2013 photo, Luke Martin Jr., stands during the unveiling a historic marker in New Bern, N.C., honoring his father's regiment. Martin, the son of an ex-slave and Civil War Union soldier,... (Associated Press)
Martin was 97 when he died Sunday at his home in New Bern, North Carolina, said his daughter, Fannie Martin-Williams. Her father, who suffered from congestive heart failure and other ailments, had been in declining health for several months, she said.
"He had a long, full life," Martin-Williams said of her father, with whom she lived in the house where he was born — a house his father built in the 1890s. "He enjoyed every minute of it."
Martin had little memory of his father, Luke Martin Sr., who died at age 84 in 1920 when the son was just a few years old, according to Martin-Williams. The elder Martin, who was born in 1836, was married twice, the second time to a much younger woman.
According to multiple historical references, Luke Martin Sr. was enslaved at a plantation near Plymouth, North Carolina, but escaped and became a member of the 1st North Carolina Colored Volunteers, later called the 35th U.S. Colored Troops. The U.S. Colored Troops were established in 1863 and by the end of the Civil War, black soldiers comprised 10 percent of the Union Army.
The son was a master brick mason, contractor and teacher. He served as one of the lead brick masons at Tryon Palace, North Carolina's first permanent state Capitol. He also worked as a funeral attendant at Oscar's Mortuary from 1960 until August.
In recent years, Martin Jr. had received multiple accolades, including the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina's highest civilian honor. In addition, Craven County also designated Sept. 18, 2014, as "Luke P. Martin Jr. Day." Two days earlier, Rep. G.K. Butterfield had honored Martin Jr. on the floor of the U.S. House.
Martin, a member of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, also attended the 2013 unveiling of a historical marker at New Bern Academy that honors his father's regiment. The group's website said in announcing his membership last year that he was one of an estimated nine first-generation sons of Civil War veterans. One other man on that list died earlier in January.
All the recognition pleased her father, Martin-Williams said. "He was glad that he lived long enough to be recognized," she said.
In June, the Martin family loaned the elder Martin's Springfield rifle and a German-made Confederate sword to the state for one year. The items were part of a tour that also included North Carolina's original copy of the 13th Amendment.
"He was a kind, generous man. He was a hard-working man," Martin-Williams said. "Everyone respected him. He loved his church; he loved his community; he loved his family. ... He met no strangers. And he left no task undone."
His funeral will be held Thursday at St. John Missionary Baptist Church in New Bern with burial in Greenwood Cemetery.
Martin is the second child of a slave to die in North Carolina in recent months. In September, Mattie Clyburn Rice, daughter of Weary Clyburn, died at age 91 in High Point.
___
Martha Waggoner can be reached at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 24,988 |
For 25 years on the cable news show that bears his name, Larry King has made his mark with A-list guests, a signature style of questioning (short and sweet, with room for long answers), a trademark desk lean and those iconic suspenders.
For the man who listened more than he spoke, it seems appropriate that in his final "Larry King Live" hour, which will air Thursday night, he will keep on bending his ear, this time to receive a taped farewell sendoff from President Obama, sources tell POLITICO.
The farewell is indicative of how influential the host with the slicked-back hair has been while anchoring "Larry King Live" for the last quarter-century.
Since the show's launch in 1985, it has been a reliable stalwart of the 9 p.m. hour, with guests and fare both salacious and substantive. King has interviewed everyone from U.S. presidents to foreign leaders, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Nelson Mandela and Hollywood heartthrobs like George Clooney. Just last month, the show was the place where Vice President Joe Biden sat for a rare joint interview with his wife, Jill.
Since its early days, politicians have flocked to King's show to cast themselves in a softer light when they were riding high or when they were entrenched in scandal. It was the place where New York Gov. David Paterson went to discuss accusations of an affair, even as King tried to get to the bottom of it all. "Who's after you? Is it some sort of plot or conspiracy?" King asked, leaning over his desk.
Former New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey went on the hour-long show to talk about his affair with a man. (King introduced him as the gay ex-governor who lived "a desperate double life" and was "going public about the decades of tortured, secret lust, the anonymous truck-stop trysts and the alleged affair that cost him his office.")
It was also the site of an epic debate between Al Gore and Ross Perot in 1993, for which about 20 million viewers - one of CNN's biggest-ever audiences - tuned in. The Gore-Perot bonanza wasn't just a regular episode, "It was an event," Ed Henry, CNN's senior White House correspondent, said in an interview with POLITICO.
Henry said King, "tapped into politics as a big talk-show topic before a lot of people did. It's one of the reasons why he's had such a remarkable run. ... All that schmaltzy stuff about him being the 'king of talk,' it's all true."
Perot himself told the New York Times this week that King is "absolutely one of a kind" and will "let you finish what you're saying" unlike other television hosts, "who will interrupt you if you're not saying what they want you to say."
It was his "let 'em gab" style that allowed King to land guests who shied from tougher interviewers. With his elbows on his desk, King would happily remain quiet, letting the stars of politics and Hollywood take the stage. King was criticized throughout the years by other journalists and media-watchers for favoring softball questions, but if anything, his tendency to go easy on subjects kept the famous names coming. ||||| At 77, Larry King's long tenure at CNN comes to a close
FILE - In this Jan 5, 1994 file photo, Larry King is shown during an interview at the CNN studio in Washington. After 25 years of "Larry King Live," Larry King will hang up his suspenders with his last broadcast on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook, file ) http://www.herald.com/ More News
Five decades and 50,000 interviews after he first jabbed a microphone into a surprised pop singer's face at a Miami Beach diner, Larry King is hanging up his suspenders. His Thursday night show on CNN will be the last of a broadcast career that eternally careened between pinnacles of wild success and pits of utter catastrophe.
King and his producers are being uncharacteristically tight-lipped about who will appear on the final edition of "Larry King Live," which airs at 9 p.m. EST. Comedian Bill Maher and "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest will be at King's Hollywood studio - but 14 mystery guests will also beam in from around the world via satellite.
Could President Barack Obama be among them? He's already shared a microphone with King, as has every American president since Richard Nixon. O.J. Simpson? King's mile-by-mile coverage of Simpson's 1994 slow-motion car chase by Los Angeles police inaugurated the age of crime as entertainment. LeBron James? Bill Gates? Lady Gaga? They've all been chatted up on the nightly show.
Or could the legendary allure of appearing on King's program - which has survived the nose-dive of his Nielsen ratings even if the show itself hasn't - even draw guests from the other end of this mortal coil?
Then we might see Marlon Brando, who unexpectedly and indelibly ended a 1994 interview by kissing King full on the lips. ("I still can't stop thinking about it," King said 15 years later.) Or segregationist Alabama Gov. George Wallace, who opened an appearance on a King show by ostentatiously glancing around the TV studio, then sneering: "I don't see any blacks working here." (Retorted King: "They own the station. They're out to lunch.")
In fact, it's hard to find anyone of any significance in the past half-century, living or dead, who hasn't sat across the table from King in his various radio and TV incarnations.
His all-night call-in show that ran on 500-plus Mutual Radio Network affiliates from 1978 to 1994 was the first radio talk show with a national following, and had a long line of politicians and Hollywood celebrities anxious to make the guest list despite its midnight start time.
And when King joined CNN in 1985, his show was cable television's first real hit, dominating the cable-news ratings well into the next century.
It was a fractured fairy tale for a Brooklyn high-school dropout who came to Miami in 1957 in search of beach bunnies but got a radio show when a disc jockey didn't show up for work one day at the station where King was working as a janitor.
But King didn't really make his mark until another station, WKAT, sent him to do a live broadcast from a Miami Beach deli. Desperately staving off dead air with interviews of waitresses and customer evaluations of the coffee, King pounced when somebody told him that teen idol Bobby Darin had just sat down for breakfast.
"All I knew about Bobby Darin was 'Mack the Knife,'" King recalled during a 2007 interview with The Miami Herald. "So I asked him, where did Bobby Darin come from?" Darin replied so loquaciously that a style was born: For the rest of his career, King rarely prepared for interviews. Simple questions like "What's your book about?" or 'What's your next project?" he believed, were just the ones his audience would have asked.
Although critics carped about it, King's conversational style worked well for a long time. Hollywood celebrities loved the chance to talk nonstop on the one subject on which they were unquestionably experts - themselves. And while jealous reporters regarded King's political interviews as interminable games of softball, King (and his very large audience) saw them as chances to get to know politicians as human beings rather than policy wonks.
Either way, King's chats were the antithesis of the attack-dog interviews that make up so much of the rest of the daily cable-news menu. The only way a guest on King's show could get in a fight was to pick it himself, as Howard Stern did in a 1987 interview.
First he taunted King - who had just returned to the air after a heart attack - with a pack of cigarettes: "Come on, let's smoke. You know you want one." When the startled King tried to portray Stern's contempt as schtick - "Tell 'em we're friends!" Stern's reply was icy: "We're not friends ... You say you're friends with everybody." The dazed King could only giggle nervously as Stern ran off onto bizarre tangents, accusing Fox TV executives of murdering comedian Joan River's husband and plugging his new video in which a man set his own genitals on fire.
But for every show that went off the tracks, King did a hundred that kept the audience rapt and sometimes even broke news. Maverick millionaire H. Ross Perot announced his surprise 1992 presidential campaign on King's show. A year later, Perot would debate the proposed North American Free Trade Alliance treaty with Vice President Al Gore on King's show in an intense spectacle that pulled in 16 million viewers.
In recent years, King's chatty approach has come undone: partly because everybody from Jay Leno to Oprah Winfrey is doing the same thing, and partly because at 77, his softballs had turned to mushballs. In an interview with the two surviving Beatles, King confused his guest Ringo Starr with the late George Harrison. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld was irked that King thought his top-rated TV sitcom had been canceled: "I was the No. 1 show in television, Larry," Seinfeld replied. "Do you know who I am?" At times the show became downright surreal, with King having hotel princess Paris Hilton reading aloud from the prison diaries of her three weeks in jail on a DUI conviction.
King's popularity, which had survived a chaotic personal life that included an arrest, a bankruptcy and more scandalous divorces than anyone could count, could not withstand his growing confusion and irrelevance. His ratings tanked. His audience dropped 50 percent from 2009 to 2010, and CNN executives - who just three years ago said he could keep the show "as long as he is able to perform" - gently suggested it was time to turn off the microphone. It was a possibility King had foreseen.
"I love the line 'as long as he is able to perform.'" he told The Herald three years ago. "The question would be, in whose opinion? Whitey Herzog, the manager of the Cardinals, was offered a contract by August Busch, the owner. August Busch said to him, 'Whitey, I'm giving you a lifetime contract.'
"And Whitey said, 'Your life, or mine?'" | – Tonight is Larry King’s final show on CNN—Bill Maher and Ryan Seacrest will be in the studio with him, and word has it he’ll be receiving a taped sendoff from President Obama and chat with more than a dozen other mystery guests via satellite. Some 50,000 interviews later, what the critics are saying: King’s career “eternally careened between pinnacles of wild success and pits of utter catastrophe,” writes Glenn Garvin in the Kansas City Star. But “it's hard to find anyone of any significance in the past half-century who hasn't sat across the table.” “King was criticized throughout the years by other journalists and media-watchers for favoring softball questions, but if anything, his tendency to go easy on subjects kept the famous names coming,” note Amie Parnes and Karin Tanabe at Politico. “If Larry King's not iconic we don't know who is,” writes Lisa de Moraes at the Washington Post. “We will miss Larry's giggle. We will miss Larry's stupid suspenders. We will miss the way he, at times, has no idea who he is interviewing.” | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.For 25 years on the cable news show that bears his name, Larry King has made his mark with A-list guests, a signature style of questioning (short and sweet, with room for long answers), a trademark desk lean and those iconic suspenders.
For the man who listened more than he spoke, it seems appropriate that in his final "Larry King Live" hour, which will air Thursday night, he will keep on bending his ear, this time to receive a taped farewell sendoff from President Obama, sources tell POLITICO.
The farewell is indicative of how influential the host with the slicked-back hair has been while anchoring "Larry King Live" for the last quarter-century.
Since the show's launch in 1985, it has been a reliable stalwart of the 9 p.m. hour, with guests and fare both salacious and substantive. King has interviewed everyone from U.S. presidents to foreign leaders, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Nelson Mandela and Hollywood heartthrobs like George Clooney. Just last month, the show was the place where Vice President Joe Biden sat for a rare joint interview with his wife, Jill.
Since its early days, politicians have flocked to King's show to cast themselves in a softer light when they were riding high or when they were entrenched in scandal. It was the place where New York Gov. David Paterson went to discuss accusations of an affair, even as King tried to get to the bottom of it all. "Who's after you? Is it some sort of plot or conspiracy?" King asked, leaning over his desk.
Former New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey went on the hour-long show to talk about his affair with a man. (King introduced him as the gay ex-governor who lived "a desperate double life" and was "going public about the decades of tortured, secret lust, the anonymous truck-stop trysts and the alleged affair that cost him his office.")
It was also the site of an epic debate between Al Gore and Ross Perot in 1993, for which about 20 million viewers - one of CNN's biggest-ever audiences - tuned in. The Gore-Perot bonanza wasn't just a regular episode, "It was an event," Ed Henry, CNN's senior White House correspondent, said in an interview with POLITICO.
Henry said King, "tapped into politics as a big talk-show topic before a lot of people did. It's one of the reasons why he's had such a remarkable run. ... All that schmaltzy stuff about him being the 'king of talk,' it's all true."
Perot himself told the New York Times this week that King is "absolutely one of a kind" and will "let you finish what you're saying" unlike other television hosts, "who will interrupt you if you're not saying what they want you to say."
It was his "let 'em gab" style that allowed King to land guests who shied from tougher interviewers. With his elbows on his desk, King would happily remain quiet, letting the stars of politics and Hollywood take the stage. King was criticized throughout the years by other journalists and media-watchers for favoring softball questions, but if anything, his tendency to go easy on subjects kept the famous names coming. ||||| At 77, Larry King's long tenure at CNN comes to a close
FILE - In this Jan 5, 1994 file photo, Larry King is shown during an interview at the CNN studio in Washington. After 25 years of "Larry King Live," Larry King will hang up his suspenders with his last broadcast on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook, file ) http://www.herald.com/ More News
Five decades and 50,000 interviews after he first jabbed a microphone into a surprised pop singer's face at a Miami Beach diner, Larry King is hanging up his suspenders. His Thursday night show on CNN will be the last of a broadcast career that eternally careened between pinnacles of wild success and pits of utter catastrophe.
King and his producers are being uncharacteristically tight-lipped about who will appear on the final edition of "Larry King Live," which airs at 9 p.m. EST. Comedian Bill Maher and "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest will be at King's Hollywood studio - but 14 mystery guests will also beam in from around the world via satellite.
Could President Barack Obama be among them? He's already shared a microphone with King, as has every American president since Richard Nixon. O.J. Simpson? King's mile-by-mile coverage of Simpson's 1994 slow-motion car chase by Los Angeles police inaugurated the age of crime as entertainment. LeBron James? Bill Gates? Lady Gaga? They've all been chatted up on the nightly show.
Or could the legendary allure of appearing on King's program - which has survived the nose-dive of his Nielsen ratings even if the show itself hasn't - even draw guests from the other end of this mortal coil?
Then we might see Marlon Brando, who unexpectedly and indelibly ended a 1994 interview by kissing King full on the lips. ("I still can't stop thinking about it," King said 15 years later.) Or segregationist Alabama Gov. George Wallace, who opened an appearance on a King show by ostentatiously glancing around the TV studio, then sneering: "I don't see any blacks working here." (Retorted King: "They own the station. They're out to lunch.")
In fact, it's hard to find anyone of any significance in the past half-century, living or dead, who hasn't sat across the table from King in his various radio and TV incarnations.
His all-night call-in show that ran on 500-plus Mutual Radio Network affiliates from 1978 to 1994 was the first radio talk show with a national following, and had a long line of politicians and Hollywood celebrities anxious to make the guest list despite its midnight start time.
And when King joined CNN in 1985, his show was cable television's first real hit, dominating the cable-news ratings well into the next century.
It was a fractured fairy tale for a Brooklyn high-school dropout who came to Miami in 1957 in search of beach bunnies but got a radio show when a disc jockey didn't show up for work one day at the station where King was working as a janitor.
But King didn't really make his mark until another station, WKAT, sent him to do a live broadcast from a Miami Beach deli. Desperately staving off dead air with interviews of waitresses and customer evaluations of the coffee, King pounced when somebody told him that teen idol Bobby Darin had just sat down for breakfast.
"All I knew about Bobby Darin was 'Mack the Knife,'" King recalled during a 2007 interview with The Miami Herald. "So I asked him, where did Bobby Darin come from?" Darin replied so loquaciously that a style was born: For the rest of his career, King rarely prepared for interviews. Simple questions like "What's your book about?" or 'What's your next project?" he believed, were just the ones his audience would have asked.
Although critics carped about it, King's conversational style worked well for a long time. Hollywood celebrities loved the chance to talk nonstop on the one subject on which they were unquestionably experts - themselves. And while jealous reporters regarded King's political interviews as interminable games of softball, King (and his very large audience) saw them as chances to get to know politicians as human beings rather than policy wonks.
Either way, King's chats were the antithesis of the attack-dog interviews that make up so much of the rest of the daily cable-news menu. The only way a guest on King's show could get in a fight was to pick it himself, as Howard Stern did in a 1987 interview.
First he taunted King - who had just returned to the air after a heart attack - with a pack of cigarettes: "Come on, let's smoke. You know you want one." When the startled King tried to portray Stern's contempt as schtick - "Tell 'em we're friends!" Stern's reply was icy: "We're not friends ... You say you're friends with everybody." The dazed King could only giggle nervously as Stern ran off onto bizarre tangents, accusing Fox TV executives of murdering comedian Joan River's husband and plugging his new video in which a man set his own genitals on fire.
But for every show that went off the tracks, King did a hundred that kept the audience rapt and sometimes even broke news. Maverick millionaire H. Ross Perot announced his surprise 1992 presidential campaign on King's show. A year later, Perot would debate the proposed North American Free Trade Alliance treaty with Vice President Al Gore on King's show in an intense spectacle that pulled in 16 million viewers.
In recent years, King's chatty approach has come undone: partly because everybody from Jay Leno to Oprah Winfrey is doing the same thing, and partly because at 77, his softballs had turned to mushballs. In an interview with the two surviving Beatles, King confused his guest Ringo Starr with the late George Harrison. Comedian Jerry Seinfeld was irked that King thought his top-rated TV sitcom had been canceled: "I was the No. 1 show in television, Larry," Seinfeld replied. "Do you know who I am?" At times the show became downright surreal, with King having hotel princess Paris Hilton reading aloud from the prison diaries of her three weeks in jail on a DUI conviction.
King's popularity, which had survived a chaotic personal life that included an arrest, a bankruptcy and more scandalous divorces than anyone could count, could not withstand his growing confusion and irrelevance. His ratings tanked. His audience dropped 50 percent from 2009 to 2010, and CNN executives - who just three years ago said he could keep the show "as long as he is able to perform" - gently suggested it was time to turn off the microphone. It was a possibility King had foreseen.
"I love the line 'as long as he is able to perform.'" he told The Herald three years ago. "The question would be, in whose opinion? Whitey Herzog, the manager of the Cardinals, was offered a contract by August Busch, the owner. August Busch said to him, 'Whitey, I'm giving you a lifetime contract.'
"And Whitey said, 'Your life, or mine?'" | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 27,114 |
In a tough situation — in this case, the incredible rescue last night in Cleveland of Amanda Berry, Georgina “Gina” DeJesus and Michele Knight after a decade in captivity — it’s no wonder people are looking for bright spots. And the Internet has quickly decided that one giant bright spot is local hero and neighbor Charles Ramsey, who heard Berry’s cries for help and busted open a door to help get her out, then called 911. Ramsey’s high-energy (but NSFW) interview with a local news reporter recounting the incident quickly went viral (and continues to be a top trending topic on Twitter). Now — as is inevitable in this meme-tastic age — autotune song versions of the spirited Q&A are cropping up on YouTube.
Check out some of the remixes of the interview below. Gregory Brothers, we’re still waiting for your take.
What do we think the timeframe is until Ramsey gets free McDonald’s for life/appearances on the morning programs/a reality show?
Read more:
57 Summer Movies We Can’t Wait To See
Jimmy Kimmel drank (a lot!) during his Time 100 toast — VIDEO
Rebecca Black is the latest to cover Rihanna’s ‘Stay’ — We round up (and rank) other notable covers ||||| Charles Ramsey, who helped rescue three missing Cleveland women from the house where they'd been held captive for a decade, is more than just a good Samaritan and hero: He's also an amazing interview. (And even better on the phone with 911.)
Ramsey, who lives next door to the house where the women were trapped, gave two lively and captivating interviews to local news affiliates after aiding in their rescue yesterday. Ramsey, off from work, heard Amanda Berry screaming, and came outside to see what was going on: "I'm eating my McDonald's; I come outside; I see this girl going nuts," he says. "I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway!"
Here's his 911 call, in which Ramsey sounds basically like anyone would if he found out a woman had been kidnapped and held in his neighbor's house. (Don't listen to this at full volume at work, unless your supervisor is okay with "This motherfucker done kidnapped me and my daughter and we've been in this bitch—she says her name is Linda Berry or some shit, I don't know who the fuck that is"):
As it turned out, Amanda Berry was the Amanda Berry, a Cleveland girl who'd been missing for 10 years. In the house with her were two other young women, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight, who'd also gone missing in the last decade—as well as a young girl, apparently Berry's daughter. All three had apparently been kidnapped and held, allegedly by the house's owner Ariel Castro, 52—"I barbecued with this dude! We ate ribs and whatnot, and listened to salsa music!" Ramsey says—who has been arrested along with two of his brothers.
This morning, all three women were released from the hospital. The FBI is still investigating, but doesn't believe any more women were taken. ||||| “So, you know, I figured it was a domestic-violence dispute,” Charles Ramsey told a reporter for the ABC affiliate in Cleveland, explaining what happened after, as he put it, he “heard screaming. I’m eating McDonald’s. I see this girl going nuts trying to get out of the house.” Ramsey, and others who gathered, helped her break open the door, kicking it from the bottom. She told them her name, Amanda Berry. She had been kidnapped at the age of seventeen, ten years ago. There were two other women in the house, Gina DeJesus, who is now twenty-three, and Michelle Knight, now thirty, who had also been held for a decade. There was at least one small child.
Ramsey’s 911 call is transfixing. “Yeah hey bro,” it begins, “hey, check this out.” His intensity, the McDonald’s shout-out, his undoubtedly loose paraphrase of Berry’s account (“This motherfucker done kidnapped me and my daughter”), and also his competence (he does a better job with the essentials like the address than the 911 operator) make him one of those instantly compelling figures who, in the middle of an American tragedy, just start talking—and then we can’t stop listening. (See Ruslan Tsarni, Ashley Smith.) But one phrase in particular, from the interview, is worth dwelling on: “I figured it was a domestic-violence dispute.” In many times and places, a line like that has been offered as an excuse for walking away, not for helping a woman break down your neighbor’s door. How many women have died as a result? They didn’t yesterday.
Three men are now being held—reportedly Ariel Castro, a bus driver who owned the house, and his two brothers, all in their early fifties. The three women were examined at a hospital, and there are already pictures of reunions with their families; the Plain Dealer reported that “drivers passing the hospital and the neighborhood honked their car horns in support.” Most people thought they were dead; the big tips in their cases, in the last few years, had been about where the bodies might have been dumped. The police chief talked about the emotion on the faces of officers who’d been looking for them for years.
During the call, the operator asks Ramsey if Berry needs an ambulance. He replies.
She need an ambulance, or what? She needs everything. She’s, uh, she’s is in a panic. I guess she’s been kidnapped, so you know, put yourself in her shoes.
Put yourself in her shoes. Berry and the others will need everything—they have lost so much of their lives, and will now have what’s left exposed and questioned. But Berry didn’t give up, and, in the end, she got them out of there. According to a police conference on Tuesday morning, her chance came when she forced a hole in a screen covering the lower part of the door which was big enough for her to push her arm through. Then she started to make noise. (One recalls the way that Natascha Kampusch, an Austrian girl held for eight years, kept looking for a moment to run, and finally found one.) Ramsey came when Berry screamed; and yet she took a risk by trying to get the attention of a stranger. What if he had just told his neighbor, with whom, he told reporters, he’d hung out at local barbecues—“ribs and what not”—that someone in his house was being loud? “Amanda is the one,” Deputy Police Chief Ed Tomba said at the press conference on Tuesday morning. “She came out of that house and that started it all.”
Berry made her own 911 call at the same time as Ramsey. Her first words were, “Help me. I’m Amanda Berry.” Her name was what she wanted to get out, before telling the dispatcher, “I’ve been kidnapped and I’ve been missing for ten years, and I’m, I’m here, I’m free now…. My name is Amanda Berry, I’ve been in the news for the last ten years.” Ramsey told ABC that one of the first things she said, after they got her out: “Call 911. My name is Amanda Berry.” The reporter asked him if he’d realized what that meant—Berry’s disappearance was one of Cleveland’s famous unsolved cases. “When she told me it didn’t register until I got to call 911. And then, I’m calling 911 for Amanda Berry? I thought this girl was dead,” Ramsey replied. Or, as he described that moment of cognitive dissonance to the 911 operator, “She said her name is Wenda Berry or some shit. I don’t know who the fuck that is.”
For Berry and the others to be rescued, in other words, two things had to happen: she had to never forget who she was, and that who she was mattered; and Ramsey needed to not care who she might be at all—to think that all that mattered was that a woman was trapped behind a door that wouldn’t open, and to walk onto the porch.
Amy Davidson on Ariel Castro’s first kidnapping victim, Michelle Knight, and on Castro’s court appearance on Thursday.
Above: Exterior of the house where, on Monday, three women who had disappeared as teenagers approximately ten years ago were found alive in Cleveland. Photograph by Bill Pugliano/Getty. Lower: Amanda Berry, right, hugs her sister Beth Serrano after being reunited in a Cleveland hospital on Monday. Photograph courtesy WOIO-TV/AP. ||||| So, Cleveland man Charles Ramsey finds and releases kidnapped women who have been missing for years, calls 911, gives some refreshingly down-to-earth interviews about the entire surreal affair. His hero status, plus a stated affinity for ribs and salsa music, have made him a possible meme in the vein of Antoine Dodson’s “Bed Intruder” riff—but the internet just can’t nail it down, producing only some weak Auto-Tune remixes.
Perhaps it’s time for the world’s meme artists to stop assuming that any black dude getting interviewed on local news about a crime he helped to foil can be reduced to some catch phrase or in-joke. It’s just baffling that we’re trying to find a way to laugh about what is, in itself, a harrowing turn of events. Besides, the hectic first minute of his 911 call is where Ramsey really shines.
Right? And throughout this whole experience it seems that everyone, from the 911 operator down to the news correspondents, is a little condescending to him. Just not as condescending as a dude with a Tumblr who wants to turn him into viral content with some silly added hook.
But Ramsey is straight-up awesome as is. He’s bigger than memes. Just this once let’s celebrate the man himself—without using .gifs or Photoshop.
[More by Miles Klee; Follow Miles on Twitter] | – When Charles Ramsey heard a woman screaming and trying to escape a neighbor's home in Cleveland, "I figured it was a domestic violence dispute," he told a news station. It wasn't: It was Amanda Berry, kidnapped 10 years ago, and Ramsey helped her escape. But his initial assumption is telling, writes Amy Davidson in the New Yorker. "In many times and places, a line like that has been offered as an excuse for walking away, not for helping a woman break down your neighbor’s door. How many women have died as a result? They didn’t yesterday." What's more, Ramsey has said in interviews that he was friendly with the neighbor, having barbequed together in the past. What if he had ignored Berry and just told Ariel Castro later that someone was being loud? "For Berry and the others to be rescued ... Ramsey needed to not care who she might be at all—to think that all that mattered was that a woman was trapped behind a door that wouldn’t open, and to walk onto the porch," Davidson writes. Beyond his newfound hero status, Davidson finds Ramsey simply "compelling." (Consider his "transfixing" 911 call, in which "he does a better job with the essentials like the address than the 911 operator.") The rest of the Internet loves Ramsey, too—he's already the star of a ton of memes and he's been autotuned—but not everyone is happy with his treatment in the media thus far. For evidence, check out the comments on this Gawker piece. Writes Miles Klee on BlackBook, "Perhaps it’s time for the world’s meme artists to stop assuming that any black dude getting interviewed on local news about a crime he helped to foil can be reduced to some catch phrase or in-joke." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.In a tough situation — in this case, the incredible rescue last night in Cleveland of Amanda Berry, Georgina “Gina” DeJesus and Michele Knight after a decade in captivity — it’s no wonder people are looking for bright spots. And the Internet has quickly decided that one giant bright spot is local hero and neighbor Charles Ramsey, who heard Berry’s cries for help and busted open a door to help get her out, then called 911. Ramsey’s high-energy (but NSFW) interview with a local news reporter recounting the incident quickly went viral (and continues to be a top trending topic on Twitter). Now — as is inevitable in this meme-tastic age — autotune song versions of the spirited Q&A are cropping up on YouTube.
Check out some of the remixes of the interview below. Gregory Brothers, we’re still waiting for your take.
What do we think the timeframe is until Ramsey gets free McDonald’s for life/appearances on the morning programs/a reality show?
Read more:
57 Summer Movies We Can’t Wait To See
Jimmy Kimmel drank (a lot!) during his Time 100 toast — VIDEO
Rebecca Black is the latest to cover Rihanna’s ‘Stay’ — We round up (and rank) other notable covers ||||| Charles Ramsey, who helped rescue three missing Cleveland women from the house where they'd been held captive for a decade, is more than just a good Samaritan and hero: He's also an amazing interview. (And even better on the phone with 911.)
Ramsey, who lives next door to the house where the women were trapped, gave two lively and captivating interviews to local news affiliates after aiding in their rescue yesterday. Ramsey, off from work, heard Amanda Berry screaming, and came outside to see what was going on: "I'm eating my McDonald's; I come outside; I see this girl going nuts," he says. "I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway!"
Here's his 911 call, in which Ramsey sounds basically like anyone would if he found out a woman had been kidnapped and held in his neighbor's house. (Don't listen to this at full volume at work, unless your supervisor is okay with "This motherfucker done kidnapped me and my daughter and we've been in this bitch—she says her name is Linda Berry or some shit, I don't know who the fuck that is"):
As it turned out, Amanda Berry was the Amanda Berry, a Cleveland girl who'd been missing for 10 years. In the house with her were two other young women, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight, who'd also gone missing in the last decade—as well as a young girl, apparently Berry's daughter. All three had apparently been kidnapped and held, allegedly by the house's owner Ariel Castro, 52—"I barbecued with this dude! We ate ribs and whatnot, and listened to salsa music!" Ramsey says—who has been arrested along with two of his brothers.
This morning, all three women were released from the hospital. The FBI is still investigating, but doesn't believe any more women were taken. ||||| “So, you know, I figured it was a domestic-violence dispute,” Charles Ramsey told a reporter for the ABC affiliate in Cleveland, explaining what happened after, as he put it, he “heard screaming. I’m eating McDonald’s. I see this girl going nuts trying to get out of the house.” Ramsey, and others who gathered, helped her break open the door, kicking it from the bottom. She told them her name, Amanda Berry. She had been kidnapped at the age of seventeen, ten years ago. There were two other women in the house, Gina DeJesus, who is now twenty-three, and Michelle Knight, now thirty, who had also been held for a decade. There was at least one small child.
Ramsey’s 911 call is transfixing. “Yeah hey bro,” it begins, “hey, check this out.” His intensity, the McDonald’s shout-out, his undoubtedly loose paraphrase of Berry’s account (“This motherfucker done kidnapped me and my daughter”), and also his competence (he does a better job with the essentials like the address than the 911 operator) make him one of those instantly compelling figures who, in the middle of an American tragedy, just start talking—and then we can’t stop listening. (See Ruslan Tsarni, Ashley Smith.) But one phrase in particular, from the interview, is worth dwelling on: “I figured it was a domestic-violence dispute.” In many times and places, a line like that has been offered as an excuse for walking away, not for helping a woman break down your neighbor’s door. How many women have died as a result? They didn’t yesterday.
Three men are now being held—reportedly Ariel Castro, a bus driver who owned the house, and his two brothers, all in their early fifties. The three women were examined at a hospital, and there are already pictures of reunions with their families; the Plain Dealer reported that “drivers passing the hospital and the neighborhood honked their car horns in support.” Most people thought they were dead; the big tips in their cases, in the last few years, had been about where the bodies might have been dumped. The police chief talked about the emotion on the faces of officers who’d been looking for them for years.
During the call, the operator asks Ramsey if Berry needs an ambulance. He replies.
She need an ambulance, or what? She needs everything. She’s, uh, she’s is in a panic. I guess she’s been kidnapped, so you know, put yourself in her shoes.
Put yourself in her shoes. Berry and the others will need everything—they have lost so much of their lives, and will now have what’s left exposed and questioned. But Berry didn’t give up, and, in the end, she got them out of there. According to a police conference on Tuesday morning, her chance came when she forced a hole in a screen covering the lower part of the door which was big enough for her to push her arm through. Then she started to make noise. (One recalls the way that Natascha Kampusch, an Austrian girl held for eight years, kept looking for a moment to run, and finally found one.) Ramsey came when Berry screamed; and yet she took a risk by trying to get the attention of a stranger. What if he had just told his neighbor, with whom, he told reporters, he’d hung out at local barbecues—“ribs and what not”—that someone in his house was being loud? “Amanda is the one,” Deputy Police Chief Ed Tomba said at the press conference on Tuesday morning. “She came out of that house and that started it all.”
Berry made her own 911 call at the same time as Ramsey. Her first words were, “Help me. I’m Amanda Berry.” Her name was what she wanted to get out, before telling the dispatcher, “I’ve been kidnapped and I’ve been missing for ten years, and I’m, I’m here, I’m free now…. My name is Amanda Berry, I’ve been in the news for the last ten years.” Ramsey told ABC that one of the first things she said, after they got her out: “Call 911. My name is Amanda Berry.” The reporter asked him if he’d realized what that meant—Berry’s disappearance was one of Cleveland’s famous unsolved cases. “When she told me it didn’t register until I got to call 911. And then, I’m calling 911 for Amanda Berry? I thought this girl was dead,” Ramsey replied. Or, as he described that moment of cognitive dissonance to the 911 operator, “She said her name is Wenda Berry or some shit. I don’t know who the fuck that is.”
For Berry and the others to be rescued, in other words, two things had to happen: she had to never forget who she was, and that who she was mattered; and Ramsey needed to not care who she might be at all—to think that all that mattered was that a woman was trapped behind a door that wouldn’t open, and to walk onto the porch.
Amy Davidson on Ariel Castro’s first kidnapping victim, Michelle Knight, and on Castro’s court appearance on Thursday.
Above: Exterior of the house where, on Monday, three women who had disappeared as teenagers approximately ten years ago were found alive in Cleveland. Photograph by Bill Pugliano/Getty. Lower: Amanda Berry, right, hugs her sister Beth Serrano after being reunited in a Cleveland hospital on Monday. Photograph courtesy WOIO-TV/AP. ||||| So, Cleveland man Charles Ramsey finds and releases kidnapped women who have been missing for years, calls 911, gives some refreshingly down-to-earth interviews about the entire surreal affair. His hero status, plus a stated affinity for ribs and salsa music, have made him a possible meme in the vein of Antoine Dodson’s “Bed Intruder” riff—but the internet just can’t nail it down, producing only some weak Auto-Tune remixes.
Perhaps it’s time for the world’s meme artists to stop assuming that any black dude getting interviewed on local news about a crime he helped to foil can be reduced to some catch phrase or in-joke. It’s just baffling that we’re trying to find a way to laugh about what is, in itself, a harrowing turn of events. Besides, the hectic first minute of his 911 call is where Ramsey really shines.
Right? And throughout this whole experience it seems that everyone, from the 911 operator down to the news correspondents, is a little condescending to him. Just not as condescending as a dude with a Tumblr who wants to turn him into viral content with some silly added hook.
But Ramsey is straight-up awesome as is. He’s bigger than memes. Just this once let’s celebrate the man himself—without using .gifs or Photoshop.
[More by Miles Klee; Follow Miles on Twitter] | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 34,683 |
Alert reader Dan Shea drew Via Meadia‘s attention to an unusually depressing article in the Boston Globe. It is one of those fluffy and airheaded “lifestyle” pieces, the print equivalent of empty calorie junk food and like many such articles it provides a horrifying glimpse into the vacuous nature of the modern American mind. In this particular case, the reporter, who hopefully is affecting rather than spontaneously producing prose redolent of relentless stupidity, shares her view of 10 “awesome” classes at Boston area colleges that she thinks her readers would like to take.
A couple of them, we hasten to observe, look both useful and good. The MIT course taking first year mechanical engineering students through the entire process of toy design seems a bit out of place on this list. And we also note that the actual classes may have more substance than our chipper journalist reports. But some “awesome” courses look like the kind of academic malpractice that help so many American kids emerge from four years of “education” with massive debt loads, major attitude problems, and no marketable skills. Consider:
“Staging American Women: The Culture of Burlesque”. Burlesque is a complex and alluring underground culture — and sexy, too, of course. Think about tassels for a moment — are you blushing? Then you might want to skip out on a course that involves discussing pin-ups and early sexploitation films. Your loss.
It is hard to know which is more disturbing, here: that a college can accept student loan money for a course like this without being charged with financial fraud or the vapid thinking and limp prose that Globe editors evidently think belongs in their newspaper. Or consider this piece of awesomeness from the same college (Emerson, where tuition and fees run to more than $30,000 a year, and almost half of those who apply are admitted):
“Puppetry”. “The course culminates in the construction of puppets for in-class presentations,” which is really all you need to know. Plus, puppets are pretty popular right now. I’ll be the first to say it: This class will make you a hit with the ladies.
Or there is our fatuous writer’s top suggestion, a useful course on the history of surfing:
“Surfing and American Culture“. As a Massachusetts native, I have a bit of trouble picturing the impact surfing has had on American culture beyond that Beach Boys song and Point Break. This class will take the uninitiated through the history of surfing up to the present day, as well as examine its role as a major economic force. And include field trips? Just a suggestion.
(Again, one wonders when the Globe decided that soggy, tasteless mush like this was publishable content. Either the writer or the editor of this piece and quite possibly both clearly spent much too much time in college taking classes like the ones being praised here.)
As Via Meadia looked at these course descriptions, and reflected that all over America students are borrowing tens of thousands of dollars a year to attend expensive schools and then blowing the money on glittering fripperies like these, we were reminded of a book title we came across in our long vanished youth: How to Make Yourself Miserable. It occurs to us that there is an infallible recipe for making yourself miserable, and that many young people in this country are following it — some, perhaps, without knowing that that is what they are doing.
So, inspired by this list of awesome courses, here is a sure-fire way to make yourself miserably unhappy in your twenties.
First, enroll in a college that you cannot afford, and rely on large student loans to make up the difference.
Second, spend the next four years having as good a time as possible: hang out, hook up, and above all, take plenty of “awesome” courses.
Third, find teachers and role models who will encourage you to develop an attitude of enlightened contempt for ordinary American middle class life, the world of business, and such bourgeois virtues as self-reliance, thrift, accountability and self-discipline. Specialize in sarcasm and snark.
Fourth, avoid all courses with tough requirements, taking only the minimum required number of classes in science, math and foreign languages.
Fifth, never think about acquiring marketable skills.
Sixth, when you graduate and discover that you have to repay the loans and cannot get a job that pays enough to live comfortably while servicing your debts, be surprised. Blame society. Demand that the government or your parents or evil corporations bail you out.
Seventh, expect anyone (except for other clueless losers who’ve been as stupid and wasteful as you) to sympathize with your plight, or to treat you with anything but an infuriating mixture of sorrow, pity and contempt.
If you follow this recipe faithfully, Via Meadia promises that you will achieve all the unhappiness you want. And don’t worry; anytime you feel sad and blue, just read some “lifestyle” journalism in the Boston Globe. It will be sure to cheer you up. ||||| Not to rub it in, but here are 10 cool, unusual classes you probably wish you were taking instead.
Class registration has come and gone, and if you’re like many college students, there’s at least one course on your schedule that you’re absolutely dreading. Why, exactly, did you sign up for it? Maybe all the slots filled up for a class you were really looking forward to. Maybe it was the lesser of two evils (“Hmm, ‘Tedious Mathematics 207’ or ‘Introduction to Long-Winded Philosophers 106?’�). Either way, it’s a bummer.
Boston University: “Surfing and American Culture". As a Massachusetts native, I have a bit of trouble picturing the impact surfing has had on American culture beyond that Beach Boys song and Point Break. This class will take the uninitiated through the history of surfing up to the present day, as well as examine its role as a major economic force. And include field trips? Just a suggestion.
Emerson: “Puppetry�. “The course culminates in the construction of puppets for in-class presentations,� which is really all you need to know. Plus, puppets are pretty popular right now. I’ll be the first to say it: This class will make you a hit with the ladies.
Harvard: “Anime as Global Pop Culture�. If you grew up in 1990s or later, you've definitely watched an anime. I see you trying to deny it because it’s nerdy or whatever, but I don’t believe you. Even if you didn't like it, you’ve probably at least watched the Pokémon TV show for two seconds, seen a Hiyao Miyazaki movie, or played a video game with anime-like stylings at some point in your life. Harvard turns a dorky guilty pleasure into an academic pursuit. Tip: Instead of flash cards, make ninja info cards.
Emerson: “Staging American Women: The Culture of Burlesque�. Burlesque is a complex and alluring underground culture -- and sexy, too, of course. Think about tassels for a moment -- are you blushing? Then you might want to skip out on a course that involves discussing pin-ups and early sexploitation films. Your loss.
Harvard: “HBO’s The Wire and its Contribution to Understanding Urban Inequality�. While most students use HBO as a way to escape homework, some would rather put their television drama-watching ways to good use. Harvard’s class about The Wire takes a critical look at the critically acclaimed show as a way to analyze urban inequality. Your homework will be to watch TV, and you’ll even learn something along the way.
Northeastern: “Intellectual Board Games and Business Strategy�. When I saw this listing, I almost passed it over. They can’t mean literal board games, I thought. Well, yeah, they do. This class focuses on chess and Go as ways to foster “strategic and tactical thinking� in business students, and you actually learn how to play Go in class. Now that is a life skill.
MIT: “Toy Product Design�. Sorry, upperclassmen, this one’s for the first-years. Mechanical engineering students go through the entire process of creating a new toy, from brainstorming to prototyping, and they’re even paired with clients, sponsors, and mentors. If you've ever fantasized about being Stu Pickles, here’s your chance (hopefully you’ll be more successful than he ever was).
Tufts: “Ropes & Rocks�. Every course description should be as succinct and appealing as this one. Tufts, you had me at the second sentence: “field trips to local ropes courses and selected rock climbing sites.� It’s only for a one-half course credit, but I’m pretty sure that mountain rescue techniques could come in handy, especially if the economy continues to tank and we all abandon the city for a more natural existence in the wilderness.
Suffolk: “History of Piracy�. No, we’re not talking Internet piracy. This class aims to answer two essential questions: “Why did men (and some women) turn pirate?� and “Why is there a continuing fascination with pirates?� The short answer to both of these questions is, of course, “because they are awesome� (also, Johnny Depp), but this class is definitely worth checking out anyway.
Tufts: “Javanese Gamelan Ensemble�. Chances are, you’re not qualified to take this class (admittance is by audition), but wouldn't it be cool if you were? I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that I’d love to be able to put “Javanese Gamelan Ensemble Member� on my resume. Hey, a girl can dream.
What's the most awesome course you've taken or are signed up for next semester?
Photo by CAPL
About Vanessa -- Vanessa Formato is a 22-year-old Clark University graduate, freelance journalist, vegan cupcake enthusiast and video game aficionado. She blogs about body image and tweets about puppies. So awesome, even John Stamos is impressed.
Want more TNGG? Send us an email. Go to our main site. Follow us on Twitter @nextgreatgen. Like us on Facebook. And subscribe to our newsletter! | – If you want to emerge from college "with massive debt loads, major attitude problems, and no marketable skills," Walter Russell Mead has a 7-step plan that's sure to work. Disgusted with a recent Boston Globe column about "awesome" college courses (among them: "The Culture of Burlesque," "Puppetry," and "Surfing and American Culture"), Meade explains on the American Interest that these are the vapid, "glittering fripperies" American students are going tens of thousands of dollars into debt for, though all it will lead to is a life of misery. Highlights of his plan to ruin your life: No. 1: "Enroll in a college that you cannot afford, and rely on large student loans to make up the difference." No. 2: Take a lot of those aforementioned "awesome" classes, and of course, have a great time. No. 3: "Develop an attitude of enlightened contempt for ordinary American middle class life, the world of business, and such bourgeois virtues as self-reliance, thrift, accountability, and self-discipline." No. 6: "When you graduate and discover that you have to repay the loans and cannot get a job that pays enough to live comfortably while servicing your debts, be surprised. Blame society." If you are determined to "make yourself miserably unhappy in your twenties," by all means, read the rest of Mead's list. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Alert reader Dan Shea drew Via Meadia‘s attention to an unusually depressing article in the Boston Globe. It is one of those fluffy and airheaded “lifestyle” pieces, the print equivalent of empty calorie junk food and like many such articles it provides a horrifying glimpse into the vacuous nature of the modern American mind. In this particular case, the reporter, who hopefully is affecting rather than spontaneously producing prose redolent of relentless stupidity, shares her view of 10 “awesome” classes at Boston area colleges that she thinks her readers would like to take.
A couple of them, we hasten to observe, look both useful and good. The MIT course taking first year mechanical engineering students through the entire process of toy design seems a bit out of place on this list. And we also note that the actual classes may have more substance than our chipper journalist reports. But some “awesome” courses look like the kind of academic malpractice that help so many American kids emerge from four years of “education” with massive debt loads, major attitude problems, and no marketable skills. Consider:
“Staging American Women: The Culture of Burlesque”. Burlesque is a complex and alluring underground culture — and sexy, too, of course. Think about tassels for a moment — are you blushing? Then you might want to skip out on a course that involves discussing pin-ups and early sexploitation films. Your loss.
It is hard to know which is more disturbing, here: that a college can accept student loan money for a course like this without being charged with financial fraud or the vapid thinking and limp prose that Globe editors evidently think belongs in their newspaper. Or consider this piece of awesomeness from the same college (Emerson, where tuition and fees run to more than $30,000 a year, and almost half of those who apply are admitted):
“Puppetry”. “The course culminates in the construction of puppets for in-class presentations,” which is really all you need to know. Plus, puppets are pretty popular right now. I’ll be the first to say it: This class will make you a hit with the ladies.
Or there is our fatuous writer’s top suggestion, a useful course on the history of surfing:
“Surfing and American Culture“. As a Massachusetts native, I have a bit of trouble picturing the impact surfing has had on American culture beyond that Beach Boys song and Point Break. This class will take the uninitiated through the history of surfing up to the present day, as well as examine its role as a major economic force. And include field trips? Just a suggestion.
(Again, one wonders when the Globe decided that soggy, tasteless mush like this was publishable content. Either the writer or the editor of this piece and quite possibly both clearly spent much too much time in college taking classes like the ones being praised here.)
As Via Meadia looked at these course descriptions, and reflected that all over America students are borrowing tens of thousands of dollars a year to attend expensive schools and then blowing the money on glittering fripperies like these, we were reminded of a book title we came across in our long vanished youth: How to Make Yourself Miserable. It occurs to us that there is an infallible recipe for making yourself miserable, and that many young people in this country are following it — some, perhaps, without knowing that that is what they are doing.
So, inspired by this list of awesome courses, here is a sure-fire way to make yourself miserably unhappy in your twenties.
First, enroll in a college that you cannot afford, and rely on large student loans to make up the difference.
Second, spend the next four years having as good a time as possible: hang out, hook up, and above all, take plenty of “awesome” courses.
Third, find teachers and role models who will encourage you to develop an attitude of enlightened contempt for ordinary American middle class life, the world of business, and such bourgeois virtues as self-reliance, thrift, accountability and self-discipline. Specialize in sarcasm and snark.
Fourth, avoid all courses with tough requirements, taking only the minimum required number of classes in science, math and foreign languages.
Fifth, never think about acquiring marketable skills.
Sixth, when you graduate and discover that you have to repay the loans and cannot get a job that pays enough to live comfortably while servicing your debts, be surprised. Blame society. Demand that the government or your parents or evil corporations bail you out.
Seventh, expect anyone (except for other clueless losers who’ve been as stupid and wasteful as you) to sympathize with your plight, or to treat you with anything but an infuriating mixture of sorrow, pity and contempt.
If you follow this recipe faithfully, Via Meadia promises that you will achieve all the unhappiness you want. And don’t worry; anytime you feel sad and blue, just read some “lifestyle” journalism in the Boston Globe. It will be sure to cheer you up. ||||| Not to rub it in, but here are 10 cool, unusual classes you probably wish you were taking instead.
Class registration has come and gone, and if you’re like many college students, there’s at least one course on your schedule that you’re absolutely dreading. Why, exactly, did you sign up for it? Maybe all the slots filled up for a class you were really looking forward to. Maybe it was the lesser of two evils (“Hmm, ‘Tedious Mathematics 207’ or ‘Introduction to Long-Winded Philosophers 106?’�). Either way, it’s a bummer.
Boston University: “Surfing and American Culture". As a Massachusetts native, I have a bit of trouble picturing the impact surfing has had on American culture beyond that Beach Boys song and Point Break. This class will take the uninitiated through the history of surfing up to the present day, as well as examine its role as a major economic force. And include field trips? Just a suggestion.
Emerson: “Puppetry�. “The course culminates in the construction of puppets for in-class presentations,� which is really all you need to know. Plus, puppets are pretty popular right now. I’ll be the first to say it: This class will make you a hit with the ladies.
Harvard: “Anime as Global Pop Culture�. If you grew up in 1990s or later, you've definitely watched an anime. I see you trying to deny it because it’s nerdy or whatever, but I don’t believe you. Even if you didn't like it, you’ve probably at least watched the Pokémon TV show for two seconds, seen a Hiyao Miyazaki movie, or played a video game with anime-like stylings at some point in your life. Harvard turns a dorky guilty pleasure into an academic pursuit. Tip: Instead of flash cards, make ninja info cards.
Emerson: “Staging American Women: The Culture of Burlesque�. Burlesque is a complex and alluring underground culture -- and sexy, too, of course. Think about tassels for a moment -- are you blushing? Then you might want to skip out on a course that involves discussing pin-ups and early sexploitation films. Your loss.
Harvard: “HBO’s The Wire and its Contribution to Understanding Urban Inequality�. While most students use HBO as a way to escape homework, some would rather put their television drama-watching ways to good use. Harvard’s class about The Wire takes a critical look at the critically acclaimed show as a way to analyze urban inequality. Your homework will be to watch TV, and you’ll even learn something along the way.
Northeastern: “Intellectual Board Games and Business Strategy�. When I saw this listing, I almost passed it over. They can’t mean literal board games, I thought. Well, yeah, they do. This class focuses on chess and Go as ways to foster “strategic and tactical thinking� in business students, and you actually learn how to play Go in class. Now that is a life skill.
MIT: “Toy Product Design�. Sorry, upperclassmen, this one’s for the first-years. Mechanical engineering students go through the entire process of creating a new toy, from brainstorming to prototyping, and they’re even paired with clients, sponsors, and mentors. If you've ever fantasized about being Stu Pickles, here’s your chance (hopefully you’ll be more successful than he ever was).
Tufts: “Ropes & Rocks�. Every course description should be as succinct and appealing as this one. Tufts, you had me at the second sentence: “field trips to local ropes courses and selected rock climbing sites.� It’s only for a one-half course credit, but I’m pretty sure that mountain rescue techniques could come in handy, especially if the economy continues to tank and we all abandon the city for a more natural existence in the wilderness.
Suffolk: “History of Piracy�. No, we’re not talking Internet piracy. This class aims to answer two essential questions: “Why did men (and some women) turn pirate?� and “Why is there a continuing fascination with pirates?� The short answer to both of these questions is, of course, “because they are awesome� (also, Johnny Depp), but this class is definitely worth checking out anyway.
Tufts: “Javanese Gamelan Ensemble�. Chances are, you’re not qualified to take this class (admittance is by audition), but wouldn't it be cool if you were? I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say that I’d love to be able to put “Javanese Gamelan Ensemble Member� on my resume. Hey, a girl can dream.
What's the most awesome course you've taken or are signed up for next semester?
Photo by CAPL
About Vanessa -- Vanessa Formato is a 22-year-old Clark University graduate, freelance journalist, vegan cupcake enthusiast and video game aficionado. She blogs about body image and tweets about puppies. So awesome, even John Stamos is impressed.
Want more TNGG? Send us an email. Go to our main site. Follow us on Twitter @nextgreatgen. Like us on Facebook. And subscribe to our newsletter! | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 31,797 |
The department of justice is reviewing the NYPD's controversial stop-and-frisk policy, following demands by campaigners who say the tactic is unconstitutional and racially discriminatory.
The DoJ's intervention, confirmed to the Guardian, follows a meeting with New York City lawmakers in Washington on Thursday.
If justice department officials decided to launch a federal investigation or to intervene in lawsuits that are already under way, it would deal a significant blow to a policy that has been championed by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and his police chief Ray Kelly.
Last year the police department stopped close to 700,000 people on the city's streets, more than ever before. As with every year over the past decade, the vast majority of those stopped were African American or Latino and nearly nine out of 10 had committed no crime. The department is on track to make 2012 another record-setting year.
Campaigners say Bloomberg and Kelly have failed to respond to demands for change and that federal intervention is now needed.
"It's clear that the mayor and commissioner – in the face of everything that points to this policy being unjust, unfair, racist, prejudiced and most importantly ineffective – won't do anything about it," said city council member Jumaane Williams, a fierce critic of the department's policies who attended Thursday's meetings at the capitol. "Their lack of leadership is forcing us to do other things."
In an email to the Guardian a department of justice official said: "The department is aware of the allegations, and we are currently reviewing them."
Under President Obama, the department of justice has aggressively investigated a number of big city police departments for allegations ranging from systematic civil rights abuses such as harassment of racial minorities, false arrests to excessive use of force . Under so-called "pattern and practice" investigations – which grant the department authority to sue police departments if there is a pattern of violations of citizens' constitutional rights – the department has looked into allegations of misconduct in Newark, New Jersey and Seattle, Washington.
In May last year the DOJ issued a report on the New Orleans police department, accusing its officers of frequently using excessive force, conducting illegal stops and arrests, as well as systemic discrimination on the basis of race gender and sexual orientation.
Pressure on the NYPD over stop-and-frisk is increasing. A federal judge last month granted class-action status to a lawsuit filed by the Center for Constitutional Rights.
On Tuesday the local news website DNAinfo revealed that the explosion in stop-and-frisks under Bloomberg's administration – by 600% in the last decade – has had little impact on the number of people of shot in New York City, in contrast to claims made by the mayor and the commissioner that the practice is making the city safer. NYPD statistics reveal that 1,821 people were victims of gunfire in 2011, a figure which is almost identical to the 1,892 people who were shot in 2002 when Bloomberg came into office.
When confronted Tuesday with the fact that high rates of stop-and-frisk have not reduced shootings, Bloomberg said: "I know that."
Speaking before Thursday's meeting with DoJ officials, Williams said he believed the city's justification for widespread police stops is falling apart. "It's slowly crumbling around them. There's nothing they can say," he said. "If you stop more black young men than actually exist in the city and shootings are not even going down, I don't even know what you're holding on to."
Williams's spokesman, Stefan Ringel, said later that the lawmakers' conversation with DoJ officials were "very positive". He said: "The justice department officials that were at the meeting were very receptive to our concerns," he said. "We definitely feel that there is potential for some space for collaboration."
Ringel said the DoJ expressed interest in undertaking a closer examination of the class-action lawsuit. "There are going to be conversations ongoing in the next days and weeks. I feel certainly more confident even than I did when we headed down this morning that the department of justice will have some role to play before this is all said and done."
Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union which has been an outspoken critic of the department's stop-and-frisk practices, believes sweeping changes in NYPD culture are needed. "What we're hearing from the NYPD thus far is that they have a public relations problem. Well, they have more than that. This requires a massive overhaul of NYPD culture emanating from the top."
Lieberman pointed to the department's use of "quotas" as a crucial factor in driving the high number of stops. The NYPD has denied using a quota system, though multiple officers have reported that the system does exist and results in undue pressure placed upon rank-and-file police to make stops.
George Gresham, president of 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, a service-workers union, which is helping to organize a march against the policy on June 17, Fathers' Day, said: "We still have quite a way to go before stop-and-frisk goes from 700,000 to whatever a number that makes sense is.
"But there's no question that this, I believe, is the moment where public awareness and therefore public official awareness is keenly focused on the fact that this is a failing policy."
'It's martial law on a community'
The campaign against the NYPD's use of stop-and-frisk is supported by those who have experienced it. Steve Kohut, born and raised in Manhattan's Lower East Side, says he's been stopped and frisked "more times than I can remember" since he was 12. "It was just life to me," Kohut said.
He only realized that it was not common to all areas of the city when he visited a friend's upscale neighborhood. It prompted him to question the practice. "Wait a minute, the cops don't stop you every time you go to the store over here? They don't do that to you? They don't search you? They don't push you up against a wall? They don't put your face on the hood of their car?"
The inconsistency prompted Kohut to join a group that monitors police activity in New York City neighborhoods like the one he grew up in. "It messes with my head," he said, adding that it is "heartbreaking to know that there are kids growing up right now that think this is just life."
He hopes the growing attention being paid to stop-and-frisk will lead to a change in the policy. "I think it's great," he said. "It's not a positive thing to just declare martial law on a colored community or a poor community, which is pretty much what they're doing." ||||| New York officials from three levels of government asked the Justice Department on Thursday to consider investigating the city police department's stop-and-frisk program for overwhelmingly targeting minorities.
Rep. Yvette D. Clarke, D-N.Y, center, accompanied by Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., left, New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, right, and others, speaks about the New York Police Department's stop... (Associated Press)
New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz... (Associated Press)
New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams displays several button as he speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol... (Associated Press)
Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-NY, speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari) (Associated Press)
The delegation of city, state and federal officials also asked in a meeting Thursday that the agency intervene on lawsuits challenging the police tactic and assist them with legislative proposals to counter the program, including withholding some grant funds.
"No one cares about stopping crime more than we do because we live in these neighborhoods," New York City Assemblyman Karim Camara, a Democrat, said in a news conference on the grounds of the Capitol. "I'm raising two kids. You think I like hearing gunshots when my kids are sleeping in the other room? But you are not stopping the gunshots. You are not getting the guns off the street."
An analysis of department statistics by the New York Civil Liberties Union found police stopped 685,724 people last year, 87 percent of whom were black or Latino. About half had been frisked. Police have largely targeted black and Latino youths and men. Black and Latino men ages 14 to 24 make up about 5 percent of the city's population but accounted for 42 percent of the stops last year, according to the New York Civil Liberties Union's analysis. Ninety percent of the young black and Latino men were innocent.
Last month, a federal judge granted class status to a lawsuit filed by people who have been stopped. They are alleging the stop-and-frisk policy amounts to racial profiling and is unconstitutional. In granting the class-action status, U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled that there was "overwhelming evidence" that the practice has led to thousands of illegal stops.
The department and Mayor Michael Bloomberg defend the stop-and-frisk program as a way to fight crime and say that it has helped bring about record drops in crime. But critics say the program has produced few weapons or arrests and many of those arrested are picked up on unrelated charges or for resisting arrest because they have questioned the stop.
The New York Police Department also has been under fire for spying on Muslims students, businesses and mosques to collect intelligence on Muslims, an issue members of the delegation said they raised at the meeting.
"If you look at the numbers, no matter how you slice stop, question and frisk, it is a racist and prejudicial policy that violates civil rights and civil liberties," said New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, who said he co-chairs the City Council's gun violence.
Beyond that, the program is a failure in stemming gun violence. The police found one gun for every 3,000 people stopped, he said.
"Mayor Bloomberg sometimes steps out of New York City and goes national," Williams said. "When it comes to guns nationally he does some very good things. On a local level, we want people to know, he is backwards on this procedure and this policy ... and it's dangerous for people to look at what is happening in New York City and try to emulate that." | – The Justice Department has agreed to review New York City's controversial stop-and-frisk policy following complaints from activists and lawmakers who say the program overwhelmingly targets minorities, reports the Guardian. NYPD statistics show that police stopped a record-setting 684,330 people on the streets last year, 87% of whom where black and Latino; about half were frisked, and almost 90% weren't arrested. The police department and Mayor Michael Bloomberg defend the policy but critics say it is ineffective and has led to thousands of illegal arrests, reports the AP. Campaigners, who met with DoJ officials yesterday, note that stop-and-frisks have soared 600% under Bloomberg but the number of people injured by gunfire hasn't budged since he took office. "No one cares about stopping crime more than we do because we live in these neighborhoods," says New York City Assemblyman Karim Camara. "I'm raising two kids. You think I like hearing gunshots when my kids are sleeping in the other room? But you are not stopping the gunshots. You are not getting the guns off the street." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The department of justice is reviewing the NYPD's controversial stop-and-frisk policy, following demands by campaigners who say the tactic is unconstitutional and racially discriminatory.
The DoJ's intervention, confirmed to the Guardian, follows a meeting with New York City lawmakers in Washington on Thursday.
If justice department officials decided to launch a federal investigation or to intervene in lawsuits that are already under way, it would deal a significant blow to a policy that has been championed by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and his police chief Ray Kelly.
Last year the police department stopped close to 700,000 people on the city's streets, more than ever before. As with every year over the past decade, the vast majority of those stopped were African American or Latino and nearly nine out of 10 had committed no crime. The department is on track to make 2012 another record-setting year.
Campaigners say Bloomberg and Kelly have failed to respond to demands for change and that federal intervention is now needed.
"It's clear that the mayor and commissioner – in the face of everything that points to this policy being unjust, unfair, racist, prejudiced and most importantly ineffective – won't do anything about it," said city council member Jumaane Williams, a fierce critic of the department's policies who attended Thursday's meetings at the capitol. "Their lack of leadership is forcing us to do other things."
In an email to the Guardian a department of justice official said: "The department is aware of the allegations, and we are currently reviewing them."
Under President Obama, the department of justice has aggressively investigated a number of big city police departments for allegations ranging from systematic civil rights abuses such as harassment of racial minorities, false arrests to excessive use of force . Under so-called "pattern and practice" investigations – which grant the department authority to sue police departments if there is a pattern of violations of citizens' constitutional rights – the department has looked into allegations of misconduct in Newark, New Jersey and Seattle, Washington.
In May last year the DOJ issued a report on the New Orleans police department, accusing its officers of frequently using excessive force, conducting illegal stops and arrests, as well as systemic discrimination on the basis of race gender and sexual orientation.
Pressure on the NYPD over stop-and-frisk is increasing. A federal judge last month granted class-action status to a lawsuit filed by the Center for Constitutional Rights.
On Tuesday the local news website DNAinfo revealed that the explosion in stop-and-frisks under Bloomberg's administration – by 600% in the last decade – has had little impact on the number of people of shot in New York City, in contrast to claims made by the mayor and the commissioner that the practice is making the city safer. NYPD statistics reveal that 1,821 people were victims of gunfire in 2011, a figure which is almost identical to the 1,892 people who were shot in 2002 when Bloomberg came into office.
When confronted Tuesday with the fact that high rates of stop-and-frisk have not reduced shootings, Bloomberg said: "I know that."
Speaking before Thursday's meeting with DoJ officials, Williams said he believed the city's justification for widespread police stops is falling apart. "It's slowly crumbling around them. There's nothing they can say," he said. "If you stop more black young men than actually exist in the city and shootings are not even going down, I don't even know what you're holding on to."
Williams's spokesman, Stefan Ringel, said later that the lawmakers' conversation with DoJ officials were "very positive". He said: "The justice department officials that were at the meeting were very receptive to our concerns," he said. "We definitely feel that there is potential for some space for collaboration."
Ringel said the DoJ expressed interest in undertaking a closer examination of the class-action lawsuit. "There are going to be conversations ongoing in the next days and weeks. I feel certainly more confident even than I did when we headed down this morning that the department of justice will have some role to play before this is all said and done."
Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union which has been an outspoken critic of the department's stop-and-frisk practices, believes sweeping changes in NYPD culture are needed. "What we're hearing from the NYPD thus far is that they have a public relations problem. Well, they have more than that. This requires a massive overhaul of NYPD culture emanating from the top."
Lieberman pointed to the department's use of "quotas" as a crucial factor in driving the high number of stops. The NYPD has denied using a quota system, though multiple officers have reported that the system does exist and results in undue pressure placed upon rank-and-file police to make stops.
George Gresham, president of 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, a service-workers union, which is helping to organize a march against the policy on June 17, Fathers' Day, said: "We still have quite a way to go before stop-and-frisk goes from 700,000 to whatever a number that makes sense is.
"But there's no question that this, I believe, is the moment where public awareness and therefore public official awareness is keenly focused on the fact that this is a failing policy."
'It's martial law on a community'
The campaign against the NYPD's use of stop-and-frisk is supported by those who have experienced it. Steve Kohut, born and raised in Manhattan's Lower East Side, says he's been stopped and frisked "more times than I can remember" since he was 12. "It was just life to me," Kohut said.
He only realized that it was not common to all areas of the city when he visited a friend's upscale neighborhood. It prompted him to question the practice. "Wait a minute, the cops don't stop you every time you go to the store over here? They don't do that to you? They don't search you? They don't push you up against a wall? They don't put your face on the hood of their car?"
The inconsistency prompted Kohut to join a group that monitors police activity in New York City neighborhoods like the one he grew up in. "It messes with my head," he said, adding that it is "heartbreaking to know that there are kids growing up right now that think this is just life."
He hopes the growing attention being paid to stop-and-frisk will lead to a change in the policy. "I think it's great," he said. "It's not a positive thing to just declare martial law on a colored community or a poor community, which is pretty much what they're doing." ||||| New York officials from three levels of government asked the Justice Department on Thursday to consider investigating the city police department's stop-and-frisk program for overwhelmingly targeting minorities.
Rep. Yvette D. Clarke, D-N.Y, center, accompanied by Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., left, New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, right, and others, speaks about the New York Police Department's stop... (Associated Press)
New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz... (Associated Press)
New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams displays several button as he speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol... (Associated Press)
Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-NY, speaks about the New York Police Department's stop and frisk policy, Thursday, June 7, 2012, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari) (Associated Press)
The delegation of city, state and federal officials also asked in a meeting Thursday that the agency intervene on lawsuits challenging the police tactic and assist them with legislative proposals to counter the program, including withholding some grant funds.
"No one cares about stopping crime more than we do because we live in these neighborhoods," New York City Assemblyman Karim Camara, a Democrat, said in a news conference on the grounds of the Capitol. "I'm raising two kids. You think I like hearing gunshots when my kids are sleeping in the other room? But you are not stopping the gunshots. You are not getting the guns off the street."
An analysis of department statistics by the New York Civil Liberties Union found police stopped 685,724 people last year, 87 percent of whom were black or Latino. About half had been frisked. Police have largely targeted black and Latino youths and men. Black and Latino men ages 14 to 24 make up about 5 percent of the city's population but accounted for 42 percent of the stops last year, according to the New York Civil Liberties Union's analysis. Ninety percent of the young black and Latino men were innocent.
Last month, a federal judge granted class status to a lawsuit filed by people who have been stopped. They are alleging the stop-and-frisk policy amounts to racial profiling and is unconstitutional. In granting the class-action status, U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled that there was "overwhelming evidence" that the practice has led to thousands of illegal stops.
The department and Mayor Michael Bloomberg defend the stop-and-frisk program as a way to fight crime and say that it has helped bring about record drops in crime. But critics say the program has produced few weapons or arrests and many of those arrested are picked up on unrelated charges or for resisting arrest because they have questioned the stop.
The New York Police Department also has been under fire for spying on Muslims students, businesses and mosques to collect intelligence on Muslims, an issue members of the delegation said they raised at the meeting.
"If you look at the numbers, no matter how you slice stop, question and frisk, it is a racist and prejudicial policy that violates civil rights and civil liberties," said New York City Councilman Jumaane Williams, who said he co-chairs the City Council's gun violence.
Beyond that, the program is a failure in stemming gun violence. The police found one gun for every 3,000 people stopped, he said.
"Mayor Bloomberg sometimes steps out of New York City and goes national," Williams said. "When it comes to guns nationally he does some very good things. On a local level, we want people to know, he is backwards on this procedure and this policy ... and it's dangerous for people to look at what is happening in New York City and try to emulate that." | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 15,936 |
Cardiovascular disease resulting from atherosclerosis is one of the most common causes of death worldwide, and additional therapies for this disease are greatly needed because not all patients can be effectively treated with existing approaches. Cyclodextrin is a common FDA-approved substance that is already used as a solubilizing agent to improve delivery of various drugs. Now, Zimmer et al. have discovered that cyclodextrin can also solubilize cholesterol, removing it from plaques, dissolving cholesterol crystals, and successfully treating atherosclerosis in a mouse model. Because cyclodextrin is already known to be safe in humans, this drug is now a potential candidate for testing in human patients for the treatment of atherosclerosis.
Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease linked to elevated blood cholesterol concentrations. Despite ongoing advances in the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide. Continuous retention of apolipoprotein B–containing lipoproteins in the subendothelial space causes a local overabundance of free cholesterol. Because cholesterol accumulation and deposition of cholesterol crystals (CCs) trigger a complex inflammatory response, we tested the efficacy of the cyclic oligosaccharide 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (CD), a compound that increases cholesterol solubility in preventing and reversing atherosclerosis. We showed that CD treatment of murine atherosclerosis reduced atherosclerotic plaque size and CC load and promoted plaque regression even with a continued cholesterol-rich diet. Mechanistically, CD increased oxysterol production in both macrophages and human atherosclerotic plaques and promoted liver X receptor (LXR)–mediated transcriptional reprogramming to improve cholesterol efflux and exert anti-inflammatory effects. In vivo, this CD-mediated LXR agonism was required for the antiatherosclerotic and anti-inflammatory effects of CD as well as for augmented reverse cholesterol transport. Because CD treatment in humans is safe and CD beneficially affects key mechanisms of atherogenesis, it may therefore be used clinically to prevent or treat human atherosclerosis.
Here, we found that subcutaneous administration of CD profoundly reduced atherogenesis and induced regression of established atherosclerosis in mouse models. CD augmented dissolution of CCs, reducing their appearance in lesions. Furthermore, CD increased cholesterol metabolism and liver X receptor (LXR)–dependent cellular reprogramming, which resulted in more efficient reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) as well as reduced proinflammatory gene expression. The atheroprotective effect of CD was dependent on LXR expression in myeloid cells transplanted into LDL receptor (LDLR)–deficient mice. These studies suggest that CD mediates atheroprotection by increasing production of oxysterols and LXR-dependent cellular reprogramming and provide preclinical evidence that CD could be developed into an effective therapy for atherosclerosis in humans.
Genetic approaches to increase the capacity of macrophages to remove free cholesterol from atherosclerotic lesions have proven to be highly successful in preclinical trials ( 11 ). This prompted us to test whether pharmacologically increasing cholesterol solubility, clearance, and catabolism can be exploited for the prevention or treatment of atherosclerosis. 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (CD) is a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)–approved substance used to solubilize and entrap numerous lipophilic pharmaceutical agents for therapeutic delivery in humans ( 12 , 13 ). Although it has previously been shown that CD increases cholesterol solubility, promotes the removal of cholesterol from foam cells in vitro, and initiates anti-inflammatory mechanisms ( 14 – 16 ), it remains unknown whether CD can exert antiatherogenic effects in vivo.
CCs, which can result from excessive cholesterol deposition in atherosclerotic lesions, are among the proinflammatory triggers that contribute to the inflammatory response during atherogenesis ( 7 ). CCs can trigger complement activation and neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation, as well as induction of innate immune pathways ( 4 , 5 , 8 – 10 ). Hence, therapeutic strategies aimed at the prevention of cholesterol phase transition or the removal of CCs could reduce tissue inflammation and disease progression.
Atherosclerosis is characterized by arterial wall remodeling, which is initiated by the retention and accumulation of different classes of lipids in the subendothelial layer. Lipid deposition and the appearance of cholesterol crystals (CCs) have been associated with the induction of an inflammatory reaction in the vessel wall, which contributes to the pathogenesis ( 4 , 5 ). Patients with increased systemic inflammation have increased risk of cardiovascular death, and studies are under way to test whether anti-inflammatory treatment can reduce cardiovascular event rates ( 6 ).
Atherosclerosis is the underlying pathology that causes heart attacks, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease. Collectively, these conditions represent a common health problem, and current treatments are insufficient to adequately reduce the risk of disease development. Pharmacologic reduction ( 1 – 3 ) of high-cholesterol concentrations is among the most successful therapeutic approaches to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and stroke, but adequate reduction of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is not possible in all patients.
RESULTS
CD treatment impairs atherogenesis To investigate the efficacy of CD treatment in murine atherosclerosis, apolipoprotein E (ApoE−/−) deficient mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet and concomitantly treated subcutaneously with CD or vehicle control for 8 weeks. Although plasma cholesterol, the main driver of atherosclerosis, remained unaffected (Fig. 1A), CD treatment profoundly reduced atherosclerotic lesions within the aortic root (Fig. 1B). Furthermore, we found reduced amounts of CCs in atherosclerotic plaques of CD-treated mice as assessed by laser reflection microscopy (Fig. 1, C and D). CD did not influence weight gain, blood pressure, heart rate, or the number of bone marrow–derived or circulating sca1/flk1-positive cells (fig. S1, A to E). Moreover, plasma concentrations of phytosterols, cholestanol, and cholesterol precursors were not influenced by CD treatment, indirectly showing that CD did not alter enteric cholesterol uptake or overall endogenous biosynthesis (fig. S1F) (17). CD also did not change the relative plaque composition, including cellularity and macrophage content (Fig. 1, E and F). However, the production of aortic reactive oxygen species (Fig. 1G) and plasma concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines were reduced by CD treatment (Fig. 1, H to J), suggesting that CD may reduce the inflammatory response during atherogenesis. Fig. 1. CD treatment impairs murine atherogenesis. ApoE−/− mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks and concomitantly treated with CD (2 g/kg) or vehicle control by subcutaneous injection twice a week (n = 7 to 8 per group). (A) Plasma cholesterol concentrations. (B) Atherosclerotic plaque area relative to total arterial wall area. (C) Plaque CC load shown as the ratio of crystal reflection area to plaque area. (D) Representative images of the aortic plaques obtained by confocal laser reflection microscopy. Red, macrophages stained with anti-CD68 antibodies; white, reflection signal of CCs; blue, nuclei stained with Hoechst. Enlarged images are the boxed areas in the left images. Scale bars, 500 μm. (E) Plaque cellularity shown as the ratio of nuclei to plaque area. (F) Plaque macrophage load shown as the ratio of CD68 fluorescence area to total plaque area. (G) Aortic superoxide production determined by L-012 chemiluminescence. ROS, reactive oxygen species; RLU, relative light units. (H to J) Plasma IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6 concentrations. Data are shown as means + SEM. ***P < 0.001, **P < 0.01, and *P < 0.05, control versus CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test); n.s., not significant.
CD treatment mediates regression of atherosclerotic plaques Although continuous drug administration in parallel to Western diet feeding of mice is a standard protocol to investigate potential atheroprotective substances (18), patients are generally not treated in early stages of atherogenesis. Therefore, we tested the effect of CD treatment on atherosclerosis regression. ApoE−/− mice are hypercholesterolemic even on normal or lipid-reduced chow, and thus, most murine atherosclerotic regression models rely on interventional strategies that normalize plasma lipids, such as viral gene transfer, transplantation, or infusion of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles (19). We adapted a less invasive regression protocol (20) in which ApoE−/− mice were first fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks to induce advanced atherosclerotic lesions and then switched to a normal chow diet for another 4 weeks during which CD or vehicle control was administered (Fig. 2A). As expected, plasma cholesterol concentrations were decreased in both groups compared to baseline, but no difference between control and CD treatment was observed (Fig. 2B and fig. S2A). Although switching to a normal chow diet had no effect on atherosclerotic lesion size in vehicle-treated mice, CD treatment resulted in a regression of atherosclerotic plaques by about 45% (Fig. 2C). Although CC load in lesions was already decreased in vehicle-treated animals compared to the load before treatment, CC amounts were further reduced by CD treatment (Fig. 2D). Because patients with cardiovascular disease often do not adhere to the recommended lifestyle changes, which include dietary modifications, we next investigated whether CD treatment can affect atherosclerosis regression during continuous enteric cholesterol challenge. CD or vehicle treatment was started after 8 weeks of cholesterol-rich diet, which was continued for the entire 12 weeks (Fig. 2E). Although plasma cholesterol and general cholesterol metabolism were not altered (Fig. 2F and fig. S2B), atherosclerotic plaque size and CC load were decreased in CD-treated mice on continuous cholesterol-rich diet (Fig. 2, G and H). These data demonstrate that CD treatment is effective in reducing established plaques. Fig. 2. CD treatment facilitates regression of murine atherosclerosis. ApoE−/− mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks to induce advanced atherosclerotic lesions. Then, the diet was either changed to a normal chow (A to D) or the cholesterol-rich diet was continued for another 4 weeks (E to H). Mice were simultaneously treated with CD (2 g/kg) or vehicle control twice a week (n = 6 to 8 per group). (A and E) Diet and treatment schemes. (B and F) Plasma cholesterol concentrations. (C and G) Atherosclerotic plaque area relative to total arterial wall area. (D and H) Plaque CC load shown as the ratio of crystal reflection area to plaque area. Data are shown as means + SEM. ***P < 0.001, **P < 0.01, and *P < 0.05, control versus CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD dissolves extra- and intracellular CCs There are several possibilities to explain the protective effects of CD treatment on both atherogenesis and established atherosclerosis. Because CD is known to form soluble inclusion complexes with cholesterol, thereby enhancing its solubility in aqueous solutions by about 150,000-fold, we tested whether CD increases the solubility of CCs. Fluorescent CD bound to the surface of CCs (Fig. 3, A and B) and CD mediated the solubilization of CCs in a dose-dependent manner (Fig. 3C). To be effective in atherosclerotic plaques, CD must also act on intracellular CCs. Macrophages rapidly internalized fluorescent CD (Fig. 3D) and concentrated it in intracellular compartments (Fig. 3E). Furthermore, incubation with 10 mM CD, a subtoxic dose (fig. S3), enhanced the dissolution of intracellular CCs over time (Fig. 3F and fig. S4). Fig. 3. CD interacts with and dissolves extra- and intracellular CCs. (A and B) CCs (1 mg) were incubated with 0.5 mM rhodamine-labeled CD or phosphate-buffered saline as control. (A) Representative images obtained by confocal laser reflection microscopy. Scale bar, 20 μm. (B) Quantification of rhodamine fluorescence on CCs by flow cytometry. (C) 3H-CCs were incubated with CD solutions of the indicated concentrations overnight with shaking at 37°C. Upon filtration through 0.22-μm filter plates, radioactivity was determined in the filtrate (filterable/solubilized) and the retentate (crystalline). (D and E) iMacs (immortalized macrophages) were loaded with 200 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours before incubation with 1 mM rhodamine-labeled CD. (D) Quantification of rhodamine fluorescence by flow cytometry. (E) Representative images obtained by confocal microscopy. Red, rhodamine-labeled CD; green, laser reflection signal. Scale bars, 5 μm. (F) Intracellular CC dissolution in BMDMs treated with 10 mM CD or control for the indicated times determined by polarization microscopy. Data are shown as means ± SEM of at least three independent experiments.
Metabolism of crystal-derived cholesterol is increased by CD Macrophages within the arterial wall take up excessive amounts of cholesterol and transform into foam cells, a process that can impair macrophage function and promote atherogenesis (21). This can be mimicked in vitro by loading macrophages with CCs (fig. S5). After uptake of CCs into phagosomes, cholesterol is moved from the lysosome via the Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) transporter to the endoplasmic reticulum, where acetyl–coenzyme A (CoA) acetyltransferase catalyzes the formation of cholesteryl esters. This mechanism turns excess free cholesterol, which forms crystals and is cytotoxic, into cholesteryl esters that can be stored in lipid droplets. A second pathway to metabolize free cholesterol is the formation of water-soluble oxysterols. Oxysterols can diffuse across cell membranes and are known to reprogram macrophages through activation of LXR, which in turn modulates the inflammatory response and supports RCT to HDL (22–24). To study how CD influences the ability of macrophages to reduce the amount of cholesterol derived from CCs, we incubated macrophages with CCs prepared from D 6 -cholesterol (D 6 -CCs) and followed D 6 -cholesterol metabolism products in cells and cellular supernatants by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry selective ion monitoring (GC-MS-SIM) (Fig. 4A). This analysis revealed that CD treatment promoted esterification of crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol (Fig. 4B). Furthermore, CD amplified D 6 -cholesterol concentrations in supernatants while reducing the overall cellular pool of D 6 -cholesterol (Fig. 4C). Hence, CD treatment increased the cholesterol efflux capacity of macrophages, which represents an important protective factor in patients with coronary artery disease (25, 26). Active cholesterol transport is mediated primarily by the adenosine 5′-triphosphate–binding cassette transporters A1 and G1 (ABCA1 and ABCG1), which transfer free cholesterol to ApoA1 and mature HDL particles, respectively (27). In line with the observed increase in cholesterol efflux capacity, macrophages incubated with CCs had increased expression of both ABCA1 and ABCG1, which was even further enhanced by CD treatment (Fig. 4, D to F). Genes involved in driving cholesterol efflux, including Abca1 and Abcg1, are under the control of the LXR/retinoid X receptor (LXR/RXR) transcription apparatus (22, 28). Because the transcriptional activities of LXRs are positively regulated by oxysterols, we next analyzed whether CD can potentiate cholesterol oxidation. We found that CD treatment of D 6 -CC–loaded macrophages resulted in a marked 15-fold increase in D 6 -cholesterol–derived 27-hydroxycholesterol (D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol) (Fig. 4G), although the expression of Cyp27a1 was not altered (fig. S6). Unexpectedly, CD also increased 27-hydroxycholesterol production and secretion from macrophages under normocholesterolemic conditions, meaning macrophages not treated with D 6 -CCs (Fig. 4H). Hence, CD increases the metabolism of free cholesterol and could thereby lower the potential for its phase transition into crystals. Fig. 4. CD mediates metabolism and efflux of crystal-derived cholesterol. (A) Macrophages loaded with CCs prepared from D 6 -cholesterol (D 6 -CC) can reduce the amount of free, crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol by three main mechanisms. First, acetyl-CoA acetyltransferase (ACAT-1) can catalyze the formation of D 6 -cholesteryl esters, the storage form of cholesterol, which are deposited in lipid droplets. Second, the mitochondrial enzyme 27-hydroxylase (Cyp27A1) can catalyze the formation of D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol, which can passively diffuse across cell membranes. Third, D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol is a potent activator of LXR transcription factors, which in turn mediate the up-regulation of the cholesterol efflux transporters ABCA1 and ABCG1. (B and C) iMacs loaded with 200 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours were treated with 10 mM CD or vehicle control before GC-MS-SIM analysis of crystal-derived cholesterol. (B) Percentage of esterified D 6 -cholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions before CD treatment (control bar) and after 48 hours of CD treatment. (C) Efflux of D 6 -cholesterol into supernatants of D 6 -CC–loaded macrophages before CD treatment (control bar) and upon 24 hours of CD treatment. (D to F) Gene expression of Abca1 and Abcg1 and protein expression of ABCA1 in BMDMs loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and then incubated with 10 mM CD or medium control for (D and E) 4 or (F) 24 hours. Immunoblot in (F) is representative of three independent experiments, and densitometric analysis of all three experiments is provided for 10 mM CD and presented as ABCA1 expression relative to the loading control β-actin. Data are shown as means + SEM of at least three independent experiments. (G) D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions of iMacs loaded with 200 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours before 48 hours of treatment with 10 mM CD or medium control, determined by GC-MS-SIM. (H) 27-Hydroxycholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions of iMacs after 48 hours of treatment with 10 mM CD or medium control. ***P < 0.001 and *P < 0.05, medium versus CD (B to C); CC + control versus CC + CD (D to F); control versus CD (G and H) (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD induces LXR target gene expression in macrophages The drastic CD-mediated increase in oxysterol production upon D 6 -CC loading and the unanticipated finding that CD can increase oxysterols in normocholesterolemic macrophages prompted us to comprehensively investigate whether CD influences the expression profiles of LXR-regulated genes. Wild-type or LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages were exposed to CD, CC, or CC and CD, and gene expression was assessed by genome-wide mRNA profiling. To investigate whether CD changes LXR target gene expression in macrophages, we performed gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) (29) with a set of 533 of previously identified LXR target genes (30) (Fig. 5A and table S1). Enrichment of LXR target gene sets was identified when wild-type macrophages were incubated with CCs (Fig. 5B), presumably because of cholesterol overloading of macrophages. Consistent with the strong induction of CC-derived 27-hydroxycholesterol and the observed increase in cholesterol efflux by CD, LXR target gene sets were enriched when CD was added together with CCs (Fig. 5B). CD treatment alone also resulted in LXR gene set enrichment under normocholesterolemic conditions, which correlates with the observed induction of cellular 27-hydroxycholesterol (Fig. 4H). In LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages, none of the conditions resulted in significant enrichments of LXR target gene sets (Fig. 5C). Furthermore, these findings could be confirmed for the key LXR target genes ABCA1 and ABCG1 in wild-type and LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages on the mRNA and protein levels (Fig. 5, D to F) (31). Fig. 5. CD induces LXR target gene expression in wild-type macrophages. (A) BMDMs from wild-type (WT) and LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and incubated with 10 mM CD for 4 hours for microarray analysis. GSEA for the LXR target gene sets described by Heinz et al. (30) (table S1) was performed on gene expression data. DB, database. (B and C) GSEA results for (B) WT and (C) LXRα−/−β−/− BMDMs presented as volcano plots of normalized enrichment score (NES) and enrichment P values. Red circles show positively and significantly enriched gene sets (NES > 1, P < 0.05). (D to F) Gene expression of (D) Abca1 and (E) Abcg1, and (F) protein expression of ABCA1 in BMDMs from WT and LXRα−/−β−/− mice loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and then incubated with 10 mM CD for (D and E) 4 or (F) 24 hours. The synthetic LXR agonist T0901317 (10 μM) was used as a positive control for ABCA1 protein induction. Immunoblot in (F) is representative of two independent experiments. Data are shown as means + SEM of two independent experiments. *P < 0.05, CC + control versus CC + CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD increases in vivo RCT To test whether CD-induced LXR reprogramming of macrophages improves macrophage cholesterol efflux in vivo, bone marrow–derived macrophages (BMDMs) from wild-type or LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with D 6 -CCs ex vivo and injected into the peritoneum of wild-type mice. The mice carrying crystal-loaded macrophages were then treated with CD or vehicle control, and D 6 -cholesterol excretion into the feces and urine was monitored by GC-MS-SIM (Fig. 6A). CD increased RCT of crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol from wild-type and, to a lower extent, LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages (Fig. 6B). Of note, CD treatment not only induced D 6 -cholesterol excretion into the feces but also promoted urinary D 6 -cholesterol elimination (Fig. 6C), a process that is normally not observed during RCT. Prior work on NPC disease, a rare genetic disorder in which cholesterol cannot escape the lysosome, has shown that CD can mobilize lysosomal cholesterol and activate LXR-dependent gene expression (32, 33). NPC1-deficient patients receive weekly injections of CD with the aim of overcoming this cholesterol transport defect. To investigate whether CD can also stimulate urinary cholesterol excretion in humans, we monitored urinary cholesterol excretion of patients with NPC1 mutations after CD infusion over time. CD, which is primarily excreted through the urinary tract, resulted in a time-dependent cholesterol excretion into the urine (Fig. 6D). These data suggest that CD enhances in vivo RCT from macrophages, partially in an LXR-dependent manner, but can also directly extract and transport cholesterol for excretion. Fig. 6. CD facilitates RCT in vivo and promotes urinary cholesterol excretion. (A) BMDMs from WT or LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with 100 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells and injected into the peritoneum of WT mice. Subsequently, mice were treated subcutaneously with CD (2 g kg) or vehicle control (n = 4 per group). (B and C) D 6 -cholesterol content in feces and urine collected every 3 hours over 30 hours after CD injection. Data are shown as total area under the curve (AUC) of excreted D 6 -cholesterol pooled from the mice within a group per time point. (D) Urine samples collected from three individual NPC1 patients upon intravenous application of CD for specific treatment of NPC. Urine cholesterol concentration was determined by GC-MS-SIM and normalized to urine creatinine excretion.
CD modifies human plaque cholesterol metabolism and gene expression To test whether the protective functions of CD on murine macrophages are also exerted in human atherosclerotic plaques, we next performed lipid and genomic analyses on biopsy specimens obtained from carotid endarterectomies (Fig. 7A). Comparable to our findings in murine macrophages, incubation of human atherosclerotic plaques with CD resulted in a transfer of cholesterol from plaques to supernatants (Fig. 7B). Moreover, we observed an increase in the production of 27-hydroxycholesterol, which was mainly released into the supernatants of the CD-treated plaques (Fig. 7C). Gene expression profiling of a large panel of human immunology–related genes and selected LXR target genes (table S3) was performed in resting or treated plaque tissue. These gene expression data were analyzed by several bioinformatics approaches. First, we performed gene ontology enrichment analysis (GOEA) using the genes differentially expressed (DE) after treatment with CD or vehicle control. Consistent with our lipid results, we found that genes involved in lipid transport, storage, metabolism, and efflux were up-regulated upon CD exposure. Conversely, genes known to regulate immune responses, represented by terms such as “regulation of immune responses in lymphocytes,” “regulation of leukocyte-mediated immunity,” or “interleukin response, T cell, and natural killer cell regulation,” were down-regulated after CD treatment (Fig. 7D). Further interrogation of the GOEA revealed that CD treatment of human plaques affected many key genes in the GO term “regulation of inflammatory response” (GO:0050727). These included innate immune receptors, such as Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 2, 3, 4, 7, and 9; the TLR adapter MyD88; the inflammasome sensor NLRP3; and the inflammasome-dependent proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IL-18 (Fig. 7E). Because we observed that CD increased the endogenous LXR agonist 27-hydroxycholesterol, we next analyzed whether CD regulates the expression of LXR target genes in human atherosclerotic plaques. GSEA revealed an enrichment of LXR target genes after CD treatment when compared to control-treated plaques (Fig. 7F and table S2). Additionally, many LXR target genes were found among the most DE genes (Fig. 7G, red or blue gene labels). Of note, the inflammasome sensor NLRP3 and the inflammasome inhibitor HSP90 (34) are both LXR target genes (24) and CD treatment resulted in NLRP3 down-regulation and an up-regulation of HSP90 when compared to control (Fig. 7H). Together, these data show that CD activates LXR-dependent transcriptional programs in human plaques, influencing both cholesterol transport and several inflammatory processes, which are relevant to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Fig. 7. CD induces cholesterol metabolism and an anti-inflammatory LXR profile in human atherosclerotic carotid plaques. (A) Human atherosclerotic carotid plaques obtained by carotid endarterectomy (n = 10) were split into two macroscopically equal pieces and cultured for 24 hours with 10 mM CD or control. Half of the plaque tissue was used for mRNA profiling with nCounter Analysis System (NanoString Technologies), and the other half and the culture supernatant were analyzed by GC-MS-SIM. (B) Cholesterol efflux from plaque tissue into supernatants displayed as percent of total cholesterol per sample. (C) Distribution of 27-hydroxycholesterol relative to cholesterol in plaque and supernatant. (D) GOEA of DE genes (fold change > 1.3, P < 0.05) visualized as GO network, where red nodes indicate GO term enrichment by up-regulated DE genes and blue borders indicate GO term enrichment by down-regulated DE genes. Node size and border width represent the corresponding false discovery rate (FDR)–adjusted enrichment P value (q value). Edges represent the associations between two enriched GO terms based on shared genes, and edge thickness indicates the overlap of genes between neighbor nodes. Highly connected terms were grouped together and were annotated manually by a shared general term. (E) Heat map of genes involved in the GO term “regulation of inflammatory response” (GO:0050727). Color bar indicates fold change. (F) Volcano plot of NES and enrichment P values based on GSEA for the LXR target gene set (table S2). Red circle indicates positive and significant enrichment of the LXR target gene set (NES > 1, P < 0.05). (G) Top DE genes determined by three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) (fold change > 1.5, P < 0.05). LXR target genes are colored in red or blue. (H) The expression of genes relevant to the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway. Color bar indicates fold change. (B and C) Data are shown as means ± SEM. ***P < 0.001 and *P < 0.05, CD versus control (paired two-tailed Student’s t test). ||||| Cyclodextrin, a compound now in testing to treat a very rare genetic disease, may have a potential use in treating a much more common condition too: heart disease.
Researchers reported Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine that in mice, cyclodextrin was able to reduce plaque and dissolve cholesterol crystals, which some research suggests could play a role in atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries.
Statins and... ||||| Two parents’ quest to save their twin daughters’ lives from a rare, degenerative genetic disorder may end up saving and improving the lives of millions.
After digging through medical literature and fitting pieces of data together, the non-medically trained couple contacted German researchers and suggested that a chemical called cyclodextrin may be able to treat atherosclerosis—the hardening of arteries with cholesterol-rich plaques, which is a precursor to heart attack, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases.
The researchers, Eicke Latz at the University of Bonn and colleagues, followed up on the parents’ hypothesis and found that in mice, cyclodextrin indeed blocked plaque formation, melted away plaques that had already formed in arteries, reduced atherosclerosis-associated inflammation, and revved up cholesterol metabolism—even in rodents fed cholesterol-rich diets. In petri dish-based tests, the researchers found that the drug seemed to have the same effects on human cells and plaques.
The findings, published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, suggest that cyclodextrin—a drug already approved for use in humans by the US Food and Drug Administration—may be highly effective at treating and preventing heart disease.
Currently, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, and around 43 percent of Americans have high cholesterol, which can lead to atherosclerosis. Typical treatments include statins and other cholesterol-lowering drugs, which are not always effective, particularly when patients don’t adhere to doctor-prescribed, low-cholesterol diets.
While Latz and co-authors stress that clinical trials are needed to validate the effects of cyclodextrin, the researchers note that it would be fairly easy to repurpose the drug to treat and prevent cardiovascular diseases.
But, while cyclodextrin’s road ahead may be clear, its path to medical treatments was oddly bumpy.
Sweet solution?
The chemical, which is simply a bunch of sugar molecules assembled in a ring, is already widely used in medications and foods. Because the outside of the ring is hydrophilic (it mixes with water) and the inside of the ring is hydrophobic (it doesn’t mix with water), cyclodextrin can trap chemicals inside the ring and help them mix into medicines and foods. In medications, cyclodextrin acts as a ‘carrier’ that make active drugs dissolve better in the body. Cyclodextrin is also used in foods, such as mayonnaise, sweets, and butter, to stabilize flavors and emulsifications and to remove cholesterol. But besides its role as an additive, it was largely overlooked by researchers.
One of the first inklings of cyclodextrin’s therapeutic potential came in a 2004 scientific publication. Researchers were searching for a treatment for an ultra-rare genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick type C disease (NPC), which likely affects only a few hundred patients in the US. The disease is caused by a genetic mutation that breaks a protein responsible for shuttling cholesterol in cells. Because cholesterol is a vital building block to cell membranes and various organic molecules, its transport through the body and its cells is critical for proper health. In the absence of a working transporter, cholesterol gradually piles up in cells throughout the body, causing organ dysfunction, neurodegeneration, and eventual death.
NPC is sometimes called childhood Alzheimer’s because kids with the disease are often diagnosed after they develop symptoms similar to dementia, including deteriorating memory, balance, and verbal skills.
In the 2004 study, researchers presented data that a neurosteroid—given with the carrier cyclodextrin—seemed to help mice that were genetically engineered to have a broken cholesterol transporter. A single dose, the researchers found, doubled the life expectancy of the mice.
While other researchers rushed to repeat the experiment, which validated the finding, it took several years for researchers to figure out what was really going on: that the neurosteroid had no effect on the mice at all—it was the cyclodextrin.
Enter the Hempels
As researchers rolled out data on cyclodextrin, a couple named Chris and Hugh Hempel in Reno, Nevada, paid close attention. In 2007, their twin daughters, Addi and Cassi, then three years old, were diagnosed with NPC. As doctors repeatedly told them there was nothing to be done, the parents kept digging into the research and looking for a cure.
They found cyclodextrin and initially tried using it in oral doses, which is known to be safe. However, the chemical couldn’t effectively reach the brain that way. The couple made headlines with their tireless efforts to get drug companies, the FDA, and doctors to let them try out intravenous treatments of cyclodextrin for their twins—and they won. Regular treatments gradually improved—although didn’t cure—the twins’ conditions. Cyclodextrin is now in clinical trials to treat other kids with NPC.
Meanwhile, in 2010, Latz and colleagues published a study in Nature showing that cholesterol crystals, which accumulate along arteries when there’s too much cholesterol in the blood stream, can trigger inflammation. The immune response then produces a snowball effect eventually leading to the development of plaques—layers of cholesterol crystals, immune cells, and calcified lesions in the artery wall. Upon reading the study, Chris Hempel contacted Latz and told him about their experience with cyclodextrin clearing cholesterol from cells. Perhaps the sweet chemical could also clear it from plaques.
In mice fed high-cholesterol diets, cyclodextrin cleared away plaques and helped prevent more plaques from forming, Latz and his colleagues found. The chemical also activated cholesterol metabolism that boosted clearance of the waxy substance from arteries, plus dampened inflammation responses that spur atherosclerosis.
Using blood vessel tissue from human patients with atherosclerosis, researchers found that cyclodextrin induced the same changes in the human cells as it did in the mice.
The study, which includes Hempel as a coauthor, shows that cyclodextrin is a promising new treatment for atherosclerosis in humans, the researchers conclude—all thanks to some motivated parents.
Science Translational Medicine, 2015. DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aad6100 (About DOIs). | – The unlikely use of a compound in powdered booze could ultimately help save millions of people from heart disease—and it was the mother of twin girls with a rare genetic disorder who first pitched the idea to scientists. The compound is called beta-cyclodextrin, which is already approved by the FDA and is widely used in medications and foods (including powdered alcohol), reports Ars Technica. It's long been seen as more of a "carrier"—it delivers other drugs and makes them more effective—but now it seems cyclodextrin itself is plenty potent, reports the Wall Street Journal. Writing in the journal Science Translational Medicine, researchers say it dissolved cholesterol crystals and plaque building up around the hearts of mice. “This is a potentially promising therapeutic approach,” says a Michigan State University cardiologist not involved with the study. An unusual twist is that one of the co-authors listed is Chris Hempel, an American mom without formal medical training who suggested the heart disease study. She is the mother of twin daughters with a rare genetic disease called Niemann-Pick type C, or NPC, often referred to as childhood Alzheimer's. Cyclodextrin has shown promise in treating NPC—it is currently being tested in clinical trials, thanks in large part to the advocacy of Hempel and her husband, Hugh—and Chris Hempel suggested to heart researchers that it might help on that front, too. The initial findings suggest her hunch was correct. More research is needed, but if further studies back up the results, cyclodextrin would be an improvement over the statins that don't always work on patients with clogged arteries, reports Popular Science. (Check out a profile of one of the NPC kids taking cyclodextrin.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Cardiovascular disease resulting from atherosclerosis is one of the most common causes of death worldwide, and additional therapies for this disease are greatly needed because not all patients can be effectively treated with existing approaches. Cyclodextrin is a common FDA-approved substance that is already used as a solubilizing agent to improve delivery of various drugs. Now, Zimmer et al. have discovered that cyclodextrin can also solubilize cholesterol, removing it from plaques, dissolving cholesterol crystals, and successfully treating atherosclerosis in a mouse model. Because cyclodextrin is already known to be safe in humans, this drug is now a potential candidate for testing in human patients for the treatment of atherosclerosis.
Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease linked to elevated blood cholesterol concentrations. Despite ongoing advances in the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide. Continuous retention of apolipoprotein B–containing lipoproteins in the subendothelial space causes a local overabundance of free cholesterol. Because cholesterol accumulation and deposition of cholesterol crystals (CCs) trigger a complex inflammatory response, we tested the efficacy of the cyclic oligosaccharide 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (CD), a compound that increases cholesterol solubility in preventing and reversing atherosclerosis. We showed that CD treatment of murine atherosclerosis reduced atherosclerotic plaque size and CC load and promoted plaque regression even with a continued cholesterol-rich diet. Mechanistically, CD increased oxysterol production in both macrophages and human atherosclerotic plaques and promoted liver X receptor (LXR)–mediated transcriptional reprogramming to improve cholesterol efflux and exert anti-inflammatory effects. In vivo, this CD-mediated LXR agonism was required for the antiatherosclerotic and anti-inflammatory effects of CD as well as for augmented reverse cholesterol transport. Because CD treatment in humans is safe and CD beneficially affects key mechanisms of atherogenesis, it may therefore be used clinically to prevent or treat human atherosclerosis.
Here, we found that subcutaneous administration of CD profoundly reduced atherogenesis and induced regression of established atherosclerosis in mouse models. CD augmented dissolution of CCs, reducing their appearance in lesions. Furthermore, CD increased cholesterol metabolism and liver X receptor (LXR)–dependent cellular reprogramming, which resulted in more efficient reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) as well as reduced proinflammatory gene expression. The atheroprotective effect of CD was dependent on LXR expression in myeloid cells transplanted into LDL receptor (LDLR)–deficient mice. These studies suggest that CD mediates atheroprotection by increasing production of oxysterols and LXR-dependent cellular reprogramming and provide preclinical evidence that CD could be developed into an effective therapy for atherosclerosis in humans.
Genetic approaches to increase the capacity of macrophages to remove free cholesterol from atherosclerotic lesions have proven to be highly successful in preclinical trials ( 11 ). This prompted us to test whether pharmacologically increasing cholesterol solubility, clearance, and catabolism can be exploited for the prevention or treatment of atherosclerosis. 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (CD) is a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)–approved substance used to solubilize and entrap numerous lipophilic pharmaceutical agents for therapeutic delivery in humans ( 12 , 13 ). Although it has previously been shown that CD increases cholesterol solubility, promotes the removal of cholesterol from foam cells in vitro, and initiates anti-inflammatory mechanisms ( 14 – 16 ), it remains unknown whether CD can exert antiatherogenic effects in vivo.
CCs, which can result from excessive cholesterol deposition in atherosclerotic lesions, are among the proinflammatory triggers that contribute to the inflammatory response during atherogenesis ( 7 ). CCs can trigger complement activation and neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation, as well as induction of innate immune pathways ( 4 , 5 , 8 – 10 ). Hence, therapeutic strategies aimed at the prevention of cholesterol phase transition or the removal of CCs could reduce tissue inflammation and disease progression.
Atherosclerosis is characterized by arterial wall remodeling, which is initiated by the retention and accumulation of different classes of lipids in the subendothelial layer. Lipid deposition and the appearance of cholesterol crystals (CCs) have been associated with the induction of an inflammatory reaction in the vessel wall, which contributes to the pathogenesis ( 4 , 5 ). Patients with increased systemic inflammation have increased risk of cardiovascular death, and studies are under way to test whether anti-inflammatory treatment can reduce cardiovascular event rates ( 6 ).
Atherosclerosis is the underlying pathology that causes heart attacks, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease. Collectively, these conditions represent a common health problem, and current treatments are insufficient to adequately reduce the risk of disease development. Pharmacologic reduction ( 1 – 3 ) of high-cholesterol concentrations is among the most successful therapeutic approaches to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and stroke, but adequate reduction of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is not possible in all patients.
RESULTS
CD treatment impairs atherogenesis To investigate the efficacy of CD treatment in murine atherosclerosis, apolipoprotein E (ApoE−/−) deficient mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet and concomitantly treated subcutaneously with CD or vehicle control for 8 weeks. Although plasma cholesterol, the main driver of atherosclerosis, remained unaffected (Fig. 1A), CD treatment profoundly reduced atherosclerotic lesions within the aortic root (Fig. 1B). Furthermore, we found reduced amounts of CCs in atherosclerotic plaques of CD-treated mice as assessed by laser reflection microscopy (Fig. 1, C and D). CD did not influence weight gain, blood pressure, heart rate, or the number of bone marrow–derived or circulating sca1/flk1-positive cells (fig. S1, A to E). Moreover, plasma concentrations of phytosterols, cholestanol, and cholesterol precursors were not influenced by CD treatment, indirectly showing that CD did not alter enteric cholesterol uptake or overall endogenous biosynthesis (fig. S1F) (17). CD also did not change the relative plaque composition, including cellularity and macrophage content (Fig. 1, E and F). However, the production of aortic reactive oxygen species (Fig. 1G) and plasma concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines were reduced by CD treatment (Fig. 1, H to J), suggesting that CD may reduce the inflammatory response during atherogenesis. Fig. 1. CD treatment impairs murine atherogenesis. ApoE−/− mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks and concomitantly treated with CD (2 g/kg) or vehicle control by subcutaneous injection twice a week (n = 7 to 8 per group). (A) Plasma cholesterol concentrations. (B) Atherosclerotic plaque area relative to total arterial wall area. (C) Plaque CC load shown as the ratio of crystal reflection area to plaque area. (D) Representative images of the aortic plaques obtained by confocal laser reflection microscopy. Red, macrophages stained with anti-CD68 antibodies; white, reflection signal of CCs; blue, nuclei stained with Hoechst. Enlarged images are the boxed areas in the left images. Scale bars, 500 μm. (E) Plaque cellularity shown as the ratio of nuclei to plaque area. (F) Plaque macrophage load shown as the ratio of CD68 fluorescence area to total plaque area. (G) Aortic superoxide production determined by L-012 chemiluminescence. ROS, reactive oxygen species; RLU, relative light units. (H to J) Plasma IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6 concentrations. Data are shown as means + SEM. ***P < 0.001, **P < 0.01, and *P < 0.05, control versus CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test); n.s., not significant.
CD treatment mediates regression of atherosclerotic plaques Although continuous drug administration in parallel to Western diet feeding of mice is a standard protocol to investigate potential atheroprotective substances (18), patients are generally not treated in early stages of atherogenesis. Therefore, we tested the effect of CD treatment on atherosclerosis regression. ApoE−/− mice are hypercholesterolemic even on normal or lipid-reduced chow, and thus, most murine atherosclerotic regression models rely on interventional strategies that normalize plasma lipids, such as viral gene transfer, transplantation, or infusion of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles (19). We adapted a less invasive regression protocol (20) in which ApoE−/− mice were first fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks to induce advanced atherosclerotic lesions and then switched to a normal chow diet for another 4 weeks during which CD or vehicle control was administered (Fig. 2A). As expected, plasma cholesterol concentrations were decreased in both groups compared to baseline, but no difference between control and CD treatment was observed (Fig. 2B and fig. S2A). Although switching to a normal chow diet had no effect on atherosclerotic lesion size in vehicle-treated mice, CD treatment resulted in a regression of atherosclerotic plaques by about 45% (Fig. 2C). Although CC load in lesions was already decreased in vehicle-treated animals compared to the load before treatment, CC amounts were further reduced by CD treatment (Fig. 2D). Because patients with cardiovascular disease often do not adhere to the recommended lifestyle changes, which include dietary modifications, we next investigated whether CD treatment can affect atherosclerosis regression during continuous enteric cholesterol challenge. CD or vehicle treatment was started after 8 weeks of cholesterol-rich diet, which was continued for the entire 12 weeks (Fig. 2E). Although plasma cholesterol and general cholesterol metabolism were not altered (Fig. 2F and fig. S2B), atherosclerotic plaque size and CC load were decreased in CD-treated mice on continuous cholesterol-rich diet (Fig. 2, G and H). These data demonstrate that CD treatment is effective in reducing established plaques. Fig. 2. CD treatment facilitates regression of murine atherosclerosis. ApoE−/− mice were fed a cholesterol-rich diet for 8 weeks to induce advanced atherosclerotic lesions. Then, the diet was either changed to a normal chow (A to D) or the cholesterol-rich diet was continued for another 4 weeks (E to H). Mice were simultaneously treated with CD (2 g/kg) or vehicle control twice a week (n = 6 to 8 per group). (A and E) Diet and treatment schemes. (B and F) Plasma cholesterol concentrations. (C and G) Atherosclerotic plaque area relative to total arterial wall area. (D and H) Plaque CC load shown as the ratio of crystal reflection area to plaque area. Data are shown as means + SEM. ***P < 0.001, **P < 0.01, and *P < 0.05, control versus CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD dissolves extra- and intracellular CCs There are several possibilities to explain the protective effects of CD treatment on both atherogenesis and established atherosclerosis. Because CD is known to form soluble inclusion complexes with cholesterol, thereby enhancing its solubility in aqueous solutions by about 150,000-fold, we tested whether CD increases the solubility of CCs. Fluorescent CD bound to the surface of CCs (Fig. 3, A and B) and CD mediated the solubilization of CCs in a dose-dependent manner (Fig. 3C). To be effective in atherosclerotic plaques, CD must also act on intracellular CCs. Macrophages rapidly internalized fluorescent CD (Fig. 3D) and concentrated it in intracellular compartments (Fig. 3E). Furthermore, incubation with 10 mM CD, a subtoxic dose (fig. S3), enhanced the dissolution of intracellular CCs over time (Fig. 3F and fig. S4). Fig. 3. CD interacts with and dissolves extra- and intracellular CCs. (A and B) CCs (1 mg) were incubated with 0.5 mM rhodamine-labeled CD or phosphate-buffered saline as control. (A) Representative images obtained by confocal laser reflection microscopy. Scale bar, 20 μm. (B) Quantification of rhodamine fluorescence on CCs by flow cytometry. (C) 3H-CCs were incubated with CD solutions of the indicated concentrations overnight with shaking at 37°C. Upon filtration through 0.22-μm filter plates, radioactivity was determined in the filtrate (filterable/solubilized) and the retentate (crystalline). (D and E) iMacs (immortalized macrophages) were loaded with 200 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours before incubation with 1 mM rhodamine-labeled CD. (D) Quantification of rhodamine fluorescence by flow cytometry. (E) Representative images obtained by confocal microscopy. Red, rhodamine-labeled CD; green, laser reflection signal. Scale bars, 5 μm. (F) Intracellular CC dissolution in BMDMs treated with 10 mM CD or control for the indicated times determined by polarization microscopy. Data are shown as means ± SEM of at least three independent experiments.
Metabolism of crystal-derived cholesterol is increased by CD Macrophages within the arterial wall take up excessive amounts of cholesterol and transform into foam cells, a process that can impair macrophage function and promote atherogenesis (21). This can be mimicked in vitro by loading macrophages with CCs (fig. S5). After uptake of CCs into phagosomes, cholesterol is moved from the lysosome via the Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) transporter to the endoplasmic reticulum, where acetyl–coenzyme A (CoA) acetyltransferase catalyzes the formation of cholesteryl esters. This mechanism turns excess free cholesterol, which forms crystals and is cytotoxic, into cholesteryl esters that can be stored in lipid droplets. A second pathway to metabolize free cholesterol is the formation of water-soluble oxysterols. Oxysterols can diffuse across cell membranes and are known to reprogram macrophages through activation of LXR, which in turn modulates the inflammatory response and supports RCT to HDL (22–24). To study how CD influences the ability of macrophages to reduce the amount of cholesterol derived from CCs, we incubated macrophages with CCs prepared from D 6 -cholesterol (D 6 -CCs) and followed D 6 -cholesterol metabolism products in cells and cellular supernatants by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry selective ion monitoring (GC-MS-SIM) (Fig. 4A). This analysis revealed that CD treatment promoted esterification of crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol (Fig. 4B). Furthermore, CD amplified D 6 -cholesterol concentrations in supernatants while reducing the overall cellular pool of D 6 -cholesterol (Fig. 4C). Hence, CD treatment increased the cholesterol efflux capacity of macrophages, which represents an important protective factor in patients with coronary artery disease (25, 26). Active cholesterol transport is mediated primarily by the adenosine 5′-triphosphate–binding cassette transporters A1 and G1 (ABCA1 and ABCG1), which transfer free cholesterol to ApoA1 and mature HDL particles, respectively (27). In line with the observed increase in cholesterol efflux capacity, macrophages incubated with CCs had increased expression of both ABCA1 and ABCG1, which was even further enhanced by CD treatment (Fig. 4, D to F). Genes involved in driving cholesterol efflux, including Abca1 and Abcg1, are under the control of the LXR/retinoid X receptor (LXR/RXR) transcription apparatus (22, 28). Because the transcriptional activities of LXRs are positively regulated by oxysterols, we next analyzed whether CD can potentiate cholesterol oxidation. We found that CD treatment of D 6 -CC–loaded macrophages resulted in a marked 15-fold increase in D 6 -cholesterol–derived 27-hydroxycholesterol (D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol) (Fig. 4G), although the expression of Cyp27a1 was not altered (fig. S6). Unexpectedly, CD also increased 27-hydroxycholesterol production and secretion from macrophages under normocholesterolemic conditions, meaning macrophages not treated with D 6 -CCs (Fig. 4H). Hence, CD increases the metabolism of free cholesterol and could thereby lower the potential for its phase transition into crystals. Fig. 4. CD mediates metabolism and efflux of crystal-derived cholesterol. (A) Macrophages loaded with CCs prepared from D 6 -cholesterol (D 6 -CC) can reduce the amount of free, crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol by three main mechanisms. First, acetyl-CoA acetyltransferase (ACAT-1) can catalyze the formation of D 6 -cholesteryl esters, the storage form of cholesterol, which are deposited in lipid droplets. Second, the mitochondrial enzyme 27-hydroxylase (Cyp27A1) can catalyze the formation of D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol, which can passively diffuse across cell membranes. Third, D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol is a potent activator of LXR transcription factors, which in turn mediate the up-regulation of the cholesterol efflux transporters ABCA1 and ABCG1. (B and C) iMacs loaded with 200 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours were treated with 10 mM CD or vehicle control before GC-MS-SIM analysis of crystal-derived cholesterol. (B) Percentage of esterified D 6 -cholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions before CD treatment (control bar) and after 48 hours of CD treatment. (C) Efflux of D 6 -cholesterol into supernatants of D 6 -CC–loaded macrophages before CD treatment (control bar) and upon 24 hours of CD treatment. (D to F) Gene expression of Abca1 and Abcg1 and protein expression of ABCA1 in BMDMs loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and then incubated with 10 mM CD or medium control for (D and E) 4 or (F) 24 hours. Immunoblot in (F) is representative of three independent experiments, and densitometric analysis of all three experiments is provided for 10 mM CD and presented as ABCA1 expression relative to the loading control β-actin. Data are shown as means + SEM of at least three independent experiments. (G) D 5 -27-hydroxycholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions of iMacs loaded with 200 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours before 48 hours of treatment with 10 mM CD or medium control, determined by GC-MS-SIM. (H) 27-Hydroxycholesterol in cell and supernatant fractions of iMacs after 48 hours of treatment with 10 mM CD or medium control. ***P < 0.001 and *P < 0.05, medium versus CD (B to C); CC + control versus CC + CD (D to F); control versus CD (G and H) (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD induces LXR target gene expression in macrophages The drastic CD-mediated increase in oxysterol production upon D 6 -CC loading and the unanticipated finding that CD can increase oxysterols in normocholesterolemic macrophages prompted us to comprehensively investigate whether CD influences the expression profiles of LXR-regulated genes. Wild-type or LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages were exposed to CD, CC, or CC and CD, and gene expression was assessed by genome-wide mRNA profiling. To investigate whether CD changes LXR target gene expression in macrophages, we performed gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) (29) with a set of 533 of previously identified LXR target genes (30) (Fig. 5A and table S1). Enrichment of LXR target gene sets was identified when wild-type macrophages were incubated with CCs (Fig. 5B), presumably because of cholesterol overloading of macrophages. Consistent with the strong induction of CC-derived 27-hydroxycholesterol and the observed increase in cholesterol efflux by CD, LXR target gene sets were enriched when CD was added together with CCs (Fig. 5B). CD treatment alone also resulted in LXR gene set enrichment under normocholesterolemic conditions, which correlates with the observed induction of cellular 27-hydroxycholesterol (Fig. 4H). In LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages, none of the conditions resulted in significant enrichments of LXR target gene sets (Fig. 5C). Furthermore, these findings could be confirmed for the key LXR target genes ABCA1 and ABCG1 in wild-type and LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages on the mRNA and protein levels (Fig. 5, D to F) (31). Fig. 5. CD induces LXR target gene expression in wild-type macrophages. (A) BMDMs from wild-type (WT) and LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and incubated with 10 mM CD for 4 hours for microarray analysis. GSEA for the LXR target gene sets described by Heinz et al. (30) (table S1) was performed on gene expression data. DB, database. (B and C) GSEA results for (B) WT and (C) LXRα−/−β−/− BMDMs presented as volcano plots of normalized enrichment score (NES) and enrichment P values. Red circles show positively and significantly enriched gene sets (NES > 1, P < 0.05). (D to F) Gene expression of (D) Abca1 and (E) Abcg1, and (F) protein expression of ABCA1 in BMDMs from WT and LXRα−/−β−/− mice loaded with 100 μg of CC per 1 × 106 cells for 3 hours and then incubated with 10 mM CD for (D and E) 4 or (F) 24 hours. The synthetic LXR agonist T0901317 (10 μM) was used as a positive control for ABCA1 protein induction. Immunoblot in (F) is representative of two independent experiments. Data are shown as means + SEM of two independent experiments. *P < 0.05, CC + control versus CC + CD (unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test).
CD increases in vivo RCT To test whether CD-induced LXR reprogramming of macrophages improves macrophage cholesterol efflux in vivo, bone marrow–derived macrophages (BMDMs) from wild-type or LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with D 6 -CCs ex vivo and injected into the peritoneum of wild-type mice. The mice carrying crystal-loaded macrophages were then treated with CD or vehicle control, and D 6 -cholesterol excretion into the feces and urine was monitored by GC-MS-SIM (Fig. 6A). CD increased RCT of crystal-derived D 6 -cholesterol from wild-type and, to a lower extent, LXRα−/−β−/− macrophages (Fig. 6B). Of note, CD treatment not only induced D 6 -cholesterol excretion into the feces but also promoted urinary D 6 -cholesterol elimination (Fig. 6C), a process that is normally not observed during RCT. Prior work on NPC disease, a rare genetic disorder in which cholesterol cannot escape the lysosome, has shown that CD can mobilize lysosomal cholesterol and activate LXR-dependent gene expression (32, 33). NPC1-deficient patients receive weekly injections of CD with the aim of overcoming this cholesterol transport defect. To investigate whether CD can also stimulate urinary cholesterol excretion in humans, we monitored urinary cholesterol excretion of patients with NPC1 mutations after CD infusion over time. CD, which is primarily excreted through the urinary tract, resulted in a time-dependent cholesterol excretion into the urine (Fig. 6D). These data suggest that CD enhances in vivo RCT from macrophages, partially in an LXR-dependent manner, but can also directly extract and transport cholesterol for excretion. Fig. 6. CD facilitates RCT in vivo and promotes urinary cholesterol excretion. (A) BMDMs from WT or LXRα−/−β−/− mice were loaded with 100 μg of D 6 -CC per 1 × 106 cells and injected into the peritoneum of WT mice. Subsequently, mice were treated subcutaneously with CD (2 g kg) or vehicle control (n = 4 per group). (B and C) D 6 -cholesterol content in feces and urine collected every 3 hours over 30 hours after CD injection. Data are shown as total area under the curve (AUC) of excreted D 6 -cholesterol pooled from the mice within a group per time point. (D) Urine samples collected from three individual NPC1 patients upon intravenous application of CD for specific treatment of NPC. Urine cholesterol concentration was determined by GC-MS-SIM and normalized to urine creatinine excretion.
CD modifies human plaque cholesterol metabolism and gene expression To test whether the protective functions of CD on murine macrophages are also exerted in human atherosclerotic plaques, we next performed lipid and genomic analyses on biopsy specimens obtained from carotid endarterectomies (Fig. 7A). Comparable to our findings in murine macrophages, incubation of human atherosclerotic plaques with CD resulted in a transfer of cholesterol from plaques to supernatants (Fig. 7B). Moreover, we observed an increase in the production of 27-hydroxycholesterol, which was mainly released into the supernatants of the CD-treated plaques (Fig. 7C). Gene expression profiling of a large panel of human immunology–related genes and selected LXR target genes (table S3) was performed in resting or treated plaque tissue. These gene expression data were analyzed by several bioinformatics approaches. First, we performed gene ontology enrichment analysis (GOEA) using the genes differentially expressed (DE) after treatment with CD or vehicle control. Consistent with our lipid results, we found that genes involved in lipid transport, storage, metabolism, and efflux were up-regulated upon CD exposure. Conversely, genes known to regulate immune responses, represented by terms such as “regulation of immune responses in lymphocytes,” “regulation of leukocyte-mediated immunity,” or “interleukin response, T cell, and natural killer cell regulation,” were down-regulated after CD treatment (Fig. 7D). Further interrogation of the GOEA revealed that CD treatment of human plaques affected many key genes in the GO term “regulation of inflammatory response” (GO:0050727). These included innate immune receptors, such as Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 2, 3, 4, 7, and 9; the TLR adapter MyD88; the inflammasome sensor NLRP3; and the inflammasome-dependent proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IL-18 (Fig. 7E). Because we observed that CD increased the endogenous LXR agonist 27-hydroxycholesterol, we next analyzed whether CD regulates the expression of LXR target genes in human atherosclerotic plaques. GSEA revealed an enrichment of LXR target genes after CD treatment when compared to control-treated plaques (Fig. 7F and table S2). Additionally, many LXR target genes were found among the most DE genes (Fig. 7G, red or blue gene labels). Of note, the inflammasome sensor NLRP3 and the inflammasome inhibitor HSP90 (34) are both LXR target genes (24) and CD treatment resulted in NLRP3 down-regulation and an up-regulation of HSP90 when compared to control (Fig. 7H). Together, these data show that CD activates LXR-dependent transcriptional programs in human plaques, influencing both cholesterol transport and several inflammatory processes, which are relevant to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Fig. 7. CD induces cholesterol metabolism and an anti-inflammatory LXR profile in human atherosclerotic carotid plaques. (A) Human atherosclerotic carotid plaques obtained by carotid endarterectomy (n = 10) were split into two macroscopically equal pieces and cultured for 24 hours with 10 mM CD or control. Half of the plaque tissue was used for mRNA profiling with nCounter Analysis System (NanoString Technologies), and the other half and the culture supernatant were analyzed by GC-MS-SIM. (B) Cholesterol efflux from plaque tissue into supernatants displayed as percent of total cholesterol per sample. (C) Distribution of 27-hydroxycholesterol relative to cholesterol in plaque and supernatant. (D) GOEA of DE genes (fold change > 1.3, P < 0.05) visualized as GO network, where red nodes indicate GO term enrichment by up-regulated DE genes and blue borders indicate GO term enrichment by down-regulated DE genes. Node size and border width represent the corresponding false discovery rate (FDR)–adjusted enrichment P value (q value). Edges represent the associations between two enriched GO terms based on shared genes, and edge thickness indicates the overlap of genes between neighbor nodes. Highly connected terms were grouped together and were annotated manually by a shared general term. (E) Heat map of genes involved in the GO term “regulation of inflammatory response” (GO:0050727). Color bar indicates fold change. (F) Volcano plot of NES and enrichment P values based on GSEA for the LXR target gene set (table S2). Red circle indicates positive and significant enrichment of the LXR target gene set (NES > 1, P < 0.05). (G) Top DE genes determined by three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) (fold change > 1.5, P < 0.05). LXR target genes are colored in red or blue. (H) The expression of genes relevant to the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway. Color bar indicates fold change. (B and C) Data are shown as means ± SEM. ***P < 0.001 and *P < 0.05, CD versus control (paired two-tailed Student’s t test). ||||| Cyclodextrin, a compound now in testing to treat a very rare genetic disease, may have a potential use in treating a much more common condition too: heart disease.
Researchers reported Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine that in mice, cyclodextrin was able to reduce plaque and dissolve cholesterol crystals, which some research suggests could play a role in atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries.
Statins and... ||||| Two parents’ quest to save their twin daughters’ lives from a rare, degenerative genetic disorder may end up saving and improving the lives of millions.
After digging through medical literature and fitting pieces of data together, the non-medically trained couple contacted German researchers and suggested that a chemical called cyclodextrin may be able to treat atherosclerosis—the hardening of arteries with cholesterol-rich plaques, which is a precursor to heart attack, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases.
The researchers, Eicke Latz at the University of Bonn and colleagues, followed up on the parents’ hypothesis and found that in mice, cyclodextrin indeed blocked plaque formation, melted away plaques that had already formed in arteries, reduced atherosclerosis-associated inflammation, and revved up cholesterol metabolism—even in rodents fed cholesterol-rich diets. In petri dish-based tests, the researchers found that the drug seemed to have the same effects on human cells and plaques.
The findings, published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, suggest that cyclodextrin—a drug already approved for use in humans by the US Food and Drug Administration—may be highly effective at treating and preventing heart disease.
Currently, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, and around 43 percent of Americans have high cholesterol, which can lead to atherosclerosis. Typical treatments include statins and other cholesterol-lowering drugs, which are not always effective, particularly when patients don’t adhere to doctor-prescribed, low-cholesterol diets.
While Latz and co-authors stress that clinical trials are needed to validate the effects of cyclodextrin, the researchers note that it would be fairly easy to repurpose the drug to treat and prevent cardiovascular diseases.
But, while cyclodextrin’s road ahead may be clear, its path to medical treatments was oddly bumpy.
Sweet solution?
The chemical, which is simply a bunch of sugar molecules assembled in a ring, is already widely used in medications and foods. Because the outside of the ring is hydrophilic (it mixes with water) and the inside of the ring is hydrophobic (it doesn’t mix with water), cyclodextrin can trap chemicals inside the ring and help them mix into medicines and foods. In medications, cyclodextrin acts as a ‘carrier’ that make active drugs dissolve better in the body. Cyclodextrin is also used in foods, such as mayonnaise, sweets, and butter, to stabilize flavors and emulsifications and to remove cholesterol. But besides its role as an additive, it was largely overlooked by researchers.
One of the first inklings of cyclodextrin’s therapeutic potential came in a 2004 scientific publication. Researchers were searching for a treatment for an ultra-rare genetic disorder called Niemann-Pick type C disease (NPC), which likely affects only a few hundred patients in the US. The disease is caused by a genetic mutation that breaks a protein responsible for shuttling cholesterol in cells. Because cholesterol is a vital building block to cell membranes and various organic molecules, its transport through the body and its cells is critical for proper health. In the absence of a working transporter, cholesterol gradually piles up in cells throughout the body, causing organ dysfunction, neurodegeneration, and eventual death.
NPC is sometimes called childhood Alzheimer’s because kids with the disease are often diagnosed after they develop symptoms similar to dementia, including deteriorating memory, balance, and verbal skills.
In the 2004 study, researchers presented data that a neurosteroid—given with the carrier cyclodextrin—seemed to help mice that were genetically engineered to have a broken cholesterol transporter. A single dose, the researchers found, doubled the life expectancy of the mice.
While other researchers rushed to repeat the experiment, which validated the finding, it took several years for researchers to figure out what was really going on: that the neurosteroid had no effect on the mice at all—it was the cyclodextrin.
Enter the Hempels
As researchers rolled out data on cyclodextrin, a couple named Chris and Hugh Hempel in Reno, Nevada, paid close attention. In 2007, their twin daughters, Addi and Cassi, then three years old, were diagnosed with NPC. As doctors repeatedly told them there was nothing to be done, the parents kept digging into the research and looking for a cure.
They found cyclodextrin and initially tried using it in oral doses, which is known to be safe. However, the chemical couldn’t effectively reach the brain that way. The couple made headlines with their tireless efforts to get drug companies, the FDA, and doctors to let them try out intravenous treatments of cyclodextrin for their twins—and they won. Regular treatments gradually improved—although didn’t cure—the twins’ conditions. Cyclodextrin is now in clinical trials to treat other kids with NPC.
Meanwhile, in 2010, Latz and colleagues published a study in Nature showing that cholesterol crystals, which accumulate along arteries when there’s too much cholesterol in the blood stream, can trigger inflammation. The immune response then produces a snowball effect eventually leading to the development of plaques—layers of cholesterol crystals, immune cells, and calcified lesions in the artery wall. Upon reading the study, Chris Hempel contacted Latz and told him about their experience with cyclodextrin clearing cholesterol from cells. Perhaps the sweet chemical could also clear it from plaques.
In mice fed high-cholesterol diets, cyclodextrin cleared away plaques and helped prevent more plaques from forming, Latz and his colleagues found. The chemical also activated cholesterol metabolism that boosted clearance of the waxy substance from arteries, plus dampened inflammation responses that spur atherosclerosis.
Using blood vessel tissue from human patients with atherosclerosis, researchers found that cyclodextrin induced the same changes in the human cells as it did in the mice.
The study, which includes Hempel as a coauthor, shows that cyclodextrin is a promising new treatment for atherosclerosis in humans, the researchers conclude—all thanks to some motivated parents.
Science Translational Medicine, 2015. DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aad6100 (About DOIs). | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,030 |
Concepcion Picciotto, who occupied a peace vigil across from the White House for decades, has died, according to reports. She was believed to be 80 years old.
Picciotto became famous for her 24-hour anti-nuclear peace vigil encampment, which she set up in 1981 on the sidewalk of Pennsylvania Avenue in Lafayette Park, across from the White House.
She often displayed signage that read, "Live by the bomb die by the bomb" and "Ban all nuclear weapons or have a nice doomsday."
The Peace House confirmed Picciotto’s death on Jan. 25.
“Connie may not have been the easiest person to live or work with but the peace vigil was never about Connie and even throughout the biggest struggles we all knew that. That was the reason why we suffered through sub-zero temperatures, hurricanes and dealing with impolite people,” according to a statement from Peace House on its Facebook page. “Connie's health was not well for the past couple of years. Therefore, we hope she finds peace where she may be.”
For years, the Peace House served as a base for Picciotto and other activists who would maintain the vigil on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
ABC News Chief White House correspondent Jonathan Karl interviewed Picciotto in 2013.
When asked why she maintained the vigil for so many years, she said, "Because nobody will do it. Nobody will stand up.”
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., regarded Picciotto as "the living symbol for staying with a principled cause, such as nuclear non-proliferation and peace, until it is achieved, even when others grow tired."
“At a time when people ask me whether I think we will ever achieve statehood, I think of extraordinary activists like Picciotto, who recognized that there is no progress without activism,” Norton wrote in statement Tuesday.
The N Street Village, where the Washington Post reports that Picciotto lived in the final days of her life, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Her cause of death is not clear. ||||| Longtime White House Protester Dies, After Vigil That Started In 1981
Enlarge this image toggle caption Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images
After devoting decades of her life to a cause — demonstrating for peace and against nuclear proliferation — Concepcion Picciotto has died. Persisting through cold and rough weather, she was a fixture outside the White House, where she was often called the president's closest neighbor.
Her protest vigil is considered the longest in U.S. history.
Picciotto, who was also called Connie or Conchita, died Monday, according to the Peace House, the group that organizes the protest installation at the White House. She's believed to have been either in her 70s or early 80s (we're seeing conflicting reports). The cause of death wasn't mentioned, with a message from the Peace House saying, "Connie's health was not well for the past couple of years."
From her outpost in a park on the northern side of the White House complex, Picciotto saw both tourists and presidential administrations come and go. Against a backdrop of hand-painted signs with messages like "Live by the Bomb, Die by the Bomb," she handed out pamphlets and urged people to reject violence.
In 1985, an NPR report focused on Lafayette Park, the area where Picciotto spent her time. In it, she quoted Psalm 35:19, saying, "Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause."
Picciotto's vigil was briefly interrupted one night in the fall of 2013, when the U.S. Park Police found the installation unmanned and dismantled it. The site was quickly restored by volunteers — who also have filled in for Picciotto in shifts over the years, allowing her to take breaks.
Born in Spain, Picciotto emigrated to the U.S. at the age of 18 to work in New York; she moved to Washington after her marriage ended, according to a personal history she posted online. The account includes her meeting William Thomas, the man who started the protest vigil in 1981 that they occupied together until his death in 2009.
From The Washington Post, which featured Picciotto several times over the years: ||||| Concepcion Picciotto protested outside the White House for more than 30 years making the peace vigil the longest-running act of political protest in the U.S. Picciotto died on Jan.25, 2016. (Zoeann Murphy/The Washington Post)
Concepcion Picciotto protested outside the White House for more than 30 years making the peace vigil the longest-running act of political protest in the U.S. Picciotto died on Jan.25, 2016. (Zoeann Murphy/The Washington Post)
Concepcion Picciotto, the protester who maintained a peace vigil outside the White House for more than three decades, a demonstration widely considered to be the longest-running act of political protest in U.S. history, died Jan. 25 at a housing facility operated by N Street Village, a nonprofit that supports homeless women in Washington. She was believed to be 80.
She had recently suffered a fall, but the immediate cause of death was not known, said Schroeder Stribling, the shelter’s executive director.
Ms. Picciotto — a Spanish immigrant known to many as “Connie” or “Conchita” — was the primary guardian of the anti-nuclear-proliferation vigil stationed along Pennsylvania Avenue.
[Connie Picciotto has kept vigil near the White House for decades. Why, and at what cost?]
In a 2013 profile in The Washington Post, Ms. Picciotto said she spent more than 30 years of her life outside the White House “to stop the world from being destroyed.”
Connie Picciotto hands out literature to tourists in Lafayette Square on April 3, 2013. (Bill O'Leary/WASHINGTON POST)
Through her presence, she said she hoped to remind others to take whatever action they could, however small, to help end wars and stop violence, particularly against children.
Ms. Picciotto, a diminutive woman perpetually clad in a helmet and headscarf, was a curious and at times controversial figure in Washington. Fellow activists lauded her as a heroine. Critics and even casual passersby, reading her hand-lettered signs, dismissed her as foolish, perhaps unwell. Ms. Picciotto was quick to share elaborate accounts of persecution by the government, which she considered responsible for many of her physical ailments.
Ellen Thomas, a demonstrator who protested alongside Ms. Picciotto for decades, told The Post in 2013 that the truth was somewhere in between. She acknowledged that there were “issues that haven’t been addressed” where Ms. Picciotto’s mental health was concerned but lauded her dedication and stamina.
Ms. Picciotto spoke little of her life before 1960, when she emigrated to New York City and worked as a receptionist for the economic and commercial office of the Spanish Embassy. She met an Italian man who became her husband in 1969, with whom she adopted an infant daughter, she said.
Ms. Picciotto first came to the White House in 1979, she said, after she came to believe that her husband had orchestrated an illegal adoption and arranged to have Ms. Picciotto separated from their child and committed. She believed she was the target of a web of conspiracies — involving doctors, lawyers and the government — and hoped that elected officials could help get her daughter back.
But that never happened. Ms. Picciotto said she last saw the child when the girl was a toddler.
She had just given up on reconnecting with her daughter when she met William Thomas, a self-described wanderer, philosopher and peace activist who founded the peace vigil along Pennsylvania Avenue. Ms. Picciotto joined Thomas there in 1981 — since she could not help her own child, she said, she wanted to do what she could to help other children — and the two became a fixture in the park.
They were joined in 1984 by Ellen Benjamin, who soon married Thomas. The budding romance sparked hostility from Ms. Picciotto, who questioned Ellen Thomas’s motives for joining the protest and believed the new woman was after William Thomas’s money.
But despite that perpetual tension, Ellen Thomas told The Post, the trio protested together in the park for 25 years. The group’s grass-roots nuclear disarmament campaign was known as Proposition One, and its crowning achievement came in 1993, when a nuclear disarmament petition circulated by the activists resulted in a ballot initiative passed by District voters.
Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District’s congressional delegate, helped the activists prepare a nuclear disarmament and conversion act, which she has since introduced in nearly a dozen sessions of Congress. The legislation has never reached the floor for a vote.
Norton told The Post in 2013 that although the value of the vigil’s presence could not be readily quantified, it has served as an important and ongoing reminder to all who passed by.
“They want to keep the issue of nuclear proliferation and its potential terrible consequences before the public,” Norton said of the protesters. “And they have chosen a prime spot to do it. . . . We won’t ever know what the success is, because it doesn’t have a specific end of the kind we are used to.”
From their rudimentary encampment on the red-brick walkway in Lafayette Square, the protesters demonstrated against wars and military conflicts, survived historic blizzards and scorching heat waves, and endured tense confrontations with passersby and police.
The vigil evolved into a well-recognized feature of the city’s landscape. The makeshift shelter became a regular stop for D.C. tour guides and a topic of discussion in local college classrooms. The vigil and its keepers made a cameo appearance in Michael Moore’s 2004 political documentary film “Fahrenheit 9/11” and starred in another feature-length documentary, “The Oracles of Pennsylvania Avenue” (2011).
When Thomas died in 2009, Ms. Picciotto vowed to continue her protest in his honor. But the vigil’s future was called into question in recent years, as its aging caretaker faced health problems and the possibility of eviction from the home she shared with other activists in Northwest Washington.
After Ms. Picciotto was hit by a cab in 2012 while riding her bicycle, she came to rely heavily on the help of younger activists to maintain the vigil, which could not be left unattended, according to National Park Service rules.
For months, the activists — many of whom lived with Ms. Picciotto at Peace House, a rowhouse owned by Ellen Thomas — took turns guarding the vigil, allowing Ms. Picciotto to scale back her watch to just a few hours each day.
But on two occasions in recent years, activists abandoned their station during overnight shifts, and the shelter and its signs were quickly removed by police. In both instances, the station and its signs were later returned by authorities.
Peace House was sold last year,, and Ms. Picciotto eventually found shelter at N Street Village, within walking distance of her vigil. “I have to be here,” she said of her work. “This is my life.” | – Concepcion Picciotto's fellow activists hope that after 35 years protesting outside the White House, she has finally found peace. Picciotto began her anti-nuclear-proliferation vigil on Pennsylvania Avenue in 1981, and it's believed to be the longest-running protest in American history, reports NPR. All these years, Picciotto has either staffed the 24-hour vigil herself or made sure others did in her place. Picciotto, who moved to the US from Spain in 1960, died on Monday at a facility for homeless women within walking distance of her protest site. Recently, she'd been too frail to attend for more than a few hours a day, the Washington Post reports. She was around 80 years old. Picciotto, who displayed hand-lettered signs with messages like "Live by the bomb, die by the bomb," protested alongside two fellow activists in the Proposition One group for many years. Protester Ellen Thomas tells the Post that while there were concerns about Picciotto's mental health—she believed she was the target of government conspiracies—her dedication to the cause was never in doubt. In 2013, when ABC News' Jonathan Karl asked her why she had kept up the vigil for so many years, she said, "Because nobody will do it. Nobody will stand up." (That same year, Picciotto's vigil was dismantled by US Park Police, but quickly put back by protesters.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Concepcion Picciotto, who occupied a peace vigil across from the White House for decades, has died, according to reports. She was believed to be 80 years old.
Picciotto became famous for her 24-hour anti-nuclear peace vigil encampment, which she set up in 1981 on the sidewalk of Pennsylvania Avenue in Lafayette Park, across from the White House.
She often displayed signage that read, "Live by the bomb die by the bomb" and "Ban all nuclear weapons or have a nice doomsday."
The Peace House confirmed Picciotto’s death on Jan. 25.
“Connie may not have been the easiest person to live or work with but the peace vigil was never about Connie and even throughout the biggest struggles we all knew that. That was the reason why we suffered through sub-zero temperatures, hurricanes and dealing with impolite people,” according to a statement from Peace House on its Facebook page. “Connie's health was not well for the past couple of years. Therefore, we hope she finds peace where she may be.”
For years, the Peace House served as a base for Picciotto and other activists who would maintain the vigil on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
ABC News Chief White House correspondent Jonathan Karl interviewed Picciotto in 2013.
When asked why she maintained the vigil for so many years, she said, "Because nobody will do it. Nobody will stand up.”
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., regarded Picciotto as "the living symbol for staying with a principled cause, such as nuclear non-proliferation and peace, until it is achieved, even when others grow tired."
“At a time when people ask me whether I think we will ever achieve statehood, I think of extraordinary activists like Picciotto, who recognized that there is no progress without activism,” Norton wrote in statement Tuesday.
The N Street Village, where the Washington Post reports that Picciotto lived in the final days of her life, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Her cause of death is not clear. ||||| Longtime White House Protester Dies, After Vigil That Started In 1981
Enlarge this image toggle caption Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images
After devoting decades of her life to a cause — demonstrating for peace and against nuclear proliferation — Concepcion Picciotto has died. Persisting through cold and rough weather, she was a fixture outside the White House, where she was often called the president's closest neighbor.
Her protest vigil is considered the longest in U.S. history.
Picciotto, who was also called Connie or Conchita, died Monday, according to the Peace House, the group that organizes the protest installation at the White House. She's believed to have been either in her 70s or early 80s (we're seeing conflicting reports). The cause of death wasn't mentioned, with a message from the Peace House saying, "Connie's health was not well for the past couple of years."
From her outpost in a park on the northern side of the White House complex, Picciotto saw both tourists and presidential administrations come and go. Against a backdrop of hand-painted signs with messages like "Live by the Bomb, Die by the Bomb," she handed out pamphlets and urged people to reject violence.
In 1985, an NPR report focused on Lafayette Park, the area where Picciotto spent her time. In it, she quoted Psalm 35:19, saying, "Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause."
Picciotto's vigil was briefly interrupted one night in the fall of 2013, when the U.S. Park Police found the installation unmanned and dismantled it. The site was quickly restored by volunteers — who also have filled in for Picciotto in shifts over the years, allowing her to take breaks.
Born in Spain, Picciotto emigrated to the U.S. at the age of 18 to work in New York; she moved to Washington after her marriage ended, according to a personal history she posted online. The account includes her meeting William Thomas, the man who started the protest vigil in 1981 that they occupied together until his death in 2009.
From The Washington Post, which featured Picciotto several times over the years: ||||| Concepcion Picciotto protested outside the White House for more than 30 years making the peace vigil the longest-running act of political protest in the U.S. Picciotto died on Jan.25, 2016. (Zoeann Murphy/The Washington Post)
Concepcion Picciotto protested outside the White House for more than 30 years making the peace vigil the longest-running act of political protest in the U.S. Picciotto died on Jan.25, 2016. (Zoeann Murphy/The Washington Post)
Concepcion Picciotto, the protester who maintained a peace vigil outside the White House for more than three decades, a demonstration widely considered to be the longest-running act of political protest in U.S. history, died Jan. 25 at a housing facility operated by N Street Village, a nonprofit that supports homeless women in Washington. She was believed to be 80.
She had recently suffered a fall, but the immediate cause of death was not known, said Schroeder Stribling, the shelter’s executive director.
Ms. Picciotto — a Spanish immigrant known to many as “Connie” or “Conchita” — was the primary guardian of the anti-nuclear-proliferation vigil stationed along Pennsylvania Avenue.
[Connie Picciotto has kept vigil near the White House for decades. Why, and at what cost?]
In a 2013 profile in The Washington Post, Ms. Picciotto said she spent more than 30 years of her life outside the White House “to stop the world from being destroyed.”
Connie Picciotto hands out literature to tourists in Lafayette Square on April 3, 2013. (Bill O'Leary/WASHINGTON POST)
Through her presence, she said she hoped to remind others to take whatever action they could, however small, to help end wars and stop violence, particularly against children.
Ms. Picciotto, a diminutive woman perpetually clad in a helmet and headscarf, was a curious and at times controversial figure in Washington. Fellow activists lauded her as a heroine. Critics and even casual passersby, reading her hand-lettered signs, dismissed her as foolish, perhaps unwell. Ms. Picciotto was quick to share elaborate accounts of persecution by the government, which she considered responsible for many of her physical ailments.
Ellen Thomas, a demonstrator who protested alongside Ms. Picciotto for decades, told The Post in 2013 that the truth was somewhere in between. She acknowledged that there were “issues that haven’t been addressed” where Ms. Picciotto’s mental health was concerned but lauded her dedication and stamina.
Ms. Picciotto spoke little of her life before 1960, when she emigrated to New York City and worked as a receptionist for the economic and commercial office of the Spanish Embassy. She met an Italian man who became her husband in 1969, with whom she adopted an infant daughter, she said.
Ms. Picciotto first came to the White House in 1979, she said, after she came to believe that her husband had orchestrated an illegal adoption and arranged to have Ms. Picciotto separated from their child and committed. She believed she was the target of a web of conspiracies — involving doctors, lawyers and the government — and hoped that elected officials could help get her daughter back.
But that never happened. Ms. Picciotto said she last saw the child when the girl was a toddler.
She had just given up on reconnecting with her daughter when she met William Thomas, a self-described wanderer, philosopher and peace activist who founded the peace vigil along Pennsylvania Avenue. Ms. Picciotto joined Thomas there in 1981 — since she could not help her own child, she said, she wanted to do what she could to help other children — and the two became a fixture in the park.
They were joined in 1984 by Ellen Benjamin, who soon married Thomas. The budding romance sparked hostility from Ms. Picciotto, who questioned Ellen Thomas’s motives for joining the protest and believed the new woman was after William Thomas’s money.
But despite that perpetual tension, Ellen Thomas told The Post, the trio protested together in the park for 25 years. The group’s grass-roots nuclear disarmament campaign was known as Proposition One, and its crowning achievement came in 1993, when a nuclear disarmament petition circulated by the activists resulted in a ballot initiative passed by District voters.
Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District’s congressional delegate, helped the activists prepare a nuclear disarmament and conversion act, which she has since introduced in nearly a dozen sessions of Congress. The legislation has never reached the floor for a vote.
Norton told The Post in 2013 that although the value of the vigil’s presence could not be readily quantified, it has served as an important and ongoing reminder to all who passed by.
“They want to keep the issue of nuclear proliferation and its potential terrible consequences before the public,” Norton said of the protesters. “And they have chosen a prime spot to do it. . . . We won’t ever know what the success is, because it doesn’t have a specific end of the kind we are used to.”
From their rudimentary encampment on the red-brick walkway in Lafayette Square, the protesters demonstrated against wars and military conflicts, survived historic blizzards and scorching heat waves, and endured tense confrontations with passersby and police.
The vigil evolved into a well-recognized feature of the city’s landscape. The makeshift shelter became a regular stop for D.C. tour guides and a topic of discussion in local college classrooms. The vigil and its keepers made a cameo appearance in Michael Moore’s 2004 political documentary film “Fahrenheit 9/11” and starred in another feature-length documentary, “The Oracles of Pennsylvania Avenue” (2011).
When Thomas died in 2009, Ms. Picciotto vowed to continue her protest in his honor. But the vigil’s future was called into question in recent years, as its aging caretaker faced health problems and the possibility of eviction from the home she shared with other activists in Northwest Washington.
After Ms. Picciotto was hit by a cab in 2012 while riding her bicycle, she came to rely heavily on the help of younger activists to maintain the vigil, which could not be left unattended, according to National Park Service rules.
For months, the activists — many of whom lived with Ms. Picciotto at Peace House, a rowhouse owned by Ellen Thomas — took turns guarding the vigil, allowing Ms. Picciotto to scale back her watch to just a few hours each day.
But on two occasions in recent years, activists abandoned their station during overnight shifts, and the shelter and its signs were quickly removed by police. In both instances, the station and its signs were later returned by authorities.
Peace House was sold last year,, and Ms. Picciotto eventually found shelter at N Street Village, within walking distance of her vigil. “I have to be here,” she said of her work. “This is my life.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 22,441 |
The first two Earth-like worlds orbiting another star have been detected, although neither are believed to be suitable for life.
But if the planets had water in the past, there's a good chance they could have hung on to it long enough for life to take hold, Linda Elkins-Tanton, with the Carnegie Institution in Washington DC, told reporters on a conference call Tuesday.
The planets, known as Kepler-20e and 20f, are the smallest planets found so far by NASA's Kepler telescope, which was launched three years ago to look for Earth-sized worlds around other stars.
SCIENCE CHANNEL VIDEO: Lonely Planet
The newly discovered planets have diameters of 6,900 miles and 8,200 miles -- equivalent to 0.87 times Earth -- slightly smaller than Venus -- and 1.03 times Earth.
They join three Neptune-sized gas giant planets circling the parent star Kepler-20, which is slightly smaller and dimmer than the sun. The system is located about 1,000 light years away in the constellation Lyra.
While Kepler-20e and 20f are not thought to be habitable, it is "the next major milestone along the road to finding habitable planets around stars beyond the sun," said Kepler project scientist Nick Gautier, with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
SLIDE SHOW: Top Exoplanets for Alien Life
The two new discoveries were found by a team led by Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, using NASA's Kepler orbiting space telescope. The results were published online in the journal Nature.
Finding the relatively small planets was a feat.
Kepler monitors more than 150,000 stars for tiny wobbles in light. The wobbles signal a planet as it passes in front of the star and dims the light reaching the telescope.
The discovery follows the announcement earlier this month of Kepler-22b, a planet around twice the diameter of Earth that is orbiting the right distance from its parent star for liquid water to exist on its surface. Water is believed to be a key ingredient for life.
"Kepler-22b has the right temperature, but it is too big. What we're announcing today are just the right size, but too hot. But you can bet that the hunt is on to find a planet that combines the best of both worlds, a true earth twin," said astronomer David Charbonneau with Harvard University.
SLIDE SHOW: Exquisite Exoplanetary Art
Unlike our solar system where the rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars orbit closer in to the sun than the gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, the five planets circling Kepler-20 are a mix of rocky and gas planets and all orbit closer to their parent star than Mercury is to the sun.
"The architecture of that planetary system is crazy," Charbonneau said. "Rocky planets and gas giants happily mingle together. This is the first time we've seen anything like this."
"I really want to dare my fellow astronomers to try to explain how this system could have formed," he said. ||||| MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA's Kepler mission has discovered the first Earth-size planets orbiting a sun-like star outside our solar system. The planets, called Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, are too close to their star to be in the so-called habitable zone where liquid water could exist on a planet's surface, but they are the smallest exoplanets ever confirmed around a star like our sun.
The discovery marks the next important milestone in the ultimate search for planets like Earth. The new planets are thought to be rocky. Kepler-20e is slightly smaller than Venus, measuring 0.87 times the radius of Earth. Kepler-20f is a bit larger than Earth, measuring 1.03 times its radius. Both planets reside in a five-planet system called Kepler-20, approximately 1,000 light-years away in the constellation Lyra.
Kepler-20e orbits its parent star every 6.1 days and Kepler-20f every 19.6 days. These short orbital periods mean very hot, inhospitable worlds. Kepler-20f, at 800 degrees Fahrenheit, is similar to an average day on the planet Mercury. The surface temperature of Kepler-20e, at more than 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit, would melt glass.
"The primary goal of the Kepler mission is to find Earth-sized planets in the habitable zone," said Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., lead author of a new study published in the journal Nature. "This discovery demonstrates for the first time that Earth-size planets exist around other stars, and that we are able to detect them."
The Kepler-20 system includes three other planets that are larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune. Kepler-20b, the closest planet, Kepler-20c, the third planet, and Kepler-20d, the fifth planet, orbit their star every 3.7, 10.9 and 77.6 days. All five planets have orbits lying roughly within Mercury's orbit in our solar system. The host star belongs to the same G-type class as our sun, although it is slightly smaller and cooler.
The system has an unexpected arrangement. In our solar system, small, rocky worlds orbit close to the sun and large, gaseous worlds orbit farther out. In comparison, the planets of Kepler-20 are organized in alternating size: large, small, large, small and large.
"The Kepler data are showing us some planetary systems have arrangements of planets very different from that seen in our solar system," said Jack Lissauer, planetary scientist and Kepler science team member at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "The analysis of Kepler data continues to reveal new insights about the diversity of planets and planetary systems within our galaxy."
Scientists are not certain how the system evolved but they do not think the planets formed in their existing locations. They theorize the planets formed farther from their star and then migrated inward, likely through interactions with the disk of material from which they originated. This allowed the worlds to maintain their regular spacing despite alternating sizes.
The Kepler space telescope detects planets and planet candidates by measuring dips in the brightness of more than 150,000 stars to search for planets crossing in front, or transiting, their stars. The Kepler science team requires at least three transits to verify a signal as a planet.
The Kepler science team uses ground-based telescopes and the Spitzer Space Telescope to review observations on planet candidates the spacecraft finds. The star field Kepler observes in the constellations Cygnus and Lyra can be seen only from ground-based observatories in spring through early fall. The data from these other observations help determine which candidates can be validated as planets.
To validate Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, astronomers used a computer program called Blender, which runs simulations to help rule out other astrophysical phenomena masquerading as a planet.
On Dec. 5 the team announced the discovery of Kepler-22b in the habitable zone of its parent star. It is likely to be too large to have a rocky surface. While Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f are Earth-size, they are too close to their parent star to have liquid water on the surface.
"In the cosmic game of hide and seek, finding planets with just the right size and just the right temperature seems only a matter of time," said Natalie Batalha, Kepler deputy science team lead and professor of astronomy and physics at San Jose State University. "We are on the edge of our seats knowing that Kepler's most anticipated discoveries are still to come."
NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., manages Kepler's ground system development, mission operations and science data analysis. JPL managed the Kepler mission's development.
Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo., developed the Kepler flight system and supports mission operations with the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore archives, hosts and distributes Kepler science data. Kepler is NASA's 10th Discovery Mission and is funded by NASA's Science Mission Directorate at the agency's headquarters in Washington.
For more information about the Kepler mission and to view the digital press kit, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/kepler
This artist's animation flies through the Kepler-20 star system, where NASA's Kepler mission discovered the first Earth-size planets around a star beyond our own. Animation credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech | – For the first time, scientists have discovered planets roughly the size of ours outside our solar system. Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f are the smallest exoplanets yet found, Discovery reports. Because they're so close to the star they orbit, they don't appear habitable, but the finding is "next major milestone to finding habitable planets beyond our solar system," says a NASA scientist. A year on Kepler-20e—that is, a full orbit of its star—takes about six days, while Kepler-20f completes its orbit in about 20 days, NASA reports. The planets were discovered using the Kepler space telescope, fulfilling the Kepler mission's "primary goal," says the head of the team that made the find. "This discovery demonstrates for the first time that Earth-size planets exist around other stars, and that we are able to detect them." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The first two Earth-like worlds orbiting another star have been detected, although neither are believed to be suitable for life.
But if the planets had water in the past, there's a good chance they could have hung on to it long enough for life to take hold, Linda Elkins-Tanton, with the Carnegie Institution in Washington DC, told reporters on a conference call Tuesday.
The planets, known as Kepler-20e and 20f, are the smallest planets found so far by NASA's Kepler telescope, which was launched three years ago to look for Earth-sized worlds around other stars.
SCIENCE CHANNEL VIDEO: Lonely Planet
The newly discovered planets have diameters of 6,900 miles and 8,200 miles -- equivalent to 0.87 times Earth -- slightly smaller than Venus -- and 1.03 times Earth.
They join three Neptune-sized gas giant planets circling the parent star Kepler-20, which is slightly smaller and dimmer than the sun. The system is located about 1,000 light years away in the constellation Lyra.
While Kepler-20e and 20f are not thought to be habitable, it is "the next major milestone along the road to finding habitable planets around stars beyond the sun," said Kepler project scientist Nick Gautier, with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
SLIDE SHOW: Top Exoplanets for Alien Life
The two new discoveries were found by a team led by Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, using NASA's Kepler orbiting space telescope. The results were published online in the journal Nature.
Finding the relatively small planets was a feat.
Kepler monitors more than 150,000 stars for tiny wobbles in light. The wobbles signal a planet as it passes in front of the star and dims the light reaching the telescope.
The discovery follows the announcement earlier this month of Kepler-22b, a planet around twice the diameter of Earth that is orbiting the right distance from its parent star for liquid water to exist on its surface. Water is believed to be a key ingredient for life.
"Kepler-22b has the right temperature, but it is too big. What we're announcing today are just the right size, but too hot. But you can bet that the hunt is on to find a planet that combines the best of both worlds, a true earth twin," said astronomer David Charbonneau with Harvard University.
SLIDE SHOW: Exquisite Exoplanetary Art
Unlike our solar system where the rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars orbit closer in to the sun than the gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, the five planets circling Kepler-20 are a mix of rocky and gas planets and all orbit closer to their parent star than Mercury is to the sun.
"The architecture of that planetary system is crazy," Charbonneau said. "Rocky planets and gas giants happily mingle together. This is the first time we've seen anything like this."
"I really want to dare my fellow astronomers to try to explain how this system could have formed," he said. ||||| MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA's Kepler mission has discovered the first Earth-size planets orbiting a sun-like star outside our solar system. The planets, called Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, are too close to their star to be in the so-called habitable zone where liquid water could exist on a planet's surface, but they are the smallest exoplanets ever confirmed around a star like our sun.
The discovery marks the next important milestone in the ultimate search for planets like Earth. The new planets are thought to be rocky. Kepler-20e is slightly smaller than Venus, measuring 0.87 times the radius of Earth. Kepler-20f is a bit larger than Earth, measuring 1.03 times its radius. Both planets reside in a five-planet system called Kepler-20, approximately 1,000 light-years away in the constellation Lyra.
Kepler-20e orbits its parent star every 6.1 days and Kepler-20f every 19.6 days. These short orbital periods mean very hot, inhospitable worlds. Kepler-20f, at 800 degrees Fahrenheit, is similar to an average day on the planet Mercury. The surface temperature of Kepler-20e, at more than 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit, would melt glass.
"The primary goal of the Kepler mission is to find Earth-sized planets in the habitable zone," said Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., lead author of a new study published in the journal Nature. "This discovery demonstrates for the first time that Earth-size planets exist around other stars, and that we are able to detect them."
The Kepler-20 system includes three other planets that are larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune. Kepler-20b, the closest planet, Kepler-20c, the third planet, and Kepler-20d, the fifth planet, orbit their star every 3.7, 10.9 and 77.6 days. All five planets have orbits lying roughly within Mercury's orbit in our solar system. The host star belongs to the same G-type class as our sun, although it is slightly smaller and cooler.
The system has an unexpected arrangement. In our solar system, small, rocky worlds orbit close to the sun and large, gaseous worlds orbit farther out. In comparison, the planets of Kepler-20 are organized in alternating size: large, small, large, small and large.
"The Kepler data are showing us some planetary systems have arrangements of planets very different from that seen in our solar system," said Jack Lissauer, planetary scientist and Kepler science team member at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "The analysis of Kepler data continues to reveal new insights about the diversity of planets and planetary systems within our galaxy."
Scientists are not certain how the system evolved but they do not think the planets formed in their existing locations. They theorize the planets formed farther from their star and then migrated inward, likely through interactions with the disk of material from which they originated. This allowed the worlds to maintain their regular spacing despite alternating sizes.
The Kepler space telescope detects planets and planet candidates by measuring dips in the brightness of more than 150,000 stars to search for planets crossing in front, or transiting, their stars. The Kepler science team requires at least three transits to verify a signal as a planet.
The Kepler science team uses ground-based telescopes and the Spitzer Space Telescope to review observations on planet candidates the spacecraft finds. The star field Kepler observes in the constellations Cygnus and Lyra can be seen only from ground-based observatories in spring through early fall. The data from these other observations help determine which candidates can be validated as planets.
To validate Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, astronomers used a computer program called Blender, which runs simulations to help rule out other astrophysical phenomena masquerading as a planet.
On Dec. 5 the team announced the discovery of Kepler-22b in the habitable zone of its parent star. It is likely to be too large to have a rocky surface. While Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f are Earth-size, they are too close to their parent star to have liquid water on the surface.
"In the cosmic game of hide and seek, finding planets with just the right size and just the right temperature seems only a matter of time," said Natalie Batalha, Kepler deputy science team lead and professor of astronomy and physics at San Jose State University. "We are on the edge of our seats knowing that Kepler's most anticipated discoveries are still to come."
NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., manages Kepler's ground system development, mission operations and science data analysis. JPL managed the Kepler mission's development.
Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo., developed the Kepler flight system and supports mission operations with the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore archives, hosts and distributes Kepler science data. Kepler is NASA's 10th Discovery Mission and is funded by NASA's Science Mission Directorate at the agency's headquarters in Washington.
For more information about the Kepler mission and to view the digital press kit, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/kepler
This artist's animation flies through the Kepler-20 star system, where NASA's Kepler mission discovered the first Earth-size planets around a star beyond our own. Animation credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 42,986 |
Cee Lo Green's small change to the lyrics to John Lennon's song "Imagine" is causing a very big uproar.
Charged with singing Lennon's famous solo-era tune on NBC's New Year's Eve show shortly before the ball dropped in Times Square , Green changed the lyrics from "Nothing to kill or die for, And no religion too" to "Nothing to kill or die for, And all religion's true."
The change didn't go unnoticed, and to preempt criticism, he soon tweeted, "Yo I meant no disrespect by changing the lyric guys! I was trying to say a world were u could believe what u wanted that's all."
That did little to comfort angered Lennon fans, who lashed out over Twitter. Watch the performance below (starting around 4:00) and then read the angry exchanges over Twitter.
UPDATE 9:49 AM: All of Green's tweets have been deleted from his account, but can still be seen below.
WATCH:
||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. | – Not everyone is thrilled with Cee Lo Green's lyric change on New Year's Eve, MSNBC reports. When singing John Lennon's "Imagine" at New York's Times Square celebration, he changed "Nothing to kill or die for, and no religion too" to "Nothing to kill or die for, and all religion's true." Green tweeted his explanation, the Huffington Post reports: "Yo I meant no disrespect. ... I was trying to say a world were u could believe what u wanted that's all." (The tweet has been removed from his feed.) Comic Colin Quinn tweeted about the lyric change, saying Green "'cleaned it up a little.' I did the same thing when I changed NWA to 'N-word' WA." Other Twitter users criticized Green's version as poorly sung or cringed at the irony of his wearing jewels and a full-length fur coat while singing "imagine no possessions." Among Green's defenders: one tweeter who posted that "nothing could be sillier than defending the sanctity of a pop song—especially one as dull and schmaltzy as 'Imagine.'" | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Cee Lo Green's small change to the lyrics to John Lennon's song "Imagine" is causing a very big uproar.
Charged with singing Lennon's famous solo-era tune on NBC's New Year's Eve show shortly before the ball dropped in Times Square , Green changed the lyrics from "Nothing to kill or die for, And no religion too" to "Nothing to kill or die for, And all religion's true."
The change didn't go unnoticed, and to preempt criticism, he soon tweeted, "Yo I meant no disrespect by changing the lyric guys! I was trying to say a world were u could believe what u wanted that's all."
That did little to comfort angered Lennon fans, who lashed out over Twitter. Watch the performance below (starting around 4:00) and then read the angry exchanges over Twitter.
UPDATE 9:49 AM: All of Green's tweets have been deleted from his account, but can still be seen below.
WATCH:
||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 11,418 |
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A Sacramento State student had a close call after doctors found a tapeworm in his brain.
“I’m just happy that I’m here right now, because if I would’ve went in a half hour later, I definitely wouldn’t be here,” Luis Ortiz said.
His brain is still recovering after doctors performed a surgery for a diagnosis no one would have expected. He went in to see a doctor after he experienced headaches and vomiting.
“They put this camera in to see what was going on, and that’s when they found out, ‘Oh yeah you have this parasite in your head,’” he said.
The particular parasite was a tapeworm inside a cyst inside his brain.
“They’re like, ‘Hey, you have this parasite in your head. And we’re going to operate and we’re going to have to do it soon, otherwise you could probably die,’” he said.
Doctors at Napa’s Queen of the Valley Medical Center say the cyst around the worm was blocking water from Ortiz’s brain. The tapeworm may have been in contaminated food Luis ate.
“I have no idea where I got it from,” he said. “Now that it’s kind of over, it definitely gave me a new perspective on life.”
It’s an unusual survival story for a Sacramento State student whose mind is now on the mend after a worm worked its way into his brain.
“The doctors told me if I would have gotten there a little bit later I probably wouldn’t have made it,” he said.
There are six types of tapeworms known to infect humans, usually identified by the animal they come from. People typically get them from undercooked meat, or by eating food prepared by someone who is infected.
The pork tapeworm that infected Ortiz can travel to the brain. The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention says there are about 1,000 hospitalizations for brain infections caused by the pork tapeworm. ||||| This collaborative project is an extension of the 2016 End of Term project, intended to document the federal government's web presence by archiving government websites and data. As part of this preservation effort, URLs supplied from partner institutions, as well as nominated by the public, will be crawled regularly to provide an on-going view of federal agencies' web and social media presence. Key partners on this effort are the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative and the Data Refuge project. This collection is a continuation of the 2016 End of Term web archiving and, as such, is deduplicated against that collection. It allows for the ongoing archiving of publicly nominated websites beyond the "official" end of the End of Term project.
Interested members of the public, particularly government information specialists, are invited to submit selected web sites to be included in the collection using the public nomination tool.
For more information on partner institutions, web crawling and past End of Term projects, please visit the End of Term Archive. | – It's something most of us have done before: ignored a headache. A 26-year-old California man did just that beginning in late August, but then the pain got worse. The cause turned out to be almost unimaginable: a tapeworm larva that had made its way to his brain. The Napa Valley Register reports that Luis Ortiz's mother took him to the ER at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in early September after disorientation and vomiting set in while he was at her house. It wasn't a moment too soon. A cyst had formed around the worm that was preventing water from getting to Ortiz's brain. His neurosurgeon, Dr. Soren Singel, likened the situation to "a cork in a bottle," and said the Sacrament State senior was perhaps 30 minutes away from death. A drain served to relieve the pressure on his brain, and surgery that involved drilling into his skull followed. Singel suspects Ortiz ate something that contained tapeworm eggs, with the larvae making its way to his intestines and then brain. What was removed from the cyst was a wiggling worm that measured just 1/16 of an inch. Ortiz is on medication designed to wipe out any other lingering tapeworms, and has had to withdraw from school while he does therapy designed to strengthen his memory. CBS Sacramento reports that where the tapeworm came from is "still a mystery," though pork—or the feces of someone who was infected via pork and then prepared food Ortiz ate—is a possibility. The CDC explains that neurocysticercosis is a "parasitic infection caused by larval cysts of the pork tapeworm" that hospitalizes about 1,000 Americans each year. For now, Ortiz says, "I have been staying away from pork." (Something even grosser was pulled from a man's head last year.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A Sacramento State student had a close call after doctors found a tapeworm in his brain.
“I’m just happy that I’m here right now, because if I would’ve went in a half hour later, I definitely wouldn’t be here,” Luis Ortiz said.
His brain is still recovering after doctors performed a surgery for a diagnosis no one would have expected. He went in to see a doctor after he experienced headaches and vomiting.
“They put this camera in to see what was going on, and that’s when they found out, ‘Oh yeah you have this parasite in your head,’” he said.
The particular parasite was a tapeworm inside a cyst inside his brain.
“They’re like, ‘Hey, you have this parasite in your head. And we’re going to operate and we’re going to have to do it soon, otherwise you could probably die,’” he said.
Doctors at Napa’s Queen of the Valley Medical Center say the cyst around the worm was blocking water from Ortiz’s brain. The tapeworm may have been in contaminated food Luis ate.
“I have no idea where I got it from,” he said. “Now that it’s kind of over, it definitely gave me a new perspective on life.”
It’s an unusual survival story for a Sacramento State student whose mind is now on the mend after a worm worked its way into his brain.
“The doctors told me if I would have gotten there a little bit later I probably wouldn’t have made it,” he said.
There are six types of tapeworms known to infect humans, usually identified by the animal they come from. People typically get them from undercooked meat, or by eating food prepared by someone who is infected.
The pork tapeworm that infected Ortiz can travel to the brain. The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention says there are about 1,000 hospitalizations for brain infections caused by the pork tapeworm. ||||| This collaborative project is an extension of the 2016 End of Term project, intended to document the federal government's web presence by archiving government websites and data. As part of this preservation effort, URLs supplied from partner institutions, as well as nominated by the public, will be crawled regularly to provide an on-going view of federal agencies' web and social media presence. Key partners on this effort are the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative and the Data Refuge project. This collection is a continuation of the 2016 End of Term web archiving and, as such, is deduplicated against that collection. It allows for the ongoing archiving of publicly nominated websites beyond the "official" end of the End of Term project.
Interested members of the public, particularly government information specialists, are invited to submit selected web sites to be included in the collection using the public nomination tool.
For more information on partner institutions, web crawling and past End of Term projects, please visit the End of Term Archive. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 2,368 |
Less than a month ago, President Donald Trump told Fox Business Network it wasn’t “too late” for him to fire FBI Director James Comey. At the time, I argued that while Trump was correct in a narrow, legalistic sense, “for all practical purposes it is almost certainly false—unless the White House believes that mass FBI resignations, or the appointment of a special prosecutor, or impeachment for obstruction, or some combination thereof, would be an improvement on the status quo.”
That thesis is about to be tested in dramatic fashion, because on Tuesday, Trump took the plunge and fired Comey without warning for allegedly mishandling the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. We are not yet facing a crisis of presidential legitimacy, but we are on the precipice of one that could be as bad as or worse than any in U.S. history.
No FBI director can or should be considered unfireable. FBI directors are just as capable of negligence, ethical breaches, and crimes as other public servants, if not more so. Comey painted so far outside the lines during the presidential election that the notion that he could or should be fired has crossed many minds over the past several months.
But most FBI directors don’t find themselves leading investigations of the presidents who have the authority to fire them, or serve under attorneys general who have recused themselves from those investigations. Jeff Sessions, Trump’s attorney general, reportedly helped to engineer this firing. ||||| (CNN) James Comey found out he had been fired as FBI director just like the rest of us: By watching it on television.
The move, announced late Tuesday via a letter sent from President Donald Trump to Comey, marked the most unpredictable moment of a presidency that through its first 100-plus days has been the least orthodox in memory. It also ramped up criticism of Trump's judgments -- Comey was tasked with leading the investigation into Russia's meddling into the 2016 campaign and what, if any, collusion had occurred between Trump campaign operatives and Russian intelligence officials -- and left official Washington reeling over a move considered unthinkable as recently as this week.
The explanation for the move, which emerged into the stunned silence it caused, made little logical sense. A report from deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein highlighted Comey's handling of the FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server as the main reason for his dismissal. Rosenstein accused Comey of an attempt to "usurp" the power of the attorney general by announcing publicly that he didn't believe any charges should be brought against Clinton in a July 5, 2016 press conference.
JUST WATCHED Who is James Comey? Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Who is James Comey? 01:05
"Compounding the error, the director ignored another longstanding principle: We do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation," Rosenstein added. "The way the director handled the conclusion of the email investigation was wrong. As a result, the FBI is unlikely to regain public and congressional trust until it has a director who understands the gravity of the mistakes and pledges never to repeat them."
That echoes criticism launched by Democrats loyal to Clinton, who insisted that Comey's decision to offer his own unvarnished view of Clinton's conduct vis-a-vis her private email server -- he said she had been "extremely careless" -- went well beyond his proscribed duties. ||||| President Donald Trump finally made a tough call on which both Republicans and Democrats should agree. On Tuesday, he fired James Comey as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, years short of his full 10-year term. Trump removed a director who believed himself above regular Justice Department procedures and traditions and took the unprecedented step of publicizing – three times – decisions that affected the course of the 2016 presidential elections. But, unfortunately, Democrats will likely continue their scorched earth tactics and portray a decision for the best interests of the nation as a Nixonian effort to interfere with the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the Trump administration.
If not fired by either President Barack Obama, a President Hillary Clinton, or President Trump, Comey should have resigned last year. Last summer, Comey publicly announced a decision not to refer Hillary Clinton and her aides to the Justice Department for prosecution. According to Comey, Clinton was “extremely careless” by diverting classified information through a home-brewed computer network which deliberately avoided the official system of the State Department — even though the FBI found that Clinton had sent 110 e-mails in 52 e-mail chains that contained classified information, that she had not turned over all relevant e-mails, that she had used her private e-mail system while visiting our adversaries, and that her system had probably been hacked by them.
But Comey found that no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges because the FBI could find no “clearly intentional or willful mishandling of classified information or vast quantities of information exposed in such a way to support an inference of intentional misconduct or indications of disloyalty to the United States or an obstruction of justice.”
Comey’s decision badly misinterpreted the law at issue, Section 793(f) of Title 18 of the U.S. Code, which required only “gross negligence.” Comey also turned a blind eye to the circumstantial evidence: why would Clinton create a private e-mail system other than to evade the secure, classified system that the law required her to use?. Comey also ignored past prosecutorial decisions: the Justice Department had prosecuted former CIA directors (John Deutch), national security advisors (Sandy Berger), and generals (David Petraeus) for mishandling classified documents.
We should not seek the removal of a federal official for making a bad decision; if that were the standard, Washington, D.C. would quickly become a ghost town. More important than the decision was Comey’s arrogation of power. Under the traditional division of authority between the FBI and Justice Department prosecutors, the former investigate the facts of a case, but the latter make the decision on whether to bring federal charges in court. Comey seized the power over making the decision whether to charge Hillary Clinton and her aides from the career Justice Department prosecutors who handle such difficult cases and made the decision himself. For that decision alone, Comey should have resigned, and if he would not go willingly, the White House properly had grounds to remove him.
After publicly closing the case, Comey suffered a bout of cold feet shortly before the election. He publicly re-opened the investigation with a few days to go before the election, on the grounds that FBI agents had found that Clinton aide Huma Abedin had forwarded classified information to her husband, Congressman Anthony Weiner. Then, days later, he publicly closed the case again. It is difficult to blame Hillary Clinton for blaming Comey for her defeat, or, as she put it, "I was on the way to winning until the combination of Jim Comey's letter on October 28 and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me but got scared off."
Comey’s three interventions in the election could well have decided the outcome of the case. His initial choice to prematurely close the investigation – as well as reports that his aides have attempted to shut down inquiries into the Clinton Foundation – thrust the FBI into partisan politics in the middle of a presidential election. He compounded the problems by publicly announcing his decision each time, which ran clearly against Justice Department practice not to criticize or even explain when prosecutors choose not to bring charges against any target. As Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein properly observed in recommending Comey’s removal, “I cannot defend the director’s handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton’s emails.” Mr. Rosenstein wrote in another letter released by the White House, “and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken.”
Comey further demonstrated his desire for the spotlight, but his instinct for the wrong decision, in the continuing saga of Russian interference with the 2016 elections. According to media reports, he recently exaggerated the number of classified emails that Abedin forwarded to Weiner when he testified before Congress last week. He also has publicly announced that the FBI was investigating the Trump campaign for possible involvement with the Russians, even though it is unclear what laws might have been broken by Trump or his White House advisors. At the same time, it appears Comey has refused to publicly announce that President Trump himself was not a target, although Trump yesterday claimed that Comey had told him three times that he was not.
The reputation of the FBI would be injured if Comey had remained, even if he acted out of the noblest of intentions. He has shown an unerring instinct for publicity in a job where the occupant is best seen but not heard. He has made law enforcement decisions that probably influenced the outcome of the presidential election, a terrible precedent for our democracy. It is best for the nation that the White House place the FBI in new hands as part of its mission to restore integrity to the Justice Department. The FBI needs a fresh start.
If Democrats cared about the integrity of our institutions, rather than scoring partisan points against the White House, they should applaud Trump – hard as it would be for them to do so. White House aides would be out of their minds if they were truly seeking to obstruct the investigation into Russian meddling in the elections. The investigation will continue and firing Comey in the midst of it will only stoke concerns about presidential interference and give rise to even more conspiracy theories. For Trump to fire Comey with these political costs, he must have made this tough decision for the good of the country, despite the heavy, and predictable, criticism it will bring.
John C. Yoo is Heller professor law at UC Berkeley School of Law and a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and the author of the new book “Striking Power: How Cyber, Robots and Space Weapons Change the Rules of War.” ||||| President Trump fired James Comey late Tuesday, and better now than never. These columns opposed Mr. Comey’s nomination by Barack Obama, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Director has committed more than enough mistakes in the last year to be dismissed for cause.
Mr. Trump sacked Mr. Comey on the advice of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, a former U.S. Attorney with a straight-up-the-middle reputation who was only recently confirmed by the Senate. In a memo to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Mr. Rosenstein cited... ||||| The news that President Trump has fired FBI Director James B. Comey left me — it should leave all Americans — feeling more than mildly nauseous.
That was the memorable phrase Comey used last week to describe his feeling that his fateful letter to Congress about Hillary Clinton’s email might have influenced the election. Then, it was infuriating. Thanks, Director. Mildly nauseous? Some of us — maybe thanks to you — have woken up feeling that way every day since the election.
But firing an FBI director — now? With the bureau in the midst of an investigation that could determine the fate, political if not criminal, of the president who canned him?
To be clear: Like many people, I once was and no longer count myself a Comey fan. Reasonable people can differ about Comey’s July news conference, when he took it upon himself to state that no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges against Clinton but also to chide her for extreme carelessness in her handling of classified material. I thought the extraordinary circumstances of Bill Clinton’s tarmac visit with then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and the need to reassure the public of the completeness and impartiality of the investigation, justified Comey’s equally extraordinary public explanations.
But Comey’s preelection letter was nothing short of outrageous. It seemed more aimed at insulating Comey’s agency from criticism and — more to the point — burnishing his well-polished reputation for probity at the expense of electoral fairness.
(Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)
If I were president, I might have considered firing Comey myself.
Thus, the newly installed — and by all accounts, resolutely nonpartisan — deputy attorney general, Rod J. Rosenstein, had some undeniable points in his memorandum advocating Comey’s dismissal. Indeed, the FBI’s “reputation and credibility have suffered substantial damage” from Comey’s actions. As Rosenstein pointed out, there was “nearly universal judgment” among former Justice Department officials, Democratic and Republican appointees alike, that Comey’s intervention was an appalling departure from standard practice.
So if, say, President Barack Obama had fired Comey after the election, maybe even if Trump canned him after taking office, that would have been huge news. But not nauseating news. Not news that prompted, as did Tuesday’s action, words like “ Nixonian ” (Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr.), charges of “coverup” (Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer) and demands for an independent prosecutor.
Because firing Comey now is different. It is different because nothing significant has changed since Inauguration Day in terms of the reason cited for Comey’s firing — his handling of the Clinton emails. (Seriously, we are supposed to believe that the straw that broke Trump’s back was that Comey was inaccurate in his recent testimony and unfair to, of all people, Huma Abedin? Since when has inaccuracy been a problem for Trump?)
What has changed is that we now know the FBI is pursuing a serious investigation into Russian intervention in the election and potential entanglements with the Trump campaign, an investigation that could pose a mortal political, if not criminal, threat to Trump’s presidency.
Trump faced an unavoidable and escalating conflict in deciding Comey’s fate — a conflict that deepened with every presidential tweet dismissing the inquiry into Russian hacking and denigrating, explicitly or implicitly, the intelligence and law-enforcement agents who work for him. Tweets such as this, from Monday: “The Russia-Trump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded charade end?” Remind me, who was overseeing this alleged charade?
Indeed, the untenable nature of Trump’s conflict was encapsulated in his own dismissal letter to Comey: “While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the Bureau.”
Think about this, the sitting president of the United States announcing that he is not a crook — well, in his telling, not a suspected crook — as he fires the man who has been leading the investigation of his presidential campaign’s possible involvement with Russia.
If people aren’t buying Trump’s asserted rationale, it is because Trump made this bed of distrust. Nothing in his conduct offers comfort that he understands the importance of the independence of the Justice Department. (Remember, he was angry over Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s decision to recuse himself from the Russia probe.) Nothing suggests that he takes seriously the gravity of Russian intervention in the election or wants to get to the bottom of the mess.
Trump’s priority is, first and always, Trump. Which raises the question: Knowing, as he must have, that firing Comey would set off a firestorm, why did he calculate that this move was in his self-interest?
Read more from Ruth Marcus’s archive, follow her on Twitter or subscribe to her updates on Facebook. | – Is President Trump's firing of FBI Director James Comey a dangerous moment for American democracy, a justified and long-overdue move, or something in the middle? Like much about the Trump administration, it depends on whom you listen to. Opinions are sharply divided on the surprise firing and the reasons for it, though both sides tend to agree that Comey handled the Hillary Clinton email investigation very poorly. A roundup of opinions: This is a "perilous moment" for the US, according to the New York Times editorial board, which says that while Comey certainly bungled the Clinton investigation, it's clear that Trump fired him for other reasons. "The president of the United States, who is no more above the law than any other citizen, has now decisively crippled the FBI's ability to carry out an investigation of him and his associates," the board warns. Comey had to go because he "made law enforcement decisions that probably influenced the outcome of the presidential election, a terrible precedent for our democracy," writes John Yoo at Fox News, praising Trump for making a "tough call" and urging Democrats to support the move. "What Trump is doing here is not simply unpredictable. It is potentially very dangerous," writes Chris Cillizza at CNN. "Removing the person charged with overseeing an investigation into a foreign country attempting to influence US elections by hurting one candidate (Clinton) and helping another (Trump) sends a chilling message up and down the federal bureaucracy—not to mention the populace." The Wall Street Journal editorial board says Comey deserved to be fired and the agency deserves a fresh start. "A new FBI director who looks at the Russia evidence with fresh eyes and without the political baggage of the last year will have a better chance of being credible to the American people," they write. At the New Republic, Brian Beutler calls this a "moment of truth" for US democracy. If this is not a "calamitously ham-fisted attempt to obstruct the Russia-Trump investigation," he writes, there needs to be a special prosecutor appointed to handle the Russia probe and Trump needs to nominate a nonpartisan replacement for Comey. Ruth Marcus at the Washington Post is no Comey fan—she says she would probably have fired him herself, given the chance—but she finds Trump's timing and rationale very fishy. "Trump's priority is, first and always, Trump," she writes. "Which raises the question: Knowing, as he must have, that firing Comey would set off a firestorm, why did he calculate that this move was in his self-interest?" | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Less than a month ago, President Donald Trump told Fox Business Network it wasn’t “too late” for him to fire FBI Director James Comey. At the time, I argued that while Trump was correct in a narrow, legalistic sense, “for all practical purposes it is almost certainly false—unless the White House believes that mass FBI resignations, or the appointment of a special prosecutor, or impeachment for obstruction, or some combination thereof, would be an improvement on the status quo.”
That thesis is about to be tested in dramatic fashion, because on Tuesday, Trump took the plunge and fired Comey without warning for allegedly mishandling the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. We are not yet facing a crisis of presidential legitimacy, but we are on the precipice of one that could be as bad as or worse than any in U.S. history.
No FBI director can or should be considered unfireable. FBI directors are just as capable of negligence, ethical breaches, and crimes as other public servants, if not more so. Comey painted so far outside the lines during the presidential election that the notion that he could or should be fired has crossed many minds over the past several months.
But most FBI directors don’t find themselves leading investigations of the presidents who have the authority to fire them, or serve under attorneys general who have recused themselves from those investigations. Jeff Sessions, Trump’s attorney general, reportedly helped to engineer this firing. ||||| (CNN) James Comey found out he had been fired as FBI director just like the rest of us: By watching it on television.
The move, announced late Tuesday via a letter sent from President Donald Trump to Comey, marked the most unpredictable moment of a presidency that through its first 100-plus days has been the least orthodox in memory. It also ramped up criticism of Trump's judgments -- Comey was tasked with leading the investigation into Russia's meddling into the 2016 campaign and what, if any, collusion had occurred between Trump campaign operatives and Russian intelligence officials -- and left official Washington reeling over a move considered unthinkable as recently as this week.
The explanation for the move, which emerged into the stunned silence it caused, made little logical sense. A report from deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein highlighted Comey's handling of the FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server as the main reason for his dismissal. Rosenstein accused Comey of an attempt to "usurp" the power of the attorney general by announcing publicly that he didn't believe any charges should be brought against Clinton in a July 5, 2016 press conference.
JUST WATCHED Who is James Comey? Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Who is James Comey? 01:05
"Compounding the error, the director ignored another longstanding principle: We do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation," Rosenstein added. "The way the director handled the conclusion of the email investigation was wrong. As a result, the FBI is unlikely to regain public and congressional trust until it has a director who understands the gravity of the mistakes and pledges never to repeat them."
That echoes criticism launched by Democrats loyal to Clinton, who insisted that Comey's decision to offer his own unvarnished view of Clinton's conduct vis-a-vis her private email server -- he said she had been "extremely careless" -- went well beyond his proscribed duties. ||||| President Donald Trump finally made a tough call on which both Republicans and Democrats should agree. On Tuesday, he fired James Comey as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, years short of his full 10-year term. Trump removed a director who believed himself above regular Justice Department procedures and traditions and took the unprecedented step of publicizing – three times – decisions that affected the course of the 2016 presidential elections. But, unfortunately, Democrats will likely continue their scorched earth tactics and portray a decision for the best interests of the nation as a Nixonian effort to interfere with the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the Trump administration.
If not fired by either President Barack Obama, a President Hillary Clinton, or President Trump, Comey should have resigned last year. Last summer, Comey publicly announced a decision not to refer Hillary Clinton and her aides to the Justice Department for prosecution. According to Comey, Clinton was “extremely careless” by diverting classified information through a home-brewed computer network which deliberately avoided the official system of the State Department — even though the FBI found that Clinton had sent 110 e-mails in 52 e-mail chains that contained classified information, that she had not turned over all relevant e-mails, that she had used her private e-mail system while visiting our adversaries, and that her system had probably been hacked by them.
But Comey found that no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges because the FBI could find no “clearly intentional or willful mishandling of classified information or vast quantities of information exposed in such a way to support an inference of intentional misconduct or indications of disloyalty to the United States or an obstruction of justice.”
Comey’s decision badly misinterpreted the law at issue, Section 793(f) of Title 18 of the U.S. Code, which required only “gross negligence.” Comey also turned a blind eye to the circumstantial evidence: why would Clinton create a private e-mail system other than to evade the secure, classified system that the law required her to use?. Comey also ignored past prosecutorial decisions: the Justice Department had prosecuted former CIA directors (John Deutch), national security advisors (Sandy Berger), and generals (David Petraeus) for mishandling classified documents.
We should not seek the removal of a federal official for making a bad decision; if that were the standard, Washington, D.C. would quickly become a ghost town. More important than the decision was Comey’s arrogation of power. Under the traditional division of authority between the FBI and Justice Department prosecutors, the former investigate the facts of a case, but the latter make the decision on whether to bring federal charges in court. Comey seized the power over making the decision whether to charge Hillary Clinton and her aides from the career Justice Department prosecutors who handle such difficult cases and made the decision himself. For that decision alone, Comey should have resigned, and if he would not go willingly, the White House properly had grounds to remove him.
After publicly closing the case, Comey suffered a bout of cold feet shortly before the election. He publicly re-opened the investigation with a few days to go before the election, on the grounds that FBI agents had found that Clinton aide Huma Abedin had forwarded classified information to her husband, Congressman Anthony Weiner. Then, days later, he publicly closed the case again. It is difficult to blame Hillary Clinton for blaming Comey for her defeat, or, as she put it, "I was on the way to winning until the combination of Jim Comey's letter on October 28 and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me but got scared off."
Comey’s three interventions in the election could well have decided the outcome of the case. His initial choice to prematurely close the investigation – as well as reports that his aides have attempted to shut down inquiries into the Clinton Foundation – thrust the FBI into partisan politics in the middle of a presidential election. He compounded the problems by publicly announcing his decision each time, which ran clearly against Justice Department practice not to criticize or even explain when prosecutors choose not to bring charges against any target. As Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein properly observed in recommending Comey’s removal, “I cannot defend the director’s handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton’s emails.” Mr. Rosenstein wrote in another letter released by the White House, “and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken.”
Comey further demonstrated his desire for the spotlight, but his instinct for the wrong decision, in the continuing saga of Russian interference with the 2016 elections. According to media reports, he recently exaggerated the number of classified emails that Abedin forwarded to Weiner when he testified before Congress last week. He also has publicly announced that the FBI was investigating the Trump campaign for possible involvement with the Russians, even though it is unclear what laws might have been broken by Trump or his White House advisors. At the same time, it appears Comey has refused to publicly announce that President Trump himself was not a target, although Trump yesterday claimed that Comey had told him three times that he was not.
The reputation of the FBI would be injured if Comey had remained, even if he acted out of the noblest of intentions. He has shown an unerring instinct for publicity in a job where the occupant is best seen but not heard. He has made law enforcement decisions that probably influenced the outcome of the presidential election, a terrible precedent for our democracy. It is best for the nation that the White House place the FBI in new hands as part of its mission to restore integrity to the Justice Department. The FBI needs a fresh start.
If Democrats cared about the integrity of our institutions, rather than scoring partisan points against the White House, they should applaud Trump – hard as it would be for them to do so. White House aides would be out of their minds if they were truly seeking to obstruct the investigation into Russian meddling in the elections. The investigation will continue and firing Comey in the midst of it will only stoke concerns about presidential interference and give rise to even more conspiracy theories. For Trump to fire Comey with these political costs, he must have made this tough decision for the good of the country, despite the heavy, and predictable, criticism it will bring.
John C. Yoo is Heller professor law at UC Berkeley School of Law and a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and the author of the new book “Striking Power: How Cyber, Robots and Space Weapons Change the Rules of War.” ||||| President Trump fired James Comey late Tuesday, and better now than never. These columns opposed Mr. Comey’s nomination by Barack Obama, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Director has committed more than enough mistakes in the last year to be dismissed for cause.
Mr. Trump sacked Mr. Comey on the advice of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, a former U.S. Attorney with a straight-up-the-middle reputation who was only recently confirmed by the Senate. In a memo to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Mr. Rosenstein cited... ||||| The news that President Trump has fired FBI Director James B. Comey left me — it should leave all Americans — feeling more than mildly nauseous.
That was the memorable phrase Comey used last week to describe his feeling that his fateful letter to Congress about Hillary Clinton’s email might have influenced the election. Then, it was infuriating. Thanks, Director. Mildly nauseous? Some of us — maybe thanks to you — have woken up feeling that way every day since the election.
But firing an FBI director — now? With the bureau in the midst of an investigation that could determine the fate, political if not criminal, of the president who canned him?
To be clear: Like many people, I once was and no longer count myself a Comey fan. Reasonable people can differ about Comey’s July news conference, when he took it upon himself to state that no reasonable prosecutor would bring charges against Clinton but also to chide her for extreme carelessness in her handling of classified material. I thought the extraordinary circumstances of Bill Clinton’s tarmac visit with then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and the need to reassure the public of the completeness and impartiality of the investigation, justified Comey’s equally extraordinary public explanations.
But Comey’s preelection letter was nothing short of outrageous. It seemed more aimed at insulating Comey’s agency from criticism and — more to the point — burnishing his well-polished reputation for probity at the expense of electoral fairness.
(Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)
If I were president, I might have considered firing Comey myself.
Thus, the newly installed — and by all accounts, resolutely nonpartisan — deputy attorney general, Rod J. Rosenstein, had some undeniable points in his memorandum advocating Comey’s dismissal. Indeed, the FBI’s “reputation and credibility have suffered substantial damage” from Comey’s actions. As Rosenstein pointed out, there was “nearly universal judgment” among former Justice Department officials, Democratic and Republican appointees alike, that Comey’s intervention was an appalling departure from standard practice.
So if, say, President Barack Obama had fired Comey after the election, maybe even if Trump canned him after taking office, that would have been huge news. But not nauseating news. Not news that prompted, as did Tuesday’s action, words like “ Nixonian ” (Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr.), charges of “coverup” (Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer) and demands for an independent prosecutor.
Because firing Comey now is different. It is different because nothing significant has changed since Inauguration Day in terms of the reason cited for Comey’s firing — his handling of the Clinton emails. (Seriously, we are supposed to believe that the straw that broke Trump’s back was that Comey was inaccurate in his recent testimony and unfair to, of all people, Huma Abedin? Since when has inaccuracy been a problem for Trump?)
What has changed is that we now know the FBI is pursuing a serious investigation into Russian intervention in the election and potential entanglements with the Trump campaign, an investigation that could pose a mortal political, if not criminal, threat to Trump’s presidency.
Trump faced an unavoidable and escalating conflict in deciding Comey’s fate — a conflict that deepened with every presidential tweet dismissing the inquiry into Russian hacking and denigrating, explicitly or implicitly, the intelligence and law-enforcement agents who work for him. Tweets such as this, from Monday: “The Russia-Trump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded charade end?” Remind me, who was overseeing this alleged charade?
Indeed, the untenable nature of Trump’s conflict was encapsulated in his own dismissal letter to Comey: “While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the Bureau.”
Think about this, the sitting president of the United States announcing that he is not a crook — well, in his telling, not a suspected crook — as he fires the man who has been leading the investigation of his presidential campaign’s possible involvement with Russia.
If people aren’t buying Trump’s asserted rationale, it is because Trump made this bed of distrust. Nothing in his conduct offers comfort that he understands the importance of the independence of the Justice Department. (Remember, he was angry over Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s decision to recuse himself from the Russia probe.) Nothing suggests that he takes seriously the gravity of Russian intervention in the election or wants to get to the bottom of the mess.
Trump’s priority is, first and always, Trump. Which raises the question: Knowing, as he must have, that firing Comey would set off a firestorm, why did he calculate that this move was in his self-interest?
Read more from Ruth Marcus’s archive, follow her on Twitter or subscribe to her updates on Facebook. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 17,382 |
Image copyright Matt Cox/Facebook Image caption This was the second time his daughter had been reprimanded for bullying on the bus, the father said
An Ohio father who made his daughter walk five miles (8km) to school as punishment for bullying has provoked a debate on parenting.
After 10-year-old Kirsten was suspended for three days from the school bus for a second-time bullying offence, Matt Cox decided to teach her a life lesson.
He made her trudge to school on a cold day while he followed behind in a car.
The video of the father's punishment has garnered over 15m views on Facebook and thousands of comments.
In the viral clip, Mr Cox's daughter is seen walking alongside a road, carrying a backpack and school supplies, in 2C (36F) temperatures.
Mr Cox follows behind her in his car in the town of Swanton, offering commentary on entitlement and bullying.
"Bullying is unacceptable," he said. "This is my small way of trying to stop it in my household."
Mr Cox added that many children feel entitled to privileges like being taken to school in the morning by car or bus.
"I know a lot of you parents are not going to agree with this and that's alright," he says.
"I am doing what I feel is right to teach my daughter a lesson and to stop her from bullying."
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In a Facebook update shared on Wednesday, Mr Cox said his daughter had taken his words to heart.
According to WTVG News, Mr Cox broke up Kirsten's walk over her three-day school bus suspension this week.
The 10-year-old told WTVG she herself had been bullied and now knows to be kind.
Many of the 63,000 comments that have since popped up on his video have been positive, with parents of bullies and bullied alike thanking Mr Cox for his parenting.
"As the grandparent of an autistic boy who has been the victim of neighbourhood bullies, I applaud you! Too many parents do nothing," read one reply.
Read another: "Wish more parents took the time to hold their children accountable for unacceptable behaviour."
However, others pointed out that by shaming her with the punishment video, the girl was arguably being bullied by her father.
"Humiliate her by putting her on Facebook being punished. Irony," one user commented.
"Ok but wait, is she bullying other kids or did you stop to hear her explanation?" said another.
"Was she reacting to being bullied and just got caught? If public shaming is your idea of punishment no wonder she's acting out."
Prof Dorothy Espelage of the University of Florida, a psychology researcher and expert on youth bullying, told the BBC it is far more common for parents of bullies to not admit their child is in the wrong.
"So in some ways, this father is doing the right thing of admitting and accepting his daughter's behaviour," she said.
Prof Espelage says that children are less likely to act out if behaviours have consequences, but she would suggest a different approach than walking in the cold.
"I, like many of the folks who commented on the video, would like to know more about the bullying, the origins."
What our readers think
We asked BBC readers to tell us what they thought of Mr Cox's parenting strategy.
Here's what they had to say:
"I admire this father for his action. It's not just the bullying he is addressing, it's the fact that kids nowadays think they are being owed privileges." - Claudia Grotkamp
"Awful. Any parent that betrays their child's privacy so they can get their moment of fame and pat on the back is appalling. This isn't about his daughter, it's about getting people to say how good a parent he is. Poor girl." - Lucy Wardle
"It's good to see that some parents still control their children instead of the other way round." - Jenny Heffernon
"Some people may think that this punishment of a bully is hypocritical, as it seems like bullying itself. The hypocrisy lies with those who would let bullies go unpunished when a dose of their own medicine is the very best cure." - D West
"Good measure! My son was bullied too. Too many parents cop out and blame their school for not bringing up their children right." - Rasmus Langaard
"There has to be ongoing conversations about bullying and the impact it has," Prof Espelage added.
"This type of punishment is short-term and will not address the culture in the school or on the bus that is lending itself to bullying."
Mr Cox told News 5 Cleveland that he had shown Kirsten and his two other children the video and people's comments on it.
They "seem to show a great deal of empathy towards some of the sad stories that I read with them," Mr Cox said.
He added that he hoped parents would "start holding their kids accountable". ||||| An Ohio father's message about bullying has gone viral.
Matt Cox's daughter was suspended from riding the school bus on Nov. 30 due to bullying.
Cox said his daughter told him that he had to drive her to school the following week, but he decided to teach her lesson instead.
"I realized she viewed the privilege of riding the bus and or car rides to and from school as a right and not a privilege," Cox said.
On Monday, Cox made his daughter walk to school and posted a video on Facebook saying, "Life lessons."
In the video, Cox said a lot of children today feel that the things their parents do for them are a right and not a privilege.
Cox said his daughter was upset when she first started walking on Monday.
During the walk, Cox talked to his daughter about how her actions were the reason she was walking. He said by the end of the walk she calmed down and realized that if she hadn't bullied others she would still be on the bus.
The video has been shared more than 200,000 times.
Cox said he was shocked when he found out the video went viral.
"I was in complete shock that so many people responded when I originally posted it. I just thought friends and family would see it, and then a friend asked me to make it public so that they could share it," Cox said. "By the time I woke up the next day I had hundreds of messages in my inbox and saw that there were quite a few views."
Cox said he sat down with his children to show them the comments on the video so that they could understand the effects of bullying.
"She, along with my other two children, seem to show a great deal of empathy towards some of the sad stories that I read with them," Cox said.
He believes his daughter learned her lesson about bullying and will now appreciate the bus ride to school.
Cox hopes that when others view the video, they will learn just how much words can hurt others.
"I just hope that through the video being shared kids can take a look and read some of the comments and tutorials on the post and see just how much words can hurt and cut deep and can have lasting effects on those involved sometimes in the most awful cases life-ending effects," Cox said.
"I also hope that parents see the video and start holding their kids accountable for their actions and stop sweeping their child's actions under the rug with the ideology that kids will be kids. We as parents need to stop the bullying on the home front because bullying only breeds bullying," Cox said. ||||| It's a video that's been viewed millions of times of a girl walking to school. Her dad is behind the camera and says it was her punishment after she was suspended from the bus for bullying another student.
"This is my small way of trying to stop it in my household," Matt Cox, of Swanton said.
He says this was the second time his 10 year old ran into this problem and he was determined to make sure she thought twice before ever doing it again.
"I know a lot of you parents are not going to agree with this and that's alright," he said in the roughly two minute video. "I am doing what I think is right to teach my daughter a lesson to stop her from bullying."
The clip was posted on social media and received an overwhelming response. Millions of people have viewed it and hundreds of thousands more have left a comment.
To some the punishment fits the crime, but others say it seems harsh. Cox says he recognizes how it could be perceived but he says he had to correct her behavior.
"Parents need to hold their kids accountable. That was me showing how I hold my kid accountable," Cox said. "I'm not going to be another parent that's just going to brush things under the rug and say kids will be kids."
In the video, you see his daughter walking along the side of the road. Cox is following behind in his truck.
"My beautiful daughter is going to walk 5 miles to school in 36 degree weather," he says.
He says he hopes that other kids will see this and make the choice to be kind instead.
His daughter, Kirsten, says she's learned her lesson, especially since she knows how it feels when people aren't nice.
"I was bullied many times by kids bigger than me," she said.
Cox says he's received a lot of support from other parents, though some expressed anger and concern over his decision.
He says he would do it all over again because he believes it's made a difference.
"I just want the kids to know that words truly do hurt. They cut very deep and have lasting effects. I hope that parents hold their kids accountable," he said.
That five-mile walk to school was broken up over Kirsten's three-day suspension. She finished the last two miles on Wednesday. | – When Matt Cox's daughter got suspended from riding the school bus for bullying—for the second time this school year—the Ohio father decided to take drastic action. Instead of driving her to school as she expected him to, Cox made her walk the five miles in 36-degree weather in Swanton, News 5 Cleveland reports. (He broke up the miles over her three-day suspension, 13 ABC explains.) In a video filmed while he followed slowly behind her in his car, Cox says, "So children, if you're watching this, please understand that bullying is unacceptable." Cox posted the video to Facebook—where it has been shared more than 350,000 times since Monday. Cox says that while the 10-year-old was upset when she started the walk, he talked to her during it, and by the end she had calmed down. "UPDATE: lesson learned!" he later wrote in the video caption. "Still has all her extremities intact is happy and healthy and seems to have a new outlook on bullying as well as a new appreciation for some of the simple things in life she used to take for granted." He tells News 5 he was "shocked" when the video went viral. He had initially only shared it with friends and family, but made the post public after a friend asked to share it. He later read all three of his children some of the comments on the video that related stories of bullying and the impact it can have. Though many are on board with Cox's disciplinary strategy, not all are, reports the BBC, which rounds up some of the comments on Cox's video. "Humiliate her by putting her on Facebook being punished. Irony," wrote one person. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Image copyright Matt Cox/Facebook Image caption This was the second time his daughter had been reprimanded for bullying on the bus, the father said
An Ohio father who made his daughter walk five miles (8km) to school as punishment for bullying has provoked a debate on parenting.
After 10-year-old Kirsten was suspended for three days from the school bus for a second-time bullying offence, Matt Cox decided to teach her a life lesson.
He made her trudge to school on a cold day while he followed behind in a car.
The video of the father's punishment has garnered over 15m views on Facebook and thousands of comments.
In the viral clip, Mr Cox's daughter is seen walking alongside a road, carrying a backpack and school supplies, in 2C (36F) temperatures.
Mr Cox follows behind her in his car in the town of Swanton, offering commentary on entitlement and bullying.
"Bullying is unacceptable," he said. "This is my small way of trying to stop it in my household."
Mr Cox added that many children feel entitled to privileges like being taken to school in the morning by car or bus.
"I know a lot of you parents are not going to agree with this and that's alright," he says.
"I am doing what I feel is right to teach my daughter a lesson and to stop her from bullying."
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In a Facebook update shared on Wednesday, Mr Cox said his daughter had taken his words to heart.
According to WTVG News, Mr Cox broke up Kirsten's walk over her three-day school bus suspension this week.
The 10-year-old told WTVG she herself had been bullied and now knows to be kind.
Many of the 63,000 comments that have since popped up on his video have been positive, with parents of bullies and bullied alike thanking Mr Cox for his parenting.
"As the grandparent of an autistic boy who has been the victim of neighbourhood bullies, I applaud you! Too many parents do nothing," read one reply.
Read another: "Wish more parents took the time to hold their children accountable for unacceptable behaviour."
However, others pointed out that by shaming her with the punishment video, the girl was arguably being bullied by her father.
"Humiliate her by putting her on Facebook being punished. Irony," one user commented.
"Ok but wait, is she bullying other kids or did you stop to hear her explanation?" said another.
"Was she reacting to being bullied and just got caught? If public shaming is your idea of punishment no wonder she's acting out."
Prof Dorothy Espelage of the University of Florida, a psychology researcher and expert on youth bullying, told the BBC it is far more common for parents of bullies to not admit their child is in the wrong.
"So in some ways, this father is doing the right thing of admitting and accepting his daughter's behaviour," she said.
Prof Espelage says that children are less likely to act out if behaviours have consequences, but she would suggest a different approach than walking in the cold.
"I, like many of the folks who commented on the video, would like to know more about the bullying, the origins."
What our readers think
We asked BBC readers to tell us what they thought of Mr Cox's parenting strategy.
Here's what they had to say:
"I admire this father for his action. It's not just the bullying he is addressing, it's the fact that kids nowadays think they are being owed privileges." - Claudia Grotkamp
"Awful. Any parent that betrays their child's privacy so they can get their moment of fame and pat on the back is appalling. This isn't about his daughter, it's about getting people to say how good a parent he is. Poor girl." - Lucy Wardle
"It's good to see that some parents still control their children instead of the other way round." - Jenny Heffernon
"Some people may think that this punishment of a bully is hypocritical, as it seems like bullying itself. The hypocrisy lies with those who would let bullies go unpunished when a dose of their own medicine is the very best cure." - D West
"Good measure! My son was bullied too. Too many parents cop out and blame their school for not bringing up their children right." - Rasmus Langaard
"There has to be ongoing conversations about bullying and the impact it has," Prof Espelage added.
"This type of punishment is short-term and will not address the culture in the school or on the bus that is lending itself to bullying."
Mr Cox told News 5 Cleveland that he had shown Kirsten and his two other children the video and people's comments on it.
They "seem to show a great deal of empathy towards some of the sad stories that I read with them," Mr Cox said.
He added that he hoped parents would "start holding their kids accountable". ||||| An Ohio father's message about bullying has gone viral.
Matt Cox's daughter was suspended from riding the school bus on Nov. 30 due to bullying.
Cox said his daughter told him that he had to drive her to school the following week, but he decided to teach her lesson instead.
"I realized she viewed the privilege of riding the bus and or car rides to and from school as a right and not a privilege," Cox said.
On Monday, Cox made his daughter walk to school and posted a video on Facebook saying, "Life lessons."
In the video, Cox said a lot of children today feel that the things their parents do for them are a right and not a privilege.
Cox said his daughter was upset when she first started walking on Monday.
During the walk, Cox talked to his daughter about how her actions were the reason she was walking. He said by the end of the walk she calmed down and realized that if she hadn't bullied others she would still be on the bus.
The video has been shared more than 200,000 times.
Cox said he was shocked when he found out the video went viral.
"I was in complete shock that so many people responded when I originally posted it. I just thought friends and family would see it, and then a friend asked me to make it public so that they could share it," Cox said. "By the time I woke up the next day I had hundreds of messages in my inbox and saw that there were quite a few views."
Cox said he sat down with his children to show them the comments on the video so that they could understand the effects of bullying.
"She, along with my other two children, seem to show a great deal of empathy towards some of the sad stories that I read with them," Cox said.
He believes his daughter learned her lesson about bullying and will now appreciate the bus ride to school.
Cox hopes that when others view the video, they will learn just how much words can hurt others.
"I just hope that through the video being shared kids can take a look and read some of the comments and tutorials on the post and see just how much words can hurt and cut deep and can have lasting effects on those involved sometimes in the most awful cases life-ending effects," Cox said.
"I also hope that parents see the video and start holding their kids accountable for their actions and stop sweeping their child's actions under the rug with the ideology that kids will be kids. We as parents need to stop the bullying on the home front because bullying only breeds bullying," Cox said. ||||| It's a video that's been viewed millions of times of a girl walking to school. Her dad is behind the camera and says it was her punishment after she was suspended from the bus for bullying another student.
"This is my small way of trying to stop it in my household," Matt Cox, of Swanton said.
He says this was the second time his 10 year old ran into this problem and he was determined to make sure she thought twice before ever doing it again.
"I know a lot of you parents are not going to agree with this and that's alright," he said in the roughly two minute video. "I am doing what I think is right to teach my daughter a lesson to stop her from bullying."
The clip was posted on social media and received an overwhelming response. Millions of people have viewed it and hundreds of thousands more have left a comment.
To some the punishment fits the crime, but others say it seems harsh. Cox says he recognizes how it could be perceived but he says he had to correct her behavior.
"Parents need to hold their kids accountable. That was me showing how I hold my kid accountable," Cox said. "I'm not going to be another parent that's just going to brush things under the rug and say kids will be kids."
In the video, you see his daughter walking along the side of the road. Cox is following behind in his truck.
"My beautiful daughter is going to walk 5 miles to school in 36 degree weather," he says.
He says he hopes that other kids will see this and make the choice to be kind instead.
His daughter, Kirsten, says she's learned her lesson, especially since she knows how it feels when people aren't nice.
"I was bullied many times by kids bigger than me," she said.
Cox says he's received a lot of support from other parents, though some expressed anger and concern over his decision.
He says he would do it all over again because he believes it's made a difference.
"I just want the kids to know that words truly do hurt. They cut very deep and have lasting effects. I hope that parents hold their kids accountable," he said.
That five-mile walk to school was broken up over Kirsten's three-day suspension. She finished the last two miles on Wednesday. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 43,087 |
Renee Ganz, 86, originally from Oradea, Romania, discusses her time at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
TEL AVIV, Israel — Shortly after the Nazi invasion of what was then Hungary in May 1944, Renee Ganz's family and most of the 25,000 Jews in the city of Oradea were forced into cattle cars and transported to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
Men and boys were placed in one line, while women and girls were led to another when they arrived at the camp in Oświęcim, Poland. Ganz was just 15 at the time.
"I asked a German soldier why we were being separated and he said, 'You've had a long journey. You need to take a shower,'" Ganz, now 86, recalls. "That's when the selection began."
A photo of Renee Ganz's family before the war. From left is her brother Nickolai, mother Bella, Renee, and her father Laslo. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
German officers took one look at the prisoners and decided who would live and who would die.
"If they pointed left, you went to the gas chambers and crematorium. If they pointed to the right, you became a slave," she says. "We were sent to the right, but I never saw my father or brother Nikolai again."
Ganz, a self-described optimist, tries not to dwell on the horrors of the Holocaust and the 100 relatives she lost, but the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau has stirred up painful memories. She spent two months at Auschwitz before being sent to a slave labor camp along with her mother, who also survived the war.
On Tuesday — Holocaust Remembrance Day — Ganz will return to the death camp for the first time, along with nearly 100 other Auschwitz survivors from 19 countries.
"It will be very difficult, but it is important," she says.
The railway track leading to the infamous "Death Gate" at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration in Oswiecim, Poland. Ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation will be Jan. 27, 2015. (Photo: Christopher Furlong, Getty Images)
A medical team of 12 doctors, psychologists and nurses will accompany the survivors, ages 73 to 96, because of the "emotionally powerful and physically taxing" nature of the visit, the World Jewish Congress said.
"This may be the last major anniversary we will be able to remember with those who experienced the Holocaust firsthand. From this historic event, their voices will echo across the generations," says Robert Singer, secretary general for the Jewish congress, which helped organize the event.
Of the more than 1.1 million people who died at Auschwitz, about 90% were Jews, according to the Yad Vashem Holocaust World Center in Jerusalem. About one in six of all Jews killed during the Holocaust died at the camp. Also killed there were homosexuals, Soviet prisoners of war, Christian Poles, Romani and others.
Hundreds of thousands of prisoners transported from all across Europe were sent to the gas chambers, then cremated at the camp. Those who survived the daily death "selections" often died from infection or starvation.
As the Soviet army was approaching in January 1945, the Nazis stepped up their exterminations and — in an attempt to destroy evidence of their genocide — sent the surviving prisoners in Auschwitz and its satellite camps on a series of death marches.
Emaciated and dressed in flimsy uniforms unsuited to the frigid cold of a Polish winter, thousands of prisoners died as a result.
"After the war ended we learned that my brother died just two weeks before the liberation," Ganz says, her voice cracking.
Shalom Lindenbaum, 88, originally from Przytyk, Poland, discusses his time at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
When he was 16, Shalom Lindenbaum was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau in July 1944 along with his parents and sister. His older brother, Moshe, had already died from illness in a labor camp.
"We were sent straight to Birkenau because the Nazis wanted us as laborers, and other than for the children and the elderly there was no selection," says Lindenbaum, now 88 and a retired professor of Hebrew literature.
"They tattooed numbers on our arms and shaved both the men and the women everywhere we had hair," he says while sitting in his book-filled home in Ramat Gan, a Tel Aviv suburb.
Lindenbaum and his father were then sent to the nearby Buna-Monowitz concentration camp, while his mother and sister remained at Auschwitz-Birkenau. On Jan. 18, 1945, Lindenbaum and his father were among 1,500 surviving prisoners sent on a death march.
"My sister and mother, meanwhile, were sent on a death march toward Bergen Belsen," another concentration camp, he says. "After four or five days in the bitter cold, only 500 or 600 of our original 1,500 were alive."
A photo of Shalom Lindenbaum in his concentration camp uniform. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
Lindenbaum's mother died the day after Bergen Belsen was liberated. "She told my sister that she knew I was still alive and asked her to tell me to recite Kaddish, the memorial prayer, for her."
Lindenbaum, who will attend the Auschwitz ceremony in Poland, said the anti-Semitism that fueled the Holocaust survives today.
"After 70 years a Jew still can't walk freely on the streets of Europe without fearing for his life," he says, referring to many assaults there, including the terror attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris this month that left four Jews dead.
Ganz agrees: "Anti-Semitism will be around for another thousand years." For her, traveling to Auschwitz is about getting "revenge," she says.
"I have children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The Germans tried to kill the entire Jewish people but they failed. I am alive. I am here."
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1JIARhh ||||| WEIL DER STADT, Germany—When Auschwitz commemorates the 70th anniversary of its liberation on Jan. 27, the ceremonies will include an unlikely attendee: the grandson of the camp commandant who was held responsible for 1.1 million deaths there.
Rainer Hoess, 49 years old, has grappled with the curse of his bloodline since his teens. He has tattoos of a Star of David and of the Auschwitz numbers of several survivors he has met. He has... | – Tomorrow, survivors will mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, and among the speakers will be Rainer Hoess, the grandson of the camp's infamous commandant Rudolf Hoess. The younger Hoess has devoted his life to educating people about the horrors his grandfather perpetrated. "I know my heritage. I can’t change it," he tells the Wall Street Journal. “It’s more effective to use the name and show that the idea that evil is in the blood—these things the Nazis said—is wrong." Hoess speaks at some 70 schools each year, and he has met with survivors; he's gotten their camp numbers, as well as a Star of David, tattooed on his body. Not everyone approves of his work, with some accusing him of using his name for financial gain. "I don’t want to have any connection to this criminal," an Israeli journalist and grandson of survivors tells the Journal. Tomorrow, Hoess will visit the camp, where survivors will also gather; the Journal puts the number at 300, while USA Today expects 100. "It will be very difficult, but it is important," says Renee Ganz, who is returning to Auschwitz for the first time since she was sent there at age 15, USA Today reports. Health specialists will be on hand to help survivors with the "emotionally powerful and physically taxing" experience, says the World Jewish Congress. "This may be the last major anniversary we will be able to remember with those who experienced the Holocaust firsthand. From this historic event, their voices will echo across the generations," says the group's secretary general. Some 1.1 million people died at Auschwitz; 90% were Jews, while others included homosexuals, Christian Poles, and Romani, USA Today notes. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Renee Ganz, 86, originally from Oradea, Romania, discusses her time at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
TEL AVIV, Israel — Shortly after the Nazi invasion of what was then Hungary in May 1944, Renee Ganz's family and most of the 25,000 Jews in the city of Oradea were forced into cattle cars and transported to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
Men and boys were placed in one line, while women and girls were led to another when they arrived at the camp in Oświęcim, Poland. Ganz was just 15 at the time.
"I asked a German soldier why we were being separated and he said, 'You've had a long journey. You need to take a shower,'" Ganz, now 86, recalls. "That's when the selection began."
A photo of Renee Ganz's family before the war. From left is her brother Nickolai, mother Bella, Renee, and her father Laslo. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
German officers took one look at the prisoners and decided who would live and who would die.
"If they pointed left, you went to the gas chambers and crematorium. If they pointed to the right, you became a slave," she says. "We were sent to the right, but I never saw my father or brother Nikolai again."
Ganz, a self-described optimist, tries not to dwell on the horrors of the Holocaust and the 100 relatives she lost, but the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau has stirred up painful memories. She spent two months at Auschwitz before being sent to a slave labor camp along with her mother, who also survived the war.
On Tuesday — Holocaust Remembrance Day — Ganz will return to the death camp for the first time, along with nearly 100 other Auschwitz survivors from 19 countries.
"It will be very difficult, but it is important," she says.
The railway track leading to the infamous "Death Gate" at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration in Oswiecim, Poland. Ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation will be Jan. 27, 2015. (Photo: Christopher Furlong, Getty Images)
A medical team of 12 doctors, psychologists and nurses will accompany the survivors, ages 73 to 96, because of the "emotionally powerful and physically taxing" nature of the visit, the World Jewish Congress said.
"This may be the last major anniversary we will be able to remember with those who experienced the Holocaust firsthand. From this historic event, their voices will echo across the generations," says Robert Singer, secretary general for the Jewish congress, which helped organize the event.
Of the more than 1.1 million people who died at Auschwitz, about 90% were Jews, according to the Yad Vashem Holocaust World Center in Jerusalem. About one in six of all Jews killed during the Holocaust died at the camp. Also killed there were homosexuals, Soviet prisoners of war, Christian Poles, Romani and others.
Hundreds of thousands of prisoners transported from all across Europe were sent to the gas chambers, then cremated at the camp. Those who survived the daily death "selections" often died from infection or starvation.
As the Soviet army was approaching in January 1945, the Nazis stepped up their exterminations and — in an attempt to destroy evidence of their genocide — sent the surviving prisoners in Auschwitz and its satellite camps on a series of death marches.
Emaciated and dressed in flimsy uniforms unsuited to the frigid cold of a Polish winter, thousands of prisoners died as a result.
"After the war ended we learned that my brother died just two weeks before the liberation," Ganz says, her voice cracking.
Shalom Lindenbaum, 88, originally from Przytyk, Poland, discusses his time at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
When he was 16, Shalom Lindenbaum was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau in July 1944 along with his parents and sister. His older brother, Moshe, had already died from illness in a labor camp.
"We were sent straight to Birkenau because the Nazis wanted us as laborers, and other than for the children and the elderly there was no selection," says Lindenbaum, now 88 and a retired professor of Hebrew literature.
"They tattooed numbers on our arms and shaved both the men and the women everywhere we had hair," he says while sitting in his book-filled home in Ramat Gan, a Tel Aviv suburb.
Lindenbaum and his father were then sent to the nearby Buna-Monowitz concentration camp, while his mother and sister remained at Auschwitz-Birkenau. On Jan. 18, 1945, Lindenbaum and his father were among 1,500 surviving prisoners sent on a death march.
"My sister and mother, meanwhile, were sent on a death march toward Bergen Belsen," another concentration camp, he says. "After four or five days in the bitter cold, only 500 or 600 of our original 1,500 were alive."
A photo of Shalom Lindenbaum in his concentration camp uniform. (Photo: Debbie Hill for USA TODAY)
Lindenbaum's mother died the day after Bergen Belsen was liberated. "She told my sister that she knew I was still alive and asked her to tell me to recite Kaddish, the memorial prayer, for her."
Lindenbaum, who will attend the Auschwitz ceremony in Poland, said the anti-Semitism that fueled the Holocaust survives today.
"After 70 years a Jew still can't walk freely on the streets of Europe without fearing for his life," he says, referring to many assaults there, including the terror attack on a kosher supermarket in Paris this month that left four Jews dead.
Ganz agrees: "Anti-Semitism will be around for another thousand years." For her, traveling to Auschwitz is about getting "revenge," she says.
"I have children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The Germans tried to kill the entire Jewish people but they failed. I am alive. I am here."
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1JIARhh ||||| WEIL DER STADT, Germany—When Auschwitz commemorates the 70th anniversary of its liberation on Jan. 27, the ceremonies will include an unlikely attendee: the grandson of the camp commandant who was held responsible for 1.1 million deaths there.
Rainer Hoess, 49 years old, has grappled with the curse of his bloodline since his teens. He has tattoos of a Star of David and of the Auschwitz numbers of several survivors he has met. He has... | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 39,561 |
Updated | Russia’s Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal launched by Jehovah’s Witnesses against the group’s ban in the country. The decision was made following a single-day hearing in Moscow in which the court swiftly rejected all the defense motions put forward by representatives of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, including a request to have a religious studies scholar.
Related: Jehovah’s Witnesses in Kazakhstan fear repeat of Russia ban after ‘scary’ crackdown
In April, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the justice ministry which, a month earlier, had declared Jehovah’s Witnesses an extremist organization, liquidating 395 of its local chapters as well as its headquarters in St. Petersburg. Monday’s ruling means that the Christian denomination must turn over all its properties, known as Kingdom Halls, to the Russian government.
Following the decision, the group's Russia spokesman, Yaroslav Sivulskiy, reportedly told gathered journalists in the packed courtroom that “religious freedom in Russia is over. It's a very sad situation for our country. As you could see today, there were no real facts of any extremism on part of Jehovah's Witnesses. It's all about bad literature and intolerance. Now anyone who studies the Bible can be jailed.”
Our representative Sivulsky to journalists: "Religious freedom in Russia is over" #jwrussia #StopJWBan — Anton Chivchalov (@Chivchalov) July 17, 2017
The international spokesman for Jehovah's Witnesses, David A. Semonian, added that the verdict did not come as a surprise.
“While we were prepared for a negative ruling, it is still very disappointing,” he said in a statement. “It is very concerning that despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, powerful elements within Russia continue to frame our organization as extremist. We can only hope a fair evaluation of the facts will eventually prevail and our right to worship in Russia will be legally restored.”
The appeal was evaluated by three judges, as opposed to the single judge who ruled on the initial case. However, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, which has 175,000 members in Russia and had operated there since 1991, had little hope of success.
A survey from the independent polling agency Levada, released last week, indicated that 79 percent of Russians supported the ban, though more than half of the respondents admitted they knew nothing about the case. The ban also had the powerful support of the Russian Orthodox Church, which enjoys a close relationship with President Vladimir Putin and counts more than 70 percent of the country's population as followers.
The original decision can only now formally go into effect, though a Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesman in Russia told Newsweek in May that “most” of the group’s local chapters had already received documents from the tax department notifying them that they had lost their leases.
That is far from the only negative consequence the group has faced since the April verdict declaring that its texts violate an anti-extremism law, effectively placing it in the same category as groups like the Islamic State (ISIS). Police have regularly disrupted group meetings both at the Kingdom Halls and in private homes. In one instance, a Danish citizen was arrested during a meeting at home and faces up to 10 years in prison.
The verdict also has had a chilling impact across society. There have been numerous reports of harassment and violence committed against Jehovah’s Witnesses, including arson attacks. A report from the group released last week stated that instances of harassment and violence against its followers skyrocketed by 650 percent between March and April. In all, it found that there had been 128 cases of mistreatment, including some against children in schools.
The ban has been widely condemned internationally, including by the United States and the European Union. In its 2017 report, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom elevated Russia to its highest tier of violators of religious freedom.
Following Monday’s rejection of the appeal, the Jehovah’s Witnesses are expected to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. Yet even if the group is successful, Russia has no requirement to accept the verdict.
“Regardless of what negative consequences this decision brings,” Semonian said, “Jehovah's Witnesses will continue to act within the law to secure their rights and support their fellow worshippers in Russia who must bear the burden of injustice.”
This artcile has been updated to include further comments by a Jehovah's Witnesses spokesman. ||||| Image caption Russia's justice ministry argues that Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlets incite hatred
Russia's Supreme Court has ordered the disbanding of the Jehovah's Witnesses on Russian territory.
The ban came into effect after the court rejected an appeal by the religious group against a ruling in April which declared it to be extremist.
The justice ministry had argued that the group distributed pamphlets which incited hatred against other groups.
The group described the ruling as the end of religious freedom in Russia.
The denomination says it has 175,000 members in Russia - a country where it was persecuted during the Stalin era.
An estimated eight million people worldwide are part of the Christian-based movement, best known for going door-to-door looking for new converts.
The ruling means that the group's headquarters near St Petersburg and 395 local chapters will close.
It will be required to hand over all its properties, known as Kingdom Halls, to the Russian government.
The group's Russia spokesman, Yaroslav Sivulsky, said that "religious freedom in Russia is over".
"There were no real facts of any extremism on part of Jehovah's Witnesses. It's all about bad literature and intolerance. Now anyone who studies the Bible can be jailed," he said, quoted by Newsweek magazine.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The Russian authorities are clamping down on extremism nationwide
One pamphlet distributed by the group quoted the novelist Leo Tolstoy as describing the doctrine of the Russian Orthodox Church as superstition and sorcery.
Officials have accused the religion of destroying families, propagating hatred and endangering lives. The Church had also joined calls for a ban.
The Jehovah's Witnesses group was founded in the United States in the 19th century.
They take most of the Bible literally and refuse blood transfusions. They are not seen by traditional Christian Churches as a mainstream denomination.
Image copyright AFP Image caption The original Supreme Court ruling came in April this year
During Joseph Stalin's reign of terror in the Soviet Union it was outlawed and thousands of members were deported to Siberia. Other Christian groups were also persecuted.
As the Soviet Union collapsed, there was a revival of Christianity in Russia and the ban on Jehovah's Witnesses was lifted in 1991. But attitudes hardened again and in 2004 it was accused of recruiting children and preventing believers from accepting medical assistance.
Human rights group Sova has argued that an "official repressive campaign" has been conducted against the movement for years and many of their members have been physically attacked.
The Jehovah's Witnesses are expected to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, but Russia may well ignore any verdict in their favour. | – "Religious freedom in Russia is over," a spokesman for Jehovah's Witnesses lamented Monday after the country's highest court rejected an appeal against an order banning the group. The ruling means that the religious organization will be forced to close almost 400 local chapters and hand all its "Kingdom Halls" to the Russian government, the BBC reports. There are believed to be around 175,000 Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia. The group was outlawed under Josef Stalin—who sent many Witnesses to Siberia—but the ban was lifted after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Russia's justice ministry, supported by the Russian Orthodox Church, had called for the ban, calling the group extremists who stirred up hatred against other religions, Newsweek reports. The organization says attacks on its followers have soared since the April ban order. "It's a very sad situation for our country. As you could see today, there were no real facts of any extremism on part of Jehovah's Witnesses," a spokesman said. "It's all about bad literature and intolerance." They plan to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, though the BBC predicts that Moscow will ignore any ruling in favor of the group. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Updated | Russia’s Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal launched by Jehovah’s Witnesses against the group’s ban in the country. The decision was made following a single-day hearing in Moscow in which the court swiftly rejected all the defense motions put forward by representatives of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, including a request to have a religious studies scholar.
Related: Jehovah’s Witnesses in Kazakhstan fear repeat of Russia ban after ‘scary’ crackdown
In April, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the justice ministry which, a month earlier, had declared Jehovah’s Witnesses an extremist organization, liquidating 395 of its local chapters as well as its headquarters in St. Petersburg. Monday’s ruling means that the Christian denomination must turn over all its properties, known as Kingdom Halls, to the Russian government.
Following the decision, the group's Russia spokesman, Yaroslav Sivulskiy, reportedly told gathered journalists in the packed courtroom that “religious freedom in Russia is over. It's a very sad situation for our country. As you could see today, there were no real facts of any extremism on part of Jehovah's Witnesses. It's all about bad literature and intolerance. Now anyone who studies the Bible can be jailed.”
Our representative Sivulsky to journalists: "Religious freedom in Russia is over" #jwrussia #StopJWBan — Anton Chivchalov (@Chivchalov) July 17, 2017
The international spokesman for Jehovah's Witnesses, David A. Semonian, added that the verdict did not come as a surprise.
“While we were prepared for a negative ruling, it is still very disappointing,” he said in a statement. “It is very concerning that despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, powerful elements within Russia continue to frame our organization as extremist. We can only hope a fair evaluation of the facts will eventually prevail and our right to worship in Russia will be legally restored.”
The appeal was evaluated by three judges, as opposed to the single judge who ruled on the initial case. However, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, which has 175,000 members in Russia and had operated there since 1991, had little hope of success.
A survey from the independent polling agency Levada, released last week, indicated that 79 percent of Russians supported the ban, though more than half of the respondents admitted they knew nothing about the case. The ban also had the powerful support of the Russian Orthodox Church, which enjoys a close relationship with President Vladimir Putin and counts more than 70 percent of the country's population as followers.
The original decision can only now formally go into effect, though a Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesman in Russia told Newsweek in May that “most” of the group’s local chapters had already received documents from the tax department notifying them that they had lost their leases.
That is far from the only negative consequence the group has faced since the April verdict declaring that its texts violate an anti-extremism law, effectively placing it in the same category as groups like the Islamic State (ISIS). Police have regularly disrupted group meetings both at the Kingdom Halls and in private homes. In one instance, a Danish citizen was arrested during a meeting at home and faces up to 10 years in prison.
The verdict also has had a chilling impact across society. There have been numerous reports of harassment and violence committed against Jehovah’s Witnesses, including arson attacks. A report from the group released last week stated that instances of harassment and violence against its followers skyrocketed by 650 percent between March and April. In all, it found that there had been 128 cases of mistreatment, including some against children in schools.
The ban has been widely condemned internationally, including by the United States and the European Union. In its 2017 report, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom elevated Russia to its highest tier of violators of religious freedom.
Following Monday’s rejection of the appeal, the Jehovah’s Witnesses are expected to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. Yet even if the group is successful, Russia has no requirement to accept the verdict.
“Regardless of what negative consequences this decision brings,” Semonian said, “Jehovah's Witnesses will continue to act within the law to secure their rights and support their fellow worshippers in Russia who must bear the burden of injustice.”
This artcile has been updated to include further comments by a Jehovah's Witnesses spokesman. ||||| Image caption Russia's justice ministry argues that Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlets incite hatred
Russia's Supreme Court has ordered the disbanding of the Jehovah's Witnesses on Russian territory.
The ban came into effect after the court rejected an appeal by the religious group against a ruling in April which declared it to be extremist.
The justice ministry had argued that the group distributed pamphlets which incited hatred against other groups.
The group described the ruling as the end of religious freedom in Russia.
The denomination says it has 175,000 members in Russia - a country where it was persecuted during the Stalin era.
An estimated eight million people worldwide are part of the Christian-based movement, best known for going door-to-door looking for new converts.
The ruling means that the group's headquarters near St Petersburg and 395 local chapters will close.
It will be required to hand over all its properties, known as Kingdom Halls, to the Russian government.
The group's Russia spokesman, Yaroslav Sivulsky, said that "religious freedom in Russia is over".
"There were no real facts of any extremism on part of Jehovah's Witnesses. It's all about bad literature and intolerance. Now anyone who studies the Bible can be jailed," he said, quoted by Newsweek magazine.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The Russian authorities are clamping down on extremism nationwide
One pamphlet distributed by the group quoted the novelist Leo Tolstoy as describing the doctrine of the Russian Orthodox Church as superstition and sorcery.
Officials have accused the religion of destroying families, propagating hatred and endangering lives. The Church had also joined calls for a ban.
The Jehovah's Witnesses group was founded in the United States in the 19th century.
They take most of the Bible literally and refuse blood transfusions. They are not seen by traditional Christian Churches as a mainstream denomination.
Image copyright AFP Image caption The original Supreme Court ruling came in April this year
During Joseph Stalin's reign of terror in the Soviet Union it was outlawed and thousands of members were deported to Siberia. Other Christian groups were also persecuted.
As the Soviet Union collapsed, there was a revival of Christianity in Russia and the ban on Jehovah's Witnesses was lifted in 1991. But attitudes hardened again and in 2004 it was accused of recruiting children and preventing believers from accepting medical assistance.
Human rights group Sova has argued that an "official repressive campaign" has been conducted against the movement for years and many of their members have been physically attacked.
The Jehovah's Witnesses are expected to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, but Russia may well ignore any verdict in their favour. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 7,133 |
Israeli warplanes attacked a shipment of Russian missiles inside a Syrian government stronghold, officials said Thursday, a development that threatened to add another volatile layer to regional tensions from the Syrian civil war.
In this image taken from video obtained from the Shaam News Network, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, people try to extinguish a fire on the roof of a building,... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this photo provided Saturday, Aug. 31, 2013, by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, samples brought back by the U.N. chemical weapons inspection team are checked in upon... (Associated Press)
The revelation came as the government of President Bashar Assad met a key deadline in an ambitious plan to eliminate Syria's entire chemical weapons stockpile by mid-2014 and avoid international military action.
The announcement by a global chemical weapons watchdog that the country has completed the destruction of equipment used to produce the deadly agents highlights Assad's willingness to cooperate, and puts more pressure on the divided and outgunned rebels to attend a planned peace conference.
An Obama administration official confirmed the Israeli airstrike overnight, but provided no details. Another security official said the attack occurred late Wednesday in the Syrian port city of Latakia and that the target was Russian-made SA-125 missiles.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the attack. There was no immediate confirmation from Syria.
Since the civil war in Syria began in March 2011, Israel has carefully avoided taking sides, but has struck shipments of missiles inside Syria at least twice this year.
The Syrian military, overstretched by the civil war, has not retaliated, and it was not clear whether the embattled Syrian leader would choose to take action this time. Assad may decide to again let the Israeli attack slide, particularly when his army has the upper hand on the battlefield inside Syria.
Israel has repeatedly declared a series of red lines that could trigger Israeli military intervention, including the delivery of "game-changing" weapons to the Syrian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group.
Israel has never officially confirmed taking action inside Syria to avoid embarrassing Assad and sparking a potential response. But foreign officials say it has done so several times when Israeli intelligence determined that sophisticated missiles were on the move.
In January, an Israeli airstrike in Syria destroyed a shipment of advanced anti-aircraft missiles bound for Hezbollah, according to U.S. officials. And in May, it was said to have acted again, taking out a shipment of Iranian-made Fateh-110 missiles at a Damascus airport.
The Fateh-110s have advanced guidance systems that allow them to travel up to 200 miles (300 kilometers) per hour with great precision. Their solid-fuel propellant allows them to be launched at short notice, making them hard to detect and neutralize.
Israel has identified several other weapons systems as game changers, including chemical weapons, Russian-made Yakhont missiles that can be fired from land and destroy ships at sea, and Russian SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles. Israel's January airstrike is believed to have destroyed a shipment of SA-17s.
Syrian activists and opposition groups reported strong explosions Wednesday night that appeared to come from inside an air defense facility in Latakia. They said the cause of the blasts was not known.
The announcement Thursday that Syria had completed the destruction of equipment used to produce chemical weapons came one day ahead of a Nov. 1 deadline set by the Hague-based watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
But while some experts portrayed the step as a milestone, others said it has little impact as long as Syria still has its entire remaining stockpile of functioning chemical weapons.
"Only after those weapons have been destroyed or removed from Syrian control will the state be demilitarized," said David Reeths, director at HIS Jane's Consulting.
With the initial stage of verification and destruction of weapons machinery completed, the hard task now begins.
The executive committee of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has until Nov. 15 to decide how best to permanently destroy Syria's chemical weapons program and its stockpile of deadly mustard gas, sarin and precursor chemicals.
It's not yet clear how and where the arsenal will be destroyed, but carrying out the work in Syria or transporting the chemical weapons out of the country for destruction elsewhere are both fraught with risks amid the ongoing civil war. The country is believed to have around 1,000 metric tons of chemical weapons.
Assad has so far met all required deadlines according to the strict timeline, demonstrating his willingness to go to great lengths to avoid international military action.
"This is a clear indication of the Syrian government's wish to cooperate and abide by its commitments," said Syrian lawmaker Issam Khalil. He said Syria knows "full well that the U.S. has not ceased its hostile policies toward Syria and will attempt to exploit any excuse _ however small and inconsequential _ to carry out a military strike against Syria."
The U.S.-Russian deal to destroy Syria's stockpile averted a U.S. military strike against the Syrian government that appeared certain in August, following a chemical weapons attack near Damascus that killed hundreds the U.S. blamed on Assad.
By making him a partner in implementing the disarmament deal, the agreement appears to have restored some of Assad's legitimacy while angering his opponents, who now balk at attending political transition talks the U.S. hopes will begin in Geneva in November.
No final date has been set for the talks, and there have been disagreements among opposition groups on whether to attend or not, and the conditions for taking part. Syria's main opposition group in exile, the Syrian National Coalition, postponed its general council meeting in Istanbul from Friday to Nov. 10, pending further discussions on the highly divisive talks.
U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, currently in Damascus, has urged both sides to come to the talks without preconditions. But both have placed seemingly unrealistic conditions for attending.
At a Senate hearing in Washington on Thursday, Sen. John McCain said Assad, who was about to be toppled a year ago, has "turned the tide" while continuing to slaughter innocent civilians.
Fighting continued at a high pace across many parts of the country, including in the town of Safira, in northern Aleppo province. Experts say the town is home to a chemical weapons production facility, as well as storage sites.
Activists said troops were advancing Thursday in the town, capturing several neighborhoods and causing casualties on both sides.
Also on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based Syria watchdog, said more than 120,000 people have been killed since the start of the country's conflict nearly three years ago. In July, the U.N. estimated 100,000 have died in the conflict since March 2011. It has not updated that figure since.
The violence underscored the dangers the chemical weapons' inspectors face as they race against tight deadlines in the midst of an ongoing civil war.
Earlier this week, the inspectors said they had completed their first round of verification work, visiting 21 of 23 sites declared by Damascus. They were unable to visit two sites because of security concerns, the inspectors said.
On Thursday, the chemical weapons agency said the two locations were, according to Syria, "abandoned and ... the chemical weapons program items they contained were moved to other declared sites, which were inspected."
It was not immediately clear if the facility in Safira was one of the two sites.
Commenting on the two sites, OPCW spokesman Michael Luhan said, "it was just deemed too risky." He told the AP that Syrian authorities were not able to offer the necessary security guarantees for inspectors to visit those sites.
He added, however, that the Syrian side provided "quite compelling documentary evidence" that equipment in one of the sites was moved to another location that inspectors did visit.
___
Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. Associated Press writers Robert Burns in Washington, Albert Aji in Damascus and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report. ||||| Story highlights The Syrian military regains control of the town of al Safira
Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman: "We don't refer to foreign reports"
U.S. official: Targeted were missiles, equipment the Israelis felt might be given to Hezbollah
Israel has long said it would target any transfer of weapons to Hezbollah
Israeli warplanes struck a military base near the Syrian port city of Latakia this week, an Obama administration official told CNN on Thursday.
An explosion at a missile storage site in the area was reported in the Middle Eastern press, but an attack has not been confirmed by the Israeli government.
The target, according to the Obama administration official, was missiles and related equipment the Israelis felt might be transferred to the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah. The official declined to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the information.
There was some confusion about the timing of the attack, with some reports saying it happened Wednesday, and others saying Thursday.
When asked for comment, an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman told CNN: "We don't refer to foreign reports."
Israel has been accused several other times this year of launching airstrikes inside Syria, including once in January. In the January incident, a U.S. official said Israeli fighter jets bombed a Syrian convoy suspected of moving weapons to Hezbollah.
Israel's military did not comment on any of the allegations at the time, but has long said it would target any transfer of weapons to Hezbollah or other groups designated as terrorists, as well as any effort to smuggle Syrian weapons into Lebanon that could threaten Israel.
Thursday's reports of a blast come amid a Syrian civil war in which Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim militant group, has been helping Syrian government forces. Syria's government is led by President Bashar al-Assad, a member of the Shiite offshoot Alawite sect; the rebels and other militants fighting al-Assad's forces and Hezbollah are largely made up of Sunni Muslims.
The Syrian conflict began in March 2011 after government forces cracked down on peaceful protesters during the Arab Spring movement and is now a full-blown civil war. The United Nations estimates that more than 100,000 people have died in the conflict.
On Thursday, the Syrian military took back control of al Safira, a town that is believed to house a chemical weapons production facility. Rebels withdrew from the strategic town, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
International inspectors are trying to ensure that Syria eliminates its chemical weapons stockpile by the middle of next year. Syria agreed to the program under international pressure earlier this year.
One of the monitoring groups, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, said Thursday that Syria has destroyed all its declared chemical weapons mixing, filling and production facilities, and all of the chemical weapons at inspected sites have been placed under seal.
The watchdog body's announcement of the facilities' destruction meant that Syria met a key deadline in the elimination program.
The joint United Nations-OPCW mission visited 21 out of 23 sites, an OPCW statement said, and 39 of the 41 facilities at those sites. The remaining two sites were too dangerous for the inspectors to go to, it said, but Syria had declared those sites abandoned. The chemical weapons equipment there was moved to other sites, which were inspected. | – Israeli planes struck a Syrian military base housing missiles, a White House official tells CNN; Israel was reportedly concerned the missiles—which the AP says were of Russian origin—could be passed to Hezbollah. Israel's government hasn't confirmed the attack, though regional reports pointed to a blast at the site near Latakia, a port city. It's unclear whether the attack occurred last night or tonight. Israel has reportedly hit Syrian missiles at least twice already this year, the AP notes, though Israel hasn't confirmed it. The latest reports follow news that Syria reportedly met a major deadline for destroying chemical weapons. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Israeli warplanes attacked a shipment of Russian missiles inside a Syrian government stronghold, officials said Thursday, a development that threatened to add another volatile layer to regional tensions from the Syrian civil war.
In this image taken from video obtained from the Shaam News Network, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, people try to extinguish a fire on the roof of a building,... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this photo provided Saturday, Aug. 31, 2013, by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, samples brought back by the U.N. chemical weapons inspection team are checked in upon... (Associated Press)
The revelation came as the government of President Bashar Assad met a key deadline in an ambitious plan to eliminate Syria's entire chemical weapons stockpile by mid-2014 and avoid international military action.
The announcement by a global chemical weapons watchdog that the country has completed the destruction of equipment used to produce the deadly agents highlights Assad's willingness to cooperate, and puts more pressure on the divided and outgunned rebels to attend a planned peace conference.
An Obama administration official confirmed the Israeli airstrike overnight, but provided no details. Another security official said the attack occurred late Wednesday in the Syrian port city of Latakia and that the target was Russian-made SA-125 missiles.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the attack. There was no immediate confirmation from Syria.
Since the civil war in Syria began in March 2011, Israel has carefully avoided taking sides, but has struck shipments of missiles inside Syria at least twice this year.
The Syrian military, overstretched by the civil war, has not retaliated, and it was not clear whether the embattled Syrian leader would choose to take action this time. Assad may decide to again let the Israeli attack slide, particularly when his army has the upper hand on the battlefield inside Syria.
Israel has repeatedly declared a series of red lines that could trigger Israeli military intervention, including the delivery of "game-changing" weapons to the Syrian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group.
Israel has never officially confirmed taking action inside Syria to avoid embarrassing Assad and sparking a potential response. But foreign officials say it has done so several times when Israeli intelligence determined that sophisticated missiles were on the move.
In January, an Israeli airstrike in Syria destroyed a shipment of advanced anti-aircraft missiles bound for Hezbollah, according to U.S. officials. And in May, it was said to have acted again, taking out a shipment of Iranian-made Fateh-110 missiles at a Damascus airport.
The Fateh-110s have advanced guidance systems that allow them to travel up to 200 miles (300 kilometers) per hour with great precision. Their solid-fuel propellant allows them to be launched at short notice, making them hard to detect and neutralize.
Israel has identified several other weapons systems as game changers, including chemical weapons, Russian-made Yakhont missiles that can be fired from land and destroy ships at sea, and Russian SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles. Israel's January airstrike is believed to have destroyed a shipment of SA-17s.
Syrian activists and opposition groups reported strong explosions Wednesday night that appeared to come from inside an air defense facility in Latakia. They said the cause of the blasts was not known.
The announcement Thursday that Syria had completed the destruction of equipment used to produce chemical weapons came one day ahead of a Nov. 1 deadline set by the Hague-based watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
But while some experts portrayed the step as a milestone, others said it has little impact as long as Syria still has its entire remaining stockpile of functioning chemical weapons.
"Only after those weapons have been destroyed or removed from Syrian control will the state be demilitarized," said David Reeths, director at HIS Jane's Consulting.
With the initial stage of verification and destruction of weapons machinery completed, the hard task now begins.
The executive committee of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has until Nov. 15 to decide how best to permanently destroy Syria's chemical weapons program and its stockpile of deadly mustard gas, sarin and precursor chemicals.
It's not yet clear how and where the arsenal will be destroyed, but carrying out the work in Syria or transporting the chemical weapons out of the country for destruction elsewhere are both fraught with risks amid the ongoing civil war. The country is believed to have around 1,000 metric tons of chemical weapons.
Assad has so far met all required deadlines according to the strict timeline, demonstrating his willingness to go to great lengths to avoid international military action.
"This is a clear indication of the Syrian government's wish to cooperate and abide by its commitments," said Syrian lawmaker Issam Khalil. He said Syria knows "full well that the U.S. has not ceased its hostile policies toward Syria and will attempt to exploit any excuse _ however small and inconsequential _ to carry out a military strike against Syria."
The U.S.-Russian deal to destroy Syria's stockpile averted a U.S. military strike against the Syrian government that appeared certain in August, following a chemical weapons attack near Damascus that killed hundreds the U.S. blamed on Assad.
By making him a partner in implementing the disarmament deal, the agreement appears to have restored some of Assad's legitimacy while angering his opponents, who now balk at attending political transition talks the U.S. hopes will begin in Geneva in November.
No final date has been set for the talks, and there have been disagreements among opposition groups on whether to attend or not, and the conditions for taking part. Syria's main opposition group in exile, the Syrian National Coalition, postponed its general council meeting in Istanbul from Friday to Nov. 10, pending further discussions on the highly divisive talks.
U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, currently in Damascus, has urged both sides to come to the talks without preconditions. But both have placed seemingly unrealistic conditions for attending.
At a Senate hearing in Washington on Thursday, Sen. John McCain said Assad, who was about to be toppled a year ago, has "turned the tide" while continuing to slaughter innocent civilians.
Fighting continued at a high pace across many parts of the country, including in the town of Safira, in northern Aleppo province. Experts say the town is home to a chemical weapons production facility, as well as storage sites.
Activists said troops were advancing Thursday in the town, capturing several neighborhoods and causing casualties on both sides.
Also on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based Syria watchdog, said more than 120,000 people have been killed since the start of the country's conflict nearly three years ago. In July, the U.N. estimated 100,000 have died in the conflict since March 2011. It has not updated that figure since.
The violence underscored the dangers the chemical weapons' inspectors face as they race against tight deadlines in the midst of an ongoing civil war.
Earlier this week, the inspectors said they had completed their first round of verification work, visiting 21 of 23 sites declared by Damascus. They were unable to visit two sites because of security concerns, the inspectors said.
On Thursday, the chemical weapons agency said the two locations were, according to Syria, "abandoned and ... the chemical weapons program items they contained were moved to other declared sites, which were inspected."
It was not immediately clear if the facility in Safira was one of the two sites.
Commenting on the two sites, OPCW spokesman Michael Luhan said, "it was just deemed too risky." He told the AP that Syrian authorities were not able to offer the necessary security guarantees for inspectors to visit those sites.
He added, however, that the Syrian side provided "quite compelling documentary evidence" that equipment in one of the sites was moved to another location that inspectors did visit.
___
Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. Associated Press writers Robert Burns in Washington, Albert Aji in Damascus and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report. ||||| Story highlights The Syrian military regains control of the town of al Safira
Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman: "We don't refer to foreign reports"
U.S. official: Targeted were missiles, equipment the Israelis felt might be given to Hezbollah
Israel has long said it would target any transfer of weapons to Hezbollah
Israeli warplanes struck a military base near the Syrian port city of Latakia this week, an Obama administration official told CNN on Thursday.
An explosion at a missile storage site in the area was reported in the Middle Eastern press, but an attack has not been confirmed by the Israeli government.
The target, according to the Obama administration official, was missiles and related equipment the Israelis felt might be transferred to the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah. The official declined to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the information.
There was some confusion about the timing of the attack, with some reports saying it happened Wednesday, and others saying Thursday.
When asked for comment, an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman told CNN: "We don't refer to foreign reports."
Israel has been accused several other times this year of launching airstrikes inside Syria, including once in January. In the January incident, a U.S. official said Israeli fighter jets bombed a Syrian convoy suspected of moving weapons to Hezbollah.
Israel's military did not comment on any of the allegations at the time, but has long said it would target any transfer of weapons to Hezbollah or other groups designated as terrorists, as well as any effort to smuggle Syrian weapons into Lebanon that could threaten Israel.
Thursday's reports of a blast come amid a Syrian civil war in which Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim militant group, has been helping Syrian government forces. Syria's government is led by President Bashar al-Assad, a member of the Shiite offshoot Alawite sect; the rebels and other militants fighting al-Assad's forces and Hezbollah are largely made up of Sunni Muslims.
The Syrian conflict began in March 2011 after government forces cracked down on peaceful protesters during the Arab Spring movement and is now a full-blown civil war. The United Nations estimates that more than 100,000 people have died in the conflict.
On Thursday, the Syrian military took back control of al Safira, a town that is believed to house a chemical weapons production facility. Rebels withdrew from the strategic town, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
International inspectors are trying to ensure that Syria eliminates its chemical weapons stockpile by the middle of next year. Syria agreed to the program under international pressure earlier this year.
One of the monitoring groups, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, said Thursday that Syria has destroyed all its declared chemical weapons mixing, filling and production facilities, and all of the chemical weapons at inspected sites have been placed under seal.
The watchdog body's announcement of the facilities' destruction meant that Syria met a key deadline in the elimination program.
The joint United Nations-OPCW mission visited 21 out of 23 sites, an OPCW statement said, and 39 of the 41 facilities at those sites. The remaining two sites were too dangerous for the inspectors to go to, it said, but Syria had declared those sites abandoned. The chemical weapons equipment there was moved to other sites, which were inspected. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 35,035 |
Peyton Manning yelled "OMAHA" before 44 of his team's 70 plays last week against San Diego, and he's back at it in today's AFC championship game.
No one knows exactly what it means. When asked about it at his press conference, Manning gave a sarcastic anti-answer.
But over the past week, a bunch of different people from the NFL world have offered explanations that give us a rough idea of what Manning means when he says "Omaha."
Traditionally, "Omaha" lets the offense know that the ball will be snapped on the next sound.
Manning isn't the first person to use "Omaha" has a pre-snap call. Tom Brady used to yell it all the time, but started saying "Alpha" instead after other NFL players decoded the meaning of the word from watching film. Eli Manning famously used it so often in a 2009 game against Dallas that NBC's Chris Collinsworth said he was "tipping" the snap during the broadcast.
It's simple. Manning yells something like, "Omaha ... hike" and the ball is snapped on "hike."
But Peyton doesn't always use "Omaha" in this way.
As Deadspin noted, there were several plays last week where "Omaha" came right before a hard count — where Manning tries to draw the defense offsides by yelling "hut" over and over again, and acting like he's about to snap the ball.
He drew San Diego offsides five times last week using exactly this strategy.
Ex-UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel told the LA Times this week that Peyton is using "Omaha" to get more information out of the defense:
"Neuheisel said that Manning will have a code word — a "freeze" call that probably changes every week — that essentially tells the offense to ignore the upcoming Omaha. That way, he barks the freeze word, then "Omaha," in an effort to: a) get the defense to tip its hand on what it plans to do, and b) draw defenders offside."
So sometimes "Omaha" means the snap is coming, and other times it means nothing at all.
While this is the most popular theory, it's not the only one.
On Fox Football Daily last fall, Brian Urlacher and Randy Moss did a segment on what random code words typically mean. They said "Omaha" tells the offense to run the play to the opposite direction.
"Omaha means you're going opposite, " Moss said. "So wherever the play was [originally], they're going the opposite."
If you've ever played the Madden videogame, "Omaha" is essentially the "flip play" button, at least according to Randy Moss.
In the end, it's often a signal that the snap is coming. But it could be anything (or nothing) at any different time.
Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty probably had the best take out it (via The Boston Globe):
"As a defense we can’t be out there saying, ‘We heard him scream this, it must be that play,’ because they have different plays off the same word, that same track. So for us it will be kind of sticking to what we have planned, what we’re doing or whatever particular play we’re in or whatever defense we’re in and sticking to that and not trying to outsmart ourselves and guessing things and doing our own thing." ||||| Rating is available when the video has been rented.
This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. ||||| When Peyton Manning met with the media prior to this weekend's AFC Championship game, he was asked about one of the hottest topics of recent weeks: his use of the word "Omaha" when calling plays at the line of scrimmage.
His answer was perfect.
Even though Manning is not the first quarterback to use "Omaha," he was asked by a reporter about his apparent obsession with the city. Manning, at first looking confused, asked if the question was one submitted by a fan, suggesting it was silly and amateurish.
After that, Manning went on to offer a funny explanation without actually answering the question ... which was actually the perfect answer:
"I've had a lot of people ask what 'Omaha' means. Omaha is a run play but it could be a pass play, or a play-action pass depending on a couple things — the wind, which way we're going, quarter, and the jerseys that we're wearing. It varies, really play to play. So there's your answer to that one."
While "Omaha" typically means that the snap is about to happen, the call probably also has other uses for Manning and the Broncos, and there is no reason why he should give that information away.
Here's the full video of his answer:
<div>Please enable Javascript to watch this video</div> | – Peyton Manning's foundation for at-risk youth will receive a $24,800 donation for all the times he shouted "Omaha!" during the AFC championship game yesterday. The donations were organized by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce after Manning's 44 pre-snap "Omaha!" calls during the Denver Broncos' win over San Diego received national attention. Eight Omaha companies combined to donate $800 to Manning's "Peyback Foundation" for every time he yelled the city's name during the Broncos' victory over the New England Patriots. The participating companies are ConAgra Foods, First National Bank of Omaha, Mutual of Omaha, Omaha Steaks, Cox Communications, CenturyLink, Union Pacific railroad, and DJ's Dugout Sports Bar & Grill. But what does "Omaha" mean in football terminology? It's quarterback-speak for "opposite," according to this Fox Sports video, but as Business Insider points out, no one other than the team really knows the exact meaning. Traditionally, the pre-snap call has been used to tell the offense the ball is going to be snapped on the next sound (so "Omaha ... hike!" with the ball snapped on "hike"), but Manning has used it in a variety of ways. So, the short answer is, we may never be able to pin down an exact meaning. Manning himself, asked what "Omaha" means, said that "It varies, really, play to play." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Peyton Manning yelled "OMAHA" before 44 of his team's 70 plays last week against San Diego, and he's back at it in today's AFC championship game.
No one knows exactly what it means. When asked about it at his press conference, Manning gave a sarcastic anti-answer.
But over the past week, a bunch of different people from the NFL world have offered explanations that give us a rough idea of what Manning means when he says "Omaha."
Traditionally, "Omaha" lets the offense know that the ball will be snapped on the next sound.
Manning isn't the first person to use "Omaha" has a pre-snap call. Tom Brady used to yell it all the time, but started saying "Alpha" instead after other NFL players decoded the meaning of the word from watching film. Eli Manning famously used it so often in a 2009 game against Dallas that NBC's Chris Collinsworth said he was "tipping" the snap during the broadcast.
It's simple. Manning yells something like, "Omaha ... hike" and the ball is snapped on "hike."
But Peyton doesn't always use "Omaha" in this way.
As Deadspin noted, there were several plays last week where "Omaha" came right before a hard count — where Manning tries to draw the defense offsides by yelling "hut" over and over again, and acting like he's about to snap the ball.
He drew San Diego offsides five times last week using exactly this strategy.
Ex-UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel told the LA Times this week that Peyton is using "Omaha" to get more information out of the defense:
"Neuheisel said that Manning will have a code word — a "freeze" call that probably changes every week — that essentially tells the offense to ignore the upcoming Omaha. That way, he barks the freeze word, then "Omaha," in an effort to: a) get the defense to tip its hand on what it plans to do, and b) draw defenders offside."
So sometimes "Omaha" means the snap is coming, and other times it means nothing at all.
While this is the most popular theory, it's not the only one.
On Fox Football Daily last fall, Brian Urlacher and Randy Moss did a segment on what random code words typically mean. They said "Omaha" tells the offense to run the play to the opposite direction.
"Omaha means you're going opposite, " Moss said. "So wherever the play was [originally], they're going the opposite."
If you've ever played the Madden videogame, "Omaha" is essentially the "flip play" button, at least according to Randy Moss.
In the end, it's often a signal that the snap is coming. But it could be anything (or nothing) at any different time.
Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty probably had the best take out it (via The Boston Globe):
"As a defense we can’t be out there saying, ‘We heard him scream this, it must be that play,’ because they have different plays off the same word, that same track. So for us it will be kind of sticking to what we have planned, what we’re doing or whatever particular play we’re in or whatever defense we’re in and sticking to that and not trying to outsmart ourselves and guessing things and doing our own thing." ||||| Rating is available when the video has been rented.
This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. ||||| When Peyton Manning met with the media prior to this weekend's AFC Championship game, he was asked about one of the hottest topics of recent weeks: his use of the word "Omaha" when calling plays at the line of scrimmage.
His answer was perfect.
Even though Manning is not the first quarterback to use "Omaha," he was asked by a reporter about his apparent obsession with the city. Manning, at first looking confused, asked if the question was one submitted by a fan, suggesting it was silly and amateurish.
After that, Manning went on to offer a funny explanation without actually answering the question ... which was actually the perfect answer:
"I've had a lot of people ask what 'Omaha' means. Omaha is a run play but it could be a pass play, or a play-action pass depending on a couple things — the wind, which way we're going, quarter, and the jerseys that we're wearing. It varies, really play to play. So there's your answer to that one."
While "Omaha" typically means that the snap is about to happen, the call probably also has other uses for Manning and the Broncos, and there is no reason why he should give that information away.
Here's the full video of his answer:
<div>Please enable Javascript to watch this video</div> | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 40,573 |
Testing reveals Facebook iOS app drains battery life, even when it isn’t being used, and that using Safari instead will make an iPhone last longer
Facebook is one of the most downloaded apps on iOS but it has long been cited as a cause of fast-draining iPhone batteries. Last year it was accused of using background tricks to stay active even when it wasn’t being used. Facebook admitted bugs existed, and fixed them, but questions of the app’s impact on battery life remained.
Similar concerns about Facebook’s Android app led to the discovery that deleting the app saves up to 20% of a phone’s battery. After that revelation, I set about seeing if the same was true for iPhone users. I discovered that uninstalling Facebook’s iOS app and switching to Safari can save up to 15% of iPhone battery life.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest An alternative to uninstalling Facebook is using the hump from Apple’s Smart Battery case. Photograph: Apple
Using an iPhone 6S Plus for a week without the main Facebook app installed, I recorded the battery life at 10.30pm each day for a week comparing it to a daily average taken from a week with the app. I charged the phone overnight, taking it off the charger at 7.30am, and used it normally. I accessed Facebook for the same amount of time, and for the same purposes, using the social network’s excellent mobile site within Safari, as I had done using the app. I also left the Facebook Messenger app installed.
On average I had 15% more battery left by 10.30pm each day. I had also saved space, because at the point I had deleted the Facebook app it had consumed around 500MB in total combining the 111MB of the app itself and its cache on the iPhone.
To make sure that this wasn’t an isolated incident, I also recruited several other Facebook-using iPhone owners to conduct a similar test. They all found similar results, with increased battery life when using Facebook in Safari having uninstalled the main Facebook iOS app.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Spot the difference: one is the Facebook app, the other the Facebook mobile site. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
Using Facebook in Safari was almost as good as the app. You can even place a shortcut to Facebook in Safari on the homescreen that looks almost identical to the app’s icon (the white is a little less bright but you need eagle eyes to see). The only restriction was the Share-to function, which does not exist for websites, meaning that to share photos I had to manually hit the “post photos” button on the mobile site.
Features of the app, such as Instant Articles, are also not available. Tapping a link on the Facebook mobile site opens a new Safari tab.
The results will vary for the smaller iPhone 6S, as it has a smaller battery and shorter battery life overall, but judging by the 6S Plus experience, removing the Facebook app in preference of using the social network in Safari will extend the battery life of any iPhone.
A Facebook spokesperson said the company was investigating the matter. ||||| Facebook’s Android app negatively impacts performance and battery life, even when it’s only running in the background, users find
Facebook does not have the greatest track record with its Android app. Users have long complained about performance issues and it sucking up battery and last year Facebook’s chief product officer, Chris Cox, took the unusual step of making his staff ditch their iPhones and move to Android until they sorted out the issues.
But the problems have remained, and recently they led the Android blogger Russell Holly to dump the app, starting a chain reaction which revealed something rather interesting about the app’s performance. Prompted by Holly’s revelation that life on Android was better without Facebook’s app, Reddit user pbrandes_eth tested the app’s impact on the performance of an LG G4.
They found that when the Facebook and Facebook Messenger apps were uninstalled, other apps on the smartphone launched 15% faster. They tested 15 separate apps, and documented the findings, leading other reddit users to test other devices. They found similar results when testing for app loading performance.
After reading Holly’s piece, I had also decided to explore other options for accessing Facebook, to see if, rather than app loading, I could improve my smartphone’s battery life.
I left the Facebook Messenger app installed, but swapped the Facebook app for an app called Metal, which acts as a wrapper for Facebook’s mobile site. Over the course of a day my Huawei Nexus 6P had 20% more battery. This was true on average for every day for the week tried.
In Metal I was using the same notifications and accessing the same features as I had just a week earlier through the Facebook app, so why the difference?
Despite the Facebook app not showing up as using a significant amount of power within Android’s built-in battery statistics, it was evidently consuming more power in the background than it needed to.
It turned out other Android services including Android system and Android OS showed reduced battery consumption when the Facebook app was uninstalled. Those services act as a buffer for many apps to the outside world when running in the background. So while Facebook didn’t look like it was using that much power, it was actually just being displayed elsewhere in Android’s statistics.
So, uninstalling the Facebook app saves both battery and speeds up Android phones, it seems. Obviously, it may be less convenient not to have the apps, but there are several substitutes that allow you to access the mobile site within a wrapper, like Metal that I used.
Alternatively, you can simply use Facebook within Chrome on an Android phone: recent updates have enabled notifications for actions, chats and other features from Facebook even in the background, meaning the experience is very similar to using an app.
Either way, until Facebook improves its Android app, ditching it could save you 20% of your battery life a day, and speed up your phone.
A Facebook spokesperson said: “We have heard reports of some people experiencing speed issues stemming from our Android app. We are looking into this and will keep you posted. We are committed to continuing to improve these issues.”
The company made no mention of battery life issues, however. | – Users of the Facebook mobile app have long complained that it drains smartphone battery life, even when it's not being used, and now it's been revealed just how true that is. Guardian journalist Samuel Gibbs recently conducted his own experiment and found that after deleting the Facebook app and instead using the Safari browser to access Facebook, his iPhone had, on average, 15% more battery life available at the end of each day. Gibbs made sure to use Facebook on Safari for the same activities and the same amount of time each day, and he had others repeat the experiment—they all got similar results. Bonus: Gibbs also had more storage available, since the Facebook app had been using about 500MB. Gibbs carried out his experiment after a similar one by Android users. As the Guardian reported last week, bloggers and Reddit users found that after uninstalling the Facebook app on Android devices, other apps loaded more quickly. Gibbs himself experimented with an Android smartphone and found that deleting the Facebook app, in that case, saved 20% of the battery life on average each day. How about user experience? In the case of the iPhone, "Using Facebook in Safari was almost as good as the app," Gibbs writes, though some features aren't available. On an Android device, you can access Facebook via Chrome or, as Gibbs did, try a "wrapper" app for the Facebook mobile site, like Metal. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Testing reveals Facebook iOS app drains battery life, even when it isn’t being used, and that using Safari instead will make an iPhone last longer
Facebook is one of the most downloaded apps on iOS but it has long been cited as a cause of fast-draining iPhone batteries. Last year it was accused of using background tricks to stay active even when it wasn’t being used. Facebook admitted bugs existed, and fixed them, but questions of the app’s impact on battery life remained.
Similar concerns about Facebook’s Android app led to the discovery that deleting the app saves up to 20% of a phone’s battery. After that revelation, I set about seeing if the same was true for iPhone users. I discovered that uninstalling Facebook’s iOS app and switching to Safari can save up to 15% of iPhone battery life.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest An alternative to uninstalling Facebook is using the hump from Apple’s Smart Battery case. Photograph: Apple
Using an iPhone 6S Plus for a week without the main Facebook app installed, I recorded the battery life at 10.30pm each day for a week comparing it to a daily average taken from a week with the app. I charged the phone overnight, taking it off the charger at 7.30am, and used it normally. I accessed Facebook for the same amount of time, and for the same purposes, using the social network’s excellent mobile site within Safari, as I had done using the app. I also left the Facebook Messenger app installed.
On average I had 15% more battery left by 10.30pm each day. I had also saved space, because at the point I had deleted the Facebook app it had consumed around 500MB in total combining the 111MB of the app itself and its cache on the iPhone.
To make sure that this wasn’t an isolated incident, I also recruited several other Facebook-using iPhone owners to conduct a similar test. They all found similar results, with increased battery life when using Facebook in Safari having uninstalled the main Facebook iOS app.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Spot the difference: one is the Facebook app, the other the Facebook mobile site. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
Using Facebook in Safari was almost as good as the app. You can even place a shortcut to Facebook in Safari on the homescreen that looks almost identical to the app’s icon (the white is a little less bright but you need eagle eyes to see). The only restriction was the Share-to function, which does not exist for websites, meaning that to share photos I had to manually hit the “post photos” button on the mobile site.
Features of the app, such as Instant Articles, are also not available. Tapping a link on the Facebook mobile site opens a new Safari tab.
The results will vary for the smaller iPhone 6S, as it has a smaller battery and shorter battery life overall, but judging by the 6S Plus experience, removing the Facebook app in preference of using the social network in Safari will extend the battery life of any iPhone.
A Facebook spokesperson said the company was investigating the matter. ||||| Facebook’s Android app negatively impacts performance and battery life, even when it’s only running in the background, users find
Facebook does not have the greatest track record with its Android app. Users have long complained about performance issues and it sucking up battery and last year Facebook’s chief product officer, Chris Cox, took the unusual step of making his staff ditch their iPhones and move to Android until they sorted out the issues.
But the problems have remained, and recently they led the Android blogger Russell Holly to dump the app, starting a chain reaction which revealed something rather interesting about the app’s performance. Prompted by Holly’s revelation that life on Android was better without Facebook’s app, Reddit user pbrandes_eth tested the app’s impact on the performance of an LG G4.
They found that when the Facebook and Facebook Messenger apps were uninstalled, other apps on the smartphone launched 15% faster. They tested 15 separate apps, and documented the findings, leading other reddit users to test other devices. They found similar results when testing for app loading performance.
After reading Holly’s piece, I had also decided to explore other options for accessing Facebook, to see if, rather than app loading, I could improve my smartphone’s battery life.
I left the Facebook Messenger app installed, but swapped the Facebook app for an app called Metal, which acts as a wrapper for Facebook’s mobile site. Over the course of a day my Huawei Nexus 6P had 20% more battery. This was true on average for every day for the week tried.
In Metal I was using the same notifications and accessing the same features as I had just a week earlier through the Facebook app, so why the difference?
Despite the Facebook app not showing up as using a significant amount of power within Android’s built-in battery statistics, it was evidently consuming more power in the background than it needed to.
It turned out other Android services including Android system and Android OS showed reduced battery consumption when the Facebook app was uninstalled. Those services act as a buffer for many apps to the outside world when running in the background. So while Facebook didn’t look like it was using that much power, it was actually just being displayed elsewhere in Android’s statistics.
So, uninstalling the Facebook app saves both battery and speeds up Android phones, it seems. Obviously, it may be less convenient not to have the apps, but there are several substitutes that allow you to access the mobile site within a wrapper, like Metal that I used.
Alternatively, you can simply use Facebook within Chrome on an Android phone: recent updates have enabled notifications for actions, chats and other features from Facebook even in the background, meaning the experience is very similar to using an app.
Either way, until Facebook improves its Android app, ditching it could save you 20% of your battery life a day, and speed up your phone.
A Facebook spokesperson said: “We have heard reports of some people experiencing speed issues stemming from our Android app. We are looking into this and will keep you posted. We are committed to continuing to improve these issues.”
The company made no mention of battery life issues, however. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 26,984 |
China has moved a step closer to creating a supersonic submarine that could travel from Shanghai to San Francisco in less than two hours.
New technology developed by a team of scientists at Harbin Institute of Technology's Complex Flow and Heat Transfer Lab has made it easier for a submarine, or torpedo, to travel at extremely high speeds underwater.
Li Fengchen, professor of fluid machinery and engineering, said the team's innovative approach meant they could now create the complicated air "bubble" required for rapid underwater travel. "We are very excited by its potential," he said.
Water produces more friction, or drag, on an object than air, which means conventional submarines cannot travel as fast as an aircraft.
However, during the cold war, the Soviet military developed a technology called supercavitation, which involves enveloping a submerged vessel inside an air bubble to avoid problems caused by water drag.
A Soviet supercavitation torpedo called Shakval was able to reach a speed of 370km/h or more - much faster than any other conventional torpedoes.
In theory, a supercavitating vessel could reach the speed of sound underwater, or about 5,800km/h, which would reduce the journey time for a transatlantic underwater cruise to less than an hour, and for a transpacific journey to about 100 minutes, according to a report by California Institute of Technology in 2001.
However, supercavitation technology has faced two major problems. First, the submerged vessel has needed to be launched at high speeds, approaching 100km/h, to generate and maintain the air bubble.
Second, it is extremely difficult - if not impossible - to steer the vessel using conventional mechanisms, such as a rudder, which are inside the bubble without any direct contact with water.
As a result, its application has been limited to unmanned vessels, such as torpedoes, but nearly all of these torpedoes were fired in a straight line because they had limited ability to turn.
Li said the team of Chinese scientists had found an innovative means of addressing both problems.
Once in the water, the team's supercavitation vessel would constantly "shower" a special liquid membrane on its own surface. Although this membrane would be worn off by water, in the meantime it could significantly reduce the water drag on the vessel at low speed.
After its speed had reached 75km/h or more the vessel would enter the supercavitation state. The man-made liquid membrane on the vessel surface could help with steering because, with precise control, different levels of friction could be created on different parts of the vessel.
"Our method is different from any other approach, such as vector propulsion," or thrust created by an engine, Li said. "By combining liquid-membrane technology with supercavitation, we can significantly reduce the launch challenges and make cruising control easier."
However, Li said many problems still needed to be solved before supersonic submarine travel became feasible. Besides the control issue, a powerful underwater rocket engine still had to be developed to give the vessel a longer range. The effective range of the Russian supercavitation torpedoes, for example, was only between 11 km and 15 km.
Li said the supercavitation technology was not limited only to military use. In future, it could benefit civilian underwater transport, or water sports such as swimming.
"If a swimsuit can create and hold many tiny bubbles in water, it can significantly reduce the water drag; swimming in water could be as effortless as flying in the sky," he said.
Besides Russia, countries such as Germany, Iran and the United States have been developing vessels or weapons using supercavitation technology.
Professor Wang Guoyu, the head of the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory at Beijing Institute of Technology who is leading another state-funded research project on supercavitation, said the global research community had been troubled for decades by the lack of innovative ideas to address the huge scientific and engineering challenges.
"The size of the bubble is difficult to control, and the vessel is almost impossible to steer," he said. While cruising at high speed during supercavitation, a fin could be snapped off if it touched the water because of the liquid's far greater density.
Despite many scientists worldwide working on similar projects, the latest progress remains unclear because they are regarded as military secrets.
Wang, a member of the water armament committee of the China Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, said even he had been kept in the dark about recent supercavitation developments in China.
"The primary drive still comes from the military, so most research projects are shrouded in secrecy," he said. ||||| A supercavitating submarine creates a bubble of air that encompasses the whole vehicle by ejecting gas through the nose with enough force that it forms water vapor. This greatly reduces drag and allows it to travel at high speeds not possible by standard submarines. (Sources: Defense Update, Popular Science, South China Morning Post. Graphic: Tobey – The Washington Post)
In the annals of vehicular locomotion, the submarine is the equivalent of the Walkman. It dazzled the masses when it hit, flexing nuclear-tipped missiles that completed the “nuclear triad” of deterrence.
But other technologies soon surpassed it in terms of speed and agility. Now, years later, the submarine may be making a comeback — at least theoretically. Researchers at the Harbin Institute of Technology in northeast China tell the South China Morning Post that they’re hard at work on a submarine that the newspaper claims could travel the 6,100 miles from “Shanghai to San Francisco in 100 minutes.”
That’s not in the cards. But there’s plenty of reason to believe a submarine could be built that would significantly exceed the speed of today’s fastest models, which lumber along at a speed of 40 knots (about 46 mph.) It all has to do with friction and how to conquer it.
The reported plans for the super-fast Chinese submarine draw on research that reaches back to the Cold War on “supercavitation,” a technology that creates a friction-less air “bubble” around a vessel that allows it to “fly” underwater, facilitating incredible speeds. The Russians have developed torpedoes that travel faster than 230 mph using that approach.
Now researchers at Harbin’s Complex Flow and Heat Transfer Lab are reportedly figuring out how to use that science to build submarines. “We are very excited by its potential,” lead researcher Li Fengchen, a professor of fluid machinery and engineering, told the South China Morning Post. “… Our method is different from any other approach, such as vector propulsion,” which involves engine thrust. Rather, he would lubricate the vessel in a special liquid that would reduce water friction until the vessel would reach speeds high enough to enable “supercavitation.”
How could a vessel reach such high speeds in the first place? And how would it be steered? Li says the liquid membrane would navigate the vessel. “By combining liquid-membrane technology with supercavitation, we can significantly reduce the launch challenges and make cruising easier,” he told the Chinese publication.
Increasing or decreasing the liquid membrane would manipulate friction to steer the ship. The specifics of the research are being kept under wraps for now, South China Morning Post reporter Stephen Chen told the Washington Post.
“These studies in China do not go to academic papers, but the technology is being tested in the laboratory,” he wrote in an e-mail. “The scientists have received pressure from authorities due to the sensitivity of the research and they hope the matter can cool down a bit.”
The potential of supercavitation has not gone unnoticed by the U.S. Navy. “Some technologies innovations have so significant an impact on our way of doing business that they are often described as ‘disruptive technologies,’ with the potential to change the future,” said a 2002 paper published in Undersea Warfare, the official publication of the submarine force. One of them, it said, was ” ‘supercavitation’ techniques.”
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency was once reported to be doing much the same, and Popular Science says the project would have allowed the “delivery of men and material faster than ever.” That’s exactly the end game for the Chinese research team: civilian transportation — or even swimming.
“If a swimsuit can create and hold many tiny bubbles in water, it can significantly reduce the water drag,” Li explained. “Swimming in water could be as effortless as flying in the sky.”
Still, questions remain. Wang Guoyu, who leads the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory at Beijing Institute of Technology, expressed doubt at its success. “The size of the bubble is difficult to control, and the vessel is almost impossible to steer,” he told the South China Morning Post, adding that if any part of the ship breaches the bubble, it would snap off due to the density difference.
Plus, he said, “the primary drive [behind the research] still comes from the military, so most research projects are shrouded in secrecy.” | – Never heard of the term “supercavitation”? China’s about to school us all with its announcement that it’s making progress on a supersonic submarine that uses this technology, theoretically giving the underwater vessel the capability to zip along at the speed of sound, reports the South China Morning Post. A sub that can reach a top speed of 3,600mph could make it from Shanghai to San Francisco in 100 minutes, according to a California Institute of Technology report cited in the Morning Post. An engineering professor involved with the project says such technology could have future military, civilian transport, and water sports applications. Supercavitation technology works by surrounding an underwater vehicle such as a sub in an “air bubble” to cut down on water resistance against the surface area of the vessel. Two problems have previously hampered using this technology: The sub would have to be launched at more than 60mph to keep the air bubble intact, and steering inside the air bubble is extremely difficult. Chinese scientists claim they’ve almost got a handle on those two issues, though there are other problems they still have to tackle before such a high-tech submarine would be possible. For comparison, today’s fastest subs crawl through the surf at a mere 46mph, according to the Washington Post—which doubts that even a sub using supercavitation would ever reach 3,600mph, but notes that torpedoes using similar technology have hit 230mph. (In more cool tech news, check out the "skin" that could someday help planes detect trouble.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.China has moved a step closer to creating a supersonic submarine that could travel from Shanghai to San Francisco in less than two hours.
New technology developed by a team of scientists at Harbin Institute of Technology's Complex Flow and Heat Transfer Lab has made it easier for a submarine, or torpedo, to travel at extremely high speeds underwater.
Li Fengchen, professor of fluid machinery and engineering, said the team's innovative approach meant they could now create the complicated air "bubble" required for rapid underwater travel. "We are very excited by its potential," he said.
Water produces more friction, or drag, on an object than air, which means conventional submarines cannot travel as fast as an aircraft.
However, during the cold war, the Soviet military developed a technology called supercavitation, which involves enveloping a submerged vessel inside an air bubble to avoid problems caused by water drag.
A Soviet supercavitation torpedo called Shakval was able to reach a speed of 370km/h or more - much faster than any other conventional torpedoes.
In theory, a supercavitating vessel could reach the speed of sound underwater, or about 5,800km/h, which would reduce the journey time for a transatlantic underwater cruise to less than an hour, and for a transpacific journey to about 100 minutes, according to a report by California Institute of Technology in 2001.
However, supercavitation technology has faced two major problems. First, the submerged vessel has needed to be launched at high speeds, approaching 100km/h, to generate and maintain the air bubble.
Second, it is extremely difficult - if not impossible - to steer the vessel using conventional mechanisms, such as a rudder, which are inside the bubble without any direct contact with water.
As a result, its application has been limited to unmanned vessels, such as torpedoes, but nearly all of these torpedoes were fired in a straight line because they had limited ability to turn.
Li said the team of Chinese scientists had found an innovative means of addressing both problems.
Once in the water, the team's supercavitation vessel would constantly "shower" a special liquid membrane on its own surface. Although this membrane would be worn off by water, in the meantime it could significantly reduce the water drag on the vessel at low speed.
After its speed had reached 75km/h or more the vessel would enter the supercavitation state. The man-made liquid membrane on the vessel surface could help with steering because, with precise control, different levels of friction could be created on different parts of the vessel.
"Our method is different from any other approach, such as vector propulsion," or thrust created by an engine, Li said. "By combining liquid-membrane technology with supercavitation, we can significantly reduce the launch challenges and make cruising control easier."
However, Li said many problems still needed to be solved before supersonic submarine travel became feasible. Besides the control issue, a powerful underwater rocket engine still had to be developed to give the vessel a longer range. The effective range of the Russian supercavitation torpedoes, for example, was only between 11 km and 15 km.
Li said the supercavitation technology was not limited only to military use. In future, it could benefit civilian underwater transport, or water sports such as swimming.
"If a swimsuit can create and hold many tiny bubbles in water, it can significantly reduce the water drag; swimming in water could be as effortless as flying in the sky," he said.
Besides Russia, countries such as Germany, Iran and the United States have been developing vessels or weapons using supercavitation technology.
Professor Wang Guoyu, the head of the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory at Beijing Institute of Technology who is leading another state-funded research project on supercavitation, said the global research community had been troubled for decades by the lack of innovative ideas to address the huge scientific and engineering challenges.
"The size of the bubble is difficult to control, and the vessel is almost impossible to steer," he said. While cruising at high speed during supercavitation, a fin could be snapped off if it touched the water because of the liquid's far greater density.
Despite many scientists worldwide working on similar projects, the latest progress remains unclear because they are regarded as military secrets.
Wang, a member of the water armament committee of the China Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, said even he had been kept in the dark about recent supercavitation developments in China.
"The primary drive still comes from the military, so most research projects are shrouded in secrecy," he said. ||||| A supercavitating submarine creates a bubble of air that encompasses the whole vehicle by ejecting gas through the nose with enough force that it forms water vapor. This greatly reduces drag and allows it to travel at high speeds not possible by standard submarines. (Sources: Defense Update, Popular Science, South China Morning Post. Graphic: Tobey – The Washington Post)
In the annals of vehicular locomotion, the submarine is the equivalent of the Walkman. It dazzled the masses when it hit, flexing nuclear-tipped missiles that completed the “nuclear triad” of deterrence.
But other technologies soon surpassed it in terms of speed and agility. Now, years later, the submarine may be making a comeback — at least theoretically. Researchers at the Harbin Institute of Technology in northeast China tell the South China Morning Post that they’re hard at work on a submarine that the newspaper claims could travel the 6,100 miles from “Shanghai to San Francisco in 100 minutes.”
That’s not in the cards. But there’s plenty of reason to believe a submarine could be built that would significantly exceed the speed of today’s fastest models, which lumber along at a speed of 40 knots (about 46 mph.) It all has to do with friction and how to conquer it.
The reported plans for the super-fast Chinese submarine draw on research that reaches back to the Cold War on “supercavitation,” a technology that creates a friction-less air “bubble” around a vessel that allows it to “fly” underwater, facilitating incredible speeds. The Russians have developed torpedoes that travel faster than 230 mph using that approach.
Now researchers at Harbin’s Complex Flow and Heat Transfer Lab are reportedly figuring out how to use that science to build submarines. “We are very excited by its potential,” lead researcher Li Fengchen, a professor of fluid machinery and engineering, told the South China Morning Post. “… Our method is different from any other approach, such as vector propulsion,” which involves engine thrust. Rather, he would lubricate the vessel in a special liquid that would reduce water friction until the vessel would reach speeds high enough to enable “supercavitation.”
How could a vessel reach such high speeds in the first place? And how would it be steered? Li says the liquid membrane would navigate the vessel. “By combining liquid-membrane technology with supercavitation, we can significantly reduce the launch challenges and make cruising easier,” he told the Chinese publication.
Increasing or decreasing the liquid membrane would manipulate friction to steer the ship. The specifics of the research are being kept under wraps for now, South China Morning Post reporter Stephen Chen told the Washington Post.
“These studies in China do not go to academic papers, but the technology is being tested in the laboratory,” he wrote in an e-mail. “The scientists have received pressure from authorities due to the sensitivity of the research and they hope the matter can cool down a bit.”
The potential of supercavitation has not gone unnoticed by the U.S. Navy. “Some technologies innovations have so significant an impact on our way of doing business that they are often described as ‘disruptive technologies,’ with the potential to change the future,” said a 2002 paper published in Undersea Warfare, the official publication of the submarine force. One of them, it said, was ” ‘supercavitation’ techniques.”
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency was once reported to be doing much the same, and Popular Science says the project would have allowed the “delivery of men and material faster than ever.” That’s exactly the end game for the Chinese research team: civilian transportation — or even swimming.
“If a swimsuit can create and hold many tiny bubbles in water, it can significantly reduce the water drag,” Li explained. “Swimming in water could be as effortless as flying in the sky.”
Still, questions remain. Wang Guoyu, who leads the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory at Beijing Institute of Technology, expressed doubt at its success. “The size of the bubble is difficult to control, and the vessel is almost impossible to steer,” he told the South China Morning Post, adding that if any part of the ship breaches the bubble, it would snap off due to the density difference.
Plus, he said, “the primary drive [behind the research] still comes from the military, so most research projects are shrouded in secrecy.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 13,731 |
FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.... (Associated Press) FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account... (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — Twitter on Thursday restored Rose McGowan's account after temporarily suspending it and causing an outcry it had muted one of the central figures in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
The episode, Twitter said Thursday, was because McGowan tweeted a private phone number, a practice it said violated its service terms. The company said it will "be clearer about these policies and decisions in the future."
McGowan's suspension caused an enormous backlash on social media, with many criticizing Twitter for a move that would silence an alleged victim of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein. Jessica Chastain and Anthony Bourdain were among those who questioned Twitter's action.
On her Instagram account, McGowan announced her suspension late Wednesday, warning that "there are powerful forces at work."
"Be my voice," wrote McGowan.
McGowan has been among the most vocal in Hollywood about sexual abuse in the industry. The New York Times earlier reported that McGowan was among the numerous women sexually harassed by Weinstein, who paid McGowan a financial settlement in 1997. That settlement included provisions about speaking about the case in the future.
While McGowan has avoided addressing her past with Weinstein directly, she has often seemingly referenced it. She last year said that she had been raped by a "studio head." After the New Yorker expose ran Tuesday, which included the report that Weinstein had allegedly sexually assaulted three women, McGowan tweeted "now I am allowed to say rapist."
"Any allegations of non-consensual contact are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein," Weinstein representative Sallie Hofmeister said Wednesday.
McGowan also recently called Ben Affleck "a liar" on Twitter and suggested the actor knew about Weinstein's conduct. Representatives for Affleck haven't responded to messages regarding that allegation. ||||| 1) @ jeffbezos I told the head of your studio that HW raped me. Over & over I said it. He said it hadn’t been proven. I said I was the proof. ||||| FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors say they didn’t have enough evidence to prove model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez’s claim that... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors say they didn’t have enough evidence to prove model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez’s claim that... (Associated Press) FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors... (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein (all times local):
5:10 p.m.
Rose McGowan is stating more frankly what she has long suggested.
The actress says in a tweet "HW raped me," apparently referring to Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein representative Sallie Hofmeister has said Weinstein "unequivocally denies" ''any allegations of non-consensual contact"
In a series of tweets Thursday, McGowan addresses Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and says that she repeatedly told an Amazon Studios executive that "HW raped me." McGowan says the executive told her it wasn't proven and she said "I am the proof."
McGowan last year said that she had been raped by a "studio head." The New Yorker expose that ran Tuesday reported that Weinstein had allegedly sexually assaulted three women. The New York Times earlier reported that Weinstein paid a financial settlement to McGowan in 1997.
Representatives for Amazon did not immediately comment.
McGowan was suspended from Twitter late Wednesday. The ban was lifted Thursday afternoon.
___
2:40 p.m.
The eastern branch of the Writers Guild of America says it will take steps to make it easier for women to report sexual harassment and assault.
In a statement Thursday, guild President Beau Willimon and Executive Director Lowell Peterson condemned Harvey Weinstein's "deplorable" behavior and said that "sexual harassment and assault have long been hallmarks of the entertainment industry."
The guild said it will review what it can do to facilitate prevention of harassment going forward.
The statement acknowledged that accusers often speak out at and face great professional and emotional risk.
___
2:25 p.m.
A woman who once interviewed with Harvey Weinstein for a nanny job has gone public with her story about how he interviewed her wearing only boxer shorts and an undershirt.
Actor, comedian and writer Sarah Ann Masse said her nanny agency referred her to Weinstein in 2008 for a part-time position to care for his three children from his first marriage. She said that when she rang the bell of Weinstein's Westport, Connecticut, home she was shocked to see him in nothing but the undergarments when he answered the door.
Masse said she remained calm as he led her to a couch and sat down on a couch across from her and went ahead with standard interview questions.
At one point, Masse said, two of the children wandered into the room and "he screamed at them to leave." He then asked whether she felt it was a conflict to be his nanny while pursuing an acting career and smirked when he asked whether she would "flirt" with his friends to get ahead.
When the interview was finished, Masse said, Weinstein hugged her tight and said, "I love you." About a week later she was told by a Weinstein assistant she didn't get the job because she was an actor.
Masse first told her story Wednesday to Variety, saying she was in part inspired by the bravery of other women who had come forward.
___
12:40 p.m.
British media say London police are investigating a sexual assault allegation against Harvey Weinstein.
London's Metropolitan Police force says it has received an allegation of sexual assault from the Merseyside force in northwest England. It says the claim will be assessed by detectives from the sexual offenses team.
Merseyside Police says the allegation was made Wednesday and concerns "an alleged sexual assault in the London area in the 1980s."
British police do not identify suspects who have not been charged. British media including Sky News, The Guardian and the BBC identified the alleged assaulter as Weinstein.
New York City police said Thursday that detectives are taking a fresh look at sexual assault allegations against Weinstein.
___
12:30 p.m.
Actress Kate Beckinsale says she was 17 years old when Harvey Weinstein greeted her in his bathrobe for a meeting in a room at the Savoy Hotel. In an Instagram post Thursday, Beckinsale says she left the meeting uneasy but unscathed.
Beckinsale recalls that a few years later Weinstein asked her if he had tried anything with her at the first meeting. She says she realized "he couldn't remember if he had assaulted me or not."
The actress says she said no to Weinstein professionally many times over the years, and that Weinstein would often respond with anger, profanity and threats.
Beckinsale calls for a new paradigm in the industry and says "let's stop allowing our young women to be sexual cannon fodder."
___
12:15 p.m.
Twitter says that Rose McGowan's account was suspended because of a tweet that included a phone number and has announced that the actress's account is now unlocked.
In a statement, Twitter said Thursday it was a tweet by McGowan with a personal phone number that violated its service terms. The company said it will "be clearer about these policies and decisions in the future."
McGowan's suspension caused an enormous backlash on social media, with many criticizing Twitter for a move that would silence an alleged victim of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein on its service.
McGowan has been among the most vocal in Hollywood about sexual abuse in the industry.
___
11:50 a.m.
Hachette Book Group, one of the country's top publishers, says that it has "terminated" its deal with Weinstein Books.
Hachette and the book publishing arm of the Weinstein Company had a co-publishing arrangement that included works by Dick Van Dyke, Larry King and Tim Russert.
According to Hachette, titles under the Weinstein imprint will be published through the Hachette Books imprint. The staff of Weinstein, which had released around 10 books a years, will be folded into Hachette Books.
___
10:55 a.m.
New York City police detectives are taking a fresh look into sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
Police spokesman Peter Donald said Thursday that investigators are reviewing police files to see if any women previously reported being assaulted or harassed by the media mogul.
So far, no past complaints have been found, other than one well-known case that prompted an investigation in 2015.
The department is also encouraging anyone with information to come forward.
A law enforcement official says detectives also plan to contact women who spoke about their encounters with Weinstein in a New Yorker article this week.
The official wasn't authorized to speak publicly on an ongoing probe and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Weinstein has denied any nonconsensual sexual conduct with any women.
___
9:49 a.m.
Rose McGowan's Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
McGowan says that Twitter had suspended her from tweeting after the social media company said she broke its rules. On her Instagram account, McGowan says "there are powerful forces at work" and pleads for others to "be my voice."
Representatives for Twitter declined to comment Thursday.
The New York Times earlier reported that McGowan was among the numerous women sexually harassed by Weinstein, who paid McGowan a financial settlement in 1997. McGowan on Tuesday tweeted "now I am allowed to say rapist."
McGowan also recently called Ben Affleck "a liar" on Twitter and suggested the actor knew about Weinstein's conduct. Representatives for Affleck haven't responded to messages regarding that allegation.
___
9:43 a.m.
Film mogul Harvey Weinstein says he's "not doing OK" in a video posted on TMZ, but he is hoping for a "second chance" amid the fallout surrounding allegations of widespread sexual abuse.
Weinstein spoke in front of media Wednesday as he emerged from a Los Angeles home and got into a vehicle.
In remarks captured on video, he says he needs to "get help" and "we all make mistakes."
He concludes with an obscenity-laced remark.
___
5:11 a.m.
Cannes film festival officials say they have been "dismayed" to learn about the accusations of sexual violence against Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein.
Pierre Lescure, the festival president, and general delegate Thierry Fremaux, wrote in a joint statement: "These actions point to a pattern of behavior that merits only the clearest and most unequivocal condemnation."
Weinstein attended the world-famous festival many times and several movies he produced have been selected in the competition.
"Our thoughts go out to the victims, to those who have had the courage to testify and to all the others," Fremaux and Lescure said. "May this case help us once again to denounce all such serious and unacceptable practices."
___
3:46 a.m.
The Harvey Weinstein sex abuse scandal has entangled a former president, a former presidential candidate and now a former presidential adviser.
Steve Bannon, the former Trump White House chief strategist and current head of Breitbart News, is the latest politico touched by the scandal.
Bannon, whose website has hammered Democrats for accepting Weinstein's political donations, himself profited from a relationship with the movie mogul, in an ill-fated joint venture more than a decade ago. Bannon served as chairman of a small company that distributed DVDs and home videos, and went into business in 2005 with The Weinstein Co., led by Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob. | – Rose McGowan is stating more frankly what she has long suggested. The actress, whose temporary suspension from Twitter was lifted Thursday afternoon, said in a tweet upon her return to the social media service, "HW raped me," apparently referring to Harvey Weinstein, the AP reports. Weinstein representative Sallie Hofmeister has said Weinstein "unequivocally denies" ''any allegations of non-consensual contact." In a series of tweets Thursday, McGowan addressed Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and said that she repeatedly told an Amazon Studios executive that "HW raped me." McGowan says the executive told her it wasn't proven and she said "I am the proof." McGowan last year said that she had been raped by a "studio head." The New York Times' Weinstein exposé reported that Weinstein paid a financial settlement to McGowan in 1997. Meanwhile, the eastern branch of the Writers Guild of America says it will take steps to make it easier for women to report sexual harassment and assault. In a statement Thursday, guild President Beau Willimon and Executive Director Lowell Peterson condemned Harvey Weinstein's "deplorable" behavior and said that "sexual harassment and assault have long been hallmarks of the entertainment industry." The guild said it will review what it can do to facilitate prevention of harassment going forward. The statement acknowledged that accusers often speak out at and face great professional and emotional risk. Cannes film festival officials also condemned Weinstein's alleged actions Thursday, and Hachette Book Group, one of the country's top publishers, says that it has "terminated" its deal with Weinstein Books. (Twitter has revealed why McGowan's account was suspended.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.... (Associated Press) FILE - In this April 15, 2015 file photo, Rose McGowan arrives at the LA Premiere Of "DIOR & I" held at the Leo S. Bing Theatre on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, in Los Angeles. McGowan’s Twitter account... (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — Twitter on Thursday restored Rose McGowan's account after temporarily suspending it and causing an outcry it had muted one of the central figures in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
The episode, Twitter said Thursday, was because McGowan tweeted a private phone number, a practice it said violated its service terms. The company said it will "be clearer about these policies and decisions in the future."
McGowan's suspension caused an enormous backlash on social media, with many criticizing Twitter for a move that would silence an alleged victim of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein. Jessica Chastain and Anthony Bourdain were among those who questioned Twitter's action.
On her Instagram account, McGowan announced her suspension late Wednesday, warning that "there are powerful forces at work."
"Be my voice," wrote McGowan.
McGowan has been among the most vocal in Hollywood about sexual abuse in the industry. The New York Times earlier reported that McGowan was among the numerous women sexually harassed by Weinstein, who paid McGowan a financial settlement in 1997. That settlement included provisions about speaking about the case in the future.
While McGowan has avoided addressing her past with Weinstein directly, she has often seemingly referenced it. She last year said that she had been raped by a "studio head." After the New Yorker expose ran Tuesday, which included the report that Weinstein had allegedly sexually assaulted three women, McGowan tweeted "now I am allowed to say rapist."
"Any allegations of non-consensual contact are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein," Weinstein representative Sallie Hofmeister said Wednesday.
McGowan also recently called Ben Affleck "a liar" on Twitter and suggested the actor knew about Weinstein's conduct. Representatives for Affleck haven't responded to messages regarding that allegation. ||||| 1) @ jeffbezos I told the head of your studio that HW raped me. Over & over I said it. He said it hadn’t been proven. I said I was the proof. ||||| FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors say they didn’t have enough evidence to prove model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez’s claim that... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors say they didn’t have enough evidence to prove model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez’s claim that... (Associated Press) FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, producer Harvey Weinstein appears at the amfAR charity gala during the Cannes 70th international film festival, Cap d'Antibes, southern France. New York City prosecutors... (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein (all times local):
5:10 p.m.
Rose McGowan is stating more frankly what she has long suggested.
The actress says in a tweet "HW raped me," apparently referring to Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein representative Sallie Hofmeister has said Weinstein "unequivocally denies" ''any allegations of non-consensual contact"
In a series of tweets Thursday, McGowan addresses Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and says that she repeatedly told an Amazon Studios executive that "HW raped me." McGowan says the executive told her it wasn't proven and she said "I am the proof."
McGowan last year said that she had been raped by a "studio head." The New Yorker expose that ran Tuesday reported that Weinstein had allegedly sexually assaulted three women. The New York Times earlier reported that Weinstein paid a financial settlement to McGowan in 1997.
Representatives for Amazon did not immediately comment.
McGowan was suspended from Twitter late Wednesday. The ban was lifted Thursday afternoon.
___
2:40 p.m.
The eastern branch of the Writers Guild of America says it will take steps to make it easier for women to report sexual harassment and assault.
In a statement Thursday, guild President Beau Willimon and Executive Director Lowell Peterson condemned Harvey Weinstein's "deplorable" behavior and said that "sexual harassment and assault have long been hallmarks of the entertainment industry."
The guild said it will review what it can do to facilitate prevention of harassment going forward.
The statement acknowledged that accusers often speak out at and face great professional and emotional risk.
___
2:25 p.m.
A woman who once interviewed with Harvey Weinstein for a nanny job has gone public with her story about how he interviewed her wearing only boxer shorts and an undershirt.
Actor, comedian and writer Sarah Ann Masse said her nanny agency referred her to Weinstein in 2008 for a part-time position to care for his three children from his first marriage. She said that when she rang the bell of Weinstein's Westport, Connecticut, home she was shocked to see him in nothing but the undergarments when he answered the door.
Masse said she remained calm as he led her to a couch and sat down on a couch across from her and went ahead with standard interview questions.
At one point, Masse said, two of the children wandered into the room and "he screamed at them to leave." He then asked whether she felt it was a conflict to be his nanny while pursuing an acting career and smirked when he asked whether she would "flirt" with his friends to get ahead.
When the interview was finished, Masse said, Weinstein hugged her tight and said, "I love you." About a week later she was told by a Weinstein assistant she didn't get the job because she was an actor.
Masse first told her story Wednesday to Variety, saying she was in part inspired by the bravery of other women who had come forward.
___
12:40 p.m.
British media say London police are investigating a sexual assault allegation against Harvey Weinstein.
London's Metropolitan Police force says it has received an allegation of sexual assault from the Merseyside force in northwest England. It says the claim will be assessed by detectives from the sexual offenses team.
Merseyside Police says the allegation was made Wednesday and concerns "an alleged sexual assault in the London area in the 1980s."
British police do not identify suspects who have not been charged. British media including Sky News, The Guardian and the BBC identified the alleged assaulter as Weinstein.
New York City police said Thursday that detectives are taking a fresh look at sexual assault allegations against Weinstein.
___
12:30 p.m.
Actress Kate Beckinsale says she was 17 years old when Harvey Weinstein greeted her in his bathrobe for a meeting in a room at the Savoy Hotel. In an Instagram post Thursday, Beckinsale says she left the meeting uneasy but unscathed.
Beckinsale recalls that a few years later Weinstein asked her if he had tried anything with her at the first meeting. She says she realized "he couldn't remember if he had assaulted me or not."
The actress says she said no to Weinstein professionally many times over the years, and that Weinstein would often respond with anger, profanity and threats.
Beckinsale calls for a new paradigm in the industry and says "let's stop allowing our young women to be sexual cannon fodder."
___
12:15 p.m.
Twitter says that Rose McGowan's account was suspended because of a tweet that included a phone number and has announced that the actress's account is now unlocked.
In a statement, Twitter said Thursday it was a tweet by McGowan with a personal phone number that violated its service terms. The company said it will "be clearer about these policies and decisions in the future."
McGowan's suspension caused an enormous backlash on social media, with many criticizing Twitter for a move that would silence an alleged victim of sexual harassment by Harvey Weinstein on its service.
McGowan has been among the most vocal in Hollywood about sexual abuse in the industry.
___
11:50 a.m.
Hachette Book Group, one of the country's top publishers, says that it has "terminated" its deal with Weinstein Books.
Hachette and the book publishing arm of the Weinstein Company had a co-publishing arrangement that included works by Dick Van Dyke, Larry King and Tim Russert.
According to Hachette, titles under the Weinstein imprint will be published through the Hachette Books imprint. The staff of Weinstein, which had released around 10 books a years, will be folded into Hachette Books.
___
10:55 a.m.
New York City police detectives are taking a fresh look into sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
Police spokesman Peter Donald said Thursday that investigators are reviewing police files to see if any women previously reported being assaulted or harassed by the media mogul.
So far, no past complaints have been found, other than one well-known case that prompted an investigation in 2015.
The department is also encouraging anyone with information to come forward.
A law enforcement official says detectives also plan to contact women who spoke about their encounters with Weinstein in a New Yorker article this week.
The official wasn't authorized to speak publicly on an ongoing probe and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Weinstein has denied any nonconsensual sexual conduct with any women.
___
9:49 a.m.
Rose McGowan's Twitter account has been suspended, temporarily muting a central figure in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
McGowan says that Twitter had suspended her from tweeting after the social media company said she broke its rules. On her Instagram account, McGowan says "there are powerful forces at work" and pleads for others to "be my voice."
Representatives for Twitter declined to comment Thursday.
The New York Times earlier reported that McGowan was among the numerous women sexually harassed by Weinstein, who paid McGowan a financial settlement in 1997. McGowan on Tuesday tweeted "now I am allowed to say rapist."
McGowan also recently called Ben Affleck "a liar" on Twitter and suggested the actor knew about Weinstein's conduct. Representatives for Affleck haven't responded to messages regarding that allegation.
___
9:43 a.m.
Film mogul Harvey Weinstein says he's "not doing OK" in a video posted on TMZ, but he is hoping for a "second chance" amid the fallout surrounding allegations of widespread sexual abuse.
Weinstein spoke in front of media Wednesday as he emerged from a Los Angeles home and got into a vehicle.
In remarks captured on video, he says he needs to "get help" and "we all make mistakes."
He concludes with an obscenity-laced remark.
___
5:11 a.m.
Cannes film festival officials say they have been "dismayed" to learn about the accusations of sexual violence against Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein.
Pierre Lescure, the festival president, and general delegate Thierry Fremaux, wrote in a joint statement: "These actions point to a pattern of behavior that merits only the clearest and most unequivocal condemnation."
Weinstein attended the world-famous festival many times and several movies he produced have been selected in the competition.
"Our thoughts go out to the victims, to those who have had the courage to testify and to all the others," Fremaux and Lescure said. "May this case help us once again to denounce all such serious and unacceptable practices."
___
3:46 a.m.
The Harvey Weinstein sex abuse scandal has entangled a former president, a former presidential candidate and now a former presidential adviser.
Steve Bannon, the former Trump White House chief strategist and current head of Breitbart News, is the latest politico touched by the scandal.
Bannon, whose website has hammered Democrats for accepting Weinstein's political donations, himself profited from a relationship with the movie mogul, in an ill-fated joint venture more than a decade ago. Bannon served as chairman of a small company that distributed DVDs and home videos, and went into business in 2005 with The Weinstein Co., led by Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 592 |
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Georgia’s special election will be a nail-biter all the way to the finish line Tuesday, as President Trump looms large over an election that has huge stakes for both Democrats and Republicans ahead of the 2018 midterms.
Democrats have zeroed in on the suburban Atlanta district as their best chance this year to flip a House seat and are looking to Jon Ossoff to be the face of the anti-Trump resistance. But if
Ossoff comes up short, his loss will deal a major blow to their newfound momentum and political activism.
The stakes are just as high for the GOP. If it loses the seat left open by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, Trump will likely shoulder the blame and Republicans could start defecting from his agenda.
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On the other hand, a victory for Republican Karen Handel will signify that opposition to Trump might not win Democrats the House in 2018.
In the final days of the race, Ossoff and Handel have sought to steer clear of national politics, with each candidate barely uttering Trump’s name. Both have also downplayed the national implications of the race, even though it has been a magnet for attention and tens of millions of dollars. The total spending in the race is estimated to be around $60 million.
Ossoff, who launched his campaign months ago by urging voters to “Make Trump Furious,” has tempered his rhetoric when it comes to the president. While he needed to win Democrats in the jungle primary, he now needs to appeal to more moderate voters in a district that has been a deep shade of red for decades.
But when hyping up his supporters over the weekend as they launched more canvasses, Ossoff still made indirect references to Trump, saying that “fear and hate” won’t be tolerated in the state.
“Let’s send a message across this country that fear and hate and division are not welcome in Georgia,” Ossoff said at his Sandy Springs office on Saturday, “that Georgians stand up instead for unity and for progress.”
When asked about Trump directly, Ossoff didn’t shy away from saying that he’ll stand up to the president where there are major differences, but he also said he’d work with him on issues where they can find common ground.
“I’ve consistently said I’ll stand up to President Trump if he embarrasses us or threatens our interests and that I’m willing to work with him on issues of mutual interest,” Ossoff told reporters on Sunday, adding that there has been an increase in concerns lately over the administration’s “integrity and competence.”
Ossoff’s ground game has grown into a massive operation of more than 12,000 volunteers, helped along by canvassing and phone banking from various national and local groups.
The campaign’s emphasis on the ground game illustrates how important turnout will be for Ossoff in a GOP-leaning district. Trump only carried the district by less than 2 points, but Price still handily won reelection.
Ossoff will need to turn out his base — particularly voters in northern DeKalb County and black voters — and make some inroads with independents and even GOP voters still lukewarm on Trump.
Handel has also had to strike a difficult balance when it comes to the president. She didn’t mention him once at any of her events or rallies in the final days of the race, and notably neglected to bring him up while campaigning with Price and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, a former Georgia governor.
But that hasn’t stopped Trump from weighing in. He tweeted his support for Handel Monday morning and followed up later in the day with another tweet attacking Ossoff for living outside the district. Trump also recorded a robocall for Handel earlier this month.
When told that Trump tweeted about her, Handel only briefly remarked, with some laughter: “I heard that, I heard, yes.”
Handel’s decision to keep her distance from Trump risks alienating Trump’s supporters, a part of the GOP base that she still needs. But GOP strategists believe she has still shown enough support for Republicans’ legislative agenda in Washington.
“Karen has to sort of walk a fine line, but I don’t think she’s shied away from talking about those core Republican issues that Republican leaders in Washington have focused on,” said Eric Tanenblatt, a lobbyist and Georgia state finance chairman for the Republican National Committee. Tanenblatt and Handel previously worked together for Perdue.
Handel’s campaign has looked to keep pace with Ossoff’s. The Georgia Republican said they knocked on 6,000 doors on Saturday, while national groups and a super PAC tied to House GOP leadership have funneled GOP money into the race.
In a nod to the closeness of the race, Handel and Ossoff got some last-minute help Monday from other politicians.
While Handel was meeting potential voters in Alpharetta, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) swung by her event. Handel’s primary rival Bob Gray also stopped by, telling The Hill he’s been rallying his Trump loyalist base for Handel.
Former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander (D) also stopped by Ossoff’s two canvassing events on Monday. Kander gained some national attention after running a close race for Senate in Missouri last year.
While Ossoff and Handel have publicly balked at playing up the race’s national significance, Kander reminded supporters that all eyes in politics would be on Georgia when polls close at 7 p.m. on Tuesday night.
“You know the whole country’s watching,” he said. ||||| President Donald Trump tweeted his support of Karen Handel, the Republican candidate in Georgia's special election, on election day morning. | Getty Trump slams Dem Ossoff as Georgia voters head to the polls
President Donald Trump began his last minute pitch to Georgia voters just before 6 a.m. Tuesday, warning them that Democrat Jon Ossoff wants to raise taxes and is “weak on crime and security” while his GOP opponent, Karen Handel, is just the opposite.
“Democrat Jon Ossoff, who wants to raise your taxes to the highest level and is weak on crime and security, doesn't even live in district,” Trump wrote on Twitter early Tuesday morning, the start of a two-post flurry. “KAREN HANDEL FOR CONGRESS. She will fight for lower taxes, great healthcare strong security-a hard worker who will never give up! VOTE TODAY.”
Story Continued Below
Voters in Georgia’s sixth Congressional district will choose Tuesday between Ossoff and Handel, the two candidates vying for the suburban Atlanta seat left vacant by Tom Price, Trump’s secretary of health and human services. Tuesday’s election is a runoff that follows one last April in which Ossoff finished well ahead of a multi-candidate GOP field but did not hit the 50 percent threshold that would have allowed him to win the seat outright without a runoff.
Price won the seat last November by more than 23 percentage points, but Democrats, eager to win a seat last held by a member of the president’s cabinet, have poured money into the race, making it the most expensive House election on record.
Polls show the race essentially even heading into Election Day, with Handel holding a lead of less than a quarter of a point according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.
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Ossoff, running for office for the first time at 30-years-old, has faced criticism from Trump and others that he does not live in the sixth district, a situation the Democrat has explained by saying that he is currently living with his girlfriend while she completes medical school at Emory University just outside the district’s borders.
He has said he intends to move back into the district once his girlfriend’s studies are complete, an explanation that has not insulated him from attacks from the president, who has noted Ossoff’s residency issue more than once in posts to Twitter.
Ossoff: The congressional baseball shooting has 'no place' in an attack ad poster="https://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201706/642/1155968404_5477665602001_5477653751001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" true
“Karen Handel's opponent in #GA06 can't even vote in the district he wants to represent because he doesn't even live there!” Trump wrote on Twitter Monday evening. “He wants to raise taxes and kill healthcare. On Tuesday, #VoteKarenHandel.”
Ossoff said on Tuesday morning that he thinks the competency and integrity concerns of the Trump administration have increased and that this a matter of public interest.
“It speaks to a greater need of accountability on effective congressional oversight,” Ossoff said. “I won’t hesitate to stand up to him if he threatens our interests or values.”
Diamond Naga Siu contributed to this report. | – The House race that has become much more than a House race will be decided Tuesday in Georgia, and President Trump shot off some early tweets to support the GOP candidate. Republican Karen Handel, he wrote, "will fight for lower taxes, great healthcare," and "strong security," while opponent Jon Ossoff "wants to raise your taxes to the highest level and is weak on crime and security, doesn't even live in district," he tweeted. On the last point, the 30-year-old has explained that he's currently living with his med-student girlfriend but will move back into the district in suburban Atlanta when she's done at Emory University, reports Politico. With polls showing a statistical dead heat, political analysts have essentially morphed the race into a referendum on Trump. That explains why advocates on both sides have pumped more than $50 million into the contest, making it the most expensive House race in history. The seat has long been held by Republicans, with Tom Price vacating it upon Trump's win to become his Health and Human Services secretary. Both candidates have sought to downplay the national implications, notes the Hill, but it's widely seen as a barometer for the president's agenda and for control of the House in 2018. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Georgia’s special election will be a nail-biter all the way to the finish line Tuesday, as President Trump looms large over an election that has huge stakes for both Democrats and Republicans ahead of the 2018 midterms.
Democrats have zeroed in on the suburban Atlanta district as their best chance this year to flip a House seat and are looking to Jon Ossoff to be the face of the anti-Trump resistance. But if
Ossoff comes up short, his loss will deal a major blow to their newfound momentum and political activism.
The stakes are just as high for the GOP. If it loses the seat left open by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, Trump will likely shoulder the blame and Republicans could start defecting from his agenda.
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On the other hand, a victory for Republican Karen Handel will signify that opposition to Trump might not win Democrats the House in 2018.
In the final days of the race, Ossoff and Handel have sought to steer clear of national politics, with each candidate barely uttering Trump’s name. Both have also downplayed the national implications of the race, even though it has been a magnet for attention and tens of millions of dollars. The total spending in the race is estimated to be around $60 million.
Ossoff, who launched his campaign months ago by urging voters to “Make Trump Furious,” has tempered his rhetoric when it comes to the president. While he needed to win Democrats in the jungle primary, he now needs to appeal to more moderate voters in a district that has been a deep shade of red for decades.
But when hyping up his supporters over the weekend as they launched more canvasses, Ossoff still made indirect references to Trump, saying that “fear and hate” won’t be tolerated in the state.
“Let’s send a message across this country that fear and hate and division are not welcome in Georgia,” Ossoff said at his Sandy Springs office on Saturday, “that Georgians stand up instead for unity and for progress.”
When asked about Trump directly, Ossoff didn’t shy away from saying that he’ll stand up to the president where there are major differences, but he also said he’d work with him on issues where they can find common ground.
“I’ve consistently said I’ll stand up to President Trump if he embarrasses us or threatens our interests and that I’m willing to work with him on issues of mutual interest,” Ossoff told reporters on Sunday, adding that there has been an increase in concerns lately over the administration’s “integrity and competence.”
Ossoff’s ground game has grown into a massive operation of more than 12,000 volunteers, helped along by canvassing and phone banking from various national and local groups.
The campaign’s emphasis on the ground game illustrates how important turnout will be for Ossoff in a GOP-leaning district. Trump only carried the district by less than 2 points, but Price still handily won reelection.
Ossoff will need to turn out his base — particularly voters in northern DeKalb County and black voters — and make some inroads with independents and even GOP voters still lukewarm on Trump.
Handel has also had to strike a difficult balance when it comes to the president. She didn’t mention him once at any of her events or rallies in the final days of the race, and notably neglected to bring him up while campaigning with Price and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, a former Georgia governor.
But that hasn’t stopped Trump from weighing in. He tweeted his support for Handel Monday morning and followed up later in the day with another tweet attacking Ossoff for living outside the district. Trump also recorded a robocall for Handel earlier this month.
When told that Trump tweeted about her, Handel only briefly remarked, with some laughter: “I heard that, I heard, yes.”
Handel’s decision to keep her distance from Trump risks alienating Trump’s supporters, a part of the GOP base that she still needs. But GOP strategists believe she has still shown enough support for Republicans’ legislative agenda in Washington.
“Karen has to sort of walk a fine line, but I don’t think she’s shied away from talking about those core Republican issues that Republican leaders in Washington have focused on,” said Eric Tanenblatt, a lobbyist and Georgia state finance chairman for the Republican National Committee. Tanenblatt and Handel previously worked together for Perdue.
Handel’s campaign has looked to keep pace with Ossoff’s. The Georgia Republican said they knocked on 6,000 doors on Saturday, while national groups and a super PAC tied to House GOP leadership have funneled GOP money into the race.
In a nod to the closeness of the race, Handel and Ossoff got some last-minute help Monday from other politicians.
While Handel was meeting potential voters in Alpharetta, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) swung by her event. Handel’s primary rival Bob Gray also stopped by, telling The Hill he’s been rallying his Trump loyalist base for Handel.
Former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander (D) also stopped by Ossoff’s two canvassing events on Monday. Kander gained some national attention after running a close race for Senate in Missouri last year.
While Ossoff and Handel have publicly balked at playing up the race’s national significance, Kander reminded supporters that all eyes in politics would be on Georgia when polls close at 7 p.m. on Tuesday night.
“You know the whole country’s watching,” he said. ||||| President Donald Trump tweeted his support of Karen Handel, the Republican candidate in Georgia's special election, on election day morning. | Getty Trump slams Dem Ossoff as Georgia voters head to the polls
President Donald Trump began his last minute pitch to Georgia voters just before 6 a.m. Tuesday, warning them that Democrat Jon Ossoff wants to raise taxes and is “weak on crime and security” while his GOP opponent, Karen Handel, is just the opposite.
“Democrat Jon Ossoff, who wants to raise your taxes to the highest level and is weak on crime and security, doesn't even live in district,” Trump wrote on Twitter early Tuesday morning, the start of a two-post flurry. “KAREN HANDEL FOR CONGRESS. She will fight for lower taxes, great healthcare strong security-a hard worker who will never give up! VOTE TODAY.”
Story Continued Below
Voters in Georgia’s sixth Congressional district will choose Tuesday between Ossoff and Handel, the two candidates vying for the suburban Atlanta seat left vacant by Tom Price, Trump’s secretary of health and human services. Tuesday’s election is a runoff that follows one last April in which Ossoff finished well ahead of a multi-candidate GOP field but did not hit the 50 percent threshold that would have allowed him to win the seat outright without a runoff.
Price won the seat last November by more than 23 percentage points, but Democrats, eager to win a seat last held by a member of the president’s cabinet, have poured money into the race, making it the most expensive House election on record.
Polls show the race essentially even heading into Election Day, with Handel holding a lead of less than a quarter of a point according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.
Playbook PM Sign up for our must-read newsletter on what's driving the afternoon in Washington. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Ossoff, running for office for the first time at 30-years-old, has faced criticism from Trump and others that he does not live in the sixth district, a situation the Democrat has explained by saying that he is currently living with his girlfriend while she completes medical school at Emory University just outside the district’s borders.
He has said he intends to move back into the district once his girlfriend’s studies are complete, an explanation that has not insulated him from attacks from the president, who has noted Ossoff’s residency issue more than once in posts to Twitter.
Ossoff: The congressional baseball shooting has 'no place' in an attack ad poster="https://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201706/642/1155968404_5477665602001_5477653751001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" true
“Karen Handel's opponent in #GA06 can't even vote in the district he wants to represent because he doesn't even live there!” Trump wrote on Twitter Monday evening. “He wants to raise taxes and kill healthcare. On Tuesday, #VoteKarenHandel.”
Ossoff said on Tuesday morning that he thinks the competency and integrity concerns of the Trump administration have increased and that this a matter of public interest.
“It speaks to a greater need of accountability on effective congressional oversight,” Ossoff said. “I won’t hesitate to stand up to him if he threatens our interests or values.”
Diamond Naga Siu contributed to this report. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,472 |
A movement of a Beethoven string quartet, lost in 1799, is to be given its premiere in Manchester on Thursday, after its discovery and reconstruction by Barry Cooper, professor of music at the University of Manchester.
The original slow movement of Beethoven's Quartet in G, Op 18 no 2, was written in 1799 when the composer was 28 years old, for his Bohemian patron, Prince Lobkowicz. It was only his second string quartet and, when he had completed a group of six such works – the Op 18 quartets – he went back to the two first and revised them substantially in 1800, discarding the whole of the second movement of the quartet in G.
The original slow movement exists in the form of fragmentary sketches – often with only music for the higher instruments written out in full, and not in sequential order. But Cooper has, he said, "made the jigsaw fit, and also made it performable" – that is by working out the correct order for the music, and filling out the lower musical lines that Beethoven left blank. "What we have now is something like – not exactly like, but pretty similar to – what Beethoven wrote," said Cooper.
The movement as revised by Beethoven begins with a smoothly flowing, intense melody with an elegantly decorated first violin line, followed by aplayful, fast central section.
But, according to Cooper, Beethoven's first thoughts were rather different. Though the gorgeous melody of the revised version is not dissimilar to the original, the first version has three rather than four beats to the bar. There is also a quite different middle section, in C minor – "stormy, angry, with shimmering tremolandos and rushing scales, very tense and anguished", according to Cooper. "There's also a lovely modulation where he takes you through some weird keys very quickly."
It is a matter of speculation why the composer decided to change the character of the movement so radically. "It is possible that it too much anticipated the stormy mood of the C minor quartet," said Cooper, referring to the fourth quartet in the Op 18 group.
Cooper tactfully refused to be drawn on which version was the better. "They both have an enormous amount to offer," he said. "It's like asking whether you prefer apples or oranges: they are different. Any other composer would have been pleased with the first version – but Beethoven was a perfectionist."
The premiere will be given by the Quatuor Danel at a seminar open to the public at the University of Manchester. ||||| A movement from a Beethoven composition for a string quartet which was discarded by the composer and replaced by a new version has been reconstructed by a musical expert in Manchester.
The piece got its first ever public performance in more than 200 years, possibly ever, at Manchester University.
The lost piece of music was part of the String Quartet in G, Opus 18 Number 2, and Professor of Music at the university, Barry Cooper, painstakingly reconstructed the movement based on surviving detailed sketches for every one of its 74 bars.
He was unable to attend the public recital due to unexpected surgery, his work was presented by his colleague Professor of Music David Fanning.
Fanning said: "It might interest readers to know that at the seminar from which the video is taken, the audience – consisting of students, composers, musicologists and experienced chamber music-goers – found Professor Barry Cooper’s reconstruction entirely plausible. This, we agreed, was an impressive endorsement for his work. The project is in any case very different from his ‘Tenth Symphony’ reconstruction, which involved a good deal more conjecture.
"I myself might have pointed to a few bars that sounded a bit skeletal. But even here, I can think of passages in other Beethoven works (such as the ‘Harp’ Quartet) where the same effect is clearly calculated and effective. At worst, my impression would be explicable as a scholar’s erring on the side of caution.
"Equally, when the direct comparison was made, the more compact ‘standard version’ with its mercurial central section, totalling a little over five minutes as compared to the Cooper reconstruction’s nearly nine, was found to be both more ‘radical’ (according to a composer in the audience) and more effective within the context of the work as a whole (according to the Quatuor Danel).
"In sum, the reconstructed Beethoven movement is certainly beautiful in its own right, and knowing it surely tells us something important about him as a craftsman, as well as enriching our view of the work. But I stand by my comment in the video that what we have here is something analogous to the appendix to a play: a version of a scene that is convincing enough but supplanted by the revision.
"I write as Barry Cooper’s colleague, but without – so far as I’m aware – any guardedness or spin. Unfortunately Barry himself was indisposed for the seminar, and although I had access to his notes, I cannot pretend to have been speaking on his behalf or to do so now. Happily he’s making a quick recovery, and I fully expect him to add his own reactions at a future date."
The existence of the sketches was established in 1977, but they have never been found. What is known is that the then aged 28 year old composer had delivered the manuscripts for three new quartets in October 1799.
The works - Op 18 Nos 1-3 - were sold to a Prince Lobkowitz for 200 florins.
But the following year Beethoven revised Nos 1 and 2, including a completely new slow movement for No 2 in which little of the original material remained and the rhythm was completely different.
The reconstruction cannot be absolutely accurate, but it's believed to be as close as one can get when working only with sketches.
The slow movement was played by the Quatuor Danel String Quartet.
Beethoven cut down his original version by 3 minutes and replaced the original stormy and angry middle section with a calmer one. | – After Beethoven scrapped a movement from a string quartet, it was lost to the world’s ears for two centuries. No longer: A music professor in Britain has recreated the piece using the composer’s sketches for every measure. The movement of String Quartet in G, Opus 18, No. 2 was performed for the first time in 200 years—perhaps the first time ever—at Manchester University, the Telegraph reports. After Beethoven had written a group of six string quartets, he reworked the first two, the Guardian notes, ditching the second movement of the Quartet in G. Only the sketches for the movement remain; Professor Barry Cooper filled out missing parts and put them in order. He “made the jigsaw fit, and also made it performable,” Cooper says. “What we have now is something like—not exactly like, but pretty similar to—what Beethoven wrote.” | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.A movement of a Beethoven string quartet, lost in 1799, is to be given its premiere in Manchester on Thursday, after its discovery and reconstruction by Barry Cooper, professor of music at the University of Manchester.
The original slow movement of Beethoven's Quartet in G, Op 18 no 2, was written in 1799 when the composer was 28 years old, for his Bohemian patron, Prince Lobkowicz. It was only his second string quartet and, when he had completed a group of six such works – the Op 18 quartets – he went back to the two first and revised them substantially in 1800, discarding the whole of the second movement of the quartet in G.
The original slow movement exists in the form of fragmentary sketches – often with only music for the higher instruments written out in full, and not in sequential order. But Cooper has, he said, "made the jigsaw fit, and also made it performable" – that is by working out the correct order for the music, and filling out the lower musical lines that Beethoven left blank. "What we have now is something like – not exactly like, but pretty similar to – what Beethoven wrote," said Cooper.
The movement as revised by Beethoven begins with a smoothly flowing, intense melody with an elegantly decorated first violin line, followed by aplayful, fast central section.
But, according to Cooper, Beethoven's first thoughts were rather different. Though the gorgeous melody of the revised version is not dissimilar to the original, the first version has three rather than four beats to the bar. There is also a quite different middle section, in C minor – "stormy, angry, with shimmering tremolandos and rushing scales, very tense and anguished", according to Cooper. "There's also a lovely modulation where he takes you through some weird keys very quickly."
It is a matter of speculation why the composer decided to change the character of the movement so radically. "It is possible that it too much anticipated the stormy mood of the C minor quartet," said Cooper, referring to the fourth quartet in the Op 18 group.
Cooper tactfully refused to be drawn on which version was the better. "They both have an enormous amount to offer," he said. "It's like asking whether you prefer apples or oranges: they are different. Any other composer would have been pleased with the first version – but Beethoven was a perfectionist."
The premiere will be given by the Quatuor Danel at a seminar open to the public at the University of Manchester. ||||| A movement from a Beethoven composition for a string quartet which was discarded by the composer and replaced by a new version has been reconstructed by a musical expert in Manchester.
The piece got its first ever public performance in more than 200 years, possibly ever, at Manchester University.
The lost piece of music was part of the String Quartet in G, Opus 18 Number 2, and Professor of Music at the university, Barry Cooper, painstakingly reconstructed the movement based on surviving detailed sketches for every one of its 74 bars.
He was unable to attend the public recital due to unexpected surgery, his work was presented by his colleague Professor of Music David Fanning.
Fanning said: "It might interest readers to know that at the seminar from which the video is taken, the audience – consisting of students, composers, musicologists and experienced chamber music-goers – found Professor Barry Cooper’s reconstruction entirely plausible. This, we agreed, was an impressive endorsement for his work. The project is in any case very different from his ‘Tenth Symphony’ reconstruction, which involved a good deal more conjecture.
"I myself might have pointed to a few bars that sounded a bit skeletal. But even here, I can think of passages in other Beethoven works (such as the ‘Harp’ Quartet) where the same effect is clearly calculated and effective. At worst, my impression would be explicable as a scholar’s erring on the side of caution.
"Equally, when the direct comparison was made, the more compact ‘standard version’ with its mercurial central section, totalling a little over five minutes as compared to the Cooper reconstruction’s nearly nine, was found to be both more ‘radical’ (according to a composer in the audience) and more effective within the context of the work as a whole (according to the Quatuor Danel).
"In sum, the reconstructed Beethoven movement is certainly beautiful in its own right, and knowing it surely tells us something important about him as a craftsman, as well as enriching our view of the work. But I stand by my comment in the video that what we have here is something analogous to the appendix to a play: a version of a scene that is convincing enough but supplanted by the revision.
"I write as Barry Cooper’s colleague, but without – so far as I’m aware – any guardedness or spin. Unfortunately Barry himself was indisposed for the seminar, and although I had access to his notes, I cannot pretend to have been speaking on his behalf or to do so now. Happily he’s making a quick recovery, and I fully expect him to add his own reactions at a future date."
The existence of the sketches was established in 1977, but they have never been found. What is known is that the then aged 28 year old composer had delivered the manuscripts for three new quartets in October 1799.
The works - Op 18 Nos 1-3 - were sold to a Prince Lobkowitz for 200 florins.
But the following year Beethoven revised Nos 1 and 2, including a completely new slow movement for No 2 in which little of the original material remained and the rhythm was completely different.
The reconstruction cannot be absolutely accurate, but it's believed to be as close as one can get when working only with sketches.
The slow movement was played by the Quatuor Danel String Quartet.
Beethoven cut down his original version by 3 minutes and replaced the original stormy and angry middle section with a calmer one. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 523 |
The level of the most important heat-trapping gas in the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, has passed a long-feared milestone, scientists reported Friday, reaching a concentration not seen on the earth for millions of years.
Scientific instruments showed that the gas had reached an average daily level above 400 parts per million — just an odometer moment in one sense, but also a sobering reminder that decades of efforts to bring human-produced emissions under control are faltering.
The best available evidence suggests the amount of the gas in the air has not been this high for at least three million years, before humans evolved, and scientists believe the rise portends large changes in the climate and the level of the sea.
“It symbolizes that so far we have failed miserably in tackling this problem,” said Pieter P. Tans, who runs the monitoring program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that reported the new reading. ||||| An instrument near the summit of Mauna Loa in Hawaii has recorded a long-awaited climate milestone: the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere there has exceeded 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time in 55 years of measurement—and probably more than 3 million years of Earth history.
The last time the concentration of Earth's main greenhouse gas reached this mark, horses and camels lived in the high Arctic. Seas were at least 30 feet higher—at a level that today would inundate major cities around the world.
The planet was about 2 to 3 degrees Celsius (3.6 to 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer. But the Earth then was in the final stage of a prolonged greenhouse epoch, and CO2 concentrations were on their way down. This time, 400 ppm is a milepost on a far more rapid uphill climb toward an uncertain climate future.
Two independent teams of scientists measure CO2 on Mauna Loa: one from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the other from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The NOAA team posted word on its web site this morning before dawn Hawaii time: The daily average for May 9 was 400.03 ppm. The Scripps team later confirmed the milestone had been crossed.
The Scripps team is led by Ralph Keeling, son of the late Charles David Keeling, who started the Mauna Loa measurements in 1958. Since then the "Keeling curve," showing the steady climb in CO2 levels caused primarily by burning fossil fuels, has become an icon of climate change.
When the elder Keeling started at Mauna Loa, the CO2 level was at 315 ppm. When he died in June 2005, it was at 382. Why did he keep at it for 47 years, fighting off periodic efforts to cut his funding? His father, he once wrote, had passed onto him a "faith that the world could be made better by devotion to just causes." Now his son and the NOAA team have taken over a measurement that captures, more than any other single number, the extent to which we are changing the world—for better or worse.
Setting the Record Straight
Since late April that number had been hovering above 399 ppm. The Scripps lab opened the vigil to the public by sending out daily tweets (under the handle @Keeling_curve) almost as soon as the data could be downloaded from Mauna Loa, at 5 a.m. Hawaii time. NOAA took to updating its website daily. The two labs' measurements typically agree within .2 ppm. Both measure the amount of CO2 in an air sample by measuring how much infrared radiation it absorbs—the same process by which CO2 in the atmosphere traps heat and warms the whole planet.
View Images A chart from Scripps shows the carbon dioxide level hovering near 400 ppm in the first week of May. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
The measurement NOAA reported for Thursday, May 9, 400.03 ppm, was for a single day. Each data point on the Keeling curve, however, is actually an average of all the measurements made at Mauna Loa over an entire month. The CO2 concentration at Mauna Loa is unlikely to surpass 400 ppm for the whole month of May.
It certainly won't exceed 400 for all of 2013. CO2 peaks in May every year. By June the level will begin falling, as spring kicks into high gear in the Northern Hemisphere, where most of the planet's land is concentrated, and plants draw CO2 out of the atmosphere to fuel their new growth. By November, the CO2 level will be 5 or 6 ppm lower than it is now.
Then the curve will turn upward again: In the winter, plants stop making new carbohydrates but continue to burn the old, respiring CO2 back into the atmosphere.
This seasonal sawtooth—think of it as the breath of northern forests—is the natural part of the Keeling curve. The man-made part is its steady upward climb from one year to the next. Both were discovered at Mauna Loa.
Dave Keeling, as he was known, chose the Hawaiian mountain for his measurements because, at over 11,000 feet and in the middle of the Pacific, it is far from forests or smokestacks that might put a local bias on the data. But even Mauna Loa is not perfectly representative of the whole planet.
NOAA also monitors CO2 at a global network of stations, and the global average consistently lags the Mauna Loa number by a few parts per million—for a simple reason.
"Mauna Loa is higher because most of the fossil fuel CO2 is emitted in the Northern Hemisphere," says NOAA scientist Pieter Tans. It takes about a year, he says, for northern pollution to spread through the Southern Hemisphere.
On the other hand, Mauna Loa lags the Arctic, where CO2 levels are higher. A year ago, NOAA reported that the average of its Arctic measurements had exceeded 400 ppm for the entire month of May, not just for a single day.
The rest of the planet will catch up soon enough. By 2015 or 2016, the whole atmosphere will be averaging 400 ppm for the whole year. What difference will that make?
Back to the Pliocene?
In a way, 400 ppm is an arbitrary milestone, like a .400 batting average in baseball. But the fact that no one has batted .400 since Ted Williams in 1941 still says something important about baseball. The same goes for CO2 in Earth's atmosphere.
Policymakers worldwide have been stymied in their effort to reach a global agreement on reducing fossil fuel emissions. Many scientists argue that the CO2 concentration must be stabilized at 450 ppm to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Some activists argue for a more ambitious goal of 350 ppm. NOAA has not recorded an average monthly CO2 reading below 350 ppm at Mauna Loa since October 1988. (See related story: "Obama Pledges U.S. Action on Climate Change, With or Without Congress.")
The last time the concentration of CO2 was as high as 400 ppm was probably in the Pliocene Epoch, between 2.6 and 5.3 million years ago. Until the 20th century, it certainly hadn't exceeded 300 ppm, let alone 400 ppm, for at least 800,000 years. That's how far back scientists have been able to measure CO2 directly in bubbles of ancient air trapped in Antarctic ice cores.
But tens of millions of years ago, CO2 must have been much higher than it is now—there's no other way to explain how warm the Earth was then. In the Eocene, some 50 million years ago, there were alligators and tapirs on Ellesmere Island, which lies off northern Greenland in the Canadian Arctic. They were living in swampy forests like those in the southeastern United States today. CO2 may have been anywhere from two to ten times higher in the Eocene than it is today. (See related: "Hothouse Earth.")
View Images Carbon dioxide levels can be seen climbing steadily in Scripps data from the last 55 years. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
Over the next 45 million years, most of it was converted to marine limestone, as CO2-laden rains dissolved the ingredients of limestone out of rocks on land and washed them down rivers to the sea. CO2-belching volcanoes failed to keep pace, so the atmospheric level of the gas slowly declined. Some time during the Pliocene, it probably crossed the 400 ppm mark, as it's doing now-but back then it was on its way down. As a result, at the end of the Pliocene, it became cold enough for continental ice sheets to start forming in the northern hemisphere. The Pliocene, says geologist Maureen Raymo of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, "was the last gasp of warmth before the slow slide into the Ice Ages."
What was Earth like then? In Africa, grasslands were replacing forests and our ancestors were climbing down from the trees. (See related: "The Evolutionary Road.") On Ellesmere, there were no longer alligators and cypress trees, but there were beavers and larch trees and horses and giant camels—and not much ice. The planet was three to four degrees Celsius warmer than it was in the 19th century, before man-made global warming began.
If anything, those numbers understate how different the Pliocene climate was. The tropical sea surface was about as warm as it is now, says Alexey Fedorov of Yale University, but the temperature gradient between the tropics and the poles—which drives the jet streams in the mid-latitudes—was much smaller. The east-west gradient across the Pacific Ocean—which drives the El Niño-La Niña oscillation—was almost nonexistent. In effect, the ocean was locked in a permanent El Niño. Global weather patterns would have been completely different in the Pliocene.
And yet the two main drivers of climate—the level of CO2, and the parameters of Earth's orbit, which determine how much sunlight falls where and at what season—were essentially the same as today. Fedorov calls it the Pliocene Paradox.
Climate scientists are just beginning to crack it, he says. Maybe clouds outside the tropics were darker in the Pliocene, such that they bounced less sunlight back to space. Maybe the warm ocean was stirred by a lot more hurricanes.
Hanging over this academic research is a very nonacademic issue: Could our climate be capable of flipping to a completely different state? "That's the big question—whether CO2 can move us to the Pliocene," says Fedorov.
Rising Seas
Beavers and camels on Ellesmere Island, instead of glaciers, might not be so bad. But there was a lot less ice in general in the Pliocene. That means there was a lot more water in the ocean, which means sea level was a lot higher—how high exactly, no one knows.
"The estimates have been all over the map," Raymo says. They've ranged from 10 meters (33 feet) to 40 meters (131 feet) higher than today. But even the conservative estimate, were it to recur today, would mean flooding land inhabited by a quarter of the U.S. population.
Raised Pliocene shorelines have been identified all over the world. One is the Orangeburg Scarp, a wave-cut terrace that parallels the Atlantic coast of the U.S. from Florida to Virginia. Typically it lies more than a hundred miles inland. In the Pliocene, the Gulf Stream flowed past that terrace, over what is now the coastal plain.
The question is: How much has the sea receded since then, and how much has the land risen? Raymo has been asking that question on Pliocene shores in the U.S., Africa, Antarctica.
Land can rise, she explains, because it is was once depressed by massive ice sheets and is now rebounding. It can also rise because the underlying mantle is a hot, viscous fluid that pushes it up—by different amounts in different places. In Virginia the Orangeburg Scarp rises around 70 meters (220 feet) but in Florida only 30 meters (100 feet) above the current sea level. Yet in the Pliocene it was right at sea level in both places. What was that sea level?
Raymo's best guess at the moment, to be confirmed by further fieldwork and modeling, is that the last time Earth had 400 ppm of CO2 in its atmosphere, sea level was somewhere between 10 meters (33 feet) and 20 meters (66 feet) higher than today. To raise sea level 10 meters today would require melting most of the ice in Greenland and West Antarctica. To raise it 20 meters would require melting both those ice sheets entirely and some of the giant East Antarctic ice sheet too.
Ice-Age Clues
Could that happen at 400 ppm? Evidence from the past half million years suggests it could, given enough time.
Since the Pliocene, glacial periods, during which ice sheets advanced over northern continents, have alternated with interglacial periods like the one we're in today. The timing has been set by orbital variations, but CO2 has amplified their effect. For the past 800,000 years at least, its atmospheric concentration has marched up and down in step with the ice, but in the opposite direction.
In the last interglacial period, around 120,000 years ago, sea level was as much as 8 meters (26 feet) higher than today, Raymo says. In an earlier interglacial known as Stage 11, around 400,000 years ago, "the evidence is very strong that sea level was at least 9 meters higher than today. The ice sheets didn't stick around."
In Stage 11, the sunlight distribution was a little less favorable to ice sheets than it is now. CO2 peaked then at 290 ppm.
"What everything is telling you is that the system is very sensitive," says Raymo. "The threshold for losing the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets is very close to where we are now. Everything in the geologic record says we're very close. You don't need a lot of CO2—you just need a little bit of warming, and it doesn't matter how you get it."
It took between a thousand and a few thousand years, at the end of Stage 11, to melt all or most of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets. The whole interglacial lasted 30,000 years, nearly three times as long as ours has lasted so far. So the warming had a long time to build up. That's the good news.
But at 400 ppm, CO2 is much higher now, and it's still climbing fast. And even if we could stop that rise tomorrow, the planet's temperature would still climb for centuries.
"For me personally that's the scary thing," says Raymo. "We really don't know what we've already committed ourselves to."
Editor's Note: An earlier version of the story was unclear on when the 400 ppm mark was surpassed. NOAA reported today that the mark had been crossed on Thursday, May 10. Scripps originally reported variable data for the day, then confirmed the milestone had been crossed. ||||| Image copyright Noaa Image caption Key measurements are made on top of the Mauna Loa volcano
Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have broken through a symbolic mark.
Daily measurements of CO2 at a US government agency lab on Hawaii have topped 400 parts per million for the first time.
The station, which sits on the Mauna Loa volcano, feeds its numbers into a continuous record of the concentration of the gas stretching back to 1958.
The last time CO2 was regularly above 400ppm was three to five million years ago - before modern humans existed.
Scientists say the climate back then was also considerably warmer than it is today.
Carbon dioxide is regarded as the most important of the manmade greenhouse gases blamed for raising the temperature on the planet over recent decades.
Human sources come principally from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.
In eight to nine years we will probably have seen the last CO2 reading under 400ppm James Butler, Noaa
The usual trend seen at the volcano is for the CO2 concentration to rise in winter months and then to fall back as the northern hemisphere growing season kicks in. Forests and other vegetation pull some of the gas out of the atmosphere.
This means the number can be expected to decline by a few ppm below 400 in the coming weeks. But the long-term trend is upwards.
Carbon by proxy
James Butler is responsible for the Earth System Research Laboratory, a facility on Mauna Loa belonging to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa). Its daily average CO2 concentration figure on Thursday was 400.03.
Dr Butler told BBC News: "Carbon dioxide has some variability on an hourly, daily and weekly basis, so we are not comfortable calling a single number - the lowest we will go is on a daily average, which has happened in this case.
"Mauna Loa and the South Pole observatory are iconic sites as they have been taking CO2 measurements in real time since 1958. Last year, for the first time, all Arctic sites reached 400ppm.
"This is the first time the daily average has passed 400ppm at Mauna Loa."
Analysis Near the summit of the Mauna Loa volcano, the carbon dioxide monitors stand amid one of the world's remotest huddles of scientific instruments. To reach them you have to leave the steamy Hawaii coast and climb through barren lava-fields. At the top, above 11,000ft, the air is thin and the sun piercing. During my visit, I watched rain clouds boiling in the valleys below me. Charles David Keeling chose this otherworldly spot because the air up here is neither industrial nor pristine; it is "well-mixed" which means it can serve as a useful guide to changes in the atmosphere. Despite their global significance, the devices he installed back in 1958 do not look impressive. But he battled bureaucratic objections to fund them and his legacy is the longest continuous record of a gas, linked to much of global warming, that just keeps rising.
The long-term measurements at Mauna Loa were started by a Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientist called Charles Keeling.
In 1958, he found the concentration at the top of the volcano to be around 315ppm (that is 315 molecules of CO2 for every one million molecules in the air). Every year since then, the "Keeling Curve", as it has become known, has squiggled resolutely higher.
Scripps still operates equipment alongside Noaa on the mountain peak.
Its readings have been pushing 400ppm in recent days, and on Thursday recorded a daily average of 399.73.
But Noaa senior scientist Pieter Tans said: "Our measurements (Noaa) are in Coordinated Universal Time, while the Keeling measurements are in local Hawaii time. If you shift the Keeling definition of a day to the same as ours then we do agree almost completely on the measurements." By this definition, the Keeling team's Thursday number would be 400.08ppm.
And Dr Butler added: "Probably next year, or the year after that, the average yearly reading will pass 400pm.
"A couple of years after that, the South Pole will have readings of 400ppm, and in eight to nine years we will probably have seen the last CO2 reading under 400ppm."
To determine CO2 levels before the introduction of modern stations, scientists must use so-called proxy measurements.
These include studying the bubbles of ancient air trapped in Antarctic ice.
One of these can be used to describe CO2 levels over the past 800,000 years. It suggests that CO2 held steady over this longer period at between 200ppm and 300ppm.
British atmospheric physicist Prof Joanna Haigh commented: "In itself, the value 400ppm of CO2 has no particular significance for the physics of the climate system: concentration levels have been in the 300s for so long and now we've passed the 400 mark. However, this does give us the chance to mark the ongoing increase in CO2 concentration and talk about why it's a problem for the climate." | – Scientists have been anticipating this milestone for a while, but they won't be breaking out the champagne now that it's here: Carbon-dioxide levels in the atmosphere passed the mark of 400 parts per million yesterday for the first time in human history, reports the BBC. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration made the declaration based on readings of the heat-trapping gas at a station on the Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii. (Another monitoring program run by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography hasn't quite gotten to 400 yet, but it supports the NOAA figure and chalks up the difference to a technicality.) A few reactions: New York Times: It's "just an odometer moment in one sense, but also a sobering reminder that decades of efforts to bring human-produced emissions under control are faltering." National Geographic: "The last time the concentration of CO2 was as high as 400 ppm was probably in the Pliocene Epoch, between 2.6 and 5.3 million years ago. Until the 20th century, it certainly hadn't exceeded 300 ppm, let alone 400 ppm, for at least 800,000 years." “It symbolizes that so far we have failed miserably in tackling this problem,” says the NOAA's Pieter P. Tans. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The level of the most important heat-trapping gas in the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, has passed a long-feared milestone, scientists reported Friday, reaching a concentration not seen on the earth for millions of years.
Scientific instruments showed that the gas had reached an average daily level above 400 parts per million — just an odometer moment in one sense, but also a sobering reminder that decades of efforts to bring human-produced emissions under control are faltering.
The best available evidence suggests the amount of the gas in the air has not been this high for at least three million years, before humans evolved, and scientists believe the rise portends large changes in the climate and the level of the sea.
“It symbolizes that so far we have failed miserably in tackling this problem,” said Pieter P. Tans, who runs the monitoring program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that reported the new reading. ||||| An instrument near the summit of Mauna Loa in Hawaii has recorded a long-awaited climate milestone: the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere there has exceeded 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time in 55 years of measurement—and probably more than 3 million years of Earth history.
The last time the concentration of Earth's main greenhouse gas reached this mark, horses and camels lived in the high Arctic. Seas were at least 30 feet higher—at a level that today would inundate major cities around the world.
The planet was about 2 to 3 degrees Celsius (3.6 to 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer. But the Earth then was in the final stage of a prolonged greenhouse epoch, and CO2 concentrations were on their way down. This time, 400 ppm is a milepost on a far more rapid uphill climb toward an uncertain climate future.
Two independent teams of scientists measure CO2 on Mauna Loa: one from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the other from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The NOAA team posted word on its web site this morning before dawn Hawaii time: The daily average for May 9 was 400.03 ppm. The Scripps team later confirmed the milestone had been crossed.
The Scripps team is led by Ralph Keeling, son of the late Charles David Keeling, who started the Mauna Loa measurements in 1958. Since then the "Keeling curve," showing the steady climb in CO2 levels caused primarily by burning fossil fuels, has become an icon of climate change.
When the elder Keeling started at Mauna Loa, the CO2 level was at 315 ppm. When he died in June 2005, it was at 382. Why did he keep at it for 47 years, fighting off periodic efforts to cut his funding? His father, he once wrote, had passed onto him a "faith that the world could be made better by devotion to just causes." Now his son and the NOAA team have taken over a measurement that captures, more than any other single number, the extent to which we are changing the world—for better or worse.
Setting the Record Straight
Since late April that number had been hovering above 399 ppm. The Scripps lab opened the vigil to the public by sending out daily tweets (under the handle @Keeling_curve) almost as soon as the data could be downloaded from Mauna Loa, at 5 a.m. Hawaii time. NOAA took to updating its website daily. The two labs' measurements typically agree within .2 ppm. Both measure the amount of CO2 in an air sample by measuring how much infrared radiation it absorbs—the same process by which CO2 in the atmosphere traps heat and warms the whole planet.
View Images A chart from Scripps shows the carbon dioxide level hovering near 400 ppm in the first week of May. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
The measurement NOAA reported for Thursday, May 9, 400.03 ppm, was for a single day. Each data point on the Keeling curve, however, is actually an average of all the measurements made at Mauna Loa over an entire month. The CO2 concentration at Mauna Loa is unlikely to surpass 400 ppm for the whole month of May.
It certainly won't exceed 400 for all of 2013. CO2 peaks in May every year. By June the level will begin falling, as spring kicks into high gear in the Northern Hemisphere, where most of the planet's land is concentrated, and plants draw CO2 out of the atmosphere to fuel their new growth. By November, the CO2 level will be 5 or 6 ppm lower than it is now.
Then the curve will turn upward again: In the winter, plants stop making new carbohydrates but continue to burn the old, respiring CO2 back into the atmosphere.
This seasonal sawtooth—think of it as the breath of northern forests—is the natural part of the Keeling curve. The man-made part is its steady upward climb from one year to the next. Both were discovered at Mauna Loa.
Dave Keeling, as he was known, chose the Hawaiian mountain for his measurements because, at over 11,000 feet and in the middle of the Pacific, it is far from forests or smokestacks that might put a local bias on the data. But even Mauna Loa is not perfectly representative of the whole planet.
NOAA also monitors CO2 at a global network of stations, and the global average consistently lags the Mauna Loa number by a few parts per million—for a simple reason.
"Mauna Loa is higher because most of the fossil fuel CO2 is emitted in the Northern Hemisphere," says NOAA scientist Pieter Tans. It takes about a year, he says, for northern pollution to spread through the Southern Hemisphere.
On the other hand, Mauna Loa lags the Arctic, where CO2 levels are higher. A year ago, NOAA reported that the average of its Arctic measurements had exceeded 400 ppm for the entire month of May, not just for a single day.
The rest of the planet will catch up soon enough. By 2015 or 2016, the whole atmosphere will be averaging 400 ppm for the whole year. What difference will that make?
Back to the Pliocene?
In a way, 400 ppm is an arbitrary milestone, like a .400 batting average in baseball. But the fact that no one has batted .400 since Ted Williams in 1941 still says something important about baseball. The same goes for CO2 in Earth's atmosphere.
Policymakers worldwide have been stymied in their effort to reach a global agreement on reducing fossil fuel emissions. Many scientists argue that the CO2 concentration must be stabilized at 450 ppm to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Some activists argue for a more ambitious goal of 350 ppm. NOAA has not recorded an average monthly CO2 reading below 350 ppm at Mauna Loa since October 1988. (See related story: "Obama Pledges U.S. Action on Climate Change, With or Without Congress.")
The last time the concentration of CO2 was as high as 400 ppm was probably in the Pliocene Epoch, between 2.6 and 5.3 million years ago. Until the 20th century, it certainly hadn't exceeded 300 ppm, let alone 400 ppm, for at least 800,000 years. That's how far back scientists have been able to measure CO2 directly in bubbles of ancient air trapped in Antarctic ice cores.
But tens of millions of years ago, CO2 must have been much higher than it is now—there's no other way to explain how warm the Earth was then. In the Eocene, some 50 million years ago, there were alligators and tapirs on Ellesmere Island, which lies off northern Greenland in the Canadian Arctic. They were living in swampy forests like those in the southeastern United States today. CO2 may have been anywhere from two to ten times higher in the Eocene than it is today. (See related: "Hothouse Earth.")
View Images Carbon dioxide levels can be seen climbing steadily in Scripps data from the last 55 years. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
Over the next 45 million years, most of it was converted to marine limestone, as CO2-laden rains dissolved the ingredients of limestone out of rocks on land and washed them down rivers to the sea. CO2-belching volcanoes failed to keep pace, so the atmospheric level of the gas slowly declined. Some time during the Pliocene, it probably crossed the 400 ppm mark, as it's doing now-but back then it was on its way down. As a result, at the end of the Pliocene, it became cold enough for continental ice sheets to start forming in the northern hemisphere. The Pliocene, says geologist Maureen Raymo of Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, "was the last gasp of warmth before the slow slide into the Ice Ages."
What was Earth like then? In Africa, grasslands were replacing forests and our ancestors were climbing down from the trees. (See related: "The Evolutionary Road.") On Ellesmere, there were no longer alligators and cypress trees, but there were beavers and larch trees and horses and giant camels—and not much ice. The planet was three to four degrees Celsius warmer than it was in the 19th century, before man-made global warming began.
If anything, those numbers understate how different the Pliocene climate was. The tropical sea surface was about as warm as it is now, says Alexey Fedorov of Yale University, but the temperature gradient between the tropics and the poles—which drives the jet streams in the mid-latitudes—was much smaller. The east-west gradient across the Pacific Ocean—which drives the El Niño-La Niña oscillation—was almost nonexistent. In effect, the ocean was locked in a permanent El Niño. Global weather patterns would have been completely different in the Pliocene.
And yet the two main drivers of climate—the level of CO2, and the parameters of Earth's orbit, which determine how much sunlight falls where and at what season—were essentially the same as today. Fedorov calls it the Pliocene Paradox.
Climate scientists are just beginning to crack it, he says. Maybe clouds outside the tropics were darker in the Pliocene, such that they bounced less sunlight back to space. Maybe the warm ocean was stirred by a lot more hurricanes.
Hanging over this academic research is a very nonacademic issue: Could our climate be capable of flipping to a completely different state? "That's the big question—whether CO2 can move us to the Pliocene," says Fedorov.
Rising Seas
Beavers and camels on Ellesmere Island, instead of glaciers, might not be so bad. But there was a lot less ice in general in the Pliocene. That means there was a lot more water in the ocean, which means sea level was a lot higher—how high exactly, no one knows.
"The estimates have been all over the map," Raymo says. They've ranged from 10 meters (33 feet) to 40 meters (131 feet) higher than today. But even the conservative estimate, were it to recur today, would mean flooding land inhabited by a quarter of the U.S. population.
Raised Pliocene shorelines have been identified all over the world. One is the Orangeburg Scarp, a wave-cut terrace that parallels the Atlantic coast of the U.S. from Florida to Virginia. Typically it lies more than a hundred miles inland. In the Pliocene, the Gulf Stream flowed past that terrace, over what is now the coastal plain.
The question is: How much has the sea receded since then, and how much has the land risen? Raymo has been asking that question on Pliocene shores in the U.S., Africa, Antarctica.
Land can rise, she explains, because it is was once depressed by massive ice sheets and is now rebounding. It can also rise because the underlying mantle is a hot, viscous fluid that pushes it up—by different amounts in different places. In Virginia the Orangeburg Scarp rises around 70 meters (220 feet) but in Florida only 30 meters (100 feet) above the current sea level. Yet in the Pliocene it was right at sea level in both places. What was that sea level?
Raymo's best guess at the moment, to be confirmed by further fieldwork and modeling, is that the last time Earth had 400 ppm of CO2 in its atmosphere, sea level was somewhere between 10 meters (33 feet) and 20 meters (66 feet) higher than today. To raise sea level 10 meters today would require melting most of the ice in Greenland and West Antarctica. To raise it 20 meters would require melting both those ice sheets entirely and some of the giant East Antarctic ice sheet too.
Ice-Age Clues
Could that happen at 400 ppm? Evidence from the past half million years suggests it could, given enough time.
Since the Pliocene, glacial periods, during which ice sheets advanced over northern continents, have alternated with interglacial periods like the one we're in today. The timing has been set by orbital variations, but CO2 has amplified their effect. For the past 800,000 years at least, its atmospheric concentration has marched up and down in step with the ice, but in the opposite direction.
In the last interglacial period, around 120,000 years ago, sea level was as much as 8 meters (26 feet) higher than today, Raymo says. In an earlier interglacial known as Stage 11, around 400,000 years ago, "the evidence is very strong that sea level was at least 9 meters higher than today. The ice sheets didn't stick around."
In Stage 11, the sunlight distribution was a little less favorable to ice sheets than it is now. CO2 peaked then at 290 ppm.
"What everything is telling you is that the system is very sensitive," says Raymo. "The threshold for losing the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets is very close to where we are now. Everything in the geologic record says we're very close. You don't need a lot of CO2—you just need a little bit of warming, and it doesn't matter how you get it."
It took between a thousand and a few thousand years, at the end of Stage 11, to melt all or most of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets. The whole interglacial lasted 30,000 years, nearly three times as long as ours has lasted so far. So the warming had a long time to build up. That's the good news.
But at 400 ppm, CO2 is much higher now, and it's still climbing fast. And even if we could stop that rise tomorrow, the planet's temperature would still climb for centuries.
"For me personally that's the scary thing," says Raymo. "We really don't know what we've already committed ourselves to."
Editor's Note: An earlier version of the story was unclear on when the 400 ppm mark was surpassed. NOAA reported today that the mark had been crossed on Thursday, May 10. Scripps originally reported variable data for the day, then confirmed the milestone had been crossed. ||||| Image copyright Noaa Image caption Key measurements are made on top of the Mauna Loa volcano
Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have broken through a symbolic mark.
Daily measurements of CO2 at a US government agency lab on Hawaii have topped 400 parts per million for the first time.
The station, which sits on the Mauna Loa volcano, feeds its numbers into a continuous record of the concentration of the gas stretching back to 1958.
The last time CO2 was regularly above 400ppm was three to five million years ago - before modern humans existed.
Scientists say the climate back then was also considerably warmer than it is today.
Carbon dioxide is regarded as the most important of the manmade greenhouse gases blamed for raising the temperature on the planet over recent decades.
Human sources come principally from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.
In eight to nine years we will probably have seen the last CO2 reading under 400ppm James Butler, Noaa
The usual trend seen at the volcano is for the CO2 concentration to rise in winter months and then to fall back as the northern hemisphere growing season kicks in. Forests and other vegetation pull some of the gas out of the atmosphere.
This means the number can be expected to decline by a few ppm below 400 in the coming weeks. But the long-term trend is upwards.
Carbon by proxy
James Butler is responsible for the Earth System Research Laboratory, a facility on Mauna Loa belonging to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa). Its daily average CO2 concentration figure on Thursday was 400.03.
Dr Butler told BBC News: "Carbon dioxide has some variability on an hourly, daily and weekly basis, so we are not comfortable calling a single number - the lowest we will go is on a daily average, which has happened in this case.
"Mauna Loa and the South Pole observatory are iconic sites as they have been taking CO2 measurements in real time since 1958. Last year, for the first time, all Arctic sites reached 400ppm.
"This is the first time the daily average has passed 400ppm at Mauna Loa."
Analysis Near the summit of the Mauna Loa volcano, the carbon dioxide monitors stand amid one of the world's remotest huddles of scientific instruments. To reach them you have to leave the steamy Hawaii coast and climb through barren lava-fields. At the top, above 11,000ft, the air is thin and the sun piercing. During my visit, I watched rain clouds boiling in the valleys below me. Charles David Keeling chose this otherworldly spot because the air up here is neither industrial nor pristine; it is "well-mixed" which means it can serve as a useful guide to changes in the atmosphere. Despite their global significance, the devices he installed back in 1958 do not look impressive. But he battled bureaucratic objections to fund them and his legacy is the longest continuous record of a gas, linked to much of global warming, that just keeps rising.
The long-term measurements at Mauna Loa were started by a Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientist called Charles Keeling.
In 1958, he found the concentration at the top of the volcano to be around 315ppm (that is 315 molecules of CO2 for every one million molecules in the air). Every year since then, the "Keeling Curve", as it has become known, has squiggled resolutely higher.
Scripps still operates equipment alongside Noaa on the mountain peak.
Its readings have been pushing 400ppm in recent days, and on Thursday recorded a daily average of 399.73.
But Noaa senior scientist Pieter Tans said: "Our measurements (Noaa) are in Coordinated Universal Time, while the Keeling measurements are in local Hawaii time. If you shift the Keeling definition of a day to the same as ours then we do agree almost completely on the measurements." By this definition, the Keeling team's Thursday number would be 400.08ppm.
And Dr Butler added: "Probably next year, or the year after that, the average yearly reading will pass 400pm.
"A couple of years after that, the South Pole will have readings of 400ppm, and in eight to nine years we will probably have seen the last CO2 reading under 400ppm."
To determine CO2 levels before the introduction of modern stations, scientists must use so-called proxy measurements.
These include studying the bubbles of ancient air trapped in Antarctic ice.
One of these can be used to describe CO2 levels over the past 800,000 years. It suggests that CO2 held steady over this longer period at between 200ppm and 300ppm.
British atmospheric physicist Prof Joanna Haigh commented: "In itself, the value 400ppm of CO2 has no particular significance for the physics of the climate system: concentration levels have been in the 300s for so long and now we've passed the 400 mark. However, this does give us the chance to mark the ongoing increase in CO2 concentration and talk about why it's a problem for the climate." | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 28,525 |
Police arrested a 22-year-old man early Saturday morning in connection with the Friday afternoon shooting that injured four people outside Rosemary Anderson High School.
Gang enforcement Det. Brian Sims made the arrest of 22-year-old Lonzo Deshawn Murphy. Murphy was booked into the downtown Portland jail at 6:27 am Saturday.
Murphy is being held without bail on a parole violation for a 2013 robbery conviction.
The 22-year-old was arrested in a car at North Interstate Avenue and Going Street at 1:30 a.m. A handgun was seized during the arrest.
Police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said members of the bureau's special emergency response team served a search warrant at 1:30 a.m. at an apartment in the 200 block of North Killingsworth Street as part of the investigation. The apartment is just 5 blocks east of where the shooting took place just after noon Friday at the alternative high school.
According to court records, Murphy pleaded no contest to one count of second-degree robbery and one count of third-degree assault in June 2013.
Murphy was also convicted of interfering with public transportation and theft of services on Nov. 29, 2012, according to court records. He was sentenced to bench probation and ordered to complete an anger-management course.
Records show that Murphy also violated his probation in June 2013.
Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact Det. Brad Clifton at 503-823-2087, or via email, [email protected]; or Det. Todd Gradwahl at 503-823-2056, or via email [email protected].
-- Stuart Tomlinson ||||| This photo provided by Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office shows Lonzo Murphy. Portland police have arrested Murphy in connection with a shooting outside an alternative high school. Police said Saturday,... (Associated Press)
Portland Mayor Charlie Hales arrives near Rosemary Anderson High School, where a shooting took place Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the high school Friday in what... (Associated Press)
Two unidentified students discuss the shooting as they wait outside Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high... (Associated Press)
Parents and teachers gather outside Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the alternative school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside... (Associated Press)
A group of students leave Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday in what is believed to be a... (Associated Press)
Officials speak to people at the scene of a shooting at Rosemary Anderson High School in North Portland Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the high school Friday in... (Associated Press)
Ralena Gaska, left, and her mother Deinda Gaska leave Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday... (Associated Press)
A group gathers at the entrance of Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the alternative school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside... (Associated Press)
A student is evacuated by police from Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday in what is believed... (Associated Press)
Police guide students from Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school... (Associated Press)
Family members greet their children who were escorted out of Rosemary Anderson High School in North Portland after a shooting on Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside a U.S. high... (Associated Press) | – A "person of interest" arrested after a school shooting yesterday in Portland, Oregon, has ties to gangs, police say. Authorities haven't said whether Lonzo Murphy, 22, was the gunman in the attack, which left three hospitalized, the AP reports. Two of those hurt are also linked to gangs, police note. Officials are still seeking two other people in the Rosemary Anderson High School shooting, they say. Murphy has been detained without bail after violating parole following a robbery conviction, the Oregonian reports. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Police arrested a 22-year-old man early Saturday morning in connection with the Friday afternoon shooting that injured four people outside Rosemary Anderson High School.
Gang enforcement Det. Brian Sims made the arrest of 22-year-old Lonzo Deshawn Murphy. Murphy was booked into the downtown Portland jail at 6:27 am Saturday.
Murphy is being held without bail on a parole violation for a 2013 robbery conviction.
The 22-year-old was arrested in a car at North Interstate Avenue and Going Street at 1:30 a.m. A handgun was seized during the arrest.
Police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said members of the bureau's special emergency response team served a search warrant at 1:30 a.m. at an apartment in the 200 block of North Killingsworth Street as part of the investigation. The apartment is just 5 blocks east of where the shooting took place just after noon Friday at the alternative high school.
According to court records, Murphy pleaded no contest to one count of second-degree robbery and one count of third-degree assault in June 2013.
Murphy was also convicted of interfering with public transportation and theft of services on Nov. 29, 2012, according to court records. He was sentenced to bench probation and ordered to complete an anger-management course.
Records show that Murphy also violated his probation in June 2013.
Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact Det. Brad Clifton at 503-823-2087, or via email, [email protected]; or Det. Todd Gradwahl at 503-823-2056, or via email [email protected].
-- Stuart Tomlinson ||||| This photo provided by Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office shows Lonzo Murphy. Portland police have arrested Murphy in connection with a shooting outside an alternative high school. Police said Saturday,... (Associated Press)
Portland Mayor Charlie Hales arrives near Rosemary Anderson High School, where a shooting took place Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the high school Friday in what... (Associated Press)
Two unidentified students discuss the shooting as they wait outside Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high... (Associated Press)
Parents and teachers gather outside Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the alternative school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside... (Associated Press)
A group of students leave Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday in what is believed to be a... (Associated Press)
Officials speak to people at the scene of a shooting at Rosemary Anderson High School in North Portland Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the high school Friday in... (Associated Press)
Ralena Gaska, left, and her mother Deinda Gaska leave Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday... (Associated Press)
A group gathers at the entrance of Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the alternative school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside... (Associated Press)
A student is evacuated by police from Rosemary Anderson High School in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school Friday in what is believed... (Associated Press)
Police guide students from Rosemary Anderson High School following a shooting at the school, in Portland, Ore., Friday Dec., 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside the U.S. high school... (Associated Press)
Family members greet their children who were escorted out of Rosemary Anderson High School in North Portland after a shooting on Dec. 12, 2014. A shooter wounded two boys and a girl outside a U.S. high... (Associated Press) | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 29,382 |
Austrian mountain police officer Bernhard Magritzer said the man's father had alerted German police after his son had not returned from his climb last Saturday and he could not reach him on his mobile phone - which, the father said, was unusual.
The man has not been identified due to Austrian privacy laws.
Winter-like conditions and a danger of avalanches made the rescue attempt dangerous on the Dachstein, 90 kilometers (55 miles) south east of Salzburg. It is the second highest mountain in the Northern Limestone Alps.
Police found the alpinist's car near a lake below the mountain late on Wednesday night. The trapped man was able to make a call from his mobile phone but the signal broke off after a few seconds.
"My colleague heard someone breathing heavily and reacted in the right way," Magritzer said.
The rescue service switched communications to text messages and the man was able to explain his situation and give an exact location. "We would not have found him otherwise," Magritzer said. A three-hour search at 2,050 meters altitude in the middle of the night followed.
At about 4 a.m. the man was rescued from his 30-meter-deep hole and flown by emergency helicopter to the Wels clinic where he was reported to have only slight injuries to a shoulder and ankle.
The Dachstein's northern glaciers
Thirty years ago - same time, same place
Austrian television had on Wednesday evening shown a program about the 1985 rescue of a US soldier who was also found alive, also in November, but after 19 days on the Dachstein. He had broken his leg two days into his climb over a glacier.
Kenneth Cichowich from Buffalo NY, who was deputy chief of staff for logistics at the US Army European headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany at the time, gave credit to his mountain survival training.
He spent six days eating snow before he was rescued by two men lowered from a helicopter who asked his name. "Then they said: 'You're the man we're looking for,'" Cichowich said at the time. "I was never so happy or so surprised."
jm/kms (AP, dpa) | – Austrian emergency teams have rescued a German mountaineer who spent five days in a deep glacier crevice after slipping. Officials say the man was found in the 100-foot-deep gap Thursday after he succeeded in making an emergency call from his cellphone following numerous failed attempts because of poor reception, the AP reports. The man had been reported missing by his father Saturday on the rugged Dachstein range southeast of the city of Salzburg. State broadcaster ORF cites an alpine rescue official as saying the man is only "relatively lightly hurt" considering the drop, with shoulder and foot injuries. Deutsche Welle, which notes the poor weather and risk of avalanches made rescuers' efforts more difficult, documents how police first found the man's car near a lake at the foot of the mountain Wednesday night. He'd been trying to make calls from his phone, and finally one call went through, though only for a few seconds. A quick-thinking member of the rescue team switched communications over to texting, at which point the man was able to relay to them where he was. "We would not have found him otherwise," another rescuer says. The man was flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital after the early morning rescue. He's not being identified due to Austrian privacy laws. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Austrian mountain police officer Bernhard Magritzer said the man's father had alerted German police after his son had not returned from his climb last Saturday and he could not reach him on his mobile phone - which, the father said, was unusual.
The man has not been identified due to Austrian privacy laws.
Winter-like conditions and a danger of avalanches made the rescue attempt dangerous on the Dachstein, 90 kilometers (55 miles) south east of Salzburg. It is the second highest mountain in the Northern Limestone Alps.
Police found the alpinist's car near a lake below the mountain late on Wednesday night. The trapped man was able to make a call from his mobile phone but the signal broke off after a few seconds.
"My colleague heard someone breathing heavily and reacted in the right way," Magritzer said.
The rescue service switched communications to text messages and the man was able to explain his situation and give an exact location. "We would not have found him otherwise," Magritzer said. A three-hour search at 2,050 meters altitude in the middle of the night followed.
At about 4 a.m. the man was rescued from his 30-meter-deep hole and flown by emergency helicopter to the Wels clinic where he was reported to have only slight injuries to a shoulder and ankle.
The Dachstein's northern glaciers
Thirty years ago - same time, same place
Austrian television had on Wednesday evening shown a program about the 1985 rescue of a US soldier who was also found alive, also in November, but after 19 days on the Dachstein. He had broken his leg two days into his climb over a glacier.
Kenneth Cichowich from Buffalo NY, who was deputy chief of staff for logistics at the US Army European headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany at the time, gave credit to his mountain survival training.
He spent six days eating snow before he was rescued by two men lowered from a helicopter who asked his name. "Then they said: 'You're the man we're looking for,'" Cichowich said at the time. "I was never so happy or so surprised."
jm/kms (AP, dpa) | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,785 |
The Rev. Grant Storms, the Christian fundamentalist known for his bullhorn protests of the Southern Decadence festival in the French Quarter, was arrested on a charge of masturbating at a Metairie park Friday afternoon.
Storms, 53, of 2304 Green Acres Road in Metairie, was taken into custody at Lafreniere Park after two women reported seeing him masturbating in the driver's seat of his van, which was parked near the carousel and playground, a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office report said.
The first woman told deputies she was taking her children to the playground and parked next to the van at about noon. As she was walking around her own vehicle, she noticed the van windows were down and the occupant was "looking at the playground area that contained children playing, with his zipper down...," the report said. The woman noted that he was masturbating and quickly ushered her children out of her car.
She told a second woman, who walked to the van and also spotted the man masturbating, the report said. The second witness told deputies that the driver saw her and tried to conceal the zipper area of his pants with his hand.
The two women flagged down a park employee who notified the Sheriff's Office. The employee detained the man, later identified as Storms, until deputies arrived.
Storms told deputies he was having lunch at the park when he decided to urinate using a bottle instead of the restroom, the report said. (Read PDF of the arrest report.)
Deputies booked him with obscenity. Bond was set at $5,000, but he was released from the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on Sunday because of jail crowding.
Storms could not be reached for comment on Monday.
A self-styled "Christian patriot," Storms led a small West Bank congregation called The Reformer Church and for 10 years hosted "The Reformer Radio Show" on WSHO. Storms has railed against the Roman Catholic church, calling it "satanic" and "demonic."
He is especially known for arming followers with bullhorns, Bibles and picket signs to protest Southern Decadence, the three-day gay festival held in the French Quarter during Labor Day weekend. Storms grabbed national attention in 2003 with his failed attempts to shut down what Southern Decadence organizer Chuck Robinson called a peaceful festival that celebrates gay and alternative lifestyles.
"He's done everything through the years to disturb that and try to make it into something nasty that it's not," Robinson said. "If the Rev. Storms is caught doing that in our city, it is ludicrous and heinous that he would have the nerve to complain about any kind of sexuality."
The amplified antics of Storms and his followers prompted the New Orleans City Council to adopt ordinances banning the use of megaphones and other such devices in the French Quarter, though the law requires a certain decibel meter reading before it can be enforced.
Earl Bernhardt, co-owner of The Tropical Isles and two other Bourbon Street clubs, got a temporary restraining order against Storms during Southern Decadence 2004, then went bullhorn to bullhorn with him when that didn't work.
"He's, in my opinion, just repulsive," Bernhardt said Monday. "I'm not surprised at all that he got caught doing that. Serves him right. He'll be out of our hair down here."
. . . . . . .
Michelle Hunter can be reached at [email protected] or 504.883.7054.
||||| Do you believe LSU has as good a chance at winning a championship with Jarrett Lee as quarterback? no yes View Results ADVERTISEMENT
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Local pastor charged with masturbating in park
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office confirms that deputies arrested 53-year-old Grant Storms on a charge of obscenity, after two witnesses told cops they saw Storms masturbating in a van at Lafreniere Park.
JPSO officials confirm that Storms is the same pastor who frequents the French Quarter to publicly rail against what he perceives as sinful behavior, such as the annual Decadence Festival.
Storms has been a primary voice of opposition to "Decadence Fest," an event that draws tens of thousands of gays and lesbians to the city for a weekend-long party in the Quarter.
Police say two women told park workers they saw Storms masturbating inside a van in the park near the carousel.
Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Larry Dyess told WWL First News that Storms origianlly told responding officers that he was tired from cutting grass and was urinating into a bottle inside of his van.
However, Dyess says that in further interviews with detectives, Storms admitted to masturbating inside the van.
Although Storms' van was parked in close proximity to the carosel and children's playground, Dyess could not confirm if Storms was watching children during the alleged incident.
"I believe that there was some people in the park, but I'm not sure if the presence of the children had a direct correlation to the incident," Dyess said.
According to Dyess, Storms was released from jail on Sunday due to overcrowding.
Details of the arrest surfaced today, following the Friday arrest of Storms.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office confirms that deputies arrested 53-year-old Grant Storms on a charge of obscenity, after two witnesses told cops they saw Storms masturbating in a van at Lafreniere Park.JPSO officials confirm that Storms is the same pastor who frequents the French Quarter to publicly rail against what he perceives as sinful behavior, such as the annual Decadence Festival.Storms has been a primary voice of opposition to "Decadence Fest," an event that draws tens of thousands of gays and lesbians to the city for a weekend-long party in the Quarter.Police say two women told park workers they saw Storms masturbating inside a van in the park near the carousel.Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Larry Dyess told WWL First News that Storms origianlly told responding officers that he was tired from cutting grass and was urinating into a bottle inside of his van.However, Dyess says that in further interviews with detectives, Storms admitted to masturbating inside the van.Although Storms' van was parked in close proximity to the carosel and children's playground, Dyess could not confirm if Storms was watching children during the alleged incident."I believe that there was some people in the park, but I'm not sure if the presence of the children had a direct correlation to the incident," Dyess said.According to Dyess, Storms was released from jail on Sunday due to overcrowding.Details of the arrest surfaced today, following the Friday arrest of Storms.
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| – A bullhorn-toting New Orleans pastor known for disrupting the city's annual gay festival by loudly denouncing "sinful behavior" has been arrested and charged with masturbating in a public park. Christian fundamentalist Grant Storms was taken into custody after two women complained that he was masturbating in his van while staring at children in a playground, the Times-Picayune reports. Storms initially claimed he was merely urinating into a bottle but later admitted to masturbating, according to WWLTV. New Orleans adopted ordinances banning the use of megaphones in the French Quarter after Storms and his followers repeatedly attempted to shut down the Southern Decadence festival. "He's done everything through the years to disturb that and try to make it into something nasty that it's not," a festival organizer says. "If the Rev. Storms is caught doing that in our city, it is ludicrous and heinous that he would have the nerve to complain about any kind of sexuality." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.The Rev. Grant Storms, the Christian fundamentalist known for his bullhorn protests of the Southern Decadence festival in the French Quarter, was arrested on a charge of masturbating at a Metairie park Friday afternoon.
Storms, 53, of 2304 Green Acres Road in Metairie, was taken into custody at Lafreniere Park after two women reported seeing him masturbating in the driver's seat of his van, which was parked near the carousel and playground, a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office report said.
The first woman told deputies she was taking her children to the playground and parked next to the van at about noon. As she was walking around her own vehicle, she noticed the van windows were down and the occupant was "looking at the playground area that contained children playing, with his zipper down...," the report said. The woman noted that he was masturbating and quickly ushered her children out of her car.
She told a second woman, who walked to the van and also spotted the man masturbating, the report said. The second witness told deputies that the driver saw her and tried to conceal the zipper area of his pants with his hand.
The two women flagged down a park employee who notified the Sheriff's Office. The employee detained the man, later identified as Storms, until deputies arrived.
Storms told deputies he was having lunch at the park when he decided to urinate using a bottle instead of the restroom, the report said. (Read PDF of the arrest report.)
Deputies booked him with obscenity. Bond was set at $5,000, but he was released from the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on Sunday because of jail crowding.
Storms could not be reached for comment on Monday.
A self-styled "Christian patriot," Storms led a small West Bank congregation called The Reformer Church and for 10 years hosted "The Reformer Radio Show" on WSHO. Storms has railed against the Roman Catholic church, calling it "satanic" and "demonic."
He is especially known for arming followers with bullhorns, Bibles and picket signs to protest Southern Decadence, the three-day gay festival held in the French Quarter during Labor Day weekend. Storms grabbed national attention in 2003 with his failed attempts to shut down what Southern Decadence organizer Chuck Robinson called a peaceful festival that celebrates gay and alternative lifestyles.
"He's done everything through the years to disturb that and try to make it into something nasty that it's not," Robinson said. "If the Rev. Storms is caught doing that in our city, it is ludicrous and heinous that he would have the nerve to complain about any kind of sexuality."
The amplified antics of Storms and his followers prompted the New Orleans City Council to adopt ordinances banning the use of megaphones and other such devices in the French Quarter, though the law requires a certain decibel meter reading before it can be enforced.
Earl Bernhardt, co-owner of The Tropical Isles and two other Bourbon Street clubs, got a temporary restraining order against Storms during Southern Decadence 2004, then went bullhorn to bullhorn with him when that didn't work.
"He's, in my opinion, just repulsive," Bernhardt said Monday. "I'm not surprised at all that he got caught doing that. Serves him right. He'll be out of our hair down here."
. . . . . . .
Michelle Hunter can be reached at [email protected] or 504.883.7054.
||||| Do you believe LSU has as good a chance at winning a championship with Jarrett Lee as quarterback? no yes View Results ADVERTISEMENT
LSU's Jordan Jefferson & Josh Johns booked, have bonded out of jail. Details>>> Posted 1 day 17 hrs 17 mins ago Tiger fans - sound off on Jefferson/Johns arrests & suspensions>>> Posted 17 hrs 36 mins ago E-Mail Print Follow Follow Email
Local pastor charged with masturbating in park
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office confirms that deputies arrested 53-year-old Grant Storms on a charge of obscenity, after two witnesses told cops they saw Storms masturbating in a van at Lafreniere Park.
JPSO officials confirm that Storms is the same pastor who frequents the French Quarter to publicly rail against what he perceives as sinful behavior, such as the annual Decadence Festival.
Storms has been a primary voice of opposition to "Decadence Fest," an event that draws tens of thousands of gays and lesbians to the city for a weekend-long party in the Quarter.
Police say two women told park workers they saw Storms masturbating inside a van in the park near the carousel.
Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Larry Dyess told WWL First News that Storms origianlly told responding officers that he was tired from cutting grass and was urinating into a bottle inside of his van.
However, Dyess says that in further interviews with detectives, Storms admitted to masturbating inside the van.
Although Storms' van was parked in close proximity to the carosel and children's playground, Dyess could not confirm if Storms was watching children during the alleged incident.
"I believe that there was some people in the park, but I'm not sure if the presence of the children had a direct correlation to the incident," Dyess said.
According to Dyess, Storms was released from jail on Sunday due to overcrowding.
Details of the arrest surfaced today, following the Friday arrest of Storms.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office confirms that deputies arrested 53-year-old Grant Storms on a charge of obscenity, after two witnesses told cops they saw Storms masturbating in a van at Lafreniere Park.JPSO officials confirm that Storms is the same pastor who frequents the French Quarter to publicly rail against what he perceives as sinful behavior, such as the annual Decadence Festival.Storms has been a primary voice of opposition to "Decadence Fest," an event that draws tens of thousands of gays and lesbians to the city for a weekend-long party in the Quarter.Police say two women told park workers they saw Storms masturbating inside a van in the park near the carousel.Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Larry Dyess told WWL First News that Storms origianlly told responding officers that he was tired from cutting grass and was urinating into a bottle inside of his van.However, Dyess says that in further interviews with detectives, Storms admitted to masturbating inside the van.Although Storms' van was parked in close proximity to the carosel and children's playground, Dyess could not confirm if Storms was watching children during the alleged incident."I believe that there was some people in the park, but I'm not sure if the presence of the children had a direct correlation to the incident," Dyess said.According to Dyess, Storms was released from jail on Sunday due to overcrowding.Details of the arrest surfaced today, following the Friday arrest of Storms.
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| According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 2,530 |
Syrian residents carry the body of activist Khaled Hamdan during his funeral procession in Qaboun district, Damascus June 4, 2012.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebels said on Monday they were no longer bound by a U.N.-backed truce because President Bashar al-Assad had failed to observe their Friday deadline to implement the ceasefire and had only attacked government forces to defend "our people".
A Syrian opposition watchdog appeared to underline the rebel statement by saying at least 80 Syrian troops were killed in a surge of attacks at the weekend.
International mediator Kofi Annan, due to brief the U.N. Security Council and General Assembly on Thursday, urged major powers to ensure his peace plan was implemented by both sides as it was the "only option on the table". Russia has blunted Western efforts to condemn Assad and push him from power.
The May 25 massacre of at least 108 people, nearly half of them children, in the Houla area of Homs province dealt a possibly fatal blow to Annan's proposed ceasefire, which was supposed to take effect on April 12 but never did.
"We have decided to end our commitment to this (ceasefire)," said Free Syrian Army spokesman Major Sami al-Kurdi. "We have resumed our attacks but we are doing defensive attacks which means we are only attacking checkpoints in the cities."
Kurdi said a U.N. observer mission in Syria should be turned into a "peace-enforcing mission", or that the world should impose a no-fly zone and a buffer zone to help bring Assad down.
Such ideas have gained little traction previously with Western powers, let alone their Russian and Chinese critics.
The latest violence and a defiant speech by Assad on Sunday raised questions about how long Annan can pursue his threadbare peace plan on behalf of the United Nations and the Arab League.
But U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told Reuters Annan's mission "remains central" to resolving the Syrian crisis. Annan has inserted 300 U.N. observers into Syria to verify the non-existent truce.
Annan himself "feels that perhaps the time has come, or is approaching, when the international community has to review ... the crisis in Syria and decide what needs to be done to ensure implementation of the six-point plan," his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told Reuters Television in Geneva.
"(Annan) and many others have warned of Syria descending into a bloody, protracted sectarian civil war. We may be there already," said Fawzi.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said local doctors had confirmed the names of 80 government troops killed by the rebels.
Insurgents told the group they had killed more than 100 soldiers and destroyed some tanks in clashes across Syria, including Damascus and Idlib province in the northwest.
Syria's state news agency reported the burial on Monday of 30 members of government forces killed by rebels.
A Syrian troop pullback was at the top of Annan's six-point plan to halt hostilities, allow peaceful protests, supply humanitarian aid and start a political transition in a country controlled by the Assad family with an iron fist for 42 years.
RUSSIA, CHINA ADAMANT
"The Annan mission is essentially dead, and of course most Western powers admit that," said Michael Stephens, researcher at the Royal United Services Institute's branch in Qatar.
"Houla changed the game completely in terms of what people were willing to accept and what they were not."
Russia and China, wary of any Western-led military intervention in Syria, say Annan's plan is the only way forward, but have twice blocked U.N. Security Council resolutions which would have condemned Damascus and perhaps led to sanctions.
At a summit with EU leaders on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin skirted the issue in public comments.
Western powers have no appetite for Libya-style military action, but have provided no alternative to Annan's efforts.
Assad has rebuffed criticism of the carnage in his country. "When a surgeon performs an operation to treat a wound, do we say to him: 'Your hands are covered in blood'?" he asked in his speech on Sunday. "Or do we thank him for saving the patient?"
Ban, speaking on the sidelines of an Islamic Development Bank meeting in Jeddah, urged Assad's government to stop the violence immediately "in the name of humanity" and to start a political dialogue with his foes.
"We are deeply troubled by what has been going on," the U.N. chief told Reuters. "Annan's plan remains central to the resolution of the Syrian crisis."
U.N. diplomats in New York say it is not clear whether the Security Council will renew the increasingly risky U.N. observer mission to Syria when its 90-day mandate expires around July 20.
Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby has asked the Security Council to expand the size and beef up the force's mandate, but one diplomat said council members saw many risks involved in that idea, which the Syrians were anyway unlikely to accept.
COAXING MOSCOW
U.S. officials do not appear ready to give up on Annan's Syria mission, instead hoping that Russia, Assad's staunchest backer among major powers, can be coaxed into discussing a diplomatic solution that might lead to his departure.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke by telephone to Annan while in Stockholm on Monday, briefing him on her efforts to engage Russia on a "political transition" to remove Assad from power, a senior U.S. State Department official said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Clinton had invited Annan to Washington for talks on Friday and that Clinton expected to meet senior officials from Europe and the Middle East to discuss Syria on Wednesday in Istanbul.
The latest flare-up in violence can only intensify alarm that Syria is sliding deeper into a civil war envenomed by sectarian rancour between Assad's minority Alawites and the Sunni Muslim majority.
France's foreign minister said Syria's troubles must not be allowed to spread to its neighbours, such as Lebanon where 13 people were killed last week in Sunni-Alawite clashes.
"France has an attachment to Lebanon and we very strongly wish to avoid a situation where the people of Lebanon suffer anew from what is happening Syria," Laurent Fabius said after meeting his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle in Berlin.
Both said their governments were urging Russia to step up pressure on Syria to comply with Annan's plan.
Syria's uprising, inspired by Arab revolts elsewhere, began with peaceful protests, but the United Nations says Assad's forces have killed more than 10,000 people since March, 2011.
Damascus accuses armed "terrorists" of killing more than 2,600 soldiers and other members of the security forces.
Moscow has broadly backed Assad's narrative, highlighting rebel violence, criticising sanctions and saying political decisions cannot not be imposed from outside.
China's top state newspaper, the People's Daily, said that any Western-backed military intervention would unleash even bloodier chaos, and that abandoning Annan's plan could push Syria into the "abyss" of full-scale war.
(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny in Beirut, Asma Alsharif in Jeddah, Denis Dyomkin in St Petersburg, John O'Donnell in Brussels, Chris Buckley in Beijing, Arshad Mohammed in Stockholm and Mahmoud Habboush in Dubai; Writing by Ralph Gowling; Editing by Giles Elgood) ||||| BEIRUT Syrian rebels said on Monday they were no longer bound by a U.N.-backed truce because President Bashar al-Assad had failed to observe their Friday deadline to implement the ceasefire and had only attacked government forces to defend "our people".
A Syrian opposition watchdog appeared to underline the rebel statement by saying at least 80 Syrian troops were killed in a surge of attacks at the weekend.
International mediator Kofi Annan, due to brief the U.N. Security Council and General Assembly on Thursday, urged major powers to ensure his peace plan was implemented by both sides as it was the "only option on the table". Russia has blunted Western efforts to condemn Assad and push him from power.
The May 25 massacre of at least 108 people, nearly half of them children, in the Houla area of Homs province dealt a possibly fatal blow to Annan's proposed ceasefire, which was supposed to take effect on April 12 but never did.
"We have decided to end our commitment to this (ceasefire)," said Free Syrian Army spokesman Major Sami al-Kurdi. "We have resumed our attacks but we are doing defensive attacks which means we are only attacking checkpoints in the cities."
Kurdi said a U.N. observer mission in Syria should be turned into a "peace-enforcing mission", or that the world should impose a no-fly zone and a buffer zone to help bring Assad down.
Such ideas have gained little traction previously with Western powers, let alone their Russian and Chinese critics.
The latest violence and a defiant speech by Assad on Sunday raised questions about how long Annan can pursue his threadbare peace plan on behalf of the United Nations and the Arab League.
But U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told Reuters Annan's mission "remains central" to resolving the Syrian crisis. Annan has inserted 300 U.N. observers into Syria to verify the non-existent truce.
Annan himself "feels that perhaps the time has come, or is approaching, when the international community has to review ... the crisis in Syria and decide what needs to be done to ensure implementation of the six-point plan," his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told Reuters Television in Geneva.
"(Annan) and many others have warned of Syria descending into a bloody, protracted sectarian civil war. We may be there already," said Fawzi.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said local doctors had confirmed the names of 80 government troops killed by the rebels.
Insurgents told the group they had killed more than 100 soldiers and destroyed some tanks in clashes across Syria, including Damascus and Idlib province in the northwest.
Syria's state news agency reported the burial on Monday of 30 members of government forces killed by rebels.
A Syrian troop pullback was at the top of Annan's six-point plan to halt hostilities, allow peaceful protests, supply humanitarian aid and start a political transition in a country controlled by the Assad family with an iron fist for 42 years.
RUSSIA, CHINA ADAMANT
"The Annan mission is essentially dead, and of course most Western powers admit that," said Michael Stephens, researcher at the Royal United Services Institute's branch in Qatar.
"Houla changed the game completely in terms of what people were willing to accept and what they were not."
Russia and China, wary of any Western-led military intervention in Syria, say Annan's plan is the only way forward, but have twice blocked U.N. Security Council resolutions which would have condemned Damascus and perhaps led to sanctions.
At a summit with EU leaders on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin skirted the issue in public comments.
Western powers have no appetite for Libya-style military action, but have provided no alternative to Annan's efforts.
Assad has rebuffed criticism of the carnage in his country. "When a surgeon performs an operation to treat a wound, do we say to him: 'Your hands are covered in blood'?" he asked in his speech on Sunday. "Or do we thank him for saving the patient?"
Ban, speaking on the sidelines of an Islamic Development Bank meeting in Jeddah, urged Assad's government to stop the violence immediately "in the name of humanity" and to start a political dialogue with his foes.
"We are deeply troubled by what has been going on," the U.N. chief told Reuters. "Annan's plan remains central to the resolution of the Syrian crisis."
U.N. diplomats in New York say it is not clear whether the Security Council will renew the increasingly risky U.N. observer mission to Syria when its 90-day mandate expires around July 20.
Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby has asked the Security Council to expand the size and beef up the force's mandate, but one diplomat said council members saw many risks involved in that idea, which the Syrians were anyway unlikely to accept.
COAXING MOSCOW
U.S. officials do not appear ready to give up on Annan's Syria mission, instead hoping that Russia, Assad's staunchest backer among major powers, can be coaxed into discussing a diplomatic solution that might lead to his departure.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke by telephone to Annan while in Stockholm on Monday, briefing him on her efforts to engage Russia on a "political transition" to remove Assad from power, a senior U.S. State Department official said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Clinton had invited Annan to Washington for talks on Friday and that Clinton expected to meet senior officials from Europe and the Middle East to discuss Syria on Wednesday in Istanbul.
The latest flare-up in violence can only intensify alarm that Syria is sliding deeper into a civil war envenomed by sectarian rancor between Assad's minority Alawites and the Sunni Muslim majority.
France's foreign minister said Syria's troubles must not be allowed to spread to its neighbors, such as Lebanon where 13 people were killed last week in Sunni-Alawite clashes.
"France has an attachment to Lebanon and we very strongly wish to avoid a situation where the people of Lebanon suffer anew from what is happening Syria," Laurent Fabius said after meeting his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle in Berlin.
Both said their governments were urging Russia to step up pressure on Syria to comply with Annan's plan.
Syria's uprising, inspired by Arab revolts elsewhere, began with peaceful protests, but the United Nations says Assad's forces have killed more than 10,000 people since March, 2011.
Damascus accuses armed "terrorists" of killing more than 2,600 soldiers and other members of the security forces.
Moscow has broadly backed Assad's narrative, highlighting rebel violence, criticizing sanctions and saying political decisions cannot not be imposed from outside.
China's top state newspaper, the People's Daily, said that any Western-backed military intervention would unleash even bloodier chaos, and that abandoning Annan's plan could push Syria into the "abyss" of full-scale war.
(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny in Beirut, Asma Alsharif in Jeddah, Denis Dyomkin in St Petersburg, John O'Donnell in Brussels, Chris Buckley in Beijing, Arshad Mohammed in Stockholm and Mahmoud Habboush in Dubai; Writing by Ralph Gowling; Editing by Giles Elgood) | – Syrian rebels killed 80 government soldiers this weekend, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said today, after the regime ignored its Friday deadline to implement Kofi Annan's peace plan. A rebel spokesman told Reuters that they had "decided to end our commitment" to Annan's plan. "We began defending our people." He said the UN observation mission in the country should become a "peace enforcing mission." At least 19 civilians were killed in yesterday's violence, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Bashar al-Assad further clouded hopes of peace in his defiant speech yesterday. "When a surgeon performs an operation to treat a wound, do we say to him: 'Your hands are covered in blood'? Or do we thank him for saving the patient?" the dictator asked. One analyst tells Reuters that "the Annan mission is essentially dead," and that most Western powers know it. Yet Vladimir Putin and EU leaders emerged from a summit in St. Petersburg saying that the Annan plan was the best way forward, the BBC reports. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Syrian residents carry the body of activist Khaled Hamdan during his funeral procession in Qaboun district, Damascus June 4, 2012.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebels said on Monday they were no longer bound by a U.N.-backed truce because President Bashar al-Assad had failed to observe their Friday deadline to implement the ceasefire and had only attacked government forces to defend "our people".
A Syrian opposition watchdog appeared to underline the rebel statement by saying at least 80 Syrian troops were killed in a surge of attacks at the weekend.
International mediator Kofi Annan, due to brief the U.N. Security Council and General Assembly on Thursday, urged major powers to ensure his peace plan was implemented by both sides as it was the "only option on the table". Russia has blunted Western efforts to condemn Assad and push him from power.
The May 25 massacre of at least 108 people, nearly half of them children, in the Houla area of Homs province dealt a possibly fatal blow to Annan's proposed ceasefire, which was supposed to take effect on April 12 but never did.
"We have decided to end our commitment to this (ceasefire)," said Free Syrian Army spokesman Major Sami al-Kurdi. "We have resumed our attacks but we are doing defensive attacks which means we are only attacking checkpoints in the cities."
Kurdi said a U.N. observer mission in Syria should be turned into a "peace-enforcing mission", or that the world should impose a no-fly zone and a buffer zone to help bring Assad down.
Such ideas have gained little traction previously with Western powers, let alone their Russian and Chinese critics.
The latest violence and a defiant speech by Assad on Sunday raised questions about how long Annan can pursue his threadbare peace plan on behalf of the United Nations and the Arab League.
But U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told Reuters Annan's mission "remains central" to resolving the Syrian crisis. Annan has inserted 300 U.N. observers into Syria to verify the non-existent truce.
Annan himself "feels that perhaps the time has come, or is approaching, when the international community has to review ... the crisis in Syria and decide what needs to be done to ensure implementation of the six-point plan," his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told Reuters Television in Geneva.
"(Annan) and many others have warned of Syria descending into a bloody, protracted sectarian civil war. We may be there already," said Fawzi.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said local doctors had confirmed the names of 80 government troops killed by the rebels.
Insurgents told the group they had killed more than 100 soldiers and destroyed some tanks in clashes across Syria, including Damascus and Idlib province in the northwest.
Syria's state news agency reported the burial on Monday of 30 members of government forces killed by rebels.
A Syrian troop pullback was at the top of Annan's six-point plan to halt hostilities, allow peaceful protests, supply humanitarian aid and start a political transition in a country controlled by the Assad family with an iron fist for 42 years.
RUSSIA, CHINA ADAMANT
"The Annan mission is essentially dead, and of course most Western powers admit that," said Michael Stephens, researcher at the Royal United Services Institute's branch in Qatar.
"Houla changed the game completely in terms of what people were willing to accept and what they were not."
Russia and China, wary of any Western-led military intervention in Syria, say Annan's plan is the only way forward, but have twice blocked U.N. Security Council resolutions which would have condemned Damascus and perhaps led to sanctions.
At a summit with EU leaders on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin skirted the issue in public comments.
Western powers have no appetite for Libya-style military action, but have provided no alternative to Annan's efforts.
Assad has rebuffed criticism of the carnage in his country. "When a surgeon performs an operation to treat a wound, do we say to him: 'Your hands are covered in blood'?" he asked in his speech on Sunday. "Or do we thank him for saving the patient?"
Ban, speaking on the sidelines of an Islamic Development Bank meeting in Jeddah, urged Assad's government to stop the violence immediately "in the name of humanity" and to start a political dialogue with his foes.
"We are deeply troubled by what has been going on," the U.N. chief told Reuters. "Annan's plan remains central to the resolution of the Syrian crisis."
U.N. diplomats in New York say it is not clear whether the Security Council will renew the increasingly risky U.N. observer mission to Syria when its 90-day mandate expires around July 20.
Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby has asked the Security Council to expand the size and beef up the force's mandate, but one diplomat said council members saw many risks involved in that idea, which the Syrians were anyway unlikely to accept.
COAXING MOSCOW
U.S. officials do not appear ready to give up on Annan's Syria mission, instead hoping that Russia, Assad's staunchest backer among major powers, can be coaxed into discussing a diplomatic solution that might lead to his departure.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke by telephone to Annan while in Stockholm on Monday, briefing him on her efforts to engage Russia on a "political transition" to remove Assad from power, a senior U.S. State Department official said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Clinton had invited Annan to Washington for talks on Friday and that Clinton expected to meet senior officials from Europe and the Middle East to discuss Syria on Wednesday in Istanbul.
The latest flare-up in violence can only intensify alarm that Syria is sliding deeper into a civil war envenomed by sectarian rancour between Assad's minority Alawites and the Sunni Muslim majority.
France's foreign minister said Syria's troubles must not be allowed to spread to its neighbours, such as Lebanon where 13 people were killed last week in Sunni-Alawite clashes.
"France has an attachment to Lebanon and we very strongly wish to avoid a situation where the people of Lebanon suffer anew from what is happening Syria," Laurent Fabius said after meeting his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle in Berlin.
Both said their governments were urging Russia to step up pressure on Syria to comply with Annan's plan.
Syria's uprising, inspired by Arab revolts elsewhere, began with peaceful protests, but the United Nations says Assad's forces have killed more than 10,000 people since March, 2011.
Damascus accuses armed "terrorists" of killing more than 2,600 soldiers and other members of the security forces.
Moscow has broadly backed Assad's narrative, highlighting rebel violence, criticising sanctions and saying political decisions cannot not be imposed from outside.
China's top state newspaper, the People's Daily, said that any Western-backed military intervention would unleash even bloodier chaos, and that abandoning Annan's plan could push Syria into the "abyss" of full-scale war.
(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny in Beirut, Asma Alsharif in Jeddah, Denis Dyomkin in St Petersburg, John O'Donnell in Brussels, Chris Buckley in Beijing, Arshad Mohammed in Stockholm and Mahmoud Habboush in Dubai; Writing by Ralph Gowling; Editing by Giles Elgood) ||||| BEIRUT Syrian rebels said on Monday they were no longer bound by a U.N.-backed truce because President Bashar al-Assad had failed to observe their Friday deadline to implement the ceasefire and had only attacked government forces to defend "our people".
A Syrian opposition watchdog appeared to underline the rebel statement by saying at least 80 Syrian troops were killed in a surge of attacks at the weekend.
International mediator Kofi Annan, due to brief the U.N. Security Council and General Assembly on Thursday, urged major powers to ensure his peace plan was implemented by both sides as it was the "only option on the table". Russia has blunted Western efforts to condemn Assad and push him from power.
The May 25 massacre of at least 108 people, nearly half of them children, in the Houla area of Homs province dealt a possibly fatal blow to Annan's proposed ceasefire, which was supposed to take effect on April 12 but never did.
"We have decided to end our commitment to this (ceasefire)," said Free Syrian Army spokesman Major Sami al-Kurdi. "We have resumed our attacks but we are doing defensive attacks which means we are only attacking checkpoints in the cities."
Kurdi said a U.N. observer mission in Syria should be turned into a "peace-enforcing mission", or that the world should impose a no-fly zone and a buffer zone to help bring Assad down.
Such ideas have gained little traction previously with Western powers, let alone their Russian and Chinese critics.
The latest violence and a defiant speech by Assad on Sunday raised questions about how long Annan can pursue his threadbare peace plan on behalf of the United Nations and the Arab League.
But U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told Reuters Annan's mission "remains central" to resolving the Syrian crisis. Annan has inserted 300 U.N. observers into Syria to verify the non-existent truce.
Annan himself "feels that perhaps the time has come, or is approaching, when the international community has to review ... the crisis in Syria and decide what needs to be done to ensure implementation of the six-point plan," his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told Reuters Television in Geneva.
"(Annan) and many others have warned of Syria descending into a bloody, protracted sectarian civil war. We may be there already," said Fawzi.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said local doctors had confirmed the names of 80 government troops killed by the rebels.
Insurgents told the group they had killed more than 100 soldiers and destroyed some tanks in clashes across Syria, including Damascus and Idlib province in the northwest.
Syria's state news agency reported the burial on Monday of 30 members of government forces killed by rebels.
A Syrian troop pullback was at the top of Annan's six-point plan to halt hostilities, allow peaceful protests, supply humanitarian aid and start a political transition in a country controlled by the Assad family with an iron fist for 42 years.
RUSSIA, CHINA ADAMANT
"The Annan mission is essentially dead, and of course most Western powers admit that," said Michael Stephens, researcher at the Royal United Services Institute's branch in Qatar.
"Houla changed the game completely in terms of what people were willing to accept and what they were not."
Russia and China, wary of any Western-led military intervention in Syria, say Annan's plan is the only way forward, but have twice blocked U.N. Security Council resolutions which would have condemned Damascus and perhaps led to sanctions.
At a summit with EU leaders on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin skirted the issue in public comments.
Western powers have no appetite for Libya-style military action, but have provided no alternative to Annan's efforts.
Assad has rebuffed criticism of the carnage in his country. "When a surgeon performs an operation to treat a wound, do we say to him: 'Your hands are covered in blood'?" he asked in his speech on Sunday. "Or do we thank him for saving the patient?"
Ban, speaking on the sidelines of an Islamic Development Bank meeting in Jeddah, urged Assad's government to stop the violence immediately "in the name of humanity" and to start a political dialogue with his foes.
"We are deeply troubled by what has been going on," the U.N. chief told Reuters. "Annan's plan remains central to the resolution of the Syrian crisis."
U.N. diplomats in New York say it is not clear whether the Security Council will renew the increasingly risky U.N. observer mission to Syria when its 90-day mandate expires around July 20.
Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby has asked the Security Council to expand the size and beef up the force's mandate, but one diplomat said council members saw many risks involved in that idea, which the Syrians were anyway unlikely to accept.
COAXING MOSCOW
U.S. officials do not appear ready to give up on Annan's Syria mission, instead hoping that Russia, Assad's staunchest backer among major powers, can be coaxed into discussing a diplomatic solution that might lead to his departure.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke by telephone to Annan while in Stockholm on Monday, briefing him on her efforts to engage Russia on a "political transition" to remove Assad from power, a senior U.S. State Department official said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Clinton had invited Annan to Washington for talks on Friday and that Clinton expected to meet senior officials from Europe and the Middle East to discuss Syria on Wednesday in Istanbul.
The latest flare-up in violence can only intensify alarm that Syria is sliding deeper into a civil war envenomed by sectarian rancor between Assad's minority Alawites and the Sunni Muslim majority.
France's foreign minister said Syria's troubles must not be allowed to spread to its neighbors, such as Lebanon where 13 people were killed last week in Sunni-Alawite clashes.
"France has an attachment to Lebanon and we very strongly wish to avoid a situation where the people of Lebanon suffer anew from what is happening Syria," Laurent Fabius said after meeting his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle in Berlin.
Both said their governments were urging Russia to step up pressure on Syria to comply with Annan's plan.
Syria's uprising, inspired by Arab revolts elsewhere, began with peaceful protests, but the United Nations says Assad's forces have killed more than 10,000 people since March, 2011.
Damascus accuses armed "terrorists" of killing more than 2,600 soldiers and other members of the security forces.
Moscow has broadly backed Assad's narrative, highlighting rebel violence, criticizing sanctions and saying political decisions cannot not be imposed from outside.
China's top state newspaper, the People's Daily, said that any Western-backed military intervention would unleash even bloodier chaos, and that abandoning Annan's plan could push Syria into the "abyss" of full-scale war.
(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny in Beirut, Asma Alsharif in Jeddah, Denis Dyomkin in St Petersburg, John O'Donnell in Brussels, Chris Buckley in Beijing, Arshad Mohammed in Stockholm and Mahmoud Habboush in Dubai; Writing by Ralph Gowling; Editing by Giles Elgood) | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 27,347 |
SAN JOSE, Calif.—The attack began just before 1 a.m. on April 16 last year, when someone slipped into an underground vault not far from a busy freeway and cut telephone cables.
Within half an hour, snipers opened fire on a nearby electrical substation. Shooting for 19 minutes, they surgically knocked out 17 giant transformers that funnel power... ||||| Shooters armed with assault rifles and some knowledge of electrical utilities have prompted new worries on the vulnerability of California's vast power grid.
A 2013 attack on an electric substation near San Jose that nearly knocked out Silicon Valley's power supply was initially downplayed as vandalism by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the facility's owner. Gunfire from semiautomatic weapons did extensive damage to 17 transformers that sent grid operators scrambling to avoid a blackout.
But this week, a former top power regulator offered a far more ominous interpretation: The attack was terrorism, he said, and if circumstances had been just a little different, it could have been disastrous.
Jon Wellinghoff, who was chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission when the shooting took place, said that attack was clearly executed by well-trained individuals seeking to do significant damage to the area, and he fears it was a test run for an even larger assault.
"It would not be that hard to bring down the entire region west of the Rockies if you, in fact, had a coordinated attack like this against a number of substations," Wellinghoff said Thursday. "This [shooting] event shows there are people out there capable of such an attack."
Wellinghoff's warning about the incident at PG&E's Metcalf substation was reported this week by the Wall Street Journal, expanding on a December report by Foreign Policy magazine.
FBI officials said they are taking the shooting very seriously.
"Based on the information we have right now, we don't believe it's related to terrorism," said Peter Lee, an FBI spokesman in San Francisco. But, he added, "Until we understand the motives, we won't be 100% sure it's not terrorism."
Months after the shooting, the bureau has named no suspects.
Potential terrorism scenarios usually involve elaborate cyberattacks, expertly executed hijackings or smuggled nuclear weapons. But concern grows that California may have come unnervingly close to learning that calamity might just as easily be inflicted by a few well-trained snipers.
As law enforcement tries to piece together who fired at the electricity facility, lawmakers and analysts express bewilderment that little is being done to protect against a repeat performance.
"We've got a vulnerability and we've got to get serious about fixing it," said Granger Morgan, who heads the Department of Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University. "Almost everything we do in modern society relies on electricity."
A National Research Council committee he chaired issued a 2007 report warning how easy it would be for a criminal enterprise to knock out the power grid in a way that "could deny large regions of the country access to bulk power systems for weeks or even months," leading to "turmoil, widespread public fear and an image of helplessness that would play directly into the hands of terrorists."
The classified report was completed in 2007 and became public two years ago. Asked what has happened since then to protect the nation's electricity system, Morgan replied that very little has been done.
The attack on the PG&E facility targeted the sophisticated transformers that are at the backbone of the nation's electricity grid. The giant pieces of equipment are essential, costly and could take months to replace. Knock out enough of them, experts warn, and an entire region can be crippled for an extended period. They are also typically out in the open like sitting ducks.
On that April night, the attackers managed to disable 17 of them just by shooting through a chain-link fence. The bullet holes caused the transformers to leak thousands of gallons of oil, and ultimately overheat. Grid operators scrambled to reroute power from elsewhere to keep the system from collapse. The power stayed on, but just barely, because it happened during a time when demand for electricity was very low.
"Fortunately it was spring and we did not have air conditioners running full throttle in the morning," said Stephanie McCorkle, a spokeswoman for the California Independent System Operator in Folsom, which runs most of the state's electrical grid. "That's why the situation was manageable."
Wellinghoff, now a partner at the San Francisco law office Stoel Rives, said the grid's interdependence on substations across large swaths of the country — and a scarcity of spare equipment — makes it possible to trigger an enduring blackout across several states simply by destroying key transformers in one of them.
Days after the April shooting, Wellinghoff flew out to review the damage with experts from the Pentagon and the FBI. They noticed piles of stones had been set up outside the site, apparently by someone who had scoped it out to guide the snipers.
The bullet holes were carefully targeted so as not to hit the parts of the equipment that would cause an explosion and attract the attention of drivers on nearby U.S. 101. Of some 120 shots fired from at least 40 yards outside the fence, 110 of them hit transformers, Wellinghoff said.
"A dress rehearsal" is how Mark Johnson, a retired vice president at PG&E, described the event to a Philadelphia gathering of electricity industry officials in November. Johnson said the attackers opened two 75-pound manhole covers and used a ladder to cut fiber-optic lines, a possible attempt to disconnect security cameras. They fired for seven minutes, targeting radiators on the banks of transformers.
"This wasn't an incident where Billy-Bob and Joe decided after a bunch of brewskis they were going to shoot up a substation," he said. "When you look at this event and how calculated, how well organized and how well thought out it was, it clearly indicates that a chain-link fence was not enough to secure a substation."
PG&E officials say they are taking steps to improve grid security and are consulting with government agencies on how best to do so.
"This is definitely an unusual event and one we're taking very seriously," said Brian Swanson, a company spokesman. He said, though, that the fact that grid operators were able to keep the lights on after the shooting shows the company was prepared, and has procedures and technology in place to protect against sabotage.
Congress has been battling for years over proposals that would force utilities to do more. One proposed measure, the Grid Reliability Infrastructure and Defense Act, would have given federal regulators authority to impose specific rules. It sailed through the House but died in the Senate in 2010.
Its author, Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who was then a congressman, blamed its demise on aggressive lobbying by electricity companies. | – A little-reported attack on a power substation in California last year wasn't vandalism, but the "most significant incident of domestic terrorism involving the grid that has ever occurred" in the US, according former top power regulator Jon Wellinghoff. In the assault in South San Jose last April, unknown attackers severed underground cables at a substation before snipers knocked out 17 transformers in 19 minutes, the Los Angeles Times reports. Wellinghoff, who was chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission at the time, warns that the attack was well-planned and carried out by people who knew what they were doing—and similar attacks on the nation's poorly protected power infrastructure could cause huge blackouts across the country, reports the Wall Street Journal. Grid operators had to scramble to avoid a blackout after the San Jose attack, which Wellinghoff suspects was a trial run. The FBI, however, says it doesn't believe the attack was terrorism—though it hasn't been ruled out as a motive. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.SAN JOSE, Calif.—The attack began just before 1 a.m. on April 16 last year, when someone slipped into an underground vault not far from a busy freeway and cut telephone cables.
Within half an hour, snipers opened fire on a nearby electrical substation. Shooting for 19 minutes, they surgically knocked out 17 giant transformers that funnel power... ||||| Shooters armed with assault rifles and some knowledge of electrical utilities have prompted new worries on the vulnerability of California's vast power grid.
A 2013 attack on an electric substation near San Jose that nearly knocked out Silicon Valley's power supply was initially downplayed as vandalism by Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the facility's owner. Gunfire from semiautomatic weapons did extensive damage to 17 transformers that sent grid operators scrambling to avoid a blackout.
But this week, a former top power regulator offered a far more ominous interpretation: The attack was terrorism, he said, and if circumstances had been just a little different, it could have been disastrous.
Jon Wellinghoff, who was chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission when the shooting took place, said that attack was clearly executed by well-trained individuals seeking to do significant damage to the area, and he fears it was a test run for an even larger assault.
"It would not be that hard to bring down the entire region west of the Rockies if you, in fact, had a coordinated attack like this against a number of substations," Wellinghoff said Thursday. "This [shooting] event shows there are people out there capable of such an attack."
Wellinghoff's warning about the incident at PG&E's Metcalf substation was reported this week by the Wall Street Journal, expanding on a December report by Foreign Policy magazine.
FBI officials said they are taking the shooting very seriously.
"Based on the information we have right now, we don't believe it's related to terrorism," said Peter Lee, an FBI spokesman in San Francisco. But, he added, "Until we understand the motives, we won't be 100% sure it's not terrorism."
Months after the shooting, the bureau has named no suspects.
Potential terrorism scenarios usually involve elaborate cyberattacks, expertly executed hijackings or smuggled nuclear weapons. But concern grows that California may have come unnervingly close to learning that calamity might just as easily be inflicted by a few well-trained snipers.
As law enforcement tries to piece together who fired at the electricity facility, lawmakers and analysts express bewilderment that little is being done to protect against a repeat performance.
"We've got a vulnerability and we've got to get serious about fixing it," said Granger Morgan, who heads the Department of Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University. "Almost everything we do in modern society relies on electricity."
A National Research Council committee he chaired issued a 2007 report warning how easy it would be for a criminal enterprise to knock out the power grid in a way that "could deny large regions of the country access to bulk power systems for weeks or even months," leading to "turmoil, widespread public fear and an image of helplessness that would play directly into the hands of terrorists."
The classified report was completed in 2007 and became public two years ago. Asked what has happened since then to protect the nation's electricity system, Morgan replied that very little has been done.
The attack on the PG&E facility targeted the sophisticated transformers that are at the backbone of the nation's electricity grid. The giant pieces of equipment are essential, costly and could take months to replace. Knock out enough of them, experts warn, and an entire region can be crippled for an extended period. They are also typically out in the open like sitting ducks.
On that April night, the attackers managed to disable 17 of them just by shooting through a chain-link fence. The bullet holes caused the transformers to leak thousands of gallons of oil, and ultimately overheat. Grid operators scrambled to reroute power from elsewhere to keep the system from collapse. The power stayed on, but just barely, because it happened during a time when demand for electricity was very low.
"Fortunately it was spring and we did not have air conditioners running full throttle in the morning," said Stephanie McCorkle, a spokeswoman for the California Independent System Operator in Folsom, which runs most of the state's electrical grid. "That's why the situation was manageable."
Wellinghoff, now a partner at the San Francisco law office Stoel Rives, said the grid's interdependence on substations across large swaths of the country — and a scarcity of spare equipment — makes it possible to trigger an enduring blackout across several states simply by destroying key transformers in one of them.
Days after the April shooting, Wellinghoff flew out to review the damage with experts from the Pentagon and the FBI. They noticed piles of stones had been set up outside the site, apparently by someone who had scoped it out to guide the snipers.
The bullet holes were carefully targeted so as not to hit the parts of the equipment that would cause an explosion and attract the attention of drivers on nearby U.S. 101. Of some 120 shots fired from at least 40 yards outside the fence, 110 of them hit transformers, Wellinghoff said.
"A dress rehearsal" is how Mark Johnson, a retired vice president at PG&E, described the event to a Philadelphia gathering of electricity industry officials in November. Johnson said the attackers opened two 75-pound manhole covers and used a ladder to cut fiber-optic lines, a possible attempt to disconnect security cameras. They fired for seven minutes, targeting radiators on the banks of transformers.
"This wasn't an incident where Billy-Bob and Joe decided after a bunch of brewskis they were going to shoot up a substation," he said. "When you look at this event and how calculated, how well organized and how well thought out it was, it clearly indicates that a chain-link fence was not enough to secure a substation."
PG&E officials say they are taking steps to improve grid security and are consulting with government agencies on how best to do so.
"This is definitely an unusual event and one we're taking very seriously," said Brian Swanson, a company spokesman. He said, though, that the fact that grid operators were able to keep the lights on after the shooting shows the company was prepared, and has procedures and technology in place to protect against sabotage.
Congress has been battling for years over proposals that would force utilities to do more. One proposed measure, the Grid Reliability Infrastructure and Defense Act, would have given federal regulators authority to impose specific rules. It sailed through the House but died in the Senate in 2010.
Its author, Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), who was then a congressman, blamed its demise on aggressive lobbying by electricity companies. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 3,260 |
Every so often, as he tries to explain, defend and justify his decision to omit the rape allegations from his biography of Bill Cosby, Mark Whitaker sighs.
“Well, look, obviously the story has changed, and I’m going to have to address that in future editions of the book, if not sooner,” Whitaker says, exhaling. “If it happened, and it was a pattern, it’s terrible and really creepy…. I was just having a discussion with my son about this, and psychologically, if it happened… it’s sort of compartmentalization.”
In deploying a word that gained currency in the late 1990s during President Bill Clinton’s Monica Lewinsky adventure and subsequent impeachment, Whitaker is talking about Cosby—not about himself as a biographer. Cosby: His Life and Times—despite some original reporting on Cosby’s marital infidelities and other human flaws—is essentially a celebration of a socially conscious cultural icon.
The Cosby that emerges from the pages is an admirable artist/activist who has suffered terrible tragedy—the racially charged murder of his only son—but has had a positive impact on race relations in America.
Of course, Bill Clinton—who today is among the planet’s most admired public figures—was only 54 when he left office and has spent the last 13 years relentlessly replacing a reputation for womanizing and worse with public-spirited philanthropy and other good works.
“It’s a little different, because Cosby is 77 years old. He’s almost blind,” Whitaker says, though perhaps there’s still a path to rehabilitation. “There might be an Oprah interview or something like that. There are things you can kind of imagine… Maybe he could suck it up and make amends by giving a whole bunch of money to anti-sexual-abuse causes or something… He still has a fan base. I think people will still turn out for him… If he can’t continue to perform, that will be the hardest thing for him. But if he can still go into arenas, and people will come and laugh at his stories, then he’ll survive. That’s what he’s always cared about the most.”
In this weirdly perverse age of undeserved celebrity and adulation, where Baltimore Ravens fans show up at the stadium wearing Ray Rice jerseys and even Charles Manson can find love and marriage, it’s hardly a stretch to believe that Cosby, too, can reinvent himself.
Yet Whitaker adds: “He’s paid a big price… The show [a planned NBC sitcom] has been yanked. The reruns of The Cosby Show have been taken off the air. He’s routinely called a rapist everywhere. That’s a big price.”
A former editor of Newsweek (years before the newsmag’s brief merger with The Daily Beast), Whitaker also seems to have paid a price. Although his book was generally well-received—with maybe a few tut-tuts over his choice to skip the nastier bits—he is clearly discouraged, even anguished, that it has been overtaken by a tsunami of disastrous Cosby-related publicity.
It’s safe to say that the revival of ugly stories about Cosby’s alleged habit of taking advantage of vulnerable young women impressed by his power, wealth, and celebrity—a fresh round of old charges that, Whitaker acknowledges, the widespread media attention for his book may have partly provoked—is not helping sales.
“It started out quite strong, it was on the bestseller list, and then it kind of fell off a little bit but was still doing OK,” Whitaker says of the two months since Cosby’s publication. “It’s fallen off a little bit more since then. That’s what happens with books these days.”
So far 16 women, including seven who have come forward in press accounts using their real names, are accusing the beloved comedian/father figure/role-model of inviting them to one of his homes or hotel rooms and then drugging and assaulting them.
These are well-known accusations, firmly established on the public record, dating back at least to March 2005, when a young woman named Andrea Constand, the former director of operations for the women’s basketball team of Temple University (Cosby’s alma mater), filed a lawsuit claiming that during a visit to his home in Cheltenham, Pa., to seek career advice, he gave her “herbal” pills, “touched her breasts and vaginal area, rubbed his penis against her hand, and digitally penetrated” her.
Constand’s lawyer produced several other women who were willing to testify under oath to similar encounters, and Cosby, while his legal team denied the charges, settled out of court to preempt a trial.
“I wasn’t going to reprint the allegations. I had a couple of reasons for that,” Whitaker says. “You can do that and say here’s an allegation, and here’s a denial, but given the nature of the allegations, the allegations would stick. As a biographer, you’re really trying to say ‘I’m painting a scene for you. Here you are in the room. This is what happened.’ And if you do enough reporting, you can actually do that. And if you can’t do that, you don’t do that. When you’re writing a book, you want to make sure it’s really accurate, that you can stand behind it, because once it’s out it’s not like a piece in a newspaper or even a news magazine that you can correct quickly. That was just the standard I used.”
In the case of the Cosby charges, Whitaker says he was unable to establish independent confirmation—and because Constand’s lawsuit was settled, a trial record didn’t exist—so the story would have been “he said, she said” and not up to Whitaker’s standards.
“I certainly would not have anticipated the degree to which this has become a huge issue again,” he says. “What you eventually learn about everything related to these allegations, and how you think that should figure in your ultimate judgment of Bill Cosby has to be weighed—and should be weighed—in the balance with a lot of the stuff I reported in the book more thoroughly than anybody else.”
But if Cosby actually did the things he’s accused of, I tell Whitaker, his wholesome image is a carefully constructed lie, and it sounds like he’s a pretty bad guy.
Get The Beast In Your Inbox! Daily Digest Start and finish your day with the top stories from The Daily Beast. Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of all the news you need to know (and nothing you don't). By clicking “Subscribe,” you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Subscribe Thank You! You are now subscribed to the Daily Digest and Cheat Sheet. We will not share your email with anyone for any reason.
“Or capable of pretty bad things,” Whitaker corrects. “He wouldn’t be the first.” ||||| Topics: Mark Whitaker, bill cosby, The Daily Beast, Entertainment News
One of the highest-profile examples of Bill Cosby’s free pass from the media regarding allegations of sexual abuse is his recent biography. Author Mark Whitaker, a former editor of Newsweek and managing editor for CNN Worldwide, doesn’t shy away from Cosby’s marital infidelities in “Cosby: His Life and Times,” the 544-page major biography published in September, but he declined to write about the allegations of sexual abuse and rape that followed Cosby for years. It’s a notable omission in a book designed to be the definitive biography of a 77-year-old whose major life and career moves were assumed to be behind him. But now Whitaker says he would be open to amending the celebratory biography to include the allegations, telling the Daily Beast, “Well, look, obviously the story has changed, and I’m going to have to address that in future editions of the book, if not sooner.” (Salon reached out to Whitaker for an interview, but his publicist declined to comment.)
What’s changed since he conducted his research and interviews? Only the volume of public accusations and the number of women willing to go on record about their alleged experiences with Cosby. The accusations still remain unsubstantiated from a legal perspective and none of the women have procured physical evidence that documents the attacks, so technically, Whitaker still has the case of “he said, she said,” that initially caused him to avoid the subject in his book (even though “she said,” on record, has multiplied exponentially over the last several weeks).
There’s something of the blog mentality in the idea that a book can stave off obsolescence by simply issuing an update. But a tacked-on addendum can’t save this biography, which once posed as the definitive assessment of Cosby’s life and legacy.
While Whitaker wrote his book, known accusations included those of Andrea Constand, who brought a 2005 civil suit against Cosby, which would have included 13 Jane Does who agreed to testify. Constand’s suit was settled out of court, and there were no trial records or “independent confirmation” of the accusations, says Whitaker, so he left them out:
“I wasn’t going to reprint the allegations. I had a couple of reasons for that,” Whitaker says. “You can do that and say here’s an allegation, and here’s a denial, but given the nature of the allegations, the allegations would stick. As a biographer, you’re really trying to say ‘I’m painting a scene for you. Here you are in the room. This is what happened.’ And if you do enough reporting, you can actually do that. And if you can’t do that, you don’t do that.” ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| With public revulsion rising in response to snowballing accusations that Bill Cosby victimized women in serial fashion throughout his trailblazing career, the response from those in the know has been: What took so long?
What took so long is that those in the know kept it mostly to themselves. No one wanted to disturb the Natural Order of Things, which was that Mr. Cosby was beloved; that he was as generous and paternal as his public image; and that his approach to life and work represented a bracing corrective to the coarse, self-defeating urban black ethos.
Only the first of those things was actually true.
Those in the know included Mark Whitaker, who did not find room in his almost-500-page biography, “Cosby: His Life and Times,” to address the accusations that Mr. Cosby had assaulted numerous women, at least four of whom had spoken on the record and by name in the past about what they say Mr. Cosby did to them.
Those in the know also included Ta-Nehisi Coates, who elided the charges in a long and seemingly comprehensive article about Mr. Cosby in The Atlantic in 2008. | – The most glaring omission in Cosby: His Life and Times, Mark Whitaker's biography of Bill Cosby released Sept. 16: the myriad sexual assault claims against the comedian dating back decades. Whitaker was yesterday called out by David Carr, who wrote in the New York Times that "those in the know" (Carr included) neglected to more thoroughly investigate or report on the abuse allegations that have been floating around for years while penning their articles on Cosby. Whitaker acknowledged his regrets online, tweeting to Carr yesterday afternoon, "David you are right. I was wrong to not deal with the sexual assault charges against Cosby and pursue them more aggressively." He adds, "I am following new developments and will address them at the appropriate time. If true the stories are shocking and horrible." Carr isn't the first to wonder why Whitaker sidestepped mention of the allegations, nor the last. In a piece on Salon last night, Erin Keane wrote that while journalists should be lauded for fact-checking and confirming what they uncover before they print it, "at some point, it becomes irresponsible not to mention multiple accusations of violence and sexual abuse, especially when they contrast so starkly with the image the bulk of the biography presents." And that biography, as Dwight Garner wrote in the Times in September, is "square, competent, gentle, G-rated, dignified, and, in the end, a bit distant." Now Whitaker is rethinking his decision, telling the Daily Beast, "Well, look, obviously the story has changed, and I'm going to have to address that in future editions of the book, if not sooner. If it happened, and it was a pattern, it's terrible and really creepy." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Every so often, as he tries to explain, defend and justify his decision to omit the rape allegations from his biography of Bill Cosby, Mark Whitaker sighs.
“Well, look, obviously the story has changed, and I’m going to have to address that in future editions of the book, if not sooner,” Whitaker says, exhaling. “If it happened, and it was a pattern, it’s terrible and really creepy…. I was just having a discussion with my son about this, and psychologically, if it happened… it’s sort of compartmentalization.”
In deploying a word that gained currency in the late 1990s during President Bill Clinton’s Monica Lewinsky adventure and subsequent impeachment, Whitaker is talking about Cosby—not about himself as a biographer. Cosby: His Life and Times—despite some original reporting on Cosby’s marital infidelities and other human flaws—is essentially a celebration of a socially conscious cultural icon.
The Cosby that emerges from the pages is an admirable artist/activist who has suffered terrible tragedy—the racially charged murder of his only son—but has had a positive impact on race relations in America.
Of course, Bill Clinton—who today is among the planet’s most admired public figures—was only 54 when he left office and has spent the last 13 years relentlessly replacing a reputation for womanizing and worse with public-spirited philanthropy and other good works.
“It’s a little different, because Cosby is 77 years old. He’s almost blind,” Whitaker says, though perhaps there’s still a path to rehabilitation. “There might be an Oprah interview or something like that. There are things you can kind of imagine… Maybe he could suck it up and make amends by giving a whole bunch of money to anti-sexual-abuse causes or something… He still has a fan base. I think people will still turn out for him… If he can’t continue to perform, that will be the hardest thing for him. But if he can still go into arenas, and people will come and laugh at his stories, then he’ll survive. That’s what he’s always cared about the most.”
In this weirdly perverse age of undeserved celebrity and adulation, where Baltimore Ravens fans show up at the stadium wearing Ray Rice jerseys and even Charles Manson can find love and marriage, it’s hardly a stretch to believe that Cosby, too, can reinvent himself.
Yet Whitaker adds: “He’s paid a big price… The show [a planned NBC sitcom] has been yanked. The reruns of The Cosby Show have been taken off the air. He’s routinely called a rapist everywhere. That’s a big price.”
A former editor of Newsweek (years before the newsmag’s brief merger with The Daily Beast), Whitaker also seems to have paid a price. Although his book was generally well-received—with maybe a few tut-tuts over his choice to skip the nastier bits—he is clearly discouraged, even anguished, that it has been overtaken by a tsunami of disastrous Cosby-related publicity.
It’s safe to say that the revival of ugly stories about Cosby’s alleged habit of taking advantage of vulnerable young women impressed by his power, wealth, and celebrity—a fresh round of old charges that, Whitaker acknowledges, the widespread media attention for his book may have partly provoked—is not helping sales.
“It started out quite strong, it was on the bestseller list, and then it kind of fell off a little bit but was still doing OK,” Whitaker says of the two months since Cosby’s publication. “It’s fallen off a little bit more since then. That’s what happens with books these days.”
So far 16 women, including seven who have come forward in press accounts using their real names, are accusing the beloved comedian/father figure/role-model of inviting them to one of his homes or hotel rooms and then drugging and assaulting them.
These are well-known accusations, firmly established on the public record, dating back at least to March 2005, when a young woman named Andrea Constand, the former director of operations for the women’s basketball team of Temple University (Cosby’s alma mater), filed a lawsuit claiming that during a visit to his home in Cheltenham, Pa., to seek career advice, he gave her “herbal” pills, “touched her breasts and vaginal area, rubbed his penis against her hand, and digitally penetrated” her.
Constand’s lawyer produced several other women who were willing to testify under oath to similar encounters, and Cosby, while his legal team denied the charges, settled out of court to preempt a trial.
“I wasn’t going to reprint the allegations. I had a couple of reasons for that,” Whitaker says. “You can do that and say here’s an allegation, and here’s a denial, but given the nature of the allegations, the allegations would stick. As a biographer, you’re really trying to say ‘I’m painting a scene for you. Here you are in the room. This is what happened.’ And if you do enough reporting, you can actually do that. And if you can’t do that, you don’t do that. When you’re writing a book, you want to make sure it’s really accurate, that you can stand behind it, because once it’s out it’s not like a piece in a newspaper or even a news magazine that you can correct quickly. That was just the standard I used.”
In the case of the Cosby charges, Whitaker says he was unable to establish independent confirmation—and because Constand’s lawsuit was settled, a trial record didn’t exist—so the story would have been “he said, she said” and not up to Whitaker’s standards.
“I certainly would not have anticipated the degree to which this has become a huge issue again,” he says. “What you eventually learn about everything related to these allegations, and how you think that should figure in your ultimate judgment of Bill Cosby has to be weighed—and should be weighed—in the balance with a lot of the stuff I reported in the book more thoroughly than anybody else.”
But if Cosby actually did the things he’s accused of, I tell Whitaker, his wholesome image is a carefully constructed lie, and it sounds like he’s a pretty bad guy.
Get The Beast In Your Inbox! Daily Digest Start and finish your day with the top stories from The Daily Beast. Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of all the news you need to know (and nothing you don't). By clicking “Subscribe,” you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Subscribe Thank You! You are now subscribed to the Daily Digest and Cheat Sheet. We will not share your email with anyone for any reason.
“Or capable of pretty bad things,” Whitaker corrects. “He wouldn’t be the first.” ||||| Topics: Mark Whitaker, bill cosby, The Daily Beast, Entertainment News
One of the highest-profile examples of Bill Cosby’s free pass from the media regarding allegations of sexual abuse is his recent biography. Author Mark Whitaker, a former editor of Newsweek and managing editor for CNN Worldwide, doesn’t shy away from Cosby’s marital infidelities in “Cosby: His Life and Times,” the 544-page major biography published in September, but he declined to write about the allegations of sexual abuse and rape that followed Cosby for years. It’s a notable omission in a book designed to be the definitive biography of a 77-year-old whose major life and career moves were assumed to be behind him. But now Whitaker says he would be open to amending the celebratory biography to include the allegations, telling the Daily Beast, “Well, look, obviously the story has changed, and I’m going to have to address that in future editions of the book, if not sooner.” (Salon reached out to Whitaker for an interview, but his publicist declined to comment.)
What’s changed since he conducted his research and interviews? Only the volume of public accusations and the number of women willing to go on record about their alleged experiences with Cosby. The accusations still remain unsubstantiated from a legal perspective and none of the women have procured physical evidence that documents the attacks, so technically, Whitaker still has the case of “he said, she said,” that initially caused him to avoid the subject in his book (even though “she said,” on record, has multiplied exponentially over the last several weeks).
There’s something of the blog mentality in the idea that a book can stave off obsolescence by simply issuing an update. But a tacked-on addendum can’t save this biography, which once posed as the definitive assessment of Cosby’s life and legacy.
While Whitaker wrote his book, known accusations included those of Andrea Constand, who brought a 2005 civil suit against Cosby, which would have included 13 Jane Does who agreed to testify. Constand’s suit was settled out of court, and there were no trial records or “independent confirmation” of the accusations, says Whitaker, so he left them out:
“I wasn’t going to reprint the allegations. I had a couple of reasons for that,” Whitaker says. “You can do that and say here’s an allegation, and here’s a denial, but given the nature of the allegations, the allegations would stick. As a biographer, you’re really trying to say ‘I’m painting a scene for you. Here you are in the room. This is what happened.’ And if you do enough reporting, you can actually do that. And if you can’t do that, you don’t do that.” ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| With public revulsion rising in response to snowballing accusations that Bill Cosby victimized women in serial fashion throughout his trailblazing career, the response from those in the know has been: What took so long?
What took so long is that those in the know kept it mostly to themselves. No one wanted to disturb the Natural Order of Things, which was that Mr. Cosby was beloved; that he was as generous and paternal as his public image; and that his approach to life and work represented a bracing corrective to the coarse, self-defeating urban black ethos.
Only the first of those things was actually true.
Those in the know included Mark Whitaker, who did not find room in his almost-500-page biography, “Cosby: His Life and Times,” to address the accusations that Mr. Cosby had assaulted numerous women, at least four of whom had spoken on the record and by name in the past about what they say Mr. Cosby did to them.
Those in the know also included Ta-Nehisi Coates, who elided the charges in a long and seemingly comprehensive article about Mr. Cosby in The Atlantic in 2008. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 17,935 |
BY Richard Reeve, Stephen TschidaWJLA | Sinclair Broadcast Group
WASHINGTON — A Northwest D.C. couple faces cruelty of children charges, after police say two toddlers were left alone in a parked car Saturday, its heat and engine turned off.
"I thought it was really sad," says Mary Kate O'Connell, who lives near the corner of 23rd and l streets, where the youngsters were first spotted by a witness.
[App users: Click here then 'Full Site' to see embedded video]
"If I saw kids in a car on the street, I would definitely want to do something about it," she adds.
The witness saw the children inside a parked, locked Volvo around 4:30 p.m. The outside temperature was 28 degrees.
"It's probably not the most parentally sound decision," says Tom, a District resident who didn't want to give his last name.
"Obviously, that seems irresponsible," says Dui Nguien, who lives nearby.
But that wasn't all.
The manager of the ‘Ris' restaurant confirms the children's caregivers, identified by police as 45-year-old Jennie Chang, and 41-year-old Christophe Lucas, were inside attending a wine tasting.
Police say the children were inside the car for an hour.
"It's the same thing if you leave your kids in a hot car in the summer," says O'Connell. "I mean, the weather is terrible."
Arriving officers located Chang and Lucas, and booked them at Second District headquarters on second-degree cruelty to children charges.
"For a wine tasting?," Tom says. "Hopefully you have enough income to afford a babysitter, so why not just get the babysitter?"
No one answered at the couple's Northwest D.C. townhouse. Neighbors expressed surprise. They say Chang and Lucas are attentive, caring parents.
The children are now being held by Child Protective Services.
"I don't think it's right," O'Connell says. "I don't know why they wouldn't just bring the kids inside."
The charges against the couple are serious.
Under D.C. law, second-degree cruelty to children occurs when a person is accused of "mistreating a child" or allegedly engages in conduct causing "grave risk'"of bodily injury to a child.
If convicted, Chang and Lucas could each face $10,000 in fines and/or 10 years in prison.
"I hope there's some disciplinary action, and it doesn't happen again," Nguien says. "Glad there were some people that caught it."
Chang and Lucas faced a judge Monday in D.C. Superior Court. They were released on their own recognizance and fled from court when ABC7 attempted to ask them questions.
Lucas told investigators he had left a cell phone on inside the car to monitor the children, and that he and Chang kept an eye on the vehicle.
Source: WJLA
||||| A couple who left their two toddlers alone in a car on a Northwest Washington street while they attended a wine-tasting at an upscale restaurant was monitoring them with a cellphone left in the vehicle, law enforcement officials said Monday.
Police said the children — a 22-month-old boy and a slightly older girl — were strapped in car seats and wearing coats when they were found Saturday afternoon near the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, in the 1100 block of 23rd Street NW. Neither child had gloves or a hat, police said, and the younger one did not have shoes or socks. The girl was “hysterically crying,” according to a police report.
The temperature was 35 degrees, and police said the doors were locked and the windows were rolled up. Police said the father and mother were at the restaurant Ris, about 400 feet around the corner, in the 2200 block of L Street. The father, Christopher Daniel Lucas, who also goes by Christophe, told police that he left an iPhone in the car with an open connection to the children’s mother, Jennie Teresa Chang. The restaurant’s manager told police that the couple was at a wine tasting for about an hour, according to a police report.
“I left to go inside the restaurant,” Lucas said, according to the report, “but I’m watching them.” Police said the phone line had been open 58 minutes when officers arrived and got the children out of the gray Volvo station wagon and into a warm police car.
Lucas, 41, and Chang, 46, who live in a $1 million rowhouse near Dupont Circle, about a 10-minute walk from the restaurant, were arrested and charged with two counts of attempted second-degree cruelty to children, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence. They spent Saturday and Sunday night in a precinct lockup until their initial appearance in court Monday afternoon. Both identified themselves to police as the children’s parents.
A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered Lucas and Chang released pending a hearing Feb. 18. The judge ordered them to stay away from the toddlers. Neither responded to questions from a reporter as they left the court building after the hearing.
Court files show the couple intends to hire their own lawyers. The documents say that Lucas is originally from France and works as a software engineer and that Chang is employed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The children were checked out by paramedics and were in good health, police said. They were turned over to D.C. Child and Family Services.
The initial call about the children came to police about 4:30 p.m. that day by a State Department lawyer who lives in a condominium above where the car was parked. He told police he watched the car for 20 minutes and called when no one showed up.
Police said surveillance video from the Ritz-Carlton shows that no one approached the car from the time the couple left until police arrived. Police said video surveillance from the hotel shows the Volvo “parked in the location it had been discovered” starting about 3:38 p.m. “The occupants exited the car” eight minutes later, police said, and the video showed that “no one approached the vehicle from the time the children were left unattended until the time police arrived.”
Lucas showed up at the car as police were investigating, according to the report, and told them he did not leave them for long. “The children were sleeping, so I went inside,” he told the officers. ||||| A couple was arrested Jan. 31, 2015, when police found their two young child left in an unattended car while they attended a wine-tasting in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — Two children younger than 2 were left in an unattended car while their parents went to a wine tasting, police said.
Christopher Lucas, 41, and Jennie Chang, 45, of the District of Columbia were charged with second-degree cruelty to children after police received a call Saturday from a woman who walked by and saw an abandoned child in a locked Volvo near a Ritz Carlton Hotel.
Two children, a 22-month-old boy and a 2½-year-old girl, were restrained in child seats inside the car, according to charging documents. The girl was crying hysterically; the boy was not upset.
Outside the temperature was 35 degrees, and neither were wearing gloves or hats, police said.
As officers assessed how they would get into the car, Lucas approached and began to unlock the doors.
"I left to go inside the restaurant, but I was watching them," he told officers. Then Lucas reached inside the Volvo and pulled out a cellphone that showed a call to Chang and a timer that showed 58 minutes. "The children were sleeping, so I went inside."
The parents had gone inside a nearby restaurant for a wine tasting, said Gwendolyn Crump, Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman. The children were left alone for about an hour.
When Chang arrived at the car a short time later she asked officers at the scene, "What is the problem?" according to the charging documents.
An ambulance was called to the scene, the children were examined and they were taken into protective custody.
Lucas and Chang pleaded not guilty at an arraignment Monday and a judge has ordered them to stay away from their children. Their next hearing is scheduled Feb. 18. If they are found guilty of second-degree cruelty, each could face a fine of up to $25,000 and up to 10 years in prison.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1CVEAry | – Two DC parents were arrested over the weekend after police say they left their two toddlers locked in a car while they attended a wine-tasting at a posh restaurant, the Washington Post reports. Cops say they received a call about the kids on Saturday afternoon and found the 22-month-old boy and 2-1/2-year-old girl, who was "crying hysterically," strapped into their car seats with coats but no hats or gloves; the temperature outside was about 35 degrees, WUSA-TV reports. Christopher Lucas (who also goes by Christophe, according to various sources) and his wife, Jennie Chang, were sampling inside for about an hour, restaurant staff said in the police report, and one of their smartphones—which they say they left in the car with an open connection so they could monitor the children—had had an open line for 58 minutes, the Post notes. Lucas reportedly came outside as police tried to figure out how to get the kids out of the Volvo. "I left to go inside ... but I was watching them," he told cops, as per WUSA. "The children were sleeping." Lucas, said in court docs to be a software engineer, and Chang, employed by the FDA, reportedly live in a $1 million rowhouse near Dupont Circle. They were arrested for attempted second-degree child cruelty, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence and up to $10,000 in fines. The kids are OK, the Post notes, and with DC child services. A woman who lives near where the car was found tells WJLA, "It's the same thing if you leave your kids in a hot car in the summer. I mean, the weather is terrible." Meanwhile, another DC resident tells the station he's similarly baffled. "Why not just get [a] babysitter?" he asks. (Maybe the parents should've just gone to a virtual wine-tasting.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.BY Richard Reeve, Stephen TschidaWJLA | Sinclair Broadcast Group
WASHINGTON — A Northwest D.C. couple faces cruelty of children charges, after police say two toddlers were left alone in a parked car Saturday, its heat and engine turned off.
"I thought it was really sad," says Mary Kate O'Connell, who lives near the corner of 23rd and l streets, where the youngsters were first spotted by a witness.
[App users: Click here then 'Full Site' to see embedded video]
"If I saw kids in a car on the street, I would definitely want to do something about it," she adds.
The witness saw the children inside a parked, locked Volvo around 4:30 p.m. The outside temperature was 28 degrees.
"It's probably not the most parentally sound decision," says Tom, a District resident who didn't want to give his last name.
"Obviously, that seems irresponsible," says Dui Nguien, who lives nearby.
But that wasn't all.
The manager of the ‘Ris' restaurant confirms the children's caregivers, identified by police as 45-year-old Jennie Chang, and 41-year-old Christophe Lucas, were inside attending a wine tasting.
Police say the children were inside the car for an hour.
"It's the same thing if you leave your kids in a hot car in the summer," says O'Connell. "I mean, the weather is terrible."
Arriving officers located Chang and Lucas, and booked them at Second District headquarters on second-degree cruelty to children charges.
"For a wine tasting?," Tom says. "Hopefully you have enough income to afford a babysitter, so why not just get the babysitter?"
No one answered at the couple's Northwest D.C. townhouse. Neighbors expressed surprise. They say Chang and Lucas are attentive, caring parents.
The children are now being held by Child Protective Services.
"I don't think it's right," O'Connell says. "I don't know why they wouldn't just bring the kids inside."
The charges against the couple are serious.
Under D.C. law, second-degree cruelty to children occurs when a person is accused of "mistreating a child" or allegedly engages in conduct causing "grave risk'"of bodily injury to a child.
If convicted, Chang and Lucas could each face $10,000 in fines and/or 10 years in prison.
"I hope there's some disciplinary action, and it doesn't happen again," Nguien says. "Glad there were some people that caught it."
Chang and Lucas faced a judge Monday in D.C. Superior Court. They were released on their own recognizance and fled from court when ABC7 attempted to ask them questions.
Lucas told investigators he had left a cell phone on inside the car to monitor the children, and that he and Chang kept an eye on the vehicle.
Source: WJLA
||||| A couple who left their two toddlers alone in a car on a Northwest Washington street while they attended a wine-tasting at an upscale restaurant was monitoring them with a cellphone left in the vehicle, law enforcement officials said Monday.
Police said the children — a 22-month-old boy and a slightly older girl — were strapped in car seats and wearing coats when they were found Saturday afternoon near the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, in the 1100 block of 23rd Street NW. Neither child had gloves or a hat, police said, and the younger one did not have shoes or socks. The girl was “hysterically crying,” according to a police report.
The temperature was 35 degrees, and police said the doors were locked and the windows were rolled up. Police said the father and mother were at the restaurant Ris, about 400 feet around the corner, in the 2200 block of L Street. The father, Christopher Daniel Lucas, who also goes by Christophe, told police that he left an iPhone in the car with an open connection to the children’s mother, Jennie Teresa Chang. The restaurant’s manager told police that the couple was at a wine tasting for about an hour, according to a police report.
“I left to go inside the restaurant,” Lucas said, according to the report, “but I’m watching them.” Police said the phone line had been open 58 minutes when officers arrived and got the children out of the gray Volvo station wagon and into a warm police car.
Lucas, 41, and Chang, 46, who live in a $1 million rowhouse near Dupont Circle, about a 10-minute walk from the restaurant, were arrested and charged with two counts of attempted second-degree cruelty to children, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence. They spent Saturday and Sunday night in a precinct lockup until their initial appearance in court Monday afternoon. Both identified themselves to police as the children’s parents.
A D.C. Superior Court judge ordered Lucas and Chang released pending a hearing Feb. 18. The judge ordered them to stay away from the toddlers. Neither responded to questions from a reporter as they left the court building after the hearing.
Court files show the couple intends to hire their own lawyers. The documents say that Lucas is originally from France and works as a software engineer and that Chang is employed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The children were checked out by paramedics and were in good health, police said. They were turned over to D.C. Child and Family Services.
The initial call about the children came to police about 4:30 p.m. that day by a State Department lawyer who lives in a condominium above where the car was parked. He told police he watched the car for 20 minutes and called when no one showed up.
Police said surveillance video from the Ritz-Carlton shows that no one approached the car from the time the couple left until police arrived. Police said video surveillance from the hotel shows the Volvo “parked in the location it had been discovered” starting about 3:38 p.m. “The occupants exited the car” eight minutes later, police said, and the video showed that “no one approached the vehicle from the time the children were left unattended until the time police arrived.”
Lucas showed up at the car as police were investigating, according to the report, and told them he did not leave them for long. “The children were sleeping, so I went inside,” he told the officers. ||||| A couple was arrested Jan. 31, 2015, when police found their two young child left in an unattended car while they attended a wine-tasting in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — Two children younger than 2 were left in an unattended car while their parents went to a wine tasting, police said.
Christopher Lucas, 41, and Jennie Chang, 45, of the District of Columbia were charged with second-degree cruelty to children after police received a call Saturday from a woman who walked by and saw an abandoned child in a locked Volvo near a Ritz Carlton Hotel.
Two children, a 22-month-old boy and a 2½-year-old girl, were restrained in child seats inside the car, according to charging documents. The girl was crying hysterically; the boy was not upset.
Outside the temperature was 35 degrees, and neither were wearing gloves or hats, police said.
As officers assessed how they would get into the car, Lucas approached and began to unlock the doors.
"I left to go inside the restaurant, but I was watching them," he told officers. Then Lucas reached inside the Volvo and pulled out a cellphone that showed a call to Chang and a timer that showed 58 minutes. "The children were sleeping, so I went inside."
The parents had gone inside a nearby restaurant for a wine tasting, said Gwendolyn Crump, Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman. The children were left alone for about an hour.
When Chang arrived at the car a short time later she asked officers at the scene, "What is the problem?" according to the charging documents.
An ambulance was called to the scene, the children were examined and they were taken into protective custody.
Lucas and Chang pleaded not guilty at an arraignment Monday and a judge has ordered them to stay away from their children. Their next hearing is scheduled Feb. 18. If they are found guilty of second-degree cruelty, each could face a fine of up to $25,000 and up to 10 years in prison.
Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1CVEAry | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 42,095 |
Attorney general and gubernatorial candidate Doug Gansler listens to reporters after his remarks during a Thursday news conference in Silver Spring. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
A month after launching his campaign for governor, Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler was entangled Thursday in yet another controversy, this time acknowledging a lapse in judgment when he appeared at a beach-house party and did nothing to stop apparent underage drinking going on there.
At a half-hour news conference in Silver Spring, Gansler (D) said that when he stopped by a party for graduating high school students in June, he should have been more vigilant about ensuring that the teenagers were not doing anything illegal. A photograph shows Gansler in the middle of a party scene, surrounded by young people. He said that failing to more thoroughly investigate what was going on at the party was “a mistake I made.”
“In hindsight, I probably should have assumed there was drinking and talked to the chaperones about what they thought was appropriate,” Gansler said. But Maryland’s top law enforcement official said he was there as a parent, hoping to talk briefly to his teenage son about travel plans, and not as “a police officer or anything else.”
He saw teenagers drinking from red plastic cups that night, Gansler said. “There could be Kool-Aid in the red cups,” he said, “but there’s probably beer in the red cups.”
Gansler, 50, called the news conference in response to a Baltimore Sun story that included a photograph of him amid a throng of teenagers, three of whom were dancing on a tabletop.
At a news conference Thursday in Silver Spring, Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler (D) said that he should have investigated whether there had been underage drinking at high school "beach party" where he stopped by to visit his son. (WJLA/NewsChannel 8)
At the news conference, Gansler was shown a copy of the photo that appears to show him holding a phone. When asked whether he was taking a photo with it, he said he had not yet learned how to do that with his new iPhone. He said he thought he was reading a text message.
Gansler told reporters that he visited “a dance party with loud music” to tell his son what time they had to leave Delaware in the morning. “What I’m doing in that picture is walking through — my son was upstairs; he was the DJ,” he said. “I walked through the party, walked through the dance floor, walked upstairs, talked to my son, walked downstairs and left.”
In the photograph, two other adults can be seen in the corner of the room, one of them holding what appears to be a wine glass.
The June 13 party took place at a six-bedroom rental home in South Bethany, Del., where Gansler’s son was staying with close to a dozen other graduates of the Landon School in Bethesda during “beach week.” Gansler said that his name was not on the lease but that he contributed to the rent.
He said that he faced the tensions facing any parent of a teenager: “How much do you let them go? How much do you rein them in? . . . I’m really no different from any other parent.” He said neither he nor his son was drinking.
Other photos and videos posted on social media from the party depict a wild environment at the house, with teenagers standing on a bar and perched on a banister in the main room as others dance below to Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”
Gansler’s appearance at the beach party is the latest episode to detract from the fledgling Democratic primary campaign, in which Gansler faces Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown and Del. Heather R. Mizeur (Montgomery) in June.
Last week, The Washington Post reported that written accounts by the Maryland State Police alleged that Gansler regularly ordered troopers assigned to drive for him to speed and run red lights, even on the way to routine appointments. Gansler accused a police commander who documented those concerns of being a politically motivated “henchman” trying to help Brown’s campaign.
In August, before Gansler formally announced his long-
anticipated bid for governor, The Post reported that he was secretly recorded at a meeting with volunteers saying that Brown was relying on his race to get elected and that his campaign slogan was: “Vote for me, I want to be the first African American governor of Maryland.”
Gansler said Thursday that he remained undeterred by the controversies and was eager to talk about issues affecting Marylanders. He said he is a “a big boy” and understands the scrutiny that comes with running for governor. “We’re in it,” he said. “I’m going to win it.”
As attorney general, Gansler has taken on the issue of underage drinking. He appeared in a public- service announcement less than a year ago for the Century Council, a group that works to combat teen drinking. “Parents, you’re the leading influence on your teen’s decision not to drink,” Gansler said in the video. “It’s never too early to talk with your kids about smart ways to say no.”
Among other battles, he took on Pabst Brewing in a strongly worded 2011 letter. He and other attorneys general called for an end to a fruit-flavored, high-alcohol malt beverage that he said was packaged as “binge-in-a-can” and designed to appeal to young people.
And Gansler’s office got behind legislation this year to help prevent would-be underage drinkers from surreptitiously purchasing alcohol at a grocery store by checking out with a self-scanner.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving issued a statement Thursday saying that the group was “disheartened” to learn that Gansler may have attended an apparent underage drinking party. Gansler is considered a leader on the issue, the group said. It said that adults must “take the lead and make it clear to their children that drinking any alcohol before age 21 is both dangerous and illegal.”
The legal drinking age in Delaware, as in Maryland, is 21. According to Delaware state law, an adult who buys or gives alcoholic beverages to people younger than 21 or allows someone under his or her supervision to consume alcohol can be subject to a fine of up to $500 and sentenced to perform community service and serve up to 30 days in jail. But the law does not apply to family members within the private family home.
It is not clear how the law would apply to a rental home with chaperones and underage teenagers from many different families. A spokesman for Delaware’s attorney general said the office would not comment on hypothetical scenarios.
But Gansler told the Sun: “Assume for purposes of discussion that there was widespread drinking at this party. How is that relevant to me? . . . The question is: Do I have any moral authority over other people’s children at beach week in another state? I say no.
“My responsibility is only to my child,” Gansler added. “Everybody has their own moral compass. Mine is to raise my own child.”
He softened that at the news conference, which drew national media attention, acknowledging that he should have at least approached the chaperones to ensure everything was all right. He emphasized, however, that he did not witness anyone in danger or exhibiting signs of intoxication.
“I didn’t see anybody in front of me clearly in danger or in any risk,” he said.
Earlier on the night of the party, Gansler had appeared in Ocean City at an event sponsored by the Maryland Bar Association, according to his campaign.
Timothy Dickson, a Virginia man who owns the South Bethany beach house, said he is seeking a legal remedy for significant damage to the house that he said is believed to be connected to the tenants who stayed there during the week of the party.
Police have said the damage probably occurred during a break-in after tenants departed — a scenario that Gansler said Thursday was his understanding of what occurred.
At a town council meeting a few weeks later, damage at the property was said to be about $50,000, according to the minutes.
Dickson said he had forwarded to police some documents discovered in the home after the tenants left. They include a roster of the boys who stayed there that week and a list of parent chaperones throughout the week.
A “Doug” is listed as a chaperone on the Saturday and Sunday before the Thursday party, according to a copy of e-mails sent to parents that were obtained by The Post. Gansler’s attorney general e-mail address is among the recipients.
Gansler spokesman Bob Wheelock said Gansler never filled a chaperone shift. “He wasn’t a chaperone for those two nights or any other night,” Wheelock said.
Wheelock said Gansler, who was staying in another beach house in the area that week, dropped by the house where the teens were staying one night earlier in the week. Gansler might have had a beer that night with the chaperones on duty, Wheelock said.
Robert Lynch, a parent who was scheduled to chaperone the night of the June 13 party, declined to be interviewed by The Post on Thursday.
“If this is about the Doug Gansler thing, I’m not going to comment,” he said before hanging up the telephone.
A list of “2013 Beach Week Rules” included in the documents says that “no hard liquor or controlled substances may be consumed.”
The rules also note that “chaperones will record any DAMAGE to house and inform incoming chaperones. Damages will be discussed with boys as it happens, if blame can be placed on an individual, his security deposit will reflect damage.”
At Thursday’s news conference, Gansler was asked whether he was accompanied by a Maryland state trooper the night of the party.
Gansler hesitated, then said: “I may have, but I really, really doubt it.”
Susan Svrluga, Peter Hermann, Mark Berman, T. J. Ortenzi and Jennifer Jenkins contributed to this report. ||||| This photo -- obtained by ABC News -- was taken at a party attended by Doug Gansler. ( )
Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler said Thursday that showing up at a "beach week" party of teenagers and not investigating whether there was underage drinking was "a mistake that I made."
"Perhaps I should have assumed there was drinking going on, and I got that wrong," Gansler said.
He said he stopped only briefly at the party in Delaware last June to see his son and left without asking the teenagers — including shirtless boys and a girl dancing on a tabletop — about the red plastic cups scattered around the party.
"There could be Kool-Aid in the red cups, but there's probably beer in the red cups," he told reporters.
Gansler, Maryland's chief law enforcement officer and a candidate for governor, held a news conference Thursday after The Baltimore Sun published a photo that showed him at the center of the party in South Bethany, along with his comments that he had no "moral responsibility" to intervene.
The image and Gansler's assertion made national news Thursday. Gansler has been an outspoken advocate for stricter laws against underage drinking.
The episode delivers the latest blow to Gansler's campaign for the Democratic nomination next year.
"Can things get any worse?" asked Matthew Crenson, professor emeritus of political science at the Johns Hopkins University.
Gansler has faced allegations that he ordered the state troopers on his security detail to drive recklessly and speed, failed to pay for traffic tickets and described his chief Democratic political rival Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, an African-American, as relying on his racial heritage to get elected.
In each case, analysts said, the damage was amplified by Gansler's response.
"He's just had one mistake after another," Crenson said. "I just can't believe people are going to put up with this."
At the news conference in front of his Silver Spring campaign headquarters, Gansler dismissed suggestions that his bid for governor had faltered.
"We're in it. We're going to win it," Gansler said. "The people of Maryland, they want somebody with the character, judgment, record, vision, authenticity, who is genuine and going to make the best Maryland. We're fine."
At the same time, Gansler reversed some of his comments about his responsibility at the party. Campaign spokesman Bob Wheelock said the change came "after reflection."
The party came at the end of a weeklong trip Gansler and other parents helped organize and finance for a dozen boys who had just graduated from the Landon School, a private school for boys in Bethesda.
Written rules given to the teens who were staying at the house for the week forbade drinking "hard liquor," but included no such instructions about beer.
On Thursday, Gansler described himself as a father facing "the tension for all parents" of teenagers about to leave for college.
"How much do you let them go? How much do you sort of rein them in?" he said. In hindsight, he said, "I should have assumed that there was drinking."
Gansler said his son wasn't drinking at the party.
The report sparked a vigorous debate on Baltimore talk radio about the responsibilities of parents to monitor the alcohol use of their underage children. Former Ravens owner David Modell called in to WBAL-AM to demand Gansler's resignation. | – Well, this is awkward: Maryland's attorney general, who has gone so far as to film a public service announcement against underage drinking and who is also currently running for governor, was at a wild-looking teenage party in June. The Baltimore Sun broke the news this week, running a photo (see it here) of Doug Gansler at the party (in the same shot, there are three scantily-clad teens dancing on a table). Gansler said he was simply there to talk to his son (who he says wasn't drinking), and he initially insisted he had no "moral responsibility" to intervene. But at a news conference yesterday, he admitted, "Perhaps I should have assumed there was drinking going on, and I got that wrong. There could be Kool-Aid in the red cups, but there's probably beer in the red cups." Gansler and other parents helped organize and pay for the week-long beach trip that preceded the party, as a high school graduation gift, and the teens were apparently only instructed not to drink hard alcohol, with no similar rule about beer. He says he helped pay the rent on the Delaware house, where almost a dozen grads were staying, the Washington Post reports. Two other adults (ostensibly the "chaperones" he referred to in the news conference) are shown in the photo, one of them apparently holding a wine glass. This isn't the first controversy to threaten his gubernatorial campaign: Last week, it came out that he allegedly ordered state troopers to speed and run red lights while driving him even to routine appointments, and in August, he made racially charged comments about an opponent. (Meanwhile, some Connecticut parents reacted very differently to their teens' party.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Attorney general and gubernatorial candidate Doug Gansler listens to reporters after his remarks during a Thursday news conference in Silver Spring. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
A month after launching his campaign for governor, Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler was entangled Thursday in yet another controversy, this time acknowledging a lapse in judgment when he appeared at a beach-house party and did nothing to stop apparent underage drinking going on there.
At a half-hour news conference in Silver Spring, Gansler (D) said that when he stopped by a party for graduating high school students in June, he should have been more vigilant about ensuring that the teenagers were not doing anything illegal. A photograph shows Gansler in the middle of a party scene, surrounded by young people. He said that failing to more thoroughly investigate what was going on at the party was “a mistake I made.”
“In hindsight, I probably should have assumed there was drinking and talked to the chaperones about what they thought was appropriate,” Gansler said. But Maryland’s top law enforcement official said he was there as a parent, hoping to talk briefly to his teenage son about travel plans, and not as “a police officer or anything else.”
He saw teenagers drinking from red plastic cups that night, Gansler said. “There could be Kool-Aid in the red cups,” he said, “but there’s probably beer in the red cups.”
Gansler, 50, called the news conference in response to a Baltimore Sun story that included a photograph of him amid a throng of teenagers, three of whom were dancing on a tabletop.
At a news conference Thursday in Silver Spring, Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler (D) said that he should have investigated whether there had been underage drinking at high school "beach party" where he stopped by to visit his son. (WJLA/NewsChannel 8)
At the news conference, Gansler was shown a copy of the photo that appears to show him holding a phone. When asked whether he was taking a photo with it, he said he had not yet learned how to do that with his new iPhone. He said he thought he was reading a text message.
Gansler told reporters that he visited “a dance party with loud music” to tell his son what time they had to leave Delaware in the morning. “What I’m doing in that picture is walking through — my son was upstairs; he was the DJ,” he said. “I walked through the party, walked through the dance floor, walked upstairs, talked to my son, walked downstairs and left.”
In the photograph, two other adults can be seen in the corner of the room, one of them holding what appears to be a wine glass.
The June 13 party took place at a six-bedroom rental home in South Bethany, Del., where Gansler’s son was staying with close to a dozen other graduates of the Landon School in Bethesda during “beach week.” Gansler said that his name was not on the lease but that he contributed to the rent.
He said that he faced the tensions facing any parent of a teenager: “How much do you let them go? How much do you rein them in? . . . I’m really no different from any other parent.” He said neither he nor his son was drinking.
Other photos and videos posted on social media from the party depict a wild environment at the house, with teenagers standing on a bar and perched on a banister in the main room as others dance below to Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”
Gansler’s appearance at the beach party is the latest episode to detract from the fledgling Democratic primary campaign, in which Gansler faces Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown and Del. Heather R. Mizeur (Montgomery) in June.
Last week, The Washington Post reported that written accounts by the Maryland State Police alleged that Gansler regularly ordered troopers assigned to drive for him to speed and run red lights, even on the way to routine appointments. Gansler accused a police commander who documented those concerns of being a politically motivated “henchman” trying to help Brown’s campaign.
In August, before Gansler formally announced his long-
anticipated bid for governor, The Post reported that he was secretly recorded at a meeting with volunteers saying that Brown was relying on his race to get elected and that his campaign slogan was: “Vote for me, I want to be the first African American governor of Maryland.”
Gansler said Thursday that he remained undeterred by the controversies and was eager to talk about issues affecting Marylanders. He said he is a “a big boy” and understands the scrutiny that comes with running for governor. “We’re in it,” he said. “I’m going to win it.”
As attorney general, Gansler has taken on the issue of underage drinking. He appeared in a public- service announcement less than a year ago for the Century Council, a group that works to combat teen drinking. “Parents, you’re the leading influence on your teen’s decision not to drink,” Gansler said in the video. “It’s never too early to talk with your kids about smart ways to say no.”
Among other battles, he took on Pabst Brewing in a strongly worded 2011 letter. He and other attorneys general called for an end to a fruit-flavored, high-alcohol malt beverage that he said was packaged as “binge-in-a-can” and designed to appeal to young people.
And Gansler’s office got behind legislation this year to help prevent would-be underage drinkers from surreptitiously purchasing alcohol at a grocery store by checking out with a self-scanner.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving issued a statement Thursday saying that the group was “disheartened” to learn that Gansler may have attended an apparent underage drinking party. Gansler is considered a leader on the issue, the group said. It said that adults must “take the lead and make it clear to their children that drinking any alcohol before age 21 is both dangerous and illegal.”
The legal drinking age in Delaware, as in Maryland, is 21. According to Delaware state law, an adult who buys or gives alcoholic beverages to people younger than 21 or allows someone under his or her supervision to consume alcohol can be subject to a fine of up to $500 and sentenced to perform community service and serve up to 30 days in jail. But the law does not apply to family members within the private family home.
It is not clear how the law would apply to a rental home with chaperones and underage teenagers from many different families. A spokesman for Delaware’s attorney general said the office would not comment on hypothetical scenarios.
But Gansler told the Sun: “Assume for purposes of discussion that there was widespread drinking at this party. How is that relevant to me? . . . The question is: Do I have any moral authority over other people’s children at beach week in another state? I say no.
“My responsibility is only to my child,” Gansler added. “Everybody has their own moral compass. Mine is to raise my own child.”
He softened that at the news conference, which drew national media attention, acknowledging that he should have at least approached the chaperones to ensure everything was all right. He emphasized, however, that he did not witness anyone in danger or exhibiting signs of intoxication.
“I didn’t see anybody in front of me clearly in danger or in any risk,” he said.
Earlier on the night of the party, Gansler had appeared in Ocean City at an event sponsored by the Maryland Bar Association, according to his campaign.
Timothy Dickson, a Virginia man who owns the South Bethany beach house, said he is seeking a legal remedy for significant damage to the house that he said is believed to be connected to the tenants who stayed there during the week of the party.
Police have said the damage probably occurred during a break-in after tenants departed — a scenario that Gansler said Thursday was his understanding of what occurred.
At a town council meeting a few weeks later, damage at the property was said to be about $50,000, according to the minutes.
Dickson said he had forwarded to police some documents discovered in the home after the tenants left. They include a roster of the boys who stayed there that week and a list of parent chaperones throughout the week.
A “Doug” is listed as a chaperone on the Saturday and Sunday before the Thursday party, according to a copy of e-mails sent to parents that were obtained by The Post. Gansler’s attorney general e-mail address is among the recipients.
Gansler spokesman Bob Wheelock said Gansler never filled a chaperone shift. “He wasn’t a chaperone for those two nights or any other night,” Wheelock said.
Wheelock said Gansler, who was staying in another beach house in the area that week, dropped by the house where the teens were staying one night earlier in the week. Gansler might have had a beer that night with the chaperones on duty, Wheelock said.
Robert Lynch, a parent who was scheduled to chaperone the night of the June 13 party, declined to be interviewed by The Post on Thursday.
“If this is about the Doug Gansler thing, I’m not going to comment,” he said before hanging up the telephone.
A list of “2013 Beach Week Rules” included in the documents says that “no hard liquor or controlled substances may be consumed.”
The rules also note that “chaperones will record any DAMAGE to house and inform incoming chaperones. Damages will be discussed with boys as it happens, if blame can be placed on an individual, his security deposit will reflect damage.”
At Thursday’s news conference, Gansler was asked whether he was accompanied by a Maryland state trooper the night of the party.
Gansler hesitated, then said: “I may have, but I really, really doubt it.”
Susan Svrluga, Peter Hermann, Mark Berman, T. J. Ortenzi and Jennifer Jenkins contributed to this report. ||||| This photo -- obtained by ABC News -- was taken at a party attended by Doug Gansler. ( )
Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler said Thursday that showing up at a "beach week" party of teenagers and not investigating whether there was underage drinking was "a mistake that I made."
"Perhaps I should have assumed there was drinking going on, and I got that wrong," Gansler said.
He said he stopped only briefly at the party in Delaware last June to see his son and left without asking the teenagers — including shirtless boys and a girl dancing on a tabletop — about the red plastic cups scattered around the party.
"There could be Kool-Aid in the red cups, but there's probably beer in the red cups," he told reporters.
Gansler, Maryland's chief law enforcement officer and a candidate for governor, held a news conference Thursday after The Baltimore Sun published a photo that showed him at the center of the party in South Bethany, along with his comments that he had no "moral responsibility" to intervene.
The image and Gansler's assertion made national news Thursday. Gansler has been an outspoken advocate for stricter laws against underage drinking.
The episode delivers the latest blow to Gansler's campaign for the Democratic nomination next year.
"Can things get any worse?" asked Matthew Crenson, professor emeritus of political science at the Johns Hopkins University.
Gansler has faced allegations that he ordered the state troopers on his security detail to drive recklessly and speed, failed to pay for traffic tickets and described his chief Democratic political rival Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, an African-American, as relying on his racial heritage to get elected.
In each case, analysts said, the damage was amplified by Gansler's response.
"He's just had one mistake after another," Crenson said. "I just can't believe people are going to put up with this."
At the news conference in front of his Silver Spring campaign headquarters, Gansler dismissed suggestions that his bid for governor had faltered.
"We're in it. We're going to win it," Gansler said. "The people of Maryland, they want somebody with the character, judgment, record, vision, authenticity, who is genuine and going to make the best Maryland. We're fine."
At the same time, Gansler reversed some of his comments about his responsibility at the party. Campaign spokesman Bob Wheelock said the change came "after reflection."
The party came at the end of a weeklong trip Gansler and other parents helped organize and finance for a dozen boys who had just graduated from the Landon School, a private school for boys in Bethesda.
Written rules given to the teens who were staying at the house for the week forbade drinking "hard liquor," but included no such instructions about beer.
On Thursday, Gansler described himself as a father facing "the tension for all parents" of teenagers about to leave for college.
"How much do you let them go? How much do you sort of rein them in?" he said. In hindsight, he said, "I should have assumed that there was drinking."
Gansler said his son wasn't drinking at the party.
The report sparked a vigorous debate on Baltimore talk radio about the responsibilities of parents to monitor the alcohol use of their underage children. Former Ravens owner David Modell called in to WBAL-AM to demand Gansler's resignation. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 36,004 |
NBC's The Office will end after its upcoming ninth season.
Executive producer Greg Daniels will return as showrunner for the final year -- taking over from Paul Lieberstein, who is prepping a potential spinoff. Daniels ran the show, still NBC's highest-rated scripted series, for its first five seasons.
"As we head into the homestretch, we have a lot of exciting things I've been wanting to do since season two," Daniel told reporters during a conference call Tuesday. "The end should be pretty cool."
Daniels, who was on-set during the call announcing the news, called it the "last chance" for the crew "to go out" the way he had envisioned, noting that "familiar faces [will be] coming back" as well as welcoming new cast members including Jake Lacy and Clark Duke for what might be an "emotional" ending for some.
PHOTOS: Broadcast TV's Returning Shows 2012-13
"At some point you have a choice: to always tell the beginnings of stories and the middles or to allow a story to end, and I think endings can be very powerful and meaningful pieces of the story," said Daniels, who added that NBC Entertainment president Bob Greenblatt was supportive of the plan to end the series. "If we didn't let it end this year, I don't know if we would have been able to tell the endings for so many characters that I really want to know the endings for."
The end of The Office means a big turning point for NBC as it looks to revamp its scripted lineup. The network is betting big on freshman comedies, picking up seven to series and giving condensed orders for returning half-hours including Community and 30 Rock, the latter of which also will wrap after this season. (The Office and Parks and Recreation were the only comedies to receive 22-episode pickups.) "They may also be crying over lost advertising," Daniels joked, acknowledging the value The Office has to the network. "Hopefully they'll have other things that are working by the end of the year."
The final season will be different from recent seasons, Daniels said, in that it will focus on arcs rather than episodic comedy.
"The real heart of the show are these arcs that allow these characters to have ongoing stories. It's all going to be set up in the premiere," he told reporters. "There's so much to pay off from nine seasons, so many great characters, that my biggest concern is just tacking in these great ideas that the writing staff has on the walls and making sure we hit all of them or at least squeeze as many into the ending."
PHOTOS: Behind the Scenes of 'The Office'
Daniels expressed hope that he would be able to keep big moments top secret, for the most part. In the era of the Internet and spoilers, he acknowledged that it might be impossible. "I would like to try to get back to the world where the world is surprised" by the story instead of reading about it three weeks before, he said.
Most of the main cast of characters will remain on the show, though some (B.J. Novak and Mindy Kaling) in diminished capacities. "There are so many storylines to follow now, so many endings to write for different characters, risky things we wouldn't normally do if we knew we were going for a long time," Daniels said. "Now that we have an end date, we can blow up things and take some chances. It's very freeing and creatively exciting for the audience."
Some of those chances include upcoming storylines like Nellie (Catherine Tate) holding a charity drive at the office and Dwight (Rainn Wilson) donating to the Taliban in retaliation. The identities of the documentary crew also will be a big part of season nine.
"All questions will be answered this year," said Daniels. "We'll see who's behind the documentary, and we'll meet some of them."
To bring it full circle, Daniels hopes that Ken Kwapis, who directed the pilot, will helm the final episode.
Does this mean that Steve Carell would return for a swan song as Michael Scott?
"We'll see," Daniels said of the idea to bring the actor back to the series that helped launch his career. "We have ideas for the ending, and obviously if he would participate, we would have a lot of good times. The idea will fly without him if he can't make it. He is pretty busy."
The news to end the series comes after Universal Television, one of the studios behind The Office, locked up former EP/current Parks & Rec showrunner Michael Schur in a new two-year overall deal that will see the Emmy winner develop additional projects for the studio.
The Office returns at 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, on NBC.
E-mail: [email protected] ||||| NBC is closing The Office.
The veteran comedy — and NBC’s highest-rated scripted series (gulp!) — will conclude after the upcoming ninth season.
Despite its status as the network’s top entertainment program, the show fell to an all-time ratings low last season following the exit of Steve Carell and general sense among fans that the comedy’s best days were behind it. Now original showrunner (seasons 1-5) Greg Daniels is retaking the creative reins for one last season.
“This year feels like the last chance to really go out together and make an artistic ending for the show that pays off a lot of the stuff that matters most to fans,” Daniels announced to reporters Tuesday. “This will be the last season of The Office. And we’re planning a very big exciting last season. We’re going to have a lot of faces coming back … There are a lot of things that I’ve personally been wanting to do since season two … All questions will be answered this year. We’re going to see who’s behind the documentary … Now that we know we have an end date we can blow things up and take some chances and it will be very freeing, creatively.”
The decision was partly driven by the sense that many of the actors would likely not be around for a tenth season (either due to commitments on other projects, like Mindy Kaling and Rainn Wilson, or due to the rising cost of the show’s key players, like John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer). “You have a choice — only tell the beginning of story and the middle, or allow a story to end,” Daniels said. “If we didn’t let it end this year, I don’t think we would have been able to tell the ending stories of so many characters… we couldn’t count on getting everybody back for season 10.”
That said, creatively rebooting the show was considered. “You could see a world where new people keep coming on the show,” Daniels said. “But I think [we want to] do justice to the existing characters in the most creative and explosive way and that means the show will be changed to such a degree that if anything was to continue it wouldn’t be the same show.”
The showrunner said to expect some “crazy Dwight” stories, a lot of drama in the Jim and Pam storyline, to see Roy’s wedding and David Wallace running Dunder Mifflin. But will the show’s former star, Carell, be back? “We would certainly wish for it,” Daniels said. “We’re not going to put so much pressure on Steve by writing something that would only work if he would return. He really loves how he was exited. He’s probably anxious about not messing up such a stylish exit. It’s a perfectly legitimate point. We’ll see.”
Here’s Daniels talking to EW.com about The Office a few days ago (and much more vaguely):
EntertainmentWeekly: Broadly, what can fans expect to be new/different about season 9?
Greg Daniels: We will be doing more [character] arcs, and more drama in the Jim and Pam story line. We are planning some big surprises … I’m guessing the show will feel more like Dunder-Mifflin from before the Sabre merger [when former showrunner Paul Lieberstein took over].
Given the age of the show and the spinoff plans [The Farm], are you expecting to write a series finale next season?
Daniels: Considering we are still NBC’s highest-rated scripted show, with a cast of 17 all-stars, any decision about a series finale will be made for creative reasons only. [Which, clearly, have now been made].
What can you tell us about [new hire] Jake Lacy’s character, how does he impact things?
Daniels: Jake Lacy and Clark Duke are both hired to handle the enormous number of customer service complaints that Kelly [Mindy Kaling] neglected over the years. They are pals and in their mid 20s.
How much will David Denman [Roy — Pam’s former love interest] be in the show? And Mindy Kaling will be in two episodes?
Daniels: So far, David Denman and Mindy have shot one episode each. I hope to get a few more out of them before the season is over. | – It's almost time to say goodbye to the gang at Dunder Mifflin. The ninth season of The Office, which gets under way next month, will be the last, reports Entertainment Weekly. "All questions will be answered this year," says Greg Daniels, who served as the show's head creative honcho for seasons 1 to 5 and is returning for the final one. Though still one of NBC's top shows, The Office stumbled in the ratings somewhat last year after the departure of Steve Carell character Michael Scott. Daniels doesn't give up many details of what's ahead, but click through to the EW link or to the Hollywood Reporter if you're fearless about even the hint of spoilers. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.NBC's The Office will end after its upcoming ninth season.
Executive producer Greg Daniels will return as showrunner for the final year -- taking over from Paul Lieberstein, who is prepping a potential spinoff. Daniels ran the show, still NBC's highest-rated scripted series, for its first five seasons.
"As we head into the homestretch, we have a lot of exciting things I've been wanting to do since season two," Daniel told reporters during a conference call Tuesday. "The end should be pretty cool."
Daniels, who was on-set during the call announcing the news, called it the "last chance" for the crew "to go out" the way he had envisioned, noting that "familiar faces [will be] coming back" as well as welcoming new cast members including Jake Lacy and Clark Duke for what might be an "emotional" ending for some.
PHOTOS: Broadcast TV's Returning Shows 2012-13
"At some point you have a choice: to always tell the beginnings of stories and the middles or to allow a story to end, and I think endings can be very powerful and meaningful pieces of the story," said Daniels, who added that NBC Entertainment president Bob Greenblatt was supportive of the plan to end the series. "If we didn't let it end this year, I don't know if we would have been able to tell the endings for so many characters that I really want to know the endings for."
The end of The Office means a big turning point for NBC as it looks to revamp its scripted lineup. The network is betting big on freshman comedies, picking up seven to series and giving condensed orders for returning half-hours including Community and 30 Rock, the latter of which also will wrap after this season. (The Office and Parks and Recreation were the only comedies to receive 22-episode pickups.) "They may also be crying over lost advertising," Daniels joked, acknowledging the value The Office has to the network. "Hopefully they'll have other things that are working by the end of the year."
The final season will be different from recent seasons, Daniels said, in that it will focus on arcs rather than episodic comedy.
"The real heart of the show are these arcs that allow these characters to have ongoing stories. It's all going to be set up in the premiere," he told reporters. "There's so much to pay off from nine seasons, so many great characters, that my biggest concern is just tacking in these great ideas that the writing staff has on the walls and making sure we hit all of them or at least squeeze as many into the ending."
PHOTOS: Behind the Scenes of 'The Office'
Daniels expressed hope that he would be able to keep big moments top secret, for the most part. In the era of the Internet and spoilers, he acknowledged that it might be impossible. "I would like to try to get back to the world where the world is surprised" by the story instead of reading about it three weeks before, he said.
Most of the main cast of characters will remain on the show, though some (B.J. Novak and Mindy Kaling) in diminished capacities. "There are so many storylines to follow now, so many endings to write for different characters, risky things we wouldn't normally do if we knew we were going for a long time," Daniels said. "Now that we have an end date, we can blow up things and take some chances. It's very freeing and creatively exciting for the audience."
Some of those chances include upcoming storylines like Nellie (Catherine Tate) holding a charity drive at the office and Dwight (Rainn Wilson) donating to the Taliban in retaliation. The identities of the documentary crew also will be a big part of season nine.
"All questions will be answered this year," said Daniels. "We'll see who's behind the documentary, and we'll meet some of them."
To bring it full circle, Daniels hopes that Ken Kwapis, who directed the pilot, will helm the final episode.
Does this mean that Steve Carell would return for a swan song as Michael Scott?
"We'll see," Daniels said of the idea to bring the actor back to the series that helped launch his career. "We have ideas for the ending, and obviously if he would participate, we would have a lot of good times. The idea will fly without him if he can't make it. He is pretty busy."
The news to end the series comes after Universal Television, one of the studios behind The Office, locked up former EP/current Parks & Rec showrunner Michael Schur in a new two-year overall deal that will see the Emmy winner develop additional projects for the studio.
The Office returns at 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, on NBC.
E-mail: [email protected] ||||| NBC is closing The Office.
The veteran comedy — and NBC’s highest-rated scripted series (gulp!) — will conclude after the upcoming ninth season.
Despite its status as the network’s top entertainment program, the show fell to an all-time ratings low last season following the exit of Steve Carell and general sense among fans that the comedy’s best days were behind it. Now original showrunner (seasons 1-5) Greg Daniels is retaking the creative reins for one last season.
“This year feels like the last chance to really go out together and make an artistic ending for the show that pays off a lot of the stuff that matters most to fans,” Daniels announced to reporters Tuesday. “This will be the last season of The Office. And we’re planning a very big exciting last season. We’re going to have a lot of faces coming back … There are a lot of things that I’ve personally been wanting to do since season two … All questions will be answered this year. We’re going to see who’s behind the documentary … Now that we know we have an end date we can blow things up and take some chances and it will be very freeing, creatively.”
The decision was partly driven by the sense that many of the actors would likely not be around for a tenth season (either due to commitments on other projects, like Mindy Kaling and Rainn Wilson, or due to the rising cost of the show’s key players, like John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer). “You have a choice — only tell the beginning of story and the middle, or allow a story to end,” Daniels said. “If we didn’t let it end this year, I don’t think we would have been able to tell the ending stories of so many characters… we couldn’t count on getting everybody back for season 10.”
That said, creatively rebooting the show was considered. “You could see a world where new people keep coming on the show,” Daniels said. “But I think [we want to] do justice to the existing characters in the most creative and explosive way and that means the show will be changed to such a degree that if anything was to continue it wouldn’t be the same show.”
The showrunner said to expect some “crazy Dwight” stories, a lot of drama in the Jim and Pam storyline, to see Roy’s wedding and David Wallace running Dunder Mifflin. But will the show’s former star, Carell, be back? “We would certainly wish for it,” Daniels said. “We’re not going to put so much pressure on Steve by writing something that would only work if he would return. He really loves how he was exited. He’s probably anxious about not messing up such a stylish exit. It’s a perfectly legitimate point. We’ll see.”
Here’s Daniels talking to EW.com about The Office a few days ago (and much more vaguely):
EntertainmentWeekly: Broadly, what can fans expect to be new/different about season 9?
Greg Daniels: We will be doing more [character] arcs, and more drama in the Jim and Pam story line. We are planning some big surprises … I’m guessing the show will feel more like Dunder-Mifflin from before the Sabre merger [when former showrunner Paul Lieberstein took over].
Given the age of the show and the spinoff plans [The Farm], are you expecting to write a series finale next season?
Daniels: Considering we are still NBC’s highest-rated scripted show, with a cast of 17 all-stars, any decision about a series finale will be made for creative reasons only. [Which, clearly, have now been made].
What can you tell us about [new hire] Jake Lacy’s character, how does he impact things?
Daniels: Jake Lacy and Clark Duke are both hired to handle the enormous number of customer service complaints that Kelly [Mindy Kaling] neglected over the years. They are pals and in their mid 20s.
How much will David Denman [Roy — Pam’s former love interest] be in the show? And Mindy Kaling will be in two episodes?
Daniels: So far, David Denman and Mindy have shot one episode each. I hope to get a few more out of them before the season is over. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 2,583 |
Who says senators aren’t tech-savvy?
Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) briefly halted her hearing for a moment Wednesday to respond to a tweet from BuzzFeed reporter Rosie Gray, which read: “@SenatorBarb is trying hard to keep the other senators from asking Gen. Alexander anymore about data mining programs.”
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Mikulski, the chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, had National Security Agency head Keith Alexander as well as FBI and Homeland Security Department officials before her on the issue of cyber security.
But the news cycle had most senators looking for Alexander to address revelations of broad phone recordkeeping and Internet surveillance by the NSA — so most senators took the opportunity to ask Alexander about the surveillance anyway, with Mikulski interrupting several such inquiries.
(PHOTOS: Pols, pundits weigh in on NSA report)
After catching a glimpse of Gray’s Twitter critique, Mikulski said, “Not everybody might be watching C-SPAN, so I want to say to Rosie and to others who might read it from Rosie: There is no attempt here to muzzle, stifle any senator from asking any line of questioning.”
“We’re here on cyber, but any senator can ask any question at this hearing that they want to. So Rosie, it’s an open hearing,” she said, smiling and holding up her smartphone. “Hi. Look forward to keeping in touch.”
The chairwoman got some bipartisan back-up: Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) said Mikulski had been “extremely tolerant of our diversion” from the subject of cybersecurity.
Mikulski had warned as the hearing began that NSA questions are for “another day”: Thursday, when all 100 members of the Senate will have the opportunity to meet with Alexander — behind closed doors. ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more | – Today's appearance by the NSA chief on Capitol Hill didn't produce many surprises—he said data mining is necessary and used in such a way that it doesn't invade privacy—but it did produce one strange moment featuring Sen. Barbara Mikulski. At one point, the Maryland Democrat paused the hearing to read a critical tweet from BuzzFeed reporter Rosie Gray—"@SenatorBarb is trying hard to keep the other senators from asking Gen. Alexander anymore about data mining programs.” Mikulski took exception, reports Politico. “Not everybody might be watching C-SPAN, so I want to say to Rosie and to others who might read it from Rosie: There is no attempt here to muzzle, stifle any senator from asking any line of questioning.” She also noted that the hearing was originally scheduled to talk about cybersecurity, not surveillance, "but any senator can ask any question at this hearing that they want to." Around that point, she smiled and picked up her smartphone. "So Rosie, it’s an open hearing. Hi. Look forward to keeping in touch.” (After which, Gray tweeted, "guess I should have subtweeted.") | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Who says senators aren’t tech-savvy?
Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) briefly halted her hearing for a moment Wednesday to respond to a tweet from BuzzFeed reporter Rosie Gray, which read: “@SenatorBarb is trying hard to keep the other senators from asking Gen. Alexander anymore about data mining programs.”
Text Size -
+
reset
Mikulski, the chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, had National Security Agency head Keith Alexander as well as FBI and Homeland Security Department officials before her on the issue of cyber security.
But the news cycle had most senators looking for Alexander to address revelations of broad phone recordkeeping and Internet surveillance by the NSA — so most senators took the opportunity to ask Alexander about the surveillance anyway, with Mikulski interrupting several such inquiries.
(PHOTOS: Pols, pundits weigh in on NSA report)
After catching a glimpse of Gray’s Twitter critique, Mikulski said, “Not everybody might be watching C-SPAN, so I want to say to Rosie and to others who might read it from Rosie: There is no attempt here to muzzle, stifle any senator from asking any line of questioning.”
“We’re here on cyber, but any senator can ask any question at this hearing that they want to. So Rosie, it’s an open hearing,” she said, smiling and holding up her smartphone. “Hi. Look forward to keeping in touch.”
The chairwoman got some bipartisan back-up: Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) said Mikulski had been “extremely tolerant of our diversion” from the subject of cybersecurity.
Mikulski had warned as the hearing began that NSA questions are for “another day”: Thursday, when all 100 members of the Senate will have the opportunity to meet with Alexander — behind closed doors. ||||| Tweet with a location
You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 4,004 |
FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, file photo, Maria Sharapova of Russia celebrates after defeating Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championships... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, file photo, Maria Sharapova of Russia celebrates after defeating Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championships... (Associated Press)
MOSCOW (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency says there have been 99 positive tests this year for meldonium, the drug found in Maria Sharapova's sample at the Australian Open.
WADA spokesman Ben Nichols tells The Associated Press in an e-mail that since the drug was banned on Jan. 1 "there have been 99 adverse analytical findings for Meldonium recorded."
Nichols did not provide details of who has tested positive.
Seven of the 16 confirmed cases come from Russian athletes, including Sharapova. ||||| Tennis star Maria Sharapova is presently the most prominent athlete to test positive for the recently-banned drug meldonium — but that could change soon.
Anti-doping agencies are prepared to re-examine urine samples collected as far back as 2006 to see if athletes were using the performance-enhancing drug that was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency's banned substance list on Jan. 1.
"Under the World Anti-Doping Code, the revised statute of limitations allows (WADA) to pursue anti-doping rule violations for a period of 10 years from when any violation was said to have occurred," Ben Nichols, a WADA's spokesman, said.
Nichols confirmed a New York Times report that a sample Sharapova submitted on Jan. 26 is one of more than 60 that have shown traces of the drug since the start of 2016. Many of the athletes involved have yet to be identified because their cases are still being adjudicated, a process that often involves testing of backup samples.
WHAT IS MELDONIUM?
Maria Sharapova could be facing a ban from tennis for her positive test. (ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)
"I can confirm that since 1 January 2016 when the substance Meldonium became banned, there have been 99 adverse analytical findings for Meldonium recorded." Nichols told the Daily News. "That number is growing...I cannot confirm how many different athletes that represents, however."
The WADA rules, which every Olympic athlete agrees to when they apply for licenses in their sport, include provisions that allow laboratories to store samples for just this type of instance — the discovery of a new doping product or method and the development of a test.
One example is the BALCO doping ring in California, which relied upon a designer steroid developed by a rogue chemist. Another instance was the pharmaceutical development of new versions of erythropoietin, or EPO, a drug that boosts red blood cell counts that was favored by endurance athletes.
FOLLOW THE DAILY NEWS SPORTS ON FACEBOOK. "LIKE" US HERE. | – Maria Sharapova isn't the only athlete who's been busted for taking a heart medicine once used by Soviet troops to build stamina. Turns out the World Anti-Doping Agency has seen nearly 100 positive tests in 2016 for meldonium, a drug the group banned Jan. 1, spokesman Ben Nichols told the AP via email. "There have been 99 adverse analytical findings for meldonium recorded," he writes, though he didn't indicate who exactly was nailed for it, other than noting seven of the confirmed cases were revealed to be from Russians (including Sharapova). And there may be more instances to come, as the New York Daily News reports WADA may go back to 2006 to recheck urine samples. "Under the World Anti-Doping Code, the revised statute of limitations allows [WADA] to pursue anti-doping rule violations for a period of 10 years from when any violation was said to have occurred," Nichols says. And believe it or not, there are probably urine samples still sitting around, as license agreements all Olympic athletes sign when they apply permit samples to be kept around in case of new advancements in testing down the road. As for healthy athletes who are tempted to take drugs like this in what health blogger Aaron Carroll calls in the New York Times a "pharmaceutical quest for the edge," it's not worth it. "There's no magic here," he writes. "Unfortunately, most of those people are getting all the harms of the substances they take, but few of the benefits." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, file photo, Maria Sharapova of Russia celebrates after defeating Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championships... (Associated Press)
FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, file photo, Maria Sharapova of Russia celebrates after defeating Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championships... (Associated Press)
MOSCOW (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency says there have been 99 positive tests this year for meldonium, the drug found in Maria Sharapova's sample at the Australian Open.
WADA spokesman Ben Nichols tells The Associated Press in an e-mail that since the drug was banned on Jan. 1 "there have been 99 adverse analytical findings for Meldonium recorded."
Nichols did not provide details of who has tested positive.
Seven of the 16 confirmed cases come from Russian athletes, including Sharapova. ||||| Tennis star Maria Sharapova is presently the most prominent athlete to test positive for the recently-banned drug meldonium — but that could change soon.
Anti-doping agencies are prepared to re-examine urine samples collected as far back as 2006 to see if athletes were using the performance-enhancing drug that was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency's banned substance list on Jan. 1.
"Under the World Anti-Doping Code, the revised statute of limitations allows (WADA) to pursue anti-doping rule violations for a period of 10 years from when any violation was said to have occurred," Ben Nichols, a WADA's spokesman, said.
Nichols confirmed a New York Times report that a sample Sharapova submitted on Jan. 26 is one of more than 60 that have shown traces of the drug since the start of 2016. Many of the athletes involved have yet to be identified because their cases are still being adjudicated, a process that often involves testing of backup samples.
WHAT IS MELDONIUM?
Maria Sharapova could be facing a ban from tennis for her positive test. (ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)
"I can confirm that since 1 January 2016 when the substance Meldonium became banned, there have been 99 adverse analytical findings for Meldonium recorded." Nichols told the Daily News. "That number is growing...I cannot confirm how many different athletes that represents, however."
The WADA rules, which every Olympic athlete agrees to when they apply for licenses in their sport, include provisions that allow laboratories to store samples for just this type of instance — the discovery of a new doping product or method and the development of a test.
One example is the BALCO doping ring in California, which relied upon a designer steroid developed by a rogue chemist. Another instance was the pharmaceutical development of new versions of erythropoietin, or EPO, a drug that boosts red blood cell counts that was favored by endurance athletes.
FOLLOW THE DAILY NEWS SPORTS ON FACEBOOK. "LIKE" US HERE. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 5,226 |
America's most influential right-wing media outlet is facing up to the chilling prospect of having a whistleblower in its own newsroom.
Two internal memos from Fox News' Washington bureau chief, Bill Sammon, have found their way into the public domain in recent days via the liberal website Media Matters.
They detail how the news organisation which bills itself "fair and balanced" has made its reportage anything but.
At issue in the supposedly-secret directives is semantics; specifically the language that Fox correspondents use when discussing two of the most controversial items on Barack Obama's presidential agenda: healthcare reform and climate change. Sammon, according to critics, at least, is shown by the emails to be ensuring that coverage of the Obama agenda carries a hostile bias. That would directly contradict Fox's official policy, which has always been to insist that while commentators such as Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck are dyed-in-the-wool conservatives, its news teams are unbiased.
The first leaked memo, made public last week, was sent by Sammon last October, shortly after the US Senate unveiled a health bill which included a provision that would give the public sector a small role in providing medical insurance to Americans.
This provision was widely described at the time as the "public option", but Sammon decreed that Fox should instead describe it using one of three sanctioned phrases: "government-run health insurance", "government option" or "so-called public option".
All three of those phrases had previously been identified by Republican Party researchers as polling badly among the US electorate. The phrase Sammon outlawed ("public option") by contrast inspired positive reaction.
The second intriguing directive from Sammon leaked on Wednesday. It was sent to Fox staff in the run-up to this year's Copenhagen climate summit and ordered that any mention of climate change on the station should be coupled with an expression of scepticism regarding its very existence.
Reporters should "refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question," the memo read. "It is not our place as journalists to assert such notions as facts, especially as this debate intensifies." All but a tiny handful of global warming sceptics accept that the Earth's temperature has risen in recent decades.
Sceptics instead tend to deny that temperature change is linked to human activity and claim it is, in any case,rendered insignificant when viewed against longer-term trends.
So Fox duly found its journalistic practices in the firing line yesterday. "The network's coverage regularly gives unwarranted weight to anti-scientific claims regarding climate change," read a statement from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Al Gore, for his part, published a blog entry, claiming: "Fox News has consistently delivered false and misleading information to its viewers about the climate crisis. The leaked emails now suggest that this bias comes directly from the executives responsible for their news coverage."
Sammon's line on climate change contradicts that of Fox – and Newscorp – owner Rupert Murdoch. In 2007, Mr Murdoch said: "Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats. We certainly can't afford the risk of inaction."
The world according to Fox
* On his radio show last week, Fox News commentator Glenn Beck alleged that 10 per cent of the world's Muslims are terrorists, asking "why isn't this receiving coverage?" The reason: the real figure is closer to 0.1 per cent.
* Last November, Fox host Gregg Jarrett told viewers to marvel at "huge crowds" attending the launch of Sarah Palin's memoir Going Rogue. Accompanying his spiel was footage of crowds watching Ms Palin speak. But that footage had been shot during the 2008 presidential election. The network later apologised for misleading viewers, blaming a "production error".
* A year ago, Republican lawmakers held a rally in Washington opposing Barack Obama's healthcare reform. Fox Host Sean Hannity spoke wistfully of the vast turnout of "between 20,000 and 45,000 people". But eagle-eyed viewers noted that crowds depicted on screen were in fact attendees at an entirely different (and much larger) event which had taken place in the Capitol two months earlier. Hannity later apologised for "an inadvertent mistake".
* During the 2004 election, Fox's Chief Political Correspondent, Carl Cameron, quoted Democrat candidate John Kerry calling himself a "metrosexual" who enjoyed getting manicures. One problem: the quote was fabricated. A spokesman for the network later apologised: "Carl Cameron made a stupid mistake, and he has been reprimanded for his lapse in judgement."
Guy Adams ||||| It became apparent on Wednesday that the liberal website Media Matters has an informant planted at Fox News Channel who is leaking memos to it from its Washington DC managing editor Bill Sammon. The website on Wednesday published a copy of a year-old memo sent out by Sammon a year ago within minutes after Fox News reporter Wendell Goler reported that 2000-2009 was the warmest decade on record. In his memo, Sammon said, "Given the controversy over the veracity of climate change data, we should refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY [caps are Sammon's] pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question. It is not our place as journalists to assert such notions as facts, especially as this debate intensifies." Climatologists have indicated that there is virtually no disagreement among them on the issue of climate change and that the controversy has been created by a small number of political conservatives who confuse weather and climate and who muddle the matter by citing meteorologists or others who have little knowledge of the science of climate.
16/12/2010 | – Fox News had better watch its back now that a snitch is apparently feeding memos to the media exposing it as more of a conservative propaganda machine than a news operation. Two memos leaked to Media Matters revealed orders from the top directing staff to put a right-wing spin on issues of the day. Now America's "most influential right-wing media outlet is facing up to the chilling prospect of having a whistleblower in its own newsroom," notes the Independent. It could be even more cloak-and-dagger. "Liberal website Media Matters has an informant planted at Fox leaking memos, crows Contact Music. One of the memos ordered reporters to use terms implying skepticism of global warming, another dictated terms when referring to the federal health care bill (such as referring to the "so-called public option') which polled poorly with Americans in research conducted by the Republican Party. Both memos came from Bill Sammon, managing editor of Fox News' DC operation. The Union of Concerned Scientists yesterday blasted Fox for its "unscientific" take on global warming. "Emails now suggest that this bias comes directly from the executives responsible for their news coverage," said a statement from the organization. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.America's most influential right-wing media outlet is facing up to the chilling prospect of having a whistleblower in its own newsroom.
Two internal memos from Fox News' Washington bureau chief, Bill Sammon, have found their way into the public domain in recent days via the liberal website Media Matters.
They detail how the news organisation which bills itself "fair and balanced" has made its reportage anything but.
At issue in the supposedly-secret directives is semantics; specifically the language that Fox correspondents use when discussing two of the most controversial items on Barack Obama's presidential agenda: healthcare reform and climate change. Sammon, according to critics, at least, is shown by the emails to be ensuring that coverage of the Obama agenda carries a hostile bias. That would directly contradict Fox's official policy, which has always been to insist that while commentators such as Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck are dyed-in-the-wool conservatives, its news teams are unbiased.
The first leaked memo, made public last week, was sent by Sammon last October, shortly after the US Senate unveiled a health bill which included a provision that would give the public sector a small role in providing medical insurance to Americans.
This provision was widely described at the time as the "public option", but Sammon decreed that Fox should instead describe it using one of three sanctioned phrases: "government-run health insurance", "government option" or "so-called public option".
All three of those phrases had previously been identified by Republican Party researchers as polling badly among the US electorate. The phrase Sammon outlawed ("public option") by contrast inspired positive reaction.
The second intriguing directive from Sammon leaked on Wednesday. It was sent to Fox staff in the run-up to this year's Copenhagen climate summit and ordered that any mention of climate change on the station should be coupled with an expression of scepticism regarding its very existence.
Reporters should "refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question," the memo read. "It is not our place as journalists to assert such notions as facts, especially as this debate intensifies." All but a tiny handful of global warming sceptics accept that the Earth's temperature has risen in recent decades.
Sceptics instead tend to deny that temperature change is linked to human activity and claim it is, in any case,rendered insignificant when viewed against longer-term trends.
So Fox duly found its journalistic practices in the firing line yesterday. "The network's coverage regularly gives unwarranted weight to anti-scientific claims regarding climate change," read a statement from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Al Gore, for his part, published a blog entry, claiming: "Fox News has consistently delivered false and misleading information to its viewers about the climate crisis. The leaked emails now suggest that this bias comes directly from the executives responsible for their news coverage."
Sammon's line on climate change contradicts that of Fox – and Newscorp – owner Rupert Murdoch. In 2007, Mr Murdoch said: "Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats. We certainly can't afford the risk of inaction."
The world according to Fox
* On his radio show last week, Fox News commentator Glenn Beck alleged that 10 per cent of the world's Muslims are terrorists, asking "why isn't this receiving coverage?" The reason: the real figure is closer to 0.1 per cent.
* Last November, Fox host Gregg Jarrett told viewers to marvel at "huge crowds" attending the launch of Sarah Palin's memoir Going Rogue. Accompanying his spiel was footage of crowds watching Ms Palin speak. But that footage had been shot during the 2008 presidential election. The network later apologised for misleading viewers, blaming a "production error".
* A year ago, Republican lawmakers held a rally in Washington opposing Barack Obama's healthcare reform. Fox Host Sean Hannity spoke wistfully of the vast turnout of "between 20,000 and 45,000 people". But eagle-eyed viewers noted that crowds depicted on screen were in fact attendees at an entirely different (and much larger) event which had taken place in the Capitol two months earlier. Hannity later apologised for "an inadvertent mistake".
* During the 2004 election, Fox's Chief Political Correspondent, Carl Cameron, quoted Democrat candidate John Kerry calling himself a "metrosexual" who enjoyed getting manicures. One problem: the quote was fabricated. A spokesman for the network later apologised: "Carl Cameron made a stupid mistake, and he has been reprimanded for his lapse in judgement."
Guy Adams ||||| It became apparent on Wednesday that the liberal website Media Matters has an informant planted at Fox News Channel who is leaking memos to it from its Washington DC managing editor Bill Sammon. The website on Wednesday published a copy of a year-old memo sent out by Sammon a year ago within minutes after Fox News reporter Wendell Goler reported that 2000-2009 was the warmest decade on record. In his memo, Sammon said, "Given the controversy over the veracity of climate change data, we should refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY [caps are Sammon's] pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question. It is not our place as journalists to assert such notions as facts, especially as this debate intensifies." Climatologists have indicated that there is virtually no disagreement among them on the issue of climate change and that the controversy has been created by a small number of political conservatives who confuse weather and climate and who muddle the matter by citing meteorologists or others who have little knowledge of the science of climate.
16/12/2010 | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,011 |
Archaeologists began Monday using a revolutionary new deep sea diving suit to explore the ancient shipwreck where one of the most remarkable scientific objects of antiquity was found.
The so-called Antikythera Mechanism, a 2nd-century BC device known as the world's oldest computer, was discovered by sponge divers in 1900 off a remote Greek island in the Aegean.
The highly complex mechanism of up to 40 bronze cogs and gears was used by the ancient Greeks to track the cycles of the solar system. It took another 1,500 years for an astrological clock of similar sophistication to be made in Europe.
Now archaeologists returning to the wreck will be able to use a new diving suit which will allow them to more than double the depth they can dive at, and stay safely at the bottom for longer.
- Double the diving depth -
The Exosuit, built in Canada by Nuytco Research, will permit divers to reach depths of 150 metres (492 feet) and still perform delicate tasks, says archaeologist Theotokis Theodoulou.
The suit, which resembles a puffy space suit, "expands our capabilities", Theodoulou told AFP as the team set off for a month-long expedition to Antikythera, which lies between Crete and the Peloponnese.
"I'll be able to grasp, pluck, clench and dig... for several hours," he said.
Archaeologists believe many other artefacts are yet to be discovered in and around the wreck. Up to now they had only been able to operate at a depth of 60 metres.
The mechanism was found with a spectacular bronze statue of a youth in the wreck of a cargo ship apparently carrying booty to Rome, and researchers are certain that other items on board still remain to be discovered.
"We have good signs that there are other objects present," said Angeliki Simosi, head of Greece's directorate of underwater antiquities, after exploratory dives in the area in 2012 and 2013.
"There are dozens of items left, this was a ship bearing immense riches from Asia Minor," added Dimitris Kourkoumelis, another archaeologist on the team.
The archaeologists also hope to confirm the presence of a second ship, some 250 metres away from the original discovery site.
Antikythera, which now has a population of only 44, was on one of antiquity's busiest trade routes, and a base for Cilician pirates, some of whom once captured and held the young Julius Caesar for ransom. He later had them all captured and crucified.
- Monumental statues -
The Greek team is assisted by Brendan Foley, a marine archaeologist from the renowned Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution at Massachusetts, which was involved in a dive to the wreck of the Titanic.
Foley has helped in outings to identify ancient shipwrecks over the last five years.
"We may find one or more monumental statues that were left behind in 1901, in the mistaken belief that they were rocks," Foley said.
As well as the new Exosuit, the Antikythera expedition will also use robot mapping equipment and new advanced closed-circuit "rebreathers", which will allow divers much more time underwater.
"We will have more bottom time than any previous human visitors to the site, because we dive with mixed gas rebreathers," the expedition's website said.
"Each diver will have more than 30 minutes of bottom time per day, and will enjoy greater mental acuity and a larger safety margin than that of previous divers at Antikythera."
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Like an underwater Iron Man, a diver will fly around the wreck of an ancient Greek ship later this year, looking to shed light on the Antikythera mechanism
THE world's most advanced robotic diving suit is getting ready to help search for one of the world's oldest computers.
Called Exosuit, the suit has a rigid metal humanoid form with Iron Man-like thrusters that enable divers to operate safely down to depths of 300 metres (see photo).
Though designed for diving in the bowels of New York City's water treatment plants, earlier this month it underwent its first trials in seawater at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Massachusetts. The tests are readying the suit for a daring attempt to excavate an ancient Roman shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera in the Aegean Sea. A century ago, divers pulled the world's oldest computer – the Antikythera mechanism – from the wreck. They are hoping that they will find a second device when they go down in September.
Marine archaeologists normally wear scuba gear to explore underwater sites in person, but the time that divers can spend at depth is limited by the dangers of decompression sickness, or the bends. For deep wrecks, researchers rely on remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) carrying cameras and sonar to scan an area, or large and expensive craft like the Alvin submarine that explored the wreck of the Titanic in 1986.
The $1.5 million Exosuit falls somewhere in between. "It's basically a wearable submarine," says Phil Short, a diving specialist on the planned mission to Antikythera. "The pressure inside is no different from being in a submarine or in fresh air. We can go straight to the bottom, spend 5 hours there and come straight back to the surface with no decompression."
The suit is made from an aluminium alloy, with articulated joints that permit divers to move their arms and legs freely. An umbilical cable from a ship supplies it with power for horizontal and vertical thrusters, and a rebreather that scrubs toxic carbon dioxide from exhaled air, giving 50 hours of life support. The cable also carries voice, video and data links. In the event of an emergency, a battery can power everything but the thrusters, including a back-up communication system.
Foot pedals inside the Exosuit control the four thrusters to manoeuvre it through the water. And if a diver is busy with a complex task underwater, an operator topside can monitor the Exosuit's video feed and fire the thrusters to keep it in position – or even take over completely and bring the suit back to the ship.
The Exosuit is needed both because of the depth of the Antikythera wreck – it reaches 120 metres – and the delicacy of any artefacts that might lie within. When Greek sponge fishermen found the shipwreck in October 1900, the pressure was such that they had only 5 minutes on the seabed before having to ascend. It was risky: several divers were paralysed and one died from decompression sickness.
By the time underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau led an expedition to the ship in 1976, the amount of time that could be spent at the bottom had been extended to just 10 minutes. To maximise their efficiency, Cousteau's divers used a vacuum system to suck up a small area of the wreck, but this risked damaging or destroying priceless fragile objects.
The new expedition won't face such time constraints. "With the Exosuit, our bottom time becomes virtually unlimited," says Brendan Foley, co-director of field operations at WHOI's Deep Submergence Laboratory. "Now we can have an archaeologist in the suit for hours, and we'll only have to come up to answer the call of nature."
Despite the limitations of earlier expeditions, the treasures that were recovered at Antikythera represent some of the finest ancient Greek and Roman artefacts in existence. They tell the story of a Roman ship that foundered on the rocky shores of the island around 60 BC. The ship was laden with luxury goods, including bronze and marble statues, precious jewellery, a hoard of coins, glassware, ceramic jars – and fragments of a peculiar geared device whose importance was at first overlooked. Only in the 1950s did scholars figure out that the rusty metal pieces could be assembled into a sophisticated analogue computer for predicting astronomical events. They called it the Antikythera mechanism.
Ironically, 2000 years spent in corrosive saltwater may have been the best way to preserve these riches. Most precious objects from antiquity have been broken up or melted down over the millennia. The National Archaeological Museum in Athens has only 10 major bronze statues from Ancient Greece – and nine of them came from shipwrecks.
Foley believes that the Antikythera shipwreck still holds many secrets. A preliminary survey last year showed artefacts scattered over an area 50 metres by 10 metres, and even revealed a previously unknown shipwreck alongside the first one.
"We have feet, arms and the crest of a warrior's helmet from statues recovered in 1900 – maybe we'll get lucky and find the rest of them," says Foley. "But for me, the mechanism is what sets this wreck apart. It's the questions it opens up about the history of science and technology that fire my imagination."
Read full article | 1 | 2 Continue reading page
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Image Return to Antikythera 4:01 Play video International experts are working together to conduct a large-scale expedition to the Antikythera shipwreck. The site is home to one of the most significant finds in archeological history - the Antikythera mechanism - an ancient astronomical computer.
WITH torn sails and splintered timbers, a Roman ship foundered in the savage seas between Greece and Crete. Some 2000 years later, what it carried would rattle the world.
As the shattered remains sank into the dim sea, the treasures it carried passed out of reach of history.
As Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem Ulysses evocatively intones: “Beyond the utmost bound of human thought”.
Until now.
On board was an amazing but eclectic collection: Bronze and marble statues. Glassware. Jewellery. Coins.
An ancient computer.
But the cargo also appears to have been something of an assortment of parts. Few objects recovered so far have been complete.
Was it a treasure ship making a delivery to an expectant king or high priest? Was it a loot ship, carrying the spoils of a distant war? Or was it a salvage barge lugging away the discarded, unfashionable luxuries from a rich estate for recycling?
What vanished that fateful day about 60BC is about to be revealed.
Finely formed bronze statues of gods, kings and warriors. Amazingly animated marble statues — made weak by time and fate, but still full of vigour and life. Sublimely crafted and coloured glass bowls and cups.
All this paled into insignificance once scientists took at close look at a corroded clump of bronze cogs and wheels.
It was part of an astronomical calculator. A mechanical device to predict the motion of the stars and planets.
The 82 fragments recovered so far have become known as the Antikythera Mechanism. It has been the centre of fascination, debate and speculation for decades. And there are enticing hints that there may be a second.
Now archaeologists have resolved to find the rest of it.
It was more than a century ago when local sponge diver spotted an eerie hand sticking out from the silt while working the barren crags off Point Glyphadia on the Aegean island of Antikythera.
The intrepid divers could only go as deep as 75m for a few minutes. Nevertheless, they managed to recover a wealth of ancient art.
But it would be one shapeless, nondescript lump of bronze which would turn out to be one of the most extraordinary discoveries in history.
When eventually cleaned, the 20cm tall tangle of bronze revealed a complex interweave of gears and cogs.
CLICK HERE to see the enhanced version of this story
Today an assembly of archaeologists and divers sets out with hungry hearts to finish the job.
It won’t be an easy task. And they have only a month to do it in.
Antikythera isn’t exactly a hospitable place. It’s little more than a clump of rocks situated between Crete and Greece. The earthquake-wracked region is renowned for its jagged outcrops and deep ravines.
But new technology will be instrumental in this search for the old.
It’s a cutting-edge piece of engineering which encases an operator inside an automated exoskeleton pressure suit. It can keep its occupant safe — and mobile — down to a depth of 300m for up to five hours at a time.
Dr James Hunter, a research fellow with the South Australian Maritime Museum and head archaeologist for the HMCS Protector Project, says he is excited at the potential the exosuit brings.
“It’s really cool. We’ve progressed quite a bit from the early days of underwater archeology when we were using scuba gear with regular compressed air and no mixed gas. We’ve learned through trial-and-error new methods to safely work at depth,” he says.
Jacques Cousteau revisited the depths in 1953 and 1976 using just such basic equipment. Nevertheless, the famous ocean explorer managed to dredge part of the site — recovering many wonderful things.
It is still believed the main body of the wreck itself has not been extensively searched.
A recent survey uncovered evidence of artefacts scattered over a 50m by 10m patch of the seabed.
Then there’s a second, as-yet unexplored wreck.
Dr Brendan Foley, archaeologist with the Massachusetts-based Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and leader of the new expedition, says the new wreck was 250m away from the first site and appeared to be carrying similar ceramic objects.
“We discovered it about two years ago,” he said. “It was obviously following the same route and may have been travelling with the ship carrying the mechanism.”
The new expedition hopes to get down and dirty, digging underneath the original wreck as well as further exploring the debris trail that extends up to 150m from the ship.
The Antikythera Mechanism Research Project is a collaboration of international academics with the declared purpose of fully recovering the Antikythera Mechanism.
“I am so excited that I often find myself wide awake thinking of the shipwreck,” Dr Foley told a function at a recent exhibition of the 378 artefacts so far recovered.
Dr Hunter is equally keen.
“The mechanism is certainly centre stage, but the information potential in other areas is pretty extensive as well,” he says.
Along with more of the mechanism, Dr Hunter is hoping for the mundane: Traces of fabric and food — anything which gives us a better idea of the lives of those associated with the ships.
“Because that’s really the goal, what they’re trying to find out,” he says. “The artefacts are important, but it’s what they tell us about the people who made and used them that matters most.”
Stories of cities, of men and manners, climates, councils, governments.
From the eternal silence of the seabed, Dr Foley is confident of finding something more.
“We can speculate that there are more items to be found from its valuable cargo, which will most likely be very well preserved,” he says.
“We have feet, arms and the crest of a warrior’s helmet from statues recovered in 1900 — maybe we’ll get lucky and find the rest of them,” Foley told New Scientist.
“But for me, the mechanism is what sets this wreck apart. It’s the questions it opens up about the history of science and technology that fire my imagination.”
It’s one of archeology’s most astonishing finds: A mysterious bundle of cogs and wheels pulled from the depths of the Aegean Sea.
It’s the most sophisticated device ever to emerge from antiquity.
It’s taken decades of study to decode exactly what it does
Astrolabe? Orrery? These are words little used in the modern world which apply to forms of an astronomical clock.
The Antikythera mechanism is an analog (meaning built of cogs and dials) computer from the ancient world.
It’s the only known example of its kind.
“The device is obviously amazing and makes mechanical what had been known for a millennium or more in terms of astronomical cycles,” Professor Roger Clay, an astrophysicist with the University of Adelaide says.
“Those cycles had been defined for eclipse prediction and to produce a workable calendar, the latter being a major practical necessity. The fact that these cycles were even known is amazing since each complete cycle was longer than the average life expectancy.”
We know it was a hand-cranked device specifically designed and built to predict the cycles of the sun and moon — and their eclipses. It seems likely to have helped determine which city was due to host the ancient Olympic Games, as well as track the movements of planets across the sky for the purpose of prophecy and religious ceremony.
It is an incredibly complex device and represents a level of skill not matched again until the 14th century.
“I imagine that you are right to imply that this mechanism was a rich person’s device,” Dr Clay says. “ It isn’t necessary for doing the calculation but it does allow anyone to do it. In effect, it is an early app!”
From the scraps we have, some 30 gears have been identified so far — the largest being about 14cm wide and holding 223 teeth.
But much of the ancient machine is missing.
“Surprisingly what the real issue was that bronze got recycled,” Dr Hunter says. “You melted it down. You had a statue of Zeus or whatever, and it’s like — we don’t need that any more, let’s take all that bronze, melt it down and make something else …”
The good news is that bronze generally holds up very well under water.
“They reckon they’ve got half of it,” Dr Hunter says. “That would seem to suggest that the other half has to be down there somewhere ... either that or the cargo may have been scrap!”
It’s a foreboding thought.
“It’s interesting that the ship was carrying a lot of bronze, particularly a lot of bronze in pieces,” Dr Hunter says, “so it begs the question: Was this ship carrying a big pile of scrap to recycle it?
“I’d prefer to believe hat the ship was carrying an intact cargo of luxury goods and personal belongings, but it’s important to keep an open mind and not rule out other, more mundane possibilities.”
Only once the final pieces are in hand can archaeologists — and astrophysicists — make it shine in use again, and finally discover exactly how advanced this ancient piece of clockwork really was.
Somewhat appropriately, the $3 million expedition to find them is being part-sponsored by a Swiss watchmaker.
The seven main and 75 smaller fragments that have been identified are now housed in the National Archaeological Museum, in Athens. This institution is part of the new search.
The most in-depth analysis of the remains was conducted in 2005. It took an international effort to peer past the corrosion and map the cogs in three dimensions without damaging the objects themselves.
It revealed astonishing detail.
Even fine and worn inscriptions on the surface of some of the bronze work were exposed.
These have since been read.
One word stands out clearly: ΚΟΣΜΟΥ, meaning “cosmos”
One metal plate may even have been part of an ancient instruction manual. Fragments of writing appear to detail different gear settings for the device.
But now there is a new complicating factor.
Michael Wright, curator of the Science Museum, in London, was one of those who made a careful X-ray map of the fragments.
When he set out to create an exact replica, he discovered one set of gears and cogs did not match the rest.
“It’s not easy to find a place for one piece, Fragment D,” he told New Scientist. “It’s also slightly different in workmanship and has a slightly different colour.”
He now believes there may be more than one computer amid the mud of the sea floor off Antikythera.
“What can be hiding down there? Just think how such discoveries could change the way we view the ancient world and especially the Greek civilisation,” Dr Foley said.
The key to finding the remains of the ancient piece of engineering is a new one: An Exosuit.
Essentially a wearable submarine, it will allow an operator to dive as deep as 300m and work there for more than five hours.
“Now we can have an archaeologist in the suit for hours, and we’ll only have to come up to answer the call of nature,” Dr Foley says.
The original sponge divers were able to go as far down as 75m for just a few minutes. Some of those who dove on the Antikythera site became paralysed. One died.
Divers in this new expedition will spend much of their day operating between 50m and 75m. The suit is expected to go down as far as 120m.
It may look unwieldy, but the $1.7 million exoskeleton is ideally suited to recovering fragile deep-sea artefacts.
But it’s the personal touch it offers that counts the most, says Dr Hunter.
“The exosuit has the advantage of actually having an archaeologist there on site. When you’re dealing with sites remotely, it’s sometimes difficult to gauge what’s happening when you’re looking through a tiny monitor. If you’ve got someone who’s actually there, they’ve got a fair degree of visibility through the helmet and they’re looking directly at what they’re dealing with in real-time. That’s ideal.”
Pedals at the feet of the suit allow the diver to fly through the water using thrusters built into the suit’s backpack. These can even be controlled via remote control from the surface.
The heavy arms are articulated and finely balanced, allowing their arms to move freely.
Instead of hands, objects will be grasped by mechanical pincers.
An umbilical cable is attached to the ship carries data cabling for video and voice feeds as well as providing power for the thrusters and the carbon dioxide scrubber which allows the divers to stay down for so long. A backup battery powers the breathing and communications systems in an emergency.
The pressure is on.
Customising the suit to “fit” individual divers is not easy, and its operators need time to adjust to its controls, balance and weight.
While the expedition is scheduled to be conducted for a full month, the suit itself will only be on loan to the archaeologists for a little more than a week.
The plan is to carefully map the wreck sites before deploying the armour-encased archaeologist.
“It’s an experimental suit,” Dr Foley said. “We need to figure out what it can do for us and how to make it as effective as possible.
“Over a period of meticulous sessions, we’ll slowly close in on what we hope is another mechanism.”
Whatever the case, the results of the expedition will keep archaeologists busy for quite some time. And there are hundreds more as yet unexplored wrecks offering potential insights into ancient lives.
“There’s a lot out there,” Dr Hunter says. “And there’s a lot we haven’t even come close to getting to yet. “
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. | – A shipwreck that yielded a 2,000-year-old "computer" known as the Antikythera Mechanism is being freshly explored using another remarkable piece of technology. A new, spacesuit-like "Exosuit" is being worn by deep-sea-diving archaeologists searching a shipwreck off the coast of a Greek island over the next month. The $1.5 million suit "expands our capabilities" and will let workers "grasp, pluck, clench, and dig" around the 400-foot deep wreck for hours, an archaeologist involved with the Antikythera expedition tells AFP. The suit is like a "wearable submarine," a diving specialist on the mission told New Scientist earlier this year. "The pressure inside is no different from being in a submarine or in fresh air. We can go straight to the bottom, spend five hours there, and come straight back to the surface with no decompression." So what are they hoping to find? The Antikythera Mechanism was discovered by sponge divers in 1900, and 82 fragments of it have thus far been found amid the wreck of the Roman ship that foundered near the remote island around 60BC, News.com.au reports. But the curator of London's Science Museum believes one fragment doesn't fit—indicating there could be a second mechanism. There could also be additional parts of the mechanism already discovered, researchers believe. "There are dozens of items left; this was a ship bearing immense riches from Asia Minor," another archaeologist on the expedition says. The divers will also search for evidence of a second shipwreck believed to sit a few hundred feet away. (Parts of a 1765 shipwreck were discovered in Argentina earlier this year—by researchers on horseback.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Archaeologists began Monday using a revolutionary new deep sea diving suit to explore the ancient shipwreck where one of the most remarkable scientific objects of antiquity was found.
The so-called Antikythera Mechanism, a 2nd-century BC device known as the world's oldest computer, was discovered by sponge divers in 1900 off a remote Greek island in the Aegean.
The highly complex mechanism of up to 40 bronze cogs and gears was used by the ancient Greeks to track the cycles of the solar system. It took another 1,500 years for an astrological clock of similar sophistication to be made in Europe.
Now archaeologists returning to the wreck will be able to use a new diving suit which will allow them to more than double the depth they can dive at, and stay safely at the bottom for longer.
- Double the diving depth -
The Exosuit, built in Canada by Nuytco Research, will permit divers to reach depths of 150 metres (492 feet) and still perform delicate tasks, says archaeologist Theotokis Theodoulou.
The suit, which resembles a puffy space suit, "expands our capabilities", Theodoulou told AFP as the team set off for a month-long expedition to Antikythera, which lies between Crete and the Peloponnese.
"I'll be able to grasp, pluck, clench and dig... for several hours," he said.
Archaeologists believe many other artefacts are yet to be discovered in and around the wreck. Up to now they had only been able to operate at a depth of 60 metres.
The mechanism was found with a spectacular bronze statue of a youth in the wreck of a cargo ship apparently carrying booty to Rome, and researchers are certain that other items on board still remain to be discovered.
"We have good signs that there are other objects present," said Angeliki Simosi, head of Greece's directorate of underwater antiquities, after exploratory dives in the area in 2012 and 2013.
"There are dozens of items left, this was a ship bearing immense riches from Asia Minor," added Dimitris Kourkoumelis, another archaeologist on the team.
The archaeologists also hope to confirm the presence of a second ship, some 250 metres away from the original discovery site.
Antikythera, which now has a population of only 44, was on one of antiquity's busiest trade routes, and a base for Cilician pirates, some of whom once captured and held the young Julius Caesar for ransom. He later had them all captured and crucified.
- Monumental statues -
The Greek team is assisted by Brendan Foley, a marine archaeologist from the renowned Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution at Massachusetts, which was involved in a dive to the wreck of the Titanic.
Foley has helped in outings to identify ancient shipwrecks over the last five years.
"We may find one or more monumental statues that were left behind in 1901, in the mistaken belief that they were rocks," Foley said.
As well as the new Exosuit, the Antikythera expedition will also use robot mapping equipment and new advanced closed-circuit "rebreathers", which will allow divers much more time underwater.
"We will have more bottom time than any previous human visitors to the site, because we dive with mixed gas rebreathers," the expedition's website said.
"Each diver will have more than 30 minutes of bottom time per day, and will enjoy greater mental acuity and a larger safety margin than that of previous divers at Antikythera."
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Like an underwater Iron Man, a diver will fly around the wreck of an ancient Greek ship later this year, looking to shed light on the Antikythera mechanism
THE world's most advanced robotic diving suit is getting ready to help search for one of the world's oldest computers.
Called Exosuit, the suit has a rigid metal humanoid form with Iron Man-like thrusters that enable divers to operate safely down to depths of 300 metres (see photo).
Though designed for diving in the bowels of New York City's water treatment plants, earlier this month it underwent its first trials in seawater at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Massachusetts. The tests are readying the suit for a daring attempt to excavate an ancient Roman shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera in the Aegean Sea. A century ago, divers pulled the world's oldest computer – the Antikythera mechanism – from the wreck. They are hoping that they will find a second device when they go down in September.
Marine archaeologists normally wear scuba gear to explore underwater sites in person, but the time that divers can spend at depth is limited by the dangers of decompression sickness, or the bends. For deep wrecks, researchers rely on remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) carrying cameras and sonar to scan an area, or large and expensive craft like the Alvin submarine that explored the wreck of the Titanic in 1986.
The $1.5 million Exosuit falls somewhere in between. "It's basically a wearable submarine," says Phil Short, a diving specialist on the planned mission to Antikythera. "The pressure inside is no different from being in a submarine or in fresh air. We can go straight to the bottom, spend 5 hours there and come straight back to the surface with no decompression."
The suit is made from an aluminium alloy, with articulated joints that permit divers to move their arms and legs freely. An umbilical cable from a ship supplies it with power for horizontal and vertical thrusters, and a rebreather that scrubs toxic carbon dioxide from exhaled air, giving 50 hours of life support. The cable also carries voice, video and data links. In the event of an emergency, a battery can power everything but the thrusters, including a back-up communication system.
Foot pedals inside the Exosuit control the four thrusters to manoeuvre it through the water. And if a diver is busy with a complex task underwater, an operator topside can monitor the Exosuit's video feed and fire the thrusters to keep it in position – or even take over completely and bring the suit back to the ship.
The Exosuit is needed both because of the depth of the Antikythera wreck – it reaches 120 metres – and the delicacy of any artefacts that might lie within. When Greek sponge fishermen found the shipwreck in October 1900, the pressure was such that they had only 5 minutes on the seabed before having to ascend. It was risky: several divers were paralysed and one died from decompression sickness.
By the time underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau led an expedition to the ship in 1976, the amount of time that could be spent at the bottom had been extended to just 10 minutes. To maximise their efficiency, Cousteau's divers used a vacuum system to suck up a small area of the wreck, but this risked damaging or destroying priceless fragile objects.
The new expedition won't face such time constraints. "With the Exosuit, our bottom time becomes virtually unlimited," says Brendan Foley, co-director of field operations at WHOI's Deep Submergence Laboratory. "Now we can have an archaeologist in the suit for hours, and we'll only have to come up to answer the call of nature."
Despite the limitations of earlier expeditions, the treasures that were recovered at Antikythera represent some of the finest ancient Greek and Roman artefacts in existence. They tell the story of a Roman ship that foundered on the rocky shores of the island around 60 BC. The ship was laden with luxury goods, including bronze and marble statues, precious jewellery, a hoard of coins, glassware, ceramic jars – and fragments of a peculiar geared device whose importance was at first overlooked. Only in the 1950s did scholars figure out that the rusty metal pieces could be assembled into a sophisticated analogue computer for predicting astronomical events. They called it the Antikythera mechanism.
Ironically, 2000 years spent in corrosive saltwater may have been the best way to preserve these riches. Most precious objects from antiquity have been broken up or melted down over the millennia. The National Archaeological Museum in Athens has only 10 major bronze statues from Ancient Greece – and nine of them came from shipwrecks.
Foley believes that the Antikythera shipwreck still holds many secrets. A preliminary survey last year showed artefacts scattered over an area 50 metres by 10 metres, and even revealed a previously unknown shipwreck alongside the first one.
"We have feet, arms and the crest of a warrior's helmet from statues recovered in 1900 – maybe we'll get lucky and find the rest of them," says Foley. "But for me, the mechanism is what sets this wreck apart. It's the questions it opens up about the history of science and technology that fire my imagination."
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Image Return to Antikythera 4:01 Play video International experts are working together to conduct a large-scale expedition to the Antikythera shipwreck. The site is home to one of the most significant finds in archeological history - the Antikythera mechanism - an ancient astronomical computer.
WITH torn sails and splintered timbers, a Roman ship foundered in the savage seas between Greece and Crete. Some 2000 years later, what it carried would rattle the world.
As the shattered remains sank into the dim sea, the treasures it carried passed out of reach of history.
As Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem Ulysses evocatively intones: “Beyond the utmost bound of human thought”.
Until now.
On board was an amazing but eclectic collection: Bronze and marble statues. Glassware. Jewellery. Coins.
An ancient computer.
But the cargo also appears to have been something of an assortment of parts. Few objects recovered so far have been complete.
Was it a treasure ship making a delivery to an expectant king or high priest? Was it a loot ship, carrying the spoils of a distant war? Or was it a salvage barge lugging away the discarded, unfashionable luxuries from a rich estate for recycling?
What vanished that fateful day about 60BC is about to be revealed.
Finely formed bronze statues of gods, kings and warriors. Amazingly animated marble statues — made weak by time and fate, but still full of vigour and life. Sublimely crafted and coloured glass bowls and cups.
All this paled into insignificance once scientists took at close look at a corroded clump of bronze cogs and wheels.
It was part of an astronomical calculator. A mechanical device to predict the motion of the stars and planets.
The 82 fragments recovered so far have become known as the Antikythera Mechanism. It has been the centre of fascination, debate and speculation for decades. And there are enticing hints that there may be a second.
Now archaeologists have resolved to find the rest of it.
It was more than a century ago when local sponge diver spotted an eerie hand sticking out from the silt while working the barren crags off Point Glyphadia on the Aegean island of Antikythera.
The intrepid divers could only go as deep as 75m for a few minutes. Nevertheless, they managed to recover a wealth of ancient art.
But it would be one shapeless, nondescript lump of bronze which would turn out to be one of the most extraordinary discoveries in history.
When eventually cleaned, the 20cm tall tangle of bronze revealed a complex interweave of gears and cogs.
CLICK HERE to see the enhanced version of this story
Today an assembly of archaeologists and divers sets out with hungry hearts to finish the job.
It won’t be an easy task. And they have only a month to do it in.
Antikythera isn’t exactly a hospitable place. It’s little more than a clump of rocks situated between Crete and Greece. The earthquake-wracked region is renowned for its jagged outcrops and deep ravines.
But new technology will be instrumental in this search for the old.
It’s a cutting-edge piece of engineering which encases an operator inside an automated exoskeleton pressure suit. It can keep its occupant safe — and mobile — down to a depth of 300m for up to five hours at a time.
Dr James Hunter, a research fellow with the South Australian Maritime Museum and head archaeologist for the HMCS Protector Project, says he is excited at the potential the exosuit brings.
“It’s really cool. We’ve progressed quite a bit from the early days of underwater archeology when we were using scuba gear with regular compressed air and no mixed gas. We’ve learned through trial-and-error new methods to safely work at depth,” he says.
Jacques Cousteau revisited the depths in 1953 and 1976 using just such basic equipment. Nevertheless, the famous ocean explorer managed to dredge part of the site — recovering many wonderful things.
It is still believed the main body of the wreck itself has not been extensively searched.
A recent survey uncovered evidence of artefacts scattered over a 50m by 10m patch of the seabed.
Then there’s a second, as-yet unexplored wreck.
Dr Brendan Foley, archaeologist with the Massachusetts-based Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and leader of the new expedition, says the new wreck was 250m away from the first site and appeared to be carrying similar ceramic objects.
“We discovered it about two years ago,” he said. “It was obviously following the same route and may have been travelling with the ship carrying the mechanism.”
The new expedition hopes to get down and dirty, digging underneath the original wreck as well as further exploring the debris trail that extends up to 150m from the ship.
The Antikythera Mechanism Research Project is a collaboration of international academics with the declared purpose of fully recovering the Antikythera Mechanism.
“I am so excited that I often find myself wide awake thinking of the shipwreck,” Dr Foley told a function at a recent exhibition of the 378 artefacts so far recovered.
Dr Hunter is equally keen.
“The mechanism is certainly centre stage, but the information potential in other areas is pretty extensive as well,” he says.
Along with more of the mechanism, Dr Hunter is hoping for the mundane: Traces of fabric and food — anything which gives us a better idea of the lives of those associated with the ships.
“Because that’s really the goal, what they’re trying to find out,” he says. “The artefacts are important, but it’s what they tell us about the people who made and used them that matters most.”
Stories of cities, of men and manners, climates, councils, governments.
From the eternal silence of the seabed, Dr Foley is confident of finding something more.
“We can speculate that there are more items to be found from its valuable cargo, which will most likely be very well preserved,” he says.
“We have feet, arms and the crest of a warrior’s helmet from statues recovered in 1900 — maybe we’ll get lucky and find the rest of them,” Foley told New Scientist.
“But for me, the mechanism is what sets this wreck apart. It’s the questions it opens up about the history of science and technology that fire my imagination.”
It’s one of archeology’s most astonishing finds: A mysterious bundle of cogs and wheels pulled from the depths of the Aegean Sea.
It’s the most sophisticated device ever to emerge from antiquity.
It’s taken decades of study to decode exactly what it does
Astrolabe? Orrery? These are words little used in the modern world which apply to forms of an astronomical clock.
The Antikythera mechanism is an analog (meaning built of cogs and dials) computer from the ancient world.
It’s the only known example of its kind.
“The device is obviously amazing and makes mechanical what had been known for a millennium or more in terms of astronomical cycles,” Professor Roger Clay, an astrophysicist with the University of Adelaide says.
“Those cycles had been defined for eclipse prediction and to produce a workable calendar, the latter being a major practical necessity. The fact that these cycles were even known is amazing since each complete cycle was longer than the average life expectancy.”
We know it was a hand-cranked device specifically designed and built to predict the cycles of the sun and moon — and their eclipses. It seems likely to have helped determine which city was due to host the ancient Olympic Games, as well as track the movements of planets across the sky for the purpose of prophecy and religious ceremony.
It is an incredibly complex device and represents a level of skill not matched again until the 14th century.
“I imagine that you are right to imply that this mechanism was a rich person’s device,” Dr Clay says. “ It isn’t necessary for doing the calculation but it does allow anyone to do it. In effect, it is an early app!”
From the scraps we have, some 30 gears have been identified so far — the largest being about 14cm wide and holding 223 teeth.
But much of the ancient machine is missing.
“Surprisingly what the real issue was that bronze got recycled,” Dr Hunter says. “You melted it down. You had a statue of Zeus or whatever, and it’s like — we don’t need that any more, let’s take all that bronze, melt it down and make something else …”
The good news is that bronze generally holds up very well under water.
“They reckon they’ve got half of it,” Dr Hunter says. “That would seem to suggest that the other half has to be down there somewhere ... either that or the cargo may have been scrap!”
It’s a foreboding thought.
“It’s interesting that the ship was carrying a lot of bronze, particularly a lot of bronze in pieces,” Dr Hunter says, “so it begs the question: Was this ship carrying a big pile of scrap to recycle it?
“I’d prefer to believe hat the ship was carrying an intact cargo of luxury goods and personal belongings, but it’s important to keep an open mind and not rule out other, more mundane possibilities.”
Only once the final pieces are in hand can archaeologists — and astrophysicists — make it shine in use again, and finally discover exactly how advanced this ancient piece of clockwork really was.
Somewhat appropriately, the $3 million expedition to find them is being part-sponsored by a Swiss watchmaker.
The seven main and 75 smaller fragments that have been identified are now housed in the National Archaeological Museum, in Athens. This institution is part of the new search.
The most in-depth analysis of the remains was conducted in 2005. It took an international effort to peer past the corrosion and map the cogs in three dimensions without damaging the objects themselves.
It revealed astonishing detail.
Even fine and worn inscriptions on the surface of some of the bronze work were exposed.
These have since been read.
One word stands out clearly: ΚΟΣΜΟΥ, meaning “cosmos”
One metal plate may even have been part of an ancient instruction manual. Fragments of writing appear to detail different gear settings for the device.
But now there is a new complicating factor.
Michael Wright, curator of the Science Museum, in London, was one of those who made a careful X-ray map of the fragments.
When he set out to create an exact replica, he discovered one set of gears and cogs did not match the rest.
“It’s not easy to find a place for one piece, Fragment D,” he told New Scientist. “It’s also slightly different in workmanship and has a slightly different colour.”
He now believes there may be more than one computer amid the mud of the sea floor off Antikythera.
“What can be hiding down there? Just think how such discoveries could change the way we view the ancient world and especially the Greek civilisation,” Dr Foley said.
The key to finding the remains of the ancient piece of engineering is a new one: An Exosuit.
Essentially a wearable submarine, it will allow an operator to dive as deep as 300m and work there for more than five hours.
“Now we can have an archaeologist in the suit for hours, and we’ll only have to come up to answer the call of nature,” Dr Foley says.
The original sponge divers were able to go as far down as 75m for just a few minutes. Some of those who dove on the Antikythera site became paralysed. One died.
Divers in this new expedition will spend much of their day operating between 50m and 75m. The suit is expected to go down as far as 120m.
It may look unwieldy, but the $1.7 million exoskeleton is ideally suited to recovering fragile deep-sea artefacts.
But it’s the personal touch it offers that counts the most, says Dr Hunter.
“The exosuit has the advantage of actually having an archaeologist there on site. When you’re dealing with sites remotely, it’s sometimes difficult to gauge what’s happening when you’re looking through a tiny monitor. If you’ve got someone who’s actually there, they’ve got a fair degree of visibility through the helmet and they’re looking directly at what they’re dealing with in real-time. That’s ideal.”
Pedals at the feet of the suit allow the diver to fly through the water using thrusters built into the suit’s backpack. These can even be controlled via remote control from the surface.
The heavy arms are articulated and finely balanced, allowing their arms to move freely.
Instead of hands, objects will be grasped by mechanical pincers.
An umbilical cable is attached to the ship carries data cabling for video and voice feeds as well as providing power for the thrusters and the carbon dioxide scrubber which allows the divers to stay down for so long. A backup battery powers the breathing and communications systems in an emergency.
The pressure is on.
Customising the suit to “fit” individual divers is not easy, and its operators need time to adjust to its controls, balance and weight.
While the expedition is scheduled to be conducted for a full month, the suit itself will only be on loan to the archaeologists for a little more than a week.
The plan is to carefully map the wreck sites before deploying the armour-encased archaeologist.
“It’s an experimental suit,” Dr Foley said. “We need to figure out what it can do for us and how to make it as effective as possible.
“Over a period of meticulous sessions, we’ll slowly close in on what we hope is another mechanism.”
Whatever the case, the results of the expedition will keep archaeologists busy for quite some time. And there are hundreds more as yet unexplored wrecks offering potential insights into ancient lives.
“There’s a lot out there,” Dr Hunter says. “And there’s a lot we haven’t even come close to getting to yet. “
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 30,065 |
Debris falls upon Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers and protesters as officers began to push protesters from the intersection near the Epicentre in Charlotte, N.C. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. Authorities... (Associated Press)
Debris falls upon Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers and protesters as officers began to push protesters from the intersection near the Epicentre in Charlotte, N.C. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. Authorities in Charlotte tried to quell public anger Wednesday after a police officer shot a black man, but... (Associated Press)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on protests in Charlotte, North Carolina over the fatal police shooting of a black man. (all times local):
12:05 p.m.
The chief state prosecutor in Charlotte is asking the State Bureau of Investigation to look into the shooting of a man killed by a police officer earlier this week.
District Attorney R. Andrew Murray said in a statement Thursday that he was making the request for a state investigation at the request of the family of 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott.
Charlotte Police Chief Kerr Putney says he plans to show video of the shooting to the slain man's family, but the video won't be immediately released to the public.
He also said during a news conference Thursday that the video does not definitively show Scott pointing a gun at anyone, though police maintain Scott refused commands to drop the weapon.
___
Noon
The family of a black man shot to death by a police officer in Charlotte is calling on protesters to be peaceful.
Reykia Scott says in a statement released Thursday that she is devastated by the death of her husband, 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott, and understands people's frustrations. But Reykia Scott says hurting people or damaging property is not the answer.
The Scott family's comments come after a second night of unrest in Charlotte after the fatal shooting. Police Chief Kerry Putney told reporters Thursday he planned to show video of the shooting to Scott's family but would not immediately be releasing it to the public.
Putney says the video does not definitively show Keith Scott pointing a gun at anyone.
Police say Scott refused repeated commands to drop his gun, but residents say he was unarmed.
___
11:45 a.m.
Charlotte's police chief says he sees no reason to impose a curfew in North Carolina's largest city, even after two nights of violent protests following the shooting of a man by a police officer.
Chief Kerr Putney said the city now has more resources to deal with problems, following a declaration of a state of emergency and the arrival of the North Carolina National Guard and more officers from the State Highway Patrol.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts said earlier Thursday the city was considering a curfew. She defended the decision not to seek an emergency declaration earlier, noting the city had been calm during the day Wednesday. She says the request was made at the appropriate time when more resources were needed.
Roberts again called for calm as the shooting investigation continues.
___
10:55 a.m.
Charlotte's police chief says he plans to show video of an officer shooting a black man to the slain man's family, but the video won't be immediately released to the public.
Police Chief Kerr Putney said during a news conference Thursday that the video does not definitively show 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott pointing a gun at anyone.
Putney says he is working to honor the request from the family of Scott to view the video. It's unclear when or if the video might be released publicly.
The video could be key to resolving the chasm between police, who say Scott refused repeated commands to drop his gun, and residents who say he was unarmed. It's not clear what the body cameras worn by three officers who were present during the shooting may have captured.
___
10:15 a.m.
Life is returning to normal on downtown streets in Charlotte despite two nights of violence.
On Thursday morning, a few uniformed police officers are walking around the area. The governor declared a state of emergency Wednesday night and called on help from the National Guard, but no Guard members were present on the street Thursday morning.
Glass and uprooted plants can be seen on the sidewalk from the protests Wednesday night.
Traffic is flowing in the area although at least three major companies asked their employees to stay home on Thursday.
___
9:55 a.m.
The mayor of Charlotte says officials have no time frame for when they might release camera footage of the fatal police shooting of a black man.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts told "NPR" Thursday morning that releasing the police video "depends on the investigation and its progress, and it depends on the discretion of the chief to some extent."
Calls for police to release the video have increased along with the violent protests, but the police chief has resisted. North Carolina has a law that takes effect Oct. 1 requiring a judge to approve releasing police video, and he said he doesn't release video when a criminal investigation is ongoing.
Roberts said she hopes to watch the video Thursday or Friday. "I certainly would feel better being able to see it," she said, adding that she doesn't know how conclusive the video footage is until she watches it.
Police said the plainsclothes officer who shot 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott, identified as Brently Vinson, has been placed on leave, standard procedure in such cases. Three uniformed officers at the shooting scene had body cameras; Vinson did not, police said.
___
9:45 a.m.
Federal help is on the way to Charlotte after two nights of violence after the fatal police shooting of a black man.
The Justice Department is sending a team of trained peacekeepers designed to help resolve community conflict.
The department's Community Relations Service has been deployed to other cities roiled by tense flare-ups between police and residents.
___
8:50 a.m.
The mayor of Charlotte says the city is considering a curfew after two nights of violence in the wake of the shooting of a black man by police.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Thursday that city officials are talking about imposing a curfew.
Streets were calm Thursday morning, but several civilians and police officers were hurt in the second night of violence Wednesday night.
City spokeswoman Ashley Simmons told local media that Roberts' office will discuss a possible curfew with city police and the National Guard on Thursday.
The mayor said she wants people to know Charlotte is open for business Thursday. But at least three major companies told workers to avoid downtown offices.
The North Carolina National Guard arrived at a Charlotte armory early Thursday and some Guard vehicles left the armory about 8 a.m.
___
7:55 a.m.
The NASCAR Hall of Fame in downtown Charlotte is among the places damaged during violent protests over the police shooting of a black man earlier this week.
The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority oversees the NASCAR Hall of Fame building and the convention center next door. An official said the building is being assessed for damage.
According to local news outlets, a street sign hung off-kilter from the front window of the hall's building after someone tried to pry it out of the window.
The regional United Way building across the street from the hall was also damaged. Lobby windows were smashed. Officials don't know if anyone entered the building.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are operating on a normal schedule, as is Mecklenburg County government. The regional bus line says it has restored service to all lines.
___
7:30 a.m.
Major companies with offices in downtown Charlotte are telling their employees to stay home after two nights of violent protests following the shooting of a black man by police earlier this week.
Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Duke Energy all told employees to stay away from the area Thursday, where disturbances have damaged several business fronts.
A Duke Energy spokesman says non-essential personnel who work downtown are being told to stay home for the day.
Wells Fargo spokesman Josh Dunn said the bank's staff is not required to report to work Thursday. Dunn said employees can work from home or another location if they're able. Employees unable to do so won't be required to take a personal day off.
Bank of America announced late Wednesday that its downtown staff will not report Thursday because of the damage.
The streets in downtown Charlotte appeared to be calm Thursday morning.
___
2 a.m.
Downtown Charlotte is calming down early Thursday after a peaceful prayer vigil turned into a violent protest over the fatal police shooting of a black man.
Hotel and restaurant employees and security guards have started cleaning up dozens of broken windows.
But the city isn't entirely back to normal. Bank of America told its thousands of employees at its 60-story downtown skyscraper to stay home Thursday.
One man was critically injured in Wednesday's protest. City officials say police did not fire on the victim. Several reporters and people on the street were attacked as police in riot gear linked arms, marched down streets and fired tear gas.
Four police officers were injured during the protests.
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency and promised to bring in the National Guard. ||||| The family of Keith Lamont Scott has reviewed the video that shows the moment when police fatally shot him in North Carolina on Tuesday, the family's attorney said.
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Police in Charlotte have confirmed to ABC News that they have video that shows Scott had a gun in his hand during his interaction with police officers before he was fatally shot. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said earlier today that the footage he reviewed does not provide "definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun."
"I did not see that in the videos that I reviewed," Putney said at a news conference. "So what I can tell you, though, is when taken in the totality of all the other evidence, it supports what we've heard and the version of the truth that we gave about the circumstances that happened that led to the death of Mr. Scott."
When the Scott family was asked if the video they saw matches what police has described, their attorney replied, "No comment."
Earlier, Putney reiterated that he has no plans to publicly release the video, arguing that it would jeopardize the integrity of the investigation.
"We release it when we believe it is a compelling reason, but I'm not going to jeopardize the investigation," he told reporters.
Police say Scott was holding a handgun, which investigators recovered from an apartment complex in Charlotte, and posed a threat because he was not obeying police orders to remain in his vehicle and drop the weapon. An officer subsequently fired his gun, hitting Scott, who was later pronounced dead.
Scott’s family, however, said he was not armed and was holding a book while waiting for his son to be dropped off from school.
WSOC
The officers were searching for a suspect who had an outstanding warrant, according to a police statement. Police said Scott was not the suspect officers sought.
Police have identified the officer involved in the shooting as Brentley Vinson, who has been employed with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department since July 21, 2014, and is currently assigned to the metro division. He has been placed on paid administrative leave as the investigation continues, according to Putney.
Vinson was not wearing a body camera at the time, but the other officers who responded to the incident were.
North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation into Scott's shooting, Gov. Pat McCrory said at a press conference today.
Since Scott's death, Charlotte has been inundated with protests -- many of which have turned violent at night. At least 16 police officers were injured while trying to quell angry demonstrators Tuesday night, and multiple police vehicles were damaged. At least one person was arrested, police said.
On Wednesday night, protesters looted businesses, damaged property and threw objects at police. Five officers and nine civilians were injured during the riots. One person is in critical condition after suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Police made 44 arrests overnight, with charges ranging from failure to disperse to assault to breaking and entering. The protests finally subsided around 3:30 a.m., according to Putney.
"I do not believe we have all the criminal suspects to charge with various crimes at this time," he told reporters today.
Jason Miczek/Reuters
The violence prompted North Carolina Gov. McCrory to declare a state of emergency and call in the National Guard, which is helping law enforcement protect infrastructure in and around the Charlotte area. The governor has also allocated a number of state troopers to help protect the city's highways. Putney remains in charge of law enforcement in Charlotte, McCrory said.
"We're not going to let a few hours give a negative impact on a great city," the governor told reporters at a press conference this afternoon. "And this city is also very resilient. I know it because I still live here and I'm proud to live here."
Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts said she has spoken with President Obama and his chief of staff, who offered federal resources to help keep the city safe. In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" today, she said she's considering imposing a curfew after two nights of violence.
"I will be consulting with our city manager and our police chief and other leaders in our response team to see if that might be a good idea for tonight," she said.
Putney said citizens can expect a heavy police presence throughout the city today and tonight, but he does not anticipate a curfew.
"We don't see a need to definitively shut the city down at a specific hour," he told reporters. ||||| Video of Tuesday’s fatal police shooting doesn’t definitively show the victim pointing a gun, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Chief Kerr Putney said Thursday after viewing it.
Police say they saw Keith Lamont Scott armed with a handgun when he exited his vehicle at a University City apartment complex Tuesday afternoon.
But Putney said the video does not provide “absolute, definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun. I didn’t see that in the videos I reviewed.”
Putney said the angle of the video was such that he couldn’t see all of Scott’s actions, but what he did see was consistent with witness statements and what officers on the scene reported.
Scott, 43, an African American, was killed Tuesday while police were trying to serve a warrant on someone else. Putney said afterward that the “totality” of the evidence supports the police conclusion that officers faced an imminent, deadly threat.
Scott’s family will be invited to watch the video of the shooting, Putney said, but police have no plans to release the footage to the public. He said the family should have an opportunity to view it as soon as Thursday night or sometime Friday.
Putney said that references to transparency in the case didn’t mean that the public would necessarily get to view the video, but meant the family would be allowed. “Transparency means seeing the video if you’re the aggrieved party,” he said.
The video does not give me absolute, definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun. I didn’t see that in the videos I reviewed. Kerr Putney, chief of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, speaking about police videos that captured Tuesday’s shooting of Keith Lamont Scott.
Putney says his department releases shooting video “when we believe there is a compelling reason.” He said he supports transparency in the case, “but I never said full transparency.”
“If you think we should display a family’s worst day for public consumption, that is not the transparency we’re speaking of,” the chief said.
A new state law will soon prevent police agencies from releasing body camera footage to the public without a court order. But African-American leaders, open government advocates and the ACLU urged the police to release the video, noting that the new law doesn’t go into effect until Oct. 1.
But the entrance of the State Bureau of Investigation into the case makes that a moot point, Putney said, because he felt releasing the video could impair their independent investigation.
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twitter email Police Chief says man was 'armed with a handgun' CMPD Police Chief Kerr Putney says man shot by Charlotte police was 'armed with a handgun'. Justine Miller The Charlotte Observer
Although police say Scott was carrying a gun, friends and family members say it was a book. Police said they found a handgun near Scott, but no book.
Open government experts said the violent protests that erupted in Charlotte following the shooting illustrate what can happen when video footage isn’t quickly released.
“You have two different narratives emerging about what happened,” said Jonathan Jones, director of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition. “The police video is the best possible opportunity to resolve that question of which version is accurate.”
The Observer on Wednesday asked CMPD to release shooting footage captured by body cameras or dashboard cameras, citing the state’s public records law.
CMPD attorney Judy Emken refused the request on Thursday. She said dash-cam video is part of the criminal investigation and is not public under state law. Video and audio from body cameras is also not a public record, Emken said.
Brentley Vinson, the officer who opened fire, was not wearing a body camera, Putney said, but other officers on scene were wearing cameras. Vinson, who is African American, was reportedly wearing plain clothes and a clearly marked CMPD vest.
Calls for transparency
In the wake of the demonstrations in Charlotte on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, a number of African-American leaders called on the city to release the videos.
“The videos must be released, and there needs to be a federal standard that the videos in these incidents are released,” state NAACP President William Barber said during a Thursday news conference.
Barber also criticized the new state law governing the release of police videos, saying, “It will continue to exacerbate situations like this.”
Charlotte NAACP President Corine Mack criticized Putney for presenting information as facts without releasing the video.
“Shame on you,” she said. “We don’t want another person to stand up and give another account until we all see these tapes.”
The videos must be released, and there needs to be a federal standard that the videos in these incidents are released. North Carolina NAACP President William Barber, speaking about the police videos of the police shooting that killed Keith Lamont Scott on Tuesday.
Bishop Claude Alexander, senior pastor of Park Ministries, said releasing the video would “go a long way” toward appeasing critics.
“Their ability to release as much as soon as they can would help alleviate some of the tension, not all of it,” Alexander said.
U.S. Rep. Alma Adams, D-Charlotte, agreed.
“We must work together to ensure the process is swift, just and transparent,” Adams said in a statement Thursday. “That begins with actions like releasing the video and calling for transparency, accountability and collaboration.”
But U.S. Rep. Robert Pittenger, R-Charlotte, urged the public to allow time for a thorough investigation.
“We are all understandably interested in seeing the video, but we should be more interested in a thorough, accountable investigation and due process,” Pittenger said. “State law governs the release of the video. Our community will not benefit from trying this case on social media.”
A photo released by a source close to the investigation appeared to show a gun next to Scott’s body, according to WBTV, the Observer’s news partner.
But others have disputed that. Scott’s wife, Rakeiya Scott, released a statement Wednesday night questioning police statements.
“After listening to remarks made by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Putney today, we have more questions than answers about Keith’s death,” she said. “Rest assured, we will work diligently to get answers to our questions as quickly as possible.”
Rakeiya Scott also asked for peace.
“As a family, we respect the rights of those who wish to protest, but we ask that people protest peacefully,” she said in her statement. “Please do not hurt people or members of law enforcement, damage property or take things that do not belong to you in the name of protesting.” | – Body camera footage from the scene shows no proof Keith Scott pointed a gun at anybody before being shot and killed by an officer Tuesday in Charlotte, the Charlotte Observer reports. "The video does not give me absolute, definitive visual evidence that could confirm that a person is pointing a gun," police chief Kerr Putney says. "I didn't see that in the videos I saw." The 43-year-old father of seven was shot after officers say he got out of his car with a gun, which he refused to drop. Scott's family and other residents at the apartment complex where he was killed say he was unarmed, according to the AP. Regardless, Putney says video, "when taken in the totality of all the other evidence," supports the police's narrative, ABC News reports. Putney says they'll be showing the video to Scott's family but not making it public, arguing the case doesn't warrant "full transparency" and that doing so would hurt the investigation. That decision is opposed by the ACLU and others. "We need answers, and we need justice," US Rep. Alma Adams says. "That begins with actions like releasing the video." Meanwhile, Charlotte's mayor says there's no need for a curfew despite protests that have turned violent two nights in a row. A man who was shot and initially reported killed during the protests on Wednesday is still alive. Police were looking for another man at the apartment complex Tuesday when an officer shot Scott, who family says was reading a book while waiting for his son to get out of school. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Debris falls upon Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers and protesters as officers began to push protesters from the intersection near the Epicentre in Charlotte, N.C. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. Authorities... (Associated Press)
Debris falls upon Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers and protesters as officers began to push protesters from the intersection near the Epicentre in Charlotte, N.C. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. Authorities in Charlotte tried to quell public anger Wednesday after a police officer shot a black man, but... (Associated Press)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on protests in Charlotte, North Carolina over the fatal police shooting of a black man. (all times local):
12:05 p.m.
The chief state prosecutor in Charlotte is asking the State Bureau of Investigation to look into the shooting of a man killed by a police officer earlier this week.
District Attorney R. Andrew Murray said in a statement Thursday that he was making the request for a state investigation at the request of the family of 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott.
Charlotte Police Chief Kerr Putney says he plans to show video of the shooting to the slain man's family, but the video won't be immediately released to the public.
He also said during a news conference Thursday that the video does not definitively show Scott pointing a gun at anyone, though police maintain Scott refused commands to drop the weapon.
___
Noon
The family of a black man shot to death by a police officer in Charlotte is calling on protesters to be peaceful.
Reykia Scott says in a statement released Thursday that she is devastated by the death of her husband, 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott, and understands people's frustrations. But Reykia Scott says hurting people or damaging property is not the answer.
The Scott family's comments come after a second night of unrest in Charlotte after the fatal shooting. Police Chief Kerry Putney told reporters Thursday he planned to show video of the shooting to Scott's family but would not immediately be releasing it to the public.
Putney says the video does not definitively show Keith Scott pointing a gun at anyone.
Police say Scott refused repeated commands to drop his gun, but residents say he was unarmed.
___
11:45 a.m.
Charlotte's police chief says he sees no reason to impose a curfew in North Carolina's largest city, even after two nights of violent protests following the shooting of a man by a police officer.
Chief Kerr Putney said the city now has more resources to deal with problems, following a declaration of a state of emergency and the arrival of the North Carolina National Guard and more officers from the State Highway Patrol.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts said earlier Thursday the city was considering a curfew. She defended the decision not to seek an emergency declaration earlier, noting the city had been calm during the day Wednesday. She says the request was made at the appropriate time when more resources were needed.
Roberts again called for calm as the shooting investigation continues.
___
10:55 a.m.
Charlotte's police chief says he plans to show video of an officer shooting a black man to the slain man's family, but the video won't be immediately released to the public.
Police Chief Kerr Putney said during a news conference Thursday that the video does not definitively show 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott pointing a gun at anyone.
Putney says he is working to honor the request from the family of Scott to view the video. It's unclear when or if the video might be released publicly.
The video could be key to resolving the chasm between police, who say Scott refused repeated commands to drop his gun, and residents who say he was unarmed. It's not clear what the body cameras worn by three officers who were present during the shooting may have captured.
___
10:15 a.m.
Life is returning to normal on downtown streets in Charlotte despite two nights of violence.
On Thursday morning, a few uniformed police officers are walking around the area. The governor declared a state of emergency Wednesday night and called on help from the National Guard, but no Guard members were present on the street Thursday morning.
Glass and uprooted plants can be seen on the sidewalk from the protests Wednesday night.
Traffic is flowing in the area although at least three major companies asked their employees to stay home on Thursday.
___
9:55 a.m.
The mayor of Charlotte says officials have no time frame for when they might release camera footage of the fatal police shooting of a black man.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts told "NPR" Thursday morning that releasing the police video "depends on the investigation and its progress, and it depends on the discretion of the chief to some extent."
Calls for police to release the video have increased along with the violent protests, but the police chief has resisted. North Carolina has a law that takes effect Oct. 1 requiring a judge to approve releasing police video, and he said he doesn't release video when a criminal investigation is ongoing.
Roberts said she hopes to watch the video Thursday or Friday. "I certainly would feel better being able to see it," she said, adding that she doesn't know how conclusive the video footage is until she watches it.
Police said the plainsclothes officer who shot 43-year-old Keith Lamont Scott, identified as Brently Vinson, has been placed on leave, standard procedure in such cases. Three uniformed officers at the shooting scene had body cameras; Vinson did not, police said.
___
9:45 a.m.
Federal help is on the way to Charlotte after two nights of violence after the fatal police shooting of a black man.
The Justice Department is sending a team of trained peacekeepers designed to help resolve community conflict.
The department's Community Relations Service has been deployed to other cities roiled by tense flare-ups between police and residents.
___
8:50 a.m.
The mayor of Charlotte says the city is considering a curfew after two nights of violence in the wake of the shooting of a black man by police.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Thursday that city officials are talking about imposing a curfew.
Streets were calm Thursday morning, but several civilians and police officers were hurt in the second night of violence Wednesday night.
City spokeswoman Ashley Simmons told local media that Roberts' office will discuss a possible curfew with city police and the National Guard on Thursday.
The mayor said she wants people to know Charlotte is open for business Thursday. But at least three major companies told workers to avoid downtown offices.
The North Carolina National Guard arrived at a Charlotte armory early Thursday and some Guard vehicles left the armory about 8 a.m.
___
7:55 a.m.
The NASCAR Hall of Fame in downtown Charlotte is among the places damaged during violent protests over the police shooting of a black man earlier this week.
The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority oversees the NASCAR Hall of Fame building and the convention center next door. An official said the building is being assessed for damage.
According to local news outlets, a street sign hung off-kilter from the front window of the hall's building after someone tried to pry it out of the window.
The regional United Way building across the street from the hall was also damaged. Lobby windows were smashed. Officials don't know if anyone entered the building.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are operating on a normal schedule, as is Mecklenburg County government. The regional bus line says it has restored service to all lines.
___
7:30 a.m.
Major companies with offices in downtown Charlotte are telling their employees to stay home after two nights of violent protests following the shooting of a black man by police earlier this week.
Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Duke Energy all told employees to stay away from the area Thursday, where disturbances have damaged several business fronts.
A Duke Energy spokesman says non-essential personnel who work downtown are being told to stay home for the day.
Wells Fargo spokesman Josh Dunn said the bank's staff is not required to report to work Thursday. Dunn said employees can work from home or another location if they're able. Employees unable to do so won't be required to take a personal day off.
Bank of America announced late Wednesday that its downtown staff will not report Thursday because of the damage.
The streets in downtown Charlotte appeared to be calm Thursday morning.
___
2 a.m.
Downtown Charlotte is calming down early Thursday after a peaceful prayer vigil turned into a violent protest over the fatal police shooting of a black man.
Hotel and restaurant employees and security guards have started cleaning up dozens of broken windows.
But the city isn't entirely back to normal. Bank of America told its thousands of employees at its 60-story downtown skyscraper to stay home Thursday.
One man was critically injured in Wednesday's protest. City officials say police did not fire on the victim. Several reporters and people on the street were attacked as police in riot gear linked arms, marched down streets and fired tear gas.
Four police officers were injured during the protests.
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency and promised to bring in the National Guard. ||||| The family of Keith Lamont Scott has reviewed the video that shows the moment when police fatally shot him in North Carolina on Tuesday, the family's attorney said.
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Police in Charlotte have confirmed to ABC News that they have video that shows Scott had a gun in his hand during his interaction with police officers before he was fatally shot. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said earlier today that the footage he reviewed does not provide "definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun."
"I did not see that in the videos that I reviewed," Putney said at a news conference. "So what I can tell you, though, is when taken in the totality of all the other evidence, it supports what we've heard and the version of the truth that we gave about the circumstances that happened that led to the death of Mr. Scott."
When the Scott family was asked if the video they saw matches what police has described, their attorney replied, "No comment."
Earlier, Putney reiterated that he has no plans to publicly release the video, arguing that it would jeopardize the integrity of the investigation.
"We release it when we believe it is a compelling reason, but I'm not going to jeopardize the investigation," he told reporters.
Police say Scott was holding a handgun, which investigators recovered from an apartment complex in Charlotte, and posed a threat because he was not obeying police orders to remain in his vehicle and drop the weapon. An officer subsequently fired his gun, hitting Scott, who was later pronounced dead.
Scott’s family, however, said he was not armed and was holding a book while waiting for his son to be dropped off from school.
WSOC
The officers were searching for a suspect who had an outstanding warrant, according to a police statement. Police said Scott was not the suspect officers sought.
Police have identified the officer involved in the shooting as Brentley Vinson, who has been employed with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department since July 21, 2014, and is currently assigned to the metro division. He has been placed on paid administrative leave as the investigation continues, according to Putney.
Vinson was not wearing a body camera at the time, but the other officers who responded to the incident were.
North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation into Scott's shooting, Gov. Pat McCrory said at a press conference today.
Since Scott's death, Charlotte has been inundated with protests -- many of which have turned violent at night. At least 16 police officers were injured while trying to quell angry demonstrators Tuesday night, and multiple police vehicles were damaged. At least one person was arrested, police said.
On Wednesday night, protesters looted businesses, damaged property and threw objects at police. Five officers and nine civilians were injured during the riots. One person is in critical condition after suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Police made 44 arrests overnight, with charges ranging from failure to disperse to assault to breaking and entering. The protests finally subsided around 3:30 a.m., according to Putney.
"I do not believe we have all the criminal suspects to charge with various crimes at this time," he told reporters today.
Jason Miczek/Reuters
The violence prompted North Carolina Gov. McCrory to declare a state of emergency and call in the National Guard, which is helping law enforcement protect infrastructure in and around the Charlotte area. The governor has also allocated a number of state troopers to help protect the city's highways. Putney remains in charge of law enforcement in Charlotte, McCrory said.
"We're not going to let a few hours give a negative impact on a great city," the governor told reporters at a press conference this afternoon. "And this city is also very resilient. I know it because I still live here and I'm proud to live here."
Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts said she has spoken with President Obama and his chief of staff, who offered federal resources to help keep the city safe. In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" today, she said she's considering imposing a curfew after two nights of violence.
"I will be consulting with our city manager and our police chief and other leaders in our response team to see if that might be a good idea for tonight," she said.
Putney said citizens can expect a heavy police presence throughout the city today and tonight, but he does not anticipate a curfew.
"We don't see a need to definitively shut the city down at a specific hour," he told reporters. ||||| Video of Tuesday’s fatal police shooting doesn’t definitively show the victim pointing a gun, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police Chief Kerr Putney said Thursday after viewing it.
Police say they saw Keith Lamont Scott armed with a handgun when he exited his vehicle at a University City apartment complex Tuesday afternoon.
But Putney said the video does not provide “absolute, definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun. I didn’t see that in the videos I reviewed.”
Putney said the angle of the video was such that he couldn’t see all of Scott’s actions, but what he did see was consistent with witness statements and what officers on the scene reported.
Scott, 43, an African American, was killed Tuesday while police were trying to serve a warrant on someone else. Putney said afterward that the “totality” of the evidence supports the police conclusion that officers faced an imminent, deadly threat.
Scott’s family will be invited to watch the video of the shooting, Putney said, but police have no plans to release the footage to the public. He said the family should have an opportunity to view it as soon as Thursday night or sometime Friday.
Putney said that references to transparency in the case didn’t mean that the public would necessarily get to view the video, but meant the family would be allowed. “Transparency means seeing the video if you’re the aggrieved party,” he said.
The video does not give me absolute, definitive visual evidence that would confirm that a person is pointing a gun. I didn’t see that in the videos I reviewed. Kerr Putney, chief of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, speaking about police videos that captured Tuesday’s shooting of Keith Lamont Scott.
Putney says his department releases shooting video “when we believe there is a compelling reason.” He said he supports transparency in the case, “but I never said full transparency.”
“If you think we should display a family’s worst day for public consumption, that is not the transparency we’re speaking of,” the chief said.
A new state law will soon prevent police agencies from releasing body camera footage to the public without a court order. But African-American leaders, open government advocates and the ACLU urged the police to release the video, noting that the new law doesn’t go into effect until Oct. 1.
But the entrance of the State Bureau of Investigation into the case makes that a moot point, Putney said, because he felt releasing the video could impair their independent investigation.
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twitter email Police Chief says man was 'armed with a handgun' CMPD Police Chief Kerr Putney says man shot by Charlotte police was 'armed with a handgun'. Justine Miller The Charlotte Observer
Although police say Scott was carrying a gun, friends and family members say it was a book. Police said they found a handgun near Scott, but no book.
Open government experts said the violent protests that erupted in Charlotte following the shooting illustrate what can happen when video footage isn’t quickly released.
“You have two different narratives emerging about what happened,” said Jonathan Jones, director of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition. “The police video is the best possible opportunity to resolve that question of which version is accurate.”
The Observer on Wednesday asked CMPD to release shooting footage captured by body cameras or dashboard cameras, citing the state’s public records law.
CMPD attorney Judy Emken refused the request on Thursday. She said dash-cam video is part of the criminal investigation and is not public under state law. Video and audio from body cameras is also not a public record, Emken said.
Brentley Vinson, the officer who opened fire, was not wearing a body camera, Putney said, but other officers on scene were wearing cameras. Vinson, who is African American, was reportedly wearing plain clothes and a clearly marked CMPD vest.
Calls for transparency
In the wake of the demonstrations in Charlotte on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, a number of African-American leaders called on the city to release the videos.
“The videos must be released, and there needs to be a federal standard that the videos in these incidents are released,” state NAACP President William Barber said during a Thursday news conference.
Barber also criticized the new state law governing the release of police videos, saying, “It will continue to exacerbate situations like this.”
Charlotte NAACP President Corine Mack criticized Putney for presenting information as facts without releasing the video.
“Shame on you,” she said. “We don’t want another person to stand up and give another account until we all see these tapes.”
The videos must be released, and there needs to be a federal standard that the videos in these incidents are released. North Carolina NAACP President William Barber, speaking about the police videos of the police shooting that killed Keith Lamont Scott on Tuesday.
Bishop Claude Alexander, senior pastor of Park Ministries, said releasing the video would “go a long way” toward appeasing critics.
“Their ability to release as much as soon as they can would help alleviate some of the tension, not all of it,” Alexander said.
U.S. Rep. Alma Adams, D-Charlotte, agreed.
“We must work together to ensure the process is swift, just and transparent,” Adams said in a statement Thursday. “That begins with actions like releasing the video and calling for transparency, accountability and collaboration.”
But U.S. Rep. Robert Pittenger, R-Charlotte, urged the public to allow time for a thorough investigation.
“We are all understandably interested in seeing the video, but we should be more interested in a thorough, accountable investigation and due process,” Pittenger said. “State law governs the release of the video. Our community will not benefit from trying this case on social media.”
A photo released by a source close to the investigation appeared to show a gun next to Scott’s body, according to WBTV, the Observer’s news partner.
But others have disputed that. Scott’s wife, Rakeiya Scott, released a statement Wednesday night questioning police statements.
“After listening to remarks made by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Putney today, we have more questions than answers about Keith’s death,” she said. “Rest assured, we will work diligently to get answers to our questions as quickly as possible.”
Rakeiya Scott also asked for peace.
“As a family, we respect the rights of those who wish to protest, but we ask that people protest peacefully,” she said in her statement. “Please do not hurt people or members of law enforcement, damage property or take things that do not belong to you in the name of protesting.” | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 37,432 |
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And it wasn't the first time. He said the airline misplaced his bag on a flight 25 years earlier.
"The media is here and I'm hoping that you don't write this down and print it," Tilden said with a smile.
Tilden did not say whether he got the $25 credit or the 2,500 miles. | – Alaska Airlines CEO Brad Tilden seems like an honest man—possibly more honest that his airline's PR people would like. At an airline conference last week, Tilden told the audience that he arrived without his luggage, which his own airline had misplaced, reports the LA Times. "The media is here and I'm hoping that you don't write this down and print it," he joked after telling the audience that the airlines also lost his bags after a flight 25 years ago. He got his bag a day late and, under his airline's policy, is due a $25 flight credit or 2,500 frequent-flyer miles since his bag wasn't at baggage claim within 20 minutes of the plane’s arrival at the gate, the LA Times notes. (This judge ordered airline lawyers in court for a price-fixing case to explain what had happened to his luggage.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Our 20 Minute Baggage Guarantee
We know that instead of waiting at baggage claim you'd rather be out enjoying your destination, or settling in back at home. That's why we are committed to getting you on your way faster, and we've been making that commitment for years.
Since 2010 we have put a guarantee behind our baggage delivery. If your bags are not at baggage claim within 20 minutes of your plane’s arrival at the gate, we’ll offer you a $25 Discount Code for use on a future Alaska Airlines flight, or 2,500 Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan™ Bonus Miles.
In the rare instance that we don't meet our 20 minute guarantee, just get ahold of us within 2 hours of your flight's arrival for your discount code or Miles. You can simply speak with one of our Customer Service Agents at the airport. ||||| SIGN UP for the free California Inc. business newsletter >>
So, Alaska Airlines Chief Executive Bradley Tilden was visibly embarrassed when he attended an airline summit last week in Washington, D.C. and admitted on stage that Alaska Airlines misplaced his bag during his flight to the summit. The bag was delivered to him the next day.
And it wasn't the first time. He said the airline misplaced his bag on a flight 25 years earlier.
"The media is here and I'm hoping that you don't write this down and print it," Tilden said with a smile.
Tilden did not say whether he got the $25 credit or the 2,500 miles. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 32,519 |
BUSTED
New York City police have decided that a couple arrested for possession of weapons and explosives don’t appear to be terrorists, just privileged kids with drug habits. By Michael Daly and Lizzie Crocker
The very pregnant rich kid and her Harvard-educated boyfriend arrested on December 29 in New York’s Greenwich Village for possession of explosives and weapons do not appear to be terrorists after all, police say.
facebook Morgan Gliedman
Investigators say they believe 27-year-old Morgan Gliedman and 31-year-old Aaron Greene are just two more products of privilege squandering their advantages on drugs.
“It looks like they’re junkies,” a high-level police source says. “Well-to-do junkies, not terrorists.”
Indeed, in the first days of the investigation police reached the tentative conclusion that the explosives and weapons were just part of a drug-fueled, twisted sense of what constitutes cool.
Cops discovered the weapons cache when they executed a search warrant at the couple’s W. 9th Street apartment at 6 a.m. Saturday, acting on a credit-card fraud charge against Gliedman. What they found initially suggested that Gliedman and Greene might be throwbacks to the rich-kid Weatherman radicals who had blown themselves up just two blocks uptown back in 1970.
The added twist was Gliedman’s pregnancy. Not even the most radical radicals of yore had resided amidst explosives while in the ninth month.
Gliedman’s arrest date apparently coincided with her due date and she was taken to a hospital on Saturday while her prospective baby daddy was arraigned on explosives and weapons charges. He entered a not guilty plea and was remanded without bail.
Officials declined to name the hospital where Gliedman had been taken, or to confirm or deny a report that she had given birth. She appears to have no prior arrest record and no previous troubles with the law, beyond the credit-card charge that led to her arrest.
She grew up on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and attended Dalton Academy, a prestigious private school. Her parents, prominent oncologist Dr. Paul Gliedman and realtor Susyn Schops Gliedman, could not be reached for comment. A check of her Facebook friends showed a who’s who of the sons and daughters of some of New York’s richest and most notable families.
According to a neighbor who asked not to be named, a very different Gliedman moved into the apartment seven years ago, when she was an undergraduate at NYU.
“She was seemingly a happy-go-lucky girl,” the neighbor told The Daily Beast.
After graduating from NYU, Gliedman earned a master's degree in creative writing at the Art Institute of Chicago, according to her Facebook page. She returned to her apartment two years ago, no longer manifestly happy and not looking so lucky.
“A very changed person,” the neighbor says.
Greene moved in around the same time, according to her neighbor, who describes both Greene and this very different Gliedman as “very unsociable people.”
"They were very insular and seemed kind of in their own world," the neighbor says.
The neighbor remembers that Gliedman often had friends to the apartment during her NYU days. That changed when Greene took up residence.
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“They kept the apartment filthy and they had vermin problems,” the neighbor says.
The neighbor lends credence to the police view when he adds, “There was always a heavy cloud of smoke emanating from the place, and one got the sense that they were both heavily into drugs.”
Green’s personal hygiene, cops say, is what might have been expected of a junkie.
"To be honest, you could smell him before you saw him," the neighbor says.
The neighbor said that he could not help but be concerned on seeing that Gliedman was pregnant. He reports that Gliedman’s mother had visited often in recent days, as might be expected with the baby’s imminent arrival.
The other visitors were the police. The criminal complaint filed against Greene and Gliedman says that the cops discovered a plastic container in the living room holding seven grams of a white power that was identified as Hexamethylene Triperoxide Diamine, or HMTD, an easy-to-make explosive and a favorite of actual terrorists.
The complaint says that police also found the makings for more of the stuff, as well as a sawed-off 12-gauge Mossberg 500 shotgun, a Ruger 12-gauge shotgun, a dozen 12-gauge shotgun shells, 9 high-capacity rifle magazines, and 60 5.56-caliber tracer rounds. There was also a 37mm flare launcher, a replica of a M203 grenade launcher.
The complaint also lists a number of books and manuals said to be found in the apartment:
- The Terrorist’s Encyclopedia V. 1.02
- FM 5-25 Explosives and Demolitions
- FM 5-31 Booby Traps
- Improvised and Modified Firearms: Deadly Homemade Weapons
- A Do-It-Yourself Submachine Gun
- Street Sweeper: A Home Workshop Shotgun
- Building the M11/9: A Guide to Construction and Coercion
- FM 5-25 Explosives and Demolitions
- FM 5-31 Booby Traps
These were seized, along with what police describe as various handwritten notebooks containing formulas.
But further investigation produced no indication that this was a case of Gossip Girl gone terrorist.
“So far, no plot,” the senior police official said.
The official did not offer an explanation as to why the couple had allegedly amassed all the requirements of a terror cell but apparently not the intent. The absence of drugs in the apartment has apparently not dissuaded them from taking the view that the two are junkies with advantages.
Police report that Greene has been arrested three times on weapons charges, in 2005, 2006, and most recently in February, when he was also charged with drug possession. He had one prior arrest for drugs in 2004, an assault charge along with the weapons collar in 2005. He was also busted for evading the subway fare in his home precinct in 2011—a grown man with two Harvard degrees and a Dalton girlfriend charged with hopping a subway turnstile like a like schoolkid.
The disposition of the various cases was not immediately clear, though police records for the 2006 weapons arrest notes a “prior felony conviction.”
People with extensive knowledge of the Occupy Wall Street movement were saying that they had never heard of Greene. They discounted a news report that he was an OWS activist.
By midday Sunday, police had reached the tentative conclusion that the explosives and weapons were part of some drug-fueled fantasy life. To cops, Greene appears to be living proof that going to Harvard does not necessarily make you any less a knucklehead. ||||| Doctor's daughter who had baby in custody after she was arrested for keeping explosives in apartment 'robbed a man after meeting at a bar in February'
Morgan Gliedman, 27, allegedly stole a laptop, cellphone, wallet and credit cards from a man she met in a Manhattan bar in February 2012
Just days later, she and Harvard-educated boyfriend Aaron Greene, 31, were caught taking heroin and in possession of a gun in a Washington Heights drug bust
On Saturday, the well-to-do junkies were charged with keeping high-powered explosives in their apartment, where police also found a stash of weapons and terrorism how-to guides
Gliedman went into labor while she was being handcuffed
By Michael Zennie and Helen Pow
|
A Park Avenue-raised heroin addict who was last week charged with keeping high-powered explosives in her Greenwich Village apartment was already a suspect in a robbery.
Morgan Gliedman, 27, was also already on probation for drug possession after a Washington Heights drug bust in February, when she was taken into police custody on Saturday where she gave birth to a daughter named Melody.
On February 17, Gliedman met a man at Johnny's Bar in the Village and went to his Midtown apartment where she allegedly took off with a backpack containing his laptop, cellphone, wallet and credit cards, which she used to make purchases.
Scroll down for video showing an HMTD explosion
Posh: Gliedman attended one of New York's premier prep schools and was raised on the exclusive Park Avenue
Gliedman hasn't yet been charged in the theft, according to The New York Post .
Five days after the robbery, on February 22, she and her Harvard-graduate boyfriend, and father of her child, Aaron Greene were arrested for possession drugs and found with a .223-caliber rifle, The Post reported.
The couple were spotted with another woman in a car that was parked at West 176th Street and Haven Avenue. Greene, 31, was seen injecting heroin while one of the women snorted the drug, a criminal complaint said.
Police officers found empty heroin bags on the floor, marijuana and a digital scale with heroin residue in one of the women's handbags, according to The Post, and Greene admitted to having a gun.
'I have a... rifle in the trunk,' he told officers, according to the complaint.
'Junkies': Morgan Gliedman, 27, and Aaron Greene, 31, are both admitted heroin addicts - even though Gliedman was heavily pregnant when the explosives were found at their apartment, police say
Dangerous: The NYPD bomb squad was called in to remove the explosive that was discovered in the couple Greenwich Village apartment
He was sentenced to five months in jail. Gliedman was due to complete pre-trial probation for drug possession next week, but that case now could be reopened because of the weekend's explosive find.
Despite explosives and a cache of weapons being found at their apartment, police said Gliedman, the daughter of a top New York doctor, and Greene are not home-grown terrorists.
Greene's father is the head of a top art restoration firm. He was also arrested in the apartment on Saturday and is being held without bail on Rikers Island.
eighbors say the couple lived in squalor in their home in the pricy Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village.
'It looks like they’re junkies, well-to-do junkies, not terrorists,' a police source told the Daily Beast .
Prominent parents: Gleidman's father is Dr Paul Gleidman, the director of radiation oncology at Beth Israel Hospital's Brooklyn division. Her mother is Susyn Schops Gliedman, a top New York real estate agent
Inside the apartment, officers found seven grams of the explosive powder HMTD, which was reportedly the substance used in the 2005 London Underground bombings.
The building had to be evacuated while the bomb squad removed the highly-unstable explosive.
Police also found a sawed-off Mossberg 500, a $1,000 Ruger over-under hunting shotgun, several high-capacity magazines, 60 shotgun shells, and a replica of an M203 grenade launcher.
Several disturbing items were seized, including: 'The Terrorist’s Encyclopedia V. 1.02,' 'Improvised and Modified Firearms: Deadly Homemade Weapons,' 'A Do-It-Yourself Submachine Gun,' and U.S. Army manuals for creating and planting booby traps and explosives.
The New York Post reported that Greene was a member of Occupy Wall Street, though an NYPD spokesman told MailOnline that his connection to the group was still being investigated.
Evacuation: All of the residents of the couple's building had to be removed from the area before a police bomb disposal unit could clear out the explosive
Two spokesmen for the Occupy movement said they had never heard of Greene.
Officers were tipped off about the explosives by someone who met Gliedman and Greene in Washington Square Park. The couple invited the informant to their apartment to take a shower, which is when he spotted the weapons, The Post reported.
The apartment on Manhattan's West Ninth Street, is near the apartment where two rich young men accidentally blew themselves up while making a bomb for the extremist group the Weather Underground in 1970.
Greene and Gliedman had no such plans, police sources are saying. They are just wealthy drug addicts with a twisted idea of what's 'cool,' according to the Daily Beast.
Neighbors said Gliedman's mother, Susyn Schops Gliedman, a top New York real estate agent, visited her often at the Greenwich apartment.
Big boom: YouTube video reveals that five grams of the explosive HMTD, less than was found in the New York apartment, can blow apart two bricks
Her father is D r Paul Gleidman, the Columbia University-educated director of radiation oncology at Beth Israel Hospital's Brooklyn division.
Gliedman gave birth to her baby daughter on Saturday at St. Luke's Hospital, where she is currently resting. She has not yet been arraigned, though she remains under arrest, The Post reported.
She attended Dalton School, an exclusive New York prep school attended by the likes of Anderson Cooper and Claire Danes. Her Facebook friend list is reportedly a who's-who of New York society.
She went to New York University and then attended the Art Institute of Chicago for a masters in Creative Writing.
Greene claims he went to Harvard University for his undergraduate degree and did graduate work at the Kennedy School of Government there.
YouTube video shows force of 5grams of HMTD explosive | – The well-to-do young woman arrested on weapons charges in New York City gave birth while in custody Saturday—and the Daily Mail reports today that Morgan Gliedman went into labor with daughter Melody as she was being handcuffed. Gliedman, 27, and boyfriend Aaron Greene, 31, were found with bomb-making materials and papers labeled "The Terrorist Encyclopedia" in their apartment, after police were tipped off by a couple who the duo let use their shower. But sources tell the Daily Beast the two are just "well-to-do junkies, not terrorists." And both have troubled pasts, the New York Post reports. In February, Gliedman, the daughter of a top New York oncologist, met a man at a Manhattan bar and allegedly stole his laptop, cell phone, and wallet after going back to his place. She hasn't yet been charged in that case, but just five days later, she and Greene—who attended Harvard—were nabbed in a heroin bust with a gun on them. Greene was sentenced to five months in jail, while Gliedman was still on probation. It was due to end next week, but the case could now be re-opened in light of the new charges. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.BUSTED
New York City police have decided that a couple arrested for possession of weapons and explosives don’t appear to be terrorists, just privileged kids with drug habits. By Michael Daly and Lizzie Crocker
The very pregnant rich kid and her Harvard-educated boyfriend arrested on December 29 in New York’s Greenwich Village for possession of explosives and weapons do not appear to be terrorists after all, police say.
facebook Morgan Gliedman
Investigators say they believe 27-year-old Morgan Gliedman and 31-year-old Aaron Greene are just two more products of privilege squandering their advantages on drugs.
“It looks like they’re junkies,” a high-level police source says. “Well-to-do junkies, not terrorists.”
Indeed, in the first days of the investigation police reached the tentative conclusion that the explosives and weapons were just part of a drug-fueled, twisted sense of what constitutes cool.
Cops discovered the weapons cache when they executed a search warrant at the couple’s W. 9th Street apartment at 6 a.m. Saturday, acting on a credit-card fraud charge against Gliedman. What they found initially suggested that Gliedman and Greene might be throwbacks to the rich-kid Weatherman radicals who had blown themselves up just two blocks uptown back in 1970.
The added twist was Gliedman’s pregnancy. Not even the most radical radicals of yore had resided amidst explosives while in the ninth month.
Gliedman’s arrest date apparently coincided with her due date and she was taken to a hospital on Saturday while her prospective baby daddy was arraigned on explosives and weapons charges. He entered a not guilty plea and was remanded without bail.
Officials declined to name the hospital where Gliedman had been taken, or to confirm or deny a report that she had given birth. She appears to have no prior arrest record and no previous troubles with the law, beyond the credit-card charge that led to her arrest.
She grew up on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and attended Dalton Academy, a prestigious private school. Her parents, prominent oncologist Dr. Paul Gliedman and realtor Susyn Schops Gliedman, could not be reached for comment. A check of her Facebook friends showed a who’s who of the sons and daughters of some of New York’s richest and most notable families.
According to a neighbor who asked not to be named, a very different Gliedman moved into the apartment seven years ago, when she was an undergraduate at NYU.
“She was seemingly a happy-go-lucky girl,” the neighbor told The Daily Beast.
After graduating from NYU, Gliedman earned a master's degree in creative writing at the Art Institute of Chicago, according to her Facebook page. She returned to her apartment two years ago, no longer manifestly happy and not looking so lucky.
“A very changed person,” the neighbor says.
Greene moved in around the same time, according to her neighbor, who describes both Greene and this very different Gliedman as “very unsociable people.”
"They were very insular and seemed kind of in their own world," the neighbor says.
The neighbor remembers that Gliedman often had friends to the apartment during her NYU days. That changed when Greene took up residence.
Get The Beast In Your Inbox! Daily Digest Start and finish your day with the top stories from The Daily Beast. Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of all the news you need to know (and nothing you don't). By clicking "Subscribe," you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Subscribe Thank You! You are now subscribed to the Daily Digest and Cheat Sheet. We will not share your email with anyone for any reason
“They kept the apartment filthy and they had vermin problems,” the neighbor says.
The neighbor lends credence to the police view when he adds, “There was always a heavy cloud of smoke emanating from the place, and one got the sense that they were both heavily into drugs.”
Green’s personal hygiene, cops say, is what might have been expected of a junkie.
"To be honest, you could smell him before you saw him," the neighbor says.
The neighbor said that he could not help but be concerned on seeing that Gliedman was pregnant. He reports that Gliedman’s mother had visited often in recent days, as might be expected with the baby’s imminent arrival.
The other visitors were the police. The criminal complaint filed against Greene and Gliedman says that the cops discovered a plastic container in the living room holding seven grams of a white power that was identified as Hexamethylene Triperoxide Diamine, or HMTD, an easy-to-make explosive and a favorite of actual terrorists.
The complaint says that police also found the makings for more of the stuff, as well as a sawed-off 12-gauge Mossberg 500 shotgun, a Ruger 12-gauge shotgun, a dozen 12-gauge shotgun shells, 9 high-capacity rifle magazines, and 60 5.56-caliber tracer rounds. There was also a 37mm flare launcher, a replica of a M203 grenade launcher.
The complaint also lists a number of books and manuals said to be found in the apartment:
- The Terrorist’s Encyclopedia V. 1.02
- FM 5-25 Explosives and Demolitions
- FM 5-31 Booby Traps
- Improvised and Modified Firearms: Deadly Homemade Weapons
- A Do-It-Yourself Submachine Gun
- Street Sweeper: A Home Workshop Shotgun
- Building the M11/9: A Guide to Construction and Coercion
- FM 5-25 Explosives and Demolitions
- FM 5-31 Booby Traps
These were seized, along with what police describe as various handwritten notebooks containing formulas.
But further investigation produced no indication that this was a case of Gossip Girl gone terrorist.
“So far, no plot,” the senior police official said.
The official did not offer an explanation as to why the couple had allegedly amassed all the requirements of a terror cell but apparently not the intent. The absence of drugs in the apartment has apparently not dissuaded them from taking the view that the two are junkies with advantages.
Police report that Greene has been arrested three times on weapons charges, in 2005, 2006, and most recently in February, when he was also charged with drug possession. He had one prior arrest for drugs in 2004, an assault charge along with the weapons collar in 2005. He was also busted for evading the subway fare in his home precinct in 2011—a grown man with two Harvard degrees and a Dalton girlfriend charged with hopping a subway turnstile like a like schoolkid.
The disposition of the various cases was not immediately clear, though police records for the 2006 weapons arrest notes a “prior felony conviction.”
People with extensive knowledge of the Occupy Wall Street movement were saying that they had never heard of Greene. They discounted a news report that he was an OWS activist.
By midday Sunday, police had reached the tentative conclusion that the explosives and weapons were part of some drug-fueled fantasy life. To cops, Greene appears to be living proof that going to Harvard does not necessarily make you any less a knucklehead. ||||| Doctor's daughter who had baby in custody after she was arrested for keeping explosives in apartment 'robbed a man after meeting at a bar in February'
Morgan Gliedman, 27, allegedly stole a laptop, cellphone, wallet and credit cards from a man she met in a Manhattan bar in February 2012
Just days later, she and Harvard-educated boyfriend Aaron Greene, 31, were caught taking heroin and in possession of a gun in a Washington Heights drug bust
On Saturday, the well-to-do junkies were charged with keeping high-powered explosives in their apartment, where police also found a stash of weapons and terrorism how-to guides
Gliedman went into labor while she was being handcuffed
By Michael Zennie and Helen Pow
|
A Park Avenue-raised heroin addict who was last week charged with keeping high-powered explosives in her Greenwich Village apartment was already a suspect in a robbery.
Morgan Gliedman, 27, was also already on probation for drug possession after a Washington Heights drug bust in February, when she was taken into police custody on Saturday where she gave birth to a daughter named Melody.
On February 17, Gliedman met a man at Johnny's Bar in the Village and went to his Midtown apartment where she allegedly took off with a backpack containing his laptop, cellphone, wallet and credit cards, which she used to make purchases.
Scroll down for video showing an HMTD explosion
Posh: Gliedman attended one of New York's premier prep schools and was raised on the exclusive Park Avenue
Gliedman hasn't yet been charged in the theft, according to The New York Post .
Five days after the robbery, on February 22, she and her Harvard-graduate boyfriend, and father of her child, Aaron Greene were arrested for possession drugs and found with a .223-caliber rifle, The Post reported.
The couple were spotted with another woman in a car that was parked at West 176th Street and Haven Avenue. Greene, 31, was seen injecting heroin while one of the women snorted the drug, a criminal complaint said.
Police officers found empty heroin bags on the floor, marijuana and a digital scale with heroin residue in one of the women's handbags, according to The Post, and Greene admitted to having a gun.
'I have a... rifle in the trunk,' he told officers, according to the complaint.
'Junkies': Morgan Gliedman, 27, and Aaron Greene, 31, are both admitted heroin addicts - even though Gliedman was heavily pregnant when the explosives were found at their apartment, police say
Dangerous: The NYPD bomb squad was called in to remove the explosive that was discovered in the couple Greenwich Village apartment
He was sentenced to five months in jail. Gliedman was due to complete pre-trial probation for drug possession next week, but that case now could be reopened because of the weekend's explosive find.
Despite explosives and a cache of weapons being found at their apartment, police said Gliedman, the daughter of a top New York doctor, and Greene are not home-grown terrorists.
Greene's father is the head of a top art restoration firm. He was also arrested in the apartment on Saturday and is being held without bail on Rikers Island.
eighbors say the couple lived in squalor in their home in the pricy Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village.
'It looks like they’re junkies, well-to-do junkies, not terrorists,' a police source told the Daily Beast .
Prominent parents: Gleidman's father is Dr Paul Gleidman, the director of radiation oncology at Beth Israel Hospital's Brooklyn division. Her mother is Susyn Schops Gliedman, a top New York real estate agent
Inside the apartment, officers found seven grams of the explosive powder HMTD, which was reportedly the substance used in the 2005 London Underground bombings.
The building had to be evacuated while the bomb squad removed the highly-unstable explosive.
Police also found a sawed-off Mossberg 500, a $1,000 Ruger over-under hunting shotgun, several high-capacity magazines, 60 shotgun shells, and a replica of an M203 grenade launcher.
Several disturbing items were seized, including: 'The Terrorist’s Encyclopedia V. 1.02,' 'Improvised and Modified Firearms: Deadly Homemade Weapons,' 'A Do-It-Yourself Submachine Gun,' and U.S. Army manuals for creating and planting booby traps and explosives.
The New York Post reported that Greene was a member of Occupy Wall Street, though an NYPD spokesman told MailOnline that his connection to the group was still being investigated.
Evacuation: All of the residents of the couple's building had to be removed from the area before a police bomb disposal unit could clear out the explosive
Two spokesmen for the Occupy movement said they had never heard of Greene.
Officers were tipped off about the explosives by someone who met Gliedman and Greene in Washington Square Park. The couple invited the informant to their apartment to take a shower, which is when he spotted the weapons, The Post reported.
The apartment on Manhattan's West Ninth Street, is near the apartment where two rich young men accidentally blew themselves up while making a bomb for the extremist group the Weather Underground in 1970.
Greene and Gliedman had no such plans, police sources are saying. They are just wealthy drug addicts with a twisted idea of what's 'cool,' according to the Daily Beast.
Neighbors said Gliedman's mother, Susyn Schops Gliedman, a top New York real estate agent, visited her often at the Greenwich apartment.
Big boom: YouTube video reveals that five grams of the explosive HMTD, less than was found in the New York apartment, can blow apart two bricks
Her father is D r Paul Gleidman, the Columbia University-educated director of radiation oncology at Beth Israel Hospital's Brooklyn division.
Gliedman gave birth to her baby daughter on Saturday at St. Luke's Hospital, where she is currently resting. She has not yet been arraigned, though she remains under arrest, The Post reported.
She attended Dalton School, an exclusive New York prep school attended by the likes of Anderson Cooper and Claire Danes. Her Facebook friend list is reportedly a who's-who of New York society.
She went to New York University and then attended the Art Institute of Chicago for a masters in Creative Writing.
Greene claims he went to Harvard University for his undergraduate degree and did graduate work at the Kennedy School of Government there.
YouTube video shows force of 5grams of HMTD explosive | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 16,744 |
Scientists searching for lobster larvae on Investigator research vessel instead find cluster of four volcanoes thought to be about 50m years old
Four enormous underwater volcanoes, thought to be about 50m years old, have been discovered off the coast of Sydney by a team of scientists who were looking for lobster larvae.
The volcano cluster was spotted through sonar mapping of the sea floor by Investigator, Australia’s new ocean-going research vessel, about 250km off the coast.
The four volcanoes are calderas, large bowl-shaped craters caused when a volcano erupts and the land around it collapses. The largest is 1.5km across the rim and rises 700m from the sea floor. The 20km-long volcano cluster is nearly 5km underwater.
Professor Iain Suthers, a marine biologist at the University of NSW, said the volcano discovery was made when the team was searching for nursery grounds for larval lobsters.
“My jaw just dropped,” Suthers told Guardian Australia. “I immediately said, ‘What are they doing there and why didn’t we know about them before?’ It really backs up the statement that we know more about the surface of the moon than our sea floor.
“I’m elated. We went there to look at eddies in the east Australia current and it was completely serendipitous to find this volcano cluster. We can only just imagine what will be around the corner if we continue to scan this area.”
Scientists believe the volcanoes were created by a series of shifts in geological plates that caused Australia to split from New Zealand. Suthers said the area was thought to be “billiard-table flat” but the enhanced mapping capability of the Investigator unveiled the calderas.
The 94-metre Investigator was commissioned by the CSIRO in 2009 via $120m from the federal government. The vessel, which undertook its first sea tests in March, can map the seafloor at any depth, whereas its ageing predecessor, the Southern Surveyor, was limited to 3,000 metres.
Professor Richard Arculus, an igneous petrologist and volcano expert at the Australian National University, said the Investigator’s mapping ability has unveiled an “enormously exciting” discovery.
“They tell us part of the story of how New Zealand and Australia separated around 40m to 80m years ago, and they’ll now help scientists target future exploration of the sea floor to unlock the secrets of the Earth’s crust,” he said.
The team of 28 scientists, led by Suthers, included researchers from NSW, Latrobe, British Columbia, Sydney, Auckland, Technology Sydney and Southern Cross universities. The voyage left Brisbane on 3 June and arrived in Sydney on 18 June.
Science funding cuts are generating fears for jobs and research output Read more
Suthers said it was “inevitable” that other undiscovered volcanoes were in the region, but the Investigator has funding to operate at sea for only 180 days a year. For the rest of the year it is tied up at a wharf in Hobart.
“We should thank Canberra for the funding we do have but it’s frustrating to build a state-of-the-art vessel only to have it sitting in a wharf for six months of the year,” Suthers said.
“This is a vessel that Australia has been crying out for for decades. It’s an incredibly stable vessel for those of us who are seasick. Usually when you’re hit by four-metre waves you lose a couple of days of research because you’re vomiting.”
A spokeswoman for Ian Macfarlane, the industry and science minister, said the shortfall was because Labor “left absolutely no money in the budget” to operate the Investigator. ||||| While searching for baby lobsters no bigger than a 50-cent piece, Australian researchers discovered a series of giant volcanoes off the coast of Sydney.
The four previously unknown volcanoes, which are now extinct, are situated about 250 kilometres off Sydney in about five kilometres of water.
The largest is 1.5 kilometres across the rim and rises 700 metres from the sea floor.
They were uncovered by chance when marine biologists on Australia's new research vessel, the 94-metre Investigator, were searching the area for the nursery grounds of larval lobsters.
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Link Four undersea volcanoes have been discovered off Sydney. Photo: CSIRO
One of the scientists on the voyage, oceanographer Moninya Roughan, said their discovery came as a complete surprise and was serendipitous because the ship was routinely mapping the sea floor.
"It was the last night of the voyage and we'd set a path from Forster to Sydney and we just happened to go over these volcanoes," Dr Roughan, from the University of NSW, said.
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"We had the swathe mappers going constantly throughout the cruise and two support staff who were constantly watching the output and reporting on any features," she said.
"One of the guys came up and said, 'Look at these new volcanoes that have never been discovered before.' "
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Link The volcanoes sit in about 4900 metres of water. Photo: UNSW
The extinct volcanoes are now calderas, which form after a volcano erupts and the land around it collapses, forming a crater.
Volcano expert Richard Arculus, from the Australian National University, said they were at least 50 million years old and formed near the boundary of an ancient ridge separating two ocean plates.
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Link Marine biologists were searching for larval lobsters when they found the volcanoes. Photo: CSIRO
They had never been discovered before because the sonar on Australia's previous research vessel, Southern Surveyor, could map the sea floor only to 3000 metres, which left half of Australia's ocean territory out of reach.
"On board the Investigator we have sonar that can map the sea floor to any depth, so all of Australia's vast ocean territory is now within reach, and that is enormously exciting," Professor Arculus said.
The voyage, led by University of NSW marine biologist Iain Suthers, was one of the first for the Investigator, which is managed by the CSIRO and has capabilities that marine scientists in Australia have never had before.
"It's a kick-arse ship. We should be so proud of it," he said.
While the federal government has funded the ship to run 180 days a year, scientists are hopeful it will be funded to run all year long.
"With these sorts of discoveries, they'll see it's crazy to have it tied up to the wharf," Professor Suthers said.
"If we just found these volcanoes by chance chasing larval lobster, imagine what we could find with a dedicated survey," he said.
"It's ironic that we're about to get the first close-up pictures of Pluto but we had no idea about these beautiful volcanoes just off the coast of Sydney."
The first Investigator voyage was designed to find small ocean eddies, about 20 to 50 kilometres in diameter, that form in the shallow region of the east coast of Australia.
These eddies are full of nutrients and larval fish species, Dr Roughan said.
"But the thing is they're really hard to find so this was the first dedicated research group to look for these features," she said.
"On the last night we were looking at these warm core eddies that sit off the coast of Sydney, which are much easier to find, and looking for lobster larvae when we stumbled across these volcanoes.
"It was sheer luck that we went over them." | – Researchers on the last night of a voyage to find lobster larvae instead uncovered four extinct, undiscovered volcanoes some 155 miles off Australia's east coast. "My jaw just dropped," voyage leader Iain Suthers tells the Guardian. Though he says researchers believed the ocean floor in the area was "billiard-table flat," a new $120 million research vessel capable of mapping the seafloor at any depth revealed four calderas—big bowl-shaped craters shaped when the land around an erupting volcano crumples—across 12 miles. The largest, three miles below the surface, is almost half a mile tall and a mile across. Experts believe they were formed when shifting ocean plates broke Australia apart from New Zealand. "We went there to look at eddies in the east Australia current and it was completely serendipitous to find this volcano cluster," Suthers says. "We can only just imagine what will be around the corner if we continue to scan this area." Sadly, there is only enough funding to have the "kick-arse ship," the Investigator, trolling the ocean for 180 days a year, Suthers tells the Sydney Morning Herald. As it's now at dock, the "inevitable" underwater volcanoes still undiscovered will have to wait to be found next year. Not only can the Investigator search deeper than its predecessor—which could see less than two miles below the surface—but it's also "an incredibly stable vessel for those of us who are seasick," Suthers says. "Usually when you're hit by (13-foot) waves you lose a couple of days of research because you're vomiting." A volcano expert, who calls the discovery "enormously exciting," says the volcanoes "tell us part of the story of how New Zealand and Australia separated around 40 million to 80 million years ago, and they'll now help scientists target future exploration of the sea floor to unlock the secrets of the Earth's crust." (Another ocean discovery: trillions of glow-in-the-dark fanged fish.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Scientists searching for lobster larvae on Investigator research vessel instead find cluster of four volcanoes thought to be about 50m years old
Four enormous underwater volcanoes, thought to be about 50m years old, have been discovered off the coast of Sydney by a team of scientists who were looking for lobster larvae.
The volcano cluster was spotted through sonar mapping of the sea floor by Investigator, Australia’s new ocean-going research vessel, about 250km off the coast.
The four volcanoes are calderas, large bowl-shaped craters caused when a volcano erupts and the land around it collapses. The largest is 1.5km across the rim and rises 700m from the sea floor. The 20km-long volcano cluster is nearly 5km underwater.
Professor Iain Suthers, a marine biologist at the University of NSW, said the volcano discovery was made when the team was searching for nursery grounds for larval lobsters.
“My jaw just dropped,” Suthers told Guardian Australia. “I immediately said, ‘What are they doing there and why didn’t we know about them before?’ It really backs up the statement that we know more about the surface of the moon than our sea floor.
“I’m elated. We went there to look at eddies in the east Australia current and it was completely serendipitous to find this volcano cluster. We can only just imagine what will be around the corner if we continue to scan this area.”
Scientists believe the volcanoes were created by a series of shifts in geological plates that caused Australia to split from New Zealand. Suthers said the area was thought to be “billiard-table flat” but the enhanced mapping capability of the Investigator unveiled the calderas.
The 94-metre Investigator was commissioned by the CSIRO in 2009 via $120m from the federal government. The vessel, which undertook its first sea tests in March, can map the seafloor at any depth, whereas its ageing predecessor, the Southern Surveyor, was limited to 3,000 metres.
Professor Richard Arculus, an igneous petrologist and volcano expert at the Australian National University, said the Investigator’s mapping ability has unveiled an “enormously exciting” discovery.
“They tell us part of the story of how New Zealand and Australia separated around 40m to 80m years ago, and they’ll now help scientists target future exploration of the sea floor to unlock the secrets of the Earth’s crust,” he said.
The team of 28 scientists, led by Suthers, included researchers from NSW, Latrobe, British Columbia, Sydney, Auckland, Technology Sydney and Southern Cross universities. The voyage left Brisbane on 3 June and arrived in Sydney on 18 June.
Science funding cuts are generating fears for jobs and research output Read more
Suthers said it was “inevitable” that other undiscovered volcanoes were in the region, but the Investigator has funding to operate at sea for only 180 days a year. For the rest of the year it is tied up at a wharf in Hobart.
“We should thank Canberra for the funding we do have but it’s frustrating to build a state-of-the-art vessel only to have it sitting in a wharf for six months of the year,” Suthers said.
“This is a vessel that Australia has been crying out for for decades. It’s an incredibly stable vessel for those of us who are seasick. Usually when you’re hit by four-metre waves you lose a couple of days of research because you’re vomiting.”
A spokeswoman for Ian Macfarlane, the industry and science minister, said the shortfall was because Labor “left absolutely no money in the budget” to operate the Investigator. ||||| While searching for baby lobsters no bigger than a 50-cent piece, Australian researchers discovered a series of giant volcanoes off the coast of Sydney.
The four previously unknown volcanoes, which are now extinct, are situated about 250 kilometres off Sydney in about five kilometres of water.
The largest is 1.5 kilometres across the rim and rises 700 metres from the sea floor.
They were uncovered by chance when marine biologists on Australia's new research vessel, the 94-metre Investigator, were searching the area for the nursery grounds of larval lobsters.
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Link Four undersea volcanoes have been discovered off Sydney. Photo: CSIRO
One of the scientists on the voyage, oceanographer Moninya Roughan, said their discovery came as a complete surprise and was serendipitous because the ship was routinely mapping the sea floor.
"It was the last night of the voyage and we'd set a path from Forster to Sydney and we just happened to go over these volcanoes," Dr Roughan, from the University of NSW, said.
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"We had the swathe mappers going constantly throughout the cruise and two support staff who were constantly watching the output and reporting on any features," she said.
"One of the guys came up and said, 'Look at these new volcanoes that have never been discovered before.' "
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Link The volcanoes sit in about 4900 metres of water. Photo: UNSW
The extinct volcanoes are now calderas, which form after a volcano erupts and the land around it collapses, forming a crater.
Volcano expert Richard Arculus, from the Australian National University, said they were at least 50 million years old and formed near the boundary of an ancient ridge separating two ocean plates.
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Link Marine biologists were searching for larval lobsters when they found the volcanoes. Photo: CSIRO
They had never been discovered before because the sonar on Australia's previous research vessel, Southern Surveyor, could map the sea floor only to 3000 metres, which left half of Australia's ocean territory out of reach.
"On board the Investigator we have sonar that can map the sea floor to any depth, so all of Australia's vast ocean territory is now within reach, and that is enormously exciting," Professor Arculus said.
The voyage, led by University of NSW marine biologist Iain Suthers, was one of the first for the Investigator, which is managed by the CSIRO and has capabilities that marine scientists in Australia have never had before.
"It's a kick-arse ship. We should be so proud of it," he said.
While the federal government has funded the ship to run 180 days a year, scientists are hopeful it will be funded to run all year long.
"With these sorts of discoveries, they'll see it's crazy to have it tied up to the wharf," Professor Suthers said.
"If we just found these volcanoes by chance chasing larval lobster, imagine what we could find with a dedicated survey," he said.
"It's ironic that we're about to get the first close-up pictures of Pluto but we had no idea about these beautiful volcanoes just off the coast of Sydney."
The first Investigator voyage was designed to find small ocean eddies, about 20 to 50 kilometres in diameter, that form in the shallow region of the east coast of Australia.
These eddies are full of nutrients and larval fish species, Dr Roughan said.
"But the thing is they're really hard to find so this was the first dedicated research group to look for these features," she said.
"On the last night we were looking at these warm core eddies that sit off the coast of Sydney, which are much easier to find, and looking for lobster larvae when we stumbled across these volcanoes.
"It was sheer luck that we went over them." | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 21,289 |
Listen up all you couch potatoes: It’s time to get up and get moving. A decades-long study has shown that a low physical activity level can increase your risk of dying so much that it is second only to smoking ― and we all know how evil smoking is. The research is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology .
“The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear,” said lead author Dr. Per Ladenvall, a Swedish researcher at the University of Gothenburg. “Low physical capacity is a greater risk for death than high blood pressure or high cholesterol.”
The study followed 792 men who were 54-years-old in 1967 when the subjects did an exercise test in which they pushed themselves to the limit. The men were followed up until 2012. Physical examinations were performed once a decade and data about the men’s cause of death was collected from the National Cause of Death Registry, according to a press release.
Low aerobic capacity was linked to increased rates of death. The effect of aerobic capacity on risk of death was found to be second only to smoking.
Ladenvall concluded: “We have come a long way in reducing smoking. The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting.”
Other studies have of course found that our sedentary ways harm our health. Lack of exercise contributes to obesity, hypertension, diabetes and depression. Yet 80 percent of American adults do not meet the government’s physical activity recommendations for aerobic and muscle strengthen, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Sedentary adults pay $1,500 more per year in healthcare costs than physically active adults, says the National Institutes of Health.
So now all we need is a nicotine patch for watching our screens. ||||| Photo
Phys Ed Gretchen Reynolds on the science of fitness.
Being out of shape could be more harmful to health and longevity than most people expect, according to a new, long-term study of middle-aged men. The study finds that poor physical fitness may be second only to smoking as a risk factor for premature death.
It is not news that aerobic capacity can influence lifespan. Many past epidemiological studies have found that people with low physical fitness tend to be at high risk of premature death. Conversely, people with robust aerobic capacity are likely to have long lives.
But most of those studies followed people for about 10 to 20 years, which is a lengthy period of time for science but nowhere near most of our actual lifespans. Some of those studies also enrolled people who already were elderly or infirm, making it difficult to extrapolate the findings to younger, healthier people.
So for the new study, which was published this week in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and other institutions turned to an impressively large and long-term database of information about Swedish men.
The data set, prosaically named the Study of Men Born in 1913, involved exactly that. In 1963, almost 1,000 healthy 50-year-old men in Gothenburg who had been born in 1913 agreed to be studied for the rest of their lives, in order to help scientists better understand lifetime risks for disease, especially heart disease.
The men completed baseline health testing in 1963, including measures of their blood pressure, weight and cholesterol, and whether they exercised and smoked. Four years later, when the volunteers were 54, some underwent more extensive testing, including an exercise stress test designed to precisely determine their maximum aerobic capacity, or VO2 max. Using the results, the scientists developed a mathematical formula that allowed them to estimate the aerobic capacity of the rest of the participants.
Aerobic capacity is an interesting measure for scientists to study, because it is affected by both genetics and lifestyle. Some portion of our VO2 max is innate; we inherit it from our parents. But much of our endurance capacity is determined by our lifestyle. Being sedentary lowers VO2 max, as does being overweight. Exercise raises it.
Among this group of middle-aged men, aerobic capacities ranged from slight to impressively high, and generally reflected the men’s self-reported exercise habits. Men who said that they seldom worked out tended to have a low VO2 max. (Because VO2 max is more objective than self-reports about exercise, the researchers focused on it.)
To determine what impact fitness might have on lifespan, the scientists grouped the men into three categories: those with low, medium or high aerobic capacity at age 54.
Then they followed the men for almost 50 years. During that time, the surviving volunteers completed follow-up health testing about once each decade. The scientists also tracked deaths among the men, based on a national registry.
Then they compared the risk of relatively early death to a variety of health parameters, particularly each man’s VO2 max, blood pressure, cholesterol profile and history of smoking. (They did not include body weight as a separate measure, because it was indirectly reflected by VO2 max.)
Not surprisingly, smoking had the greatest impact on lifespan. It substantially shortened lives.
But low aerobic capacity wasn’t far behind. The men in the group with the lowest VO2 max had a 21 percent higher risk of dying prematurely than those with middling aerobic capacity, and about a 42 percent higher risk of early death than the men who were the most fit.
Poor fitness turned out to be unhealthier even than high blood pressure or poor cholesterol profiles, the researchers found. Highly fit men with elevated blood pressure or relatively unhealthy cholesterol profiles tended to live longer than out-of-shape men with good blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Of course, this study found links between poor fitness and shortened lifespans. It cannot prove that one caused the other, or explain how VO2 max might affect lifespan. However, the findings raise the possibility, as the scientists speculate, that by strengthening the body, better fitness may lower the risk of a variety of chronic diseases.
This study also involved men — and Swedish men at that. So whether the findings are applicable to other people, particularly women, is uncertain.
But “there is no reason not to think” that the rest of us would also share any beneficial associations between fitness and longevity, said Per Ladenvall, a researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, who led the study. Past studies involving women have found such links, he said.
Encouragingly, if you now are concerned about the state of your particular aerobic capacity, you most likely can increase it just by getting up and moving. “Even small amounts of physical activity,” Dr. Ladenvall said, “may have positive effects on fitness.” ||||| Sophia Antipolis, July 27 2016: A 45 year study in middle-aged men has shown that the impact of low physical capacity on risk of death is second only to smoking. The research is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.1
"The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear," said lead author Dr Per Ladenvall, a researcher in the Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Sweden. "Low physical capacity is a greater risk for death than high blood pressure or high cholesterol."
The study included 792 men from the "Study of Men Born in 1913", a representative sample of 50 year old men in Gothenburg recruited in 1963. The study was designed to investigate risk factors for cardiovascular disease and mortality.
In 1967, at 54 years of age, the 792 men did an exercise test. Of those, 656 men also did a maximum exercise test in which they pushed themselves to the limit. The remaining men were excluded from the maximum exercise test because they had a health condition that could make it unsafe. Maximal oxygen uptake, called VO2 max, was measured in a subpopulation of the 656 men using ergospirometry.
Dr Ladenvall said: "VO2 max is a measure of aerobic capacity and the higher the figure, the more physically fit a person is. In 1967 it was difficult to do ergospirometry in large populations, so the researchers derived a formula using the measurements in the subpopulation, and then calculated predicted VO2 max for the remaining 656 men who had done the maximum exercise test."
After the initial examination in 1967, the men were followed up until 2012, at the age of 100 years. Several physical examinations were performed, about one every 10 years. Data on all-cause death was obtained from the National Cause of Death Registry.
To analyse the association between predicted VO2 max and mortality the men were divided into three groups (tertiles) ranging from low to high: 2.00 l/min, 2.26 l/min, and 2.56 l/min.
The researchers found that each tertile increase in predicted VO2 max was associated with a 21% lower risk of death over 45 years of follow up, and after adjusting for other risk factors (smoking, blood pressure and serum cholesterol).
Dr Ladenvall said: "We found that low aerobic capacity was associated with increased rates of death. The association between exercise capacity and all-cause death was graded, with the strongest risk in the tertile with the lowest maximum aerobic capacity. The effect of aerobic capacity on risk of death was second only to smoking."
"The length of follow up in our study is unique," continued Dr Ladenvall. "When this study began, most data was derived from hospital cohorts and there was very limited data on exercise testing in a large general population. Our sample is representative of the male population in Gothenburg at that time. The risk associated with low aerobic capacity was evident throughout more than four decades and suggests that being physically active can have a big impact over a lifetime."
He concluded: "We have come a long way in reducing smoking. The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting."
### | – Being physically unfit is more damaging to living a long life than everything except smoking, according to a study published Wednesday in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. And as the Huffington Post puts it: "We all know how evil smoking is." Researchers measured the maximum oxygen intake of nearly 800 men who were 54 in 1967. The study continued through 2012, with those participants who were still alive being tested about once a decade. Aerobic capacity is a measure of physical fitness; the higher the capacity the more fit the individual, according to a press release. The New York Times reports that people with the lowest aerobic capacity had a 21% higher risk of dying prematurely than people with middling aerobic capacity and a 42% higher risk of dying early than people with the best aerobic capacity. The study confirms what others have found but over a much longer time period. "The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear," study author Dr. Per Ladenvall says in the press release. The study found being out of shape was an even bigger risk than high blood pressure or cholesterol. In fact, men who were fit but had blood pressure or cholesterol problems still tended to live longer than unfit men with good blood pressure and cholesterol. The CDC found 80% of Americans don't meet federal recommendations for aerobic strength. But the good news is it's never too late to start improving fitness. "We have come a long way in reducing smoking," Ladenvall says in the press release. "The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting." (Another study found one in four people barely ever get off the couch.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Listen up all you couch potatoes: It’s time to get up and get moving. A decades-long study has shown that a low physical activity level can increase your risk of dying so much that it is second only to smoking ― and we all know how evil smoking is. The research is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology .
“The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear,” said lead author Dr. Per Ladenvall, a Swedish researcher at the University of Gothenburg. “Low physical capacity is a greater risk for death than high blood pressure or high cholesterol.”
The study followed 792 men who were 54-years-old in 1967 when the subjects did an exercise test in which they pushed themselves to the limit. The men were followed up until 2012. Physical examinations were performed once a decade and data about the men’s cause of death was collected from the National Cause of Death Registry, according to a press release.
Low aerobic capacity was linked to increased rates of death. The effect of aerobic capacity on risk of death was found to be second only to smoking.
Ladenvall concluded: “We have come a long way in reducing smoking. The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting.”
Other studies have of course found that our sedentary ways harm our health. Lack of exercise contributes to obesity, hypertension, diabetes and depression. Yet 80 percent of American adults do not meet the government’s physical activity recommendations for aerobic and muscle strengthen, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Sedentary adults pay $1,500 more per year in healthcare costs than physically active adults, says the National Institutes of Health.
So now all we need is a nicotine patch for watching our screens. ||||| Photo
Phys Ed Gretchen Reynolds on the science of fitness.
Being out of shape could be more harmful to health and longevity than most people expect, according to a new, long-term study of middle-aged men. The study finds that poor physical fitness may be second only to smoking as a risk factor for premature death.
It is not news that aerobic capacity can influence lifespan. Many past epidemiological studies have found that people with low physical fitness tend to be at high risk of premature death. Conversely, people with robust aerobic capacity are likely to have long lives.
But most of those studies followed people for about 10 to 20 years, which is a lengthy period of time for science but nowhere near most of our actual lifespans. Some of those studies also enrolled people who already were elderly or infirm, making it difficult to extrapolate the findings to younger, healthier people.
So for the new study, which was published this week in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and other institutions turned to an impressively large and long-term database of information about Swedish men.
The data set, prosaically named the Study of Men Born in 1913, involved exactly that. In 1963, almost 1,000 healthy 50-year-old men in Gothenburg who had been born in 1913 agreed to be studied for the rest of their lives, in order to help scientists better understand lifetime risks for disease, especially heart disease.
The men completed baseline health testing in 1963, including measures of their blood pressure, weight and cholesterol, and whether they exercised and smoked. Four years later, when the volunteers were 54, some underwent more extensive testing, including an exercise stress test designed to precisely determine their maximum aerobic capacity, or VO2 max. Using the results, the scientists developed a mathematical formula that allowed them to estimate the aerobic capacity of the rest of the participants.
Aerobic capacity is an interesting measure for scientists to study, because it is affected by both genetics and lifestyle. Some portion of our VO2 max is innate; we inherit it from our parents. But much of our endurance capacity is determined by our lifestyle. Being sedentary lowers VO2 max, as does being overweight. Exercise raises it.
Among this group of middle-aged men, aerobic capacities ranged from slight to impressively high, and generally reflected the men’s self-reported exercise habits. Men who said that they seldom worked out tended to have a low VO2 max. (Because VO2 max is more objective than self-reports about exercise, the researchers focused on it.)
To determine what impact fitness might have on lifespan, the scientists grouped the men into three categories: those with low, medium or high aerobic capacity at age 54.
Then they followed the men for almost 50 years. During that time, the surviving volunteers completed follow-up health testing about once each decade. The scientists also tracked deaths among the men, based on a national registry.
Then they compared the risk of relatively early death to a variety of health parameters, particularly each man’s VO2 max, blood pressure, cholesterol profile and history of smoking. (They did not include body weight as a separate measure, because it was indirectly reflected by VO2 max.)
Not surprisingly, smoking had the greatest impact on lifespan. It substantially shortened lives.
But low aerobic capacity wasn’t far behind. The men in the group with the lowest VO2 max had a 21 percent higher risk of dying prematurely than those with middling aerobic capacity, and about a 42 percent higher risk of early death than the men who were the most fit.
Poor fitness turned out to be unhealthier even than high blood pressure or poor cholesterol profiles, the researchers found. Highly fit men with elevated blood pressure or relatively unhealthy cholesterol profiles tended to live longer than out-of-shape men with good blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Of course, this study found links between poor fitness and shortened lifespans. It cannot prove that one caused the other, or explain how VO2 max might affect lifespan. However, the findings raise the possibility, as the scientists speculate, that by strengthening the body, better fitness may lower the risk of a variety of chronic diseases.
This study also involved men — and Swedish men at that. So whether the findings are applicable to other people, particularly women, is uncertain.
But “there is no reason not to think” that the rest of us would also share any beneficial associations between fitness and longevity, said Per Ladenvall, a researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, who led the study. Past studies involving women have found such links, he said.
Encouragingly, if you now are concerned about the state of your particular aerobic capacity, you most likely can increase it just by getting up and moving. “Even small amounts of physical activity,” Dr. Ladenvall said, “may have positive effects on fitness.” ||||| Sophia Antipolis, July 27 2016: A 45 year study in middle-aged men has shown that the impact of low physical capacity on risk of death is second only to smoking. The research is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.1
"The benefits of being physically active over a lifetime are clear," said lead author Dr Per Ladenvall, a researcher in the Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Sweden. "Low physical capacity is a greater risk for death than high blood pressure or high cholesterol."
The study included 792 men from the "Study of Men Born in 1913", a representative sample of 50 year old men in Gothenburg recruited in 1963. The study was designed to investigate risk factors for cardiovascular disease and mortality.
In 1967, at 54 years of age, the 792 men did an exercise test. Of those, 656 men also did a maximum exercise test in which they pushed themselves to the limit. The remaining men were excluded from the maximum exercise test because they had a health condition that could make it unsafe. Maximal oxygen uptake, called VO2 max, was measured in a subpopulation of the 656 men using ergospirometry.
Dr Ladenvall said: "VO2 max is a measure of aerobic capacity and the higher the figure, the more physically fit a person is. In 1967 it was difficult to do ergospirometry in large populations, so the researchers derived a formula using the measurements in the subpopulation, and then calculated predicted VO2 max for the remaining 656 men who had done the maximum exercise test."
After the initial examination in 1967, the men were followed up until 2012, at the age of 100 years. Several physical examinations were performed, about one every 10 years. Data on all-cause death was obtained from the National Cause of Death Registry.
To analyse the association between predicted VO2 max and mortality the men were divided into three groups (tertiles) ranging from low to high: 2.00 l/min, 2.26 l/min, and 2.56 l/min.
The researchers found that each tertile increase in predicted VO2 max was associated with a 21% lower risk of death over 45 years of follow up, and after adjusting for other risk factors (smoking, blood pressure and serum cholesterol).
Dr Ladenvall said: "We found that low aerobic capacity was associated with increased rates of death. The association between exercise capacity and all-cause death was graded, with the strongest risk in the tertile with the lowest maximum aerobic capacity. The effect of aerobic capacity on risk of death was second only to smoking."
"The length of follow up in our study is unique," continued Dr Ladenvall. "When this study began, most data was derived from hospital cohorts and there was very limited data on exercise testing in a large general population. Our sample is representative of the male population in Gothenburg at that time. The risk associated with low aerobic capacity was evident throughout more than four decades and suggests that being physically active can have a big impact over a lifetime."
He concluded: "We have come a long way in reducing smoking. The next major challenge is to keep us physically active and also to reduce physical inactivity, such as prolonged sitting."
### | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 36,366 |
Older stars like Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford can't guarantee good returns at the box office. Neither can a hot up-and-comer like Benedict Cumberbatch. What's a studio to do? Those big-name actors starred in this year's biggest turkeys, the movies that performed the worst at the box office.
Topping our list is The Fifth Estate. The movie, from DreamWorks, seems like it should have been a smart bet. Cumberbatch, one of the hottest young actors around, stars as Julian Assange in a real life, ripped from the headlines film about Wikileaks and the rise of a new kind of freedom of information. The film was helmed by Bill Condon, who won an Oscar for writing the film Gods and Monsters (which he also directed) and earned millions directing the last two Twilight films.
But the film flopped. It has earned just $6 million at the global box office on a budget of $28 million. That means the film has earned back only 21% of its budget at the box office.
And that's actually putting a very positive spin on the film's economics. That $28 million production budget (from Box Office Mojo) doesn't include whatever DreamWorks and its owner, Disney, spent to market the film. That could have easily added another $25 million to the film's costs. Plus studios only take, on average, 50% of the box office money. So really the studio has only taken in $3 million from the film's box office.
Thanks to massive hits like Iron Man 3, Thor: the Dark World and Monsters University, the film's performance shouldn't hurt Disney very much. But it does show the validity of big studios like Disney choosing to focus almost exclusively on massive event movies that cost upward of $200 million to produce but bring in many multiples of that at the box office.
Disney's biggest stumble this year, The Lone Ranger, actually doesn't even make our list. While the film was undoubtedly a loser for Disney (the studio took a massive write-down on the film), it actually earned more than its production budget at the global box office. The film brought in $260 million on a budget of $215 million. The 10 films on our list didn't even earn back their budgets.
Ranking second on our list of the biggest turkeys is Bullet to the Head. If you've never heard of it don't worry, you're clearly not alone. Warner Bros. didn't put a huge effort into marketing the film. With an estimate production budget of $25 million the movie brought in only $9 million at the global box office, a 36% return. With director Walter Hill on board, the filmmakers might have been going for an intentionally cheesy vibe hoping to achieve some kind of cult status, but it didn't work.
In third place on our list: Paranoia. Like The Fifth Estate, Paranoia is a film that on paper seems like it should have worked. The film mixes old-school star power, in the persons of Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman, with hot up-and-coming talent like The Hunger Games' Liam Hemsworth.
But the thriller was d.o.a. at the box office. It opened in 13th place in August and only sunk from there. With a $35 million budget the film grossed just $13.5 million at the global box office, a 39% return.
The movie Parker ranks fourth with a 49% return. Jennifer Lopez once ranked as the most powerful celebrity on our Celebrity 100 list but her power has clearly waned since then. Parker, which also starred action movie staple Jason Statham, wasn't a Gigli-sized bomb but it shows Lopez ins't much of a movie draw.
Rounding out our top five is Broken City. Mark Wahlberg is one of the biggest movie stars on the planet right now. We estimate he earned $52 million last year, mostly thanks to the gigantic success of Ted. But even giant movie stars have misfires. This thriller, co-starring Russell Crowe, was meant to replicate the success of Wahlberg's other January genre film, Contraband. But lightning didn't strike twice. Broken City earned just $19 million on a $35 million budget, a 54% return.
Follow me on Twitter at DorothyatForbes. ||||| We're in the midst of awards season, which means that audiences are being treated to the very best Hollywood has to offer. The past few weeks have seen the release of Oscar hopefuls like Inside Llewyn Davis and Out of the Furnace, with plenty of buzzy films like American Hustle, The Wolf of Wall Street, and Her still on the horizon.
If only Hollywood's box-office lineup were always this good. It's been a strong year for movies, but as always, a few truly awful movies have managed to slip into wide release. Here's a look back at the 10 worst-reviewed movies to hit theaters in 2013, based on their Rotten Tomatoes scores:
10. After Earth (11 percent)
Budget: $130 million
Gross: $60.5 million
In a summer that saw a string of high-profile action flops like The Lone Ranger and R.I.P.D., After Earth turned out to be the most scathingly received of all. The sci-fi blockbuster was widely derided as a thinly veiled vanity project for the Smith family, in which Will Smith — one of the most bankable and charismatic actors on the planet — tried and failed to launch a similar career for his 15-year-old son, Jaden. Audiences didn't bite, despite top-notch special effects and an ad campaign that went out of its way to disguise the presence of director M. Night Shyamalan. "Is After Earth the worst movie ever made?" asked Joe Morgenstern at the Wall Street Journal. "Maybe not; there's always Battlefield Earth to remind us how low the bar can go."
9. A Haunted House (10 percent)
Budget: $2.5 million
Gross: $40 million
This year got off to a particular inauspicious start with A Haunted House, a dismal spoof of the Paranormal Activity franchise that was rushed into theaters ahead of the latest Scary Movie, with Marlon Wayans (who starred in the first two Scary Movie movies) serving as producer, writer, and star. Critics dogged A Haunted House for its sexist and homophobic "jokes," and for being an unfunny movie in general. "If the opening gag in your R-rated movie is an extended flatulence joke, you should reconsider whether you're qualified to make such a movie," wrote Neil Genzlinger at The New York Times. Audiences turned up anyway, to the tune of a cool $40 million, and A Haunted House 2 was fast-tracked into production. It hits theaters in March 2014.
8. The Host (8 percent)
Budget: $40 million
Gross: $26.6 million
Despite being tepidly received by critics, the film adaptations of Stephenie Meyers' Twilight series tore up the box office with a story of a vampire, a werewolf, and the bland girl they're inexplicably fighting over. So it's no great surprise that Meyers' other YA novel, The Host, was deemed a hot property for the big screen. But lightning failed to strike twice; The Host, a post-apocalyptic romance about a girl whose body is inhabited by an alien life force, earned even worse reviews than the Twilight franchise, and failed to attract even a fraction of its audience. "A sci-fi writer like Philip K. Dick might have used this premise to explore notions of memory and identity," said Rafer Guzman at Newsday. "Meyer uses it to create a teen soap opera."
7. Grown Ups 2 (7 percent)
Budget: $80 million
Gross: $133.7 million
Grown Ups overcame scathing reviews in 2010 to gross a whopping $162 million domestically, which paved the way for this summer's Grown Ups 2 — a film that somehow managed to garner even worse reviews than the original. Grown Ups 2 reunited Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, and David Spade for a bottom-scraping comedy that opens with an extended sequence in which a deer urinates all over Sandler's face. "It honestly seems as if Sandler and his team descended on a random suburb, halfheartedly improvising and moving on when they got bored," said Sara Stewart at the New York Post. Maybe audiences were tired of Sandler's antics, too; Grown Ups 2 earned almost $30 million less than its predecessor at the domestic box office.
6. The Big Wedding (7 percent)
Budget: $35 million
Gross: $21.8 million
It's been a particularly bleak time at the box office for romantic comedies, and movies like The Big Wedding are doing nothing to stanch the bleeding. The film wastes the talents of a stellar ensemble cast — including Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Susan Sarandon, Topher Grace, Amanda Seyfried, and Robin Williams — with a broad, dumb, painfully contrived story about misadventures at a wedding. "Many Hollywood films are founded on privilege, but few are as open and nasty about their racism, misogyny, and homophobia," said Calum Marsh at the Village Voice. "It's a feel-good movie for people who only comfortable around people who look and act just like them."
5. Battle of the Year (4 percent)
Budget: $20 million
Gross: $8.9 million
Over the past decade, the success of the Step Up franchise has led to a host of dance film imitators like Honey and You Got Served. But even by the lowered standards of the genre, Battle of the Year — which follows an underdog American dance team at an international competition — was a flop. The presence of cultural lightning rod Chris Brown didn't do much to boost Battle of the Year's chances at the box office, though Toronto Star critic Linda Bernard's negative review did include this silver lining: "Chris Brown gets punched in the face, so it's not a total wash."
4. Scary Movie 5 (4 percent)
Budget: $20 million
Gross: $32 million
Who could have guessed that A Haunted House wouldn't be the worst-reviewed Paranormal Actvity parody of the year? Scary Movie 5 is by far the stupidest in the franchise, which has never exactly been a critical darling anyway. The list of not particularly timely targets for satire also included Insidious, The Cabin in the Woods, and Mama, plus a few non-horror movies like Inception and 127 Hours. And despite heavy press coverage, Scary Movie 5's "big get" — a brutally unfunny scene in which Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan play themselves during a one-night stand — didn't exactly pull in audiences. "A film composed almost entirely of jokes that were much funnier when you read them on Twitter years ago," said Darren Franich at Entertainment Weekly.
3. Movie 43 (4 percent)
Budget: $6 million
Gross: $8.8 million
Whatever else you can say about Movie 43, you have to give its producers credit for ingenuity. First, they convinced a staggering array of big-name actors — including Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Emma Stone, Halle Berry, Gerard Butler, Uma Thuman, and dozens more — to appear in a series of brief, unrelated sketches. Next, they strung those sketches together with a flimsy framing device and slapped on the meaningless title Movie 43. Finally, they used all those famous names to try and trick audiences into thinking that the movie was actually good. Fortunately, audiences were too smart to fall for it. "As a film critic, I've seen nearly 4,000 movies over the last 15 years," said Elizabeth Weitzman at the New York Daily News. "Right now, I can't think of one worse than Movie 43."
2. Paranoia (4 percent)
Budget: $35 million
Gross: $7.4 million
In a different era, a thriller starring Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, and Richard Dreyfuss might have been slotted for a major release date in the middle of summer. But the bland Paranoia turned out to be little more than a failed vehicle for Liam Hemsworth. It was dumped into the cinematic doldrums of mid-August: The sweet spot between summer blockbuster season and the fall awards season that's generally reserved for terrible movies. Filled with corporate espionage both predictable and dull, Paranoia proved as generic and forgettable as its title. "What it lacks is even an iota of originality," complained Steven Rea at the Philadelphia Inquirer.
1. Getaway (2 percent)
Budget: $18 million
Gross: $10.5 million
Joining Paranoia in the cinematic dumping ground of August was Getaway, a non-thrilling thriller directed by the producer behind such gems as Dungeons & Dragons and The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations. Getaway follows Brent Magna, a retired race car driver played by Ethan Hawke who is forced to complete a series of tasks for the mysterious man who kidnapped his wife. Playing like an off-brand blend of Saw and Speed, Getaway didn't even bother to give its other characters names, referring to Selena Gomez's supporting character as "The Kid" and Jon Voight's villain as "The Voice." "You've probably seen this movie before, watching a child play with his toy Hot Wheels cars after eating multiple bowls of sugary breakfast cereal," said Peter Hartlaub at the San Francisco Chronicle.
But don't feel too bad for Hawke, who also starred in Before Midnight — one of the best-reviewed movies of 2013. Which means there's a consolation for any filmmaker, writer, or actor who wound up on 2013's worst-reviewed movie list: There's always next year. | – Sometimes even a big Hollywood name can't help you. Forbes rounds up the 10 biggest flops of the year, movies that performed terribly at the box office—often despite having quite a bit of star power involved. Click through the gallery for a sampling, or check out the complete list here. (Or, if you'd rather, click for the 10 worst-reviewed movies of the year. Not surprisingly, there's some overlap between the two lists.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Older stars like Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford can't guarantee good returns at the box office. Neither can a hot up-and-comer like Benedict Cumberbatch. What's a studio to do? Those big-name actors starred in this year's biggest turkeys, the movies that performed the worst at the box office.
Topping our list is The Fifth Estate. The movie, from DreamWorks, seems like it should have been a smart bet. Cumberbatch, one of the hottest young actors around, stars as Julian Assange in a real life, ripped from the headlines film about Wikileaks and the rise of a new kind of freedom of information. The film was helmed by Bill Condon, who won an Oscar for writing the film Gods and Monsters (which he also directed) and earned millions directing the last two Twilight films.
But the film flopped. It has earned just $6 million at the global box office on a budget of $28 million. That means the film has earned back only 21% of its budget at the box office.
And that's actually putting a very positive spin on the film's economics. That $28 million production budget (from Box Office Mojo) doesn't include whatever DreamWorks and its owner, Disney, spent to market the film. That could have easily added another $25 million to the film's costs. Plus studios only take, on average, 50% of the box office money. So really the studio has only taken in $3 million from the film's box office.
Thanks to massive hits like Iron Man 3, Thor: the Dark World and Monsters University, the film's performance shouldn't hurt Disney very much. But it does show the validity of big studios like Disney choosing to focus almost exclusively on massive event movies that cost upward of $200 million to produce but bring in many multiples of that at the box office.
Disney's biggest stumble this year, The Lone Ranger, actually doesn't even make our list. While the film was undoubtedly a loser for Disney (the studio took a massive write-down on the film), it actually earned more than its production budget at the global box office. The film brought in $260 million on a budget of $215 million. The 10 films on our list didn't even earn back their budgets.
Ranking second on our list of the biggest turkeys is Bullet to the Head. If you've never heard of it don't worry, you're clearly not alone. Warner Bros. didn't put a huge effort into marketing the film. With an estimate production budget of $25 million the movie brought in only $9 million at the global box office, a 36% return. With director Walter Hill on board, the filmmakers might have been going for an intentionally cheesy vibe hoping to achieve some kind of cult status, but it didn't work.
In third place on our list: Paranoia. Like The Fifth Estate, Paranoia is a film that on paper seems like it should have worked. The film mixes old-school star power, in the persons of Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman, with hot up-and-coming talent like The Hunger Games' Liam Hemsworth.
But the thriller was d.o.a. at the box office. It opened in 13th place in August and only sunk from there. With a $35 million budget the film grossed just $13.5 million at the global box office, a 39% return.
The movie Parker ranks fourth with a 49% return. Jennifer Lopez once ranked as the most powerful celebrity on our Celebrity 100 list but her power has clearly waned since then. Parker, which also starred action movie staple Jason Statham, wasn't a Gigli-sized bomb but it shows Lopez ins't much of a movie draw.
Rounding out our top five is Broken City. Mark Wahlberg is one of the biggest movie stars on the planet right now. We estimate he earned $52 million last year, mostly thanks to the gigantic success of Ted. But even giant movie stars have misfires. This thriller, co-starring Russell Crowe, was meant to replicate the success of Wahlberg's other January genre film, Contraband. But lightning didn't strike twice. Broken City earned just $19 million on a $35 million budget, a 54% return.
Follow me on Twitter at DorothyatForbes. ||||| We're in the midst of awards season, which means that audiences are being treated to the very best Hollywood has to offer. The past few weeks have seen the release of Oscar hopefuls like Inside Llewyn Davis and Out of the Furnace, with plenty of buzzy films like American Hustle, The Wolf of Wall Street, and Her still on the horizon.
If only Hollywood's box-office lineup were always this good. It's been a strong year for movies, but as always, a few truly awful movies have managed to slip into wide release. Here's a look back at the 10 worst-reviewed movies to hit theaters in 2013, based on their Rotten Tomatoes scores:
10. After Earth (11 percent)
Budget: $130 million
Gross: $60.5 million
In a summer that saw a string of high-profile action flops like The Lone Ranger and R.I.P.D., After Earth turned out to be the most scathingly received of all. The sci-fi blockbuster was widely derided as a thinly veiled vanity project for the Smith family, in which Will Smith — one of the most bankable and charismatic actors on the planet — tried and failed to launch a similar career for his 15-year-old son, Jaden. Audiences didn't bite, despite top-notch special effects and an ad campaign that went out of its way to disguise the presence of director M. Night Shyamalan. "Is After Earth the worst movie ever made?" asked Joe Morgenstern at the Wall Street Journal. "Maybe not; there's always Battlefield Earth to remind us how low the bar can go."
9. A Haunted House (10 percent)
Budget: $2.5 million
Gross: $40 million
This year got off to a particular inauspicious start with A Haunted House, a dismal spoof of the Paranormal Activity franchise that was rushed into theaters ahead of the latest Scary Movie, with Marlon Wayans (who starred in the first two Scary Movie movies) serving as producer, writer, and star. Critics dogged A Haunted House for its sexist and homophobic "jokes," and for being an unfunny movie in general. "If the opening gag in your R-rated movie is an extended flatulence joke, you should reconsider whether you're qualified to make such a movie," wrote Neil Genzlinger at The New York Times. Audiences turned up anyway, to the tune of a cool $40 million, and A Haunted House 2 was fast-tracked into production. It hits theaters in March 2014.
8. The Host (8 percent)
Budget: $40 million
Gross: $26.6 million
Despite being tepidly received by critics, the film adaptations of Stephenie Meyers' Twilight series tore up the box office with a story of a vampire, a werewolf, and the bland girl they're inexplicably fighting over. So it's no great surprise that Meyers' other YA novel, The Host, was deemed a hot property for the big screen. But lightning failed to strike twice; The Host, a post-apocalyptic romance about a girl whose body is inhabited by an alien life force, earned even worse reviews than the Twilight franchise, and failed to attract even a fraction of its audience. "A sci-fi writer like Philip K. Dick might have used this premise to explore notions of memory and identity," said Rafer Guzman at Newsday. "Meyer uses it to create a teen soap opera."
7. Grown Ups 2 (7 percent)
Budget: $80 million
Gross: $133.7 million
Grown Ups overcame scathing reviews in 2010 to gross a whopping $162 million domestically, which paved the way for this summer's Grown Ups 2 — a film that somehow managed to garner even worse reviews than the original. Grown Ups 2 reunited Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, and David Spade for a bottom-scraping comedy that opens with an extended sequence in which a deer urinates all over Sandler's face. "It honestly seems as if Sandler and his team descended on a random suburb, halfheartedly improvising and moving on when they got bored," said Sara Stewart at the New York Post. Maybe audiences were tired of Sandler's antics, too; Grown Ups 2 earned almost $30 million less than its predecessor at the domestic box office.
6. The Big Wedding (7 percent)
Budget: $35 million
Gross: $21.8 million
It's been a particularly bleak time at the box office for romantic comedies, and movies like The Big Wedding are doing nothing to stanch the bleeding. The film wastes the talents of a stellar ensemble cast — including Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Susan Sarandon, Topher Grace, Amanda Seyfried, and Robin Williams — with a broad, dumb, painfully contrived story about misadventures at a wedding. "Many Hollywood films are founded on privilege, but few are as open and nasty about their racism, misogyny, and homophobia," said Calum Marsh at the Village Voice. "It's a feel-good movie for people who only comfortable around people who look and act just like them."
5. Battle of the Year (4 percent)
Budget: $20 million
Gross: $8.9 million
Over the past decade, the success of the Step Up franchise has led to a host of dance film imitators like Honey and You Got Served. But even by the lowered standards of the genre, Battle of the Year — which follows an underdog American dance team at an international competition — was a flop. The presence of cultural lightning rod Chris Brown didn't do much to boost Battle of the Year's chances at the box office, though Toronto Star critic Linda Bernard's negative review did include this silver lining: "Chris Brown gets punched in the face, so it's not a total wash."
4. Scary Movie 5 (4 percent)
Budget: $20 million
Gross: $32 million
Who could have guessed that A Haunted House wouldn't be the worst-reviewed Paranormal Actvity parody of the year? Scary Movie 5 is by far the stupidest in the franchise, which has never exactly been a critical darling anyway. The list of not particularly timely targets for satire also included Insidious, The Cabin in the Woods, and Mama, plus a few non-horror movies like Inception and 127 Hours. And despite heavy press coverage, Scary Movie 5's "big get" — a brutally unfunny scene in which Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan play themselves during a one-night stand — didn't exactly pull in audiences. "A film composed almost entirely of jokes that were much funnier when you read them on Twitter years ago," said Darren Franich at Entertainment Weekly.
3. Movie 43 (4 percent)
Budget: $6 million
Gross: $8.8 million
Whatever else you can say about Movie 43, you have to give its producers credit for ingenuity. First, they convinced a staggering array of big-name actors — including Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Emma Stone, Halle Berry, Gerard Butler, Uma Thuman, and dozens more — to appear in a series of brief, unrelated sketches. Next, they strung those sketches together with a flimsy framing device and slapped on the meaningless title Movie 43. Finally, they used all those famous names to try and trick audiences into thinking that the movie was actually good. Fortunately, audiences were too smart to fall for it. "As a film critic, I've seen nearly 4,000 movies over the last 15 years," said Elizabeth Weitzman at the New York Daily News. "Right now, I can't think of one worse than Movie 43."
2. Paranoia (4 percent)
Budget: $35 million
Gross: $7.4 million
In a different era, a thriller starring Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, and Richard Dreyfuss might have been slotted for a major release date in the middle of summer. But the bland Paranoia turned out to be little more than a failed vehicle for Liam Hemsworth. It was dumped into the cinematic doldrums of mid-August: The sweet spot between summer blockbuster season and the fall awards season that's generally reserved for terrible movies. Filled with corporate espionage both predictable and dull, Paranoia proved as generic and forgettable as its title. "What it lacks is even an iota of originality," complained Steven Rea at the Philadelphia Inquirer.
1. Getaway (2 percent)
Budget: $18 million
Gross: $10.5 million
Joining Paranoia in the cinematic dumping ground of August was Getaway, a non-thrilling thriller directed by the producer behind such gems as Dungeons & Dragons and The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations. Getaway follows Brent Magna, a retired race car driver played by Ethan Hawke who is forced to complete a series of tasks for the mysterious man who kidnapped his wife. Playing like an off-brand blend of Saw and Speed, Getaway didn't even bother to give its other characters names, referring to Selena Gomez's supporting character as "The Kid" and Jon Voight's villain as "The Voice." "You've probably seen this movie before, watching a child play with his toy Hot Wheels cars after eating multiple bowls of sugary breakfast cereal," said Peter Hartlaub at the San Francisco Chronicle.
But don't feel too bad for Hawke, who also starred in Before Midnight — one of the best-reviewed movies of 2013. Which means there's a consolation for any filmmaker, writer, or actor who wound up on 2013's worst-reviewed movie list: There's always next year. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 21,456 |
Sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner have been outspoken in their praise for Caitlyn Jenner since she publicly came out as transgender, and they continued to do so whenboth took to social media to write about her on Father's Day.
Sharing childhood photos and words of love, both daughters acknowledged Caitlyn's transition in emotional Instagram posts.
Kendall, 19, shared a photo on Instagram of herself as a toddler being embraced by her dad. "My whole life this soul was my daddy and just because your appearance is different now doesn't mean you were any less of a father to me my entire life. Happy Father's Day to the person who raised me, and taught me everything I know, my hero," Kendall wrote.
my whole life this soul was my daddy and just because your appearance is different now doesn't mean you were any less of a father to me my entire life. happy Father's Day to the person who raised me, and taught me everything I know, my hero. A photo posted by Kendall Jenner (@kendalljenner) on Jun 21, 2015 at 10:06am PDT
PHOTOS: Justin Timberlake & Other Famous Parents Celebrate Father's Day
Her younger sister Kylie, 17, also posted a childhood family photo writing, "Happy Father's Day my little light of sunshine. 'You can still call my dad, Kylie. No matter what I'm always going to be your father. That's never going to change.'"
Happy Father's Day my little light of sunshine. "You can still call me dad, Kylie. No matter what I'm always going to be your father. That's never going to change." A photo posted by King Kylie (@kyliejenner) on Jun 21, 2015 at 11:14am PDT
Kylie and Kendall weren't the only ones from their famous family to send love Caitlyn's way for Father's Day. Their older half-sister Khloe Kardashian shared a photo of her late father Robert Kardashian posing with her step-father.
"Thank you Lord for blessing me with not one phenomenal father but I was lucky enough to have two," Khloe wrote.
Thank you Lord for blessing me with not one phenomenal father but I was lucky enough to have two. 💙💙💙 Happy Father's Day!!! A photo posted by Khloé (@khloekardashian) on Jun 21, 2015 at 10:13am PDT
WATCH: Caitlyn Jenner's 'Vanity Fair' Debut; The Kardashians & Jenners React
The Jenner and Kardashian siblings have been vocal in their support for Caitlyn since she gave her much-watched coming out interview with Diane Sawyer in April.
Earlier this month, Kendall toasted Caitlyn when she debuted her new name and look in Vanity Fair. "Now that's a cover," Kendall tweeted.
Yesterday, Kylie faced a far less enjoyable situation when a man approached her too closely with his cell phone camera in Beverly Hills. After the man called her "Kendall" and asked her a crude question, Kylie cooly told him to 'get the f--- out of my face."
A fan posted the video that clearly shows the fan getting much too close to Kylie, which you can see below (warning: language is NSFW):
“Get the fuck out of my face” - @kyliejenner #gokylie #whyareyoustandingsoclose #sodisrespectful #iloveherresponse A video posted by Kim Kardashian West (@ultimatekimkwest) on Jun 21, 2015 at 5:25am PDT
Through good and bad, this family sticks together! |||||
While dads around the world were enjoying Father’s Day on Sunday, Charlie Sheen was once again ranting on Twitter.
The target of the actor’s ire was his ex-wife Denise Richards, with whom he has two daughters and a lot of baggage — the two split in 2005 after Richards accused Sheen of threatening her. On Sunday, Sheen seemed to resurrect some of that bad blood by tweeting: “D Richards is a heretic washed up piglet Shame pile.”
“Happy Father’s Day!!!” he added.
The actor also tweeted “Brooke M is a sexy rok star whom I adore,” seemingly in reference to another ex-wife, Brooke Mueller. While those tweets have since been deleted, Sheen also posted an expletive-filled “open letter” about Richards, which can still be found online. In the letter, which is addressed to “the media,” Sheen calls Richards the “worst mom alive” and “a despicable charlatan.”
For her part, Richards appeared to take the high road with this tweet:
Read next: See the Throwback Picture Michelle Obama Shared on Father’s Day
Listen to the most important stories of the day ||||| open letter to
the
media:
Denise Richards
is a shake down
piece of shit doosh phace
&
worst mom alive!
a despicable charlatan who
sux ISIs
ass!!!!
(and cock)
fuk it
I'm out
©
I have paid that
Klay-Vinnik leaky diaper
over 30 Mil
and she calls me
a DbD!
see u in
court you evil
terrorist sack of landfill rash
bitch couldn't act
hot in a fire
or
wet in a pool
you should all
hear her acting lessons:
sounds like
dolphins sucking off
Coyotes!!!
this gangster
Sheenius will be
Winning!
Duh!!
really grandma?
I'm the
ARCHITECT OF THE TERM YOU LEAKY AND MALARIA
RIDDLED
PUDDLE OF SHIT STINK DECAY!!
and now I'm
out
last note;
this lab rat
is from a retarded
shit hole named
"Downers Grove"
nothing further your Honor
hash tag
go fuk Sambora some more
you
"Dood thief"
that genius called
me 1000 times to ask
"how can I get the
ass funk to be less,
ass-funky"
the only answer I had
was
to tell him to
"steep" that hedgehog
in bleach..."
twice a day
for a year
fukker whore
and hey Irv;
go fuk yourself pussy
bitch
I am the truth
you are my enemy
try me
I dubble dare ya
skinny boy face
Sir © of the Sheen
is
on
stand by
my cok http://moby.to/73nq7y
Reply · Report Post ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Paul Zimmerman via Getty Images
Father's Day seems to be a sore subject for some people. Take actor Oliver Hudson for example, who slammed his estranged biological father Bill Hudson in an Instagram post Sunday.
The 38-year-old actor shared a childhood photo of himself and his sister Kate Hudson with their father, and he wasn't subtle with the caption: "Happy abandonment day... @katehudson." Ouch.
Happy abandonment day... @katehudson A photo posted by Oliver Hudson (@theoliverhudson) on Jun 21, 2015 at 6:18pm PDT
Heavy, right? But it's hardly the first time Oliver or Kate have spoken out about their biological father. The siblings have both gone on record to say that they consider their mother Goldie Hawn's longtime partner Kurt Russell to be their real father.
"[Bill Hudson] doesn't know me from a hole in the wall. But I don't care. I have a dad [Russell]. The bottom line is, you call your kids on their f--king birthday. I'm glad I had a dad who was there on my birthday," Kate told Vanity Fair back in 2000.
Meanwhile, Bill Hudson had his say when he released his tell-all book, 2 Versions: The Other Side of Fame and Family in 2011, in which he also said some unkind things about his children.
"I love Kate, but ... She has done stuff which is just awful. She is a spoiled brat in my eyes and at the end of the day, she should meet her little sister. I should meet my grandchild and she should help her grandmother," he wrote.
Meanwhile this Father's Day, the actress made no mention of her biological father, she only celebrated Russell with a sweet photo on Instagram that she captioned, "Pa, just simply..... Thank you 🙏 Happy Fathers Day I love you to the moon and back. ✨ #HappyFathersDay"
Pa, just simply..... Thank you 🙏 Happy Fathers Day I love you to the moon and back. ✨ #HappyFathersDay A photo posted by Kate Hudson (@katehudson) on Jun 21, 2015 at 9:40am PDT
The Huffington Post has reached out to Bill Hudson for comment. | – Just because we haven't heard from Charlie Sheen in a while doesn't mean all is well in his world. Yesterday, Sheen celebrated Father's Day by tweeting, apparently about ex-wife Denise Richards—mother of his two daughters—"D Richards is a heretic washed up piglet Shame pile. Happy Father's Day!!!" That's according to Time, which notes that Sheen later deleted that tweet as well as one apparently referring to second ex-wife Brooke Mueller: "Brooke M is a sexy rok star whom I adore." But he kept online a super vulgar open letter he wrote to Richards that calls her, among other things, a "doosh phace." Richards' Father's Day tweet to Sheen, for comparison: "Happy Dad's Day! @charliesheen have a great trip in Mexico! Kids were disappointed u weren't here for it- Hey we'll celebrate when u r back!" Another celebrity who took to social media to rant on Father's Day: Oliver Hudson. The actor, son of Goldie Hawn and brother of Kate Hudson, shared a picture on Instagram of himself and his famous sis, as children, with their dad, Bill Hudson. But the caption wasn't exactly sweet: "Happy abandonment day..." The Huffington Post reports that both Kate and Oliver have spoken out about their estranged biological father before, with Kate calling Hawn's longtime partner, Kurt Russell, her real dad. She Instagrammed a photo of herself and Russell yesterday with the caption, "Pa, just simply..... Thank you. Happy Fathers Day I love you to the moon and back." (Here's what two of Caitlyn Jenner's kids Instagrammed on Father's Day.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner have been outspoken in their praise for Caitlyn Jenner since she publicly came out as transgender, and they continued to do so whenboth took to social media to write about her on Father's Day.
Sharing childhood photos and words of love, both daughters acknowledged Caitlyn's transition in emotional Instagram posts.
Kendall, 19, shared a photo on Instagram of herself as a toddler being embraced by her dad. "My whole life this soul was my daddy and just because your appearance is different now doesn't mean you were any less of a father to me my entire life. Happy Father's Day to the person who raised me, and taught me everything I know, my hero," Kendall wrote.
my whole life this soul was my daddy and just because your appearance is different now doesn't mean you were any less of a father to me my entire life. happy Father's Day to the person who raised me, and taught me everything I know, my hero. A photo posted by Kendall Jenner (@kendalljenner) on Jun 21, 2015 at 10:06am PDT
PHOTOS: Justin Timberlake & Other Famous Parents Celebrate Father's Day
Her younger sister Kylie, 17, also posted a childhood family photo writing, "Happy Father's Day my little light of sunshine. 'You can still call my dad, Kylie. No matter what I'm always going to be your father. That's never going to change.'"
Happy Father's Day my little light of sunshine. "You can still call me dad, Kylie. No matter what I'm always going to be your father. That's never going to change." A photo posted by King Kylie (@kyliejenner) on Jun 21, 2015 at 11:14am PDT
Kylie and Kendall weren't the only ones from their famous family to send love Caitlyn's way for Father's Day. Their older half-sister Khloe Kardashian shared a photo of her late father Robert Kardashian posing with her step-father.
"Thank you Lord for blessing me with not one phenomenal father but I was lucky enough to have two," Khloe wrote.
Thank you Lord for blessing me with not one phenomenal father but I was lucky enough to have two. 💙💙💙 Happy Father's Day!!! A photo posted by Khloé (@khloekardashian) on Jun 21, 2015 at 10:13am PDT
WATCH: Caitlyn Jenner's 'Vanity Fair' Debut; The Kardashians & Jenners React
The Jenner and Kardashian siblings have been vocal in their support for Caitlyn since she gave her much-watched coming out interview with Diane Sawyer in April.
Earlier this month, Kendall toasted Caitlyn when she debuted her new name and look in Vanity Fair. "Now that's a cover," Kendall tweeted.
Yesterday, Kylie faced a far less enjoyable situation when a man approached her too closely with his cell phone camera in Beverly Hills. After the man called her "Kendall" and asked her a crude question, Kylie cooly told him to 'get the f--- out of my face."
A fan posted the video that clearly shows the fan getting much too close to Kylie, which you can see below (warning: language is NSFW):
“Get the fuck out of my face” - @kyliejenner #gokylie #whyareyoustandingsoclose #sodisrespectful #iloveherresponse A video posted by Kim Kardashian West (@ultimatekimkwest) on Jun 21, 2015 at 5:25am PDT
Through good and bad, this family sticks together! |||||
While dads around the world were enjoying Father’s Day on Sunday, Charlie Sheen was once again ranting on Twitter.
The target of the actor’s ire was his ex-wife Denise Richards, with whom he has two daughters and a lot of baggage — the two split in 2005 after Richards accused Sheen of threatening her. On Sunday, Sheen seemed to resurrect some of that bad blood by tweeting: “D Richards is a heretic washed up piglet Shame pile.”
“Happy Father’s Day!!!” he added.
The actor also tweeted “Brooke M is a sexy rok star whom I adore,” seemingly in reference to another ex-wife, Brooke Mueller. While those tweets have since been deleted, Sheen also posted an expletive-filled “open letter” about Richards, which can still be found online. In the letter, which is addressed to “the media,” Sheen calls Richards the “worst mom alive” and “a despicable charlatan.”
For her part, Richards appeared to take the high road with this tweet:
Read next: See the Throwback Picture Michelle Obama Shared on Father’s Day
Listen to the most important stories of the day ||||| open letter to
the
media:
Denise Richards
is a shake down
piece of shit doosh phace
&
worst mom alive!
a despicable charlatan who
sux ISIs
ass!!!!
(and cock)
fuk it
I'm out
©
I have paid that
Klay-Vinnik leaky diaper
over 30 Mil
and she calls me
a DbD!
see u in
court you evil
terrorist sack of landfill rash
bitch couldn't act
hot in a fire
or
wet in a pool
you should all
hear her acting lessons:
sounds like
dolphins sucking off
Coyotes!!!
this gangster
Sheenius will be
Winning!
Duh!!
really grandma?
I'm the
ARCHITECT OF THE TERM YOU LEAKY AND MALARIA
RIDDLED
PUDDLE OF SHIT STINK DECAY!!
and now I'm
out
last note;
this lab rat
is from a retarded
shit hole named
"Downers Grove"
nothing further your Honor
hash tag
go fuk Sambora some more
you
"Dood thief"
that genius called
me 1000 times to ask
"how can I get the
ass funk to be less,
ass-funky"
the only answer I had
was
to tell him to
"steep" that hedgehog
in bleach..."
twice a day
for a year
fukker whore
and hey Irv;
go fuk yourself pussy
bitch
I am the truth
you are my enemy
try me
I dubble dare ya
skinny boy face
Sir © of the Sheen
is
on
stand by
my cok http://moby.to/73nq7y
Reply · Report Post ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Paul Zimmerman via Getty Images
Father's Day seems to be a sore subject for some people. Take actor Oliver Hudson for example, who slammed his estranged biological father Bill Hudson in an Instagram post Sunday.
The 38-year-old actor shared a childhood photo of himself and his sister Kate Hudson with their father, and he wasn't subtle with the caption: "Happy abandonment day... @katehudson." Ouch.
Happy abandonment day... @katehudson A photo posted by Oliver Hudson (@theoliverhudson) on Jun 21, 2015 at 6:18pm PDT
Heavy, right? But it's hardly the first time Oliver or Kate have spoken out about their biological father. The siblings have both gone on record to say that they consider their mother Goldie Hawn's longtime partner Kurt Russell to be their real father.
"[Bill Hudson] doesn't know me from a hole in the wall. But I don't care. I have a dad [Russell]. The bottom line is, you call your kids on their f--king birthday. I'm glad I had a dad who was there on my birthday," Kate told Vanity Fair back in 2000.
Meanwhile, Bill Hudson had his say when he released his tell-all book, 2 Versions: The Other Side of Fame and Family in 2011, in which he also said some unkind things about his children.
"I love Kate, but ... She has done stuff which is just awful. She is a spoiled brat in my eyes and at the end of the day, she should meet her little sister. I should meet my grandchild and she should help her grandmother," he wrote.
Meanwhile this Father's Day, the actress made no mention of her biological father, she only celebrated Russell with a sweet photo on Instagram that she captioned, "Pa, just simply..... Thank you 🙏 Happy Fathers Day I love you to the moon and back. ✨ #HappyFathersDay"
Pa, just simply..... Thank you 🙏 Happy Fathers Day I love you to the moon and back. ✨ #HappyFathersDay A photo posted by Kate Hudson (@katehudson) on Jun 21, 2015 at 9:40am PDT
The Huffington Post has reached out to Bill Hudson for comment. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 44,536 |
Explore raw data about the World Bank's finances - slice and dice datasets; visualize data; share it with other site users or through social networks; or take it home with a mobile app. ||||| Which Burns More Kilowatt-Hours: America's Christmas Lights Or Tanzania?
Enlarge this image toggle caption Patrick Semansky/AP Patrick Semansky/AP
A headline for a chart caught our eye this week: "US Holiday Lights Use More Electricity than El Salvador Does In a Year."
According to the chart, America burns 6.63 billion kilowatt-hours to shine its end-of-year holiday lights. By comparison, annual kilowatt-hours in the developing world are paltry. In an entire year, El Salvador uses 5.35 billion kilowatt-hours. Ethiopia is at 5.30 billion, Tanzania at 4.8 billion, Nepal at 3.28 billion and Cambodia at 3.06 billion. (Those numbers come from the World Bank.)
Todd Moss and his colleague Priscilla Agyapong put together the graphic. He's a fellow at the Center for Global Development; energy is one of his topics.
I spoke to him to learn more about his lights motif.
Are you the Grinch who wants to steal holiday lights?
No, I think Christmas lights are a good thing. A beautiful thing! I'm not trying to be anti-Christmas at all.
Then why do this comparison?
The point is twofold. One: just to show the tremendous difference in energy use between rich countries and poor countries.
What's the second point?
Some organizations have argued that poor countries should only use renewable energy sources in the future because of global concerns. I have no doubt that sub-Saharan countries, for example, are going to have a very heavy use of renewable energy technologies. But these countries have energy needs that go way beyond what current renewable technologies can deliver. Like every country of the world, poor countries are going to pursue an all-of-the-above strategy, including a mix of hydro, wind, solar, natural gas and geothermal.
Meanwhile, the U.S. isn't exactly a world leader in renewable energy.
I get an annual notice from Pepco, the power company in Washington, D.C., and Maryland, where I live. The fuel mix for D.C. and Maryland is 95.9 percent from coal, gas and nuclear; 4 percent renewable — including 2 percent wind, 0.1 percent solar.
It's pretty rich for me to sit in Washington, D.C., and tell Ghana they can't build one natural gas power plant.
The numbers for the U.S. are a little old — they're 2007 data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Does that concern you?
Obviously, energy efficiency is improving, but the average size of homes is going up and incomes go up, and those things drive how much people spend on house decorations. I would be surprised if the number in 2015 was significantly different.
What's life like in countries that don't have sufficient and reliable electricity?
The obvious things: You don't have lights and a refrigerator, or an air conditioner, but it also means you don't have steady, reliable, affordable electricity to power factories, to help grow jobs.
A country can't become wealthy or even middle class without consuming a lot more energy. All poor countries need a lot more energy. How do we provide that in a way that's smart for the planet? If we force sub-Saharan Africa to use renewables only we are forcing them to remain poor.
I imagine that poor countries use so little energy compared with the West that even if they do use more nonrenewable energy in the future, the impact on the environment wouldn't be huge.
Africa's energy mix has close to zero effect on global carbon emissions. The real action is in rich countries and China.
So what might we be thinking this season when we admire holiday lights?
Lights are something we take for granted, but a lot of countries around the world don't have enough electricity to run a refrigerator or create jobs. And we should be humble in the kind of advice we give countries about how they should develop energy sources. ||||| In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, a street performer stands at the Usaquen square, lit for the annual Christmas display, in Bogota, Colombia. This year’s El Nino weather phenomenon is claiming an unexpected... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, the Colpatria Tower is covered with Christmas lights in Bogota, Colombia. With reservoir levels already low, Colombia’s government recently raised electricity rates to boost... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, a family walks in front a house covered with Christmas lights in Bogota, Colombia. This year’s El Nino weather phenomenon is claiming an unexpected casualty in Colombia: Christmas... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, the Bogota Cathedral is covered with lights for the Christmas season in Bogota, Colombia. An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will empty reservoirs that are... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. The blow to Colombia’s holiday tradition is poignant given that El Nino is thought to be a reference to the baby... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. Medellin, the country’s second-largest city, has reduced by an hour a day its spectacular light display that covers... (Associated Press)
An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will empty reservoirs that are used to generate a good part of the South American country's electricity. Already this year, 238 cities across Colombia have rationed electricity.
In a nationwide address, President Juan Manuel Santos urged restraint in water use, while some officials went even further by encouraging Colombians to take 30-second showers.
But the most controversial energy-saving effort has been the scaling back of Christmas light displays that are a favorite for thousands of families in this deeply Roman Catholic country.
Santos' government decided not to decorate public buildings with lights at all, and several shopping malls heeded the government's call to reduce their displays.
Miguel Angel Abril, a doorman in the capital's Usaquen tourist zone where people have traditionally flocked to see the lights in its main park, says the cutback has lessened holiday cheer even though there are still dazzling displays.
"Christmas lights are something typical in Bogota, but now they are turned off and the neighborhood is sadder. Less people come," he said.
Medellin, the country's second-largest city, has reduced by an hour a day its spectacular light display that covers churches, parks and even the city's namesake river. The dimming of the 32 million bulbs used in the display amounts to an energy savings of 15 percent, or what the entire metropolitan area's 4 million people normally consume in the same period of time, said Esteban Duque, the manager of the celebration.
But Duque rejected a proposal to completely end the display, which attracts 50,000 tourists to Medellin each year. He said that would be even more damaging than the strain placed on the power grid.
"It's worse off not having the lights because it's something that generates 2,000 jobs that families depend on," he said.
The blow to Colombia's holiday tradition is poignant given that El Nino is thought to be a reference to the baby Jesus — a name given to the climatic phenomenon long ago by South Americans who noted that it seemed to arrive around Christmas time.
El Nino is caused by the warming of waters in the Pacific Ocean that causes changes in rainfall patterns. While leading to heavy flooding in the southern part of the hemisphere, rainfall since August in northern parts of South America like Colombia, Venezuela and parts of Brazil has averaged 50 percent or less of normal levels, according to AccuWeather.com.
With reservoir levels already low, Colombia's government recently raised electricity rates to boost production of fuel-based power plants and prevent blackouts like those that spurred deep economic losses in 1992 and 1993, the last time El Nino was so intense.
Meteorologists are forecasting the drought will worsen. | – America's Christmas lights, even those that don't rival the Griswolds', guzzle a staggering amount of electricity when compared to power use overall in other countries, according to researchers at the Center for Global Development. The festive lights use around 6.6 billion kilowatt-hours a year, according to the CGD—more than the total annual electricity consumption of countries like El Salvador, Cambodia, or Ethiopia, which has a population of around 97 million. The researchers, who used data from the World Bank and a 2008 US Energy Department study, say Christmas lights only account for 0.2% of America's electricity usage, but the power is still enough to run 14 million refrigerators. Todd Moss, the COO of CGD, stresses he isn't a Grinch who wants to get rid of festive lights. "I think Christmas lights are a good thing," he tells NPR. "A beautiful thing! I'm not trying to be anti-Christmas at all." He says the point of the research is to highlight the huge differences in energy consumption worldwide—and the hypocrisy of wealthy countries telling nations like Ethiopia that they should only develop renewable energy sources. In Colombia, meanwhile, a severe drought has hit hydropower generation hard, causing widespread electricity rationing and forcing many cities to scale back Christmas lights, the AP reports. (American cities get up to 50% brighter during the holidays, and it's visible from space.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Explore raw data about the World Bank's finances - slice and dice datasets; visualize data; share it with other site users or through social networks; or take it home with a mobile app. ||||| Which Burns More Kilowatt-Hours: America's Christmas Lights Or Tanzania?
Enlarge this image toggle caption Patrick Semansky/AP Patrick Semansky/AP
A headline for a chart caught our eye this week: "US Holiday Lights Use More Electricity than El Salvador Does In a Year."
According to the chart, America burns 6.63 billion kilowatt-hours to shine its end-of-year holiday lights. By comparison, annual kilowatt-hours in the developing world are paltry. In an entire year, El Salvador uses 5.35 billion kilowatt-hours. Ethiopia is at 5.30 billion, Tanzania at 4.8 billion, Nepal at 3.28 billion and Cambodia at 3.06 billion. (Those numbers come from the World Bank.)
Todd Moss and his colleague Priscilla Agyapong put together the graphic. He's a fellow at the Center for Global Development; energy is one of his topics.
I spoke to him to learn more about his lights motif.
Are you the Grinch who wants to steal holiday lights?
No, I think Christmas lights are a good thing. A beautiful thing! I'm not trying to be anti-Christmas at all.
Then why do this comparison?
The point is twofold. One: just to show the tremendous difference in energy use between rich countries and poor countries.
What's the second point?
Some organizations have argued that poor countries should only use renewable energy sources in the future because of global concerns. I have no doubt that sub-Saharan countries, for example, are going to have a very heavy use of renewable energy technologies. But these countries have energy needs that go way beyond what current renewable technologies can deliver. Like every country of the world, poor countries are going to pursue an all-of-the-above strategy, including a mix of hydro, wind, solar, natural gas and geothermal.
Meanwhile, the U.S. isn't exactly a world leader in renewable energy.
I get an annual notice from Pepco, the power company in Washington, D.C., and Maryland, where I live. The fuel mix for D.C. and Maryland is 95.9 percent from coal, gas and nuclear; 4 percent renewable — including 2 percent wind, 0.1 percent solar.
It's pretty rich for me to sit in Washington, D.C., and tell Ghana they can't build one natural gas power plant.
The numbers for the U.S. are a little old — they're 2007 data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Does that concern you?
Obviously, energy efficiency is improving, but the average size of homes is going up and incomes go up, and those things drive how much people spend on house decorations. I would be surprised if the number in 2015 was significantly different.
What's life like in countries that don't have sufficient and reliable electricity?
The obvious things: You don't have lights and a refrigerator, or an air conditioner, but it also means you don't have steady, reliable, affordable electricity to power factories, to help grow jobs.
A country can't become wealthy or even middle class without consuming a lot more energy. All poor countries need a lot more energy. How do we provide that in a way that's smart for the planet? If we force sub-Saharan Africa to use renewables only we are forcing them to remain poor.
I imagine that poor countries use so little energy compared with the West that even if they do use more nonrenewable energy in the future, the impact on the environment wouldn't be huge.
Africa's energy mix has close to zero effect on global carbon emissions. The real action is in rich countries and China.
So what might we be thinking this season when we admire holiday lights?
Lights are something we take for granted, but a lot of countries around the world don't have enough electricity to run a refrigerator or create jobs. And we should be humble in the kind of advice we give countries about how they should develop energy sources. ||||| In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, a street performer stands at the Usaquen square, lit for the annual Christmas display, in Bogota, Colombia. This year’s El Nino weather phenomenon is claiming an unexpected... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, the Colpatria Tower is covered with Christmas lights in Bogota, Colombia. With reservoir levels already low, Colombia’s government recently raised electricity rates to boost... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, a family walks in front a house covered with Christmas lights in Bogota, Colombia. This year’s El Nino weather phenomenon is claiming an unexpected casualty in Colombia: Christmas... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, the Bogota Cathedral is covered with lights for the Christmas season in Bogota, Colombia. An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will empty reservoirs that are... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. The blow to Colombia’s holiday tradition is poignant given that El Nino is thought to be a reference to the baby... (Associated Press)
In this Dec. 8, 2015 photo, Christmas lights adorn the Usaquen park in Bogota, Colombia. Medellin, the country’s second-largest city, has reduced by an hour a day its spectacular light display that covers... (Associated Press)
An exceptionally strong El Nino has created a severe drought that officials fear will empty reservoirs that are used to generate a good part of the South American country's electricity. Already this year, 238 cities across Colombia have rationed electricity.
In a nationwide address, President Juan Manuel Santos urged restraint in water use, while some officials went even further by encouraging Colombians to take 30-second showers.
But the most controversial energy-saving effort has been the scaling back of Christmas light displays that are a favorite for thousands of families in this deeply Roman Catholic country.
Santos' government decided not to decorate public buildings with lights at all, and several shopping malls heeded the government's call to reduce their displays.
Miguel Angel Abril, a doorman in the capital's Usaquen tourist zone where people have traditionally flocked to see the lights in its main park, says the cutback has lessened holiday cheer even though there are still dazzling displays.
"Christmas lights are something typical in Bogota, but now they are turned off and the neighborhood is sadder. Less people come," he said.
Medellin, the country's second-largest city, has reduced by an hour a day its spectacular light display that covers churches, parks and even the city's namesake river. The dimming of the 32 million bulbs used in the display amounts to an energy savings of 15 percent, or what the entire metropolitan area's 4 million people normally consume in the same period of time, said Esteban Duque, the manager of the celebration.
But Duque rejected a proposal to completely end the display, which attracts 50,000 tourists to Medellin each year. He said that would be even more damaging than the strain placed on the power grid.
"It's worse off not having the lights because it's something that generates 2,000 jobs that families depend on," he said.
The blow to Colombia's holiday tradition is poignant given that El Nino is thought to be a reference to the baby Jesus — a name given to the climatic phenomenon long ago by South Americans who noted that it seemed to arrive around Christmas time.
El Nino is caused by the warming of waters in the Pacific Ocean that causes changes in rainfall patterns. While leading to heavy flooding in the southern part of the hemisphere, rainfall since August in northern parts of South America like Colombia, Venezuela and parts of Brazil has averaged 50 percent or less of normal levels, according to AccuWeather.com.
With reservoir levels already low, Colombia's government recently raised electricity rates to boost production of fuel-based power plants and prevent blackouts like those that spurred deep economic losses in 1992 and 1993, the last time El Nino was so intense.
Meteorologists are forecasting the drought will worsen. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 4,168 |
Disney Star Orlando Brown Cops Say Audio Proves Actor Made Death Threats
Orlando Brown 911 Call -- Disney Star Investigated for Criminal Threats (Audio)
EXCLUSIVE
Disney staris in the crosshairs of prosecutors after an audiotape surfaced in which he allegedly threatens to kill a woman, her daughter and her mom.Police were called to the woman's North Hollywood apartment Monday just after midnight. The woman claimed the "That's so Raven" star was going nuts outside. Neighbors also called 911, one of whom claimed Brown had a weapon.TMZ has obtained a copy of the audio -- which police have forwarded to the L.A. City Attorney -- in which a man threatens, "I'll kill you, your mama, your daughter, everybody."Brown's rep tells TMZ the actor insists he's not the one on the audio, but cops disagree. Our police sources say they believe it is indeed Brown and they've forwarded the case to the City Attorney.Brown says the woman is a stalker who has been "excessively" texting him, and he went to her apartment to explain to her boyfriend nothing was going on between them.Brown has had his share of legal troubles . He served jail time for failing to complete his alcohol ed class in connection with a DUI. | – Has yet another Disney star fallen into hot water? TMZ reports Orlando Brown, who appeared on That's So Raven from 2003 to 2007, allegedly threatened to kill a woman, her daughter, and her mom on Monday. In a 911 recording, a male voice—allegedly that of Brown, standing outside the woman's North Hollywood apartment just after midnight—can be heard yelling, "I'll kill you, your mama, your daughter, everybody." (You can give the extremely NSFW call a listen here.) The woman and some of her neighbors called police, including one neighbor who said Brown was carrying a weapon. On the call, the unidentified woman says Brown is an acquaintance who made "passes" at her, which she refused, "and now he's upset." She also notes the actor, who has a previous DUI arrest, sounds "intoxicated." Brown's rep, however, says Brown is not the voice on the call, though he admits the actor did go to her apartment. The rep's story is that the woman is a stalker who has been "excessively" texting Brown, and he only went to her place to tell her boyfriend their relationship was an innocent one. Cops apparently aren't buying it. Sources tell TMZ the case has now been forwarded to the city attorney. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Disney Star Orlando Brown Cops Say Audio Proves Actor Made Death Threats
Orlando Brown 911 Call -- Disney Star Investigated for Criminal Threats (Audio)
EXCLUSIVE
Disney staris in the crosshairs of prosecutors after an audiotape surfaced in which he allegedly threatens to kill a woman, her daughter and her mom.Police were called to the woman's North Hollywood apartment Monday just after midnight. The woman claimed the "That's so Raven" star was going nuts outside. Neighbors also called 911, one of whom claimed Brown had a weapon.TMZ has obtained a copy of the audio -- which police have forwarded to the L.A. City Attorney -- in which a man threatens, "I'll kill you, your mama, your daughter, everybody."Brown's rep tells TMZ the actor insists he's not the one on the audio, but cops disagree. Our police sources say they believe it is indeed Brown and they've forwarded the case to the City Attorney.Brown says the woman is a stalker who has been "excessively" texting him, and he went to her apartment to explain to her boyfriend nothing was going on between them.Brown has had his share of legal troubles . He served jail time for failing to complete his alcohol ed class in connection with a DUI. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 21,255 |
A dog rescue in Wells, Maine, ended in sweet "thank you kisses."
The Wells Maine police posted pictures to Facebook depicting the rescue of a white and brown dog that had gotten out onto the roof of a house through an upstairs window.
Advertisement
Images show the dog pacing back and forth on the roof, looking unsure of where to go. A concerned passerby called to help get the poor pup down and stood by to make sure nothing happened to him while they were on the way.
"Thank you kisses to Captain Nawfel! It's pawsatively love! Is there anything more stunning than an animal expressing gratitude?!" the department captioned the final photo, which showed the dog licking the face of his rescuer. "Thank you to all that called and helped save him."
AlertMe ||||| First responders in Wells came to the rescue after a dog somehow managed to get trapped on a roof.
It happened this weekend. Police said they received multiple calls from people who saw the dog on the roof.
Advertisement
A firefighter used a ladder to get to the dog -- and received a kiss as a thank you.
The dog exited a second-story window onto the roof below.
AlertMe | – It's important to say thanks (or not), and a photo of a dog doing just that in Maine is going viral, reports WISN. It seems that the dog got out of a second-story window and became stranded on his home's roof, and concerned citizens called authorities, explains an online post from police in Wells, Maine. (It looks like the window partially shut behind the dog.) A firefighter climbed up on the roof with a ladder to get the dog to safety, for which he received a kiss in return, per WMTW. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.A dog rescue in Wells, Maine, ended in sweet "thank you kisses."
The Wells Maine police posted pictures to Facebook depicting the rescue of a white and brown dog that had gotten out onto the roof of a house through an upstairs window.
Advertisement
Images show the dog pacing back and forth on the roof, looking unsure of where to go. A concerned passerby called to help get the poor pup down and stood by to make sure nothing happened to him while they were on the way.
"Thank you kisses to Captain Nawfel! It's pawsatively love! Is there anything more stunning than an animal expressing gratitude?!" the department captioned the final photo, which showed the dog licking the face of his rescuer. "Thank you to all that called and helped save him."
AlertMe ||||| First responders in Wells came to the rescue after a dog somehow managed to get trapped on a roof.
It happened this weekend. Police said they received multiple calls from people who saw the dog on the roof.
Advertisement
A firefighter used a ladder to get to the dog -- and received a kiss as a thank you.
The dog exited a second-story window onto the roof below.
AlertMe | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 29,418 |
China has issued a new rule that will make life easier for the tens of thousands of children that grow up in its orphanages. Up until now, it was common practice for orphanages to give their children surnames either based on the place that they were abandoned or to give them generic names like "Guo" or "Dang," which indicated the were of the "State" or "Party." These names made it easy for people to guess they were orphans—which could lead to a life of feeling marginalized. A child welfare worker told the state newspaper China Daily, "We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents." Now, the new naming practice will be to choose from a list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames. It's nice that at least future orphans won't have to worry about being stigmatized when they grow up—because on paper they'll be just like every other Zhào, Chén, and Yáng.
China to ban names that signal 'orphan' status [MSNBC] ||||| An orphanage in Wuhu, in eastern China's Anhui province in Aug. 2009.
Institutions in China that care for orphans will no longer be allowed to name children in their care in ways that signal their parentless status, a government ministry said this week, according to a report in the state-controlled China Daily.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs plans to issue new regulations set of rules to prohibit orphanages from using naming conventions that make it easy for other Chinese speakers to guess that an individual is an orphan—leading to lifelong stigma.
The article explains that some institutions named children in their care for where they were abandoned. Others gave children the surname “Guo” or “Dang”— to indicate the child was in care of the “State” or “Party.”
"We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents," Chen Luann, a children's welfare worker told the newspaper.
The new regulations will require that orphans be given surnames chosen from among the 100 most common Chinese family names.
According to Zhang Hiring, with a nongovernmental group aimed at helping the country’s orphans, it was a step in the right direction: "This move shows the government is paying more attention to these children's psychological needs, which helps their development."
There are about 100,000 orphans living in about 900 orphanages and children’s homes, the article said, citing government statistics.
More from msnbc.com and NBC News:
Follow Kari Huus on Facebook ||||| Chinese Family Names
According to the Xinhua Agency (New China Agency), the latest research supported by the National Natural Science Fund Committee gave the new sequence of “Chinese Family Names". Although the three names Li, Wang, Zhang declined in the proportion of the total population, they still take the place of the top 3.
The total population of each of these three names is not exceeding 100 million
This survey was accomplished during two years by Mr YUAN Yida , a researcher of the Institute of Chinese Academy of genetic and developmental biology. Their survey involved 1,110 counties and cities of 296 million people, received 4,100 Chinese Family names. Through the county, region and province population statistics, resulting in the classification of the New Chinese Family Names. The survey showed that among the 4,100 names, the top three are Li, Wang, Zhang, which accounted for 7.4%, 7.2% and 6.8% of China's total population, the total population of each of the three names is less than 100 million; there are 18 names accounted for 1% of China's total population, 129 names accounted for 0.1% of the population and occupied 87% of the total population.
The population of the tree names declined compared with 20 years ago
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population. “Li, as the largest name, was declined from 7.9% to 7.4% currently, because there were only 570,000 original samples, but now they reached nearly 3 million.†YUAN Yida said that compared with 20 years ago, the sample of this survey is larger than before, involved nearly 40% counties of China, in almost all areas that the Chinese characters are used. The results are closer to the Chinese names real situation. Especially for the study of Chinese Y chromosome diversity, disease distribution, the origin of the nationality Han, and flow disciplines, the distribution data and areas of the top 300 common Chinese names would provide new clues and information which have the highest valuation in research and practical use.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
So far, there are 23,000 names are collected
China was the first country of the world who uses family name, about 5000 years ago; the name has been designated as hereditary, passed through patriarchal way. 20 years ago, it was the first time of CAS natural science approach to the study of Chinese surnames distribution, they announced the classification of 100 common surnames, and this research brings the high concern of both the interior and overseas Chinese.
The Chinese scientists will continue to publish the data and distribution of the top 300 Chinese names and re-publish "the Great Chinese surnames dictionary," which will include over 23,000 names collected in order to advance the development of the name and genealogy culture industries.
Background
20 years ago, 270 million people named Zhang Yuan Wang National experts showed the "Family Names “in census data of 1986. These three clans are the top three.
On May 2, 1987, the studies statistical results of YUAN Yida and Institute CAS of genetic and biology development: the largest three names are Li, Wang, Zhang, which accounted for 7.9% , 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population, the total population of these three names are 270 million, that are the largest three clans groups of world. And the name which Chinese people have used had reached 22,000. According to the introduction of YUAN Yida , the family name research is a science. And Chinese names are the best research target in name study. Chinese surnames reflects the process of Chinese society’s evolution in several thousands years.
There is no one country and a nation in the world that has a long history like China, with 5,000 years continuous history. Such a civilization chain is the most consistent with the laws of genetics. In addition, the Chinese people have a relatively strong in clan concepts, so the persons who have the same name, share the same blood relations often live together. "This is why in the map of China; there is so many village of Zhang's and Villages of Li's,YUAN Yida said.
In 1983, there is a national census in China. The relevant sample data of census are counted in 1986. According to the related information and data, YUAN Yida started the statistical research on family names. In1987, the statistics of YUAN Yida output 12,000 to 13,000 Chinese names. In the same year, the news of Chinese Academy of Sciences doeing the research on family name was disseminated widely by some news media. On May 2, 1987, YUAN Yida published the top 100 names in this statistics, which to be known as "New 100 Chinese Family Names." In "New Family Names", "Li, Wang, Zhang," are the top three. In 2002, a book who has more than 50 million words with 200 charts of name's distribution "Chinese surnames: genetic and demographic groups," announced the research work of 10 years being completed. In the book, after years of collecting and studies of national names YUAN Yida indicated that the biggest three names are Li, Wang, and Zhang.
YUAN Yida said that it’s not easy for these common surnames to continue to today. For example in the dynasty Yuan, to assure the dominion of Yuan, it had been recommended to the emperor Yuan Shun to kill all the people whose names were in the top five. Fortunately the Emperor hesitated before deciding not to do any action, so these people can survive, thus enabling the transmission of the family name transmit to this day.
According to the report of “The evening paper of Guangzhou†| – No longer will "state" or "party" be the last name of children in Chinese orphanages, Jezebel reports via MSNBC. Until now, orphanages commonly gave kids those generic surnames—which enabled people to peg them as orphans for life and leave them feeling marginalized. So China issued the rule last week, echoing the comment of a child welfare worker in a state newspaper: "We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents." Now orphanages are asked to pick from among the 100 most typical Chinese surnames. Says a Chinese NGO worker of the nation's tens of thousands of orphans: "This move shows the government is paying more attention to these children's psychological needs, which helps their development." Which names are most common? Asia-Home.com runs down the top 100. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.China has issued a new rule that will make life easier for the tens of thousands of children that grow up in its orphanages. Up until now, it was common practice for orphanages to give their children surnames either based on the place that they were abandoned or to give them generic names like "Guo" or "Dang," which indicated the were of the "State" or "Party." These names made it easy for people to guess they were orphans—which could lead to a life of feeling marginalized. A child welfare worker told the state newspaper China Daily, "We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents." Now, the new naming practice will be to choose from a list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames. It's nice that at least future orphans won't have to worry about being stigmatized when they grow up—because on paper they'll be just like every other Zhào, Chén, and Yáng.
China to ban names that signal 'orphan' status [MSNBC] ||||| An orphanage in Wuhu, in eastern China's Anhui province in Aug. 2009.
Institutions in China that care for orphans will no longer be allowed to name children in their care in ways that signal their parentless status, a government ministry said this week, according to a report in the state-controlled China Daily.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs plans to issue new regulations set of rules to prohibit orphanages from using naming conventions that make it easy for other Chinese speakers to guess that an individual is an orphan—leading to lifelong stigma.
The article explains that some institutions named children in their care for where they were abandoned. Others gave children the surname “Guo” or “Dang”— to indicate the child was in care of the “State” or “Party.”
"We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents," Chen Luann, a children's welfare worker told the newspaper.
The new regulations will require that orphans be given surnames chosen from among the 100 most common Chinese family names.
According to Zhang Hiring, with a nongovernmental group aimed at helping the country’s orphans, it was a step in the right direction: "This move shows the government is paying more attention to these children's psychological needs, which helps their development."
There are about 100,000 orphans living in about 900 orphanages and children’s homes, the article said, citing government statistics.
More from msnbc.com and NBC News:
Follow Kari Huus on Facebook ||||| Chinese Family Names
According to the Xinhua Agency (New China Agency), the latest research supported by the National Natural Science Fund Committee gave the new sequence of “Chinese Family Names". Although the three names Li, Wang, Zhang declined in the proportion of the total population, they still take the place of the top 3.
The total population of each of these three names is not exceeding 100 million
This survey was accomplished during two years by Mr YUAN Yida , a researcher of the Institute of Chinese Academy of genetic and developmental biology. Their survey involved 1,110 counties and cities of 296 million people, received 4,100 Chinese Family names. Through the county, region and province population statistics, resulting in the classification of the New Chinese Family Names. The survey showed that among the 4,100 names, the top three are Li, Wang, Zhang, which accounted for 7.4%, 7.2% and 6.8% of China's total population, the total population of each of the three names is less than 100 million; there are 18 names accounted for 1% of China's total population, 129 names accounted for 0.1% of the population and occupied 87% of the total population.
The population of the tree names declined compared with 20 years ago
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population. “Li, as the largest name, was declined from 7.9% to 7.4% currently, because there were only 570,000 original samples, but now they reached nearly 3 million.†YUAN Yida said that compared with 20 years ago, the sample of this survey is larger than before, involved nearly 40% counties of China, in almost all areas that the Chinese characters are used. The results are closer to the Chinese names real situation. Especially for the study of Chinese Y chromosome diversity, disease distribution, the origin of the nationality Han, and flow disciplines, the distribution data and areas of the top 300 common Chinese names would provide new clues and information which have the highest valuation in research and practical use.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
YUAN Yida showed, according to the data published in1987, that Li, Wang, and Zhang are the largest three names of China, which accounted for 7.9%, 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population.
So far, there are 23,000 names are collected
China was the first country of the world who uses family name, about 5000 years ago; the name has been designated as hereditary, passed through patriarchal way. 20 years ago, it was the first time of CAS natural science approach to the study of Chinese surnames distribution, they announced the classification of 100 common surnames, and this research brings the high concern of both the interior and overseas Chinese.
The Chinese scientists will continue to publish the data and distribution of the top 300 Chinese names and re-publish "the Great Chinese surnames dictionary," which will include over 23,000 names collected in order to advance the development of the name and genealogy culture industries.
Background
20 years ago, 270 million people named Zhang Yuan Wang National experts showed the "Family Names “in census data of 1986. These three clans are the top three.
On May 2, 1987, the studies statistical results of YUAN Yida and Institute CAS of genetic and biology development: the largest three names are Li, Wang, Zhang, which accounted for 7.9% , 7.4% and 7.1% of the total population, the total population of these three names are 270 million, that are the largest three clans groups of world. And the name which Chinese people have used had reached 22,000. According to the introduction of YUAN Yida , the family name research is a science. And Chinese names are the best research target in name study. Chinese surnames reflects the process of Chinese society’s evolution in several thousands years.
There is no one country and a nation in the world that has a long history like China, with 5,000 years continuous history. Such a civilization chain is the most consistent with the laws of genetics. In addition, the Chinese people have a relatively strong in clan concepts, so the persons who have the same name, share the same blood relations often live together. "This is why in the map of China; there is so many village of Zhang's and Villages of Li's,YUAN Yida said.
In 1983, there is a national census in China. The relevant sample data of census are counted in 1986. According to the related information and data, YUAN Yida started the statistical research on family names. In1987, the statistics of YUAN Yida output 12,000 to 13,000 Chinese names. In the same year, the news of Chinese Academy of Sciences doeing the research on family name was disseminated widely by some news media. On May 2, 1987, YUAN Yida published the top 100 names in this statistics, which to be known as "New 100 Chinese Family Names." In "New Family Names", "Li, Wang, Zhang," are the top three. In 2002, a book who has more than 50 million words with 200 charts of name's distribution "Chinese surnames: genetic and demographic groups," announced the research work of 10 years being completed. In the book, after years of collecting and studies of national names YUAN Yida indicated that the biggest three names are Li, Wang, and Zhang.
YUAN Yida said that it’s not easy for these common surnames to continue to today. For example in the dynasty Yuan, to assure the dominion of Yuan, it had been recommended to the emperor Yuan Shun to kill all the people whose names were in the top five. Fortunately the Emperor hesitated before deciding not to do any action, so these people can survive, thus enabling the transmission of the family name transmit to this day.
According to the report of “The evening paper of Guangzhou†| According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 11,289 |
Former schoolteacher Mary Kay Letourneau and husband Vili Fualaau, with whom she began a sexual relationship when he was her sixth-grade student in Seattle in 1996, have legally separated and a reconciliation seems unlikely, PEOPLE confirms.
“They’ve been having issues for a while now,” says a source close to the couple. “They tried to work through them, but it didn’t work. They’re still committed to being good parents to their children.”
There is no third party involved in the relationship, the source says.
Letourneau’s friend and former attorney David Gehrke says it was Fualaau who filed for separation.
“She could try to contest it, but that’s legally tough to do,” he says. “Perhaps if they want to figure out about the children and child support, but their kids are getting pretty old now.”
“When one person is unhappy in the relationship, the other person can’t be happy either,” he continues. “And there are two people in this relationship.”
Their initial affair — which began while Letourneau was a 34-year-old mother of four and Fualaau was 12 — ignited national controversy and revulsion, particularly after she defied a court order to stay away from Fualaau. “The two of them want to be together,” a friend of Letourneau’s told PEOPLE in a 1998 cover story. “They’re drawn together like magnets.”
Prosecutors took a different view, arguing at the time that Letourneau “doesn’t believe she did anything wrong.”
After the relationship was revealed, she pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree child rape and was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison.
She and Fualaau married in May 2005 after she was released, and they have two children.
“I’m convinced they were totally in love,” Gehrke says.
Mary Kay Letourneau in 1996 AP Photo/Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Mary Kay Letourneau in court in Seattle in February 1998 Alan Berner/AP
A March 1998 PEOPLE cover story on the Mary Kay Letourneau case
The couple’s second child, Georgia, was born while Letourneau was behind bars.
They sat down with PEOPLE for an extensive interview in 2006. Fualaau, then 22, said he sometimes wondered about the past.
“I think, What would my life have been like if I had never made a move on Mary?” he said. “What if I had kept it as a crush and left it at that? Where would I be and where would she be — what would life be like?”
But he said he didn’t see an answer to such speculation. “I can never see more than the question.”
• Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.
Vili Fualaau in October 1998 John Froschauer/AP
Vili Fualaau and Mary Kay Letourneau (center left and center right) with their two daughters, Audrey (far left) and Georgia (far right), in 2015 Heidi Gutman/ABC/Getty
Nearly a decade later, in 2015, Fualaau and Letourneau sat down for an interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, where they discussed their relationship, marriage and parenting.
Letourneau revealed then that she would like to get her name taken off the sex offender registry, though officials in Washington state tell PEOPLE she is still a registered offender.
“There is a story of us that has a life of its own, but it’s not our story,” she told Walters.
When Walters asked Fualaau how he’d feel if the girls came home and said they were sleeping with their teacher, he responded, “I don’t support younger kids being married or having a relationship with someone older. I don’t support it.”
• With K.C. BLUMM and ALEX TRESNIOWSKI ||||| Vili Fualaau, 33, filed for legal separation from Mary Kay Letourneau, 55, earlier this month, according to court documents. The couple have been married since 2005.
Vili Fualaau has filed for legal separation from Mary Kay Letourneau, the former Highline teacher who was jailed for having sex with him beginning when he was in sixth grade.
Fualaau, 33, filed for the legal separation from Letourneau, 55, earlier this month, according to King County Superior Court documents. The couple have been married since 2005.
Their separation was first reported Tuesday afternoon by TMZ.
The two met when he was in the second grade and she was a teacher at Shorewood Elementary School in Burien. Their relationship became sexual when he was 12 and she was 34 and a married mother of four. She was arrested in 1997 after she became pregnant with his child, and was convicted of second-degree child rape. She was paroled after six months but was again caught having sex with Fualaau, a violation of her parole conditions.
She gave birth to the couple’s second child in prison while serving the remainder of her 7½-year sentence. She was released in 2004 and the couple married in a ceremony in Woodinville the next year.
Their relationship sparked national attention and was chronicled in the Lifetime movie “Mary Kay Letourneau: All American Girl.” The two, with their two daughters, were interviewed by Barbara Walters in 2015.
The couple and their two daughters have remained in the region, with their last address listed in Des Moines. Starting in 2009, the two hosted “Hot for Teacher” nights at a Seattle nightclub. | – Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau are separating after 12 years of marriage—and 20 years after Letourneau was arrested for having sex with her then-12-year-old student. TMZ reports Fualaau filed for legal separation this month. An unnamed source tells People Letourneau, 55, and Fualaau, 33, have "been having issues for a while now" but are "still committed to being good parents to their children." Letourneau's attorney says the two "were totally in love," but "when one person is unhappy in the relationship, the other person can’t be happy either." The couple had been hosting "Hot for Teacher" nights together at a Seattle nightclub, the Seattle Times reports. Letourneau first met Fualaau when he was in second grade. They started a sexual relationship in 1996 when Fualaau was in sixth grade and Letourneau was 34. Letourneau was arrested in 1997 after getting pregnant with Fualaau's child. She was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for second-degree child rape. She gave birth to their second child while still behind bars. Letourneau was released in 2004 and married Fualaau in 2005. She remains a registered sex offender. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Former schoolteacher Mary Kay Letourneau and husband Vili Fualaau, with whom she began a sexual relationship when he was her sixth-grade student in Seattle in 1996, have legally separated and a reconciliation seems unlikely, PEOPLE confirms.
“They’ve been having issues for a while now,” says a source close to the couple. “They tried to work through them, but it didn’t work. They’re still committed to being good parents to their children.”
There is no third party involved in the relationship, the source says.
Letourneau’s friend and former attorney David Gehrke says it was Fualaau who filed for separation.
“She could try to contest it, but that’s legally tough to do,” he says. “Perhaps if they want to figure out about the children and child support, but their kids are getting pretty old now.”
“When one person is unhappy in the relationship, the other person can’t be happy either,” he continues. “And there are two people in this relationship.”
Their initial affair — which began while Letourneau was a 34-year-old mother of four and Fualaau was 12 — ignited national controversy and revulsion, particularly after she defied a court order to stay away from Fualaau. “The two of them want to be together,” a friend of Letourneau’s told PEOPLE in a 1998 cover story. “They’re drawn together like magnets.”
Prosecutors took a different view, arguing at the time that Letourneau “doesn’t believe she did anything wrong.”
After the relationship was revealed, she pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree child rape and was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison.
She and Fualaau married in May 2005 after she was released, and they have two children.
“I’m convinced they were totally in love,” Gehrke says.
Mary Kay Letourneau in 1996 AP Photo/Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Mary Kay Letourneau in court in Seattle in February 1998 Alan Berner/AP
A March 1998 PEOPLE cover story on the Mary Kay Letourneau case
The couple’s second child, Georgia, was born while Letourneau was behind bars.
They sat down with PEOPLE for an extensive interview in 2006. Fualaau, then 22, said he sometimes wondered about the past.
“I think, What would my life have been like if I had never made a move on Mary?” he said. “What if I had kept it as a crush and left it at that? Where would I be and where would she be — what would life be like?”
But he said he didn’t see an answer to such speculation. “I can never see more than the question.”
• Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.
Vili Fualaau in October 1998 John Froschauer/AP
Vili Fualaau and Mary Kay Letourneau (center left and center right) with their two daughters, Audrey (far left) and Georgia (far right), in 2015 Heidi Gutman/ABC/Getty
Nearly a decade later, in 2015, Fualaau and Letourneau sat down for an interview with ABC’s Barbara Walters, where they discussed their relationship, marriage and parenting.
Letourneau revealed then that she would like to get her name taken off the sex offender registry, though officials in Washington state tell PEOPLE she is still a registered offender.
“There is a story of us that has a life of its own, but it’s not our story,” she told Walters.
When Walters asked Fualaau how he’d feel if the girls came home and said they were sleeping with their teacher, he responded, “I don’t support younger kids being married or having a relationship with someone older. I don’t support it.”
• With K.C. BLUMM and ALEX TRESNIOWSKI ||||| Vili Fualaau, 33, filed for legal separation from Mary Kay Letourneau, 55, earlier this month, according to court documents. The couple have been married since 2005.
Vili Fualaau has filed for legal separation from Mary Kay Letourneau, the former Highline teacher who was jailed for having sex with him beginning when he was in sixth grade.
Fualaau, 33, filed for the legal separation from Letourneau, 55, earlier this month, according to King County Superior Court documents. The couple have been married since 2005.
Their separation was first reported Tuesday afternoon by TMZ.
The two met when he was in the second grade and she was a teacher at Shorewood Elementary School in Burien. Their relationship became sexual when he was 12 and she was 34 and a married mother of four. She was arrested in 1997 after she became pregnant with his child, and was convicted of second-degree child rape. She was paroled after six months but was again caught having sex with Fualaau, a violation of her parole conditions.
She gave birth to the couple’s second child in prison while serving the remainder of her 7½-year sentence. She was released in 2004 and the couple married in a ceremony in Woodinville the next year.
Their relationship sparked national attention and was chronicled in the Lifetime movie “Mary Kay Letourneau: All American Girl.” The two, with their two daughters, were interviewed by Barbara Walters in 2015.
The couple and their two daughters have remained in the region, with their last address listed in Des Moines. Starting in 2009, the two hosted “Hot for Teacher” nights at a Seattle nightclub. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 15,646 |
It’s a leak Barbara Walters doesn’t want you to know about.
The ABC News doyenne pushed hard to have NSA leaker Edward Snowden at the top of her list of 10 most fascinating people of the year — but in the end was overruled by network brass, a source told Confidenti@l.
Snowden, who did land further down on the list, is particular about his outlets, relying mainly on journalist Glenn Greenwald — formerly of the Guardian — to tell his stories, and would not participate. Instead, the network did a write-around with old interview clips for his part, much like they did with Gen. David Petraeus in 2012.
AP
Walters had been collaborating with “The View” executive producer Bill Geddie throughout the year on choosing the 10 figures to appear on “Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year.” She had a particular fascination with the former NSA contractor, we’re told, because at one point she believed he would be chosen as Time magazine’s Person of the Year.
In addition to Snowden, the others chosen for the much-anticipated special include Jennifer Lawrence, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West (starring jointly as KimYe), baby Prince George, the cast of “Duck Dynasty,” swimmer Diana Nyad, “Good Morning America” host Robin Roberts and Pope Francis.
Gregg DeGuire/WireImage Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
As usual, an ABC spokesperson assures us it won’t discuss who will be interviewed for the hour-and-a-half special.
“We never talk about our bookings ahead of time, but you can rest assured that we will include the most fascinating people of the year,” says a network rep. “People are fascinating no matter if we interview them or not. The most fascinating decision is not made based on who we interview. You will just have to watch and find out who is number one.”
247PapsTV/Splash News
We’ve also learned that this year the special also will include a segment featuring Walters’ picks for the most fascinating people of the past 20 years.
We’re told Babs was interested in Bill and Hillary Clinton for the segment, so she can “go out with a bang.” She will be retiring from her chat show in 2014, but will continue to do news specials at her leisure for ABC.
PHOTOS: JENNIFER LAWRENCE 'HUNGER GAMES' RED CARPET LOOKS
LETO TUSSLES WITH VODKA REP
Sometimes the sponsor needs to know when to stop drinking the product. Sources tell Confidenti@l that actor Jared Leto and an employee of Russian Standard vodka were involved in a bizarre incident in the green room at the 23rd annual Gotham Independent Film Awards Monday. Leto was at Cipriani Wall Street to accept the Best Actor Award on behalf of his “Dallas Buyers Club” co-star Matthew McConaughey, who couldn’t attend. “Leto told the guy from the vodka company he didn’t want to do any more press, and that’s when he [the Russian Standard rep] snapped and threw a hat at Leto. It was childish, and clear the guy had been drinking,” our snitch tells us. Meanwhile, the much-anticipated new Coen brothers flick, “Inside Llewyn Davis,” took top honors, winning for best feature. Also at Cipriani Wall Street were Mayor Bloomberg, Forest Whitaker, John Goodman, Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Stark Sands and Joana Vicente, executive director of IFP.
BOLTON DOES GOOD BACKUP
Autism spoke, but Michael Bolton kept quiet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Monday’s star-studded Autism Speaks Winter Ball raised $3.4 million before ending with 12-year-old autistic crooner Christopher Duffley singing “Lean On Me,” accompanied by the Harlem Boys Choir and backup singers Kelly Rowland and Michael Bolton. Though Bolton held a mic, he didn’t sing, due to a sore throat. Brian Williams emceed the Tommy Hilfiger-hosted ball, where billionaire philanthropist Stewart Rahr plunked down $1.1 million for the cause.
REUTERS
FERRELL'S STORY DIFFERENT FROM BURGUNDY'S
Funnyman Will Ferrell sees big differences between himself and his “Anchorman 2” character, Ron Burgundy. The “SNL” alum says in real life he’s shy and never feels the need to impress someone by being funny. “I meet people in public, and I’m sure they’re completely underwhelmed,” Ferrell says in the latest edition of Rolling Stone. He says Burgundy is a different animal. “At first glance, you think he’s really self-confident, but he’s such an insecure guy,” says Ferrell. “His confidence supplants knowledge.”
PHOTOS: 'ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY' - WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
LILLY BLOOMS
Evangeline Lilly looks far from “Lost” in a Catherine Deane dress at the Hollywood premiere of her film “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.”
Splash News
CAUGHT IN THE NIP OF TIME
To skip the bra or not to skip the bra isn’t actually the question. It’s how to keep your braless cups from running over that baffles celebrities like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who had an accidental nip-slip at the British Fashion Awards at the Coliseum in London. Selena Gomez, on the other hand, proved it can be done with class at the 106.1 KISS-FM Jingle Ball at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Monday night.
Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
NO HART TROUBLE
Victoria’s Secret still has a Hart. Correcting another erroneous report in a crosstown tabloid’s once-feared gossip pages, Victoria’s Secret exclusively tells Confidenti@l that Aussie model Jessica Hart has not been canned for criticizing Taylor Swift’s performance at the 2013 VS Fashion Show. “There is no truth to the rumors that Jessica Hart has been fired or that she will no longer work with the brand. As you will see, she was a great part of our show and we look forward to continuing to work with her,” Victoria’s Secret marketing director Ed Razek said. Swift, along with Hart and the rest of the Angels, will strut their stuff Dec. 10 on CBS.
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
TOM TERRIFIC
Doing maniacal impressions of Tom Cruise must really be the sincerest form of flattery — at least for Ben Stiller. Cruise, 51, acted as emcee at Stiller’s Grauman Theater handprint ceremony in Los Angeles on Tuesday, where Stiller was surrounded by his “Tropic Thunder” co-stars Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey and Robert Downey Jr. Cruise flashed his trademark crooked smile and crazy eyes for the cameras, to everyone’s delight.
PHOTOS: TOM CRUISE AND SURI GO ON DISNEY WORLD VACATION
NOW A STAR OF NOTE
Love me or leave me. Zoe Saldana isn’t discouraged by criticism over being tapped to play legendary jazz singer Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic, even though Simone’s own daughter, as well as Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, has voiced disapproval over her landing the gig. “I can’t stop to think about who thinks me to be black enough or not black enough,” she tells Ocean Drive magazine. “I know who I am. I like who I am.”
SEEN AND HEARD ...
Former “Bachelorette” Trista Sutter hosting a signing of her new book, “Happily Ever After,” with divamoms.com founder Lyss Stern, at Instrata-NoMad on E. 29th St. Wednesday with blowouts by Louis Licari. ... “Shark Tank” star Mark Cuban and family tucking into an epic breakfast at Upper West Side bistro Sugar and Plumm. … Rose Byrne and boyfriend Bobby Cannavale chowing down at SushiSamba in South Beach, Miami. … “Glee” star Darren Criss celebrating a friend’s engagement at Sea Fire Grill. … The Meatpacking District is getting its first luxury sports lounge from the team behind downtown hotspot VIP Room, called FC Gotham, just in time for the Super Bowl.
SALUTING KAPLAN
The newspaper business paid respects to one of the best in the business Tuesday. Hundreds gathered at Larchmont Temple in Westchester to bid farewell to former New York Observer editor in chief Peter Kaplan, 59, who succumbed to cancer Friday. Kaplan made his mark on journalism in this city during 15 years at the helm of the Observer and a run at Fairchild Publications, where he oversaw the relaunch of men’s magazine M. Kaplan’s daughter, Caroline, performed “What’ll I Do,” by Irving Berlin, in a very moving moment at the service.
WILLING TO TALK SHOP
Jay Z was keen to show he had moved on from the Barneys shop-and-frisk fiasco Tuesday by making a couple of purchases at the problem-plagued high-end department store’s West Coast branch. The rapper, who met with Barneys internal advisory council to deal with the racial profiling issue, was accompanied by Beyoncé and a small army of beefy bodyguards in Beverly Hills. The Daily News was the first to report the race scandal back in October, when the rap mogul was slow to respond to the issue despite launching his own holiday collection with Barneys.
Angela Weiss/Getty Images; Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images
DALEY NEWS
Tom Daley, the British Olympian who sparked international headlines when he came out as bisexual on Monday, is dating an Academy Award-winning screenwriter 20 years his senior. According to the Sun in the U.K., that person is Hollywood screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, 39, who won an Oscar for the 2008 film “Milk." Daley, 19, a diver who specializes in the 10-meter platform event — won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics. He’s won praise worldwide for a brave and honest YouTube video in which he said he “couldn’t be happier” after embarking on the relationship.
On a mobile device? Click here to watch the video. ||||| Credit: Ida Mae Astute/ABC
A vibrant, young Oscar winner known as "the girl on fire," an ABC News anchor who is in the fight of her life and the pop princess who helped turn "twerking" into a global phenomenon are just some of the people who made Barbara Walters' list for the "Most Fascinating People of the Year" for 2013
Some of the year's biggest names in news, entertainment and pop culture are sitting down with Walters for her annual special "Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year." The 90-minute program will air Wednesday, Dec. 18, at 9:30 p.m. ET.
Photos of Barbara Walters' picks for the "Most Fascinating People of the Year" for 2013
The special, in its 21 st year, includes Hollywood darling Jennifer Lawrence, NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, ABC News' very own "Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, together known as KimYe, the breakout stars from the hit reality TV show "Duck Dynasty," and arguably the most famous infant in the world - Duchess Kate and Prince William's baby George, the heir to the British throne.
The No. 1 most fascinating person of 2013 will be announced on the program. The show will also reflect on moments from the past 20 years of Walters' "Most Fascinating People of the Year" specials, which started in 1993.
This will be the last "Most Fascinating" special for Walters, who announced last May that she would retire from TV journalism next year. | – Well, whomever Barbara Walters names as the Most Fascinating Person of 2013, it won't be the person she really wanted in the top spot. Walters intended to put Edward Snowden at No. 1 on her annual list, but ABC nixed that idea, the New York Daily News reports. Network execs did allow Snowden to remain on the list, just further down. Sadly, ABC had no problem with any of the other people who managed to make it on the list, including such luminaries as Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, the Duck Dynasty cast, and the royal baby. The special airs on Dec. 18, at which time the No. 2 for No. 1 will be revealed. | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.It’s a leak Barbara Walters doesn’t want you to know about.
The ABC News doyenne pushed hard to have NSA leaker Edward Snowden at the top of her list of 10 most fascinating people of the year — but in the end was overruled by network brass, a source told Confidenti@l.
Snowden, who did land further down on the list, is particular about his outlets, relying mainly on journalist Glenn Greenwald — formerly of the Guardian — to tell his stories, and would not participate. Instead, the network did a write-around with old interview clips for his part, much like they did with Gen. David Petraeus in 2012.
AP
Walters had been collaborating with “The View” executive producer Bill Geddie throughout the year on choosing the 10 figures to appear on “Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year.” She had a particular fascination with the former NSA contractor, we’re told, because at one point she believed he would be chosen as Time magazine’s Person of the Year.
In addition to Snowden, the others chosen for the much-anticipated special include Jennifer Lawrence, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West (starring jointly as KimYe), baby Prince George, the cast of “Duck Dynasty,” swimmer Diana Nyad, “Good Morning America” host Robin Roberts and Pope Francis.
Gregg DeGuire/WireImage Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
As usual, an ABC spokesperson assures us it won’t discuss who will be interviewed for the hour-and-a-half special.
“We never talk about our bookings ahead of time, but you can rest assured that we will include the most fascinating people of the year,” says a network rep. “People are fascinating no matter if we interview them or not. The most fascinating decision is not made based on who we interview. You will just have to watch and find out who is number one.”
247PapsTV/Splash News
We’ve also learned that this year the special also will include a segment featuring Walters’ picks for the most fascinating people of the past 20 years.
We’re told Babs was interested in Bill and Hillary Clinton for the segment, so she can “go out with a bang.” She will be retiring from her chat show in 2014, but will continue to do news specials at her leisure for ABC.
PHOTOS: JENNIFER LAWRENCE 'HUNGER GAMES' RED CARPET LOOKS
LETO TUSSLES WITH VODKA REP
Sometimes the sponsor needs to know when to stop drinking the product. Sources tell Confidenti@l that actor Jared Leto and an employee of Russian Standard vodka were involved in a bizarre incident in the green room at the 23rd annual Gotham Independent Film Awards Monday. Leto was at Cipriani Wall Street to accept the Best Actor Award on behalf of his “Dallas Buyers Club” co-star Matthew McConaughey, who couldn’t attend. “Leto told the guy from the vodka company he didn’t want to do any more press, and that’s when he [the Russian Standard rep] snapped and threw a hat at Leto. It was childish, and clear the guy had been drinking,” our snitch tells us. Meanwhile, the much-anticipated new Coen brothers flick, “Inside Llewyn Davis,” took top honors, winning for best feature. Also at Cipriani Wall Street were Mayor Bloomberg, Forest Whitaker, John Goodman, Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Stark Sands and Joana Vicente, executive director of IFP.
BOLTON DOES GOOD BACKUP
Autism spoke, but Michael Bolton kept quiet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Monday’s star-studded Autism Speaks Winter Ball raised $3.4 million before ending with 12-year-old autistic crooner Christopher Duffley singing “Lean On Me,” accompanied by the Harlem Boys Choir and backup singers Kelly Rowland and Michael Bolton. Though Bolton held a mic, he didn’t sing, due to a sore throat. Brian Williams emceed the Tommy Hilfiger-hosted ball, where billionaire philanthropist Stewart Rahr plunked down $1.1 million for the cause.
REUTERS
FERRELL'S STORY DIFFERENT FROM BURGUNDY'S
Funnyman Will Ferrell sees big differences between himself and his “Anchorman 2” character, Ron Burgundy. The “SNL” alum says in real life he’s shy and never feels the need to impress someone by being funny. “I meet people in public, and I’m sure they’re completely underwhelmed,” Ferrell says in the latest edition of Rolling Stone. He says Burgundy is a different animal. “At first glance, you think he’s really self-confident, but he’s such an insecure guy,” says Ferrell. “His confidence supplants knowledge.”
PHOTOS: 'ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY' - WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
LILLY BLOOMS
Evangeline Lilly looks far from “Lost” in a Catherine Deane dress at the Hollywood premiere of her film “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.”
Splash News
CAUGHT IN THE NIP OF TIME
To skip the bra or not to skip the bra isn’t actually the question. It’s how to keep your braless cups from running over that baffles celebrities like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who had an accidental nip-slip at the British Fashion Awards at the Coliseum in London. Selena Gomez, on the other hand, proved it can be done with class at the 106.1 KISS-FM Jingle Ball at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Monday night.
Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
NO HART TROUBLE
Victoria’s Secret still has a Hart. Correcting another erroneous report in a crosstown tabloid’s once-feared gossip pages, Victoria’s Secret exclusively tells Confidenti@l that Aussie model Jessica Hart has not been canned for criticizing Taylor Swift’s performance at the 2013 VS Fashion Show. “There is no truth to the rumors that Jessica Hart has been fired or that she will no longer work with the brand. As you will see, she was a great part of our show and we look forward to continuing to work with her,” Victoria’s Secret marketing director Ed Razek said. Swift, along with Hart and the rest of the Angels, will strut their stuff Dec. 10 on CBS.
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
TOM TERRIFIC
Doing maniacal impressions of Tom Cruise must really be the sincerest form of flattery — at least for Ben Stiller. Cruise, 51, acted as emcee at Stiller’s Grauman Theater handprint ceremony in Los Angeles on Tuesday, where Stiller was surrounded by his “Tropic Thunder” co-stars Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey and Robert Downey Jr. Cruise flashed his trademark crooked smile and crazy eyes for the cameras, to everyone’s delight.
PHOTOS: TOM CRUISE AND SURI GO ON DISNEY WORLD VACATION
NOW A STAR OF NOTE
Love me or leave me. Zoe Saldana isn’t discouraged by criticism over being tapped to play legendary jazz singer Nina Simone in an upcoming biopic, even though Simone’s own daughter, as well as Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, has voiced disapproval over her landing the gig. “I can’t stop to think about who thinks me to be black enough or not black enough,” she tells Ocean Drive magazine. “I know who I am. I like who I am.”
SEEN AND HEARD ...
Former “Bachelorette” Trista Sutter hosting a signing of her new book, “Happily Ever After,” with divamoms.com founder Lyss Stern, at Instrata-NoMad on E. 29th St. Wednesday with blowouts by Louis Licari. ... “Shark Tank” star Mark Cuban and family tucking into an epic breakfast at Upper West Side bistro Sugar and Plumm. … Rose Byrne and boyfriend Bobby Cannavale chowing down at SushiSamba in South Beach, Miami. … “Glee” star Darren Criss celebrating a friend’s engagement at Sea Fire Grill. … The Meatpacking District is getting its first luxury sports lounge from the team behind downtown hotspot VIP Room, called FC Gotham, just in time for the Super Bowl.
SALUTING KAPLAN
The newspaper business paid respects to one of the best in the business Tuesday. Hundreds gathered at Larchmont Temple in Westchester to bid farewell to former New York Observer editor in chief Peter Kaplan, 59, who succumbed to cancer Friday. Kaplan made his mark on journalism in this city during 15 years at the helm of the Observer and a run at Fairchild Publications, where he oversaw the relaunch of men’s magazine M. Kaplan’s daughter, Caroline, performed “What’ll I Do,” by Irving Berlin, in a very moving moment at the service.
WILLING TO TALK SHOP
Jay Z was keen to show he had moved on from the Barneys shop-and-frisk fiasco Tuesday by making a couple of purchases at the problem-plagued high-end department store’s West Coast branch. The rapper, who met with Barneys internal advisory council to deal with the racial profiling issue, was accompanied by Beyoncé and a small army of beefy bodyguards in Beverly Hills. The Daily News was the first to report the race scandal back in October, when the rap mogul was slow to respond to the issue despite launching his own holiday collection with Barneys.
Angela Weiss/Getty Images; Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images
DALEY NEWS
Tom Daley, the British Olympian who sparked international headlines when he came out as bisexual on Monday, is dating an Academy Award-winning screenwriter 20 years his senior. According to the Sun in the U.K., that person is Hollywood screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, 39, who won an Oscar for the 2008 film “Milk." Daley, 19, a diver who specializes in the 10-meter platform event — won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics. He’s won praise worldwide for a brave and honest YouTube video in which he said he “couldn’t be happier” after embarking on the relationship.
On a mobile device? Click here to watch the video. ||||| Credit: Ida Mae Astute/ABC
A vibrant, young Oscar winner known as "the girl on fire," an ABC News anchor who is in the fight of her life and the pop princess who helped turn "twerking" into a global phenomenon are just some of the people who made Barbara Walters' list for the "Most Fascinating People of the Year" for 2013
Some of the year's biggest names in news, entertainment and pop culture are sitting down with Walters for her annual special "Barbara Walters Presents: The 10 Most Fascinating People of the Year." The 90-minute program will air Wednesday, Dec. 18, at 9:30 p.m. ET.
Photos of Barbara Walters' picks for the "Most Fascinating People of the Year" for 2013
The special, in its 21 st year, includes Hollywood darling Jennifer Lawrence, NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, ABC News' very own "Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts, Miley Cyrus, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, together known as KimYe, the breakout stars from the hit reality TV show "Duck Dynasty," and arguably the most famous infant in the world - Duchess Kate and Prince William's baby George, the heir to the British throne.
The No. 1 most fascinating person of 2013 will be announced on the program. The show will also reflect on moments from the past 20 years of Walters' "Most Fascinating People of the Year" specials, which started in 1993.
This will be the last "Most Fascinating" special for Walters, who announced last May that she would retire from TV journalism next year. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 10,248 |
NBC News Chief Medical Editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman has resigned to take a medical teaching position, she announced Thursday.
Snyderman had apologized in December for violating her voluntary quarantine after she returned to the U.S. from covering the Ebola crisis in Africa. In a statement Thursday announcing she was stepping down, she said "becoming part of the story upon my return to the U.S. contributed to my decision."
A spokesperson for NBC News said: "Throughout her career with NBC News, Dr. Nancy Snyderman has provided her expertise on countless health and medical topics that are vitally important to our audience. She's been a valuable voice both on air and in our newsroom, and we wish her all the best." ||||| Dr. Nancy Snyderman has stepped down from her post as NBC’s chief medical editor, following a controversy that erupted last fall when she broke a self-imposed quarantine after returning from covering the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.
Dr. Snyderman drew criticism in October when she was seen in public in New Jersey days after promising to quarantine herself for 21 days. While in Liberia, she had worked with Ashoka Mukpo, a camerman who had contracted the Ebola virus.
After an extended absence from television, Dr. Snyderman returned to the air in December, but the incident tainted her relationship with NBC, according to a person close to Dr. Snyderman.
In a statement Thursday, Dr. Snyderman said that she was leaving NBC to take a faculty position at a “major U.S. medical school.” Dr. Snyderman, who had worked for NBC for nine years, previously worked as a consumer education executive at Johnson & Johnson and as a medical correspondent for ABC.
“Covering the Ebola epidemic last fall in Liberia, and then becoming part of the story upon my return to the U.S., contributed to my decision that now is the time to return to academic medicine,” Dr. Snyderman said in a statement.
The decision was said to be mutual. In a statement, NBC said, “Throughout her career with NBC News, Dr. Nancy Snyderman has provided her expertise on countless health and medical topics that are vitally important to our audience.”
Dr. Snyderman’s departure is the latest shake-up at the NBC News group in recent weeks, as the network has been in engulfed in crisis involving the news anchor Brian Williams. Last week, NBCUniversal hired Andrew Lack to lead its news division, the first step in a major restructuring of the executive ranks. Mr. Williams, meanwhile, is on a six-month suspension after he admitted that he had misled viewers with a story about a helicopter incident in Iraq.
Mr. Lack officially starts in April but was aware of Dr. Snyderman’s departure from the network. | – NBC's chief medical editor appears to have decided that breaking quarantine after possible exposure to Ebola to get takeout food is a mistake that her broadcasting career isn't going to recover from. Dr. Nancy Snyderman has resigned to take a teaching position, saying "becoming part of the story upon my return to the US contributed to my decision," according to NBC. Snyderman, whose voluntary isolation became mandatory after the October food run, returned to work in December but sources tell the New York Times that the incident soured her relationship with the network. Snyderman, who had been with NBC since 2006, says she is taking up a "faculty position at a major US medical school." | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.NBC News Chief Medical Editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman has resigned to take a medical teaching position, she announced Thursday.
Snyderman had apologized in December for violating her voluntary quarantine after she returned to the U.S. from covering the Ebola crisis in Africa. In a statement Thursday announcing she was stepping down, she said "becoming part of the story upon my return to the U.S. contributed to my decision."
A spokesperson for NBC News said: "Throughout her career with NBC News, Dr. Nancy Snyderman has provided her expertise on countless health and medical topics that are vitally important to our audience. She's been a valuable voice both on air and in our newsroom, and we wish her all the best." ||||| Dr. Nancy Snyderman has stepped down from her post as NBC’s chief medical editor, following a controversy that erupted last fall when she broke a self-imposed quarantine after returning from covering the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.
Dr. Snyderman drew criticism in October when she was seen in public in New Jersey days after promising to quarantine herself for 21 days. While in Liberia, she had worked with Ashoka Mukpo, a camerman who had contracted the Ebola virus.
After an extended absence from television, Dr. Snyderman returned to the air in December, but the incident tainted her relationship with NBC, according to a person close to Dr. Snyderman.
In a statement Thursday, Dr. Snyderman said that she was leaving NBC to take a faculty position at a “major U.S. medical school.” Dr. Snyderman, who had worked for NBC for nine years, previously worked as a consumer education executive at Johnson & Johnson and as a medical correspondent for ABC.
“Covering the Ebola epidemic last fall in Liberia, and then becoming part of the story upon my return to the U.S., contributed to my decision that now is the time to return to academic medicine,” Dr. Snyderman said in a statement.
The decision was said to be mutual. In a statement, NBC said, “Throughout her career with NBC News, Dr. Nancy Snyderman has provided her expertise on countless health and medical topics that are vitally important to our audience.”
Dr. Snyderman’s departure is the latest shake-up at the NBC News group in recent weeks, as the network has been in engulfed in crisis involving the news anchor Brian Williams. Last week, NBCUniversal hired Andrew Lack to lead its news division, the first step in a major restructuring of the executive ranks. Mr. Williams, meanwhile, is on a six-month suspension after he admitted that he had misled viewers with a story about a helicopter incident in Iraq.
Mr. Lack officially starts in April but was aware of Dr. Snyderman’s departure from the network. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 15,420 |
Yesterday, a story about the origins of a beautiful cake that read “Sorry I Tased You” went viral. It was debunked last night, but the truth remained elusive. Today, we bring you the real story behind the infamous cake.
The Pensacola News Journal, along with New York magazine and the New York Post, reported a Florida cop named Michael Wohlers allegedly tasered a civilian and allegedly baked the cake for the woman as an apology. Turns out he had only allegedly sent the woman a picture of the cake, which he’d apparently found online. So where did that photo come from?
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Two Barnstable, Massachusetts police officers, Jay Maloney and Katie Ross, reached out to Gizmodo to explain the cake’s real origin story. Around 1:30AM on New Years Day in 2014, Maloney accidentally tased Ross when they responded to a father-son domestic dispute.
“I had been off of field training for a week (total rookie) and working my first overtime shift,” Ross explained to Gizmodo in an email. When the pair approached the house, they found the father and son fighting and tackled the son outside. According to Maloney, he was violent and resisting arrest.
“I go to assist by grabbing on to the male at the exact same time Maloney deployed his taser,” Ross told Gizmodo. “Taser probes enter my left hand and I had a two second ‘ride.’ I call it perfectly bad timing.”
X-rays of Ross’s tased hand
“The male was still resisting and Katie was able to tase him while she had taser prongs in her hand,” Maloney said.
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Ross said she was out of work for a month after the tasing. Maloney felt extremely guilty about the incident, so when she got back to work, he presented her with the infamous cake. “My only option was to make her a cake,” Maloney said.
“The cake was not fully cooked,” Ross noted, “but it was the first cake he ever baked.”
It’s all in the past now, and both Ross and Maloney are confused about how their story became a viral hoax.
“Everyone wants to take credit for Maloney’s awesomeness,” Ross said.
Image of Ross’s tased hand
Gizmodo has looked into the authenticity of Ross and Maloney’s account. Both are listed as patrol officers on the Barnstable PD website. Additionally, Maloney posted a picture of the cake on his personal Facebook account, with comments from Barnstable residents:
Update 9/30/2016, 11:42AM: Here is the Pensacola News Journal’s update: ||||| Michael Wohlers, a former Escambia County deputy, is being sued by a Pensacola woman after allegedly discharging his stun gun into her chest without provocation. According to court documents, Wohlers attempted to apologize with a cake that said, "Sorry I Tased You." (Photo: Special to the News Journal)
UPDATE: This story has been updated to reflect new information that the former deputy is accused of sending the alleged victim a photo of a cake along with a text message stating he baked it for her and wanted to give it to her.
A local woman has filed a civil lawsuit against a former Escambia County deputy who allegedly discharged a stun gun into her chest and neck without provocation, tried to cover up the incident, then apologized by sending her a photo of an off-color cake.
The suit, filed in federal court by Stephanie Byron in May, also names Sheriff David Morgan in his official capacity as sheriff. The suit alleges Michael Wohlers used excessive force against Byron, violated her civil rights, committed battery against her and caused her hardships, including physical injuries, monetary loss, medical expenses, humiliation and mental anguish.
Wohlers' attorney denied the allegations in a written response to Byron's complaint.
The incident allegedly occurred in June 2015, when Wohlers finished his patrol shift and stopped to visit Byron at an apartment complex where she was employed. Documents from the Sheriff's Office and the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission say Wohlers discharged his stun gun during "horseplay" with Byron, but Byron and her attorney said Wednesday there was no "play" involved in the incident.
The suit alleges when Wohlers arrived at the apartment complex, he "used his apparent law enforcement authority to intimidate, harass, and threaten plaintiff ... about her personal life. Because Wohlers did not like how Plaintiff failed to respond to his show of authority, Wohlers became increasingly aggressive toward employees at the apartment complex’s office, including with Ms. Byron."
The complaint claims Wohlers took Byron's sweet tea from her and refused to give it back. When Byron approached Wohlers to retrieve the drink, he allegedly discharged the stun gun into her chest and throat. The complaint also alleges when Byron fell to the ground, Wohlers "jumped onto Ms. Byron, kneeing her in the chest" and "forcefully removed the Taser prods."
According to court documents, Wohlers later attempted to apologize to Byron by baking her a cake. Byron's attorney, Alistair McKenzie, clarified Friday that Wohlers sent Byron a text message stating that he baked her a cake and wanted to give it to her. The text message included a photo of a cake with the phrase, "Sorry I Tased You" written on it.
Wohlers has declined to comment on the case, but his attorney denied the allegations in a written response to the complaint. The response also asserts Wohlers is protected by "qualified immunity" — rights that can shield government officials from civil liability lawsuits if the official did not knowingly violate a citizen's rights while performing their duties.
The defense's response said that even if Byron's allegations were found to be truthful, Wohlers' actions "reflect, at worst, mere negligence." The defense claimed Wohlers did not act in "bad faith, or with malicious purpose, or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard of human rights, safety or property," making the Sheriff's Office, not Wohlers, the proper defendant in the lawsuit.
Morgan noted Tuesday that Wohlers was not engaged in an official or approved activity at the time of the incident. Wohlers resigned from the Sheriff's Office in July 2015 while under investigation for misconduct, and the ECSO reported Wohlers lied to a training officer about how his stun gun was discharged and later filed a false report about the incident.
On Monday, the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission announced it had reviewed the case and placed Wohlers on a one-year probationary period from serving at any law enforcement agency in Florida.
The lawsuit, which is separate from CJSTC review, is still pending in federal court. Byron is seeking compensatory damages, costs, expenses and reasonable attorney’s fees.
Read or Share this story: http://on.pnj.com/2dlWv27 ||||| PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A Florida's woman's lawsuit says a deputy shot her with a stun gun, then apologized with a cake that said, "Sorry I Tased You" in blue frosting.
The cake didn't cut it for Stephanie Byron. She sued former Escambia County sheriff's deputy Michael Wohlers in May.
On Monday, the county's Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission announced it had reviewed the case and placed Wohlers on a one-year probationary period from serving at any law enforcement agency in Florida.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Pensacola, alleges Wohlers violated Byron's civil rights, committed battery against her and caused her hardships, including physical injuries, monetary loss, medical expenses, humiliation and mental anguish.
Wohlers' attorney wouldn't comment Thursday but denied the allegations in a court document.
The incident happened in June 2015 when Wohlers stopped by an apartment complex where Byron was working.
According to court documents, Wohlers was in his full uniform and "used his apparent law enforcement authority to intimidate, harass, and threaten" Byron about her personal life. The lawsuit says Wohlers took Byron's tea, and when she went to retrieve it he fired his stun gun at her. She said she was knocked to the floor and the court document says Wohlers "jumped onto Ms. Byron, kneeing her in the chest." He then removed the stun gun prods from her body and left.
The lawsuit also says Wohlers told his employer that he accidentally discharged his device into a pillow at his house.
Sometime after that, Wohlers baked Byron a cake. Byron's attorney entered a photo of the cake as an exhibit into the court file.
"The cake Wohlers baked provides his version of the encounter and clearly shows a person Wohlers firing the Taser at Ms. Byron. It also reads "Sorry I Tased You," the complaint reads. The cake depicts two stick figures in frosting, with one aiming something with black wires at the other.
Wohlers resigned from the sheriff's office in July 2015. .
Wohlers' attorney denied the allegations in a written response to the complaint. The response also said Wohlers is protected by "qualified immunity" — rights that can shield government officials from civil liability lawsuits if the official did not knowingly violate a citizen's rights while performing their duties.
Byron is seeking compensatory damages, costs, expenses and reasonable attorney's fees. | – Sometimes a cake just makes everything worse. The Pensacola News Journal reports a Florida woman is suing a sheriff's deputy she says shot her with a stun gun then attempted to make it right with a questionably frosted cake. The lawsuit claims that in June 2015, deputy Michael Wohlers left his shift and visited Stephanie Byron at the apartment complex where she worked. The lawsuit states Wohlers was upset about Byron's personal life and tried to "intimidate, harass, and threaten her." He took away her sweet tea then shot her with a stun gun in the chest and neck when she tried to get it back, the lawsuit claims. According to the AP, Wohler told his superior that he fired the stun gun into a pillow at his house. He also filed a false police report about it. The lawsuit claims Wohlers later tried to apologize to Byron by sending her a picture of a cake. (The News Journal originally reported he sent her the actual cake.) Frosting on the cake reads "Sorry I Tased You" and shows two stick figures, one apparently shooting something with wires at the other. It could be Wohlers' undoing. As the lawsuit notes: "The cake Wohlers baked...clearly shows...Wohlers firing the Taser at Ms. Byron." Wohlers has since changed his story, saying he fired the stun gun at Byron during a moment of "horseplay." Wohlers resigned from the sheriff's department last year while being investigated for misconduct. On Monday, he was banned from serving with any Florida law enforcement agency for one year. Byron is seeking monetary compensation for a violation of her civil rights, battery, and more. (While Wohlers allegedly claimed to have baked the cake, Gizmodo explains that it was actually given cop-to-cop after an accidental stun gun incident years ago.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Yesterday, a story about the origins of a beautiful cake that read “Sorry I Tased You” went viral. It was debunked last night, but the truth remained elusive. Today, we bring you the real story behind the infamous cake.
The Pensacola News Journal, along with New York magazine and the New York Post, reported a Florida cop named Michael Wohlers allegedly tasered a civilian and allegedly baked the cake for the woman as an apology. Turns out he had only allegedly sent the woman a picture of the cake, which he’d apparently found online. So where did that photo come from?
Advertisement
Two Barnstable, Massachusetts police officers, Jay Maloney and Katie Ross, reached out to Gizmodo to explain the cake’s real origin story. Around 1:30AM on New Years Day in 2014, Maloney accidentally tased Ross when they responded to a father-son domestic dispute.
“I had been off of field training for a week (total rookie) and working my first overtime shift,” Ross explained to Gizmodo in an email. When the pair approached the house, they found the father and son fighting and tackled the son outside. According to Maloney, he was violent and resisting arrest.
“I go to assist by grabbing on to the male at the exact same time Maloney deployed his taser,” Ross told Gizmodo. “Taser probes enter my left hand and I had a two second ‘ride.’ I call it perfectly bad timing.”
X-rays of Ross’s tased hand
“The male was still resisting and Katie was able to tase him while she had taser prongs in her hand,” Maloney said.
Advertisement
Ross said she was out of work for a month after the tasing. Maloney felt extremely guilty about the incident, so when she got back to work, he presented her with the infamous cake. “My only option was to make her a cake,” Maloney said.
“The cake was not fully cooked,” Ross noted, “but it was the first cake he ever baked.”
It’s all in the past now, and both Ross and Maloney are confused about how their story became a viral hoax.
“Everyone wants to take credit for Maloney’s awesomeness,” Ross said.
Image of Ross’s tased hand
Gizmodo has looked into the authenticity of Ross and Maloney’s account. Both are listed as patrol officers on the Barnstable PD website. Additionally, Maloney posted a picture of the cake on his personal Facebook account, with comments from Barnstable residents:
Update 9/30/2016, 11:42AM: Here is the Pensacola News Journal’s update: ||||| Michael Wohlers, a former Escambia County deputy, is being sued by a Pensacola woman after allegedly discharging his stun gun into her chest without provocation. According to court documents, Wohlers attempted to apologize with a cake that said, "Sorry I Tased You." (Photo: Special to the News Journal)
UPDATE: This story has been updated to reflect new information that the former deputy is accused of sending the alleged victim a photo of a cake along with a text message stating he baked it for her and wanted to give it to her.
A local woman has filed a civil lawsuit against a former Escambia County deputy who allegedly discharged a stun gun into her chest and neck without provocation, tried to cover up the incident, then apologized by sending her a photo of an off-color cake.
The suit, filed in federal court by Stephanie Byron in May, also names Sheriff David Morgan in his official capacity as sheriff. The suit alleges Michael Wohlers used excessive force against Byron, violated her civil rights, committed battery against her and caused her hardships, including physical injuries, monetary loss, medical expenses, humiliation and mental anguish.
Wohlers' attorney denied the allegations in a written response to Byron's complaint.
The incident allegedly occurred in June 2015, when Wohlers finished his patrol shift and stopped to visit Byron at an apartment complex where she was employed. Documents from the Sheriff's Office and the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission say Wohlers discharged his stun gun during "horseplay" with Byron, but Byron and her attorney said Wednesday there was no "play" involved in the incident.
The suit alleges when Wohlers arrived at the apartment complex, he "used his apparent law enforcement authority to intimidate, harass, and threaten plaintiff ... about her personal life. Because Wohlers did not like how Plaintiff failed to respond to his show of authority, Wohlers became increasingly aggressive toward employees at the apartment complex’s office, including with Ms. Byron."
The complaint claims Wohlers took Byron's sweet tea from her and refused to give it back. When Byron approached Wohlers to retrieve the drink, he allegedly discharged the stun gun into her chest and throat. The complaint also alleges when Byron fell to the ground, Wohlers "jumped onto Ms. Byron, kneeing her in the chest" and "forcefully removed the Taser prods."
According to court documents, Wohlers later attempted to apologize to Byron by baking her a cake. Byron's attorney, Alistair McKenzie, clarified Friday that Wohlers sent Byron a text message stating that he baked her a cake and wanted to give it to her. The text message included a photo of a cake with the phrase, "Sorry I Tased You" written on it.
Wohlers has declined to comment on the case, but his attorney denied the allegations in a written response to the complaint. The response also asserts Wohlers is protected by "qualified immunity" — rights that can shield government officials from civil liability lawsuits if the official did not knowingly violate a citizen's rights while performing their duties.
The defense's response said that even if Byron's allegations were found to be truthful, Wohlers' actions "reflect, at worst, mere negligence." The defense claimed Wohlers did not act in "bad faith, or with malicious purpose, or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard of human rights, safety or property," making the Sheriff's Office, not Wohlers, the proper defendant in the lawsuit.
Morgan noted Tuesday that Wohlers was not engaged in an official or approved activity at the time of the incident. Wohlers resigned from the Sheriff's Office in July 2015 while under investigation for misconduct, and the ECSO reported Wohlers lied to a training officer about how his stun gun was discharged and later filed a false report about the incident.
On Monday, the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission announced it had reviewed the case and placed Wohlers on a one-year probationary period from serving at any law enforcement agency in Florida.
The lawsuit, which is separate from CJSTC review, is still pending in federal court. Byron is seeking compensatory damages, costs, expenses and reasonable attorney’s fees.
Read or Share this story: http://on.pnj.com/2dlWv27 ||||| PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A Florida's woman's lawsuit says a deputy shot her with a stun gun, then apologized with a cake that said, "Sorry I Tased You" in blue frosting.
The cake didn't cut it for Stephanie Byron. She sued former Escambia County sheriff's deputy Michael Wohlers in May.
On Monday, the county's Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission announced it had reviewed the case and placed Wohlers on a one-year probationary period from serving at any law enforcement agency in Florida.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Pensacola, alleges Wohlers violated Byron's civil rights, committed battery against her and caused her hardships, including physical injuries, monetary loss, medical expenses, humiliation and mental anguish.
Wohlers' attorney wouldn't comment Thursday but denied the allegations in a court document.
The incident happened in June 2015 when Wohlers stopped by an apartment complex where Byron was working.
According to court documents, Wohlers was in his full uniform and "used his apparent law enforcement authority to intimidate, harass, and threaten" Byron about her personal life. The lawsuit says Wohlers took Byron's tea, and when she went to retrieve it he fired his stun gun at her. She said she was knocked to the floor and the court document says Wohlers "jumped onto Ms. Byron, kneeing her in the chest." He then removed the stun gun prods from her body and left.
The lawsuit also says Wohlers told his employer that he accidentally discharged his device into a pillow at his house.
Sometime after that, Wohlers baked Byron a cake. Byron's attorney entered a photo of the cake as an exhibit into the court file.
"The cake Wohlers baked provides his version of the encounter and clearly shows a person Wohlers firing the Taser at Ms. Byron. It also reads "Sorry I Tased You," the complaint reads. The cake depicts two stick figures in frosting, with one aiming something with black wires at the other.
Wohlers resigned from the sheriff's office in July 2015. .
Wohlers' attorney denied the allegations in a written response to the complaint. The response also said Wohlers is protected by "qualified immunity" — rights that can shield government officials from civil liability lawsuits if the official did not knowingly violate a citizen's rights while performing their duties.
Byron is seeking compensatory damages, costs, expenses and reasonable attorney's fees. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 42,866 |
Story highlights Bombing is the latest in a string of chemical attacks on Syrian city
UN investigation found that Syrian Air Force and ISIS have used chemical weapons
This story contains graphic images, including some of child victims.
(CNN) More than 80 people were suffering severe breathing difficulties in Syria's embattled city of Aleppo after another chemical attack Tuesday on a rebel-held neighborhood, said the Syrian Civil Defense, a volunteer rescue group.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the attack, saying that medical sources accused regime warplanes of pounding the Sukkari neighborhood with barrel bombs "laden with poison gas."
This still from a video shows a girl treated at a makeshift hospital after what a rescue group called a chemical attack on her Aleppo neighborhood.
Harrowing footage distributed by the Syrian Civil Defense -- also known as the White Helmets -- shows small children and other victims being rushed to the makeshift Basel Aslan hospital in the arms of rescuers, gasping desperately for air as they are given oxygen masks.
Read More ||||| BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian activists and rescue workers in the rebel-held part of the contested city of Aleppo said that government warplanes dropped suspected chlorine bombs Tuesday on a crowded neighborhood, injuring dozens.
The report could not be independently verified and it was not clear how it was determined that chlorine gas was released.
Accusations involving use of chlorine and other poisonous gases are not uncommon in Syria's civil war, and both sides have denied using them while blaming the other for using it as a weapon of war. Last month, there were at least two reports of suspected chlorine attacks in Aleppo also, while the Syrian government also blamed the opposition for using the gas.
In Tuesday's attack, a medical report from one of the hospitals in the besieged eastern rebel-held part of Aleppo was shared with journalists via text messages. It said at least 71 persons, including 37 children and 10 women, were treated for breathing difficulties, dry cough, and that their clothes smelled of chlorine. The report said 10 of the patients are in critical care, including a pregnant woman.
Ibrahem Alhaj, a member of the Syria Civil Defense first responders' team, said he got to the scene in the crowded al-Sukkari neighborhood shortly after a helicopter dropped barrels containing what he said were four chlorine cylinders. He said he himself had difficulty breathing and used a mask soaked in salt water to prevent irritation.
At least 80 civilians were taken to hospitals and treated for breathing difficulties, he said. A video by the rescuers shows children crying and men coughing.
"Most of those injured where women and children," he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "It is a crowded neighborhood."
The head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 70 people suffered from breathing difficulties after a barrel bomb attack in al-Sukkari on Tuesday. The Observatory's chief, Rami Abdurrahman, said he could not ascertain if it was chlorine gas attack.
Chlorine gas is a crude weapon that can be fatal in high concentrations. In lower doses, it can damage lungs or cause severe breathing difficulties and other symptoms, including vomiting and nausea.
A team of international inspectors determined in late August that the Syrian government and Islamic State militants were responsible for chemical attacks carried out in 2014 and 2015. But the U.N. Security Council failed to agree on whether to impose sanctions on the government in line with a September 2013 resolution authorizing sanctions that can be militarily enforced for any use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The resolution followed Syria's approval of a Russian proposal to relinquish its chemical weapons stockpile and join the Chemical Weapons Convention. That averted a U.S. military strike in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta.
Russia, a close Syrian government ally, has blocked sanctions against President Bashar Assad's government.
Fighting in the deeply contested city of Aleppo has not let up despite international efforts to establish a cease-fire. On Sunday, Syrian pro-government forces backed by airstrikes launched a wide offensive in the city, capturing areas they lost last month and besieging rebel-held neighborhoods once more after a breach in the siege a month earlier.
On Tuesday, a Turkish spokesman said Turkey was pushing for a ceasefire in Aleppo that would extend through the Muslim religious holiday of Eid al-Adha, due to begin Monday. Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke to his U.S. and Russian counterparts during the G20 meeting in China about the ceasefire.
Kalin told private broadcaster NTV Tuesday that the initial plan was for a 48-hour ceasefire.
Erdogan also repeated calls for a safe-zone to be established between the Syrian towns of Azaz and Jarablus in Aleppo province, to protect civilians. Turkey has pushed for a safe zone in Syria since at least 2014.
Turkey sent tanks into Syria last month to support rebel forces against the Islamic State group in the town of Jarablus. It expanded its operation into nearby al-Rai over the weekend.
___
Associated Press Writer Zeynep Bilginsoy in Istanbul contributed to this report. ||||| BEIRUT (Reuters) - A suspected chlorine gas attack on an opposition-held neighborhood in the Syrian city of Aleppo caused dozens of cases of suffocation on Tuesday, rescue workers and a monitoring group said.
The Syrian Civil Defence, a rescue workers’ organization that operates in rebel-held areas, said government helicopters had dropped barrel bombs containing chlorine on the Sukari neighborhood in eastern Aleppo.
The Syrian government has denied previous accusations it used chemical weapons during the five-year-old civil war. The Syrian army could not be immediately reached for comment on the latest allegations.
The Civil Defence said on its Facebook page that 80 people had suffocated. It reported no deaths. It posted a video showing wheezing children doused in water using oxygen masks to breathe.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks Syrian violence using sources on the ground, said medical sources had reported 70 cases of suffocation.
A United Nations and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons inquiry seen by Reuters last month found that Syrian government forces were responsible for two toxic gas attacks in 2014 and 2015 involving chlorine.
The Civil Defence accused the government of two other suspected chlorine gas attacks in August . The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria said it was investigating an August incident.
“Unimaginable crimes are occurring in Aleppo ... pro-government aerial bombardments cause mass civilian casualties,” Commission Chairman Paulo Pinheiro told reporters in Geneva. “In government-held areas, indiscriminate ground shelling (by) armed groups ... is also killing scores of civilians,” he added.
Slideshow (5 Images)
Aleppo has been one of the areas hardest hit by escalating violence in recent months after the collapse of a partial truce brokered by the United States and Russia in February.
Government forces put eastern Aleppo under siege on Sunday for a second time since July after advancing against rebels on the city’s outskirts. The city has long been divided between government and opposition areas of control.
The Syrian conflict has killed more than 250,000 people and forced more than 11 million from their homes. | – The Syrian regime has once again been accused of using poison gas on civilians, this time in an attack on a rebel-held area of Aleppo. Reuters reports that the Syrian Civil Defense rescue group says barrel bombs containing chlorine gas were dropped on the shattered city's Sukkari neighborhood, causing at least 80 people to have severe breathing difficulties. Dozens of children are among the injured, and the rescue group has released disturbing footage showing some of them gasping and wheezing as they're given oxygen masks, CNN reports. "Most of those injured were women and children," a first responder from the rescue group tells the AP. "It is a crowded neighborhood." He says a Syrian government helicopter dropped barrels containing four chlorine cylinders on the neighborhood, and he had to use a mask soaked in salt water to be able to breathe while assisting victims. The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria is already investigating another suspected chlorine gas attack that occurred last month. "Unimaginable crimes are occurring in Aleppo," says Commission Chairman Paulo Pinheiro, per Reuters. "Pro-government aerial bombardments cause mass civilian casualties." (UN aid money ends up going through businesses owned by President Assad's cronies.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.Story highlights Bombing is the latest in a string of chemical attacks on Syrian city
UN investigation found that Syrian Air Force and ISIS have used chemical weapons
This story contains graphic images, including some of child victims.
(CNN) More than 80 people were suffering severe breathing difficulties in Syria's embattled city of Aleppo after another chemical attack Tuesday on a rebel-held neighborhood, said the Syrian Civil Defense, a volunteer rescue group.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the attack, saying that medical sources accused regime warplanes of pounding the Sukkari neighborhood with barrel bombs "laden with poison gas."
This still from a video shows a girl treated at a makeshift hospital after what a rescue group called a chemical attack on her Aleppo neighborhood.
Harrowing footage distributed by the Syrian Civil Defense -- also known as the White Helmets -- shows small children and other victims being rushed to the makeshift Basel Aslan hospital in the arms of rescuers, gasping desperately for air as they are given oxygen masks.
Read More ||||| BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian activists and rescue workers in the rebel-held part of the contested city of Aleppo said that government warplanes dropped suspected chlorine bombs Tuesday on a crowded neighborhood, injuring dozens.
The report could not be independently verified and it was not clear how it was determined that chlorine gas was released.
Accusations involving use of chlorine and other poisonous gases are not uncommon in Syria's civil war, and both sides have denied using them while blaming the other for using it as a weapon of war. Last month, there were at least two reports of suspected chlorine attacks in Aleppo also, while the Syrian government also blamed the opposition for using the gas.
In Tuesday's attack, a medical report from one of the hospitals in the besieged eastern rebel-held part of Aleppo was shared with journalists via text messages. It said at least 71 persons, including 37 children and 10 women, were treated for breathing difficulties, dry cough, and that their clothes smelled of chlorine. The report said 10 of the patients are in critical care, including a pregnant woman.
Ibrahem Alhaj, a member of the Syria Civil Defense first responders' team, said he got to the scene in the crowded al-Sukkari neighborhood shortly after a helicopter dropped barrels containing what he said were four chlorine cylinders. He said he himself had difficulty breathing and used a mask soaked in salt water to prevent irritation.
At least 80 civilians were taken to hospitals and treated for breathing difficulties, he said. A video by the rescuers shows children crying and men coughing.
"Most of those injured where women and children," he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "It is a crowded neighborhood."
The head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 70 people suffered from breathing difficulties after a barrel bomb attack in al-Sukkari on Tuesday. The Observatory's chief, Rami Abdurrahman, said he could not ascertain if it was chlorine gas attack.
Chlorine gas is a crude weapon that can be fatal in high concentrations. In lower doses, it can damage lungs or cause severe breathing difficulties and other symptoms, including vomiting and nausea.
A team of international inspectors determined in late August that the Syrian government and Islamic State militants were responsible for chemical attacks carried out in 2014 and 2015. But the U.N. Security Council failed to agree on whether to impose sanctions on the government in line with a September 2013 resolution authorizing sanctions that can be militarily enforced for any use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The resolution followed Syria's approval of a Russian proposal to relinquish its chemical weapons stockpile and join the Chemical Weapons Convention. That averted a U.S. military strike in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta.
Russia, a close Syrian government ally, has blocked sanctions against President Bashar Assad's government.
Fighting in the deeply contested city of Aleppo has not let up despite international efforts to establish a cease-fire. On Sunday, Syrian pro-government forces backed by airstrikes launched a wide offensive in the city, capturing areas they lost last month and besieging rebel-held neighborhoods once more after a breach in the siege a month earlier.
On Tuesday, a Turkish spokesman said Turkey was pushing for a ceasefire in Aleppo that would extend through the Muslim religious holiday of Eid al-Adha, due to begin Monday. Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke to his U.S. and Russian counterparts during the G20 meeting in China about the ceasefire.
Kalin told private broadcaster NTV Tuesday that the initial plan was for a 48-hour ceasefire.
Erdogan also repeated calls for a safe-zone to be established between the Syrian towns of Azaz and Jarablus in Aleppo province, to protect civilians. Turkey has pushed for a safe zone in Syria since at least 2014.
Turkey sent tanks into Syria last month to support rebel forces against the Islamic State group in the town of Jarablus. It expanded its operation into nearby al-Rai over the weekend.
___
Associated Press Writer Zeynep Bilginsoy in Istanbul contributed to this report. ||||| BEIRUT (Reuters) - A suspected chlorine gas attack on an opposition-held neighborhood in the Syrian city of Aleppo caused dozens of cases of suffocation on Tuesday, rescue workers and a monitoring group said.
The Syrian Civil Defence, a rescue workers’ organization that operates in rebel-held areas, said government helicopters had dropped barrel bombs containing chlorine on the Sukari neighborhood in eastern Aleppo.
The Syrian government has denied previous accusations it used chemical weapons during the five-year-old civil war. The Syrian army could not be immediately reached for comment on the latest allegations.
The Civil Defence said on its Facebook page that 80 people had suffocated. It reported no deaths. It posted a video showing wheezing children doused in water using oxygen masks to breathe.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks Syrian violence using sources on the ground, said medical sources had reported 70 cases of suffocation.
A United Nations and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons inquiry seen by Reuters last month found that Syrian government forces were responsible for two toxic gas attacks in 2014 and 2015 involving chlorine.
The Civil Defence accused the government of two other suspected chlorine gas attacks in August . The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria said it was investigating an August incident.
“Unimaginable crimes are occurring in Aleppo ... pro-government aerial bombardments cause mass civilian casualties,” Commission Chairman Paulo Pinheiro told reporters in Geneva. “In government-held areas, indiscriminate ground shelling (by) armed groups ... is also killing scores of civilians,” he added.
Slideshow (5 Images)
Aleppo has been one of the areas hardest hit by escalating violence in recent months after the collapse of a partial truce brokered by the United States and Russia in February.
Government forces put eastern Aleppo under siege on Sunday for a second time since July after advancing against rebels on the city’s outskirts. The city has long been divided between government and opposition areas of control.
The Syrian conflict has killed more than 250,000 people and forced more than 11 million from their homes. | According to the context, please answer with the summary and highlights. | 20,310 |
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — For many people in the Tri-State area, it’s hard to imagine a repeat of Superstorm Sandy and the flooding that followed, but a new study suggests it could happen again.
From the Jersey Shore to Connecticut, few coastal communities were spared by the floodwaters in 2012, and New York City was no exception.
“It was absolutely horrifying,” Tribeca resident Tara Reilly said. “We had no power, we basically had to evacuate. Having lived through 9/11, being down here again during something traumatic like that was scary.”
A team of researchers created a computer model that predicts the likelihood of other Sandy-like flood events in New York City, and the findings are alarming, CBS2’s Elise Finch reported.
“Events like Hurricane Sandy, which currently occur approximately every 400 years — the frequency that those events will occur may be as much as once every 20 years,” Benjamin Horton, Ph.D., of Rutgers University, said.
Horton said the primary reason for the dramatic increase is rising sea levels.
“Sea levels will rise in the 21st century because we’re increasing our atmospheric temperatures, which are causing our oceans to expand and our ice sheets to melt,” he said. “Quite simply, if you increase atmospheric air temperatures, you increase ocean temperatures.”
“Oceans are the heat sources for hurricanes, so a warmer ocean means more intense hurricanes and also a potential increase in their frequency,” he explained.
Those findings apply to New York City and the entire Tri-State area.
“I had no idea that we could be facing this again, but I hope we don’t,” Bronx resident Frank Bucello said.
“I think we’re in trouble if that’s what they’re speaking of,” Brick resident Rob Severini said. “I lived in Union Beach when the storm hit, I lost where I lived and it was devastating.”
Researchers hope their findings will motivate people to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to both plan and build better coastal protection structures.
The study found that intense storms and flooding could increase anywhere from three to 17 times their current frequency. The increase will be determined by sea-surface temperatures over the next few decades. ||||| Significance This study demonstrates quantitatively that the frequency of Hurricane Sandy-like extreme flood events has increased significantly over the past two centuries and is very likely to increase more sharply over the 21st century, due to the compound effects of sea level rise and storm climatology change.
Abstract Coastal flood hazard varies in response to changes in storm surge climatology and the sea level. Here we combine probabilistic projections of the sea level and storm surge climatology to estimate the temporal evolution of flood hazard. We find that New York City’s flood hazard has increased significantly over the past two centuries and is very likely to increase more sharply over the 21st century. Due to the effect of sea level rise, the return period of Hurricane Sandy’s flood height decreased by a factor of ∼3× from year 1800 to 2000 and is estimated to decrease by a further ∼4.4× from 2000 to 2100 under a moderate-emissions pathway. When potential storm climatology change over the 21st century is also accounted for, Sandy’s return period is estimated to decrease by ∼3× to 17× from 2000 to 2100.
In October of 2012, Hurricane Sandy flooded the US East Coast with extreme storm surges. At the Battery tide gauge in New York City (NYC), the storm surge reached 2.8 m; the storm tide, which includes also the astronomical tide, reached a record height of 3.44 m (the North American Vertical Datum of 1988). Estimating the frequency of Sandy-like flood events, including how it changes over time, provides critical information for coastal risk mitigation and climate adaptation. Previous studies have investigated the frequency of Hurricane Sandy under the historical climate (1⇓⇓–4). In this study, we focus on how the frequency of extreme floods induced by Sandy-like events varies in response to changes in the sea level (5) and storm activity (6, 7) due to climate change. In particular, we investigate (i) the influence of historical sea level rise in shaping the current flood hazard in NYC and (ii) the impact of projected future climate change and sea level rise on Sandy-like flood events.
To compare flood events across time periods, we define the flood height as the peak water level during a storm relative to a baseline mean sea level (e.g., the mean sea level in 2000). Here we focus on the sea level components that vary with the climate and do not account for the effect of astronomical tide. Thus, we calculate the flood height as the sum of the peak storm surge and relative sea level (RSL; relative to the baseline). Then, for a given climate state, the return period (reciprocal of frequency) of floods of different heights can be estimated by combining (i) the storm frequency (assuming that the storms arrive as a Poisson process) and (ii) the cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the flood height, which can be obtained by combining the CDF of the storm surge and the probability distribution function (PDF) of RSL (Methods). In such a framework, we integrate the estimated RSL PDF with modeled storm frequency and storm surge CDF (which, together, describe storm surge climatology) to estimate NYC’s flood return periods from year 1800 to 2100.
We consider storm surges induced by hurricanes/tropical cyclones. (Extratropical cyclones can also induce coastal flooding in NYC (8), although the flood magnitude is often smaller.) We estimate the current and future hurricane surge climatology for NYC following ref. 9, using large numbers of synthetic surge events that are generated with a statistical deterministic hurricane model (10) and a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (11). Specifically, in ref. 9, the NYC surge climatology was estimated for the observed climate of 1981–2000 based on the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis, as well as for the global climate model (GCM) modeled climate of 1981–2000 and projected climate of 2081–2100 (under the A1B emission scenario of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on Emissions Scenarios) based on four GCMs [CNRM-CM3 (Centre National de Recherches Météorologiques, Météo-France), ECHAM5 (Max Planck Institute), GFDL-CM2.0 (NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory), and MIROC3.2 (Center for Climate System Research/National Institute for Environmental Studies/Frontier Research Center for Global Change, Japan)]. The analysis of ref. 9 accounted for the variation of storm track and intensity and their changes with the climate conditions, but it applied a statistical mean storm size. Here, based on recent research on storm size (12, 13), we incorporate the statistical size variation into the analysis (Methods). However, how storm size changes with the climate is still not accounted for, given the limited physical understanding of what controls the storm size (12) and initial numerical evidence that storm size may change little on average over the 21st century climate (14). By comparing the NCEP estimates and GCM estimates for the same period of 1981–2000, ref. 9 bias-corrected the projected storm frequency for 2081–2100, assuming the model bias does not change over the projection period. Here we apply the same assumption and bias-correct the projected storm surge CDF for 2081–2100 through quantile−quantile mapping (15) (Methods). Then, we assume that the NCEP-estimated surge climatology of 1981–2000 represents that of 2000 and the (unbiased) GCM-projected surge climatology of 2081–2100 represents that of 2100, and we estimate the surge climatology for every decade between 2000 and 2100 through linear interpolation. We do not consider potential changes of storm climatology from 1800 to 2000; i.e., in the analysis, the surge climatology between 1800 and 2000 is represented by the NCEP estimates for year 2000.
We set year 2000 to be the baseline (RSL = 0 m). For the future RSL, we use the probabilistic, localized projections of RSL at the Battery generated as part of ref. 16’s global set of RSL projections. The projections are based on combined PDFs for (i) thermal expansion and ocean dynamic changes derived from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (17); (ii) glacier mass balance changes derived from the projections of ref. 18; (iii) ice sheet mass balance based upon a fusion of the expert assessment of ref. 19 and structured expert elicitation of ref. 20; (iv) land water storage estimated as a function of global population; (v) nonclimatic, approximately linear, long-term sea level change due to glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA), subsidence, and other processes, estimated from tide gauge data; and (vi) the static equilibrium fingerprints of sea level change caused by glacier and ice sheet mass fluxes (21). Here we use 10,000 Monte Carlo (MC) samples of the projected RSL time series to estimate the PDF of RSL for the Battery for every decade from 2000 to 2100, under the emissions scenario Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 (roughly comparable to the A1B scenario used for the surge climatology projection; see ref. 22). We note that the thermal expansion, ocean dynamic, and glacier contributions to these RSL projections are based upon a large number of GCMs (given equal weights); given the inherent correlation between storm climatology change and sea level rise (23), future research may develop RSL projections for individual GCMs to be combined with the storm surge projection for the corresponding GCMs.
We apply an estimate of past RSL from 1800 to 2000 for NYC based on a spatiotemporal empirical hierarchical statistical model (24) that incorporates data from (i) the Battery tide gauge (1856 to present with 18 missing or incomplete years); (ii) other, shorter tide gauges in the Northeast US Atlantic coast; (iii) a high-resolution, three-century proxy RSL reconstruction from Barnegat Bay, NJ (25); and (iv) lower-resolution proxy RSL reconstructions from elsewhere in New Jersey (24, 26, 27) (Methods).
Results We integrate the estimated storm surge climatology and RSL to estimate the return periods for various flood heights (0 m to 6 m) for NYC for every decade from 1800 to 2100. Fig. 1 shows the estimated flood return period curves for the years 1800, 2000, and 2100. The return period of a storm surge (also flood height) of 2.8 m, similar to Hurricane Sandy, is 398 y in 2000 (RSL = 0 m). This estimate is lower than the 516-y estimate found in ref. 9, indicating that neglecting the storm size variation can significantly underestimate the surge hazard. As demonstrated by the substantial shift of the flood return period curve, the flood hazard for NYC has increased significantly from 1800 to 2000 and will increase even more sharply to 2100. Considering only the effect of RSL rise, the return period of Sandy’s flood height (2.8 m) is estimated to be ∼1,200 y in 1800 and ∼90 y in 2100. Storm surge climatology change can also significantly affect the flood return periods over the 21st century; when it is accounted for, the estimated return period of Sandy’s flood height in 2100 becomes ∼23 y to 130 y, depending on the applied climate models. The flood height with Sandy’s return period (398 y) is estimated to be about 2.3 m in 1800 and 3.7 m in 2100, considering only the effect of RSL rise. When the change of storm climatology is also accounted for, this flood magnitude becomes about 3.5 m to 4.3 m in 2100. Fig. 1. Return periods of flood heights (relative to the mean sea level of the baseline year 2000) in NYC, estimated for years 1800, 2000, and 2100. The solid blue curve shows the return period of flood heights (also storm surges as RSL = 0 m) for year 2000, estimated based on NCEP reanalysis. Other solid curves show the return period of flood heights for 2100, based on the projected RSL distributions and surge climatology projected by the various climate models(CNRM-CM3, GFDL-CM2.0, ECHAM5, and MIROC3.2). The dashed blue curve shows the return period of flood heights for 2100 based on the projected RSL of 2100 and the NCEP surge climatology (of 2000, neglecting the change of surge climatology from the baseline). The dash-dotted blue curve shows the return period of flood heights for 1800 based on the estimated RSL of 1800 and the NCEP surge climatology (of 2000, neglecting the change of surge climatology). The blue shading shows the 90% confidence interval of the 2000 NCEP curve (the statistical confidence interval for the other curves is similar). The red dashed lines highlight Sandy’s flood height of 2.8 m (horizontal) and Sandy’s estimated return period in 2000 of 398 y (vertical). To better demonstrate the temporal evolution of the frequency and magnitude of Sandy’s flood in NYC, we display time series of the estimated return period for Sandy’s flood height (2.8 m) and flood height with Sandy’s estimated return period (398 y) from 1800 to 2100, along with the estimated/projected RSL (Fig. 2). Between 1800 and 2000, RSL in NYC rose by 50 ± 8 cm. During this same interval, global mean sea level rose by about 13 cm to 18 cm [14 cm in the 20th century and −1 cm to +4 cm in the 19th century, depending upon modeling assumptions (24)]. About half of the RSL rise in NYC was due to GIA [about 1.3 mm/y to 1.5 mm/y, or 26 cm to 30 cm total (24, 25)]. The remainder of the difference between NYC and global sea level likely reflects ocean dynamics. Under RCP 4.5, RSL rise in NYC over the course of the 21st century will likely (67% probability) be between 0.5 m and 1.0 m and will very likely (90% probability) be between 0.4 m and 1.2 m, with a “worst case” (1-in-1,000 probability) rise of 2.6 m (16). The projected RSL rise in NYC is higher than the projected global mean sea level rise (likely 0.5 m to 0.8 m under RCP 4.5) because of the combined effects of (i) GIA, (ii) potential changes in ocean dynamics (likely −5 cm to +23 cm over the 21st century under RCP 4.5), and (iii) increased sensitivity of RSL rise in NYC to mass loss from Antarctica (by about a factor of 20% for the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and 4% for the East Antarctic Ice Sheet). However, NYC experiences a less-than-global rise due to mass loss from Greenland (by about 60%) and glaciers (by about 40%) (16). Because of the accelerating rise in RSL, NYC’s flood hazard will increase more significantly over the 21st century than over the past two centuries. This effect of RSL rise may, again, be further intensified by the change of surge climatology, although relatively large uncertainty exists in the storm climatology projections by the GCMs [largely due to their very different projections of the storm frequency (9)]. Fig. 2. Estimated temporal evolution of Sandy’s return period and flood height and of RSL from year 1800 to 2100 (relative to the sea level of the baseline year 2000). (Top) Return period of Sandy’s flood height of 2.8 m. (Middle) Flood height with Sandy’s estimated return period of 398 y (in 2000). As in Fig. 1, solid curves show the estimates accounting for the change in both RSL and surge climatology, and dashed and dash-dotted blue curves show the estimates accounting for only the change in RSL. (Bottom) Estimated past and projected future RSL (black solid curve, mean; shading, 5% to 95% quantile range). Annual mean sea level observed at the Battery tide gauge is shown by the green curve, and the proxy reconstruction from Barnegat Bay is represented by the red rectangles, showing 2σ vertical and geochronological uncertainties.
Discussion The results of this analysis demonstrate how dramatically the frequency and magnitude of NYC’s extreme floods may increase over time, due to the compound effects of sea level rise and storm climatology change. The absolute value of the return period of extreme surges like Sandy (i.e., about 400 y), however, may be overestimated, because the physically based hurricane modeling (necessary for analyzing the impact of climate change) does not account for the effect of extratropical transition. With Hurricane Sandy as a pronounced example, a significant portion of tropical cyclones moving into high latitudes of the US Atlantic coast undergo extratropical transition (28); improved understanding of extratropical transition and its impact on surge hazard warrants future research. At least two well-documented hurricane strikes in NYC in the late 18th and early 19th centuries (1788 and 1821) (29, 30) likely resulted in storm surges similar to or greater than that of Hurricane Sandy. Moreover, based on a sediment record of coastal inundation events in the region (2), a series of coarse-grained flood-induced event beds were deposited over the last 350 y (Fig. 3). Absolute maximum water levels cannot be directly estimated from these storm deposits, but at least six of these event beds are coarser than the event bed associated with Hurricane Sandy, which suggests that these events had more energetic currents and/or waves capable of transporting coarser material. The combination of historical archives and geological proxies (see also ref. 30) points toward higher probabilities of extreme coastal flooding in NYC compared with estimates derived from physical modeling as in this study and from instrumental water level records (3). Fig. 3. Maximum grain size of event beds from Seguine Pond, Staten Island. D90 is the grain size (in millimeters) where 90% of the grains are finer. Likely storms responsible for each event bed are noted. Labels in black are historically documented hurricanes, and labels in gray are extratropical storms. (In some cases, definitive attribution is difficult because multiple events occur close together in time and, given age model uncertainties, more than one storm is a plausible candidate.) Six of the event deposits from the late 17th to 20th centuries are coarser than the deposit associated with Hurricane Sandy (dashed line). Data were obtained from the proxy record of ref. 2. Estimating the return period of extreme flood events is challenging, and the process of risk analysis requires continuous updates wherein improved modeling and new data inform frequency estimates. Also, large uncertainties exist in GCM projections on both future storm activity and RSL rise, as shown in this study; future research should examine the GCMs on their capability to accurately project the key atmospheric and ocean variables that control hurricane activity and sea level dynamics. Ultimately, proxy storm records that span centuries to millennia, over various climate states, may provide critical information for evaluating model projections of both the frequency of extreme floods (31, 32) and how they change with the climate (33).
Methods We apply the nine storm datasets generated by ref. 9 for NYC. The nine datasets were generated for the 1981–2000 climate estimated by NCEP reanalysis and the 1981–2000 and 2081–2100 climates estimated by each of the four GCMs. Each dataset includes 5,000 storms that pass within 200 km of the Battery with maximum wind speed greater than 21 m/s, with estimated annual frequency. These storms were generated with a statistical deterministic approach (10), which models the storm track and intensity deterministically given the storm environmental conditions, which in turn were simulated or sampled based on statistics. The model also estimates the storm radius of maximum wind deterministically, given an externally supplied storm outer radius (storm size). In ref. 9, the observed basin mean storm size was applied to all storms. In this study, we account for the variation of the storm size. For each storm, we sample the storm size from a statistical log-normal distribution (12) for the Atlantic basin and assume it is constant over the lifecycle of the storm [as it is observed not to change much over the storm lifetime (13)]. Then, we apply a recently developed theoretical wind model (13) that connects inner ascending and outer descending regions of the storm to estimate the radius of maximum wind from the storm outer size and intensity. With the updated storm characteristics, we use the same method as described in ref. 9 to estimate the storm surface wind and pressure to drive the storm surge simulation using a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (11). The hydrodynamic modeling has been validated by previous studies (8, 9) and is relatively accurate (error < 10%) in simulating historical NYC surge events, including Hurricanes Irene and Sandy. It does not resolve relatively small factors such as wave setup, riverine flow, and stratification (34), as these conditions are either not defined for synthetic storms or too computationally demanding to incorporate for this case involving 45,000 simulations. Also, the current coastline and bathymetry are applied for the end-of-the-century simulations, and we focus on the first-order impact of climate change and sea level rise; future study may also investigate the effect of the long-term changes of the shoreline and estuaries (35). Based on the simulated storm surge peaks at the Battery, we perform statistical analysis on each dataset. To obtain the storm surge CDF, we apply the peaks-over-threshold method to model the tail of the distribution with a generalized Pareto distribution, using the maximum likelihood method, and we model the rest of the distribution with nonparametric density estimation, as described in ref. 9. The statistical confidence intervals of the estimated return levels (estimated using the Delta Method as in ref. 9) are similar across the datasets and are relatively small, as very large numbers of numerical samples are applied. Climate model projections can be biased, and thus they should be bias-corrected before applications. In particular, the GCM projected surge climatology should be unbiased before being combined with RSL distributions to estimate flood hazards. We bias-correct the storm frequency and storm surge CDF separately. We consider the storm frequency and storm surge CDF estimates based on the NCEP reanalysis to be accurate for the 1981–2000 climate. We unbias the GCM-projected storm frequency by multiplying it with a correction factor, which is simply the ratio of the NCEP-estimated frequency and GCM-estimated frequency for the 1981–2000 climate. We unbias the storm surge CDF through quantile−quantile mapping (15): The GCM-estimated surge CDF for the 1981–2000 climate is first matched with the NCEP-estimated surge CDF, generating a correction function depending on the quantile, which is then used to unbias the GCM-projected surge CDF for the 2081–2100 climate quantile by quantile. The unbiased storm surge climatology is then interpolated over time and combined with RSL estimates to investigate the evolution of the flood hazard. The RSL estimates are 19-y running averages (16), and thus, here, we neglect the interannual variation of the sea level. Many previous studies (9, 36) have considered deterministic RSL estimates (e.g., 1 m or the 90th percentile). Here we incorporate the uncertainty in RSL estimates. We neglect the relatively small nonlinear interaction between the surge and RSL at the Battery (9, 36) and estimate the flood height (Hf) as the sum of surge (H) and RSL (S). The CDF of the flood height is then obtained simply through a convolution operation over the CDF of the surge and the PDF of RSL P { H f ≤ h } = P { H + S ≤ h } = ∫ − ∞ ∞ P { H ≤ h − s } f S ( s ) d s . [1] Then, assuming that, under a given climate, the storms arrive as a stationary Poisson process with the rate as the annual storm frequency λ, we estimate the (mean) return period of (storms with) floods exceeding level h as T ¯ H f ( h ) = 1 λ ( 1 − P { H f ≤ h } ) . [2] We perform this analysis for every 10-y time point between 1800 and 2100 to obtain the time-varying flood height return periods. The PDF of RSL for each decade over 2000–2100 is obtained simply through kernel density estimation using the 10,000 MC samples generated by ref. 16. To reconstruct past RSL over 1800–2000, we apply a spatiotemporal empirical hierarchical model developed by ref. 24. In this model, the sea level field is viewed as the sum of a time-varying, spatially uniform term g(t), a spatially varying, temporally linear term l(x)(t-t 0 ), and a temporally and spatially varying term m(x,t) f ( x , t ) = g ( t ) + l ( x ) ( t − t 0 ) + m ( x , t ) . [3] Individual observations y i are modeled as noisy observations of f(x,t) y i = f ( x i , t i ) + w ( x i , t i ) + y 0 ( x i ) + ε i y , [4] t i = t ^ i + ε i t , [5] where x i is the spatial location of observation i, t i is its age, w ( x i , t i ) is a white noise process that captures sea level variability at a subdecadal level (which we treat here as noise), t ^ i is the mean observed age, ε i t and ε i y are errors in the age and sea level observations, and y 0 ( x i ) is a site-specific datum offset. The terms g, l, m, w, and y 0 have mean zero Gaussian process priors with Matérn covariance functions. The covariance functions are characterized by hyperparameters reflecting prior expectations about the amplitude, spatial scale, and temporal scales of variability, which we set using a maximum likelihood method. To apply the model to the New York and New Jersey region, we use the high-resolution (1σ errors of approximately ±3 cm) Barnegat Bay, NJ, proxy record of ref. 25; the Common Era NJ proxy database of ref. 24, which has a lower resolution (approximately ±10 cm or more) but provides more extensive spatial coverage; and tide gauge data from the Battery, from Sandy Hook, Atlantic City, and Cape May, NJ, from Philadelphia, PA, from Lewes, DE, from Willets Point, Long Island, and from Bridgeport, CT. Results shown in the paper are for the site of the Battery tide gauge, and the PDF of RSL at each time point is Gaussian. The effect of astronomical tide can be significant for flood risk, and it should be investigated in future research. This effect may be incorporated through applying joint probability analysis on the surge and tidal distributions (9) and accounting for the effects of surge-tide nonlinearity (9) and surge duration (4). If the tidal effect is included, Sandy’s return period based on its storm tide level (3.44 m) will be significantly longer than the return period estimated here based on its storm surge level (2.8 m), because Sandy’s surge peak at the Battery happened very unusually on the abnormal high tide. However, the tidal effect will not change with the climate, and thus the trend of flood frequency change will be similar.
Acknowledgments We thank Kerry Emanuel, Stefan Talke, Niamh Cahill, and an anonymous reviewer for their valuable comments. N.L. was supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) Grants OCE-1313867 and EAR-1520683; R.E.K. was supported by NSF Grant ARC-1203415, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Grant NA14OAR4170085, and the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium; B.P.H. was supported by NSF Grant OCE-1458904; B.P.H. and R.E.K. were supported by the Community Foundation of New Jersey and David and Arlene McGlade. B.P.H. and J.P.D. were supported by NOAA Grant NA11OAR4310101. This paper is a contribution to The New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), to PALSEA2 (Palaeo-Constraints on Sea-Level Rise), which is a working group of Past Global Changes/IMAGES (International Marine Past Global Change Study) and an International Focus Group of the International Union for Quaternary Research, and to International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) Project 639, “Sea Level Change from Minutes to Millennia.”
Footnotes Author contributions: N.L., B.P.H., and J.P.D. designed research; N.L. and R.E.K. performed research; N.L. analyzed data; and N.L., R.E.K., B.P.H., and J.P.D. wrote the paper.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.
Data deposition: The data reported in this paper have been deposited at arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dsp01fn107142z.
Freely available online through the PNAS open access option. ||||| New York City can expect 9-foot floods, as intense as that produced by 2012's Superstorm Sandy, at least three times more frequently over the next century - and possibly as much as 17 times more frequently, according to a paper published today by scientists at Rutgers University, Princeton University and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
The paper was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The study is based on a combination of historical data and computer model projections performed by Ning Lin of Princeton University, Benjamin Horton and Robert Kopp of Rutgers University, and Jeff Donnelly of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The historical data consist of tidal gauge records taken from New York City, going back to 1856, and geological records from the same area going back two millennia. The model projections consist of Kopp's work on future sea-level models; Lin's work on future storm intensity; and the work of Horton, Kopp and Donnelly on historical sea levels and storm surges.
The scientists ask the question: How frequent will floods like that produced by Sandy be in the future? Earlier research led by Andra Reed, now a postdoctoral scholar at Rutgers, had shown a 20-fold increase in the frequency of extreme floods, primarily as a result of sea-level rise, between the historic period from 850 to 1850 and the late 20th century.
The historic sea-level rise was largely due to natural effects, like the slow sinking of the land in the mid-Atlantic region in response to the end of the last ice age; but over the late 20th century, human-caused climate change came to dominate sea-level rise.
In the paper published today, the authors report that floods as intense as Sandy's would have occurred about once every 400 years on average under the sea-level rise conditions of the year 2000, but that over the 21st century are expected to be about four times more probable due to an acceleration in the rate of sea-level rise.
"The grand answer is that things are going to get worse by 2100," says Horton, who is professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. "If nothing changes with hurricanes, sea-level rise alone will increase the frequency of Sandy-like events by 2100."
But the size, intensity, and tracks of hurricanes may change. In the paper, Princeton's Lin combined historical climate data and modeling of future climate conditions and storm surges. She found that these changes may lead to a more modest three-fold increase in flood probability, but may also break badly against New York City, making Sandy's flood 17 times more probable.
"As we refine climate and hurricane dynamic models, we will have more accurate predictions that will allow planners to better design flood mitigation strategies," said Lin, the study's lead author.
The study built upon past work by Kopp, professor of earth and planetary sciences in the School of Arts and Sciences, estimating sea levels over the 21st century. "We ask, 'What is likely?' and 'What are the extremes?'" Kopp said. "We take into account factors that cause local sea level to vary from global sea level. And we've shown, through geological investigations, that our projections are consistent with the assumption that temperature and sea level will be related in the future as they have been over the past two thousand years."
Projections are not predictions and, Horton says, the spread between what's "likely" and "extreme" is an indication of the complexity of future projection. "Things are only going to get worse by 2100," Horton says. "It's just a question of how much worse it will get. There is no happy scenario."
### | – More grim news from researchers using computer model projections and historical data to predict future weather changes. Scientists at Rutgers University, Princeton University, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are reporting in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that, based on the accelerated rate of climate change in recent years, intense floods like the one caused by Hurricane Sandy will be at least three times more likely by the year 2100 as they are today, and that they could break particularly badly against New York City, making it up to 17 times as likely to experience such a flood by the year 2100. "The grand answer is that things are going to get worse by 2100," one researcher says in a press release. "It's just a question of how much worse it will get. There is no happy scenario." Previous research has shown that, using historical patterns in the millennium between 850 and 1850 compared to the late 20th century, there has been a 20-fold increase in the frequency of extreme floods, largely due to rising sea levels. Now researchers report that while historic sea-level rise was largely due to natural events such as gradual land sinking following the Ice Age, the recent rise is due in large part to human-caused climate change and will make superstorms more common. Area residents tells CBS Local that Sandy was "absolutely horrifying" and "devastating," and the researchers warn that such storms, expected once every 400 years in the year 2000, are likely to jump as high as once every 20 years by the year 2100. (Here's the big worry Hurricane Matthew left in its wake.) | null | You are a helpful assistant named xDAN-Agent,excellent in reading and summary. Heres the context you need to read and summary.NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — For many people in the Tri-State area, it’s hard to imagine a repeat of Superstorm Sandy and the flooding that followed, but a new study suggests it could happen again.
From the Jersey Shore to Connecticut, few coastal communities were spared by the floodwaters in 2012, and New York City was no exception.
“It was absolutely horrifying,” Tribeca resident Tara Reilly said. “We had no power, we basically had to evacuate. Having lived through 9/11, being down here again during something traumatic like that was scary.”
A team of researchers created a computer model that predicts the likelihood of other Sandy-like flood events in New York City, and the findings are alarming, CBS2’s Elise Finch reported.
“Events like Hurricane Sandy, which currently occur approximately every 400 years — the frequency that those events will occur may be as much as once every 20 years,” Benjamin Horton, Ph.D., of Rutgers University, said.
Horton said the primary reason for the dramatic increase is rising sea levels.
“Sea levels will rise in the 21st century because we’re increasing our atmospheric temperatures, which are causing our oceans to expand and our ice sheets to melt,” he said. “Quite simply, if you increase atmospheric air temperatures, you increase ocean temperatures.”
“Oceans are the heat sources for hurricanes, so a warmer ocean means more intense hurricanes and also a potential increase in their frequency,” he explained.
Those findings apply to New York City and the entire Tri-State area.
“I had no idea that we could be facing this again, but I hope we don’t,” Bronx resident Frank Bucello said.
“I think we’re in trouble if that’s what they’re speaking of,” Brick resident Rob Severini said. “I lived in Union Beach when the storm hit, I lost where I lived and it was devastating.”
Researchers hope their findings will motivate people to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to both plan and build better coastal protection structures.
The study found that intense storms and flooding could increase anywhere from three to 17 times their current frequency. The increase will be determined by sea-surface temperatures over the next few decades. ||||| Significance This study demonstrates quantitatively that the frequency of Hurricane Sandy-like extreme flood events has increased significantly over the past two centuries and is very likely to increase more sharply over the 21st century, due to the compound effects of sea level rise and storm climatology change.
Abstract Coastal flood hazard varies in response to changes in storm surge climatology and the sea level. Here we combine probabilistic projections of the sea level and storm surge climatology to estimate the temporal evolution of flood hazard. We find that New York City’s flood hazard has increased significantly over the past two centuries and is very likely to increase more sharply over the 21st century. Due to the effect of sea level rise, the return period of Hurricane Sandy’s flood height decreased by a factor of ∼3× from year 1800 to 2000 and is estimated to decrease by a further ∼4.4× from 2000 to 2100 under a moderate-emissions pathway. When potential storm climatology change over the 21st century is also accounted for, Sandy’s return period is estimated to decrease by ∼3× to 17× from 2000 to 2100.
In October of 2012, Hurricane Sandy flooded the US East Coast with extreme storm surges. At the Battery tide gauge in New York City (NYC), the storm surge reached 2.8 m; the storm tide, which includes also the astronomical tide, reached a record height of 3.44 m (the North American Vertical Datum of 1988). Estimating the frequency of Sandy-like flood events, including how it changes over time, provides critical information for coastal risk mitigation and climate adaptation. Previous studies have investigated the frequency of Hurricane Sandy under the historical climate (1⇓⇓–4). In this study, we focus on how the frequency of extreme floods induced by Sandy-like events varies in response to changes in the sea level (5) and storm activity (6, 7) due to climate change. In particular, we investigate (i) the influence of historical sea level rise in shaping the current flood hazard in NYC and (ii) the impact of projected future climate change and sea level rise on Sandy-like flood events.
To compare flood events across time periods, we define the flood height as the peak water level during a storm relative to a baseline mean sea level (e.g., the mean sea level in 2000). Here we focus on the sea level components that vary with the climate and do not account for the effect of astronomical tide. Thus, we calculate the flood height as the sum of the peak storm surge and relative sea level (RSL; relative to the baseline). Then, for a given climate state, the return period (reciprocal of frequency) of floods of different heights can be estimated by combining (i) the storm frequency (assuming that the storms arrive as a Poisson process) and (ii) the cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the flood height, which can be obtained by combining the CDF of the storm surge and the probability distribution function (PDF) of RSL (Methods). In such a framework, we integrate the estimated RSL PDF with modeled storm frequency and storm surge CDF (which, together, describe storm surge climatology) to estimate NYC’s flood return periods from year 1800 to 2100.
We consider storm surges induced by hurricanes/tropical cyclones. (Extratropical cyclones can also induce coastal flooding in NYC (8), although the flood magnitude is often smaller.) We estimate the current and future hurricane surge climatology for NYC following ref. 9, using large numbers of synthetic surge events that are generated with a statistical deterministic hurricane model (10) and a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (11). Specifically, in ref. 9, the NYC surge climatology was estimated for the observed climate of 1981–2000 based on the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis, as well as for the global climate model (GCM) modeled climate of 1981–2000 and projected climate of 2081–2100 (under the A1B emission scenario of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on Emissions Scenarios) based on four GCMs [CNRM-CM3 (Centre National de Recherches Météorologiques, Météo-France), ECHAM5 (Max Planck Institute), GFDL-CM2.0 (NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory), and MIROC3.2 (Center for Climate System Research/National Institute for Environmental Studies/Frontier Research Center for Global Change, Japan)]. The analysis of ref. 9 accounted for the variation of storm track and intensity and their changes with the climate conditions, but it applied a statistical mean storm size. Here, based on recent research on storm size (12, 13), we incorporate the statistical size variation into the analysis (Methods). However, how storm size changes with the climate is still not accounted for, given the limited physical understanding of what controls the storm size (12) and initial numerical evidence that storm size may change little on average over the 21st century climate (14). By comparing the NCEP estimates and GCM estimates for the same period of 1981–2000, ref. 9 bias-corrected the projected storm frequency for 2081–2100, assuming the model bias does not change over the projection period. Here we apply the same assumption and bias-correct the projected storm surge CDF for 2081–2100 through quantile−quantile mapping (15) (Methods). Then, we assume that the NCEP-estimated surge climatology of 1981–2000 represents that of 2000 and the (unbiased) GCM-projected surge climatology of 2081–2100 represents that of 2100, and we estimate the surge climatology for every decade between 2000 and 2100 through linear interpolation. We do not consider potential changes of storm climatology from 1800 to 2000; i.e., in the analysis, the surge climatology between 1800 and 2000 is represented by the NCEP estimates for year 2000.
We set year 2000 to be the baseline (RSL = 0 m). For the future RSL, we use the probabilistic, localized projections of RSL at the Battery generated as part of ref. 16’s global set of RSL projections. The projections are based on combined PDFs for (i) thermal expansion and ocean dynamic changes derived from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (17); (ii) glacier mass balance changes derived from the projections of ref. 18; (iii) ice sheet mass balance based upon a fusion of the expert assessment of ref. 19 and structured expert elicitation of ref. 20; (iv) land water storage estimated as a function of global population; (v) nonclimatic, approximately linear, long-term sea level change due to glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA), subsidence, and other processes, estimated from tide gauge data; and (vi) the static equilibrium fingerprints of sea level change caused by glacier and ice sheet mass fluxes (21). Here we use 10,000 Monte Carlo (MC) samples of the projected RSL time series to estimate the PDF of RSL for the Battery for every decade from 2000 to 2100, under the emissions scenario Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 (roughly comparable to the A1B scenario used for the surge climatology projection; see ref. 22). We note that the thermal expansion, ocean dynamic, and glacier contributions to these RSL projections are based upon a large number of GCMs (given equal weights); given the inherent correlation between storm climatology change and sea level rise (23), future research may develop RSL projections for individual GCMs to be combined with the storm surge projection for the corresponding GCMs.
We apply an estimate of past RSL from 1800 to 2000 for NYC based on a spatiotemporal empirical hierarchical statistical model (24) that incorporates data from (i) the Battery tide gauge (1856 to present with 18 missing or incomplete years); (ii) other, shorter tide gauges in the Northeast US Atlantic coast; (iii) a high-resolution, three-century proxy RSL reconstruction from Barnegat Bay, NJ (25); and (iv) lower-resolution proxy RSL reconstructions from elsewhere in New Jersey (24, 26, 27) (Methods).
Results We integrate the estimated storm surge climatology and RSL to estimate the return periods for various flood heights (0 m to 6 m) for NYC for every decade from 1800 to 2100. Fig. 1 shows the estimated flood return period curves for the years 1800, 2000, and 2100. The return period of a storm surge (also flood height) of 2.8 m, similar to Hurricane Sandy, is 398 y in 2000 (RSL = 0 m). This estimate is lower than the 516-y estimate found in ref. 9, indicating that neglecting the storm size variation can significantly underestimate the surge hazard. As demonstrated by the substantial shift of the flood return period curve, the flood hazard for NYC has increased significantly from 1800 to 2000 and will increase even more sharply to 2100. Considering only the effect of RSL rise, the return period of Sandy’s flood height (2.8 m) is estimated to be ∼1,200 y in 1800 and ∼90 y in 2100. Storm surge climatology change can also significantly affect the flood return periods over the 21st century; when it is accounted for, the estimated return period of Sandy’s flood height in 2100 becomes ∼23 y to 130 y, depending on the applied climate models. The flood height with Sandy’s return period (398 y) is estimated to be about 2.3 m in 1800 and 3.7 m in 2100, considering only the effect of RSL rise. When the change of storm climatology is also accounted for, this flood magnitude becomes about 3.5 m to 4.3 m in 2100. Fig. 1. Return periods of flood heights (relative to the mean sea level of the baseline year 2000) in NYC, estimated for years 1800, 2000, and 2100. The solid blue curve shows the return period of flood heights (also storm surges as RSL = 0 m) for year 2000, estimated based on NCEP reanalysis. Other solid curves show the return period of flood heights for 2100, based on the projected RSL distributions and surge climatology projected by the various climate models(CNRM-CM3, GFDL-CM2.0, ECHAM5, and MIROC3.2). The dashed blue curve shows the return period of flood heights for 2100 based on the projected RSL of 2100 and the NCEP surge climatology (of 2000, neglecting the change of surge climatology from the baseline). The dash-dotted blue curve shows the return period of flood heights for 1800 based on the estimated RSL of 1800 and the NCEP surge climatology (of 2000, neglecting the change of surge climatology). The blue shading shows the 90% confidence interval of the 2000 NCEP curve (the statistical confidence interval for the other curves is similar). The red dashed lines highlight Sandy’s flood height of 2.8 m (horizontal) and Sandy’s estimated return period in 2000 of 398 y (vertical). To better demonstrate the temporal evolution of the frequency and magnitude of Sandy’s flood in NYC, we display time series of the estimated return period for Sandy’s flood height (2.8 m) and flood height with Sandy’s estimated return period (398 y) from 1800 to 2100, along with the estimated/projected RSL (Fig. 2). Between 1800 and 2000, RSL in NYC rose by 50 ± 8 cm. During this same interval, global mean sea level rose by about 13 cm to 18 cm [14 cm in the 20th century and −1 cm to +4 cm in the 19th century, depending upon modeling assumptions (24)]. About half of the RSL rise in NYC was due to GIA [about 1.3 mm/y to 1.5 mm/y, or 26 cm to 30 cm total (24, 25)]. The remainder of the difference between NYC and global sea level likely reflects ocean dynamics. Under RCP 4.5, RSL rise in NYC over the course of the 21st century will likely (67% probability) be between 0.5 m and 1.0 m and will very likely (90% probability) be between 0.4 m and 1.2 m, with a “worst case” (1-in-1,000 probability) rise of 2.6 m (16). The projected RSL rise in NYC is higher than the projected global mean sea level rise (likely 0.5 m to 0.8 m under RCP 4.5) because of the combined effects of (i) GIA, (ii) potential changes in ocean dynamics (likely −5 cm to +23 cm over the 21st century under RCP 4.5), and (iii) increased sensitivity of RSL rise in NYC to mass loss from Antarctica (by about a factor of 20% for the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and 4% for the East Antarctic Ice Sheet). However, NYC experiences a less-than-global rise due to mass loss from Greenland (by about 60%) and glaciers (by about 40%) (16). Because of the accelerating rise in RSL, NYC’s flood hazard will increase more significantly over the 21st century than over the past two centuries. This effect of RSL rise may, again, be further intensified by the change of surge climatology, although relatively large uncertainty exists in the storm climatology projections by the GCMs [largely due to their very different projections of the storm frequency (9)]. Fig. 2. Estimated temporal evolution of Sandy’s return period and flood height and of RSL from year 1800 to 2100 (relative to the sea level of the baseline year 2000). (Top) Return period of Sandy’s flood height of 2.8 m. (Middle) Flood height with Sandy’s estimated return period of 398 y (in 2000). As in Fig. 1, solid curves show the estimates accounting for the change in both RSL and surge climatology, and dashed and dash-dotted blue curves show the estimates accounting for only the change in RSL. (Bottom) Estimated past and projected future RSL (black solid curve, mean; shading, 5% to 95% quantile range). Annual mean sea level observed at the Battery tide gauge is shown by the green curve, and the proxy reconstruction from Barnegat Bay is represented by the red rectangles, showing 2σ vertical and geochronological uncertainties.
Discussion The results of this analysis demonstrate how dramatically the frequency and magnitude of NYC’s extreme floods may increase over time, due to the compound effects of sea level rise and storm climatology change. The absolute value of the return period of extreme surges like Sandy (i.e., about 400 y), however, may be overestimated, because the physically based hurricane modeling (necessary for analyzing the impact of climate change) does not account for the effect of extratropical transition. With Hurricane Sandy as a pronounced example, a significant portion of tropical cyclones moving into high latitudes of the US Atlantic coast undergo extratropical transition (28); improved understanding of extratropical transition and its impact on surge hazard warrants future research. At least two well-documented hurricane strikes in NYC in the late 18th and early 19th centuries (1788 and 1821) (29, 30) likely resulted in storm surges similar to or greater than that of Hurricane Sandy. Moreover, based on a sediment record of coastal inundation events in the region (2), a series of coarse-grained flood-induced event beds were deposited over the last 350 y (Fig. 3). Absolute maximum water levels cannot be directly estimated from these storm deposits, but at least six of these event beds are coarser than the event bed associated with Hurricane Sandy, which suggests that these events had more energetic currents and/or waves capable of transporting coarser material. The combination of historical archives and geological proxies (see also ref. 30) points toward higher probabilities of extreme coastal flooding in NYC compared with estimates derived from physical modeling as in this study and from instrumental water level records (3). Fig. 3. Maximum grain size of event beds from Seguine Pond, Staten Island. D90 is the grain size (in millimeters) where 90% of the grains are finer. Likely storms responsible for each event bed are noted. Labels in black are historically documented hurricanes, and labels in gray are extratropical storms. (In some cases, definitive attribution is difficult because multiple events occur close together in time and, given age model uncertainties, more than one storm is a plausible candidate.) Six of the event deposits from the late 17th to 20th centuries are coarser than the deposit associated with Hurricane Sandy (dashed line). Data were obtained from the proxy record of ref. 2. Estimating the return period of extreme flood events is challenging, and the process of risk analysis requires continuous updates wherein improved modeling and new data inform frequency estimates. Also, large uncertainties exist in GCM projections on both future storm activity and RSL rise, as shown in this study; future research should examine the GCMs on their capability to accurately project the key atmospheric and ocean variables that control hurricane activity and sea level dynamics. Ultimately, proxy storm records that span centuries to millennia, over various climate states, may provide critical information for evaluating model projections of both the frequency of extreme floods (31, 32) and how they change with the climate (33).
Methods We apply the nine storm datasets generated by ref. 9 for NYC. The nine datasets were generated for the 1981–2000 climate estimated by NCEP reanalysis and the 1981–2000 and 2081–2100 climates estimated by each of the four GCMs. Each dataset includes 5,000 storms that pass within 200 km of the Battery with maximum wind speed greater than 21 m/s, with estimated annual frequency. These storms were generated with a statistical deterministic approach (10), which models the storm track and intensity deterministically given the storm environmental conditions, which in turn were simulated or sampled based on statistics. The model also estimates the storm radius of maximum wind deterministically, given an externally supplied storm outer radius (storm size). In ref. 9, the observed basin mean storm size was applied to all storms. In this study, we account for the variation of the storm size. For each storm, we sample the storm size from a statistical log-normal distribution (12) for the Atlantic basin and assume it is constant over the lifecycle of the storm [as it is observed not to change much over the storm lifetime (13)]. Then, we apply a recently developed theoretical wind model (13) that connects inner ascending and outer descending regions of the storm to estimate the radius of maximum wind from the storm outer size and intensity. With the updated storm characteristics, we use the same method as described in ref. 9 to estimate the storm surface wind and pressure to drive the storm surge simulation using a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (11). The hydrodynamic modeling has been validated by previous studies (8, 9) and is relatively accurate (error < 10%) in simulating historical NYC surge events, including Hurricanes Irene and Sandy. It does not resolve relatively small factors such as wave setup, riverine flow, and stratification (34), as these conditions are either not defined for synthetic storms or too computationally demanding to incorporate for this case involving 45,000 simulations. Also, the current coastline and bathymetry are applied for the end-of-the-century simulations, and we focus on the first-order impact of climate change and sea level rise; future study may also investigate the effect of the long-term changes of the shoreline and estuaries (35). Based on the simulated storm surge peaks at the Battery, we perform statistical analysis on each dataset. To obtain the storm surge CDF, we apply the peaks-over-threshold method to model the tail of the distribution with a generalized Pareto distribution, using the maximum likelihood method, and we model the rest of the distribution with nonparametric density estimation, as described in ref. 9. The statistical confidence intervals of the estimated return levels (estimated using the Delta Method as in ref. 9) are similar across the datasets and are relatively small, as very large numbers of numerical samples are applied. Climate model projections can be biased, and thus they should be bias-corrected before applications. In particular, the GCM projected surge climatology should be unbiased before being combined with RSL distributions to estimate flood hazards. We bias-correct the storm frequency and storm surge CDF separately. We consider the storm frequency and storm surge CDF estimates based on the NCEP reanalysis to be accurate for the 1981–2000 climate. We unbias the GCM-projected storm frequency by multiplying it with a correction factor, which is simply the ratio of the NCEP-estimated frequency and GCM-estimated frequency for the 1981–2000 climate. We unbias the storm surge CDF through quantile−quantile mapping (15): The GCM-estimated surge CDF for the 1981–2000 climate is first matched with the NCEP-estimated surge CDF, generating a correction function depending on the quantile, which is then used to unbias the GCM-projected surge CDF for the 2081–2100 climate quantile by quantile. The unbiased storm surge climatology is then interpolated over time and combined with RSL estimates to investigate the evolution of the flood hazard. The RSL estimates are 19-y running averages (16), and thus, here, we neglect the interannual variation of the sea level. Many previous studies (9, 36) have considered deterministic RSL estimates (e.g., 1 m or the 90th percentile). Here we incorporate the uncertainty in RSL estimates. We neglect the relatively small nonlinear interaction between the surge and RSL at the Battery (9, 36) and estimate the flood height (Hf) as the sum of surge (H) and RSL (S). The CDF of the flood height is then obtained simply through a convolution operation over the CDF of the surge and the PDF of RSL P { H f ≤ h } = P { H + S ≤ h } = ∫ − ∞ ∞ P { H ≤ h − s } f S ( s ) d s . [1] Then, assuming that, under a given climate, the storms arrive as a stationary Poisson process with the rate as the annual storm frequency λ, we estimate the (mean) return period of (storms with) floods exceeding level h as T ¯ H f ( h ) = 1 λ ( 1 − P { H f ≤ h } ) . [2] We perform this analysis for every 10-y time point between 1800 and 2100 to obtain the time-varying flood height return periods. The PDF of RSL for each decade over 2000–2100 is obtained simply through kernel density estimation using the 10,000 MC samples generated by ref. 16. To reconstruct past RSL over 1800–2000, we apply a spatiotemporal empirical hierarchical model developed by ref. 24. In this model, the sea level field is viewed as the sum of a time-varying, spatially uniform term g(t), a spatially varying, temporally linear term l(x)(t-t 0 ), and a temporally and spatially varying term m(x,t) f ( x , t ) = g ( t ) + l ( x ) ( t − t 0 ) + m ( x , t ) . [3] Individual observations y i are modeled as noisy observations of f(x,t) y i = f ( x i , t i ) + w ( x i , t i ) + y 0 ( x i ) + ε i y , [4] t i = t ^ i + ε i t , [5] where x i is the spatial location of observation i, t i is its age, w ( x i , t i ) is a white noise process that captures sea level variability at a subdecadal level (which we treat here as noise), t ^ i is the mean observed age, ε i t and ε i y are errors in the age and sea level observations, and y 0 ( x i ) is a site-specific datum offset. The terms g, l, m, w, and y 0 have mean zero Gaussian process priors with Matérn covariance functions. The covariance functions are characterized by hyperparameters reflecting prior expectations about the amplitude, spatial scale, and temporal scales of variability, which we set using a maximum likelihood method. To apply the model to the New York and New Jersey region, we use the high-resolution (1σ errors of approximately ±3 cm) Barnegat Bay, NJ, proxy record of ref. 25; the Common Era NJ proxy database of ref. 24, which has a lower resolution (approximately ±10 cm or more) but provides more extensive spatial coverage; and tide gauge data from the Battery, from Sandy Hook, Atlantic City, and Cape May, NJ, from Philadelphia, PA, from Lewes, DE, from Willets Point, Long Island, and from Bridgeport, CT. Results shown in the paper are for the site of the Battery tide gauge, and the PDF of RSL at each time point is Gaussian. The effect of astronomical tide can be significant for flood risk, and it should be investigated in future research. This effect may be incorporated through applying joint probability analysis on the surge and tidal distributions (9) and accounting for the effects of surge-tide nonlinearity (9) and surge duration (4). If the tidal effect is included, Sandy’s return period based on its storm tide level (3.44 m) will be significantly longer than the return period estimated here based on its storm surge level (2.8 m), because Sandy’s surge peak at the Battery happened very unusually on the abnormal high tide. However, the tidal effect will not change with the climate, and thus the trend of flood frequency change will be similar.
Acknowledgments We thank Kerry Emanuel, Stefan Talke, Niamh Cahill, and an anonymous reviewer for their valuable comments. N.L. was supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) Grants OCE-1313867 and EAR-1520683; R.E.K. was supported by NSF Grant ARC-1203415, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Grant NA14OAR4170085, and the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium; B.P.H. was supported by NSF Grant OCE-1458904; B.P.H. and R.E.K. were supported by the Community Foundation of New Jersey and David and Arlene McGlade. B.P.H. and J.P.D. were supported by NOAA Grant NA11OAR4310101. This paper is a contribution to The New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), to PALSEA2 (Palaeo-Constraints on Sea-Level Rise), which is a working group of Past Global Changes/IMAGES (International Marine Past Global Change Study) and an International Focus Group of the International Union for Quaternary Research, and to International Geoscience Programme (IGCP) Project 639, “Sea Level Change from Minutes to Millennia.”
Footnotes Author contributions: N.L., B.P.H., and J.P.D. designed research; N.L. and R.E.K. performed research; N.L. analyzed data; and N.L., R.E.K., B.P.H., and J.P.D. wrote the paper.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.
Data deposition: The data reported in this paper have been deposited at arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dsp01fn107142z.
Freely available online through the PNAS open access option. ||||| New York City can expect 9-foot floods, as intense as that produced by 2012's Superstorm Sandy, at least three times more frequently over the next century - and possibly as much as 17 times more frequently, according to a paper published today by scientists at Rutgers University, Princeton University and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
The paper was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The study is based on a combination of historical data and computer model projections performed by Ning Lin of Princeton University, Benjamin Horton and Robert Kopp of Rutgers University, and Jeff Donnelly of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The historical data consist of tidal gauge records taken from New York City, going back to 1856, and geological records from the same area going back two millennia. The model projections consist of Kopp's work on future sea-level models; Lin's work on future storm intensity; and the work of Horton, Kopp and Donnelly on historical sea levels and storm surges.
The scientists ask the question: How frequent will floods like that produced by Sandy be in the future? Earlier research led by Andra Reed, now a postdoctoral scholar at Rutgers, had shown a 20-fold increase in the frequency of extreme floods, primarily as a result of sea-level rise, between the historic period from 850 to 1850 and the late 20th century.
The historic sea-level rise was largely due to natural effects, like the slow sinking of the land in the mid-Atlantic region in response to the end of the last ice age; but over the late 20th century, human-caused climate change came to dominate sea-level rise.
In the paper published today, the authors report that floods as intense as Sandy's would have occurred about once every 400 years on average under the sea-level rise conditions of the year 2000, but that over the 21st century are expected to be about four times more probable due to an acceleration in the rate of sea-level rise.
"The grand answer is that things are going to get worse by 2100," says Horton, who is professor of Marine and Coastal Sciences in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. "If nothing changes with hurricanes, sea-level rise alone will increase the frequency of Sandy-like events by 2100."
But the size, intensity, and tracks of hurricanes may change. In the paper, Princeton's Lin combined historical climate data and modeling of future climate conditions and storm surges. She found that these changes may lead to a more modest three-fold increase in flood probability, but may also break badly against New York City, making Sandy's flood 17 times more probable.
"As we refine climate and hurricane dynamic models, we will have more accurate predictions that will allow planners to better design flood mitigation strategies," said Lin, the study's lead author.
The study built upon past work by Kopp, professor of earth and planetary sciences in the School of Arts and Sciences, estimating sea levels over the 21st century. "We ask, 'What is likely?' and 'What are the extremes?'" Kopp said. "We take into account factors that cause local sea level to vary from global sea level. And we've shown, through geological investigations, that our projections are consistent with the assumption that temperature and sea level will be related in the future as they have been over the past two thousand years."
Projections are not predictions and, Horton says, the spread between what's "likely" and "extreme" is an indication of the complexity of future projection. "Things are only going to get worse by 2100," Horton says. "It's just a question of how much worse it will get. There is no happy scenario."
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