Current Event Archive
Posted March 12, 2019
USWNT Lawsuit: What We Know and What It Means Going Forward
March 9, 2019
Graham Hays
espnW.com
With a little more than three months until the U.S. plays its opening game in the FIFA Women's World Cup, 28 members of the current U.S. women's national team player pool joined in a federal lawsuit filed Friday against U.S. Soccer alleging gender discrimination.
Here is what we know and don't know so far.
The lawsuit
Of the current USWNT player pool, 28 team members were named as plaintiffs in the case filed in United States District Court in Los Angeles, and they are seeking class-action status over "institutionalized gender discrimination" toward the team. The lawsuit was filed under the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
The plaintiffs are seeking equitable pay and treatment, in addition to damages including back pay. Among complaints about wages, the lawsuit also notes issues with where and how often the women's team played, medical treatment and coaching. The class-action request would allow any players for the team since February 2015 to join the case.
A look at a few of the total 41 complaints included in the 25-page filing:
• The lawsuit claims that from March 2013 through Dec. 31, 2016, when the previous collective bargaining agreement expired, players on the women's team could make a maximum salary of $72,000, plus bonuses for winning non-tournament games as well as World Cup appearances and victories, and for Olympic placement.
• A comparison of the WNT and MNT pay shows that if each team played 20 friendlies in a year and each team won all 20 friendlies, female WNT players would earn a maximum of $99,000 or $4,950 per game, while similarly situated male MNT players would earn an average of $263,320 or $13,166 per game against the various levels of competition they would face. The lawsuit further cites the women's three World Cup titles, four Olympic gold medals and the 2015 World Cup title game being the most-watched soccer match in American television history. The USWNT has also been ranked No. 1 in the world for 10 of the past 11 years.
• The lawsuit also references the "revenue-sharing model" the U.S. Women's National Team Players Association (USWNTPA) pitched as part of a new collective bargaining agreement, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2017, and runs through 2021. At the time, the pitch was meant to challenge U.S. Soccer's assessment that "market realities do not justify equal pay." Friday's filing states: "Under this model, player compensation would increase in years in which the USSF derived more revenue from WNT activities and player compensation would be less if revenue from those activities decreased. This showed the players' willingness to share in the risk and reward of the economic success of the WNT."
The USWNTPA released a statement Friday noting it is not party to the lawsuit; the players are acting on their own. It said it supports their goal of "eliminating gender-based discrimination by USSF" but will continue to do so through the collective bargaining process.
U.S. Soccer declined to comment to ESPN on the new lawsuit.
How did we get here?
This is a new chapter in what is already a long story. Female players have for years argued they deserve the same compensation, treatment and working conditions as their male counterparts, as the issue has come to a head on multiple fronts since the 2015 World Cup.
In March 2016, Carli Lloyd, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn and Hope Solo filed a complaint (officially called a charge) with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a federal agency that can investigate and mediate allegations of discrimination but lacks the power to enforce rulings or enact penalties. Represented by the law firm of Winston & Strawn and attorney Jeffrey Kessler, the same attorney directing the current lawsuit, the five high-profile players alleged, among other things, that the women's national team members were paid almost four times less than the men in 2015 despite generating significantly more revenue that year.
At the same time, the USWNTPA continued to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement with U.S. Soccer. The two sides had operated with a memorandum of understanding after the previous CBA expired at the end of 2012. Prior to the EEOC charge, U.S. Soccer filed a lawsuit against the USWNTPA in February 2016, alleging players did not have the right to strike under that memorandum. A judge ruled in the federation's favor later that year, based on provisions in the previous CBA.
In April 2017, the two sides ratified the new CBA, which includes increased direct and bonus compensation and equality with the men in areas like per diem rates, but the ratification did not negate or affect the open EEOC charge.
According to the current lawsuit, Lloyd, Morgan, Rapinoe and Sauerbrunn received right-to-sue letters from the EEOC last month, a necessary step under federal law to take Friday's action. No longer a part of the active player pool, Solo is not part of the current lawsuit. Her separate complaint against U.S. Soccer was dismissed by the United Stated Olympic Committee last summer, when an arbitration panel ruled she failed to sufficiently pursue remedies within the U.S. Soccer structure.
Kevin Betz, managing partner of Betz+Blevins, an Indianapolis-based employment law firm, said plaintiffs have 90 days upon receipt of the right-to-sue letter to initiate a lawsuit.
"The EEOC probably put a lot of resources and effort into trying to get it solved and investigating it, you would think, because it involves such a long-standing feud that we all know about in the sports world and in the civil rights world," Betz explained to ESPN. "So the EEOC probably put a good amount of effort into it, and held it for a while in its investigatory stage and finally said, 'Look, we can't get anything else done. You've got to go pursue your lawsuit or not.'"
So, while announcing the lawsuit on International Women's Day certainly suggests an intention to make a splash, it is less a dramatic escalation than another incremental step in a process that has long seen players trying to leverage their platform to affect change.
"I understand the gravity and the weight of it, of filing a lawsuit," Rapinoe told ESPN. "In that sense, it is a step up. But I also feel very much it's just another step in the process. This has been a long process--honestly, a decades-long process for all the players that came before.
"For us, we just feel this is the next necessary step in our fight toward equality, equal pay, working conditions, all of that. I know it's a big to-do, it doesn't necessarily feel like that [to players], but I do understand how important it is and what it means."
Why are the players doing this?
Members of the U.S. women's national team are already some of the best compensated and most famous female team sports athletes in the world. And that's why they will tell you they feel compelled to take these stands.
"This team, we're kind of a visible team--people watch us play and know our names," Becky Sauerbrunn said on Tuesday at the end of the SheBelieves Cup. "So I think it's important that we kind of take that on, and we show that we are empowered women and that we will fight for things that we believe in, like pay equity.
"It's a heavy responsibility, but it's one that we gladly take on. And it's something we're going to keep trying to push and push and push until we feel that everything is equal. That's far away from here, but that's what we're fighting toward."
The issues are complicated. The law is complicated. The numbers are complicated, even more so because of FIFA's role in the financial disparity for events like the World Cup. Rapinoe said her perception is that public support for equal pay has been overwhelming since the current generation of players made the issue a cornerstone of their social activism. To that end, the lawsuit contains a class action component that includes not just the 28 named plaintiffs, but anyone who played for the national team on or after Feb. 4, 2015, four days before the team's first game that year.
"So I can imagine the public is sometimes like, 'What the hell is this? We don't understand,'" Rapinoe said. "We feel like that at times as well. But I think in general it's very simple. We want to be treated equally. We want to be supported equally. We want to feel we are valued and cared for in the same way that men are--and just really in the way we deserve, period."
At the very least, they want to make their case in the justice system.
What does the lawsuit mean for the Women's World Cup that begins June 7 in Paris?
It likely doesn't mean much on the field in the short term--the U.S. players are focused on the World Cup. Rapinoe said the fact that it is a World Cup year "wasn't a driving factor" in the timing of the lawsuit; if anything, it placed more pressure on the American players.
"At the end of the day, we're professionals," Rapinoe said. "We want to win more than anybody else wants us to win. So when it comes time to lock in, I feel like this team is exceptional at compartmentalizing and blocking out distractions and doing everything we need to prepare to be the best team we can be in June."
But the team with the highest profile in the tournament will spend a lot more time answering questions about something other than whether it can win back-to-back titles for the first time in its history.
Labor unrest has already played a part in this summer's tournament. Euro finalist Denmark's bid was seriously affected by its players' decision to forfeit a qualifier while seeking equal pay. But it sounds like U.S. players will wait out the legal system while continuing to play as usual.
"My understanding is these things take a long time," Rapinoe said of the expected timeline of the suit. "I guess it could reach a settlement and that would be much quicker. But I think that generally these things take a long time, and this is sort of the first step. And then we want to be solely focused on the World Cup and performing at the World Cup and hopefully winning another World Cup. That would be our focus there, and then we'll pick it up as need be after."
What athletes are saying
Other USWNT players who are part of the suit released statements Friday via The Levinson Group, which is responsible for communications for the plaintiffs:
Carli Lloyd, co-captain of the USWNT: "In light of our team's unparalleled success on the field, it's a shame that we still are fighting for treatment that reflects our achievements and contributions to the sport. We have made progress in narrowing the gender pay gap, however progress does not mean that we will stop working to realize our legal rights and make equality a reality for our sport."
Alex Morgan, co-captain of the USWNT: "Each of us is extremely proud to wear the United States jersey, and we also take seriously the responsibility that comes with that. We believe that fighting for gender equality in sports is a part of that responsibility. As players, we deserved to be paid equally for our work, regardless of our gender."
Christen Press, USWNT forward: "We have worked very hard with the USSF, including the Federation's new leadership, to make progress on these incredibly important gender equality issues. We appreciate and agree with Carlos Cordeiro's public statements that more should be done. Despite this progress, the fact is that the pay disparity and unequal working conditions persists. We believe that we have a responsibility to act as role models. Fighting for what we legally deserve is a part of that."
Becky Sauerbrunn, USWNT defender: "The bottom line is simple: it is wrong for us to be paid and valued less for our work because of our gender. Every member of this team works incredibly hard to achieve the success that we have had for the USSF. We are standing up now so that our efforts, and those of future USWNT players, will be fairly recognized."
The U.S. National Soccer Team Players Association (USNSTPA), the union that represents the U.S. men's national team players, also released a statement in support of the plaintiffs:
"The United States National Soccer Team Players Association fully supports the efforts of the US Women's National Team Players to achieve equal pay. Specifically, we are committed to the concept of a revenue-sharing model to address the US Soccer Federation's 'market realities' and find a way towards fair compensation. An equal division of revenue attributable to the MNT and WNT programs is our primary pursuit as we engage with the US Soccer Federation in collective bargaining. Our collective bargaining agreement expired at the end of 2018 and we have already raised an equal division of attributable revenue. We wait on US Soccer to respond to both players associations with a way to move forward with fair and equal compensation for all US soccer players."
Tennis star Serena Williams, who has fought for pay equality in her own sport, was asked what her message would be to the USWNT.
"I know that the pay discrepancy [in soccer] is ludicrous," Williams said after her second-round win against Victoria Azarenka on Friday at the BNP Paribas Open. "It's a battle. It's a fight. You know, we have had some incredible pioneers in our sport that stood up in the '70s and said, 'We're going to get paid what the men get paid.' They stood up way back then. I think, at some point, in every sport, you have to have those pioneers, and maybe it's the time for soccer. I'm playing because someone else stood up, and so what they are doing right now is hopefully for the future of women's soccer."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Explain two specific complaints the players offered in their most recent lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation.
- What previous steps have been taken by these athletes to fight for gender equality in their sport?
- Summarize what the athletes are saying about the lawsuit and what their thoughts are on the discrimination they are facing.
- What is U.S. Soccer's position on why women's soccer players are paid less than their male counterparts? Is it justified?
- Using the statements provided by the U.S. National Soccer Team Players Association and tennis star Serena Williams, describe how the actions of the women's soccer players could have lasting effects on not just the future of their sport but on other athletes around the world.
- As a student, have you ever experienced discrimination or know someone who has experienced discrimination in an extracurricular activity? How was it handled? Is there anything you would do differently?
Click here to view more: www.espn.com/espnw/sports/article/26196105/uswnt-files-lawsuit-us-soccer-federation-means-women-world-cup
Posted March 5, 2019
SpaceX Dragon Capsule Successfully Docks with ISS
March 4, 2019
Ivan Couronne
Phys.org
The demonstration mission of SpaceX's new Crew Dragon capsule successfully docked Sunday on the International Space Station, passing a key test before it can begin taking US astronauts into space.
The docking of the capsule, which has only a dummy on board, was concluded at 1051 GMT, nearly 250 miles (400 kilometers) over the surface of the Earth, NASA and SpaceX confirmed during a live broadcast of the mission.
A little over two hours later, the space station's three crew members--American Anne McClain, Canadian David Saint-Jacques and Russian Oleg Kononenko--opened the hatch of the space capsule and, for the first time, penetrated its interior in space.
There they found the dummy, Ripley, strapped to a seat, and an untethered plush toy in the form of the blue planet, which SpaceX had jokingly placed there as a "super high-tech zero-g indicator."
"Welcome to the new era in spaceflight," McClain said from inside Dragon.
Saint-Jacques tweeted about the experience monitoring Crew Dragon's "first-ever approach and docking" to the space station, hailing it as "the dawn of a new era in human spaceflight!"
NASA chief Jim Bridenstine tweeted his congratulations on "this historic achievement," which brings the United States a big step closer to its goal of again flying astronauts into space on American rockets.
NASA has relied on Russia to ferry its astronauts to the space station since the end of the US space shuttle program in 2011 after a 30-year run.
The capsule, also called Dragon or Dragon 2, approached the space station very gradually, carefully synchronizing its speed and trajectory.
Contact appeared to be made very slowly, but in actuality both spacecraft were orbiting the Earth at more than 27,000 kilometers per hour.
From blast-off at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday to contact Sunday, the flight took 27 hours. Dragon will detach itself from the space station next Friday and splash down in the Atlantic Ocean, its descent slowed by four parachutes.
The mission is a dress rehearsal, without anyone on board, for Dragon's first manned mission, which should take place this year. The test run sought to demonstrate that the vehicle is reliable and safe, so that NASA can resume manned flights from US soil this year.
'NASA 'rocking' again'
Founded by billionaire Elon Musk, SpaceX has made the trip to the ISS a dozen times since 2012, but only to bring cargo to the station.
Transporting people is a more complex task, requiring seats, a pressurized cabin with breathable air, temperature regulation and emergency escape systems.
In 2014, the US space agency awarded contracts to SpaceX and Boeing to take over the task of ferrying astronauts to the space station. In SpaceX's case, NASA has agreed to pay $2.6 billion for six round trips.
The switch from NASA owning spacecraft to paying private firms for a service was initiated under former president Barack Obama--but due to development delays, has come to fruition under US President Donald Trump.
"We've got NASA 'rocking' again. Great activity and success. Congrats to SPACEX and all!" Trump tweeted Saturday evening.
Return to the Moon
Since 2017, one of NASA's official missions has been to return to the Moon. Congress has been generous with the space agency, providing overall funding of $21.5 billion in the 2019 budget.
Bridenstine has explained that NASA wants to reduce costs in low orbit to devote resources to getting back to the Moon and assembling a small space station in lunar orbit in the 2020s.
"As a country, we're looking forward to being one customer of many customers, in a robust commercial marketplace in low Earth orbit, so that we can drive down costs and increase access in ways that historically have not been possible," he said Saturday following Dragon's launch.
But Musk has admitted that marketing travel in the Dragon capsule is not a priority--and he is more interested in distant exploration of the solar system.
At the post-launch press conference on Saturday, he reiterated his dream for a permanent Moon base--and sending people to Mars.
Musk has already locked in his first private customer to fly around the Moon: Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa. But it won't happen before 2023 at the earliest--with the rocket, far more powerful than that used for the Dragon mission, still in development.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What year did the U.S. space shuttle program end? How long did it run?
- Why is Dragon "the dawn of a new era in human spaceflight"? Compare and contrast NASA chief Jim Bridenstine's and SpaceX founder Elon Musk's goals as stated in the article.
- NASA states that one of its official missions is to return to the moon. When was the first time humans set foot on the moon?
- In 1962, President John F. Kennedy stated that we Americans "choose to go to the moon." How does SpaceX compare to the 1960s Space Race? What was the driving force behind the Space Race? Which countries were involved? Which countries were involved in the Dragon launch, and what are their goals?
Click here to view more: phys.org/news/2019-03-spacex-dragon-capsule-successfully-docks.html
Posted February 26, 2019
Drafting Only Men for the Military Is Unconstitutional, Judge Rules
February 24, 2019
By Tyler Pager
The New York Times
A military draft that applies only to men is unconstitutional, a federal judge in Houston has ruled, saying that excluding women is no longer justified because they can now serve in combat roles just as men do.
Judge Gray H. Miller of Federal District Court in the Southern District of Texas took note of the Supreme Court's 1981 ruling that the exclusion of women from the draft was "fully justified" because women then were not allowed to serve in combat. But the Pentagon abolished those restrictions in 2015, opening the way for women to serve in any military role for which they could qualify.
"While historical restrictions on women in the military may have justified past discrimination, men and women are now 'similarly situated for purposes of a draft or registration for a draft,'" Judge Miller wrote in his ruling. "If there ever was a time to discuss 'the place of women in the Armed Services,' that time has passed."
Though no one has been conscripted into the United States military in more than 40 years, the Military Selective Service Act requires all American men to register when they turn 18, in case a draft is reinstated; they remain eligible through age 25. Men who do not register can be fined, imprisoned and denied services like federal student loans.
The ruling came in a case brought by the National Coalition for Men, a men's rights group, which argued that drafting men exclusively violates the 14th Amendment's equal-protection clause.
Kate Germano, a retired Marine who served for 20 years, said on Sunday that the ruling was a natural progression from the lifting of the ban on women in combat roles.
"It would be an advantage to the country, and also for men, who have bore the preponderance of the burden since the draft was established," Ms. Germano said of registering women. Noting that women make up slightly more than half the adult population, she said, "Why not leverage all of the talent pool?"
David R. Segal, the founding director of the Center for Research on Military Organization at the University of Maryland, said he supports retaining draft registration, and that as a matter of equality, both men and women should be part of it.
"Since registration for selective service is one of the indicators of citizenship, I think we should at least say publicly that women and men have the same rights and responsibilities of citizenship," said Mr. Segal, who has been studying military organization for more than 50 years.
The men's rights group that brought the suit welcomed the ruling. "We think it's about time since women are allowed in combat," Marc E. Angelucci, a lawyer for the National Coalition for Men, said. "If we have draft registration, both sexes should have to register. There's really no more excuse to require only men to register."
The Pentagon declined to comment on Sunday.
Judge Miller's ruling was declaratory, and it did not specify any action that the government must take to comply.
The ruling comes at a time when an advisory panel, the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service, is studying the draft system, considering whether it should continue and whether women should be included.
"Personally, I don't think we will remain with the status quo," Joe Heck, the chairman of the commission, told USA Today in January. "But where we end up on the spectrum is yet to be determined."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- When was the last time the draft was enacted? For what purpose?
- What are the penalties for not enlisting in the draft? Do you think this is fair? Why or why not?
- In what year were women first allowed to serve in combat roles? Explain how this and the ruling by Judge Miller affect equal rights.
- The article states that the National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service is studying whether the draft should continue. What do you think? Is the draft necessary? Should it be mandatory for men and women to enlist? Explain your reasoning.
Click here to view more: www.nytimes.com/2019/02/24/us/military-draft-men-unconstitutional.html
Posted February 19, 2019
What happens when the president declares a national emergency
Jennifer Ortakales and Katya Kupelian
Feb. 15, 2019, 5:51 PM
• President Trump declared a national emergency on February 15, 2019. This gives him special powers, which he says will help him fund a wall along the US-Mexico border.
• The President can declare a national emergency if the nation is ""threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances,"" according to the Congressional Research Service.
• This would be the 32nd active national emergency in the US, since the National Emergencies Act was enacted in 1976.
Following is a transcript of the video.
President Trump declared a national emergency on February 15, 2019.
Trump: ""We're going to be signing... today... and registering... national emergency... and it''s a great thing to do.""
This gives Trump special powers, which he says will help him fund a wall along the US-Mexico border.
This would be the 32nd active national emergency in the US.
But what is a national emergency and how does it give the President more power?
The National Emergencies Act was enacted in 1976.
It empowers the President to take on special, temporary powers during a crisis.
The President can declare a national emergency if the nation is ""threatened by crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances.""
Declaring a national emergency isn''t limited to military or war situations.
The President must make a formal declaration and specify what authority will be used.
For example, Trump plans to allocate military programming money to fund construction for a border wall.
Once the President declares a national emergency, many legal limits on his authority are lifted.
The President has 136 emergency powers, delegated by Congress...
13 of those require a declaration from Congress, but the rest do not require Congressional input.
Some of these powers allow the President to...
• Seize property
• Assign military forces abroad
• Institute martial law
• Restrict travel
• And, in a variety of ways, control the lives of American citizens.
But there are still limits....
Both Congress and the Supreme Court may modify, limit, or revoke the President''s special powers, specifically if they deem his actions unconstitutional.
Trump''s recent national emergency declaration is expected to face major hurdles from Congress and the courts.
National emergencies expire after a year, unless the President renews them by notifying Congress. Congress is also required to meet every six months to review each active state of emergency.
Other presidents who have declared national emergency...
The oldest national emergency still active today was declared by Jimmy Carter in November 1979.
He ordered all government property from Iran to be blocked from entering the US.
In September 2001, George W. Bush declared a national emergency against terrorism after the 9/11 attacks. This allowed him and succeeding presidents broad military powers.
In April 2015, Barack Obama declared a national emergency to block malicious cyber-threats from entering the US.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is a national emergency? Why might a president declare one? What powers does the president have during a national emergency?
- When was the first national emergency enacted and why? Cite another instance when a president enacted a national emergency and the reason for it.
- Who can limit the president's powers during a national emergency and how?
- President Trump said he expects to face legal challenges after declaring the national emergency. Why might someone want to pursue legal actions in this instance? What makes the president's declaration so controversial? What do you think?
Click here to view more: www.businessinsider.com/president-declare-national-emergency-what-happens-2019-2
Posted February 12, 2019
Haile Selassie: Why the African Union put up a statue
BBC News
February 10, 2019
A statue of Ethiopia's last emperor has been unveiled outside the African Union's headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The likeness of Haile Selassie is being given pride of place outside the $200m (£154m) building in recognition for his role in establishing its predecessor, the Organization of African Unity (OAU).
But that might not be the first thing that springs to mind on hearing the name Haile Selassie. The name is perhaps more easily connected with Jamaican singer Bob Marley and Rastafarians.
So who exactly is Haile Selassie, and how did he come to be worshipped as a god by people living thousands of miles away?
First things first: why is he getting a statue?
Haile Selassie was more than 30 years into his reign when he helped establish the OAU. Its first meeting, in May 1963, was held in Addis Ababa.
Ethiopia--which has never been colonised although it was subjected to a five-year military occupation by Mussolini's Italy--had served as a symbol of African independence throughout the colonial period.
Now other countries were finally gaining independence, and this was a chance to bring nations together to fight against colonisation and white minority rule while also co-ordinating efforts to raise living standards and defend their sovereignty.
"May this convention of union last 1,000 years," Haile Selassie, who spent a year preparing the city for the meeting, told the gathered delegates.
As it happened, the OAU ceased to exist in its original form in 2002, replaced by the African Union (AU).
But his role in establishing the union has not been forgotten, and the statue is a way for the AU to recognise Haile Selassie's contribution.
So, how exactly did he come to be seen as a god?
It all comes down to his coronation in 1930, and a "prophecy" made by a Jamaican black rights campaigner, Marcus Garvey, a decade earlier.
Garvey had told his followers in 1920 they should "look to Africa, when a black king shall be crowned, for the day of deliverance is at hand".
So, when a black man called Ras Tafari was crowned in Ethiopia, many saw that as a sign the prophecy had come true.
In East Africa, Ras Tafari ("chief" Tafari) became Haile Selassie ("power of the trinity"). Almost 8,000 miles away in the West Indies, Haile Selassie became God (or Jah) incarnate--the redeeming messiah--and Ethiopia, the promised land.
In short, the Rastafari movement was born.
Did Haile Selassie believe it himself? Well, he certainly didn't try to dispel the belief when he visited Jamaica in 1966. The emperor was greeted by thousands, desperate to get a glimpse of their god. Among the devotees was the wife of a young Reggae musician, Bob Marley, who was away in the US.
Rita Marley would later describe how she saw nail marks on Haile Selassie's palm as he waved at her. It was a moment of religious awakening, and when her husband returned, they embraced the belief.
Three years earlier, Rastafarians had begun to move to Ethiopia and a piece of land Haile Selassie had put aside for black people from the West in 1948. After the visit, the numbers grew larger. Today, the community numbers about 300 people.
But followers were presented with a conundrum after Haile Selassie died in 1975, a year after he was deposed in a Marxist revolution. After all, gods cannot die.
This was resolved after it was argued Haile Selassie's body was just his earthly body.
Also, it should be noted, Garvey was never a believer. In fact, he was a critic of Haile Selassie.
What was he really like?
Opinion is still split over whether Haile Selassie was good for Ethiopia or not.
A Human Rights Watch report accuses him of acting with "official indifference" to famines in various regions of the country and attempting to conceal the famine of 1972-75, in which an estimated 200,000 people died.
He is also known to have violently cracked down on people who opposed him during his reign.
Marcus Garvey was unimpressed after he fled Ethiopia in 1936 following the invasion of Benito Mussolini's troops a year earlier, describing Haile Selassie as a "coward" and calling him out for "the terrors of slavery". The practice was not outlawed in Ethiopia until 1942.
Academic Yohannes Woldemariam has gone as far as to argue that Haile Selassie should be remembered as a dictator. Indeed, he created a constitution which placed all power in his hands and those of his [descendants].
Many Eritreans also loathe him, pointing out their country was annexed by Ethiopia under Haile [Selassie]'s rule in 1962, giving impetus to an independence struggle which finally ended in 1993.
But Haile [Selassie]'s supporters argue he was a great leader and moderniser, who was one of the first African leaders to become a figure on the global stage.
His appeal to the League of Nations after his country was invaded is still remembered today--not least because it forms the basis of Bob Marley's 1976 song, War.
And--as the AU's statue to him reminds people--he was a great advocate for pan-African cooperation, leaving a lasting legacy that continues to have an effect on millions of people across the continent today.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Who is Haile Selassie? Why is he being memorialized with a statue?
- Who is Marcus Garvey? What did he predict? How does this prediction relate to Selassie?
- What did Garvey and Yohannes Woldemariam say about Selassie? How do others remember Selassie?
- What is Rastafarianism? Record what you Know, what you Want to know, and what you have Learned so far.
Click here to view more: www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47172020
Posted February 05, 2019
Anger and sadness as African Americans in Virginia consider Northam's fate
By Laura Meckler
The Washington Post
February 3 at 6:20 PM
The questions engulfing Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam shook and angered African Americans across the state as they considered on Sunday how tightly Virginia--the capital of the Confederacy, a center of the slave trade--remains tied to its racist past.
Many said Northam must resign after a photo on his page of a medical school yearbook came to light showing two men, one in blackface and a second in a Ku Klux Klan uniform. Others called for mercy, saying no man should be judged by a single moment.
In conversations at churches, salons and coffee shops, African Americans disagreed about whether Northam must resign, but all voiced a sense of betrayal. In public office, Northam worked to expand Medicaid, the health program that serves the poor, and he helped to restore voting rights for felons, a policy that helps many black men. Many in the black community saw him as an ally, and as one of the good guys.
"It's a real slap in the face. You pretend to be my friend, and you're really not," said Thomas Parham Jr., as he arrived for worship Sunday at the historic Alfred Street Baptist Church in Old Town Alexandria. It's one thing, he said, to encounter a racist public official. It's almost worse when it's someone perceived to be an ally. "I'd rather know where you stand."
Asked if he voted for Northam, Parham said, "Yes, unfortunately."
If Northam resigns, it would mark a new and unexpected twist in Virginia's long and troubled history with race. Northam would be replaced by Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, an African American Democrat who is the great-great-great-grandson of a slave, and who held a copy of the paper that in 1798 freed his ancestor, tucked into his coat pocket, on the day he was inaugurated.
Fairfax, a 39-year-old attorney first elected in 2017, may be best known for his silent protests, stepping off his spot on the dais in the state Senate during the annual tribute to Confederate leaders.
"It's almost a historic benediction," said Cornell William Brooks, a longtime Virginian, professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and former chief executive of the NAACP. "To have someone who is a descendant of the people who were maligned and demeaned and dehumanized by those pictures ascend to the office would be a historic benediction--good words at the end of a very bad story."
Brooks was one of many African American leaders across the state calling on Northam to resign. Others included black lawmakers, activists and leaders of several NAACP chapters.
"Do I think these pictures reflect who he is today? Absolutely not," said Joshua Cole, the president of the Stafford County NAACP, who is running for the House of Delegates this year. "If that was him back then, do I think he's changed? Of course. But I think these pictures do put a stain on him as a governor. I think it would be best for us as a commonwealth and party for him to move aside and step down."
Among churchgoers in Alexandria, the feelings were mixed.
"I don't think an apology is good enough," said Stedmen Washington, 29, of Alexandria. He said that the photo was shocking, that Northam should have known it would be blatantly offensive and that he should resign.
"This happened in the '80s? That's not that long ago," said Merrick Williamson of Manassas. "If you don't stand up when things happen, it's going to happen again."
His sister-in-law, Vivia Charles, said that on Saturday, at the salon she owns in Woodbridge, many women argued that one mistake should not necessarily end the governor's career.
"Your life is more than a moment," she said. "All of us agreed we don't want to be judged by one thing they did. We have to look at their body of evidence."
"If you want a second chance, give a second chance," agreed Ruth Lawhorn of Fairfax. "That's mercy and compassion."
On Friday, when the photo became public, Northam apologized for appearing in it. But on Saturday, he held a nationally televised news conference in which he insisted that he was not in the photo, and that he believed there was a mix-up during production that caused someone else's image to appear on his yearbook page.
Jerrold Lattimore, 63, a schoolteacher and onetime Richmond resident, said Northam's actions were clearly wrong, and he is troubled by the governor's changing story.
But Lattimore said that as a Christian he is called on to forgive, and he wants to look at the sweep of Northam's life, not just this one photo. "To be honest, he's been a good governor," he said.
Others seemed exhausted by the entire matter.
"I don't have emotion to be angry anymore," said Damian Scott, 28, of Alexandria. "Just another day in America."
Northam said Saturday that he wanted to remain in office and use the opportunity to force an honest, public discussion about race relations, hoping that it could help move his state forward.
The nation's sorrowful history of race relations is particularly acute in Virginia, where 400 years ago the first ship of slaves arrived to what was then known as Point Comfort. In August, Northam visited the grave where descendants of the first slave born here are believed to be buried.
In the 1800s, Virginia became a center of the domestic slave trade. One of the commonwealth's most important and celebrated leaders, President Thomas Jefferson, was a slave holder whose 1781 book, "Notes on the State of Virginia," concluded: "The blacks... are inferior to the whites in the endowments both of body and mind."
After the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that schools be desegregated, Virginia employed a strategy of "massive resistance" and outright refused to allow black and white children to be schooled together.
Richmond, the onetime capital of the Confederacy, is still home to Monument Avenue, where statues of Confederate Gens. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson and Robert E. Lee stand today. And in 2017, neo-Nazis chose Charlottesville for their "Unite the Right" rally, which ended with one woman dead.
But Virginia was also the first state in the nation to elect a black governor, L. Douglas Wilder, in 1989. And it twice voted for the first black president, electing and reelecting Barack Obama.
It all makes Northam's actions even more troubling, said Ravi Perry, who chairs the political science department at Virginia Commonwealth University. He noted that in 1984, when Northam's medical school yearbook was published, Wilder had begun his successful statewide campaign for lieutenant governor.
"You would think, frankly, that a native son of Virginia, who spent all of his adult life in this state, would understand that history," he said.
For some, it's left sadness and confusion and a sense that they may not have known Northam as well as they thought.
"Honestly, he was in med school, so he's not a child," said Pierre Hartgrove, 55, who was picking up an order for delivery from Chipotle in Alexandria. "I thought he was a good guy, actually. Does he not really like blacks? All these years, did he get the votes from us, did he say to his buddies, 'Guess what? I got the Negroes' votes!' We don't know."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is blackface? What is the KKK? Explain why wearing either costume is offensive.
- Find Thomas Jefferson's quote in the article. Compare his words with the ongoing situation in Virginia. How is Jefferson remembered today? Do his actions outweigh his words?
- Ravi Perry, chair of the political science department at Virginia Commonwealth University, said, "You would think, frankly, that a native son of Virginia, who spent all of his adult life in this state, would understand that history." What history does Perry mean? What examples appear in the article? Do you think Virginia's history is unique? Why or why not?
- The article states that people are split over Northam's behavior. Give one example from the text of someone defending or forgiving him, and one example of someone who thinks he should resign. How do you feel about this issue? Should Northam resign, or does he deserve another chance?
Click here to view more: www.washingtonpost.com/local/anger-and-saddness-as-african-americans-in-virginia-consider-northams-fate/2019/02/03/2cfb81d2-27e9-11e9-984d-9b8fba003e81_story.html
Posted January 29, 2019
Venezuela: All you need to know about the crisis in seven charts
By the Visual Journalism team
BBC News
27 January 2019
Growing discontent in Venezuela, fuelled by hyperinflation, power cuts and food and medicine shortages, has led to a political crisis.
Opposition leader Juan Guaidó has declared himself interim president following large protests, galvanising opponents of current socialist President Nicolás Maduro.
Some 26 people were reportedly killed in demonstrations last week and the UN has warned that the situation could spiral out of control.
More than three million Venezuelans have fled their country over recent years, blaming hunger, lack of medical care, rising unemployment and violent crime.
Here are seven charts that try to explain what's going on.
1. Inflation is ridiculous
The biggest problem facing Venezuelans in their day-to-day lives is hyperinflation.
According to a study by the opposition-controlled National Assembly, the annual inflation rate reached 1,300,000% in the 12 months to November 2018.
By the end of last year, prices were doubling every 19 days on average. This has left many Venezuelans struggling to afford basic items such as food and toiletries.
The number of bolivars--the national currency--needed to buy US$1 has also rocketed.
2. GDP is falling
Venezuela once boasted Latin America's richest economy--boosted by the biggest oil reserves on the planet.
But under former president Hugo Chávez, who died in 2013, and current President Maduro, corruption, mismanagement and high levels of debt have seen the country's economy collapse.
President Chávez took advantage of the oil boom in the 2000s to borrow heavily and government spending soared.
Then, during President Maduro's first term in office, the Venezuelan economy went into freefall.
Many blame him and his socialist government for worsening the country's decline.
President Maduro blames "imperialists"--the likes of the US and Europe--for waging "economic war" against Venezuela and imposing sanctions on many members of his government.
Plummeting oil prices in 2016 compounded the oil-dependant country's crisis.
3. People don't have enough food...
Venezuelans are going hungry.
Of those questioned for the country's annual living conditions survey (Encovi 2017), eight out of 10 said they were eating less because they did not have enough food at home.
Six out of 10 said they had gone to bed hungry because they did not have the money to buy food.
And this is taking its toll on the nation's health.
Most people (64.3%) said they had lost weight in 2017--11.4kg on average, with the poorest losing most.
Other key findings of the study included:
• Traditional meals were decreasing in size and quality
• Nine out of 10 people couldn't afford their daily food
• 8.2 million had two meals a day or fewer
• Sources of iron, vitamins and other nutrients were lacking from people's diet
As a result, Venezuelans are turning to forgotten vegetables and foodstuffs that were once considered a "poor people's food".
The yuca--or cassava--root vegetable, for example, is versatile, cheap and a traditional substitute for potatoes.
It can be boiled or fried--which fast food chain McDonald's used to its advantage in 2015, changing their Venezuelan menu from potato fries to yuca fries.
4. ...they also don't have enough medicine
Venezuela has suffered a huge rise in the number of malaria cases in recent years--in stark contrast to neighbouring countries in Latin America, where numbers are falling.
Having been the first country certified to have eliminated the disease in 1961, Venezuela now has cases in at least 10 out of 24 states.
Canadian NGO Icaso has said leaked government reports show the spread includes the hard-to-eradicate form of malaria--plasmodium vivax.
The Venezuelan Health Observatory has reported widespread shortages of antimalarial drugs--for all strains.
Jose Felix Oletta, infectious disease specialist and former health minister, says projections for 2018 suggest an increase of 50% in the number of cases on 2017.
"At this pace, we will have more than one million cases in one year," he told Icaso. "These were numbers Venezuela had at the beginning of the 20th Century. Malaria is out of control in Venezuela."
Measles and diphtheria have also returned with a vengeance.
5. Oil output is on the decline
Venezuela holds the world's largest supply of crude oil, and petroleum products make up the vast majority of the country's exports.
Production held virtually steady from 2002--just before the national strike--to 2008, when global oil prices peaked. Figures from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) show the country earned about $60bn from oil that year.
But the collapse in oil prices towards the end of 2014--a year after Mr Chávez died from cancer--decimated the country's already-struggling oil-dependant economy.
The country hit crisis levels the following year, with GDP shrinking by almost 6% and inflation soaring.
Oil output has been declining since.
6. Many Venezuelans are leaving
Three million Venezuelans have left their home country since 2014, according to the UN.
The majority of those leaving have crossed into neighbouring Colombia, some then move on to Ecuador, Peru and Chile. Others have gone south to Brazil.
Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez has disputed the UN's figures, saying they are inflated by "enemy countries" trying to justify a military intervention.
7. Countries are split over who to support
The US, more than a dozen Latin American countries, and Canada have already backed Mr Guaidó--leader of Venezuela's elected National Congress--undermining President Maduro, who began a second term in office just a fortnight ago.
On Saturday, Spain, Germany, France and the UK said they would officially support Mr Guaidó if new elections were not called within eight days.
But Russia has condemned foreign support for Mr Guaidó, saying it violates international law and is a "direct path to bloodshed". China, Mexico and Turkey also back Mr Maduro.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What does the article say is the biggest problem in Venezuelan daily life? How has this problem affected daily life?
- What is inflation? According to the article, what is the annual rate of inflation? How many Venezuelan bolívars equal one U.S. dollar?
- Which countries support Guaidó? Which countries support Maduro? Do you see a pattern or trend here? Do you think this will have an effect on how the situation is resolved? Why?
- Read the title of this article. Do you feel like the article includes everything you need to know about the situation in Venezuela? What did you already know? What else would you like to know?
- Compare what's going on in Venezuela to a similar event, past or present, in another country. How are these events alike? How are they different? Based on how the other event was resolved, predict how you think the situation in Venezuela could end.
Click here to view more: www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-46999668
Posted January 22, 2019
When few enslaved people in the United States could write, one man wrote his memoir in Arabic
January 20, 2019
Michael E. Ruane
The Washington Post
As a slave, he was called "Morro" or "Uncle Moreau."
A dignified man in his 60s, he was small in stature, unfit for hard work and had been enslaved for almost a quarter-century. He spoke limited English.
But his real name was Omar ibn Said. He had been a Muslim scholar in West Africa, where he was abducted in 1807. And in 1831, when few enslaved people in the United States could read or write, he wrote what is thought to be the only surviving slave narrative of its kind, in Arabic.
The Library of Congress announced last week that it had acquired the famous memoir, along with a trove of related documents, from a noted African American collector and posted them online.
The collector, Derrick Beard, died in July in Las Vegas at age 59, just as the library was preparing the collection for display. Beard, who was Muslim, had owned and exhibited the document across the country for 20 years.
"He was determined that we should get it," said Mary-Jane Deeb, chief of the library's African and Middle Eastern Division. "He believed that it should be available to all Americans... not just to a private collector. It was very sad... He was so sick... He would say, 'Are you buying it? Are you going to buy it?'"
"A couple of months after we bought it, he died," she said. "I can only say that he must have died happy, because the manuscript came to the library, where he wanted it to be."
The narrative of Omar ibn Said is brief, fragmented and subversive: It opens with Surah, or chapter, 67 from the Koran, which states that God has dominion over all things.
"Of all the chapters in the Koran, he picked that one," Deeb said. "In Islam, everything belongs to God. No one really is an owner... So the choice of that verse is extremely important. It's a fundamental criticism of the right to own another human being."
Written in Arabic script on paper in iron gall ink, and with a brown paper cover, the document warns of God's fiery punishments yet acknowledges the author's "good" treatment at the hands of his owners.
"It is very important... for many reasons," Deeb said. "First... it's an autobiography written by a slave while he was still a slave. He's not a freed man. He dies a slave." (Ibn Said died in 1864 in his 90s, in the midst of the Civil War, before slavery's demise.)
Also, as a result of years of Islamic studies in Africa, he wrote in Arabic, which few people in the United States, almost certainly including his owners, could read. "He could be more candid," Deeb said. Any literacy among American slaves was considered dangerous and was generally forbidden.
In addition, "as far as we know, this is the only extant manuscript of a slave in Arabic, still in existence... written in the United States by a slave who's still a slave," she said.
The library bought the collection in the summer of 2017 from Sotheby's in London, Deeb said. She said the sale did not involve an auction. She declined to discuss the price and said she did not know why the collection was in London.
About 10 to 15 percent of American slaves were Muslim
"My name is Omar ibn Said," the author wrote in his narrative--the preservation of his name a triumph in itself.
"My birthplace is Fut Tur [in modern-day Senegal]... I sought knowledge [and] continued seeking knowledge for 25 years... [Then there] came to our country a big army. It killed many people. It took me and walked me to the big Sea, and sold me into the hand of a Christian man who bought me and walked me to the big Ship in the big Sea."
This was probably about 1807. Ibn Said was then 37, and after studying for 25 years, "he must have learned philosophy, theology, astronomy," Deeb said. "This is what you expect for those who go beyond the reading, writing, and learning the Koran by heart."
The language of education was Arabic, she said, but ibn Said also spoke one of the local languages of his area.
After his abduction, he was likely taken to the port of Saint-Louis, in what now is Senegal, then to Charleston, S.C., according to historian Sylviane A. Diouf. He was probably aboard one of four American slave ships sailing from Saint-Louis that year that delivered 385 enslaved Africans to Charleston, she wrote.
"We sailed in the big Sea for a month and a half until we came to a place called Charleston," ibn Said recounted. "And in a Christian language, they sold me. A weak, small, evil man called Johnson, an infidel who did not fear Allah at all, bought me."
But ibn Said soon fled and made his way to North Carolina, where he was captured around Fayetteville. He was jailed, then handed over to plantation owner and future congressman James Owen, the brother of John Owen, a future governor of North Carolina.
One old account states that authorities took notice when ibn Said scrawled "piteous petitions" in Arabic on the walls of the jail.
Ibn Said then spent the rest of his life with the Owen family in Bladen County, N.C., at their plantations on the Cape Fear River.
He soon became a celebrity.
People were struck by his dignity and bearing, Deeb said. He was the subject of newspaper articles and visits by "scholars." Some were eager to claim that he was an Arab, whose people were "not Negroes," according to historian Ala Alryyes, an expert on ibn Said's life.
"Let not the humanizing influence of the Koran upon... pagan, homicidal Africa be depreciated," one Southern diplomat wrote.
Ibn Said embraced Christianity to a degree, and reportedly read an Arabic version of the Bible his owner acquired for him.
He praised James Owen, his owner, and Owen's bother, John, as "good men, for whatever they eat, I eat, and whatever they wear they give me to wear."
It's not entirely clear why ibn Said decided to write his narrative, or for whom it was intended. Perhaps it was for other Muslim slaves in the United States, Deeb said. Estimates are that 10 or 15 percent of enslaved people in the United States were Muslim.
Perhaps he sought a different audience.
"It's part of the history of this country"
"From Omar to Sheikh Hunter," he wrote at one point in the manuscript. "You asked me to write my life. I cannot write my life for I have forgotten much of my talk [language] as well as the talk of the Arabs."
It's not exactly known who Sheikh Hunter was. It might have been the Rev. Eli Hunter, of the American Colonization Society, a group that urged free blacks to move to Africa, according to Alryyes.
In 1836, the manuscript was sent to a Muslim former slave named Lahman Kebby, or "Old Paul," in New York, who came from ibn Said's home region in West Africa.
Kebby then gave it to Theodore Dwight, a founding member of the American Ethnological Society, who built the collection of Arabic manuscripts, translations of Arab manuscripts, and letters and news clippings on the subject that the library has acquired.
The narrative and the collection passed through various hands and dropped out of sight for most of the 20th century, Deeb said.
According to journalist Jonathan Curiel, the collection resurfaced in Alexandria in a trunk found by descendants of prominent numismatist Howland Wood, an authority on Islamic coins, who had owned it.
On March 28, 1996, Diouf, who was writing a book about Muslim slaves in the United States, walked into New York's Swann Galleries to attend its first specialized auction of printed and manuscript African Americana, including the ibn Said collection.
She was not there to bid. "I just wanted to see the manuscript," she said. There, she met Beard.
"I did not know him," she said. "He was this very sociable, always smiling, very engaging kind of a person."
"He told me that he was Muslim and he was interested in buying this collection," she said. "It was interesting because he was the only bidder. No one else was interested,... It was kind of shocking. Because I thought that people would have been fascinated."
Swann said the collection sold for $21,850.
"I think that as an African American, as a Muslim, and as a collector of African American art and material culture, he felt a deep personal responsibility toward that particular piece," she said. "It was not like he had bought it to make money... He was very keen on sharing the documents and the stories."
"With Derrick, we always knew where it was, and that he would take care of it and share it," she said.
Diouf said Beard had cancer. She said she did not know whether he had started selling items from his collection because of his illness.
But she said he wanted the ibn Said documents to stay in the United States. "It's part of the history of this country," she said. "It's part of the American story."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Who is Derrick Beard? Why did he want the Library of Congress to have Omar ibn Said's memoir?
- Who was Omar ibn Said? Why is his memoir so unique?
- Where was Said originally from? How does he describe his abduction?
- According to the article, what percentage of slaves in the United States were Muslim? Had you ever considered this group when learning about slavery before? Why or why not?
- Think about what you have learned about slavery so far, and how Said fits in with what you already know. Are you interested in learning about other enslaved people like him? What other groups are you interested in learning about from this era in U.S. history?
Click here to view more: www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/01/20/when-few-enslaved-people-could-write-one-man-wrote-his-memoirs-arabic
Posted January 15, 2019
Kumbh Mela: How to plan a festival for 100m people
Geeta Pandey - January 14, 2019
India's Kumbh Mela festival is billed as the world's biggest gathering of people.
Between now and March organisers expect about 120 million pilgrims to bathe at the Sangam--the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers.
Hindus believe that doing so will cleanse them of their sins and help them attain "moksha", setting them free from the cycle of birth and death.
So how does one prepare for a gathering of humanity so mammoth it can be seen from outer space?
The mela (Hindi for fair) is held in the northern city of Allahabad (recently renamed Prayagraj) every 12 years.
On Tuesday, when the festival formally begins, officials are preparing for 15 to 20 million visitors. But the biggest test they face will be on [February 4] when 30 million are expected to attend for the most auspicious bathing day. The festival ends on [March 4].
This year's festival is an "ardh Kumbh"--a "half-size" version that falls mid-way between two Kumbhs--but there's nothing diminutive about it. In fact, it's much bigger than the last full Kumbh held in 2013.
Where does everyone stay?
A vast tent city has been built on the mudflats of the river banks and thousands of officials are working round the clock to ensure the festival runs as smoothly as possible.
"We've been working for more than a year," senior administration official Rajeev Rai said when I met him in his office a few days ago.
Some 6,000 religious and cultural organisations have been allotted land on which to put up a city of tents to accommodate visitors from India and across the globe, he says.
Our conversation is constantly interrupted by his ringing cell phone, staff bringing him papers to sign, and saffron-robed ascetics barging in through the door to speak to him.
In between, Mr Rai explains that the mela area is spread over 32 sq km (12.35 square miles), equivalent to a large town.
So how do pilgrims get there?
Kumbh Melas have been held for centuries but became huge only in recent decades. The 2001 festival at Allahabad is seen as the first "mega mela".
The budget for hosting this year's festival is 28bn rupees ($397m; £311m), and over 49 days, visitors totalling more than the combined populations of Britain and Spain are expected to visit.
In the past 12 months, the city infrastructure has undergone a major overhaul.
A brand new airport now allows visitors to fly in from Delhi in less than an hour.
Across the city, roads have been widened and new flyovers have been built. In the mela ground, 300 km of roads have been laid. Huge car parks have been set up all around the city to accommodate more than half a million vehicles.
The railways, too, have announced hundreds of new trains to tackle the rush.
"We are expecting about 3.5 million pilgrims to travel by train during the festival. All the eight stations that serve the city have been spruced up and expanded," says railway spokesman Amit Malaviya.
He gives me a tour of the main station--where more than 40 people were killed in a stampede during the last festival--to explain the measures taken to ensure there's no repeat.
A new platform has been added, a massive pedestrian bridge connecting several platforms has been constructed, and colour-coded holding areas have been built for passengers where entry and exits will be strictly controlled.
Mr Malaviya says 5,000 additional staff have been brought in from outside the city.
How do you police an event this size?
More than 30,000 police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed to deal with traffic and security.
Senior police official Kavindra Pratap Singh says meticulous planning has gone into deciding where to set up check posts and security barriers.
"Our priority is to ensure there is no stampede or any disaster," he said. "We are working round the clock to meet the challenge, to ensure nothing goes wrong."
Officials say for the first time they'll be using artificial intelligence to monitor crowd movements.
"We'll be using footage from 1,000 CCTV cameras to assess the crowd size and if needed, take a decision to divert them to decongest crowded areas," a spokesman said.
Who feeds the hungry millions?
Most pilgrims who come on a short visit bring their own food.
But camps set up by religious organisations and individual pilgrims, who stay for up to a month, often depend on the authorities for supplies.
Five warehouses and 160 "fair price" ration shops have been set up in the mela grounds to distribute rice, flour, sugar and kerosene oil for cooking.
The supplies are given free to religious camps and are sold to other pilgrims at subsidised prices reserved for those living below the poverty line, an official in the food and civil supplies department, Aprita Upadhyay, said.
Cards have been provided to 150,000 pilgrims which entitle them to cheap rations for a month, including 2kg rice, 3kg flour, 7.5kg sugar and 4 litres of kerosene.
Overall, 5,384 tonnes of rice, 7,834 tonnes of wheat flour, 3,174 tonnes of sugar and 767 kilolitres of kerosene have been allocated for the festival.
Free and clean drinking water will be available from 160 dispensers around the mela ground.
What if people don't feel well?
A 100-bed central hospital and 10 smaller hospitals have been up and running at the mela ground since [December 1].
"Our out-patient departments have been getting 3,000 patients daily. On [January 15] when the crowds swell, we expect to see about 10,000 patients," says Dr Ashok Kumar Paliwal, who heads the health and family welfare team at the tent city.
He leads 193 doctors and more than 1,500 other health professionals--nurses, pharmacists, even dental hygienists--are on hand too. There are also 80 practitioners of Ayurveda, offering treatment based on ancient healing techniques.
The hospitals are equipped to perform surgery and offer facilities for X-rays, ultrasounds and lab tests.
"We have also deployed 86 ambulances, nine river ambulances and one air ambulance," says Dr Paliwal, adding: "We are prepared to deal with major emergencies too."
... and what about toilets?
Mr Paliwal and his team are also looking after sanitation at the mela.
To cater for the millions expected to visit, more than 122,000 toilets have been installed, along with 20,000 dustbins--22,000 sanitation workers have been hired to sweep up the mess.
There are elaborate plans for waste management too--Mr Paliwal says every toilet is geo-tagged which will help them tackle any problems.
But his team has already faced criticism that there is no water in the toilets and many are already stinking.
Mr Paliwal says this will be addressed before the festival starts.
"It's an ambitious project. What we are creating here is a country. People have been working day and night, laying pipelines, providing water connections, building toilets.
"But we are on course to meet our targets," he says.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is Kumbh Mela? Which religion is it affiliated with? Why is it important to practitioners?
- In which country does the Kumbh Mela take place? What is the specific location of the event?
- How many people are expected to attend the Kumbh Mela? What are some of the measures the organizers have taken to host an event this large? Are the organizers prepared for the event?
- Do you have any prior knowledge about the religion affiliated with the Kumbh Mela? Explain what you Know, what you Want to know, and what you've Learned after reading the article.
Click here to view more: www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-46834335
Posted January 08, 2019
10 ways the partial government shutdown is impacting the lives of average Americans
Ellen Cranley January 5, 2019
• A partial shutdown of the federal government on December 21 complicated things for several select government agencies and services.
• Though all essential government services remain open, Americans may feel the shutdown's effects while trying to use the services of various agencies, including national parks and museums.
• See the ways the shutdown is affecting average Americans.
After lawmakers came to a gridlock over a spending deal, the federal government entered a partial shutdown on December 21.
The shutdown does not affect the entire federal government but does impact a slew of agencies, including the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Homeland Security, the Interior, State, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.
See the shutdown's effects on everyday Americans:
Many national parks have closed campgrounds to visitors to prevent facilities including trash sites and toilets from overflowing.
Park closures have prevented at least one wedding, and can potentially create greater risk for visitors because of reduced staffing.
The parks that remain open rely on volunteers and visitors to clean up after themselves.
The National Zoo, in addition to the 17 museums run by the Smithsonian closed their doors several days into the shutdown after running out of emergency funding.
The shutdown has also affected the Washington DC courts, which are funded by the federal government. They have closed the Marriage Bureau, stopped bar admissions, shut down the judicial library, and stopped providing child-care for employees.
These closures mean couples looking to obtain marriage licenses or get married during the shutdown are out of luck for now, while DC Mayor Muriel Bowser pushes emergency legislation to secure temporary authority over the licenses.
The approximately 40 million people who receive food stamps will only be able to get the benefit through January if the shutdown continues. Other aid programs geared towards child nutrition, including school lunch and breakfast programs, will also continue operating into February.
Benefits including Social Security, disability checks, and Medicare are unaffected by the shutdown.
Around 800,000 Americans who are employed by the government are currently furloughed or working without pay until the shutdown ends.
Employees with the Transportation Security Administration were deemed essential and are currently being forced to work without pay. A CNN report said "hundreds" of TSA officers were calling out of the unpaid work, potentially compromising airport security and increasing wait times.
Tens of thousands of employees working without pay are in law enforcement departments including the FBI, Customs and Border Protection, and the Secret Service.
With no end in sight, further effects from the shutdown are unclear as lawmakers tangle with President Donald Trump over a deal.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is a government shutdown? When did this shutdown begin? Explain the cause(s) of the shutdown in your own words. Do you think these are legitimate reasons to shut down the government?
- Name one program affected by the shutdown. How has it been affected? What are the consequences of these effects?
- Which programs are not currently affected by the shutdown?
- Has the shutdown affected you and your family or the people in your community? How?
- Imagine you are acting as a mediator for the U.S. government. How would you negotiate an end to the shutdown? Would you recommend a compromise? Which solutions would you support?
Click here to view more: www.businessinsider.com/government-shutdown-how-the-partial-closure-affects-average-americans-2019-1
Posted December 18, 2018
Indians 'infinitely superior' to blacks: Gandhi statue removed for racist remarks against Africans
Published time: 14 Dec, 2018 16:34 Edited time: 15 Dec, 2018 12:07
A statue of world-famous Indian independence activist and pacifist Mahatma Gandhi has been removed from the University of Ghana campus after protests from students and faculty over racist remarks he made against Africans.
The Gandhi statue was unveiled in Accra two years ago but was removed in the middle of the night Tuesday by order of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration.
Ghana's former government had vowed to relocate the statue but no such action was taken, prompting students and faculty members to take matters into their own hands. Now only an empty plinth remains on the campus in the capital Accra.
Prior to his work as a civil rights activist and independence advocate who promoted non-violent resistance to British colonial rule in India, Gandhi lived and worked in South Africa.
In his early writings Gandhi frequently referred to black South Africans using the extremely pejorative and offensive slur "kaffir." During Gandhi's time in South Africa, Indians were forced to use the same entrances as native Africans, a move which Gandhi worried would impact the "civilised habits" of Indian immigrants, adding that he feared they "would be degraded to the habits of aboriginal natives."
"About the mixing of the Kaffirs with the Indians, I must confess I feel most strongly," he wrote in a letter in 1904.
He also stated unequivocally that Indians were "infinitely superior" to black people.
Defenders argue that his views were a product of the time but he still inspired civil rights leaders in Africa and beyond, including Martin Luther King Jr. However, modern-day Ghanaians aren't buying the excuse.
"It's a massive win for all Ghanaians because it was constantly reminding us of how inferior we are," Benjamin Mensah told the AFP.
"If we show that we have no respect for ourselves and look down on our own heroes and praise others who had no respect for us, then there is an issue."
"If we indeed don't show any self-respect for our heroes, how can the world respect us? This is victory for black dignity and self-respect. The campaign has paid off," head of language, literature and drama at the Institute of African Studies, Obadele Kambon said.
A petition to remove the statue began shortly after it was erected in 2016 by India's former President Pranab Mukherjee. The petition failed to garner its stated goal of 2,500 signatures in over two years, however.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Gandhi is internationally respected for his use of nonviolent protest in the fight for civil rights. How does this article challenge traditionally held views about Gandhi?
- Do you think there is a "time limit" on what people say and do? Should Gandhi be remembered for his racist remarks in 1904, or should he continue to be remembered for his activism in his middle and later years?
- Many long-admired figures have done things that are considered problematic today. Can you think of anyone who has done something great, but who might have also said or done things that have been hurtful? Do you think it is possible to strike a balance between the two when remembering these individuals, or does one outweigh the other?
- Compare and contrast the removal of this statue with the removal of Civil War memorial statues in the United States. How are these events similar? How are they different?
Click here to view more: www.rt.com/news/446496-gandhi-statue-torn-down-racism/
They will resume January 8, 2019.
Posted December 11, 2018
More Restaurants and Cafés Refuse to Accept Cash--That's Not a Good Thing
"Just because you don't have a piece of plastic, you can't get a sandwich?"
By Alexa Tsoulis-Reay
Grubstreet
I was at a health-food and coffee shop on East Houston, grabbing an $11 vegan sandwich for lunch, when I noticed the man next to me, who appeared to be homeless, trying to buy a cup of coffee. The entire exchange wasn't going well: First, there was the absence of any traditional milk from the dairy-free café's "vegan mylk" selection. The coffee's price, $2.95 for a small, was also fairly steep. But just as it looked like the situation was going to resolve itself, a final, insurmountable hurdle arrived: As the would-be customer started to pay with a stack of coins and notes in his hand, an employee was forced to tell him that cash wasn't accepted at the café. Eventually, he gave the coffee to the man, only after the three of us stared at each other uncomfortably.
Until then, I had been aware of cash-free restaurants and cafés, but had never fully grasped the effects of their growing numbers. Afterward, I realized "cashless" coffee shops, cafés, and take-out spots are everywhere. It also struck me that these businesses force people to adopt a way of shopping and living that not everyone wants, and that in doing so they create a gulf between people who can shop at these businesses and people who can't.
The more I thought about it, the more these businesses began to infuriate me. Are these business owners trying to keep out certain customers? What about children? Or people who are paid in cash, or others who, for whatever reason, can't or won't open a bank account (because they are undocumented, for example, or do not have a home or a fixed address)? What about tourists who simply want to avoid bank exchange rates? What about other people who, quite reasonably, don't love the idea of companies like Apple and Square being able to track their complete purchase histories?
And aren't the businesses that refuse to accept cash really just sending a not-so-subtle message about the types of customers they want?
"We already have so many forms of stigma and discrimination in this country," says Bill Maurer, a UC Irvine professor who also directs the Institute for Money, Technology and Financial Inclusion, "and now we are adding mode of payment to the list--if we start marking belonging by 'means of payment,' that's a big problem." Maurer, who coordinates research in over 40 countries about the impact of new payment technologies on people's well-being, encourages everyone to seriously think about the long-term ramifications of a "cashless revolution"--but that doesn't seem to bother cash-free advocates too much.
"Cash is our main competitor; I don't envy being in cash's position," a Visa spokesperson told me recently. In summer of 2017, the credit-card company announced a "cashless challenge" that would award a $10,000 prize to businesses that went completely cash-free. The cashless challenge, the spokesperson explained, was designed to "make it okay to say I am cash free, and hopefully encourage others to come forward, too."
Simone Falco, the chef and owner of New York's fast-casual Simò Pizza, which won $10,000 in the Visa cashless challenge, says that the driving force to go cashless at his businesses was a desire to maintain a tip-free environment. And in his video entry for Visa's challenge he focuses on business benefits like speed, efficiency, and theft reduction. The consensus among small-business owners is that eliminating cash streamlines operations, makes better use of resources (staff don't have to waste time doing banking or washing their hands after handling paper money), speeds up wait times for customers, and eliminates the risk of theft, either by third parties or workers.
Itai Afek, the owner of the gourmet wrap company Wolfnights, says he decided to go cashfree at his Lower East Side and West Village locations after seeing sales data that 85 percent of his "very high-tech" customers pay with cards anyway. "In New York City," he tells me, "almost everyone has a debit or a credit card."
This is a common line of thinking among cashless owners--"In New York City everybody carries a credit card or a debit card!" Falco proclaims in his Visa video--but the belief that everyone has access to a card likely only applies to these owners' target audience. According to the latest national survey by the FDIC, about 6.5 percent of American households (which is about 8.4 million) do not have a bank account, and an additional 18.7 percent are what's called "underbanked," which means they are more likely to rely on cash day-to-day. In New York state, almost 25 percent of all households--and nearly half of black and Hispanic households--are unbanked or underbanked.
"There's a slight barrier to entry, which you can't ignore, and we really wrestled with that," says Theo Friedman, a co-founder of the shaved-ice company Bonsai Kakigori, which is now cash-free. Friedman concedes, "You're making a real socioeconomic statement when you say, 'I only accept cards.'" How does the team at Bonsai reconcile this? "Welcome to the world of small business," Friedman says. "Every day you are faced with tons of different decisions and you have to choose a side and move on." He says that when a new stand-alone Bonsai shop opens on the Lower East Side this winter, the team will start out cash-free and see how it goes. "If we have to turn ten people away each day, we will start taking cash, and if it's never an issue, then it's never an issue."
In reality, it can be something of an issue, and cashless businesses have different ways of handling customers who can't or won't pay by card. The ice-cream chain Van Leeuwen went completely cashless last fall. Co-founder Ben Van Leeuwen says that customers who have a problem with it are either tourists who are worried about transaction fees, or people who have cards but are against the business model on principal. Van Leeuwen store manager Henry Molina says that if a customer makes it to the front of their often-long lines without a card, he'll politely explain the policy before ultimately letting the customer have one ice cream on the house. (Molina also says that if a customer has the exact amount of cash he'll take it and swipe his card for them.) The taco and burrito chain Dos Toros went cash-free last year, too, and co-founder Leo Kremer says they train staff to err on the side of generosity. (He also points out that there are also work-arounds. For example, you could always go to a drug store, pay a fee, and buy a prepaid gift card, which feels like a lot of extra work to buy a burrito.) "If we have made someone their food and it turns out they don't have a card," Kremer says, "we'll comp the meal and remind them for next time." He adds, "I think that most people act in good faith."
Most surprising to me is the fact that, for the most part, it's completely legal for business owners to reject cash. There's no federal statute that says that private businesses have to accept cash, and the only state that mandates businesses must accept cash is Massachusetts.
Fueled by concern about the discrimination that cashless businesses pose, lawmakers have been drafting bills. In Philadelphia, councilman William K. Greenlee and co-sponsor Maria Quinones-Sanchez have submitted one that would stop businesses from refusing to accept cash and amend the city's Fair Practices Ordinance, which provides protections against unlawful discrimination. Greenlee started noticing cashless coffee shops appearing around City Hall, and says they didn't sit right with him: "Just because you don't have a piece of plastic, you can't get a sandwich? Or a cup of coffee?" He says of cash-free businesses, "People from all walks of life come to the center of the city and it seems like these places are saying, we don't need your business. That's not a great statement to make." Greenlee also told me that among the 28 percent of Philadelphians who either don't have a bank account or who use financial services from an institution that is not a bank, a significantly higher portion are African-American and Latino. He says the arguments that businesses make for going cashless strike him as "weak," and argues that if your customers use credit cards most of the time, there's no need to ban cash. As far as he's concerned it's basic discrimination: Everyone can access cash, but not everyone can get a card.
Still, some owners say cash simply has no place at their businesses. Amirah Kassem is a co-owner of the bakery Flour Shop. "We created the space so you'd have this whole Disneyland, sprinkles-and-smiles experience when you walk in," she says. "The boring things"--like cash--"don't happen at Flour Shop."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- The article states, "these businesses force people to adopt a way of shopping and living that not everyone wants." Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? In some cases, it may not be a matter of "want" but more of an ability to afford devices and the accompanying fees. Does this discriminate against those who can't afford to go cash-free?
- What is a credit-card company's motivation to promote cash-free transactions? Who benefits from them?
- When a consumer uses an electronic payment system, the company is able to gather data about purchases, preferences, personal movement, and more. Are you comfortable with a company tracking your life through your purchase history? Why or why not?
- Should companies be able to force customers to use alternate methods of payment? Is this a function of a free market?
- Should the government step in to prevent businesses from going cash-free? Is this a protection or an over-regulation?
- According to the FDIC survey cited in the article, how many American families don't have a bank account? How many are "underbanked"? What does underbanked mean, and how does that affect daily life for people?
Click here to view more: www.grubstreet.com/2018/11/cashless-restaurants-cafes-problems.html
Posted December 4, 2018
Boston Tea Party Protesters Honored With Special Markers In 4 Of City's Oldest Cemeteries
November 27, 2018 By The Associated Press
The Boston Tea Party's 245th anniversary is next month, but until Tuesday, the gravesites of the colonists who participated in the protest that helped spark the American Revolution have never been noted with any sort of special marker.
The Boston Tea Party Ships and... the City of Boston and the Historic Burying Grounds Initiative placed commemorative markers at final resting places of about 70 people who participated in the Dec. 16, 1773, protest.
They were placed in four of the city's oldest and most famous cemeteries, including the Central Burying Ground; Copp's Hill Burying Ground; the Granary Burying Ground; and King's Chapel Burying Ground.
"This extraordinary event was performed by ordinary people," Evan O'Brien, creative manager at the museum, told The Boston Globe. "You always hear the names of Paul Revere, John Hancock, Samuel Adams and they were pivotal to Boston's history and the nation's history, but the Revolution... and the actions that led up to it, were committed by people as ordinary as you and I."
Among the gravesites marked were those of the Bradlee brothers--David, Josiah, Nathaniel and Thomas--and their sister, Sarah Bradlee Fulton. She is known as the mother of the Boston Tea Party and is credited with coming up with the idea of disguising the men as Native Americans, according to the museum's website.
The image on the markers was inspired by Nathaniel Currier's "The Destruction of the Tea at Boston Harbor" lithograph created in 1846. They will remain on display until the end of the year.
This year is the 245th anniversary of the protest during which colonists protesting taxation without representation threw British tea into Boston Harbor. It is considered a pivotal event that led to the American Revolution.
In the future, organizers said they hope to place commemorative markers at the graves of Boston Tea Party participants buried throughout New England and the United States.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What was the Boston Tea Party, and why is it important to remember this event?
- As of 2018, how many years ago was the Boston Tea Party? On what date did it occur?
- Name the four Boston cemeteries where commemorative markers have been placed.
- Who was Sarah Bradlee Fulton, and how did she contribute to the Boston Tea Party? What are the names of other women revolutionaries, and what were their contributions?
- The article states that the commemorative markers will be placed through the end of this year. Do you think these individuals deserve permanent markers? Why or why not?
- What are some other important events that you think deserve more recognition? How do you think they should be remembered?
Click here to view more: www.wbur.org/news/2018/11/27/boston-tea-party-gravesite-markers
Posted November 27, 2018
This South Carolina mayor wants to use a white supremacist monument to teach about unity
By Dakin Andone, CNN
Updated 9:36 AM ET, Sat November 24, 2018
(CNN) A South Carolina mayor believes state law prevents him from removing a white supremacist monument honoring a white man killed in an 1876 riot that also left seven black men dead.
His solution? Add to the monument by recognizing the black men who died in the Reconstruction-era clash between a black militia and a white mob.
"It's an opportunity to look at something divisive for the community and hopefully make it a positive for the community," North Augusta Mayor Bob Pettit told CNN.
The stone obelisk has stood in a North Augusta park since 1916 and honors Thomas McKie Meriwether, who died in what's known as the Hamburg Massacre, a clash that broke out as armed white men attempted to take control of a predominantly black town of the same name, according to a report by Pettit.
But it makes no mention of the black men who were killed.
Transcribed on the obelisk's base is a message calling Meriwether a "young hero" who "exemplified the highest ideal of Anglo-Saxon civilization. By his death he assured to the children of his beloved land the supremacy of that ideal."
That message makes it clear, Pettit said, that the monument promotes white supremacy.
"I've had nobody dispute it to me," he said. "And we just need to take positive action to remedy that situation, in my opinion."
Monument may be protected by state law
The monument's future was first brought up by local activist Ken Makin following the August 2017 events of Charlottesville, Virginia, when a woman was killed as a suspected neo-Nazi drove his car into a crowd protesting a white nationalist rally.
Makin's call for the monument's removal comes at a time when many cities and towns across the country are reckoning with the legacy of similar monuments, most of which commemorate the Confederacy. But the Meriwether monument is unique in that it doesn't memorialize the Civil War or Confederate veterans or generals.
Instead, it marks a bloody moment during Reconstruction. Black militia were established after the Civil War to protect predominately African-American communities such as Hamburg.
The Red Shirts, a paramilitary group that wanted to reassert white supremacy and upend Republican power in the state, moved on Hamburg, which sat across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia. The land where the extinct town once thrived is now part of North Augusta.
It's unclear which side fired first, but Meriwether was killed in the ensuing gunfire.
Four of the blacks were executed, according to Pettit's report.
A role in the massacre helped launch the political career of "Pitchfork" Ben Tillman, a virulent white supremacist who later became South Carolina governor and a US senator.
Makin and Pettit said they weren't even aware of the transcription on the monument at J.C. Calhoun Park, nor were many other North Augustans.
"It had stood in the center of town for over a hundred years in a prominent location, and most people didn't pay attention to what it said," the mayor said, adding he was "somewhat embarrassed by it."
"I think a lot of people are uncomfortable because of it, knowing that's not what we think today."
Pettit started a committee of three whites and three blacks to investigate the monument's history.
They spent 14 months researching it, and Pettit presented a report this month detailing the monument's history and his recommendations of what should be done.
Pettit doesn't believe the city can take the monument down, as it may be protected under South Carolina's Heritage Act, which prevents the removal of certain historical monuments from public property.
The city is waiting on a definitive opinion from the state attorney general, Pettit said, but he hopes to move ahead with the recommendations from his report.
Mayor sees an educational opportunity
No one was ever prosecuted for the death of the black men and the federal government did not intervene, according to the College of Charleston's Lowcountry Digital History Initiative.
Rather than take the monument down, the mayor recommended additions be made to recognize the seven black men killed--James Cook, Allen Attaway, David Phillips, Albert Myniart, Moses Parks, Hampton Stephens and Nelder John Parker, according to the report.
It also recommends erecting other features, such as sculptures or plaques, to provide additional context about the Hamburg Massacre, Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era.
It was the African-American committee members who made the recommendation, Pettit said, and the idea "resonated" with him.
They "actually said to keep it as a teaching tool, so that those white supremacy attitudes portrayed on the monument didn't happen again."
"It's educational to know that viewpoint existed, so that it's out in public and you can recognize that it's not consistent with the way we're thinking today."
Even if the attorney general concluded the monument wasn't protected by the Heritage Act, the mayor "would not recommend taking it down."
"I think that's a one-and-done, where as this, I think, can have a positive effect for a long time," he said. "And I think in that regard we're much better off as a city to have this educational experience that will persist."
Activist: Keeping monument sends 'wrong message'
Not everyone is content with the mayor's suggestions.
"I'm not satisfied with that at all," Makin said. He still wants the monument to be taken down. To do otherwise, he said, "doesn't decisively denounce white supremacy."
Makin did applaud the mayor for presenting the full story of the Hamburg Massacre.
But that's not enough, Makin said, "I think it sends the wrong message to have that history and then to say, 'We understand what happened, but we're still not going to take this down.'"
There are also residents who want the monument to remain as is. They argue that it's part of history and shouldn't be changed, Makin told CNN.
That's a "convenient argument," he said, for people who have not dealt with the oppression that comes with being a person of color.
"When you talk about the preservation of history," he said, "when you try to make these excuses to try to justify the past, as a black man in America, I'm not having it."
Ultimately, Makin recognizes the mayor is in "an impossible position," and gives him credit for the work he put in to evaluate the monument.
"I appreciate the spirit in which the mayor and the committee came together and told the truth about what happened," he said.
"But I would think that this is such an open-and-shut case," he said. "This is such a cut-and-dry issue."
CNN's Phil Gast contributed to this report.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Unlike many monuments removed from Southern towns, this monument doesn't memorialize Confederate veterans. Does that distinction make a difference when a town decides to preserve or remove a monument?
- Think about what you know about the Civil War and Reconstruction. The article describes the Hamburg Massacre as a "bloody moment during Reconstruction." The event happened in 1916. Should it be considered a part of Reconstruction? Why or why not?
- Until the Charlottesville, Virginia, rally in August 2017, both Bob Pettit, mayor of the town, and Ken Makin, a local activist, said they didn't know what was inscribed on the monument. Now, each of them has come to a different conclusion about what to do with the memorial. What influenced their thinking and decisions?
- Many cities have monuments to honor veterans of wars. Their stated purpose is obvious. Are there monuments in your town that memorialize forgotten occurrences? How do you know about the incident? What would you do if you discovered the tribute memorialized something that you thought was wrong or shameful?
- The article explores two options for the memorial: take it down, or modify it. It mentions a third option: leave it alone. But are there other options for the town and the monument? What would you do to address the situation? What should the town do?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2018/11/24/us/south-carolina-white-supremacist-monument-trnd/index.html
Posted November 13, 2018
Firefighters Battle Deadly California Wildfires
Strong gusts warn of further danger from two massive blazes that have left at least 31 dead
A burnt-out truck is seen in Paradise, Calif., after the Camp Fire tore through the area. PHOTO: JOSH EDELSON/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
By Jim Carlton
WSJ Updated Nov. 12, 2018 7:30 a.m. ET
SAN FRANCISCO--Firefighters are battling two deadly California wildfires that have claimed at least 31 lives, left more than 200 people missing and put a quarter million residents under evacuation, while unhealthy smoke levels have prompted warnings to stay indoors.
The Camp Fire in Butte County, about 100 miles north of Sacramento, grew slightly to a total of 109,000 acres on Sunday, after destroying an estimated 6,500 homes and 260 businesses, mostly in the city of Paradise. At least five victims of the fire were found trapped in charred vehicles as they tried to flee the fast-moving blaze, authorities said.
Already ranked as the most destructive wildfire in California history, the Camp Fire has now tied the deadliest on record, matching the 29 fatalities in a 1933 inferno. Officials of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, said teams have been deployed to search for the 228 people listed as missing as of Sunday night, some of whom they said could be alive but trapped in rubble.
Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said his detectives have learned that many of the missing are believed to be in evacuation shelters, but they have yet to verify that.
A quarter million people remained evacuated on Sunday amid fears that the infernos that broke out Thursday could flare up again, as dense smoke made air unhealthy for millions from San Francisco to San Diego.
In Southern California, the Woolsey Fire expanded to 83,275 acres Sunday morning, after leaving an estimated 177 homes and other structures destroyed in Ventura and Los Angeles counties and at least two known fatalities. More than 200,000 people remained evacuated from their homes on Sunday, including in Thousand Oaks where a gunman fatally shot 12 people in the Borderline Bar and Grill before apparently taking his own life.
While the forward progress of the fire slowed, officials said families affected by the shooting remained devastated by the tragic events. "You go through the shooting, and then immediately after that without a moment to breathe the fires began," said Maj. Osei Stewart of the Salvation Army, which has been serving 1,000 meals a day to evacuees at five shelters in Ventura County. "The families are caught dealing with grief, and at the same time having to evacuate and really run for their lives."
Before the evacuation, residents in the Thousand Oaks area were still digesting the horrors of what happened at the Borderline on Wednesday night. Then, at about 2 p.m., an inferno broke out a few miles away in Ventura County that was dubbed the Hill Fire. Less than a half-hour later, another broke out closer to the shooting scene that became the raging Woolsey Fire.
Dave Malacrida, who lives about 3 miles from the shooting in Agoura Hills, said his wife, Nancy Ram, began tracking the two wildfires on Twitter and noticed as the evening wore on that the Woolsey was taking aim in their direction. Finally, at about 11 p.m.--with a glow from the approaching fire looming nearer, she said, "Dave, we have to leave," said Mr. Malacrida, a 56-year-old public relations executive.
As flames neared, the couple loaded their 2-year-old daughter and a few clothes and personal items they could scrape together into an Acura and fled to stay with a friend in Los Angeles.
While their home was spared, the family remained away Sunday under a continuing evacuation order. Mr. Malacrida said, "The bottom line is you have to accept you have only yourself, your friends and your life," he said. "All these other things you can replace."
A lull in winds enabled firefighters to build more containment lines around both wildfires, bringing the one in Butte County to 25% under control and the Woolsey fire to 10%. Also, lower-than-forecast temperatures and a rise in humidity have been aiding firefighters in Northern California, Cal Fire spokesman David Clark said.
But winds were expected to pick up in the north. They already did in Southern California, where Kenichi Haskett, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department, said he had seen chairs and tables overturned by strong gusts Sunday morning. Still, he said, "crews will continue to battle steep terrain, limited access and extreme fire behavior."
Wildfires Spreading in California
Impacts of the fires were felt in cities far away as unhealthy smoke levels prompted warnings for people to stay indoors across California. In the San Francisco Bay Area--which on Saturday had pollution readings twice as high as Beijing--half marathons scheduled for Sunday in Napa Valley and the Monterey Bay were canceled, while high-school football playoffs were postponed and teams including the National Football League's San Francisco 49ers moved some drills inside.
The smoke and fire have caused major traffic disruptions. On Friday, hundreds of flights were delayed at San Francisco International Airport because of low visibility caused by smoke billowing in from the Camp Fire about 150 miles away. In Southern California, parts of two of the busiest roadways--Highway 101 and the Pacific Coast Highway--have been closed since Thursday because of the wildfires, adding to the region's massive traffic congestion.
President Trump angered state and fire officials by sending off tweets Friday and Saturday blaming the recent outbreak of fires on what he called the state's poor forest management, and in one threatening to cut off billions in federal funding. California Gov. Jerry Brown said late Sunday the state was doing a lot on forest management and could do more but criticized the Trump administration for not addressing climate change.
"Those who deny that are definitely contributing to the tragedies that we are now witnessing and will continue to witness," said Mr. Brown, referring to wildfires.
Harold Schaitberger, general president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, on Saturday issued a statement saying: "To minimize the crucial, lifesaving work being done and to make crass suggestions such as cutting off funding during a time of crisis shows a troubling lack of real comprehension about the disaster at hand and the dangerous job our firefighters do."
The fires come unusually late in California, which normally should be seeing the start of its rainy season. But the Golden State has been suffering from extreme dry conditions for years, because of what fire experts call a combination of fuel buildup, drought and a warming climate. Indeed, 14 of the 20 most destructive fires in California history have taken place since 2000, including the Tubbs Fire in the Santa Rosa area last year that destroyed 5,636 structures and killed 22, according to Cal Fire records.
Experts say the danger is compounded by the push of development deeper into fire-prone wilderness areas, not only in California but across the West.
"We have a landscape that is in a condition to support high intensity fires, coupled with urban sprawl," said Steve Smith, fire behavioral specialist at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Why is the Camp Fire being called "the most destructive wildfire in California history"?
- Use the article to describe the larger effects of the Camp Fire. List three ways it has affected Californians.
- What factors does the article say contributed to the cause of the Camp Fire? What measures could be taken to prevent fires in the future?
- Does your family have a plan in the event of a natural disaster? If not, what are some things you could do together to protect yourselves?
Click here to view more: www.wsj.com/articles/firefighters-in-california-make-some-headway-against-blazes-1541970352
Posted November 06, 2018
How did World War One change the world?
BBC News
5 November 2018
Last updated at 06:01
It is 100 years since the end of one of the most significant wars in modern history--World War One.
It became known as the Great War because it affected people all over the world and was the biggest war anyone had ever known.
It even came to be known as 'the war to end all wars', as no conflict before World War One had caused destruction on this scale before. People wanted to believe that nobody would ever want to go to war again after it. (Sadly, we know it was not to be the last devastating war that the world would experience.)
Millions of people--both soldiers and ordinary citizens--lost their lives. Of those who did come home from the war, many were injured physically or struggled mentally as a result of what they had experienced.
On 11 November 1918, the guns fell silent and the war came to an end, but its impact was felt for many, many years after.
World War One changed the world in ways that nobody could have imagined. Here, we take a look at how.
New technology
One of the most significant impacts of World War One was huge advances in technology, which would transform the way that people all around the world travelled and communicated, in particular, in the years after the conflict.
New weapons and technologies were developed and used that led to more destruction than any war had seen in the past.
In 1914, planes were still a very new invention. The first one had only taken to the skies just 11 years before!
They were rare and fragile, but when war broke out, scientists and engineers worked hard to develop planes that were stronger, quicker and capable of being used in battle.
The first bombs were dropped from the air (by hand at first by the pilot!) and planes were used to spy on enemy territory. It is estimated that it would take a plane just four hours to gather the same amount of information as a patrol on foot could get in 24 hours.
France only had 140 aircraft when war began, but by the end of it, it had used around 4,500.
It wasn't just the war in the air that saw huge advances in technology, though. Special technology to detect German submarines called U-boats was invented to protect the British Navy--at the time, the largest navy in the world.
Meanwhile on the land, poisonous gas was being used as a weapon, so gas masks were created to protect soldiers.
Special technology called sound ranging that enabled soldiers to pinpoint where the enemy was from the sound of their gunfire also proved extremely important.
Finally, tanks were also used for the first time, which could drive across muddy battlefields and fire lethal weapons. Britain used tanks in battle for the first time on 15 September 1916 and, in total, produced around 2,600 of them throughout the war.
It wasn't just weaponry that advanced, though. New methods of photography, sound recording and ways to communicate were developed during the war, which had a long-lasting impact.
Knowing more about these new technologies and ways of fighting would prove vital for future military tactics and in preparations for World War Two.
Medical innovation
Wounds inflicted on soldiers were like nothing medical professionals had had to deal with before--not least in terms of the numbers of people injured.
So the war meant that medicine had to catch up to be able to deal with these problems.
Donating and giving blood started during World War One, when a US army doctor called Captain Oswald Robertson realised that blood needed to be stockpiled so it was there ready and waiting when casualties arrived.
He set up the first blood bank on the Western Front in 1917, using sodium citrate to stop the blood from clotting and becoming unusable.
A special rod called a Thomas splint, which was used on soldiers who had broken their leg, was also developed. At the start of the war, four in every five soldiers with a broken femur died. By 1916, four out of five survived.
During World War One, medical professionals and army generals learned many important lessons about administering medical aid during warfare.
Financial hardship
War is incredibly expensive--and this war was no different. Just one day's worth of bullets cost £3.8 million [$4.9 million USD] in September 1918.
Before the war, Britain was in fact the world's economic superpower, with significant levels of wealth and resources.
But war took its toll and the effect of how much it cost was felt for many years to come. It left much of Europe in severe economic hardship.
Germany, especially, had to pay an enormous bill of £6,600 million [$8.5 million USD] for the damage caused, as well as provide other compensation.
Role of women
Up until the war, women were perceived in a certain way in society. Their role was traditionally to stay in the home.
Issues like politics and war were very much seen as things for men to deal with.
In the UK, laws were being changed to improve women's standing in society. For example, they had more rights when it came to their houses and their children, but there was still a long way to go before men and women would be treated more equally.
When war broke out and the men went off to fight, it was women who took on their jobs and kept things running back in Britain. Across the country, by late 1918, nine in every ten workers in the munitions industry were female--jobs which traditionally would have been done by men. Women also worked as conductors on trams and buses, as typists and secretaries, and on farms.
The war also changed how many women looked. Trousers appeared for the first time, corsets became increasingly less popular and short, bobbed hair came into fashion.
Women still weren't allowed to do all jobs that men did, though, and there was still inequality in terms of wages and the skills they were allowed to learn.
Many women also had to return to a more domestic life when the men came home as a result of a law called 1919 Restoration of Pre-War Practices Act. It wasn't until the Second World War in 1939 that many women returned to these industrial jobs.
But in February 1918, some women won the right to vote for the first time. Then the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act of 1919 made it illegal to exclude women from jobs because of their gender.
The contribution made during the war by women was seen an important reason for laws changing, and progress being made in terms of better equality and opportunities for them.
Reshaping of politics
As can often be the case following conflict between countries, World War One resulted in the political map of Europe being reshaped. Countries' borders moved and there was arguing over who would rule where.
Under the Treaty of Versailles which was drawn up after the war to essentially decide what would happen next, Germany lost about a tenth of its lands. Further treaties saw Bulgaria, Austria and Hungary all lose territory too.
World War One spelled the end of the Ottoman Turkish empire and also contributed to the Russian revolution, which marked the beginning of a new politics system in action--communism.
Even today, countries disagree over who should be in charge of certain areas, but World War One certainly had a big impact on how Europe's political map was drawn.
Contribution to World War Two
It is not accurate to say that World War One was a cause of World War Two, but it is accepted that the punishments put on Germany [as] a result of the Treaty of Versailles after World War One contributed to the causes of it.
In 1919, this treaty imposed harsh terms on Germany forcing them to accept the blame for the war and pay huge sums for the damages of the war, as outlined above.
Germany was shocked by how strict the treaty was. It was humiliating and many people wanted revenge.
At a time when the country was politically unstable and extremely poor, it was the perfect climate for Adolf Hitler (who led the Germans in World War Two) to rise to power by telling the German people what they wanted to hear and making big promises to them.
World War Two began in 1939 and lasted until 1945.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What do you know of World War I? What caused the war? Why was the United States initially neutral, and why did they enter the war?
- WWI contributed to technological advancements. Which of the inventions mentioned do you think had the most lasting impact? Why?
- The article mentions that WWI changed how women dressed. What could have contributed to that transformation? What were women doing that was new?
- How did the Treaty of Versailles affect Germany after the war? How much land did Germany forfeit? How much money did the country pay in reparations?
- Did any of your relatives participate in WWI? Do you know their story? Share with the class. If you don't know, when you go home, ask your family about your ancestors' roles in the war. Share with the class the next day.
Click here to view more: www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/45966335
Posted October 30, 2018
MSU was given a mummy from Bolivia in 1890. Now the university is returning it.
The mummified remains of an 8-year-old girl who died in the 15th century are being repatriated to Bolivia by Michigan State University (Photo: Ministerio de Culturas y Turismo de Bolivia)
RJ Wolcott and Sarah Lehr, Lansing State Journal
Published 12:30 p.m. ET Oct. 26, 2018 | Updated 12:57 p.m. ET Oct. 26, 2018
EAST LANSING - The remains of a girl who researchers believe died in what is now Bolivia roughly two decades before Christopher Columbus first crossed the Atlantic Ocean are heading back to her homeland.
Michigan State University's Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Friday to give up ownership of the 500-year-old remains in order to allow for their return.
The girl is believed to have been a part of the Aymara ethnic group, an indigenous people from the Andes who, at the time of her death, were under the jurisdiction of the Inca Empire. She was roughly 8 years old when she died.
"We're just thrilled that this is happening," said Mark Auslander, director of the MSU Museum. "It's the ethical thing to do, and it's consistent with the United Nation's treaty on the rights of indigenous people."
The mummified remains were donated to the university in 1890 by Fenton McCreery, whose father, William, was then United States consul to Chile. The body was displayed at the museum with accompanying relics until the early 1970s, said William Lovis, curator emeritus of anthropology, who led the efforts to return the mummy.
"She was a very popular exhibit at the time," he said. The display was even featured on an MSU Museum post card. But, with increasing sensitivities to the display of human remains, the exhibit was dismantled, and the mummy spent the next 40 years being shuffled between secure storage areas at MSU.
No one has done any research on the remains for decades, Lovis said, and his efforts to drum up interest in doing research came to naught.
"About three years ago, I came to the conclusion that, if nobody was going to be doing any work with either the artifacts or the humans remains and if we were not going to display the human remains, it would be better served to return them to Bolivia," he said.
The girl was buried in a stone tomb known as a "chullpa" accompanied by leather sandals, a sling, a gourd full of small pebbles and a bag of corn, fruit and beans. Corn found in one of her bags was radiocarbon dated to roughly 1470. MSU hasn't done any destructive analysis of the remains themselves.
Academics in Bolivia plan to study the mummy further, especially with regard to the physical conditions of the body and the objects she was buried with, said David Trigo, head of the National Museum of Archaeology of Bolivia.
"I don't often encounter an artifact with this much richness," Trigo said, speaking in Spanish.
But he also said that, "With a patrimonial object like this, it's important that it's accessible to the public in some way," and the archaeology museum is planning a public exhibition of the remains in 2019.
The remains will be taken from East Lansing to the Bolivian embassy in Washington, D.C., en route to the National Museum of Archaeology in La Paz, Bolivia.
"Because it's such a precious object, we can't just put it in a car or fly it," Auslander said. "We have to go with a special company, the kind of people you use to transport the 'Mona Lisa' to get it there safely."
The university is expected to pay the cost of transporting the remains to the Bolivian embassy in Washington, D.C.
"The purpose of a museum isn't to just grab and hold," Auslander said. "We want to be more ethical, and, in partnership with friends around the world, we want ancestors to go home where they're supposed to be."
Beyond the museum's designation as MSU Museum Accession 943, the remains aren't named. That may change once they are returned to the government of Bolivia, Auslander said.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- When and under what empire does the article say the girl lived? Using what you already know, list two or three facts about the girl's culture.
- Describe the items found buried with the girl. What do you think they meant to the people who buried her--or what might they have meant to the girl?
- Why might there be "sensitivities" in displaying human remains? Is there a difference between "remains" and an "artifact"? If the remains are very old, do our perceptions change? Do you think these perceptions also pertain to events in the distant past?
- Why did Michigan State University vote unanimously to return the girl's remains to Bolivia? What motivated them to make this decision?
- There are many museums throughout the world that possess remains and artifacts from other cultures. How do you think these objects were first acquired? Do you think these museums should return these objects to their home countries? Why or why not?
Click here to view more: www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2018/10/26/michigan-state-university-bolivia-mummy/1765069002/
Posted October 23, 2018
The INF treaty: What is it and why is the US pulling out?
Is the landmark nuclear treaty as ineffective as US President Donald Trump claims or is there another motive for pulling out of the three-decade old pact?
By Matt Connellan
SBS News
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) was signed by former Soviet President Mikael Gorbachev and then-US President Ronald Reagan in 1987.
The terms of the treaty prohibit Russia and the United States from possessing, producing, or test-flying ground-launched nuclear cruise missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometres [310 to 3,417 miles].
Why is the US pulling out?
While the INF treaty was considered effective for many years, both the United States and Russia have accused each other of breaches in recent years.
US President Donald Trump has announced the United States will pull out of the treaty because he believes Russia has violated the agreement.
"They've been violating it for many years and I don't know why President Obama didn't negotiate or pull out," President Trump said.
"We're not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement and go out and do weapons and we're not allowed to.
"We're the ones that have stayed in the agreement and we've honoured the agreement, but Russia has not, unfortunately, honoured the agreement, so we're going to terminate the agreement."
The pact has also acted as a break on the development of nuclear arms in the US, while China, which is not a signatory to the agreement, has ramped up production of intermediate-range nuclear missiles.
This appeared to be on Trump's mind.
"Unless Russia comes to us and China comes to us and they all come to us and say, 'Let's really get smart and let's none of us develop those weapons.' But if Russia's doing it and if China's doing it and we're adhering to the agreement, that's unacceptable," Trump said.
How have other countries reacted?
Russia isn't happy, and has long denied allegations that it has produced and tested such missiles.
In December last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin effectively accused the US of breaking the treaty.
"When it comes to Europe, we are talking about offensive infrastructure being created there," Putin said.
"And we are talking about the violation from the US side of the articles of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty)."
Mr Gorbachev says President Trump's decision to withdraw from the key Cold War nuclear-weapons treaty, is a reversal of efforts to achieve nuclear disarmament.
While Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov, indicated Russia may well retaliate.
"This would be a very dangerous step that, I'm sure, not only will not be comprehended by the international community but will provoke serious condemnation," Mr Ryabkov said.
If the US followed through with the decision to leave the treaty, Mr Ryabkov said: "then we will have no choice but to undertake retaliatory measures, including involving military technology".
"But we would not want to get to this stage."
Will this spark a fresh arms race?
US National Security Advisor John Bolton is now in Moscow for two days of high-level talks.
Russian political scientist Dmitry Oreshkin says he believes new missiles are being produced and that it is a "very soviet thing to sign an agreement and then not to follow it."
"We are slowly slipping back to the situation of cold war as it was at the end of the Soviet Union, with quite similar consequences," he said.
"But now it could be worse because Putin belongs to a generation that had no war under his belt.
"These people aren't as much fearful of a war as people of Brezhnev's epoch. They think if they threaten the West properly, it gets scared."
Melbourne physician Professor Tilman Ruff, established the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons--a group that won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.
Professor Ruff told ABC News Breakfast, the US threat to walk away from the deal could lead to further negotiations that actually strengthen the treaty.
"The Russians have certainly indicated that they haven't exhausted the options, that there is still room to talk," Professor Ruff said.
"But to walk away from a crucial disarmament agreement, in one fell swoop, essentially without really seeking to sustain it is really a very, not quite unprecedented move since the US left the anti-ballistic missile treaty in 2001.
"But it's really a step that's unravelling the limited, but really crucial, arms control agreements we have between those states, that between them have more than 90 per cent of the world's nuclear weapons."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF)? What does President Trump say about the United States withdrawing from it?
- Who is Mikhail Gorbachev, and what is his stance? Should presidents Trump and Putin heed his advice? Why?
- Examine the source: Why would an Australian news outlet cover a treaty between Russia and the U.S.? What are the international implications of the U.S. withdrawing from the INF treaty?
- Think about what you know about the Cold War. What caused the Cold War? Who were the major players? What was the effect of the Cold War? Why did it end?
- Russian political scientist Dmitry Oreshkin says: "We are slowly slipping back to the situation of cold war as it was at the end of the Soviet Union, with quite similar consequences... But now it could be worse because Putin belongs to a generation that had no war under his belt." What could "quite similar consequences" mean? What does Oreshkin mean when he says Putin belongs to "a generation that had no war"? Are Russia and the U.S. re-entering the Cold War? Why do you think this?
Click here to view more: www.sbs.com.au/news/the-inf-treaty-what-is-it-and-why-is-the-us-pulling-out
Posted October 16, 2018
Blue and Red Companies: How CEO Activism
Is Reshaping Workforce Politics
CEO of Dick's Sporting Goods Ed Stack visits a new store in the Houston area in 2016. In February, Stack pulled assault-style weapons from store shelves and raised the minimum age to buy guns to 21. Associated Press photo.
By Yuki Noguchi
National Public Radio
October 15, 2018 5:04 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition
An era of a new kind of CEO activism appears to be in full swing. Think of Nike CEO Mark Parker's decision to feature ads with Colin Kaepernick, the NFL quarterback turned racial justice activist. Or Dick's Sporting Goods CEO Ed Stack, who in February pulled assault-style weapons from store shelves and raised the minimum age to buy guns to 21.
Corporate leaders, who historically stayed silent on policy, are increasingly speaking out. Their statements are directed at consumers, but employees are also responding and it is affecting morale and company culture to recruitment.
Levi Strauss & Co. CEO Chip Bergh says he anticipated impassioned responses last month when he made a corporate donation of $1 million toward preventing gun violence.
"I knew I was going to get a lot of hate mail. I knew I was going to get threats. I knew my family was going to get threats, and all of that has happened," he says. "But somebody's got to have the courage to step up and say something needs to be done."
Some angry emails Bergh responded to came from his own employees, who interpreted the donation as hostile to gun ownership. (Bergh, an Army veteran, says it was not). He also received support, including from Levi's employees whose children had been in lockdowns at school because of active shooters.
Either way, he says it is not a move he regrets. He says activism--from supporting desegregation to LGBT rights--has long been part of the California-based company's history.
"They may not always agree with every single position or stand that we're taking, but they appreciate the fact that we are willing to dive into these tough issues," Bergh says.
In today's hyperpartisan environment, Bergh says employees want to know where their leaders stand. And strong values are increasingly part of what workers look for in an employer.
"If you're in HR or finance or marketing, you can go work anywhere in San Francisco today," he says. "We have very intense loyalty to this company and a big part of the reason we've got that kind of loyalty is that this is part of our value proposition."
This new era of CEO activism started around 2014, when Apple CEO Tim Cook publicly supported gay rights, and Starbucks' then-CEO Howard Schultz wrote an open letter about race, says Aaron Chatterji, a professor of business and public policy at Duke University. It intensified with the election of Donald Trump.
"What's changed now is that we're more polarized as a society, and it's much more difficult to occupy that middle ground without being drawn into the fight," Chatterji says.
These fights often play out very publicly.
Social media amplifies the voices of people who are most passionate about their loyalties--whether it's to a political party, a news source or a brand. And Chatterji says it's changed business norms by allowing workers to speak directly to their leaders. He says companies that recognize this play up their values to appeal to their core customers, just as political parties do for their base.
"A lot of people say, 'Look, it doesn't make sense from a capitalist point of view, or a market point of view, to get involved in politics,' and I think that's actually missing the point," he says, because corporate identities were already becoming more partisan.
"I think increasingly you're going to see red brands and blue brands," says Melissa Harris, CEO of marketing firm M. Harris & Co. in Chicago. As more activist CEOs speak out, she says companies are competing for attention. "They come to us asking for language that is more provocative, almost controversial; they want these messages to travel farther," she says.
Of course many CEOs prefer to avoid controversy by keeping with the old adage "never mix business and politics." But experts say staying silent comes with its own downsides, because a CEO's position influences employee recruitment and retention, especially among younger workers.
"It's going to have a recruiting impact," says Scott Dobroski, community expert for Glassdoor, a site where workers can leave comments about their workplace. His company's surveys show values are still secondary considerations, compared to salary, commute times, and work-life balance. But, he says, how CEOs define their company's values can have a direct impact on whether candidates apply for jobs. "You can also see quality candidates applying to those roles perhaps because of that," he says. "And then, if they get hired, perhaps even staying longer."
A July survey by public-relations firm Weber Shandwick found that 31 percent of employees said they felt more engaged and loyal to their companies when they agreed with their CEO's stances. It had the opposite effect for the 23 percent of those who disagreed with their leader.
Nor is it easy for CEOs to remain silent.
"Whereas it used to be leaders made these decisions, reviewed it with their board and came out with their position, I think what we're seeing now is employees are impacting leaders and impressing on them that this is an issue that is that important that they do speak out," says Leslie Gaines-Ross, chief reputation strategist at Weber Shandwick. "So I think it's a double-edged sword, and that's probably the hardest part of it, is that there is no playbook anymore for taking a stand."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Although the headline of the article mentions "blue and red companies," the only examples given are of "blue" companies making donations and taking a position. What should the reporter and editor have done to balance the article? Why do you think the "red" companies aren't represented?
- Are "red" companies already identified with particular issues? What are some of the companies, and which causes do they support?
- What do you think of companies that are politically active? Are you in favor of a CEO making political statements on behalf of a company? Why or why not? Is this an extension of freedom of expression?
- The article mentions Levi Strauss's CEO Chip Bergh, who made a $1 million "corporate donation" toward preventing gun violence. Should CEOs use corporate funds or personal funds for donations like these? Why would Bergh use company money instead of personal funds? What message does using corporate money send?
- If you worked for a company that supported causes you disagreed with, what would you do? Would a CEO's or company's political stance influence your employment decisions? Support your position.
- As a consumer, are you aware of the political stances taken by companies? Does it influence your purchases?
- How can a decision to support a specific political cause benefit a corporation? How can it be a detriment? Provide two examples of each.
Click here to view more: www.npr.org/2018/10/15/656849460/blue-and-red-companies-how-ceo-activism-is-reshaping-workforce-politics
Posted October 9, 2018
Hidden Maya Civilization Revealed Beneath Guatemala's Jungle Canopy
Live Science
By Laura Geggel, Senior Writer | September 29, 2018 09:19am ET
More than 61,000 ancient Maya structures--from large pyramids to single houses--were lurking beneath the dense jungle canopy in Guatemala, revealing clues about the ancient culture's farming practices, infrastructure, politics and economy, a new aerial survey has revealed.
The Guatemalan jungle is thick and challenging to explore, so researchers mapped the terrain with the help of a technology known as light detection and ranging, or lidar. The lidar images were captured during aerial surveys of the Maya lowland, a region spanning more than 810 square miles (2,100 square kilometers).
"Since lidar technology is able to pierce through thick forest canopy and map features on the Earth's surface, it can be used to produce ground maps that enable us to identify human-made features on the ground, such as walls, roads or buildings," Marcello Canuto, director of the Middle American Research Institute at Tulane University in New Orleans, said in a statement.
The aerial lidar survey covered 12 separate areas in Petén, Guatemala, and included both rural and urban Maya settlements. After analyzing the images--which included isolated houses, large palaces, ceremonial centers and pyramids--the researchers determined that up to 11 million people lived in the Maya lowlands during the late Classic period, from A.D. 650 to 800. This number is consistent with previous calculations, the researchers noted in the study, which was published online Friday (Sept. 28) in the journal Science.
It would have required a massive agricultural effort to sustain such a big population, the researchers said. So, it was no surprise when the lidar survey revealed that much of the wetlands in the area were heavily modified for farming, the researchers said.
In all, the surveys revealed about 140 square miles (362 square km) of terraces and other modified agricultural land, as well as another 368 square miles (952 square km) of farmland.
In addition, the lidar analysis uncovered 40 square miles (110 square km) of roadway networks within and between faraway cities and towns, some of which were heavily fortified. This finding highlighted the links between the Maya's hinterlands and urban centers, the researchers said.
"Seen as a whole, terraces and irrigation channels, reservoirs, fortifications, and causeways reveal an astonishing amount of land modification done by the Maya over their entire landscape on a scale previously unimaginable," Francisco Estrada-Belli, a research assistant professor of anthropology at Tulane University and director of the Holmul Archaeological Project, said in the statement.
However, even though the lidar evaluation revealed so many previously unknown structures, researchers described it as a complement to, but not a replacement for, traditional archaeology. In a perspective article on the new research published in the same journal, Anabel Ford, an adjunct professor of archaeology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Sherman Horn, a visiting professor of archaeology at Grand Valley State University in Michigan, wrote that even with lidar, "boots on the ground" would always be needed.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What does "lidar" stand for, and how does it work?
- What kinds of structures did researchers find using lidar? What does this tell you about the Maya?
- How does this scientific discovery help historians think about the Maya? Did it prove or disprove previous theories about the region and its people? Besides science, what other subjects might help someone better understand history? Explain.
- In the article, it says that lidar is no substitute for "boots on the ground." What does that mean? Do you think this statement is true? Why or why not?
- If you could use lidar to see any place in the world from a different perspective, where would it be? What would you hope to discover?
Click here to view more: www.livescience.com/63713-maya-cities-found-in-guatemala.html
Image source: Live Science
Posted October 2, 2018
Indonesia earthquake and tsunami:
How warning system failed the victims
From BBC News
1 October 2018
Hundreds of people have been killed and many still remain missing after a tsunami struck the Indonesian island of Sulawesi on Friday, triggered by a powerful earthquake.
A tsunami warning was sent out--lasting just over 30 minutes--but it appears to have drastically underestimated the scale of the tsunami that would follow. So what went wrong?
What actually happened?
A 7.5 magnitude earthquake occurred just off the island of Sulawesi at 18:03 local time (10:03 GMT) [6:03 a.m. Eastern time] on Friday, triggering dozens of aftershocks.
Indonesia's meteorological and geophysics agency BMKG issued a tsunami warning just after the initial quake, warning of potential waves of 0.5 to three metres [19.685 inches to 9.842 feet].
But it lifted the warning just over 30 minutes later.
Palu--a city in Sulawesi located in a narrow bay--was hit by waves as high as six metres [19.685 feet]. The surging water brought buildings down and caused widespread destruction. Hundreds of people had gathered for a beachfront festival and it was a scene of horror as waves powered over the beach--sweeping up everything in their path.
Indonesia's National Disaster and Mitigation Agency has said that most of the victims in Palu were killed as a result of the tsunami.
Were people aware there was a tsunami?
Many critics have accused BMKG of lifting the warning too early, though the agency says the waves hit while the warning was still in force.
BMKG chairwoman Dwikorita Karnawati told the Jakarta Post that the decision to end the warning was made after the agency received information about the tsunami, including a field observation made by a BMKG employee in Palu.
She added that the tsunami alert ended at 18:37 [6:37 a.m. Eastern time], minutes after the third and last wave hit land. She also said that there were no more tsunami waves after the alert ended.
But there's a bigger problem--though the alert was sent out, and according to the communications ministry, repeated tsunami warnings were sent to residents via text message--they might not have been received.
A spokesman for the disaster agency said the quake had brought down the area's power and communications lines and that there were no sirens along the coast--which might have rendered the alerts essentially useless.
One video which has been widely shared on social media illustrates the chilling consequences. It shows a man shouting cries of warning towards people alongside the beach, who remain oblivious to a huge approaching wave.
Does Indonesia have a tsunami early warning system?
Yes. Indonesia's tsunami early warning system is currently made up of a network of 170 seismic broadband stations, 238 accelerometer stations and 137 tidal gauges.
But according to BMKG's head of earthquake and tsunami centre, the current system in place is "very limited".
"Our [current] tools are very lacking," said Rahmat Triyono, speaking to BBC Indonesian.
"In fact, of the 170 earthquake sensors we have, we only have a maintenance budget for 70 sensors."
However we do know that the system did in fact pick up the tsunami--because a warning was sent out--but what it failed to do was accurately gauge the scale of the tsunami.
BMKG revealed that the nearest closest tidal gauge to Palu was one that was well over 200km [124.274 miles] away.
The tidal gauge, which measures changes in sea level, only recorded an "insignificant" 6cm (2.5in) rise. The tsunami height was estimated to be less than 0.5m [19.685 inches], BMKG said (in Indonesian).
"We have no observation data at Palu. So we had to use the data we had and make a call based on that," Mr Triyono told Reuters.
"If we had a tide gauge or proper data in Palu, of course it would have been better. This is something we must evaluate for the future."
Could more lives have been saved?
It's possible, as Indonesia does actually have a more advanced tsunami warning system, including a network of 21 buoys connected to seafloor sensors which would have transmitted advance warnings based on data gathered by deep sea sensors.
However none of these buoys--donated by the US, Germany and Malaysia after the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed nearly a quarter of a million people--are working. Some have been damaged by vandals and others have been stolen.
A replacement system has been delayed due to a lack of funds.
Because of this the BMKG predicts post-earthquake tsunamis using a modelling system based on the earthquake depth and magnitude.
If data were available from the buoys, "then our tsunami warning level would be more accurate", Mr Triyono told BBC Indonesian.
The latest disaster has highlighted the costs of Indonesia not having implemented a more sophisticated early warning system.
BPPT, the agency which manages the buoy system, has previously acknowledged that government efforts have mostly focused on post-earthquake relief, while paying "minimal" attention to pre-disaster anticipation.
But was the tsunami expected?
Not exactly.
This is not the kind of earthquake that typically generates a major tsunami, according to Prof Philip Li-fan Liu, vice-president of the department of civil and environmental engineering at the National University of Singapore.
Tsunamis are typically only generated when there is a large vertical displacement, he said. But in this case, the tectonic plates were "rubbing against each other horizontally, and when [that] ruptures it only creates a significant horizontal movement and not much of a vertical movement".
Why such massive waves were unleashed on Palu could perhaps be explained by the nature of the bay itself.
According to Dr Hamza Latief, an oceanographer at the Bandung Institute of Technology, Palu has witnessed tsunamis in the past and when a tsunami hits its narrow and elongated bay its impact is amplified.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What causes a tsunami?
- Why weren't more people in the area aware of the possibility of a tsunami?
- The government uses a text message system to send out warnings. What is the flaw in that plan? What would you suggest as an alternative to ensure people are warned about an approaching tsunami?
- The article details a warning system that is in place, yet people were still taken by surprise. Name at least two failures mentioned in the article.
- While the earthquake that generated the tsunami is not the kind that "typically generates a major tsunami," the destruction and death toll was high. What geographic features contributed to this?
- Should people build in areas that are prone to natural disasters? Should government money be spent helping them rebuild in the same place? Does this apply to areas prone to hurricanes, flooding, and fires in the United States?
Click here to view more: www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-45663054
Posted September 25, 2018
Trump's trade war with China just got a whole lot bigger
By Jethro Mullen and Katie Lobosco, CNN
Updated 5:43 AM ET, Mon September 24, 2018
(CNN)--The trade fight between the United States and China intensified Monday as the two economic superpowers hit each other with their biggest round of tariffs yet.
The Trump administration imposed new 10% tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods just after midnight ET (noon in Beijing), spanning thousands of products, including food seasonings, baseball gloves, network routers and industrial machinery parts. China retaliated immediately with new taxes of 5% to 10% on $60 billion of US goods such as meat, chemicals, clothes and auto parts.
The moves are a significant escalation in the growing conflict between the world's top two economies.
"We are squarely in the midst of the 'it'll get worse before it gets better' phase," Aninda Mitra, senior sovereign analyst at BNY Mellon Investment Management, said in a note after the latest tariffs were announced last week.
President Donald Trump's waves of new tariffs on China now apply to over $250 billion of Chinese goods, roughly half the amount the country sells to the United States. The latest round affects thousands of products bought by US consumers, including hundreds of millions of dollars of furniture and electronics imports. The US tariffs imposed earlier in the year mostly hit industrial goods.
The measures are meant to punish China for what the Trump administration says are unfair trade practices, such as intellectual property theft.
Beijing has rejected the US assertions, accusing the United States of protectionism and bullying. It has fired back with tariffs on American goods worth more than $110 billion.
The Trump administration has made "false accusations" and sought to "impose its own interests on China through extreme pressure," the Chinese government said in a lengthy white paper published Monday about the two countries' trade relationship, according to state news agency Xinhua.
Further escalation is already looming.
The latest round of US tariffs is set to increase at the end of the year from 10% to 25%. China hasn't yet spelled out how it will respond to that.
Trump has also threatened tariffs on another $267 billion of Chinese products. That would mean the US measures effectively cover all China's annual goods exports to the United States (the total for 2017 was about $506 billion).
China, which imports a far smaller amount from the United States, is running out of new products to target, but analysts say it still has other options to retaliate. They include charging even higher tariffs, imposing import quotas, restricting Chinese citizens' travel to the United States for study and tourism, and slashing taxes for companies affected by the tariffs.
'Deadlock'
Trump administration officials have said that the ultimate goal is to achieve free trade with zero tariffs and zero subsidies on both sides. But analysts say Beijing is becoming more suspicious about US intentions.
"China is growing concerned that the US motivation is now trying to keep China down and contain it," Timothy Stratford, a managing partner at law firm Covington & Burling in Beijing, said last week. "I expect that we're going to have a deadlock for some time."
Trump's decision to move ahead rapidly with the latest tariffs appears to have put the brakes on plans for a new round of negotiations between the two sides. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had invited Chinese negotiators to Washington to resume talks, but a senior White House official said Friday that no new meetings are planned for the time being.
Many American business leaders agree that China's trade practices must be addressed, but they object to the use of tariffs, which are paid by companies importing the products. CEOs now have to decide whether to absorb the cost or pass it on to consumers. Some may be able to find a new supplier outside of China, but that takes time.
Thousands of companies have asked the government to exclude certain products from the tariff list, claiming they cannot find another supplier outside of China for the items they need. None of their requests have been granted so far.
Companies and consumers paying the price
Big corporations are already warning about the damage. US chipmaker Micron said Thursday that the new wave of US tariffs is likely to hurt its profits in the coming year. China's tariffs could hurt America's energy companies planning to export an abundance [of] liquefied natural gas.
American consumers are likely to see prices rise later this fall for a variety of household products, ranging from shampoo, to dog food and appliances, said Doreen Edelman, co-chair of the global business team at law firm Baker Donelson.
Walmart has said the new tariffs could force them to raise prices on [a] wide variety of items, and Target said working families will pay more for school essentials like notebooks, calculators and binders. Procter & Gamble has also warned that tariffs could raise the cost of many of its household staples.
Chinese businesses are feeling the effects, too.
Feng Renhao said his trading firm in the northeastern city of Dalian has suffered "a huge impact."
It had been buying seafood from American companies for more than 20 years. But after China slapped 25% tariffs on seafood from the United States in July, Feng said he had to drop his US suppliers and turn to Canada and European countries.
"We hope the trade war can end soon," he told CNN.
Nanlin Fang, Kevin Liptak and Donna Borak contributed to this report.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- What is a trade war? How is a trade war "fought"?
- What are tariffs, and according to the article, why is the United States imposing tariffs on China? What will the tariffs achieve?
- What is a trade deficit? Do you think the tariffs will help correct the trade deficit between the U.S. and China? What effect do you think the tariffs will have on the U.S. and Chinese economies?
- What are some products affected by the tariffs? How do you think this could affect you and your family's lives? What effects will the tariffs have on people living in China?
- Is it fair for businesses to pass on the costs of the tariffs to customers? Which would you want as a customer? As a business owner? Explain your reasoning.
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2018/09/23/politics/trump-trade-war-china/index.html
Image source: www.ksfy.com/content/news/Pres-Trump-Ready-to-tax-an-additional-267B-in-Chinese-imports-492717171.html
Posted September 18, 2018
Is teen vaping really an epidemic? These experts say yes
"It's rampant among our high school and middle-school-age population," one pediatrician says.
By Maggie Fox / Sep.15.2018 / 2:53 PM ET
Something was a little fishy at Jonathan Law High School in Milford, Connecticut.
Kids were disappearing from class for longer and longer times, says Francis Thompson, the school's principal.
"In the past year or so we've noticed an increase in the number of students going into the bathroom and they are spending more time," Thompson told NBC News. "They were congregating. They were horsing around or sitting on sinks in the girl's room and breaking them."
He sent teachers to investigate. "What we found the common denominator was: They were vaping," Thompson said.
This week, Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb declared e-cigarette use an epidemic among teens.
He told manufacturers to come up with a plan within the next two months for discouraging teen use of vaping products, and threatened to ban all flavored vaping products.
Although some companies have said they were trying to make it clear their products are for adults only, Gottlieb said it looked to him more like an exercise in public relations and not a real attempt to stop selling to children and adolescents.
Thompson agrees.
"Companies like Juul claim to be investing in information to stop the teenagers from doing it, but it's a big market for them," he said.
Ads, he said, ...have moved onto social media and he has no doubt who is attracted by lines of clothing made to conceal vaping devices with special pockets, fruity and candy-like flavors and celebrity endorsements.
"It's definitely targeting this group of kids," Thomson said.
And e-cigarettes are addicting a new generation to nicotine, pediatricians say.
Dr. Kirsten Hawkins, a pediatrician at Georgetown University Medical Center, says she is shocked at how quickly it is happening.
"It's rampant among our high school and middle-school-age population," Hawkins said. Many of her patients are already addicted to nicotine, she said.
"On one particular day in August, I had 12 patients aged 12 to 20 who said they were using Juul," she said.
"One 12-year-old said he was bullied into trying it by his sibling and his friends. I found it fascinating that he did not realize the risks associated with a nicotine assistance device."
Studies have shown that teens who try-e-cigarettes are far more likely to then go on to smoking old-fashioned combustible cigarettes. Hawkins saw it first-hand in a patient who lost her Juul device and became frantic in her need for a nicotine fix.
"She was smoking two packs (of cigarettes) a day," Hawkins said.
Teens are especially drawn to Juul because the device, which resembles a computer flash drive, is easily concealed. Unlike most other vaping devices that stream clouds of scented vapor, Juul emits short puffs that quickly dissipate.
This makes it difficult to detect even in class, Thompson said.
"Kids are concealing at home. They are doing it in classrooms and hallways, because teachers don't know what to look for," he said.
And unlike with cigarettes, there is no telltale smoke or tobacco smell to alert teachers or parents to the culprit.
"The vapor disappears quickly and it's masked by a scent such as mango, so you can't tell if it's someone's new lip gloss or candy," Thompson said.
Teens and adults alike mistakenly think vaping is harmless, pediatricians and educators have discovered.
"There is a misconception that they are only vaping water and that it's healthy and that is not true," Thompson said.
Teens may reject regular cigarettes as "gross," Thompson said, but may not realize tobacco companies also sell vaping products. "They are still giving their money to Big Tobacco," he said.
Plus, the flavored additives are made using potentially harmful chemicals, which vapers inhale into their lungs for thin membranes to absorb.
Some of the devices deliver a hefty load of nicotine, which decades of research has shown is highly addictive. It also can affect a developing brain in harmful ways.
As Hawkins found, many adolescents are already addicted.
"This is the next teenage epidemic and by the time we figure the long-term consequences out, a whole generation of kids, their health is going to be impacted," Thompson said.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is equally worried and urges the FDA to do more.
"The AAP rejects FDA's decision to allow five leading e-cigarette manufacturers to submit plans in 60 days for how they will address youth use of their products. FDA has the ability today to do what tobacco companies can't and won't do: take effective steps to reduce and eliminate youth use of e-cigarettes," the group said.
"The Academy urges the agency to use its existing authority to immediately regulate all e-cigarettes. In fact, the AAP has joined other leading health and medical groups in legal action to compel FDA to do just that. If FDA continues to delay meaningful regulation, a generation of young people will become addicted to these dangerous products, which are being marketed to them in appealing, child-friendly flavors."
Thompson said he is doing what he can to educate kids, teachers and parents about the dangers of vaping.
"When a student is found to be vaping or Juuling, our process is to give them some type of counseling program. We have counselors. Our nurses are involved. It's a whole wrap-around service," he said.
"Do I feel like it's changing hearts and minds so they are not going to vape anymore? No. I think it's an epidemic and I think we are just catching on to it now so we are probably about five or six years behind the curve," Thompson added.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- Do you think vaping is a real problem, or is this being overplayed?
- Why would teens vape instead of smoke cigarettes? Are e-cigarettes safer or just more socially acceptable? Are they easier to buy?
- Did this article present any information you didn't know about vaping? What are some of the risks associated with e-cigarettes? List three mentioned in the article.
- What are the manufacturers doing to entice teens to try vaping? Why would "Big Tobacco" want to target the teen market?
- Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb ordered e-cigarette manufacturers to come up with a plan in 60 days to discourage teen use of vaping. If you had to create such a plan, what would you propose? How would you get the message out to other teens? What method(s) do you think would be most effective?
Click here to view more: www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/teen-vaping-really-epidemic-these-experts-think-so-n909891
Posted September 10, 2018
From the Capitol: Patriot Day and the United States Cadet Nurse Corps
By Brian Stewart / State representatives
Posted Sep 7, 2018 at 3:05 PM Updated Sep 7, 2018 at 3:05 PM
It started like any other day. Across America, we woke up to get ready for work. We had a cup of coffee. We fixed breakfast. We kissed our loved ones goodbye.
And then we turned on the news. When we heard an airplane hit the North Tower, many of us couldn't believe it. It had to be an accident. We wondered how it could possibly happen, and as newscasters asked the same questions racing through our minds, we saw the second plane.
We watched in horror as it crashed into the South Tower. And then we knew. This was no accident. And our lives would never be the same again.
On Sept. 11, 2001, 2,996 people lost their lives and 6,000 more were injured. We lost 343 firefighters, 72 law enforcement officers, and 55 military personnel. The attack was the single deadliest terrorist attack in world history. Five hundred more people were killed on 9/11 than in the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.
Throughout our history, people have sold America short. The British sold us short in the 1770s until Yorktown. The Confederacy sold us short until Appomattox. The Spanish sold us short until Manila. The Axis Powers sold us short until D-Day. The Soviets sold us short until the Berlin Wall fell.
At every turn, Americans rise to the occasion. President Ronald Reagan once said that, "One of the worst mistakes anybody can make is to bet against Americans."
One of those occasions was in 1943. The United States was in its second year fighting World War II. Many of our nation's nurses had gone overseas to serve in the military, leaving our civilian hospitals critically understaffed. We needed nurses, and fast.
As a result of the crisis, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a law creating the United States Cadet Nurse Corps on July 1, 1943. The program, administered by the United States Public Health Service, truncated 36 months of training into 30 months. It did not discriminate on the basis of race or ethnicity. Students were eligible for a government subsidy to pay for tuition, textbooks, uniforms, and to cover a "cost of living" stipend. In exchange, the students pledged to serve wherever needed in essential civilian or federal government services until the end of World War II.
The program ran from 1943 until 1948. Over 179,000 nurses were enrolled in the program with a 70 percent graduation rate. Eighty-seven percent of the nursing programs in the country participated in the program. One such school was right here in Freeport at the old St. Francis Hospital. St. Francis was the first hospital in Freeport, opening its doors on February 12th, 1890. It developed a nursing school that trained hundreds of nurses by 1923, and in 1943, began training nurses through the US Cadet Nurse Corps training program.
Dorothy Elaine Ellis (nee Ditzler) was one of the cadets trained at St. Francis. She grew up on a farm in Winslow, Illinois and began her training on September 1st, 1944 when she was 17 years old.
Her son, Bob Ditzler, says that Dorothy served because she is "a patriot who answered the call of duty. She has always had a caring, giving personality with compassion for mankind and sympathy for others, especially service members."
Bob provided me with information about his mother's service, hoping that she could be recognized for her service by the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. As it turns out, the US Cadet Nurse Corps is the only uniformed corps, commissioned during World War II, whose members have not been recognized as veterans.
In a message shortly before signing the Emancipation Proclamation, President Lincoln wrote, "The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise--with the occasion." Americans have a history of rising with the occasion. We saw it on 9/11 and in the days and months that followed. We saw it during World War II, including the creation and development of the US Cadet Nurse Corps.
I would like Springfield to pass a resolution thanking nurses like Dorothy Ellis-Ditzler who were trained at St. Francis and throughout Illinois for their service to their country. I would also like the resolution to call on Congress to pass HR1168, called the US Cadet Nurse Corps Equity Act. It would declare that US Cadet Nurse Corps members--who served between 1943 and 1948--would be issued an honorable discharge from the Department of Defense and be qualified as veterans.
On Tuesday it will have been 17 years since the fateful morning of Sept. 11. Much has happened over the years. Many of us have loved. Others have lost. Children have been brought into the world as friends and family have passed on.
We've come so far and accomplished so much. But there is one thing that should not, that must not, that will not change. We will never forget. Not ever.
And... we will always rise.
If you have any additional thoughts or ideas, you can reach me 815-232-0774, or visit my website at repbrianstewart.com and use the form to send me an e-mail.
[Brian Stewart is an Illinois State Representative.]
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- How many people were killed in the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001? How does that number compare with the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II?
- The author states: "Throughout our history, people have sold America short." What does it mean to sell someone short? Name an example of when someone was sold short--it might have been you, someone else, or even an entire country.
- How does the theme of "service" relate to the events of September 11 and Pearl Harbor? How does this tie into the theme of Patriot's Day? What does patriotism mean to you?
- When and why do people respond to calls to service? Should service be incentivized? Are incentives like free education mutually beneficial for both people and an organization?
- What does the author hope to achieve by writing this article, and why?
Click here to view more: www.rrstar.com/opinion/20180907/from-capitol-patriot-day-and-united-states-cadet-nurse-corps
Image source: womenofwwii.com/posters/lifetime-education-u-s-cadet-nurse-corps-wwii-poster/
Posted May 22, 2018
Decorated graduation caps reflect joy, angst of students
By REGINA GARCIA CANO
The Associated Press
May 12, 2018
LAS VEGAS (AP)--The black letters contrast sharply with the graduation cap's red fabric. They spell: "Vuela tan alto como puedas sin olvidar de donde vienes."
"Fly as high as you can without forgetting where you come from."
That's the message that Brenda Romero, who crossed the border from Mexico with her mother when she was 2, wants to spread as she graduates Saturday from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Her decorated mortarboard is part of an emerging trend in which students are pushing against the formality of graduation ceremonies and choosing to stand out in a sea of monochromatic caps and gowns by expressing joy, angst or, increasingly, political opinions.
Photos shared on social media show mortarboards adorned with expressions of gratitude toward family members and hope for the future, with phrases like "The best is yet to come" and "On to my new dream."
Plenty also highlight the cost of higher education. "This hat was $95,990," one cap reads. Another states: "Game of Loans. Interest is coming."
And caps proclaiming that "Nevertheless, she persisted" abound.
The informal practice, which is not necessarily encouraged by institutions, has been around for years and is used by students to express their individuality. But over the past couple of years, it has taken a more political tone, said Sheila Bock, a folklorist and professor at UNLV.
"That desire of wanting to make aspects of one's self visible that are otherwise invisible has always been there," said Bock, who is researching how and why students decorate their mortarboards.
"But within the last couple of years, those types of assertions--particularly as they relate to citizenship, places of origin, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation--have taken more significance as they move into this mode of public display."
Bock has been tracking what students put on their caps through social media posts, as well as by attending commencements, photographing mortarboards and interviewing dozens of students.
Romero, who is earning a degree in human services, has been shielded from deportation and granted a work permit through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. She was able to attend community college and later UNLV because the federal program was authorized shortly after she graduated from high school, allowing her to work sometimes up to three jobs to pay portions of tuition and fees not covered by scholarships.
She said she looked up quotes to put on her cap for about a semester. She chose to also include marigolds--the flowers used to decorate altars for the Day of the Dead--to honor her grandfather, who died last year.
"This quote really resonated with me just because of my parents' struggles and everything that they had to overcome so that I could graduate," said Romero, who now works at a law firm and plans to apply to law school. "It pays tribute not just to what I'm doing, but to where I come from and everything that has made me who I am."
Previous UNLV ceremonies have featured caps with messages like "Si Se Puede, Here To Stay" and "1 ex, 2 kids, 9 jobs, 1 husband, 1 addiction, 13 years, 127 credits, 66K loans = 1 college grad!!!" Last May, a student placed a photo of President Donald Trump next to the question "What does my political science degree mean now?"
Some students leave politics and finances aside, and instead include Bible verses or show their love for each other.
Anna Gingrich and Anthony Bardis will tie the knot a week after graduation. So, she decorated their caps with bridal embellishments. She covered the mortarboards with gold paper that matches the color of her wedding shoes. Hers features a wedding dress and the word "bride," while his has a tuxedo and "groom."
"It's kind of just like professing to the world that graduation isn't the end for us--we are about to start our lives, and that's a big deal," said Gingrich, who is getting a degree in nutrition science and dietetics. "When somebody sees his, I want them to look for mine, and when someone sees mine, I want them to look for his."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Are you allowed to decorate your mortarboard at your high school graduation? Why or why not?
- 4. What would you put on your mortarboard? What message do you want to send and why?
- 5. Would you use contrasting or complementary colors? Support your explanation. What is a mortarboard anyway? Isn't "mortar" another word for cement?
- 6. What are your plans for the summer? Going to do anything fun? Are you working? Why or why not? What are your plans for the money you'll earn? Maybe it's college, and someday you'll decorate a college mortarboard. Think about those college colors now and be ready for a pleasing yet pointed message.
- 7. This is the last Current Event for the school year. Your friends at Teacher's Discovery® wish you a happy and safe summer. Wear sunscreen!
Click here to view more: www.apnews.com/399366cb3dbe4be2b873a22f23e21f0e/Decorated-graduation-caps-reflect-joy,-angst-of-students
Posted May 15, 2018
Prom isn't a fantasy, it's a reflection of our (racist) reality
By Madeleine Deliee
Updated 1:37 PM ET, Fri May 11, 2018
Editor's Note: Madeleine Deliee has written about education, parenting, and geek culture for the Washington Post, Playboy, Pacific Standard, Woman's Day and Ozy. [...]. The views expressed in this commentary are solely hers.
(CNN)--It's prom season again: your social media is about to be overrun with pictures of teenagers in formal clothes and giant smiles, maybe evoking "Pretty in Pink" or "Carrie," depending on your high school experience. As a high school teacher, I have a ringside view of the whole event; I see how easily it can change from one person's celebration to another person's sorrow.
There's no shortage of ways that proms have been impacted by the same prejudices that mar society at large. Instances of segregation, homophobia, and racism have, for many students, tarnished the occasion. Just recently, Nordstrom Rack apologized to African-American teenagers who were falsely accused of stealing from a store where they were shopping for shirts for prom.
Even before the actual dance, there's the flood of what have come to be known as "promposals"--the carefully planned invitations meant to guarantee an acceptance. Similar to the marriage proposals on which they are modeled, most of these involve flowers, favorite foods, elaborate signs and costumes, and maybe a strategically employed horse-drawn carriage.
But this year, one high school senior in Sarasota, Florida, got plenty of attention for his racist "promposal." He asked a girl to the prom by holding up a sign (photographed and later posted to social media) reading, "If I was black I'd be picking cotton, but I'm white so I'm picking u 4 Prom?" His school district issued a statement about rejection of prejudice and told a CNN affiliate they would work with groups like the NAACP to develop a forum to talk about race.
That's a good start, but it's not even close to enough. This boy's use of a noxious racial stereotype as a "promposal" punchline is a troubling sign of casual prejudice. It's not the first. Last year, a student dressed in blackface for his invitation and another created a poster reading "Do u wanna be like a n----- and hang at PROM?" with an illustration of a lynching. We yell for a little while, get distracted, then move on until next year, when it likely happens again.
America's schools and families are clearly in desperate need of more--many more--open conversations about racism, prejudice, and how "just joking" may not feel like a joke to someone else. It's great to be willing to host a forum, but just being willing doesn't get the job done: doing the work, even if it's difficult, gets it done. Don't say you're open or amenable. Say "we're doing this now and here's what we plan to accomplish by doing it."
Schools can help make prom season less likely to turn racist and exclusionary by modeling acceptance and readiness to have the hard talks, the ones that are uncomfortable but necessary. Maybe that would help to prevent incidents like the 2015 "promposal" in which a senior made his move with a costume explosive vest and a sign that said he was "the bomb." The student, who described himself as Middle Eastern, said that he found the resulting suspension racist; he didn't believe other students would have faced the same consequences.
Willingness to sit with discomfort is critical, something 18-year-old Keziah Daum learned after tweeting prom photos of herself wearing a traditional Chinese outfit (despite her lack of Chinese ancestry). Her tweets went viral worldwide and provoked an enormous debate about cultural appropriation. Daum told Buzzfeed, "I never imagined a simple rite of passage such as a prom would cause a discussion reaching many parts of the world. ... Perhaps it is an important discussion we need to have."
She's more right than she probably knows. We need to confront stereotypes, address where they come from and think about what they mean now. As a high school teacher, I've seen my students squirm when we read "To Kill a Mockingbird." But when I recently asked them whether they felt the book still had a place in the curriculum, almost all of them said "yes" because it showed them a time in history that we needed to grow past and, in doing so, forced conversations about race issues today.
Adults in all parts of a kid's life--school, sports, religious organizations or elsewhere--need to be prepared to make ourselves vulnerable and speak up personally about racism. Yes, calling out prejudiced thinking on social media helps, but talking privately is likelier to lead to a real dialogue and not just internet posturing.
It's not an easy thing to do. I don't have the same views on immigration as other members of my family, for instance--and we've had occasions when talk has grown heated. But our private conversations are way more productive than the back-and-forth feuds that develop on Facebook or Twitter. I've learned that we understand each other face-to-face in a way that we can't seem to online.
We can't be different people online from who we are in person. As a teacher and parent, I can imagine the backlash that would tear through my community if a "promposal" here involved Chinese food, fried chicken and watermelon, or references to cotton. When I looked at these incidents now documented forever on the internet, picture after picture of smiling prejudice, I thought, why are these girls standing there condoning this? Their beaming acceptance was as disturbing as--maybe more than--the misguided thinking behind the proposals. Sure, they're thrilled to be going to the prom, anticipating the thrill of being princess for a night. But at the cost of someone else's dignity? Prom is supposed to be a magical event; it doesn't take that much effort to exercise a small bit of empathy and consider how that "joke" kills the magic for others.
It's not being "overly sensitive" or "politically correct" to say that these purposefully public declarations are hurtful. They lead people to take sides, excusing or condemning, but inevitably dividing. And for what? For an invitation meant to inspire admiration and envy on social media. For a dance that is supposed to be a crowning celebration of an education completed. Clearly, we all have a lot more to learn and a lot more work to do.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Does your school have a policy about "promposals" and prom behavior? What is it? What is it meant to accomplish? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?
- 4. What is "casual prejudice"? Provide an example from the article and from other current events. Is it the same as implicit bias? What is explicit bias? Provide an example from the article or recent events. Is one more damaging than the other?
- 5. What is "cultural appropriation"? Is it the same as the racism discussed in the article? Why or why not?
- 6. The author specifically mentions the girls who receive "promposals" as "condoning this" with "beaming acceptance." Is this an accurate or fair statement? How do you know? Why are the girls held responsible for the boys' behaviors?
- 7. How does your school address racism and prejudice? Is there too much emphasis on the problems or not enough? What do you think schools could do to better address issues in our culture?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2018/05/10/opinions/racist-promposal-warrants-harder-conversations-deliee-opinion/index.html
Posted May 08, 2018
Why US companies are changing their websites to please China
By Daniel Shane and Julia Horowitz
May 7, 2018: 8:24 AM ET
Airline websites have become the newest battleground between the United States and China.
Washington and Beijing clashed this weekend over Chinese demands that more than 30 international airlines, including some US carriers, change their websites to remove any information that could suggest that Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau are not part of China.
The pressure on the airlines is just the latest flashpoint over how Beijing treats American companies.
The White House, which slammed the demands as "Orwellian nonsense," said they are "part of a growing trend by the Chinese Communist Party to impose its political views on American citizens and private companies."
But some airlines, including America's Delta [...] and Australia's Qantas [...], have already said they are taking steps to comply with China's demands, highlighting the eagerness of global corporations to keep on Beijing's good side.
'A small price to pay'
"Air travel is growing faster in China than anywhere else and airlines are desperate to get their share," said Clive Hamilton, a public ethics professor at Australia's Charles Sturt University. "For them, kow-towing politically is a small price to pay."
With its growing middle class, China is a big opportunity for global airlines. The International Air Transport Association forecast last year that China would surpass the United States as the world's top aviation market by 2020.
China hasn't spelled out what the punishments might be for failing to comply with its demands. But it recently blocked Marriott [...] websites and apps for a week in the country after the company listed Tibet, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan as separate countries in emails and apps. Marriott issued a profuse public apology over the matter.
China considers self-governed Taiwan to be an integral part of its territory, and comes down hard on any suggestions to the contrary. Hong Kong and Macau are former European colonies that were returned to China in the late 1990s, becoming regions with a large degree of administrative autonomy. Tibet has been under Beijing's control since 1951.
"Foreign companies operating in China should respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, abide by Chinese laws and respect the Chinese people's national feelings," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said in a statement Sunday responding to the criticism from the White House.
'An intimidating presence'
Other major US companies have also been taking steps to change how they describe Taiwan.
American Express [...], Goldman Sachs [...] and Citibank [...] have all updated online information in the last several months in a way that softens or removes suggestions that China and Taiwan are separate countries, according to cached versions of their sites.
None of them admitted to making the changes because of a specific request from the Chinese government. American Express said the change was "part of a routine update," while Goldman and Citi didn't comment.
But experts say Beijing is effective at prompting businesses to censor themselves.
"They don't always spell out specifically what you have to do, but they create an intimidating presence," said William Reinsch, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "You fix it yourself before they tell you what to do."
Trade secrets
Changing information on websites is a minor issue for companies compared with some of the choices they face over doing business in China.
International corporations have long complained that China has strong-armed them into handing over trade secrets in exchange for market access. In some sectors, Beijing will only let foreign firms operate through joint ventures in which Chinese partners have the majority stake.
The Trump administration has pointed to those kinds of practices as the reason for US plans to slap tariffs on tens of billions of dollars of Chinese goods, a move that has intensified fears of a trade war between the two countries.
But Hamilton, the ethics professor, said the recent pressure China is putting on airlines about Taiwan could be a sign of things to come.
"As long as Beijing gets away with it, its political demands on companies will only escalate," he said.
--Nanlin Fang and Serenitie Wang contributed to this report.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Why does China want to control how Macau, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Tibet are mentioned on American websites?
- 4. Why do companies want to comply with China when the U.S. government does not? What are the incentives for each player to take the position they do?
- 5. What might be the consequences of this split in opinion and policy?
- 6. What would happen if the U.S. government were to dictate a policy to address this? Would companies have the right to resist or not comply? Why or why not? What kind of role does the government have in creating business decisions?
- 7. What options would American companies have if the government were to dictate a policy? What avenues could they take to address their concerns?
- 8. What is the meaning of "Orwellian" in the phrase "Orwellian nonsense"?
Click here to view more: money.cnn.com/2018/05/07/news/companies/us-companies-websites-china/index.html
Posted May 01, 2018
South Korea to remove propaganda loudspeakers at border
By HYUNG-JIN KIM
Chicago Tribune
April 30, 2018
SEOUL, South Korea (AP)--South Korea will remove propaganda-broadcasting loudspeakers from the border with North Korea this week, officials said Monday, as the rivals move to follow through with their leaders' summit declaration that produced reconciliation steps without a breakthrough in the nuclear standoff.
During their historic meeting Friday at a Korean border village, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to end hostile acts against each other along their tense border, establish a liaison office and resume reunions of separated families. They also agreed to achieve a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula, but failed to produce specific time frames and disarmament steps.
Seoul's Defense Ministry said it would pull back dozens of its front-line loudspeakers on Tuesday before media cameras. Ministry spokeswoman Choi Hyunsoo said Seoul expected Pyongyang to do the same.
South Korea had already turned off its loudspeakers ahead of Friday's summit talks, and North Korea responded by halting its own broadcasts.
The two Koreas had been engaged in Cold War-era psychological warfare since the North's fourth nuclear test in early 2016. Seoul began blaring anti-Pyongyang broadcasts and K-Pop songs via border loudspeakers, and Pyongyang quickly matched the South's action with its own border broadcasts and launches of balloons carrying anti-South leaflets.
Seoul's announcement came a day after it said Kim told Moon during the summit that he would shut down his country's only known nuclear testing site and allow outside experts and journalists to watch the process.
South Korean officials also cited Kim as saying he would be willing to give up his nuclear programs if the United States commits to a formal end to the Korean War and a pledge not to attack the North. Kim had already suspended his nuclear and missile tests while offering to put his nukes up for negotiations.
The closing of the Punggy-ri test site, where all six of North Korea's atomic bomb tests occurred, could be an eye-catching disarmament step by Pyongyang. But there is still deep skepticism over whether Kim is truly willing to negotiate away the nukes that his country has built after decades of struggle.
According to a summit accord, Kim and Moon agreed to achieve "a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula through complete denuclearization," rather than clearly stating "a nuclear-free North Korea." Pyongyang has long said the term "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" must include the United States pulling its 28,500 troops out of South Korea and removing its so-called "nuclear umbrella" security commitment to South Korea and Japan.
Kim could offer more disarmament concessions during his meeting with President Donald Trump, expected in May or June, but it's unclear what specific steps he would take. Some experts say Kim may announce [scrapping] North Korea's long-range missile program, which has posed a direct threat to the United States.
U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton reacted coolly to word that Kim would abandon his weapons if the United States pledged not to invade.
Asked on CBS's "Face the Nation" whether the U.S. would make such a promise, Bolton said: "Well, we've heard this before. This is--the North Korean propaganda playbook is an infinitely rich resource. What we want to see from them is evidence that it's real and not just rhetoric."
Kim's meeting with Moon was his second summit with a foreign leader since he took office in late 2011. In March, he traveled to Beijing and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. While meeting with Xi, Kim suggested he prefers a step-by-step disarmament process in line with corresponding outside rewards, according to Chinese state media. U.S. officials want the North to take complete, verifiable and irreversible disarmament measures.
China said Monday that its foreign minister, Wang Yi, will visit Pyongyang on Wednesday and Thursday.
China is North Korea's only major economic partner, but trade has declined by about 90 percent following Beijing's implementation of economic sanctions imposed over the North's nuclear and missile tests. Some analysts say Kim's recent charm offensive was aimed at weakening the sanctions.
Also on Monday, the North's parliament adopted a decree to sync its time zone with South Korea's this Saturday. North Korea's official news agency said the move was made at the proposal of Kim, who found it was "a painful wrench to see two clocks indicating Pyongyang and Seoul times hanging on a wall of the summit venue."
Moon's office said Sunday that Kim made similar remarks to Moon during the summit.
The North in 2015 had set its clock 30 minutes behind South Korea and Japan, saying the measure was aimed at rooting out the legacy of Tokyo's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think the new efforts to reconcile the two Koreas will be successful? Why or why not?
- 4. The article mentions "Cold War-era" psychological warfare tactics. What is the Cold War and why is it relevant to this article and situation?
- 5. What does the removal of propaganda-broadcasting speakers symbolize? What other significant changes are mentioned in the article?
- 6. New National Security Adviser John Bolton said "the North Korean propaganda playbook is an infinitely rich resource." What does this mean?
- 7. Kim Jong Un has said he is willing to give up nuclear testing to achieve peace on the Korean peninsula. How will this be verified? What steps could or should be taken to ensure there is no more build-up of nuclear weapons?
- 8. Through the years, countries around the world have used trade sanctions and threats of military action against North Korea to discourage North Korea's nuclear program. Do you think one method is more effective than the other? Why? How do you know?
- 9. If you were to promote or broadcast propaganda on behalf of the United States, what strategy would you choose? Explain your choice. What medium would you choose? What would you hope to accomplish?
Click here to view more: www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-north-korea-propaganda-loudspeakers-20180430-story.html
Posted April 24, 2018
Starbucks to close stores for an afternoon for bias training
BY ALEXANDRA OLSON AND JOSEPH PISANI, ASSOCIATED PRESS
APRIL 23, 2018
NEW YORK, New York--Starbucks, trying to tamp down a racially charged uproar over the arrest of two black men at one of its stores in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, plans to close more than 8,000 U.S. stores for several hours next month to conduct racial-bias training for its nearly 175,000 workers.
The announcement comes after the arrests sparked protests and calls for a boycott on social media. Starbucks says the stores and corporate offices will be closed on the afternoon of May 29.
Starbucks, which once urged its employees to start conversations about race with customers, found itself through the looking glass: under fire for its treatment of black people.
The company reacted from a high level: Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said the arrests should not have happened and the company said he met with the two men. Starbucks also said the employee who called police no longer works at the store, but declined to give further details.
The episode highlights the risks large corporations run when they tie their brands so closely to social messaging. In 2015, then-CEO Howard Schultz shrugged off the "Race Together" fiasco as a well-intentioned mistake and pressed on with his public efforts to engage in the debate over race in America. Johnson was scrambling to keep the Philadelphia incident from shattering the message Schultz was going for: Starbucks is a corporation that stands for something beyond profit.
"The more your brand is trying to connect emotionally to people, the more hurt people feel when these kinds of things happen," said Jacinta Gauda, the head of the Gauda Group, a New York strategic communications firm affiliated with the Grayling network. "They are breaking a promise. That's what makes it hurt deeper."
Beyond racial relations, Starbucks has staked much of its brand on its dual promise of providing good customer service and treating its employees well, said John Gordon, a restaurant industry analyst with Pacific Management Consulting Group. The Seattle company has a reputation for well-managed stores, "a point of difference that allows them to sell primarily drinks and coffees that have a higher cost," he said.
But in a multinational company with more than 28,000 stores worldwide, there has "to be a situation every day where some human being handles things wrong. You can't have that many employees and not have something stupid happen," Gordon said. "Even with a huge operations manual that lays out what to say and what to do, you can't cover everything."
Still, Starbucks has set its own high bar.
Last month, the company claimed it had achieved 100 percent pay equality across gender and race for all its U.S. employees and committed to doing the same for its overseas operations, an initiative publicly backed by equality activist Billie Jean King. The company also touts the diversity of its workforce, saying minorities comprise more than 40 percent of its employees in the United States.
In 2016, Starbucks promised to invest in 15 "underserved" communities across the country, trying to counter an image of a company catering to a mostly white clientele. One of those stores opened in Ferguson, Missouri, the scene of the 2014 protests that erupted following the police shooting of Michael Brown, one of several such killings that moved Schultz to launch the Race Together campaign.
Those efforts are in stark contrast to the video that went viral over the weekend showing the two black men being arrested by police who were called by an employee. Officials have said police officers were told the men had asked to use the store's restroom but were denied because they hadn't bought anything and they refused to leave. A Starbucks spokeswoman said Tuesday that the employee no longer works at the store, but declined to give further details.
On Monday, about two dozen protesters took over the Philadelphia shop, chanting slogans like, "A whole lot of racism, a whole lot of crap, Starbucks coffee is anti-black." The hashtag #BoycottStarbucks trended on Twitter.
Johnson, who has called the arrests "reprehensible," arrived in Philadelphia this weekend to personally confront the crisis. He met with the two men Monday, the company's spokeswoman said. Johnson had also promised to revamp store management training to include the "unconscious-bias" training.
"I watched the video, which was hard to watch. That is not what Starbucks is about. That is not representative of our mission, our values and our guiding principles," Johnson said.
Gauda, who has developed workplace inclusion and diversity strategies for corporate clients, cautioned that any unconscious-bias training should not be treated as a "special subject" but incorporated as a core part of its employee training. She warned Starbucks against treating Philadelphia as a one-off affair, urging the company to investigate whether there were any warning signs.
"I would suspect that this particular issue is something that has occurred before," Gauda said. "The company is in crisis mode now, but they should not look at this as an isolated issue."
Gauda and other corporate communications experts said they were impressed that Johnson immediately took a hands-on approach to addressing the crisis, saying his efforts would pay off in an age where corporations are under the glare of social media.
"I'm actually surprised he is handling it the way a CEO should be handling it. He went in head first and he took the blame for it," said M.J. McCallum, vice president and creative director of Muse Communications, an advertising and communications agency with an African-American focus. "I definitely applaud that. Most people won't jump on the bomb."
"Starbucks has a great reputation. They stand for a better culture. They have stores in inner cities," McCallum said. "I think he realizes what this one incident can do for his brand."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. The entire article is generally written with an informative tone. At what point does the tone briefly change for emphasis? What point is being made?
- 4. Why were the two men asked to leave Starbucks? What's your take on what happened? Do you feel that closing Starbucks locations for a one-day racial-bias training for all employees is an appropriate response to the situation?
- 5. What does the word "reprehensible" mean? Why do you think the authors chose to quote that specific word from the CEO's statement?
- 6. What is "unconscious-bias"? Does everyone have some form of bias? Rather than a "racial-bias" training, would Starbucks be better served to have a general training to help overcome bias as a whole, not limited to race? What other forms of bias would you include in such a training?
- 7. Starbucks has positioned itself very deliberately in our culture and in its market. Do you think they have accomplished what they intended? What are the consequences of their marketing? Does Starbucks appeal to you? Why or why not?
- 8. The article mentions examples of Starbucks' social commitment. In what other ways has Starbucks shown a commitment to social causes? Do you think this is important when you choose to spend your money with a company? Does it affect your decisions as a consumer?
Click here to view more: newsela.com/read/starbucks-bias-training/id/42482/
Posted April 17, 2018
Clicking 'checkout' could cost more after Supreme Court case
By JESSICA GRESKO
The Associated Press
April 15, 2018
WASHINGTON (AP)
Sales Tax: $0.
Online shoppers have gotten used to seeing that line on checkout screens before they click "purchase." But a case before the Supreme Court could change that.
At issue is a rule stemming from two, decades-old Supreme Court cases: If a business is shipping to a state where it doesn't have an office, warehouse or other physical presence, it doesn't have to collect the state's sales tax.
That means large retailers such as Apple, Macy's, Target and Walmart, which have brick-and-mortar stores nationwide, generally collect sales tax from customers who buy from them online. But other online sellers, from 1-800 Contacts to home goods site Wayfair, can often sidestep charging the tax.
More than 40 states are asking the Supreme Court to reconsider that rule in a case being argued Tuesday. They say they're losing out on "billions of dollars in tax revenue each year, requiring cuts to critical government programs" and that their losses compound as online shopping grows. But small businesses that sell online say the complexity and expense of collecting taxes nationwide could drive them out of business.
Large retailers want all businesses to "be playing by the same set of rules," said Deborah White, the president of the litigation arm of the Retail Industry Leaders Association, which represents more than 70 of America's largest retailers.
For years, the issue of whether out-of-state sellers should collect sales tax had to do mostly with one company: Amazon.com. The online giant is said to account for more than 40 percent of U.S. online retail sales. But as Amazon has grown, dotting the country with warehouses, it has had to charge sales tax in more and more places.
President Donald Trump has slammed the company, accusing it of paying "little or no taxes" to state and local governments. But since 2017, Amazon has been collecting sales tax in every state that charges it. Third-party sellers that use Amazon to sell products make their own tax collection decisions, however.
The case now before the Supreme Court could affect those third-party Amazon sellers and many other sellers that don't collect taxes in all states--sellers such as jewelry website Blue Nile, pet products site Chewy.com, clothing retailer L.L. Bean, electronics retailer Newegg and internet retailer Overstock.com. Sellers on eBay and Etsy, which provide platforms for smaller sellers, also don't collect sales tax nationwide.
States generally require consumers who weren't charged sales tax on a purchase to pay it themselves, often through self-reporting on their income tax returns. But states have found that only about 1 percent to 2 percent actually pay.
States would capture more of that tax if out-of-state sellers had to collect it, and states say software has made sales tax collection simple.
Out-of-state sellers disagree, calling it costly and extraordinarily complex, with tax rates and rules that vary not only by state but also by city and county. For example, in Illinois, Snickers are taxed at a higher rate than Twix because foods containing flour don't count as candy. Sellers say free or inexpensive software isn't accurate, more sophisticated software is expensive and that collecting tax nationwide would also subject them to potentially costly audits.
"For small businesses on tight margins, these costs are going to be fatal in many cases," said Andy Pincus, who filed a brief on behalf of eBay and small businesses that use its platform.
The case now before the Supreme Court involves South Dakota, which has no income tax and relies heavily on sales tax for revenue. South Dakota's governor has said the state loses out on an estimated $50 million a year in sales tax that doesn't get collected by out-of-state sellers.
In 2016 the state passed a law requiring those sellers to collect taxes on sales into the state, a law challenging the Supreme Court precedents. The state, conceding it could win only if the Supreme Court reverses course, has lost in lower courts.
South Dakota says the high court's previous decisions don't reflect today's world. The court first adopted its physical presence rule on sales tax collection in a 1967 case dealing with a catalog retailer. At the time, the court was concerned in part about the burden collecting sales tax would place on the catalog company. The court reaffirmed that ruling in 1992.
It's unclear how the justices might align on the question this time. But three justices--Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas and Anthony Kennedy--have suggested a willingness to rethink those decisions. Kennedy has written that the 1992 case was "questionable even when decided" and "now harms states to a degree far greater than could have been anticipated earlier."
"Although online businesses may not have a physical presence in some states, the Web has, in many ways, brought the average American closer to most major retailers," he wrote... suggesting the days of inconsistent sales tax collection may be numbered. "A connection to a shopper's favorite store is a click away regardless of how close or far the nearest storefront."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Have United States laws kept pace with technology? Should laws be updated to reflect changes in society? What are some examples of laws that may need some updating?
- 4. How does online shopping benefit the United States economy? Is this effect local, national, or both? Describe the effects at a local and national level.
- 5. How is online shopping a detriment to the economy? Is this effect local, national, or both? Describe the effects at a local and national level.
- 6. The article describes complicated tax structures that make it difficult for online retailers to comply with local and state tax collection. If you were a Supreme Court justice, how would you consider this issue and rule on it? Does this place an undue burden on retailers? How would tax collection be implemented?
- 7. Will it change your online shopping habits if sales tax is collected on every online purchase?
- 8. What are some of the less-seen consequences or benefits of online shopping and shipping of so many packages?
Click here to view more: www.apnews.com/636cac8f9a1a44328127acbf1883c28e/Clicking-'checkout'-could-cost-more-after-Supreme-Court-case
Posted April 10, 2018
Teenage Vandals Were Sentenced to Read Books. Here's What One Learned.
BY CHRISTINE HAUSER, THE NEW YORK TIMES
APRIL 5, 2018
A Virginia judge handed down an unusual sentence last year after five teenagers defaced a historic black schoolhouse with swastikas and the words "white power" and "black power."
Instead of spending time in community service, Judge Avelina Jacob decided, the youths should read a book.
But not just any book. They had to choose from a list of ones covering some of history's most divisive and tragic periods.
The horrors of the Holocaust awaited them in "Night," by Elie Wiesel. The racism of the Jim Crow South was there in Maya Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." The brutal hysteria of persecution could be explored in "The Crucible" by Arthur Miller.
A year has passed since the youths spray-painted their hateful messages on the side of the Ashburn Colored School, a one-room, 19th-century classroom that had been used by black children during segregation in Northern Virginia. The swastikas and words were long ago covered with paint. The teenagers have read their books and written their reports.
The charges, destruction of private property and unlawful entry, were dismissed in January, Alejandra Rueda, a deputy commonwealth attorney who suggested the reading sentence, said.
"I hope that they learned the lesson that I hoped that they would learn, which was tolerance," Ms. Rueda said.
So, did they?
What one teenager learned
The juveniles who vandalized the old schoolhouse in Ashburn, a community of about 43,000 people northwest of Washington, D.C., could not be identified because of their ages. But the commonwealth attorney's office has said they were public school students ages 16 and 17. Two were white, and three were nonwhite.
One of the teenagers agreed for this article to share the list of books that he chose. Among them were "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini, set in Afghanistan; "To Kill a Mockingbird," by Harper Lee; "The Tortilla Curtain," by T.C. Boyle, about a Mexican couple trying to make a life in California; and "Things Fall Apart," a tale of Nigeria by Chinua Achebe.
He wrote that two books affected him deeply: "12 Years a Slave," a memoir by Solomon Northup, a free black man who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery in Louisiana, and "Night."
An excerpt from one of his court-ordered essays was provided to The New York Times, with his permission, by his defense lawyer. He describes not fully knowing what a swastika meant, and that he thought it "didn't really mean much."
"Not anymore," he wrote. "I was wrong, it means a lot to people who were affected by them. It reminds them of the worst things, losing family members and friends. Of the pain of torture, psychological and physical. Among that it reminds them how hateful people can be and how the world can be cruel and unfair."
Now, he wrote, he sees the swastika as a symbol of "oppression" and "white power, that their race is above all else, which is not the case."
He also wrote that while he had studied this period in history class, the lesson lasted only a few days.
"I had no idea about how in depth the darkest parts of human history go," he wrote.
He wrote that he feels "especially awful" that he made anyone feel bad.
"Everybody should be treated with equality, no matter the race, religion, sex or orientation," he wrote in his essay. "I will do my best to see to it that I never am this ignorant again."
Authors hope their messages got across
Since the Ashburn case, the reading sentence has been applied to another case, one involving a 14-year-old who threatened a black student with a noose, Ms. Rueda said.
She gathered a list of 36 books with input from librarians who emphasized that the most enlightening could be "A Wreath for Emmett Till," a poetry book about a black youth of the same age who was murdered in Mississippi in 1955.
Marilyn Nelson, the author, said she was concerned it might have the opposite effect to what was intended. "I can't say I'm pleased to know that my work is being inflicted as a punishment," she said. "Will kids punished by being made to read poetry ever read poetry again?"
Other authors expressed hope that the underlying message in their works was not lost.
Mr. Boyle, whose "The Tortilla Curtain" is told from four points of view, said he hoped the teenager "will be able to live inside the skin of someone unfamiliar to him, whether that be the Mexican immigrant couple or the Anglo couple living in a gated community, and that the experience will enrich his social perspective."
Mr. Hosseini, who wrote "The Kite Runner," a story of Afghan boys struggling against cruelty, said he hoped the teenager was inspired to overcome an "us against them" mind-set.
"Engaging with characters that differ from us in race, religion or culture, helps us feel our immutable connections as a species," Mr. Hosseini said. "Books allow us to see ourselves in another. They transform us. I hope reading 'The Kite Runner' was a small step along that transformation for this young man."
How the community reacted
After the graffiti episode in September 2016, the Ashburn schoolhouse underwent a renovation organized by students from the Loudoun School for the Gifted, a private high school that owns it. Money was raised, work teams were drawn from community volunteers, and the little schoolhouse eventually opened as a museum.
Some criticized the sentence. For example, an English teacher at Loudoun balked at the idea of associating reading with punishment, said Deep Sran, the school's founder.
Kamran Fareedi, 17, a senior at Loudoun, had been working on the renovation before the vandalism. He said he thought the sentence "reeks of pampering and no consequences."
"When I heard that the punishment was that they were going to have to do homework assignments, I was very disappointed," he said. "All over the country we have a giant mass incarceration problem. And particularly African Americans do the slightest thing, their interaction with the criminal justice system is way more harsh. When people of color make mistakes they don't get the chance to start over."
He said the fact that three of the youths were minorities also reflected the economic privilege of youths in the Ashburn area.
"It is astonishing that they are that disconnected from the serious implications of their history and their heritage and people of their background today in non-privileged areas," Mr. Fareedi said.
Shailee Sran, a 16-year-old student at the school, said she hoped that the teenager learned the value of bravery in defending what is right from his reading of "To Kill a Mockingbird."
"I actually thought the punishment made sense," she said. "I feel like if they don't understand what they did wrong it is not helping the problem. It is just teaching them not to get caught."
"It is like what we were doing in trying to restore the schoolhouse," Ms. Sran added. "We are trying to remember and trying to show people what happened and what is still happening. This shouldn't be forgotten."
In both cases, the youths also had to visit museums and had the option of watching relevant documentaries and speeches.
Ms. Rueda, the commonwealth attorney, said she saw the sentence as an opportunity to expand their minds. "Is it going to change their perspective on swastikas if you put them in the juvenile center and locked them up?" she said.
NOTE: The full assigned reading list and original article from February 2, 2017 can be found here: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/08/us/black-school-racist-sexist-graffiti.html?_r=0
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. According to the article, why did the judge choose this unique punishment?
- 4. Why did some criticize the chosen punishment of reading books? Do you think this was an appropriate and effective punishment for vandalizing the schoolhouse? Why or why not?
- 5. Author Marilyn Nelson said, "I can't say I'm pleased to know that my work is being inflicted as a punishment. Will kids punished by being made to read poetry ever read poetry again?" What do you think? Will they?
- 6. Could reading impactful books and reflecting on them impart lasting change? What did the sentenced teenager in the article learn from this experience?
- 7. Have you ever received a punishment similar to this? How did you feel? What did you learn from the experience?
- 8. Have you read any of the books on the required list? What did you learn? What is the most impactful book not on the judge's list that you would add? Why?
Click here to view more: www.nytimes.com/2018/04/05/books/racist-graffiti-sentenced-read.html?smid=fb-nytupshot&smtyp=cur
Posted April 03, 2018
The legacy of MLK, who was assassinated 50 years ago, lives, but his dreams remain unfulfilled
By Cary Clack,
For the Express-News
Published 12:00 am, Saturday, March 31, 2018
By the time the trigger was pulled at 6:01 p.m. on April 4, 1968, fulfilling his prophecy from the night before, Martin Luther King Jr. was already slipping into history. The 39-year-old man dying on a balcony in Memphis no longer attracted the same rapt attention as the 26-year-old phenomenon who was delivered to the world stage by a bus boycott in Montgomery.
King was less than five years removed from his "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington and little more than three years from winning the Nobel Peace Prize, yet to many of his detractors and admirers he was becoming irrelevant. A 1966 Gallup poll on his popularity gave him a positive rating of 32 percent and a negative Trump-like rating of 63 percent.
His frequent and impassioned critiques of the Vietnam War and poverty drew wide scorn, including from allies in the civil rights movement. Younger black activists were impatient with King's nonviolence and fame, and their voices were rising in louder and greater numbers to challenge his. The Poor People's Campaign he was planning for Washington, D.C., and his detour to Memphis to support striking black garbage workers weren't popular even among his staff.
When he walked out onto the balcony of Room 306 of the Lorraine Motel, King wasn't the icon whose birthday was a national holiday. He was an exhausted, beleaguered and polarizing figure.
If King was slipping into history at the time of his murder, 50 years later he's now one of history's favored children. Denied longevity in this life, he's now preserved as a world historical figure, the lodestar for movements seeking justice, freedom and equality through nonviolence.
That a man who nearly two-thirds of his fellow countrymen and women viewed negatively would have a national holiday less than 20 years after his death speaks to his singular stature and legacy.
King occupied a special time and place in history--circumstances and his extraordinary gifts met in a perfect union of purpose and need. Thousands of courageous women and men created the modern civil rights movement, but King emerged as its embodiment--becoming, as A. Philip Randolph introduced him at the March on Washington, "the moral voice of the nation."
If, in the 18th century, the Founding Fathers gave life to the nation and if in the 19th century, Abraham Lincoln fought to keep the body politic together, it was King in the 20th century who led the struggle to redeem America's soul.
King was rooted in the African-American experience, found his voice in the black church, waded in the nonviolent spiritual waters of Christ and Gandhi, and devoted his life to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
King's idealism made him seek to transform hearts and minds away from bigotry, injustice and suffering. King's pragmatism made him understand that of more immediate importance was to change the country's unjust laws, that regardless of how people thought and felt, their behavior must align with the Constitution.
Besides King himself, the person most responsible for how we view him and honor his legacy was his remarkable wife, Coretta Scott King, who died in 2006. She created the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change and advocated for the national holiday, not as static memorials but living testimonials to the philosophy of nonviolence that animated and defined his work. Her purpose was to extend King's legacy and continue his work by teaching nonviolence as a way of life, as well as a strategy for social change.
That's how the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination should be commemorated: through living testimonials of nonviolence against the problems afflicting us. And we should pay a little less attention to the "I Have a Dream" King and a little more to the "Where Do We Go from Here?" King.
"I Have a Dream" is a masterpiece of oratory that is a gift to humanity. His riff on his dream is as thrilling a public performance as ever delivered.
But he said it was a dream. Like the Promised Land, we're not there yet. Yet many cling to the dream motif and what they perceive as the comfortable King who doesn't challenge them. Prophets are less troublesome after they've become martyrs.
King was unpopular when he died because he made people uncomfortable and because the marches, boycotts and other acts of direct action he led were inconvenient. He was a Christian minister who took seriously Christ's teachings to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. He was a Nobel Peace laureate who believed he was charged to speak out against war.
His last book, "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?" challenged America to be honest about its crippling legacy of racism; to stop its senseless violence; to ease the suffering of its poor; and to make better the lives of all its people. Through nonviolence. Through love.
"When I speak of love," King wrote, "I am speaking of that love which all great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life ... . Let us hope that this spirit will become the order of the day. We can no longer afford to worship the God of hate or bow before the altar of retaliation."
Hatred and retaliation pulled the trigger that took Martin Luther King Jr.'s life. His place in history is assured. The redemption of this nation's soul, if those beasts continue to roam, is not.
Cary Clack is a former San Antonio Express-News columnist.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. At the time of his death, why were Martin Luther King Jr.'s policies and actions unpopular?
- 4. Why has his reputation and legacy changed?
- 5. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? "If, in the 18th century, the Founding Fathers gave life to the nation and if in the 19th century, Abraham Lincoln fought to keep the body politic together, it was King in the 20th century who led the struggle to redeem America's soul."
- 6. What is "pragmatism"?
- 7. Does Coretta Scott King deserve more recognition than she gets for her part in the Civil Rights Movement?
- 8. The writer states that we should pay less attention to the "I Have a Dream" King and more attention to the "Where Do We Go from Here" King. Why does the writer say that? Do you agree? Why or why not?
- 9. What movements today have their roots in Dr. King's philosophy and protests? How are they perceived? How do you think they will be perceived in 50 years?
Click here to view more: www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/The-legacy-of-MLK-who-was-assassinated-50-years-12794881.php
Posted March 29, 2018
Pizza Industry in Chaos Over Massive Failure of Midwest Anchovy Crop
Anna Zilenski
The New York Times
Published 6:00 AM E.S.T. April 1, 2018 Updated 10:00 AM E.S.T.
"Pizza makers from large chains like Dominos, Little Caesar's and Papa Romano's right down to the mom and pop stores will be profoundly impacted by the looming anchovy shortage," according to Nancy Gallo, spokesperson for the Pizza Industry Association (PIA).
Department of Agriculture sources point to a bacterial infection that has devastated anchovy croplands throughout the Midwest, leaving farmers helpless amid acres of rotting anchovy plants. "With the U.S. heartland the sole source of supply, product in the distribution channels will soon be used up entirely," Gallo said.
"Pizza outlets face losing a segment of the market when the supply runs out." She added, "Many will simply have to close their doors, affecting not only employees but entire communities used to having the convenience of a pizza close at hand. Friday night just won't be the same in America," said Gallo.
According to figures supplied by Secretary of Commerce James Bugiardo, only a small minority of customers order anchovies on their pizza, under 6.34 percent, or only about one in 20 pizzas. However, according to Secretary Bugiardo, eliminating even that relatively small segment of customers from the narrow profit margins of the industry will spell losses for many if not all pizza retailers. "We expect a contraction of up to 43 percent of the pizza retail industry," he said.
"The taste for anchovies is an all or nothing preference," according to PIA spokesperson Gallo.
Apparently the customers who enjoy the salty treat on their pizza are adamant, and countless consumers interviewed said they will simply stop ordering pizza altogether if there are no anchovies. "We already see anchovy lovers deserting pizza for shawarma and sushi. These customers may acquire a taste for gas station sushi and never return once the crisis has passed. That is the concern," Gallo added.
Agriculture Department sources say the blight is caused by the bacterium papilio trolius, which causes the upper leaves of the plant to wilt, leaving the anchovies which grow right under the top leaves exposed. Once exposed, the lightest rain washes off the signature saltiness which also protects the anchovies from spoilage. Even if harvested immediately after wilt, the bland taste makes them unmarketable, and if left in the field, they immediately begin to rot.
With prevailing westerly winds, Tulsa, Oklahoma, has already issued a health warning as the odor and spores from the vast rotting anchovy cropland in Genesee county to the west of Tulsa reach the city.
No joking matter to those affected, nevertheless the late night comedians have checked in, Jimmy Kimmel said of the emergency, "Trump does not care."
President Trump immediately tweeted his response. "Of course I care about something so important to America. It's who we are. Anyone who says different is a liar." And in a subsequent tweet, "If the Obama administration had seen to this before, we would not be in this situation now. Plain and simple folks. It was Obama."
A spokesman for ex-President Obama said, "This was a problem we indeed studied at length, and in depth and I think we addressed the problem responsibly considering that it, the problem, was something we inherited from 8 years of Bush administration."
Wild speculation surrounds the crisis as the industry scrambles for substitutes. Synthetic anchovies made from soy protein are being considered by agriculture giant Conagra™, as well as heavily salted olives.
In the meantime, the farmers, pizza makers and pizza lovers wait with no solution immediately in sight.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of the news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Why do you suppose politicians have to "weigh in" on everything?
- 4. Was the article objective? Did the writer try to blame someone?
- 5. Did the article present both sides of the issue?
- 6. Could even a respected journal like The New York Times present fake news?
- 7. If this were fake news, how would you know?
- 8. Should you believe everything you read?
Posted March 19, 2018
Detroit St. Paddy's pub refused to serve Irish people
--to make a point
Ann Zaniewski,
Detroit Free Press
Published 6:00 a.m. ET March 17, 2018 | Updated 3:07 p.m. ET March 17, 2018
The bouncer who called Irish people "lazy" and "lower class citizens" last weekend at the door of a pub on the bustling parade route of Detroit's St. Patrick's Day Parade ignited more than a few tempers.
But he wasn't trying to spark a fight--just make people think.
It was all part of an experiment to raise awareness about how poorly Irish immigrants were once treated in the U.S. against the backdrop of prominent modern-day conversations about race and immigration.
Creator Dan Margulis had a production company record the scene at the fake, temporary pub and produce a polished video of people's stunned reactions. The video is posted on his website, NoIrishPub.com.
"On a day when everyone is proclaiming solidarity with an immigrant group... we wanted them to feel what it was like to be treated like an Irish immigrant... years ago in this country, and hopefully that would get them to think about the way we treat current immigrant groups," Margulis said.
Margulis, who works in advertising and lives in Bloomfield Hills, rented an empty space on Michigan Avenue on a strip between popular bars Nemo's and McShane's for the St. Patrick's Day Parade on Sunday. He hung a sign that said "No Irish Pub."
People were turned away if they said they were Irish--or were simply wearing green. Only a few of the hundreds of people who tried to enter actually got inside.
Margulis said it was meant to harken back to a time when some businesses would hang "No Irish need apply" signs in their windows.
Century-old newspaper articles that described Irish immigrants as "simians," "too lazy to work" and members of "a servant race" helped fuel bouncer Bill Johns' language as he sat outside the pub, telling people they couldn't come in.
"We don't need no more immigrants in this country. They're ruining this country. ... The majority of them aren't helping anybody but themselves," Johns can be seen on the video telling passersby.
Margulis said: "People were outraged, and they didn't understand how someone could be so racist."
Most people weren't let in on the secret. The few people who got really angry were given a brochure that explained what was going on. Someone also handed out brochures down the street.
"There were few people who got extremely angry and wanted to fight, and they diffused that," Margulis said.
He also said: "Our goal wasn't to make people mad. It was to make people think."
Margulis said some people who received the handout said they thought the effort was fantastic.
Margulis was inspired to launch "No Irish Pub" by recent media coverage of controversy surrounding the so-called Dreamers and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration policy.
"The general sentiment (is) that we're becoming more and more anti-immigrant," he said. "As we got closer to a day that celebrates immigrants, I thought if those two things collided, I thought maybe it's a way to get people to think about how we act today. ...
"Anything that I think that allows people to experience what it feels like to be discriminated against firsthand, I think it's good. It shocks people into empathy. I would absolutely do something like this again."
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think this was an effective experiment? How would you feel if you were denied entrance to an event based on your race, ethnicity, or appearance? What would you do?
- 4. Does the owner of a business have the right to refuse entry or service to customers based on race, ethnicity, or appearance? Should businesses be allowed to choose their customers?
- 5. What's the difference between targeting an audience and discriminating against a group?
- 6. The article references 19th-century newspapers with articles that contained the phrase "too lazy to work." We hear that today as well. Why do you think the same phrases continue to be used, but about different groups of people?
- 7. What does the word "simian" mean?
- 8. Where did your family originally come from? Why did they come to the U.S.? What was their experience coming to America?
Click here to view more: www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2018/03/17/pub-refuses-serve-irish-people/433503002/
Posted March 13, 2018
The known unknowns of plastic pollution
So far, it seems less bad than other kinds of pollution (about which less fuss is made)
THE ECONOMIST, MARCH 3, 2018
MR MCGUIRE had just one word for young Benjamin, in "The Graduate": plastics. It was 1967, and chemical engineers had spent the previous decade devising cheap ways to splice different hydrocarbon molecules from petroleum into strands that could be moulded into anything from drinks bottles to Barbie dolls. Since then global plastic production has risen from around 2m tonnes a year to 380m tonnes, nearly three times faster than world GDP.
Unfortunately, of the 6.3bn tonnes of plastic waste produced since the 1950s only 9% has been recycled and another 12% incinerated. The rest has been dumped in landfills or the natural environment. Often, as with disposable coffee cups, drinks bottles, sweet wrappers and other packets that account for much of the plastic produced in Europe and America, this happens after a brief, one-off indulgence. If the stuff ends up in the sea, it can wash up on a distant beach or choke a seal. Exposed to salt water and ultraviolet light, it can fragment into "microplastics" small enough to find their way into fish bellies. From there, it seems only a short journey to dinner plates.
Countries as varied as Bangladesh, France and Rwanda have duly banned plastic bags. Since last year anyone offering them in Kenya risks four years in prison or a fine of up to $40,000. In January China barred imports of plastic waste, while the European Union launched a "plastics strategy", aiming, among other things, to make all plastic packaging recyclable by 2030 and raise the proportion that is recycled from 30% to 55% over the next seven years. A British levy on plastic shopping bags, introduced in 2015, helped cut use of them by 85%. On February 22nd Britain's environment secretary, Michael Gove, mused about prohibiting plastic straws altogether.
Fearful for their reputations, big companies are shaping up. Coca-Cola has promised to collect and recycle the equivalent of all the drinks containers it shifts each year, including 110 billion plastic bottles. Consumer-goods giants such as Unilever and Procter & Gamble vow to use more recycled plastics. McDonald's plans to make all its packaging from recycled or renewable sources by 2025, up from half today, and wants every one of its restaurants to recycle straws, wrappers, cups and the like.
The perception of plastics as ugly, unnatural, inauthentic and disposable is not new. Even in "The Graduate" they symbolised America's consumerism and moral emptiness. Visible plastic pollution is an old complaint, too (years ago, plastic bags caught in trees were nicknamed "witches' knickers"). What is new is the suspicion that microplastics are causing widespread harm to humans and the environment in an invisible, insidious manner. [...] But the truth is that little is known about the environmental consequences of plastic--and what is known doesn't look hugely alarming.
A load of rubbish
We can be surest about how much plastic is produced and where it ends up. In a paper published last year in Science Advances, Roland Geyer of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and his colleagues put the cumulative amount of solid plastic waste produced since the 1950s that has not been burned or recycled at 4.9bn tonnes. It could all have been dumped in a landfill 70 meters deep and 57 square kilometers in area--that is to say, the size of Manhattan.
If only it had all remained on land, or even washed up on beaches, where it could be collected. A bigger environmental worry is that much plastic has ended up in the ocean, where, dispersed by currents, the stuff becomes virtually irretrievable, especially once it has fragmented into microplastics. [...] Some are the product of larger pieces breaking apart; others, like microbeads added to toothpaste or face scrubs, were designed to be tiny. [...]
Even if the flow of plastic into the sea, totaling perhaps 10m tonnes a year, was instantly stanched, huge quantities would remain. And the flow will not stop. Most of the plastic in the ocean comes not from tidy Europe and America, but from countries in fast-developing East Asia, where waste-collection systems are flawed or non-existent. Last October scientists at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, in Germany, found that ten rivers--two in Africa and the rest in Asia--discharge 90% of all plastic marine debris. The Yangtze alone carries 1.5m tonnes a year.
On current trends, by 2050 there could be more plastic in the world's waters than fish, measured by weight. Such numbers frighten people and change their behavior. Nine in ten Europeans worry about plastic's impact on the environment. More than half told pollsters for Eurobarometer in 2017 that they try to forgo plastic bags when shopping. By comparison, only one-tenth consider fuel-efficiency when buying a new car. Unlike other kinds of pollution, plastic is an eyesore, notes Liz Goodwin of the World Resources Institute, a think-tank. Yet if a comprehensive league-table of environmental ills existed--which it does not--plastics would not top it.
Just 10% of 3.6m tonnes of solid waste discarded each day the world over is plastic. Whereas filthy air kills 7m people a year, nearly all of them in low- and middle-income countries, plastic pollution is not directly blamed for any. A report last year by the Lancet Commission on pollution and health, which put the total number of pollution-related deaths at 9m, mentions plastics once in its 45 pages.
On land, the damage from litter, which exercises many anti-plastic campaigners, is limited. Most refuse does not spread too far beyond population centers, where (at least in principle) it can be managed. At sea, most plastics end up in vast rubbish patches fed by ocean circulation patterns, the biggest of which can be found in the north Pacific. [...]
Researchers have identified 400 species of animal whose members either ingested plastics or got entangled in it. It is known that because polymers repel water (which is why droplets form on their surface), plastic particles also attract certain compounds from their surroundings. Some of these could be toxic. Laboratory studies have shown that if swallowed by fish, compounds in plastic fragments can be absorbed from the digestive tract into flesh. However, no studies have so far been performed to test whether such toxins concentrate up the food chain, as mercury does in fish. The only direct evidence of plastic entering the human diet is a study by Belgian scientists who discovered plastic fragments in mussels. Unlike fish, bivalves are eaten whole, guts and all. [...]
Weighing the damage
Trucost, a research arm of Standard & Poor's, a financial-information provider, has estimated that marine litter costs $13bn a year, mainly through its adverse effect on fisheries, tourism and biodiversity. It puts the overall social and environmental cost of plastic pollution at $139bn a year. Of that half arises from the climate effects of greenhouse-gas emissions linked to producing and transporting plastic. Another third comes from the impact of associated air, water and land pollution on health, crops and the environment, plus the cost of waste disposal.
To put that into perspective, the United Nations Development Programme says that the costs of overfishing and fertilizer run-off amount to some $50bn and $200bn-800bn a year, respectively. By 2100 ocean acidification, which is caused by atmospheric carbon dioxide dissolving into water, could cost $1.2trn a year. The costs of rapid ocean warming caused by human-induced climate change are hard to fathom but are likely to be enormous.
The overall cost of plastic pollution compares favourably with other sorts of man-made harm mostly because plastics are light. Making a kilogram of virgin plastic releases 2-3kg of carbon dioxide, about as much as the same amount of steel and five times more than wood. But a product made of plastic can weigh a fraction of a comparable one made of other materials.
That is why replacing plastic with other things could raise environmental costs at least fourfold, according to Trucost's analysts. This is even true of the various virtue-signaling alternatives to plastic bags. A British government analysis from 2011 calculated that a cotton tote bag must be used 131 times before greenhouse-gas emissions from making and transporting it improve on disposable plastic bags. The figure rises to 173 times if 40% of the plastic bags are reused as bin liners, reflecting the proportion in Britain that are so repurposed. The carbon footprint of a paper bag that is not recycled is four times that of a plastic bag. [...]
Plastic pollution "is not the Earth's most pressing problem", in the words of one European official. But, he immediately adds, just because plastics may not be the biggest problem facing humanity does not make them trouble-free. As scientists never tire of repeating, more research is needed. It is the absence of evidence about how plastics influence health rather than evidence of absence that explains their bit part in the Lancet Commission report, says Philip Landrigan of the Icahn School of Medicine in New York, who chaired it. [...]
While researchers get a better handle on the science, campaigners badger politicians and browbeat consumers to kick the polymer habit. They often invoke the precautionary principle. If the impact of something is uncertain but could be great, the argument goes, better forestall it just in case. As the proliferation of plastic bans and strategies suggest, they are having some success.
PET peeves
Much of this activity makes scarcely a dent in the world's plastic pollution problem, however. Some has unintended consequences. Making plastics biodegradable, by adding corn starch or vegetable oil to petroleum-derived hydrocarbons, renders them harder to recycle. Recyclers already struggle to invest in capacity or innovation even in countries that collect lots of their rubbish. Periodic declines in the oil price, which makes virgin plastic cheaper, can bankrupt recyclers, many of which are small or medium-sized companies, says Peter Borkey of the OECD, a rich-country think-tank. [...]
China's import ban may provide the necessary jolt. Introduced as part of a broader clampdown on pollution, it took waste exporters by surprise. In 2017 European countries shipped a sixth of their plastic waste for disposal abroad. Most sailed to China. In the short run some surplus waste can go to Malaysia or India, but those countries' capacity is a fraction of China's. Eventually, refuse exporters will have to deal with more of it at home.
Building recycling capacity is one option. Incineration is falling out of favor for heating or electricity generation as coal-fired plants are replaced with gas, which emits less greenhouse gases than waste-to-energy plants. From an ecological standpoint, landfilling is not as bad as it looks, so long as additives that might leach out of the polymers are prevented from escaping. Plasma recycling, where refuse is heated to as much as 5,000°C, turning it into unadulterated hydrocarbons plus a solid residue, looks promising but remains some way from commercialisation.
To be disposed of, though, plastic waste must be collected. In Europe, America and other developed places, virtually all of it is. To eliminate marine litter in particular, more rubbish needs to be picked in the leaky Asian countries.
China's anti-pollution drive may bring about improvements, although the country now pays more attention to filthy air and water, which are more pressing concerns. Indonesia has launched its own National Action Plan on marine plastic. The other big polluters are eyeing similar measures. What happens there over the next few decades will matter more than any number of Western plastic-bag bans.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. According to the article, why is a cotton tote bag an acceptable, but not excellent, alternative to disposable plastic bags? Will cotton or paper bags reduce the carbon footprint of a plastic bag?
- 4. Which countries of the world get blamed for being the biggest plastic polluters? Which regions are found to be the real culprits of major plastic pollution?
- 5. What type of pollution is most critical for the government to address first: water, air, or plastic? What can you do to help reduce pollution? Is there anything that you already do? What additional steps can you take?
- 6. Besides incineration, what recycling options exist to deal with the plastic waste problem? Which option seems the best to you? Why?
- 7. What is the meaning of this article? Is the author implying that plastic pollution is not a big deal? What big idea is the author trying to communicate?
Click here to view more: www.economist.com/news/international/21737498-so-far-it-seems-less-bad-other-kinds-pollution-about-which-less-fuss-made
Posted March 06, 2018
A Small Town Kept Walmart Out. Now It Faces Amazon.
How can local businesses compete with a company so local it lets people shop from their couches?
By Alana Semuels
The Atlantic
Mar 2, 2018
GREENFIELD, Mass.--Al Norman has been fighting to keep Walmart and other big-box retailers out of small towns like this one for 25 years. He's been successful in Greenfield, his hometown and the site of his first battle with Walmart, and in dozens of other towns across the country--victories he documents on his website Sprawl-Busters, an "International Clearinghouse on Big Box Anti-Sprawl Information." Partly because of Norman's efforts to keep out such stores, Greenfield still has a Main Street with dozens of businesses, including a bookstore, a record store, and Wilson's, one of the last independently owned department stores in the country.
But Norman and business owners in Greenfield are noticing that the Main Street stores are now struggling in the face of another force that's become more and more powerful in recent years: e-commerce. Many customers who kept shopping in Greenfield's downtown because Walmart was too far away are now turning to Amazon and other websites that offer free and fast shipping for basic needs, sapping business away from local stores that had survived for so long. Facing competition from a company as enormous as Amazon, some local stores are having trouble staying open. [...]
"If you were going to pick a place years ago that would still support small businesses, and shop downtown first, I would have said Greenfield would be that place," Jessica Mullins, the owner of World Eye [Bookshop], told me. But her store's sales were down significantly last year. Several customers who were once reliable shoppers now come in and find out about new books and games, take a picture of them, and then buy the products online, where they're cheaper. It's a practice called "showrooming," and while the executives running big legacy retailers are the ones who most publicly lament it, it can hurt smaller shops too. "People are getting on Amazon and they're not getting off," Mullins said.
Greenfield and other towns across New England are learning that while they might have been able to keep out big-box stores through zoning changes and old-fashioned advocacy, there's not much they can do about consumers' shift to e-commerce. They can't physically keep out e-commerce stores--which don't have a physical presence in towns that residents could push back against--and they certainly can't restrict residents' internet access. "It's one thing for me to try and fight over land use in the town I live in, or in somebody else's town," Norman told me, over lunch in a diner on Greenfield's Main Street. "But e-shopping creates a real problem for activists, because on some level, shopping online is a choice people make, and it's hard to intrude yourself in that."
Shoppers are, as Norman well knows, increasingly turning to Amazon and other e-commerce sites. Online sales represented about 13 percent of American retail sales in 2017, according to Forrester, a research firm, which projects that number will grow to 17 percent by 2022. And about one-third of online purchases are made through Amazon, Forrester says--83 percent of American adults who use the internet (that is to say, nearly all of them) made a purchase from Amazon in 2016. This has translated to a decline in shopping at brick-and-mortar stores. Last year, more chain-store locations closed than in any previous year.
The dominance of e-commerce has affected Main Streets too: Around 90 percent of independent retailers said that Amazon was having a negative impact on their business, according to a 2017 survey of more than 850 such businesses. Between 2006 and 2015, the number of retail firms with fewer than 10 employees fell by 9 percent, according to census data.
Of course, there's a reason Amazon and other e-commerce sites are so difficult for small businesses to compete with: The convenience of online shopping is unmatched. Amazon's rise is proof that as much as some consumers may want to support nearby businesses, in a sense there's nothing more local than shopping from their living-room couch.
And, as the company pointed out when I contacted it about this article, Amazon does create some opportunities for independent businesses as well. More than 140,000 small and medium-sized businesses each sold more than $100,000 in goods on Amazon last year, according to the company. "We are empowering so many retailers--many of them small businesses and main street businesses--to reach customers, not just in the US, but around the world," an Amazon spokesman, Erik Farleigh, wrote to me in an email.
Roundabout Books, a small business a mile from Greenfield's Main Street, is an example of a shop that has been able to grow because of e-commerce. Raymond Neal, a former schoolteacher, opened the store six years ago, and most of his business is used books. Online retail--including selling through Amazon--has helped him keep the doors open. (He bemoans the fees he has to pay Amazon for the privilege, however.) He estimates that half of his revenue comes from online sales; the other half is a mix of in-store transactions and pop-up sales he does in busy locations like downtown Boston. "I go where the customers are," he told me. But his Greenfield location produces only a small part of his revenues--if he makes $50 in a day in his store, it's a good day, he said.
The shift of retail away from brick-and-mortar stores to online ones represents a fundamental change in the American economy, one that has big repercussions for communities like Greenfield. The average American spends nearly $15,000 a year on retail shopping, according to census data. If that money is going to companies based far away, the local economy may suffer, because less money is being kept in the community. Money spent at an independent business generates four times the direct local economic benefit than money spent at a chain store--in terms of employee pay, local charitable giving, and employee spending--according to an analysis done by Civic Economics, a research firm that studies independent businesses. Local business owners will often spend the money they earn from their business nearby, at restaurants, bars, and other retail stores. Also, as I've written before, the decline of local retail also has major implications for cities and towns' ability to raise revenues through sales taxes.
There are other, less tangible, changes that occur when brick-and-mortar businesses disappear. As Main Streets become sparser, there will be fewer of the spontaneous, community-building interactions that take place when residents run into each other on the sidewalk or at a store. People who live in the same town might start to meet less often in person as they shop more from their couches and work more from their dining-room tables. Relatedly, small businesses are often the linchpins of a community--they sponsor softball teams and cookouts, charity auctions and parade floats. Bob Nelson, the owner of Nelson Ace Hardware in Barre, Vermont, another town struggling to revitalize its Main Street, said he gets "at least one request a day" to sponsor a local cause, whether it be the local Rotary Club or Lion's Club or softball team. But who will be left to sponsor softball teams or floats in parades if there is no more small-town retail?
It's possible that as e-commerce companies continue to encroach on brick-and-mortar stores, they will support communities in the same way that other small businesses traditionally have. Amazon pointed out that it has sponsored, among other events, holiday festivals in Jeffersonville, Kentucky, a Pride parade in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and a summer reading program in San Antonio. But going to Amazon for donations is fundamentally different from walking into a store and asking the owner, based on a personal relationship, for support.
For the residents of Greenfield in particular, the decline of small businesses is hard to bear because the town has a history of resisting national companies that have tried to come in and set up shop. The first anti-Walmart battle, in the mid-1990s, was prompted after the town council rezoned a plot of land, thus allowing a developer to build a Walmart. Norman, the Sprawl Buster, led a ballot initiative to reverse that zoning decision, and his narrow win surprised just about everybody in Greenfield, including him. "We really tried to play up the idea that Greenfield had a lot to lose," he told me. "Our slogan was, 'You can buy cheap underwear at Walmart, but you can't buy small-town quality of life anywhere.'"
A decade later, when a developer again tried to put a Walmart outside of town, Norman fought it because the new site was on a wetland. Eventually, the state's Department of Environmental Protection forbade construction. Then, in 2011, when the developer reconfigured the site and won a planning board's permission to build, Norman found plaintiffs to file a lawsuit against the developer that is still winding its way through court. He drove me by both sites when I was in town, and both are still tree-filled fields, rather than the big stores developers had envisioned.
Lisa Cocco, the owner of Opus, a Main Street boutique selling small gifts like jewelry, pottery, and wind chimes that has been around for 28 years, said that when she thought Walmart was coming to Greenfield, she opened a second store in another town because she didn't think her original location could withstand the retailer's presence. The Walmart didn't come, so she stayed open in Greenfield. Now, she's not sure if she can weather the switch to e-commerce. She told me customers come in and browse, find something they like, and compare prices online when she's standing right there. "It's seriously hurting business," she said. "I'm extremely discouraged."
In some ways, Greenfield's lack of big-box stores might have accelerated residents' transition to e-commerce. While there are shops downtown, those don't offer the selection of a Walmart or Target. And since the only big stores are a 30-minute drive away, many in Greenfield have started buying off Amazon instead. "There are only a certain number of things you can get downtown," Danielle Jenczyk, a 37-year-old Greenfield resident told me. Jencyzk told me she shops on Amazon for just about everything, since she gets free shipping through her Prime subscription and because she can look at product reviews before she buys anything.
Small businesses in other towns that successfully kept big-box stores out are also having trouble. In Randolph, for instance, a Vermont town that recently fought off a proposal to build a shopping mall and a hotel on the outskirts of town, Belmain's, a variety store that has been in business since 1934, announced in October that it would close. The store's owners said it was closing because of "the growth and convenience of Amazon and other mail-order companies and the lack of good steady flow of foot traffic in Randolph." And that likely isn't due to any decline in population--Vermont actually gained residents between 2000 and 2016. [...]
Some communities are trying to push back against the decline of independent businesses by launching campaigns asking people to shop local, such as Local First Arizona and Portland Buy Local. (Greenfield launched its own currency--Greenfield Dollars--in hopes of getting people to spend money in the area.) City officials can zone downtowns for mixed-use retail, and create affordable commercial space in new housing developments, said Stacy Mitchell, the co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a nonprofit that's skeptical of big business. Some cities have helped set up community banks that are more likely to give out small-business loans, Mitchell said.
But it will be hard for cities to create a shopping environment more convenient than Amazon's. Julie Keane, a 30-year-old who lives in Greenfield, told me that her family understands the importance of supporting local businesses, going to the Wilson's department store when they can. But she has a 10-month-old son, and often, Amazon has baby products that the department store doesn't. When Amazon was offering a free Prime trial two years ago, her family signed up. They now use it frequently, since it saves them time--it doesn't make sense for Keane to pack her son into the car and drive to the Target 30 minutes away for the same products. And as long as she's buying those sorts of products on Amazon, she's likelier to buy other products, the kind available on Main Street, from the company too--the longer someone is a Prime member, the more money they spend on the site, studies show. "We try to shop locally," she told me. "But sometimes, there are better options online to what we have."
How might local businesses respond? [...] Some small retailers are trying to offer services that e-retailers can't offer to draw in customers. Seth Lustig, the owner of Greenfield Games, another Main Street store, says that his business has been able to attract customers by organizing game nights and other events for people to learn about new products they might not naturally come across online. Nelson, the hardware-store owner in Vermont, says helpful customer service helps him draw in shoppers--people who know that he'll assemble products for free will come in rather than buying something online and having to assemble it themselves.
But the challenge posed by online shopping to local businesses is immense. Even Al Norman, who refuses to shop at Walmart, says he doesn't have the same aversion to Amazon, in part because he thinks the internet is the future of shopping. His wife has a Prime account, and he recently ordered tea from the website when he couldn't find it locally, he said, adding that he has no plans to organize protests or zoning meetings about Amazon. He doesn't love the idea that some of his money is going to Jeff Bezos, "the richest human around," as he refers to the Amazon founder, and so still shops locally whenever possible. He doesn't know whether he'll still be doing that in a decade. When he launched the first campaign against Walmart in Greenfield 25 years ago, he led activists with bumper stickers that said, "If you build it, we won't come." He knows the same can't be said for Amazon, because shoppers, including him, are already there.
Alana Semuels is a staff writer at The Atlantic. She was previously a national correspondent for the Los Angeles Times.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What are the pros of online shopping? How does it benefit the United States economy?
- 4. According to the article, how are businesses affected by Amazon and other online retailers? Is Amazon leading the way in mass consumerism? Is that a good or bad thing?
- 5. According to the article, online shopping represents "a fundamental change in the American economy." What do you think this means?
- 6. What happens to a community when a business is successful or fails?
- 7. Currently, states have varied responses to sales tax collection from online sales. You may or may not pay sales tax on a purchase, depending on where you live and if the retailer has a "brick-and-mortar" presence in your state. What are the implications of these varied policies? Do you think it would help local retailers if states collected sales tax from online purchases? How would this be implemented?
- 8. Do you think personal relationships matter in shopping? What is the most important factor you consider when you're ready to buy something?
Click here to view more: www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2018/03/amazon-local-retail/554681/
Posted February 27, 2018
I'm Republican. I Appreciate Assault Weapons. And I Support a Ban.
BY BRIAN MAST, THE NEW YORK TIMES
The most important and unregrettable time of my life was the 12 years I spent in the Army. I became a bomb technician because I wanted to save lives. I nearly gave my own life for that--I lost both my legs and a finger when a roadside bomb detonated beneath me--and have known more heroes than I can count who died defending others.
When I was with others on the battlefield and we saw a chance to save a life, we didn't have a meeting about it; we acted immediately. I never worried about becoming a casualty myself.
Now, as a Republican congressman from Florida, I don't fear becoming a political casualty, either. If we act now by changing laws surrounding firearms and mental illness, we too can save lives.
Most nights in Afghanistan, I wielded an M4 carbine and a .40-caliber pistol. The total barrel length of my M4 was approximately 14 inches with Trijicon ACOG sights, as well as an infrared laser. I usually carried 10 magazines stacked with 20 rounds of 5.56-millimeter ammunition each.
My rifle was very similar to the AR-15-style semiautomatic weapon used to kill students, teachers and a coach I knew at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., where I once lived.
I have fired tens of thousands of rounds through that rifle, many in combat. We used it because it was the most lethal--the best for killing our enemies. And I know that my community, our schools and public gathering places are not made safer by any person having access to the best killing tool the Army could put in my hands. I cannot support the primary weapon I used to defend our people being used to kill children I swore to defend.
The truth is, most gun owners are responsible sportsmen and collectors who enjoy shooting recreationally, like me, or want to protect their home in the way they see fit. I am a longtime member of the National Rifle Association. My grandfather bought me my first NRA membership when I was young, and I have the same pride he and many Americans feel at being responsible gun owners, becoming excellent marksmen and joining in the camaraderie of hunting.
We are Americans and we like to be the best; we should never lose this trait. The AR-15 is an excellent platform for recreational shooters to learn to be outstanding marksmen. Unfortunately, it is also an excellent platform for those who wish to kill the innocent.
I conceal and carry a 9-millimeter pistol most days because I know the threats, and I don't want to die because I am unprepared to return fire.
I also know that I am made less safe by the threat of tactical rifles. I am confident I can eliminate an active shooter who is attacking with a pistol because the attacker would have to be close to me. But the defense my concealed 9-millimeter affords me is largely gone if the attacker is firing from beyond 40 yards, as he could easily do with the AR-15.
No firearm is evil. Guns are tools that fulfill the intent of their users, good or bad. But we've seen that the rifle of choice for many mass shooters is the AR-15.
The Second Amendment is unimpeachable. It guarantees the right of citizens to defend themselves. I accept, however, that it does not guarantee that every civilian can bear any and all arms.
For example, the purchase of fully automatic firearms is largely banned already, and I cannot purchase an AT-4 rocket, grenades, a Bradley fighting vehicle or an Abrams tank. I know that no single action can prevent a truly determined person from committing mass murder, and I am aware of other ways to commit mass murder, such as bombings and mass vehicular slaughter. Not being able to control everything, however, should not prevent us from doing something.
Therefore, I support the following:
Defining what constitutes an assault or tactical firearm and not allowing them for future purchase--just as we already prohibit the purchase of fully automatic firearms. The exact definition of assault weapon will need to be determined. But we should all be able to agree that the civilian version of the very deadly weapon that the Army issued to me should certainly qualify. I would not support any version of a ban that results in confiscating existing legally owned firearms.
Ensuring that every firearm purchaser has a background check. We also need to improve the background check system.
Banning the sale of accessories and add-ons that circumvent the ban on automatic firearms, and increasing the ages at which individuals can purchase various categories of firearms.
Ensuring that those who have been detained for mental illness, or have been ordered by courts to receive treatment for mental illness, cannot purchase firearms.
Ensuring that someone who is being looked at as a possible terrorist, through a system of due process, cannot purchase a firearm and that any person threatening to shoot or blow up a school, in word or on social media, is placed on an F.B.I. watch list for a long time.
Providing behavior detection training to anyone seeking a Federal Firearms License.
Making substantial resources available to schools, at their discretion, for security measures, including the opportunity to purchase enhanced security screening, install classroom panic buttons wired directly to law enforcement and hire additional school resource officers.
Holding the F.B.I. and state agencies accountable for their failures to identify a threat like Nikolas Cruz, as well as ensuring that schools enforce basic security protocols to prevent access by unauthorized personnel.
And finally, conducting further research into the nexus of gun violence, violence in mass media and mental illness.
The president, House of Representatives, Senate, every state legislature, sheriffs, police officers, school boards, students and parents must unite with one mission: that no one will ever be murdered in school again.
_______
Brian Mast, a Republican, is the representative for Florida's 18th congressional district.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Does the article seem credible and well-researched? Why or why not? Identify elements that reinforce your position.
- 4. This is an op-ed piece, which means it's the opinion of the author. Describe the author's background. How do his combined background and perspective counter generalizations made by the media regarding divisions along party lines?
- 5. The author shares his nine-point position on the regulation of semiautomatic weapons. Summarize his views. Do you agree with all nine of his suggestions? Which do you feel are the most important to enact immediately? Did he leave anything out that you feel should be included?
- 6. What assurances are there for avid supporters of the Second Amendment that a ban on weapons like the AR-15 isn't the beginning of a slippery slope where attempts might be made to ban all guns in the future?
Click here to view more: www.nytimes.com/2018/02/23/opinion/brian-mast-assault-weapons-ban.html?emc=edit_th_180224&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=79869507
Posted February 20, 2018
Parkland students say, 'We are going to be the last mass shooting'
By Eliott C. McLaughlin and Nicole Chavez, CNN
Updated 5:53 PM ET, Sun February 18, 2018
(CNN)--To those who say it's too soon after the school massacre to talk about politics and gun control, the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High see your point.
"We can respect that. We've lost people. It's important to mourn," junior Cameron Kasky said Sunday.
"Here's a time to talk about gun control: March 24. My message for the people in office is: You're either with us or against us. We are losing our lives while the adults are playing around."
Be forewarned: They're coming for the National Rifle Association and any politician who takes money from the gun lobbyist, Kasky and his classmates said. The NRA did not immediately return CNN's call seeking comment.
Kasky and his fellow students hope their efforts will dovetail with other events, national and local, aimed at persuading leaders to take meaningful action to keep schools safe.
They include two school walkouts, as well as a trip this week to Tallahassee, during which several Parkland youngsters hope to have sit-downs with legislators in the state Capitol.
According to a mission statement for March For Our Lives, students across the country will converge on Washington next month to say the nation can no longer wait to tackle issues of school safety and gun control reform. They're asking that like-minded folks who can't make it to the nation's capital stage solidarity marches in their own communities.
"Every kid in this country now goes to school wondering if this day might be their last. We live in fear," the March For Our Lives website says. "It doesn't have to be this way. Change is coming. And it starts now, inspired by and led by the kids who are our hope for the future. Their young voices will be heard."
Kasky thanked the older generation that provided him and his contemporaries with "endless support." But, he flatly told them, in light of the Parkland, Florida, school shooting that left 17 of his teachers and classmates dead and what he sees as continued inaction from adults, "We don't need you."
"You are going to be seeing students in every single major city marching and we have our lives on the line here, and at the end of the day, that is going to be what's bringing us to victory and to making some sort of right out of this tragedy," he said. "This is about us begging for our lives."
'Badge of shame'
Kasky appeared on CNN with four fellow students, including Emma Gonzalez and David Hogg, who have been outspoken since Wednesday's shooting about the need to reform gun control laws.
"We've sat around too long being inactive in our political climate, and as a result, children have died," Hogg said. "If our elected officials are not willing to stand up and say, 'I'm not going to continue to take money from the NRA because children are dying,' they shouldn't be in office and they won't be in office because this is a midterm year and this is the change that we need."
Kasky went so far as to say he and his classmates wanted to stigmatize politicians who take campaign contributions from the NRA.
"This isn't about the GOP. This isn't about the Democrats," he said. "This is about us creating a badge of shame for any politicians who are accepting money from the NRA and using us as collateral."
Gonzalez added, "We are going to be the difference." At a Saturday rally, the senior told a crowd of hundreds that the time for inaction was over.
"Maybe the adults have got used to saying, 'It is what it is,'" Gonzalez said in a fiery speech. "But if us students have learned anything, it's that if you don't study, you will fail. And in this case if you actively do nothing, people continually end up dead."
"We are going to be the kids you read about in textbooks. Not because we're going to be another statistic about mass shooting in America, but because, just as David said, we are going to be the last mass shooting," she added.
Florida lawmakers will experience the Parkland students' political motivation firsthand when they arrive at the state Capitol on Wednesday to speak to members of the Legislature.
Ryan Deitsch, 18, a senior planning to make the six-hour trip, says organizers have arranged buses to transport about 100 people, students and chaperones, to the capital. They'll travel Tuesday night and plan to address senators Wednesday morning and representatives that afternoon. The plan is to split up into teams of three to five students and visit with legislators individually, he said.
Deitsch concedes that while the students are educated, they're still high schoolers, so listening to the legislators will be an important component of the meetings. The students don't have all the answers, he said, so it's important for them to understand what lawmakers feel is actually feasible, in terms of solutions.
"We just know anything is a better solution than nothing," he said. "There are way too many people who have died, and if they keep dying, they're dying for no reason."
Missed signs
Details of what may have been warning signs missed by authorities, school officials and those who were in contact with shooter Nikolas Cruz continue emerging in the aftermath of the shooting.
The FBI failed to act on a January 5 tip of information about "Cruz's gun ownership, desire to kill people, erratic behavior and disturbing social media posts, as well as the potential of him conducting a school shooting," the agency said.
The proper protocols weren't followed and the FBI's Miami office was not notified, the agency said.
A video blogger said he warned the FBI in September about a possible school shooting threat from a YouTube user with the same name as Cruz. The FBI did not find information to identify the person who posted the comment and no connection was made to South Florida, said Robert Lasky, FBI special agent in charge of the Miami division.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered a review Friday into how the Cruz tip was missed and how authorities respond to similar situations.
Cruz's school disciplinary record shows he was reprimanded many times since middle school for incidents that included bad language and disrupting class. He was also punished once for fighting and once for assault.
Laurel Holland, a retired teacher who had Cruz in her English class during his junior year, said Cruz cursed her out during midterm exams and was suspended for two days in 2016.
There was a time when Cruz was caught at school with a gun-related object in his backpack, but Holland said teachers don't know what to do when kids exhibit "nebulous" behavior.
Kids who act out are referred to administrators, she said. Kids who cut class get detention. If she saw someone with suspicious bruises, she'd know to call social workers, who would get police involved. But with Cruz, there was no clear path.
"He fell through the cracks because we don't know what to do," she said.
The gunman's future
Cruz, who is facing charges of premeditated murder, is willing to plead guilty to avoid the death penalty, according to the public defender's office representing him.
There's no question Cruz killed 17 students and staff members in Wednesday's shooting at the high school in Parkland, Broward County public defender Howard Finkelstein said.
"The only question is, does he live or does he die?" Finkelstein asked.
State Attorney Michael J. Satz said Saturday that this "certainly is the type of case the death penalty was designed for," but now is the time "to let the families grieve and bury their children and loved ones."
The 19-year-old is being held without bond in Broward County.
Cruz's digital footprint includes slurs against blacks and Muslims, and declarations of a desire to shoot people. Other social media posts show a photo of a rifle, a collection of firearms on a bed and a photo taken through a scope looking out a window.
In a private Instagram group chat, Cruz talked about killing Mexicans, keeping black people in chains and cutting their necks. After one member expressed hatred for gay people, Cruz concurred, saying, "Shoot them in the back of head."
As of Sunday, four patients injured in the shooting remained hospitalized in fair condition, according to Broward Health. On Saturday, Broward Health Systems mistakenly told CNN only three people remained hospitalized.
It is not clear when students will return to Marjory Stoneman Douglas. The school is closed through Wednesday, and officials say they hope to reopen the doors by week's end.
CNN's Devon M. Sayers, Steve Almasy and Dana Bash contributed to this report.
Questions Using Close Reading and Critical Thinking:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Besides the information in this article, what else do you know about this mass shooting?
- 4. Which amendment to the Constitution guarantees the right to bear arms? Should that right extend to people under the age of 21? Why or why not?
- 5. Do you agree with the students who are planning a march and demonstration? Do you think it's an effective means of protest? Which amendment addresses the right to peaceably assemble?
- 6. What does Cameron Kasky mean when he says, "This is about us creating a badge of shame for any politicians who are accepting money from the NRA and using us as collateral"?
- 7. Laurel Holland said, "He fell through the cracks because we don't know what to do." What do you think could have been done to identify Nikolas Cruz as a potential threat? What policies or processes would you put in place at your school to prevent a shooting? What should be done at local, state, and national levels?
- 8. Investigators are looking into Cruz's digital history. Is your privacy on social media absolute or guaranteed? What rights protect your online activities?
- 9. Would you attend student protests at your school or state capitol? What would you say to a legislator about school shootings and gun control?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2018/02/18/us/florida-school-shooting-updates/index.html
Posted February 13, 2018
It's Time for an Immigration Enchilada
BY JORGE G. CASTAÑEDA, THE NEW YORK TIMES
MEXICO CITY--Immigration has been on the United States-Mexico agenda for years. In recent times, three American attempts at comprehensive immigration reform, which included amnesty for undocumented Mexicans in the United States and a temporary-worker visa program, have failed. A bilateral effort between 2001 and 2003 also collapsed.
Nothing affects Mexico more than United States immigration policy, and the centrality of the issue in American politics is more prominent than ever.
The most urgent challenge is to find a way forward for the so-called Dreamers, the beneficiaries of President Barack Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Nearly 800,000 young people brought to the United States by their parents as children applied for and were given protected status by the Obama administration. Thanks to DACA, they no longer needed to fear deportation, were able to work legally and had realistic hopes that one day they would be on a path to citizenship in the only country they knew. More than three-fourths of the Dreamers are Mexican. That's why people here follow their fate closely.
President Trump rescinded Mr. Obama's DACA policy. He has proposed a four-pillar overhaul of American immigration policy that most Democrats and Latinos in the United States detest. Strangely enough, however, it might benefit Mexico, especially if it is accompanied by additional changes in the issuance of temporary-worker visas, and in particular those known as H-2A and H-2B.
The first pillar of Mr. Trump's proposal--regularizing the status of the Dreamers and a million other young people who also could qualify for DACA status with a long and winding road to citizenship--works to Mexico's advantage. Somewhere near 1.5 million of these young people are Mexican; that is roughly one-quarter of all undocumented Mexican citizens in the United States. Granting them the equivalent of amnesty, with the beacon of eventual citizenship, satisfies one of Mexico's most crucial immigration demands.
The second pillar--$25 billion for a border wall--is obviously offensive to Mexico, but the country's lame-duck president, Enrique Peña Nieto, has been much more adamant in his opposition to paying for the wall than to its actual construction. Mr. Peña Nieto either doesn't believe it will ever see the light of day or lacks the backbone to oppose it. But Mr. Trump's wall is something Mexico can simultaneously reject and live with, particularly if it will take years to build and if it merely complements segments of fences erected by Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Obama.
Mr. Trump's third pillar is the most insulting for many Americans, since it eliminates the family reunification principle for accepting legal immigrants from abroad. Intended to deter "chain migration," it would replace the family criterion with a merit-based system. In the future, only spouses and underage offspring (as opposed to parents and siblings today) of American citizens would be allowed permanent residence, and eventually citizenship. The net effect would be to "whiten" immigration and limit the share of Mexicans.
Since the largest group of foreigners applying for family reunification is by far Mexican (three times as many as Chinese citizens, for example), this would reduce the number of applicants from Mexico who get green cards. Nearly 200,000 Mexicans got green cards in fiscal year 2016; halving that number through a lengthy and tedious procedure that frustrates many Mexicans would not be as bad as shutting down the whole program.
The last pillar would suppress the lottery system that grants a small number of immigrant visas to applicants from underrepresented nations, mainly African. Again, this would surely "whiten" immigration and is thus a despicable proposal, but it does not affect Mexico. There is no lottery system for Mexicans.
So, viewed somewhat cynically from the perspective of strict Mexican national interests, the four-pillar plan has inconveniences for Mexico but also many advantages. That it is racist as well as unworthy of the American immigration ideal and inflames the worst demons in American society is another matter. As Mr. Trump says, countries have to look out for their own interests.
To make this plan attractive to Mexico, its leaders need to persuade the American president to increase the number of temporary-worker visas. Again, by far the largest number of these permits are extended to Mexicans. H-2A visas, for seasonal agricultural workers, have no congressional cap; H-2B visas, for seasonal nonagricultural activities, do, but it can be lifted and has been for several years. The Trump administration can increase these numbers significantly without congressional approval.
An immense reconstruction effort is underway in Texas and Florida after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma and, with virtual full employment, there is a huge demand for low-skilled, low-wage labor in those regions. It can come only from Mexico.
Were Mr. Peña Nieto to make such a suggestion and were Mr. Trump to accept it, both countries' interests would be well served.
In the early years of this century, a comprehensive package like this was called "the whole enchilada." Half a loaf, or whatever nutritional metaphor one prefers, is not bad.
_______
Jorge G. Castañeda, Mexico's foreign minister from 2000 to 2003, is a professor at New York University, a member of the board of Human Rights Watch, and a contributing opinion writer.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. This is an op-ed article. What does that mean? How are op-ed articles different from other articles in the news?
- 4. Does the article seem credible and well-researched? Why or why not? Identify elements of the article that reinforce your position.
- 5. What is the author's position? Do you agree with it? Is President Trump's immigration reform "racist as well as unworthy of the American immigration ideal"? Support your perspective.
- 6. Issues around immigration are not new to our country. Why is the DACA program such a point of contention? What other ways can the federal government address the problem? Propose a detailed solution.
- 7. Choose one of the four pillars of the immigration policy overhaul on which to conduct further research and write your own op-ed piece about the topic. Be sure to support your opinion with well-researched facts to verify your credibility as an author.
Click here to view more: www.nytimes.com/2018/02/07/opinion/trump-mexico-immigration-daca.html?emc=edit_th_180208&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=79869507
Posted February 06, 2018
New Mexico may become the first state in the nation to make students apply for college
By Doug Criss, CNN
Updated 11:42 AM ET, Thu February 1, 2018
(CNN)--Students in New Mexico would have to apply to a college or commit to some other post-graduation plan in order to graduate from high school, under a bill working its way through the state's legislature.
If it became law, New Mexico would be the first state in the nation to require its students to spell out what they're doing after high school.
"Requiring students to do that would be unique in the nation; no other state in the nation has done that," said Jennifer Zinth, director of high school and STEM for the Education Commission of the States, an education policy think tank based in Colorado.
The bill states that high school juniors would have to file a plan showing they're applying for admission to a college, taking steps to enter the military or preparing for an internship or apprenticeship.
The plan would be filed with the high school principal and the student's parents and guidance counselor would have to sign off on it.
New Mexico, at 71%, has the second-worst high school graduation rate in the country, the Albuquerque Journal reported, citing data from the US Department of Education. The bill's sponsors hope the bill will spur an uptick in that number.
But does requiring students to file such plans really push them to the graduation finish line? Zinth told CNN it may make a positive difference in how many students graduate, but she cautions states need to be aware of unintended consequences and the hurdles it may produce for students and their families.
Guidance, matches, financial aid
"It's one of those wait and see moments," said Zinth, who wrote about the pros and cons of requiring students to fill out college applications in a report for the Education Commission of the States in 2014. "It may work for some students, but there's some things New Mexico would have to think about."
Zinth said schools in New Mexico and other states considering such a move would need to beef up their guidance counselor staffs and offer students more help in filling out applications, because the applications would probably not be of very high quality without proper guidance.
"It would really be beneficial for students to get some assistance on that to make sure the essays are high quality," she said.
Schools would also need to make sure that students are properly matched with the college that best suits them. When schools don't pay attention to that, Zinth said, a lot of lower-income students end up in community colleges when they actually are good candidates for competitive, four-year institutions.
And finally, Zinth said states need to think about financial aid if students are accepted to college.
"Applications are but one challenge. Completing financial aid applications is the other. Without assistance with financial aid forms, even middle-income students under application-for-all policies may apply and be accepted to institutions they are unable to afford," she wrote in her 2014 report.
Starting in 2020, Chicago will require high school students to provide evidence that they have a plan after graduation: either acceptance to college or a gap-year program, a trade apprenticeship, military enlistment or a job offer.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Should the state be able to require students to "file a plan showing they're applying for admission to a college, taking steps to enter the military or preparing for an internship or apprenticeship"?
- 4. Do you think this is a good or bad idea? Why?
- 5. Who was interviewed for this article?
- 6. How would school officials enforce this requirement? What kind of penalties could be brought for failure to provide a plan?
- 7. Do you think filing a post-graduation plan would increase the graduation rate? Why or why not?
- 8. Are there any flaws you can spot in this idea? What are they?
- 9. Is there too much emphasis placed on a four-year college degree? Are there alternatives that should receive more support?
- 10. What is the graduation rate at your school? If it's considered high, what are the factors affecting it? If it needs improvement, what factors are currently affecting it? What would you do to change it?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2018/02/01/health/new-mexico-graduation-trnd/index.html
Posted January 30, 2018
France grapples with whether to ban cellphones in schools
BY ALICE TIDEY, NBC NEWS
Students could soon be banned from using cellphones in French schools, in a move the government says is necessary to protect public health amid fears over the devices' long-term effects on mental development.
Under current French law, students cannot use their phones in class but schools have the power to decide if they can use them at break times.
But that may change in September, as the Ministry of Education examines how to implement a campaign pledge by President Emmanuel Macron to ban cellphones from school premises entirely.
The minister, Jean-Michel Blanquer, said the measure would help tackle what he called a "public health problem."
'No abuse is tolerated'
Jerome, a middle school teacher in France's southwest Occitanie region, said a near-complete ban on cellphones was already in place for the 11- to 15-year-old students at his school. He spoke to NBC News on condition that only his first name be used because of French rules that restrict teachers from speaking to the media.
Children are allowed to bring electronic devices to school but they must be on "airplane mode" and confined to their bags, he said. Any transgression leads to the device's confiscation, so there are few rule breakers.
"We trust them, but no abuse is tolerated," Jerome explained. "And they respect the rule without grumbling."
He said that he knows another school that allows students to use their phones at recess, but sometimes fights break out after things are posted on social media.
"Contrary to our students who play, run and have fun at recess, students there appear much calmer, but they are just glued to their phones," he said.
A global issue
Concern over the long-term impact of cellphone use on young people has received increased attention recently, particularly after a leading activist investor and a pension fund published a letter urging Apple to take steps to curb how addictive iPhones are to children. The motivation for the letter wasn't entirely benign--the investors were urging Apple to solve the problem before one of its competitors does.
But it still raised alarm over an issue many teachers and parents all over the world are grappling with. Some embrace cellphone use as part of the school curriculum, while others see it as a distraction.
Canada and Belgium have "Bring Your Own Device" policies that allow students to use laptops, tablets and phones in the classroom, believing it teaches them to use the devices responsibly.
Italy overturned its own ban on phones in school in 2016 and Education Minister Valeria Fedeli has said that smartphones "are an extraordinary tool to facilitate learning."
In the German state of Bavaria, a ban was put in place on the use of phones on school grounds in 2006 after police found pornography and violent images on devices seized from students in two different towns. But that ban is being challenged and the policy may be modified this year.
And in Britain there is no law prohibiting phone use in schools, and policies vary across the country. But a recent study by the London School of Economics found that in high schools where cellphones were banned, "student performance in high stakes exams significantly increases."
In the United States, the policies also differ from state to state and most schools set their own policies.
The Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest in California, forbids the use of cellphones at recess and lunch, for instance, while thousands of students in Miami-Dade County, the largest public school district in Florida, receive free cellphones to help with their studies.
In New York City, a ban on cellphones in public schools that was imposed in 2006 by Mayor Michael Bloomberg was overturned in 2015 by his successor, Bill de Blasio, who argued that allowing schools to set their own policies would reduce [inequality]. The initial ban had also been criticized because it resulted in the emergence of trucks that would park near schools and charge $1 a day to store devices, with some school children paying $180 a year for the service.
Why not use the 'computer in their pockets'?
For now, parents and teachers in France appear united in their opposition to the education minister's proposal, saying the debate should not be about banning phones but regulating their use.
"Our position is that we must limit cellphones' perverse effects," said Gerard Pommier, the head of the Federation of Parents in State Schools. "We would prefer work to be done on the educational aspect. Cellphones are tools, and it's their excessive use that poses a problem."
Alexis Torchet, secretary general of the teachers' union SGEN-CFDT, said, "The question is not about banning phones but teaching student how to use them in a sensible and reasoned manner."
"About 90 percent of students have what is basically a computer in their pockets that is often more operational than the school's ones," Torchet said. "The debate must be centered around technology education."
"There is a lot of teaching to do about digital tools and digitization in general," he added.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What strategies do your teachers and/or school currently use to prevent student use of cell phones? Are these strategies enough?
- 4. Do you think a complete ban is necessary? Are cell phones in schools really a problem? Why or why not? Do you ever feel distracted from class by your phone?
- 5. What steps will need to be taken to enforce the cell phone ban? Will it be effective? Complete a cost benefit analysis of France's school cell phone ban. Do the benefits outweigh the costs?
- 6. Could a U.S. schools cell phone ban be next? Would the ban be an intrusion on your First Amendment right to personal freedom? Why or why not?
- 7. What other problems can schools work to solve that could make the learning environment better for students? Create potential solutions for each problem you identify.
Click here to view more: www.nbcnews.com/news/world/france-grapples-whether-ban-cellphones-schools-n836371
Posted January 23, 2018
What Is a Government Shutdown? 2018 and 2013 Examples
Government Shutdown Postponed to February 8
By Kimberly Amadeo
The Balance
Updated January 22, 2018
A government shutdown is when non-essential discretionary federal programs close. The president must do this when Congress fails to appropriate funds. In the normal budget process, Congress appropriates funds by September 30 for the following fiscal year. When that doesn't happen, then Congress enacts a continuing funding resolution. If Congress can't agree on one, it forces a shutdown. It signals a complete breakdown in the budget process.
U.S. Government Shutdown 2018 Explained
At midnight on January 20, 2018, the federal government shut down for almost three days. The Senate couldn't get the 60 votes it needed to extend spending until February 16, 2018. The Republican majority couldn't convince enough Democrats to vote for it.
Democrats wanted the bill to protect immigrants eligible for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. If Congress doesn't develop a permanent fix, Trump's immigration plan will end the program in February. Even some Republicans voted against the bill. They wanted to focus on passing the permanent budget instead [of] another continuing resolution.
On January 22, the Senate approved a continuing resolution that expires at midnight on February 8, 2018. To get the Democrats' votes, Republicans agreed to work with them on DACA legislation.
The House passed its bill on January 18. House leaders couldn't get enough votes to support DACA. Instead, its bill extended funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program for six years. It delayed an Obamacare tax on health insurers for one year. It delayed taxes on medical devices and "Cadillac" insurance plans for two years.
The continuing resolution was necessary because the two houses of Congress could not agree on the budget for fiscal year 2018. The budget process broke down over increases in defense versus nondefense spending. Republicans want to increase the base budget for defense spending to $700 billion. Sequestration limits it to $549 billion. Democrats want a dollar-for-dollar increase in nondefense discretionary spending. Sequestration limits it to $516 billion. Democrats also want aid to Puerto Rico and increased spending on the opioid epidemic.
Meanwhile, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act triggered the Pay-Go budget rule. The Pay-Go rule requires an automatic cut in Medicare when tax cuts increase the deficit. Senate Republicans may have a hard time convincing Democrats, who opposed the tax bill, to waive the rule. Without the waiver, the tax act would force Congress to cut Medicare by $25 billion in 2018. It would cut mandatory programs by $150 billion over the next 10 years.
What Happens When the Government Shuts Down
The discretionary budget funds most federal departments. But those that provide essential services are not shut down. Essential services are those that include defense, national safety, and security.
Many of these agencies are set up so they can operate for weeks without a funding bill. On January 19, 2018, the Defense Department warned it wouldn't pay military personnel during a shutdown. The next paycheck is due on February 1, 2018. Non-essential employees, such as instructors, will be furloughed.
Border Protection and Immigration, air traffic controls, and the Transportation Security Administration remain open. The Justice Department remains open, but gun permits will not be issued during the shutdown. The Postal Service has a separate source of funds, so mail continues to be delivered.
Here are the major departments that shut down.
- • Commerce, except National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
- • Education.
- • Energy. Functions that oversee the safety of the nation's nuclear arsenal, dams and transmission lines remain open.
- • Environmental Protection Agency.
- • Food and Drug Administration.
- • Health and Human Services.
- • Housing and Urban Development.
- • Interior, including National Parks. The Department of Interior announced on January 19, 2018, that parks will remain open despite a shutdown.
- • Internal Revenue Service, except those processing tax returns.
- • Labor, including Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- • NASA.
- • National Institute of Health.
- • Smithsonian. The agency is using prior funds to remain open January 22, 2018.
The immediate effect is on furloughed government employees and Americans who depend on suspended services. As the shutdown continues, agencies use up saved funds, and more services start to close.
If the shutdown continues beyond two weeks, it will affect economic growth. That's because government spending is, itself, a component of gross domestic product. It contributes 18 percent of economic output.
What about Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid payments? They are part of the mandatory budget. That budget also includes TARP and the Affordable Care Act. These programs are never shut down because their funding is automatic. They were created by separate Acts of Congress. The only way Congress can cut their funding is with another Act.
Government Shutdown 2013
2013. The government shutdown began on October 1, 2013. The Republican-controlled House submitted a continuing resolution without administrative funds for Obamacare. The Senate rejected the bill and sent one back that included Obamacare. The House ignored that bill. It sent one back that delayed the mandate that everyone should buy health insurance. It also deleted the subsidies for Congress and their staffers. The Senate ignored that bill, and the government shut down.
Ironically, the shutdown did not stop the rollout of Obamacare. That's because 85 percent of its funding is part of the mandatory budget, just like Social Security and Medicare. It was already authorized by the Affordable Care Act of 2010. The Department [of] Health and Human Services had already sent out the funds needed to launch the health insurance exchanges. [...]
The Obama administration reported the shutdown slowed economic growth by 0.2 percent to 0.6 percent. It also cost 120,000 jobs. The government was unable to issue certificates for ships carrying U.S. exports, and 200 drilling permits were delayed. Around 850,000 federal employees were furloughed each day.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What is a "continuing resolution" and what is its purpose? What is the cause of the breakdown in negotiations over the proposed budget?
- 4. What is discretionary spending? What is nondiscretionary spending? Give one example of each.
- 5. According to the article, there are many points that divide Democrats and Republicans and their ability to function. List the top concerns.
- 6. What items were tied to the funding resolution? Do you think they should be associated with funding or considered separately? Why are they connected to government funding?
- 7. Do you think shutting down the government is an effective way of gaining consensus on a budget? Why or why not? Who is most affected by shutdowns?
- 8. What would you propose to stop the possibility of future shutdowns?
Click here to view more: www.thebalance.com/government-shutdown-3305683
Posted January 16, 2018
German Idea to Fight Anti-Semitism: Make Immigrants Tour Concentration Camps
BY RICK GLADSTONE, THE NEW YORK TIMES
Alarmed by displays of anti-Semitism among new immigrants to Germany, a German politician has offered a novel idea that appears to be gaining traction: required visits to Nazi concentration camp memorials.
The idea, proposed by Sawsan Chebli, a Berlin state legislator of Palestinian heritage, received a significant boost on Wednesday when the leaders of Germany's Central Council of Jews and the far larger World Jewish Congress agreed with her.
"People who have fled to us who have themselves had to escape or been expelled can develop empathy in such memorials," the council's president, Josef Schuster, told Deutschlandfunk radio.
The World Jewish Congress, a leading advocacy organization that represents Jewish communities in 100 countries, also welcomed the idea.
"This proposal is an encouraging and effective method of educating people of all backgrounds about the Nazi attempt to wipe out the entire Jewish population of Europe and the dangers such hatred can yield," Ronald S. Lauder, the organization's president, said in an emailed response to a request for comment.
"More than any other country, Germany has faced up to the crimes of its past in an honest and straightforward way, and has made it clear at the highest levels of government that the memory of the Holocaust must never be forgotten or diminished," Mr. Lauder said.
The idea of requiring new arrivals to visit concentration camps was not universally endorsed. Some scholars of German history described it as a simplistic answer to a more complicated and insidious problem. Many acts of anti-Semitism in Germany, they emphasized, are not by immigrants.
"You don't stop someone from being a racist or xenophobe by taking them to a concentration camp," said Sabine von Mering, the director of the Center for German and European Studies at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass. "I don't think that making it a requirement is somehow going to magically solve this problem. It requires a lot more attention and education."
Ms. Chebli, who suggested the required visits in an interview published Sunday in the newspaper Bild am Sonntag, was not immediately available for comment. Nor was it clear whether the German government would move to make such visits mandatory for immigrants, who are currently offered courses on German language, culture and history.
But the suggestion reflected a growing concern that Germany's absorption in recent years of more than a million immigrants, many fleeing war and mayhem in the Middle East and Africa, had inadvertently created potential incubators of anti-Semitism in the country most saddled with the legacy of Nazis and the Holocaust, which killed about six million Jews.
Sensitivities about the Nazi past are extremely strong in Germany, one of Israel's strongest supporters. German law includes strict prohibitions on Nazi propaganda and Holocaust denial.
Government authorities have sought to make Germany a safe place for Jews, who number about 200,000 in the country. Despite the recent rise of the nativist far-right Alternative for Germany party and the neo-Nazi tone conveyed by some of its leaders, Germany is still regarded as one of Europe's more tolerant societies.
Student trips to former Nazi concentration camps, where Jews were enslaved and mass-murdered before and during World War II, are regular elements of German school curriculums.
Ms. Chebli raised the idea of helping sensitize new immigrants to the history of Nazi crimes--through concentration camp visits--as part of assimilating them into a German society that values tolerance and opposes discrimination.
"I think it would make sense if everyone living in this country would be obliged to visit a concentration camp memorial site at least once in their lifetime," including new arrivals, she was quoted by Bild am Sonntag as saying. "Concentration camp visits should become part of integration courses."
Her suggestion came against the backdrop of a perceived rise in anti-Semitic sentiment last month, after President Trump's declaration that the United States government officially considered the contested city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
A large majority of United Nations member states--including Germany--condemned the American position, which critics called a violation of international law and a new obstacle to resolving the protracted Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Participants in protests that erupted in Germany included Arab immigrants, some of them seen burning Israeli flags and heard shouting, "Death to Israel," in what government officials called a hateful display of ignorance.
Germany's justice minister, Heiko Maas, who has advocated for Holocaust education as part of the immigrant assimilation process, said in an interview in Der Spiegel newsmagazine last month that the Jerusalem dispute was no excuse for anti-Semitism.
"Whoever burns Israeli flags burns not only one's decency, but also the values of our Constitution," he told Der Spiegel. "Whoever questions Israel's right to exist is standing outside our society."
He also said it should be understood that "whoever attacks Jewish life has to be prosecuted with the full consequence of the constitutional state."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What's the backstory here? Why would some immigrants entering Germany have feelings of anti-Semitism in the first place?
- 4. If Germany mandates visits to concentration camps for immigrants, will that quell the rise of anti-Semitism? Why or why not? Identify the pros and cons of these required visits.
- 5. How would the government enforce the required visits to Nazi concentration camp memorials? Who would pay for these visits?
- 6. How would you feel if you were an immigrant in Germany and forced to visit a concentration camp as a condition of your acceptance to the country? What other steps can society, and specifically the German government, take to lessen anti-Semitism and discrimination as a whole?
- 7. Have you ever visited a memorial or museum that left an impression on you? Explain your experience and the most valuable thing that you learned from it.
Click here to view more: www.nytimes.com/2018/01/10/world/europe/germany-immigrants-anti-semitism.html?emc=edit_th_20180111&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=79869507&_r=0
Posted January 9, 2018
White House Staff Could Be in Trouble if They Help Trump With Fake News Awards, Says Former WH Lawyer
By Graham Lanktree
Newsweek
On 1/8/18 at 7:17 AM
On Sunday, a former White House ethics lawyer warned West Wing staff that if they help the president with "fake news" awards he has promised to hand out, they could be breaking the law.
President Donald Trump said he still plans to go ahead with "fake news" awards he first suggested in November and promised on Twitter to hand out Monday. However, he tweeted late Sunday that he would push back the announcement of winners to January 17.
"WARNING to White House staff: the president may be exempt from the rules at 5 CFR § 2635.701 et seq. on misuse of position BUT YOU ARE NOT," tweeted Norm Eisen, who served as White House Special Counsel for Ethics in the Obama administration.
In his message, Eisen told White House staff that if they help the president deliver the awards they could risk violating provisions of the law that forbid the use of government time and money to harm some members of the media and help others.
Eisen is chair of the board of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a watchdog group that has attempted to bring a series of lawsuits against the Trump administration for ethics violations over the past year.
"If any [White House] staffers work on this or post it on the WH website, it will be a violation of the Standards of Conduct," wrote Walter Shaub, the former director of the Office of Government Ethics, in a supporting tweet directed at the Trump administration's press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Sunday.
"Beware of laws on using federal appropriations too, if there are any visuals, certificates, handouts, or trophies," Shaub added.
Last month, White House director of social media Dan Scavino Jr. said he has "nothing to do with" the awards, which he noted are being run by Trump's 2020 campaign [:]
"Dear @jason_kint, I actually just learned about it from your tweet, and have nothing to do with it--it's from a campaign... So carry on with your HATE and FAKE NEWS, as you work at "advancing the future of trusted content and media strategy" over at @DCNorg. LOL"
"The Fake News Awards, those going to the most corrupt & biased of the Mainstream Media, will be presented to the losers on Wednesday, January 17th, rather than this coming Monday," Trump tweeted Sunday. "The interest in, and importance of, these awards is far greater than anyone could have anticipated!"
Details have not been released about how Trump will deliver the awards or whether any members of the White House are involved in coordinating or assisting the president with the project.
The Republican National Committee has been promoting an online poll for the awards after Trump tweeted about the idea of creating a trophy for "the most dishonest, corrupt and/or distorted in its political coverage of your favorite President (me)" in late November.
At the time, Trump said the awards would exclude the Fox News network [:]
"We should have a contest as to which of the Networks, plus CNN and not including Fox, is the most dishonest, corrupt and/or distorted in its political coverage of your favorite President (me). They are all bad. Winner to receive the FAKE NEWS TROPHY!"
The online poll run by the GOP features stories from ABC News, CNN and Time magazine--each of which has been corrected.
Those who respond to the poll are asked to rank each of the three media stories as "fake," "faker" or "fakest" news.
Days after Trump's tweet suggesting the awards, the conservative pollsters Rasmussen found that 40 percent of Americans thought the top award should go to Fox News. CNN came in second with 25 percent of respondents and MSNBC with 9 percent.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Is a "fake news award" an appropriate use of government time and resources?
- 4. Who decides what is fake news? When you read or watch a news piece, how do you know if it is true or not? What steps do you take to verify facts?
- 5. What do you expect of news providers when they present an article? What kind of fact-checking should they do?
- 6. The First Amendment states: "Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Could the awards be seen as an infringement on freedom of the press? Why or why not?
- 7. What do you think of a "fake news award"? If you were to present one, who or what would get the award? Why?
Click here to view more: www.newsweek.com/white-house-staff-could-be-trouble-if-they-help-trump-fake-news-awards-says-773794
Posted December 12, 2017
Here's What's At Stake In The Supreme Court's Gay Wedding Cake Case
The baker says it's about free speech, but the same-sex couple says it's purely discrimination.
By Antonia Blumberg
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Tuesday in a case that could have huge ramifications for freedom of speech and protections against discrimination. But it all began with a same-sex couple who just wanted a special wedding cake.
In 2012, Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips pointed to his conservative Christian beliefs in refusing to make a custom wedding cake for Colorado couple Charlie Craig and David Mullins.
Phillips argues that when he designs his custom cakes, he is an artist and that he can't be forced to use his artistic expression to send a message he finds religiously objectionable―in this case, that any marriage other than one between a man and a woman should be celebrated. His lawyers say it is a matter of free speech.
Kristen Waggoner, an attorney with the Alliance Defending Freedom who is representing Phillips, reiterated this point before the justices on Tuesday. Waggoner said the baker creates a "temporary sculpture" when he designs a cake, through which he expresses himself creatively.
Some of the justices pushed back on this notion of artistic speech. "Why is there no speech in creating a wonderful hairdo? The makeup artist? It's called an artist. It's the makeup artist," asked Justice Elena Kagan, according to BuzzFeed News.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor noted that "the primary purpose of any food is to be eaten" and said that self-described "sandwich artists" wouldn't necessarily claim First Amendment protections for the food they sell.
The Trump administration is backing the baker's cause. "Forcing Phillips to create expression for and participate in a ceremony that violates his sincerely held religious beliefs invades his First Amendment rights," the Justice Department wrote in an amicus brief filed in September.
But in refusing to make Craig and Mullins a custom cake, Phillips violated Colorado anti-discrimination law that prohibits businesses from denying services to people based on sexual orientation, among other factors. The Colorado Civil Rights Commission ruled against him in May 2014.
Several court decisions later, the case reached the Supreme Court―with the scope of free speech and anti-discrimination protections on the line.
The implications of Phillips' claim that he should be able to deny the couple services based on his free speech rights as a Christian are "staggering," American Civil Liberties Union attorneys representing Craig and Mullins wrote in a brief filed last year.
"People hold religious beliefs about a wide variety of things, including racial and religious segregation and the role of women in society," the ACLU lawyers wrote. "If religious motivation exempted businesses from anti-discrimination laws, government would be powerless to protect all Americans from the harms of invidious discrimination."
The brief noted another religious freedom case, which came before the Supreme Court in 1968, revolving around a South Carolina barbecue chain that had refused to serve two black customers. Maurice Bessinger, the owner of Piggie Park, argued that he was legally justified in refusing service to black customers inside his restaurants due to his religious belief that there should not be "any integration of the races whatsoever."
At the trial court level, U.S. District Judge Charles Earl Simons Jr. was not persuaded by that argument. He wrote: "Undoubtedly defendant Bessinger has a constitutional right to espouse the religious beliefs of his own choosing, however, he does not have the absolute right to exercise and practice such beliefs in utter disregard of the clear constitutional rights of other citizens."
By the time the case reached the Supreme Court, it was a debate about lawyers' fees, but the justices still ruled against Bessinger, calling his religious freedom defense "patently frivolous."
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund also held up that long-ago case in its amicus brief filed on behalf of Craig and Mullins: "The logic of Piggie Park and other precedents overwhelmingly rejecting religious justifications for racial discrimination apply squarely to the context of LGBTQ discrimination."
But the Alliance Defending Freedom argues there is a difference between [this] case and those earlier disputes. Phillips' bakery serves "people of all races, all faiths, all sexual orientations, and all walks of life," the alliance wrote in a brief, and he had offered to sell Craig and Mullins a pre-made cake. He only refused to make them a custom cake, which Phillips's lawyers said he has the right to do as a matter of artistic expression and free speech.
During Tuesday's hearing, Justice Anthony Kennedy questioned why Phillips viewed his other cakes differently from his custom cakes. "Didn't he express himself" when he made both kinds of cakes? Kennedy asked.
Waggoner responded that Phillips' "speech has been completed" before people buy the already prepared cakes.
Kennedy seemed doubtful about both sides' arguments, saying it was also "too facile" to attribute Phillips' behavior to anti-gay discrimination.
But LGBTQ advocates reject the idea that freedom of speech and artistic expression are what's really at stake in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. The issue here, they say, is the ability of ordinary commercial businesses to use religion to pick and choose which parts of anti-discrimination law they'll obey.
"While the work that many people do is beautiful, businesses that sell products to the general public are not above the law just because there may be a creative element to their work," Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD, said in a statement to HuffPost.
Phillips defended his decision at a recent rally, telling his supporters, "I don't create custom designs for events or messages that conflict with my conscience." Among the other celebrations and messages he said he wouldn't bake for are "Halloween, bachelor or bachelorette parties, and anti-American cakes."
Opponents of same-sex marriage have increasingly used religious freedom arguments to try to justify the refusal of services to LGBTQ people. Even with same-sex marriage now legal in all 50 states, some conservative Christians have argued they should be granted religious accommodations when they feel that serving gay couples would violate their beliefs.
Where those Christians argue that their faith is under attack, advocates for the LGBTQ community say they are the ones whose lives and livelihoods are at risk.
Already this year, LGBTQ rights have been compromised by several policy changes from the White House. In August, President Donald Trump proposed a ban on transgender individuals entering the military―a plan that was shortly thereafter blocked by a district court. Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memo in October reversing workplace protections for transgender employees on the basis of "religious freedom."
ACLU staff attorney Chase Strangio warned of the dangerous precedent that Phillips' claim could set. "If the Supreme Court sides with the bakery, the systematic rejection of LGBTQ people from public life will gain legitimacy and anti-LGBTQ movements will grow stronger," Strangio wrote in a September blog post.
"If a baker can reject LGBTQ people because of who we are, then what about the mechanic, the florist, the doctor, the teacher?" he wrote. "This is not about cake. This is not about art. This is about survival."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Is baking a specialty cake a means of artistic expression or a service provided to a customer? Explain your perspective.
- 4. This case pits two fundamental amendments against each other, the First Amendment and the 14th Amendment. Which constitutional rights do these amendments protect? How are these amendments in conflict in this Supreme Court case?
- 5. Whose rights will be protected, the baker's or the couple's? Predict the outcome of the case. How do you feel it should be decided?
- 6. What does "precedent" mean, as described by ACLU staff attorney Chase Strangio? Do you agree with his point of view? Why or why not? What effects might this case have on your life? Your community? Your state?
Click here to view more: www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/supreme-court-gay-wedding-cake-case_us_5a25925ee4b03350e0b8a7e0
Posted December 5, 2017
Neo-Nazi site founder says 'troll storm' is protected speech, wants lawsuit dismissed
By Sara Sidner and Mallory Simon, CNN
Updated 8:45 AM ET, Mon December 4, 2017
(CNN)
The founder of a popular neo-Nazi website says a "troll storm" he encouraged against a Jewish woman in Montana should be considered protected speech and a lawsuit against him should be dismissed.
Lawyers for Andrew Anglin, the founder and publisher of the Daily Stormer, responded November 30 to a lawsuit filed by realtor Tanya Gersh, saying the dispute between him and Gersh boils down to the First Amendment.
Well-known First Amendment attorney Marc Randazza, who is representing Anglin, told CNN, "The only thing he (Anglin) did was call for people to speak, but people want to draw the line for speech they don't like."
Gersh, with the help of the Southern Poverty Law Center, is suing Anglin for "invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and violations of Montana's Anti-Intimidation act." That suit was filed in April in the US District Court for Montana.
She told CNN earlier this year that her family endured weeks of harassment leading to her physical and emotional deterioration because of Anglin's actions.
Gersh says Anglin used his website as a platform to encourage his thousands of readers to contact her through email messages, social media, letters and phone calls. They all centered on two facts: She was Jewish. And Anglin accused her of extortion.
She says there is one man to blame for what happened to her and her family: Andrew Anglin.
Free speech or harassment?
Most of the messages from his readers came in the form of anti-Semitic slurs. There were edited images of her face on the gates of the Nazi Auschwitz death camp. A voicemail with the sound of gunshots. There were letters sent to the home she shared with her husband and young son, who also received messages on social media.
Gersh earlier this year told CNN she was haunted by the images, and feared for her and her family's life so much that they debated fleeing the state because the threats felt so real.
Anglin's lawyers say those messages are considered "generally recognized anti-Semitic tropes," but they intend no true or actual harm, despite how Gersh may have felt about them.
Gersh told CNN earlier this year she believed reducing the Daily Stormer readers to simply "trolls" minimizes the impact they had on her life.
"These are not trolls. They are terrorists," she told CNN. "They are very harmful, they are very malicious and they are dangerous."
That is not how the law sees it, Anglin's lawyers argue in their motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
"Even Nazi expression, no matter the psychic harm on Jewish residents, is nonetheless protected speech," Anglin's lawyers wrote.
Speech that may be abhorrent to some still constitutes free speech, his lawyers maintain.
"Every word uttered by Mr. Anglin in this public dispute is protected by the First Amendment, no matter how many people find those views intolerable," Anglin's lawyers argue.
The argument that Anglin's words and postings are protected as free speech is no surprise. Even Gersh's attorneys spoke to CNN about it as an expected defense. SPLC co-counsel John Morrison called it a flawed defense.
"This is not free speech, this is nothing protected by the First Amendment, this is not the expression of political opinion," he told CNN earlier this year. "The purpose of this is to damage these people, the purpose of this is to cause them fear and emotional harm, and that's illegal."
A small-town dispute
It could have a major impact on the Daily Stormer website, which has since been kicked offline in various countries and confined to the dark web--a layer of the internet accessible only through anonymizing networks--since the deadly protests in Charlottesville, Virginia.
On his website, Anglin said losing the case could shut down his website. He used that to encourage people to donate to his defense fund. Anglin said he was able to raise more than $150,000.
While the case could have wide-reaching implications, it started out modestly, after an interaction between two mothers in the small town of Whitefish, Montana.
The troll storm began after a dispute between Gersh and fellow Whitefish resident Sherry Spencer. Spencer is the mother of white nationalist Richard Spencer.
Gersh became a target for hate after contacting tenants of a building owned by Sherry Spencer, warning them about possible protests by a group over her son's views.
When Sherry Spencer called to ask her advice, Gersh says, she advised her to sell the building and donate money to a human rights group as a way to defuse tensions. Gersh says she offered to help Spencer sell the property.
Sherry Spencer eventually accused Gersh in a public blog post of threatening her livelihood.
She wrote that Gersh told her protesters and media would turn up and drive down the building's value if she didn't sell.
A troll storm and major court case
That is where Anglin comes in. He began writing about the case on the Daily Stormer, calling what Gersh did "extortion." He encouraged his troll army to tell Gersh what they thought of her and posted her personal information and ways to reach her on his website. They did so by the hundreds.
But Anglin's attorneys argue that he "specifically disclaims calling for threats or harassment," but rather that he called for "campaign of making our voices heard."
Anglin's attorneys also argue he was doing something Gersh had already done to Sherry Spencer.
"Ms. Gersh was involved with planning a boycott and protest of Mrs. Spencer's business. Thus, Ms. Gersh condones collective action to express a political opinion--so long as that political opinion is one that she favors," Anglin's attorneys wrote in the case for dismissal.
"In the face of that, there is no reason to foresee Ms. Gersh would not similarly condone others engaged in collective expression," they added.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, on behalf of Gersh, told CNN its attorneys are reviewing the filing and will file a response.
Anglin has long argued that all he is doing with his website is exercising his right to free speech.
Court documents reveal he has still not been served because he couldn't be found. His attorneys said he may not even live in the United States and the case should be thrown out because of that, too.
Ultimately, a judge in Montana will decide whether the case proceeds.
But Randazza, the attorney for Anglin, told CNN that if the case does move forward, it will likely be in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals because it speaks to the very tenets of free speech.
"This is the price of admission to a free society," Randazza told CNN. "Even if you find Mr. Anglin's views abhorrent."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. The First Amendment states: "Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Is this meant to protect people from government interference? How does it apply to individuals claiming protected speech?
- 4. What is collective expression? How did each side in this dispute use it to express their views? Are there differences in how each side used the power of collective expression and action?
- 5. The attorneys for each side express opposing views of free speech: "The purpose of this is to damage these people, the purpose of this is to cause them fear and emotional harm, and that's illegal." vs. "This is the price of admission to a free society. Even if you find Mr. Anglin's views abhorrent." Can both views be true? Can they become reconciled?
- 6. Does the use of social media make free speech a more complicated issue? Should speech be regulated on social media? Why or why not? Who would judge, and how would restrictions be enforced?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2017/12/03/us/daily-stormer-troll-storm-lawsuit/index.html
Posted November 28, 2017
Black Friday sets online sales record; shoppers spend up to $1M per minute
By Gregg Re
November 26, 2017
Buoyed by robust economic indicators, holiday shoppers smashed all-time online sales records on Thanksgiving and Black Friday by more than $1 billion, reports said.
Deal-hungry customers spent as much as $1 million per minute on the Internet at the height of Black Friday, e-commerce platform Shopify said.
The news came just weeks after the Conference Board found that consumer confidence was at its highest point in almost 17 years.
Online sales at the 100 largest U.S. Web retailers totaled approximately $7.9 billion on Black Friday and Thanksgiving, marking a nearly 18 percent increase from 2016, according to Adobe Analytics, the research arm of software company Adobe.
Customers spent a record-high $5 billion on Black Friday alone, compared to $3.34 billion last year, Adobe Analytics said.
The $2.87 billion that Adobe found consumers spent online on Thanksgiving set another record, marking a sizable increase from the $1.93 billion in online Thanksgiving sales last year.
Roughly 40 percent of Black Friday online sales were made on mobile devices, marketing firm Criteo reported.
Shoppers are expected to set more records on Cyber Monday. Adobe Analytics forecasted $6.6 billion in online sales on Monday, which would be a 16.5 percent increase from last year's figure.
Brick-and-mortar retail sales data were not immediately available, but industry analysts noted signs of a decline in physical store sales this year, Reuters reported.
Retail analytic firm ShopperTrak said that preliminary data indicate a 1.6 percent decline in foot traffic to retail stores on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, although the decline on Black Friday was less than 1 percent.
"There has been a significant amount of debate surrounding the shifting importance of brick-and-mortar retail, and the fact that shopper visits remained intact on Black Friday illustrates that physical retail is still highly relevant and, when done right, profitable," Brian Field, a senior executive at ShopperTrak, said in a statement.
The Mall of America in Minnesota says that 2,500 people were in line at the 5 a.m. opening Friday, in line with a year ago. Shoppers started queuing up as early as 5:45 p.m. on Thanksgiving.
Jill Renslow, Mall of America's executive vice president of business development, said stores like Nordstrom, Macy's and Best Buy were crowded. She said the items that caught shoppers' attention included... voice-activated devices like Amazon Echo, nostalgic toys, clothing and shoes.
With the jobless rate at a 17-year-low of 4.1 percent and consumer confidence stronger than a year ago, analysts project healthy sales increases for November and December.
The National Retail Federation trade group expects sales for that period to at least match last year's rise of 3.6 percent and estimates online spending and other non-store sales will rise 11 to 15 percent.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Shoppers smashed all-time online sales records on Thanksgiving and Black Friday by more than $1 billion. Why were sales up so much this year from recent years? How does consumer confidence in the economy relate to Black Friday shopping?
- 4. Is it wrong to shop on Thanksgiving Day? How do you feel about shopping on Black Friday or throughout "Gray November"? Do you partake in the Black Friday shopping craze, prefer to shop in your pajamas from home, or both?
- 5. How have internet sales affected the economics of Black Friday? Is the increase of cyber shopping actually a positive for brick-and-mortar stores and the economy as a whole? Why or why not?
- 6. Predict how Black Friday shopping trends will change over the next 5 to 10 years. Do you think Black Friday shopping will ever completely cease to exist?
- 7. What additional information would have been helpful to include in this article?
Click here to view more: www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/26/black-friday-sets-online-sales-record-shoppers-spend-up-to-1m-per-minute.html
Posted November 14, 2017
Florida school lets parents buy bulletproof panels for students to put in backpacks
By Travis M. Andrews
The Washington Post
November 7
Florida Christian School in Miami put a few order forms on its website to make school supply shopping easier. Parents can purchase their children T-shirts bearing the school's logo or some snugly winter wear. Or, for $120, they can buy them bullet-resistant panels designed to slip into their backpacks in case of a school shooting.
The nondenominational kindergarten through 12th grade school hasn't been the scene of any gun violence, but its private security wants to be prepared just in case. The panel is a "tool" to help protect children in case of a horrific event, just like its sound-enabled surveillance cameras and active shooter drills, according to George Gulla, the school's head of security.
"I'd rather be prepared for the worst than be stuck after saying 'Wow, I wish we would've done that,'" Gulla told the Miami Herald.
The panel comes from Applied Fiber Concepts, a body armor company based in nearby Hialeah and owned by Alex Cejas, who has two children at the school. He attended one of Gulla's active shooting drills last year and suggested the company make custom armor plates for students.
"While books and stuff in your backpack may stop a bullet, they're not designed to," Cejas told the Miami Herald. "I wouldn't bet my life on it."
The slim panels, which weigh less than a pound, can slip easily in the students' backpacks among their school books. They're reportedly able to protect students from bullets such as a .44 Magnum or a .357 SIG, both pistol cartridges. Stopping rifle bullets would require heavier armor.
Students are taught to hold their backpacks containing the panels over their chests in case of [...] active shooters.
"We want to protect our students' center mass," Gulla said.
His company isn't the only business marketing bulletproof "accessories" to schools in the aftermath of mass shootings across the [country]. Bullet Blocker, a Massachusetts company, began developing a range of products after the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007 that left 32 dead. The company's products include bulletproof backpacks, fleeces, briefcases--and even binder inserts to place among loose-leaf paper.
After the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting that killed 20 first-graders and six educators, Bullet Blocker saw a spike in bulletproof backpack sales--selling about 10,000 in three weeks, even though it normally sold 20 a week, Marketplace reported.
The focus isn't only on backpacks. For instance, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore purchased hundreds of bulletproof whiteboards in 2013, as did the Minnesota Rocori School District, where a shooting left two students dead in 2003.
"It's a writing tablet that doubles as a bulletproof shield," university spokesman William Robinson told CNN Money.
Not everyone thinks buying students ballistic armor is the best way to protect them. School safety consultant Kenneth Trump is among the loudest voices decrying the practice.
"Focus on fundamentals and get back to the basics," Trump told NPR. "There is a security product for every possible need that your budget will buy. The question is, is that the best use of limited resources?"
For Florida Christian School, however, Gulla thinks the option to buy the backpack inserts might calm some parents.
"We thought, yeah, let's offer it to anyone who wants it," he told the Miami Herald. "It's not required. But if it gives you extra peace of mind."
"It's out of the norm, but what is the norm?" he added.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Have you heard of bulletproof products for school situations?
- 4. Do you think bulletproof school products are a good idea? Why or why not?
- 5. Would you feel safer in school if you had bulletproof products to wear or carry?
- 6. Should a school provide bulletproof products to students? Why or why not? If so, who should pay for them?
- 7. Some parents might want these products and buy them for their child; others would either not agree with them or not be able to afford them. What could this disparity mean in a classroom?
- 8. What should schools do to prepare for shootings or other events? Does your school have a plan in place for such an occurrence? Do you know what to do if there is an incident?
- 9. What does it say about our society that companies make and sell bulletproof products to try and protect students in school?
Click here to view more: www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/11/07/florida-school-lets-parents-buy-bulletproof-panels-for-students-to-put-in-backpacks
Posted November 7, 2017
After Texas church rampage, 'thoughts and prayers' leave gun control side frustrated
Written by Nicole Cobler and Todd J. Gillman
The Dallas News
WASHINGTON--The Sutherland Springs church massacre reopened a gun control debate that has raged for decades, erupting with fresh vigor with each new tragedy.
Five weeks have passed since a rampage in Las Vegas left 58 people dead, and the arguments and battle lines were still echoing in Congress. But the history of mass shootings in America suggests that this one--the worst in modern Texas history--won't lead to changes, either.
Gun control advocates predicted that Las Vegas would be a turning point for restrictions on guns--in particular on bump stocks, a device found in the shooter's hotel room that allows rifles to be fired at nearly automatic rates.
It hasn't so far. A bipartisan push to ban bump stocks seems to have stalled in Congress. The House has yet to hold a committee hearing.
Within hours of Sunday's shooting, Democratic lawmakers renewed their pleas for action aimed at limiting the damage one gunman can inflict.
"The shooter turned his gun on people--kids--in a place of worship. America is in the grips of a gun violence crisis. Congress must act," tweeted Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the party's deputy Senate leader.
Gun control advocates, including Barack Obama when he was president, have long chafed at the standard formulation provided by politicians in the immediate aftermath of a mass shooting: calls for thoughts and prayers.
The National Rifle Association and other gun advocacy groups held off making public comments in the hours after the Sutherland shooting. Texas attorney general Ken Paxton was quick to push back against calls to curb access to guns, and predicted that no legal restrictions would stop such attacks.
"This is going to happen again," he told Fox News on Sunday, arguing that anyone willing to commit murder is also willing to violate gun laws, and that Texas' concealed carry law reduces the risk of mass murders. "If it's a place where somebody has the ability to carry, there's always the opportunity that gunman will be taken out before he has the opportunity to kill very many people."
The White House and House Speaker Paul Ryan were among the national leaders offering prayers.
President Donald Trump, traveling in Japan, called the "horrible and murderous attack" an "act of evil." He spoke with Gov. Greg Abbott hours earlier and received regular updates from aides.
"All of America is praying to God to help the wounded and the families of the victims. We will never, ever, leave their side, ever," the president said.
As quickly as "thoughts and prayers" poured out, so did frustration at that message, which gun control advocates view as a method of deflection even as shootings grow more deadly.
Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, a group that demands gun restrictions, blasted Abbott and other defenders of gun rights. And she noted the irony of invoking the power of prayer after a massacre at a church.
"If thoughts and prayers alone prevented gun violence, we wouldn't be shot in places of worship," she tweeted.
Abbott's 2014 Democratic opponent, Wendy Davis, tweaked him Sunday night for so ardently supporting gun rights that two years ago he encouraged Texans to buy more guns because California claimed bragging rights as the state with the most per capita purchases. That might stir liberals but isn't likely to boost the political price in Texas for supporting gun rights.
After the Vegas shooting, Republicans turned aside pleas for action as premature. Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the second-ranking member of the Senate, said "politicizing this tragedy is beyond disgusting," and like other Republicans, he waited days before addressing Democrats' calls for gun restrictions.
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey was among the Democrats ramping up pressure Sunday night. "We are not powerless to reduce gun violence in our nation. Congress must act," he tweeted.
But even some lawmakers who have long pushed for restrictions avoided taking the issue head-on Sunday--to avoid preemptive criticism of anyone seen to be politicizing a tragedy.
"This horrific act against innocent people at a place of worship leaves yet another community reeling from the heartache and devastation caused by gun violence," said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Houston Democrat who made no mention of her longstanding desire for restrictions on certain firearms. "My thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, the first responders, and the people of this small community who are now reeling from this senseless attack."
After the Las Vegas attack, the NRA, the White House and many high-profile Republicans initially called for a crackdown on bump stocks, but later shifted the focus from federal legislation to pressuring the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for a regulatory approach.
ATF is responsible for making classification decisions on firearms. It approved the bump stock in 2010, deeming it a lawful accessory, rather than a modification that turns a lawful weapon into an unlawful automatic weapon.
Even public attention on the aftermarket device has dwindled. Google trends search data on "bump stocks" dropped back to pre-shooting levels two weeks after the Las Vegas massacre, CNN reported.
History repeats
To the dismay of those calling for restrictions, that pattern has played out for years after every mass shooting.
Gun control advocates had hoped that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Conn., might provide the momentum needed to expand background checks and ban assault weapons. But Congress rejected nearly every gun control measure proposed in the aftermath of the tragedy and since then.
Since Sandy Hook, where a gunman killed 20 children and seven adults, 27 states have passed 93 laws expanding gun rights.
In Texas, gun owners now can openly tote their handguns and carry concealed guns onto public university campuses.
And Sunday's shooting brought back memories of the June 2015 church shooting in Charleston at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, where nine people were killed by 21-year-old Dylann Roof.
Democrats called for regulations that would close the loophole that allowed Roof to buy a pistol despite a recent arrest on a felony drug charge. A measure, known as the Background Check Completion Act, has yet to gather enough support to make it through the House or Senate.
Now, Congress is poised to vote on the Sportsmen's Heritage and Recreational Enhancement Act, or SHARE, which includes a provision to ease restrictions on silencers. Sport hunters, with backing from lawmakers in both parties, have pushed the measure as a way to protect hunters' hearing. Critics say that muffling the sound of firearms would make it harder for police and victims to detect the source of an attack and could have made the Las Vegas massacre even worse.
The bill was delayed after a shooter fired on Republican lawmakers at a congressional baseball practice in June. The bill made it through committee but has not been scheduled for a vote by the full House.
And the Trump administration is considering shifting oversight of gun exports from the State Department to the Commerce Department, treating guns more like commodities and less like weapons.
At the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, executive director Josh Horwitz voiced frustration Sunday at the lack of progress since the Las Vegas massacre--and the artful deflections used by gun rights advocates and their allies in Congress.
"We went through the worst mass shooting in modern American history just over a month ago. Politicians offered their 'thoughts and prayers' tweets," he said. "This uniquely American cycle must stop. Americans are slain in their houses of prayer and all their elected officials will offer is prayer. We must do more."
Tom Perez, chairman of the Democratic Party, also spoke of thoughts and prayers after "the horrific shooting in Texas." He alluded to a call for restrictions.
"In the last 35 days, we've witnessed two of the worst mass shootings in American history. We cannot allow those who wish us harm to so easily turn their hatred into violence," he said.
To the dismay of gun control advocates, some deadly episodes result in increased public demand for expanded gun rights.
After the 1991 Luby's massacre in Killeen, [Texas] one of the survivors, Suzanna Gratia Huff--whose parents were among the 24 people killed by gunman George Hennard--was elected to the Legislature. She had left her gun in a purse in her car to avoid running afoul of state law, and in Austin she become a leading advocate of the right to concealed carry.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi argued Sunday night that the growing list of mass shootings should prompt action in the other direction.
"We have a solemn obligation to the victims of Sutherland Springs, Las Vegas, Orlando, Newtown and the many tragic shootings that occur each day to respond not only with prayer and unwavering love, but with action," she said.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. The Second Amendment to the Constitution reads: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." How do you interpret that statement? What does it mean in the 21st century? Why is it so hotly debated?
- 4. Why is it so difficult to regulate guns in the United States? Do you think regulating guns--or gun owners--is the answer to preventing mass shootings?
- 5. Josh Horwitz, executive director of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, said, "This uniquely American cycle must stop." What do you think that means?
- 6. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the state's gun laws prevent more mass shootings: "If it's a place where somebody has the ability to carry, there's always the opportunity that gunman will be taken out before he has the opportunity to kill very many people." Do you agree with this statement?
- 7. What solutions would you propose to stop mass shootings? How would they work? How would you gain a consensus to make them work?
Click here to view more: www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2017/11/05/texas-church-rampage-thoughts-prayers-leave-gun-control-side-frustrated
Posted October 31, 2017
Why Nerds and Nurses Are Taking Over the U.S. Economy
By Derek Thompson
The Atlantic
Oct. 26, 2017
A blockbuster report from government economists forecasts the workforce of 2026--a world of robot cashiers, well-paid math nerds, and so (so, so, so) many healthcare workers.
Manufacturing will fall. Retail will wobble. Automation will inch along but stay off the roads, for now. The rich will keep getting richer. And more and more of the country will be paid to take care of old people. That is the future of the labor market, according to the latest 10-year forecast from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
These 10-year forecasts--the products of two years' work from about 25 economists at the BLS --document the government's best assessment of the fastest and slowest growing jobs of the future. On the decline are automatable work, like typists, and occupations threatened by changing consumer behavior, like clothing store cashiers, as more people shop online.
The fastest-growing jobs through 2026 belong to what one might call the Three Cs: care, computers, and clean energy. No occupation is projected to add more workers than personal-care aides, who perform non-medical duties for older Americans, such as bathing and cooking. Along with home-health aides, these two occupations are projected to create 1.1 million new jobs in the next decade. Remarkably, that's 10 percent of the total 11.5 million jobs that the BLS expects the economy to add. Clean-energy workers, like solar-panel installers and wind-turbine technicians, are the only occupations that are expected to double by 2026. Mathematicians and statisticians round out the top-10 list.
These projections aren't just a fun experiment for economic forecasters and journalists who need unfalsifiable predictions to write about. They can help college students pick their major--for example, the projected growth of statisticians augurs well for math--and shape debates about government spending.
At times, however, it seems like nobody at the highest level of government has any clue these reports exist. When President Donald Trump talks about the future of the economy, he often praises steel workers and manufacturers. But manufacturing is the only major industry projected to decline in the next decade, and steelworkers are projected to add just 9,000 jobs in the next 10 years. That is about the same as the projected increase in drama and music professors at private colleges, an occupation that no politician considers symbolic of the American idea (sad!).
Here are the four major themes of the employment projections.
1. Health care will take over--or, continue its long takeover of--the economy.
The funny thing about getting old is that, outside of Christopher Nolan films, it is a one-speed phenomenon, which does not yield itself to sudden and surprising news headlines--e.g., Scientists Stunned As Springfield's Population Ages 10 Years in One Weekend. But the greying of the U.S. is quietly one of the nation's most important economic events.
Aging explains, for example, why jobs are projected to grow 50 percent slower in the next decade than they did between 1996 and 2006. It explains why, since the mid-1990s, the share of the labor force over 55 will have doubled by the mid-2020s--from 12 percent to 25 percent. It may explain the nation's declining productivity. And it explains why the future of the economy is health care.
Health care's statistical dominance of the emerging labor force is stunning. Of the 10 jobs projected to grow fastest by percent, five are in health care and elderly assistance. Those five occupations--personal care aides, home health aides, nurse practitioners, medical assistants, and nursing assistants--account for almost one-fifth of the net new jobs to be created by 2026. Since it's difficult to automate (and impossible to offshore) the tactile work of caring for a fragile elderly person, these jobs would seem resistant even to the most aggressive implications of AI and machine automation of the labor force.
2. It's the end of retail ... as America's most dependable engine of job growth.
In the second half of the 20th century, American stores replaced factories as the most important place for job growth. The retail workforce tripled between 1940 and 2000. Cashiers and retail salesperson are two of the most common jobs in the country. But in the last few years, as online retail has grown, retail has taken a beating, with one department store after another declaring bankruptcy.
The BLS projects that retail's heyday is over. They make the rather astonishing projection that as e-commerce grows and automated check-out machines proliferate, the number of cashiers will actually decline slightly in the next 10 years, by about 30,000 jobs. That's not catastrophic--a 0.8 percent drop--but it's an indication of how the economists think about the effects of technology and shifting consumer tastes. The cashier, following the path trod by the manufacturing worker, is in structural decline.
In some cases, I think the retail projections aren't pessimistic enough. For example, the economists project that jobs at clothing stores and department stores will shrink by about 150,000 in the next ten years. Okay, that's pretty steep. But the economy has already shed 120,000 of those jobs in just the last two years.
Some of these jobs will shift to warehouses to fulfill online orders. But not all, says Frankie Velez, an economist at the BLS. "A lot of technology is already in fulfillment centers to move and sort goods without human assistance," he said. Even though these jobs have been a bright spot in the last few years, the BLS projects that warehousing employment won't grow much faster than the rest of the labor market in the next decade.
3. Inequality--by income, education, and geography--will continue to grow.
Today, rich, college-educated Americans living in or near the largest cities are thriving. Poorer, less educated Americans living in rural areas are falling further behind. Meanwhile the middle class, once composed of non-college-educated men working in manufacturing and construction, is being hollowed out by globalization and technology.
The next 10 years may exacerbate inequality by earnings and geography. Jobs for people with bachelor's degrees are projected to grow twice as fast as jobs for people with just high school degrees.
Meanwhile, there won't be a shortage of either extremely low-paid work or highly paid work. But jobs earning between $30,000 and $50,000 are projected to grow slowly, as employment flags in manufacturing and retail.
The jobs of the next decade will also be polarized by geography, the economist Jed Kolko said in his analysis of the BLS figures. Jobs in big cities and their suburbs are projected to grow faster than in rural areas. Meanwhile, in the swath of land stretching from the Mississippi River to the Blue Ridge Mountains, from the tip of Michigan to the Louisiana bayou, a large share of Americans are working in occupations that are projected to shrink, many of them in manufacturing. These are areas that tended to vote for Trump in the election.
4. Automation will take a nibble, not a bite, out of the economy.
Self-driving cars might be the talk of Silicon Valley and auto manufacturers. But the BLS doesn't see their impact in the labor market until after 2026. In their projections, heavy truck-driving will add 114,000 new jobs in the next decade, growing at nearly the same rate as the economy. Delivery service drivers are projected to grow even faster than the labor force.
Why don't these economists think that autonomous vehicles are set to replace truck drivers? "We thought that autonomous truck driving would be a little farther out in our projections," said Teri Morisi, branch chief of the Division of Occupational Employment Projections. "Technological advancements like platooning and braking assistance will make truck driving safer and more energy efficient, but they shouldn't change the demand for truck driving."
This raises a larger question: Is the government any good at predicting the future? The BLS's early-century forecasts of the next decade didn't anticipate the Great Recession, which restrained overall job growth and decimated construction, or the natural gas revolution, which created a mining boom. On the other hand, it nailed the growth of education and health care within a percentage point.
The big takeaway? The BLS is good at combining publicly available information and mainstream economic thought to project the growth of the labor force and the government, on which much of education and health care work depends. But very few organizations can reliably predict surprising events.
Economic and technological shocks are inherently unpredictable. To take this report as gospel requires one to believe that the next decade will be significantly less surprising (and, perhaps, significantly more boring) than the last one. One can pray.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What do you think of the word choice in the headline?
- 4. Which occupations are projected to decrease in the next 10 years? Which ones are projected to increase? What are the reasons for the changes? What is the education, training, or experience needed for the various occupations?
- 5. The article states: "Inequality--by income, education, and geography--will continue to grow." What does this mean? How can economic and education inequality be addressed?
- 6. Why do jobs depend, in some part, on the part of the country you live in? In your area, are there issues with the local economy? What are they? What has caused them? If you had the ability to make changes and improve the job outlook, what would you do?
- 7. The article states, "Jobs for people with bachelor's degrees are projected to grow twice as fast as jobs for people with just high school degrees." Do the projections make you think differently about any of your plans for after high school?
Click here to view more: www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/10/the-future-of-jobs-polarized-unequal-and-health-care/543915
Posted October 24, 2017
As monuments to the Confederacy are removed from public squares, new ones are quietly being erected
By Jenny Jarvie
The Los Angeles Times
October 22, 2017 5:00 AM
Reporting from Orange, Texas
Annette Pernell, a council member in this Texas town, was aghast when she heard about plans to construct a Confederate memorial that would be visible from the interstate and loom over Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
But there was nothing she or anybody else could do about it. The land was private.
And so the Confederate Memorial of the Wind slowly went up on a grassy half-acre. A total of 13 concrete columns--one for each Confederate state--rise from a circular concrete pedestal. Eventually it will be surrounded by as many as 40 poles topped with Civil War battle flags.
"It's as if we've gone backwards," said Pernell, who is 54 and black. "I didn't think, at this age, I would see what I'm seeing now. A Confederate memorial is a slap in the face of all Americans, not just African Americans."
More than 150 years after Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox, local officials across the Deep South are removing contentious Confederate monuments from prominent perches in busy town squares and government buildings. In August, violence at a rally of white nationalists seeking to preserve a statue of Lee in Charlottesville, Va.--and comments by President Trump opposing its removal--brought renewed national attention to the issue.
Less publicized has been the quiet rise of a new generation of Confederate markers--on private land, in cemeteries, on historic battlefields.
In South Carolina last month, a granite monument dedicated to the "immortal spirit of the Confederate cause" was unveiled on a spot where Civil War enthusiasts gather each year to reenact the Battle of Aiken. In Alabama in August, a gray stone memorial was dedicated in a private Crenshaw County park to unknown Confederate soldiers. In Georgia last year, a black marble obelisk was erected on public land in the mountain town of Dahlonega in memory of the county's nearly 1,200 Confederate veterans.
In all, more than 30 monuments and symbols to the Confederacy have been dedicated or rededicated since 2000, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. A historian at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, W. Fitzhugh Brundage, conducted an inventory of his own state and found that 20 monuments had gone up there over that time--the most since the early 20th century.
The people funding the monuments--often the great-great grandchildren of Confederate soldiers--say they simply want to remember their loved ones and ensure their legacies live on. More controversially, many also promote a revisionist history in which slavery was not a major cause of the war.
"We just want to honor our ancestors," said Hank Van Slyke, a 62-year-old engineering specialist and commander of a local Sons of Confederate Veterans brigade that put up the monument in Orange. The group is an association of male descendants of Confederate soldiers, and was formed in 1896 to hail the "hallowed memories of brave men" and "record of the services of every Southern Soldier."
"Throughout history, whoever wins the war and conquers the nation, they get to write the history books," he said. "We've always studied that we had a good cause and our ancestors fought for what they thought was right."
While most historians agree that the root cause of the Civil War was slavery, a significant number of Americans, particularly in the South, have been taught the war was about states' rights in general. Six years ago, a Pew Research Center survey found that 48% of Americans said states' rights were the reason for the war, while 38% cited slavery.
The debate is particularly charged in Texas, where the State Board of Education in 2010 adopted new academic standards listing slavery as third among the causes of the war, after sectionalism and states' rights.
"There's a kind of historical symmetry, in that many of these men now fighting the battle to defend the Lost Cause are predisposed to see themselves as under threat," Brundage said.
The new monuments tend to be more modest than older ones. At the turn of the 20th century, when Confederate organizations enjoyed enormous cultural prestige in the South, large bronze and marble monuments were erected in conspicuous public spaces and etched with politically charged plaques. Now, Brundage said, they often focus less on defending the Confederacy and more on memorializing unknown soldiers or listing those who died.
Even in its unfinished state, the new Confederate memorial in Orange has stirred more public controversy than most new ones.
"We know this makes our town look bad," said John "Jack" Smith, the city attorney for Orange, a town of 19,000 near the Louisiana state line whose motto is "Small town charm, world class culture."
Smith said the monument didn't reflect the values of Orange residents, and he slammed the Sons of Confederate Veterans as a "racist hate group."
"We're very concerned that this could send the wrong signal about Orange as people drive down the highway," he said. "But what can we do about it? It's a matter of free speech. We cannot stop them from building the thing on private land."
Just over a third of Orange residents are black--a greater share than in any other town in the predominantly white county, which has long grappled with racism. In the 1990s, members of the Ku Klux Klan protesting federal attempts to integrate public housing held marches in the nearby city of Vidor, which was notorious as a "sundown town" because African Americans were not safe after dark.
In 2013, word spread that Granvel Block, then Texas division commander for the Sons of Confederate Veterans, had quietly bought a small plot of land near Interstate 10 for less than $10,000 and acquired a city building permit to construct a Civil War monument. The local chapter of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People and several residents attended a City Council meeting to oppose the project.
The monument also sparked an online petition and an editorial from a local newspaper, the Beaumont Enterprise: "The last thing Southeast Texas needs is a large memorial to the Confederacy," it said. "Simply put, it would be divisive and offensive."
Still, when the newspaper conducted an online poll asking "Do you want a Confederate monument here?" more than 70% of respondents clicked "Yes. The Confederate Army and Civil War are part of our history."
Block responded by publishing a lengthy "Call to Arms" on his group's Facebook page.
"If we do not stand up when our ancestors are being attacked and break the stigma that our opponents attempt to attach to anything Confederate, we run the risk of everything Confederate as we know it, being condemned and exterminated," he wrote. "These new Confederate memorials will be the turning point, and will open the doors and dialog for an accurate account of history to be taught."
Rather than just follow the "easy path" of honoring ancestors "in the ways which are acceptable," he argued, the group should focus on challenging the idea that the war was fought over slavery.
Yet in a sign of how controversial the monument has become, Block now declines to meet with reporters or speak on the record for fear of upsetting his wife.
In a telephone interview, Van Slyke, the local brigade commander, said that although slavery "may" have been a "small part" of the war, it was pretty far down the list.
Karen L. Cox, a history professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, said that those putting up new monuments to the Confederacy represented a minority point of view.
"They continue to believe in the sort of version of history that mythologizes the Confederacy and its heroes, but it's so obvious it's disingenuous," she said. "They're not honoring history; they're commemorating the principles and objectives of the war."
While Orange city officials decided they could not legally stop the monument there, they sought to limit its impact by regulating the size of the Confederate flags and placing restrictions on parking. In 2013, the council passed an ordinance to limit flagpoles to 35 feet tall and ban any flags larger than 4 by 6.
While many people prefer not to talk about the monument, defenders aren't hard to come by.
John Broussard, 54, an industrial electrician, and John Shaver, 33, a millwright machinist--both white--said those who criticized the monument, and its position near a street named after a slain civil rights leader, didn't understand it.
"I don't think it's intended to be malicious to any race," Shaver said. "A Confederate memorial on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive could bring the community and two racial groups together. Being a Confederate monument, the first thing that pops up in your mind is segregation and slavery, but it isn't about that."
Nathaniel Colbert, 68, an African American and retired plant operator who lives on the other side of the interstate less than a mile away, believes the monument was a deliberate insult.
At first, Colbert said, it really bothered him to drive by the memorial. Now he just whizzes on by in his pickup truck, barely noticing it.
"It's an affront, but I've dealt with ignorance most of my life," he said. "Right now, it's just the beat of the drum."
Jarvie is a special correspondent.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think memorials funded by private money should be allowed or restricted? Support your answer with evidence from the article and from other sources you have studied.
- 4. What caused the Civil War? Why do people have so many views on the causes of the war?
- 5. What is "revisionist history"?
- 6. What is "cultural prestige," and how does it affect the viewpoint and actions of the people described in this article?
- 7. "We just want to honor our ancestors," said Hank Van Slyke, a commander of a local Sons of Confederate Veterans brigade that put up the monument, while John Smith, the city attorney of Orange, Texas, called them a "racist hate group." Why are their two viewpoints completely opposed? What could be done to reconcile the opposing views? Can or should they be reconciled?
Click here to view more: www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-new-confederate-memorials-20171020-story.html
Posted October 17, 2017
The Boy Scouts say they will now admit girls. Here's what that means.
By Alison Thoet
October 11, 2017 at 6:46 PM EDT
Updated: Oct 11, 2017 at 7:36 PM
The Boy Scouts board of directors said [October 11] it would open some of its programs to girls, including the path to the prestigious title of Eagle Scout, the organization's highest rank.
The change marks a major shift for the century-old establishment. The Boy Scouts of America said its decision is an important evolution in how it meet[s] the needs of families and their children, but the move has previously sparked criticism from the female-focused Girl Scouts of the USA.
Here's what we know about the decision--and what it means for scouting.
The new plan: Starting next year, the Boy Scouts will create separate boys and girls Cub Scout dens, its smallest unit. Those dens can be combined to create Cub Scout packs. Older girls may enter a new program as early as 2019 which will qualify them for the Eagle Scout rank.
Girls were previously able to participate in certain existing programs, including the Venturing and Sea Scouts, but could not pursue the Eagle Scout ranking. Many girls have tried to join Boy Scouts over the years, all unsuccessfully, [t]he New York Times noted as it chronicled a group of five California girls trying to join the organization in 2015.
Another girl, Sydney Ireland, attracted media attention earlier this year for being an unofficial boy scout in Manhattan's Troop 414, something she's done since she was four years old. Ireland told WNYC that she regularly went with her brother to Cub Scout meetings. Today, Ireland, 16, has petitioned the Boy Scouts to allow her and other girls to become official members.
In a Change.org petition, Ireland explained why she thought girls ought to be allowed into Boy Scouts:
"I cannot change my gender to fit the Boy Scouts' standards, but the Boy Scouts can change their standards to include me. I am determined to be an Eagle Scout. It isn't just a hobby, it's access to some of the best leadership training there is," she wrote. "Unfortunately for me and half the country's population, we are excluded from most of these amazing opportunities for no reason other than that we are female. That's why I'm calling on the BSA to end the discriminatory ban against young women and girls, and allow all children to participate in the Boy Scouts and earn the Eagle Rank."
Why the policy changed: The Boy Scouts of America said it made the decision based on months of research and information from girls, parents and members of the institution.
"The values of Scouting--trustworthy, loyal, helpful, kind, brave and reverent, for example--are important for both young men and women," said Boy Scouts chief scout executive Michael Surbaugh said in a statement. "We strive to bring what our organization does best--developing character and leadership for young people--to as many families and youth as possible as we help shape the next generation of leaders."
The organization has faced criticism for years on its positions on sexual orientation and gender (as chronicled here by the Los Angeles Times). Today's announcement comes on the heels of the Boy Scouts' decision in January to allow transgender participants. The group ended its controversial ban on openly gay scouts in 2013 and on gay Boy Scout leaders in 2015.
"The Boy Scouts say their decision is informed by research from over the summer and the months [preceding]," said New York Times reporter Niraj Chokshi, who spoke with Girl Scout leadership following Wednesday's announcement. But the Girl Scouts were "blindsided by the decision," Chokshi said.
What about the Girl Scouts? Both the Boy and Girl Scouts emerged out of World War I and have historically maintained a close relationship. But, in August, a letter was made public in which the president of the Girls Scouts accused the Boy Scouts of a "covert campaign to recruit girls" and undercut Girl Scout participants.
"I formally request that your organization stay focused on serving the 90 percent of American boys not currently participating in Boy Scouts," Kathy Hopinkah Hannan, the president of the Girl Scouts, wrote to Boy Scouts president Randall Stephenson.
The letter calls the Boy Scouts of America "reckless" in "thinking that running a program specifically tailored to boys can simply be translated to girls."
In a statement released Wednesday night, the Girl Scouts said "At Girl Scouts, we are the girl experts, and for more than a century we have provided millions of girls opportunities for adventure, inspiration, and valuable mentoring."
It continues:
The benefit of the single-gender environment has been well-documented by educators, scholars, other girl- and youth-serving organizations, and Girl Scouts and their families. Girl Scouts offers a one-of-a-kind experience for girls with a program tailored specifically to their unique developmental needs.
How many Boy and Girl Scouts are there? There were 1.8 million Girl Scouts in 2015, and 2.3 million Boy Scouts in 2016.
Boy Scout participation is down from 2.6 million in 2013, with about 4 million in the early 2000s. Girl Scout total membership--including youth members and adult volunteers--dropped 11.6 percent from 2012 to 2014. It has dropped 3.8 million members, or 27 percent, since 2003.
"More than 100,000 Scouting units are owned and operated by chartered organizations," according to the Boy Scouts website--70 percent of them by faith-based organizations, which have at times been criticized for placing too much emphasis on religious beliefs.
How are the programs different? Aside from the groups' gender divide, a 2011 Sage Journal Gender and Society study found that Boy Scouts are led away from artistic interests, while Girl Scouts are discouraged from scientific studies, though the Girl Scouts have been increasing focus on science and math in recent years. This year, it added 23 new STEM and outdoor badges. Additionally, Girl Scout activities are more group-oriented, while Boy Scouts are more often individual.
The highest award for Girl Scouts is a Gold Award, which fewer than 6 percent of Girl Scouts achieve. Boy Scout's highest rank is that of Eagle Scout. About 5 percent of Boy Scouts, more than 2 million, have earned the Eagle Scout rank since 1912.
"The Boy Scouts would argue that the skills they teach boys will apply to both girls and boys," Chokshi said. However, Chokshi said the dens are still single gender and the lack of description for the older girls' program leaves questions unanswered. Also, older groups could decide to be single gender, as could the dens.
What's next? Supporters of the decision applauded the Boy Scouts of America on its inclusiveness and holding to its main values to support youth needs.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, whose congregations are major sponsors of Boy Scout troops, said in a statement that they "recognize that the desire of the BSA is to expand their programs to serve more young people in the United States."
"The Church, too, continues to look at ways to serve the needs of our youth worldwide," Mormon Church spokesman Eric Hawkins told the PBS NewsHour.
"Kiwanis International and Boy Scouts of America have a strong partnership that goes back to the 1950s. We share a priority in our work to shape the next generation of leaders," Stan Soderstrom, executive director of Kiwanis International, said in an email to the NewsHour. Kiwanis partners with the Boy Scouts, with clubs sponsoring 710 units of scouts and more than 18,000 youths. Soderstrom told the NewsHour that the organization "values inclusiveness and looks forward to continuing our partnership with Boy Scouts of America."
Meanwhile, the Girl Scouts say "the need for female leadership has never been clearer or more urgent than it is today--and only Girl Scouts has the expertise to give girls and young women the tools they need for success."
"We're committed to preparing the next generation of women leaders, and we're here to stay," the group's statement says.
"The Girl Scouts see it as a threat to their territory and the Boy Scouts are saying 'we are offering another option,'" Chokshi said. "Depending on how it plays out, we will see how targeted it was at the Girl Scouts."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think this is a real issue, or has the media made too much of the change?
- 4. Do you think the Boy Scouts are admitting girls to change with the times or to boost membership? What can the Boy Scouts offer that the Girl Scouts may not?
- 5. The article quotes the Girl Scouts as saying the Boy Scouts are "reckless" to think that "running a program specifically tailored to boys can simply be translated to girls." What do you think that may mean? How do the programs differ? Do you think they should differ? In what ways?
- 6. Are you or have you been a Scout? Do you think your experience would have been different if members of another gender had been in your troop? Why or why not?
- 7. What other ways could the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts address gender segregation?
Click here to view more: www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/boy-scouts-say-will-now-admit-girls-heres-means
Posted October 10, 2017
JFK assassination: Lawmakers call on Trump to release all classified documents
By Cristina Corbin
Fox News
September 27
Fifty-four years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, two U.S. lawmakers who lived through the ordeal are calling for the declassification of thousands of pages of long-secret government documents related to his death.
The disclosure, they believe, will answer a question that has for half a century plagued the American public: Did anyone help or have knowledge of Lee Harvey Oswald's plan to kill Kennedy?
"I believe the American public needs to know the truth," said Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., who along with Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is leading a congressional effort to declassify thousands of documents and recordings compiled by the CIA and FBI.
"It's still hard for me to believe it was one man, but at the same time I have no proof that it wasn't," said Jones, who watched on live television as Oswald, awaiting transfer to a county jail, was shot by Dallas nightclub owner Jack Ruby two days after Oswald assassinated Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963.
"There's no reason that the information--from a security standpoint--should not be made public," Jones told Fox News. "So much is known about the assassination. Why not close the chapter?"
Jones and Grassley cite a law signed by former President George H.W. Bush mandating the release of all documents related to Kennedy's assassination within 25 years. Under the JFK Records Act of 1992, the National Archives has until Oct. 26 of this year to disclose the remaining files related to the assassination--unless President Trump determines that doing so would be harmful to national security. There are about 3,100 files still unsealed by the National Archives.
Approximately four million pages of records were released to the public in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The CIA and other government agencies can postpone disclosure of the remaining documents but only with permission from Trump.
A CIA spokeswoman told Fox News the agency "continues to engage in the process to determine the appropriate next steps with respect to any previously-unreleased CIA information."
The Trump administration, meanwhile, said the decision to release the documents is currently under review.
"We have been working closely with the National Archives and other departments and agencies since the beginning of this administration on processes that are consistent with the JFK Assassination Records Collection Act," an official with the National Security Council told Fox News [September 25].
"This work continues in anticipation of the October deadline," said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
The Warren Commission, the independent panel assigned to investigate the murder, concluded in 1964 that Oswald--a former Marine and self-proclaimed Marxist--was the sole person responsible for Kennedy's assassination. CIA officials had told the commission there was no evidence of a conspiracy that the spy agency could have prevented.
But hundreds of never-before-seen assassination documents released by the National Archives in July show the CIA began to question whether the official conclusion was wrong in the years following the assassination. Of particular concern was whether the CIA had thoroughly probed Oswald's contacts with agents for the Communist governments of Cuba and the Soviet Union.
Oswald had traveled to Mexico City weeks before the murder and visited both the Soviet and Cuban embassies. The Warren Commission said Oswald's stated reason for the trip was to obtain visas that would allow him entry into Cuba and the Soviet Union, but many details about the trip remain a mystery.
"The assassination of President Kennedy occurred at a pivotal time for our nation, and nearly 54 years later, we are still learning the details of how our government responded and what it may have known beforehand," said Grassley. "Americans deserve a full picture of what happened that fateful day in November 1963."
The documents unsealed in July also include a 1975 internal CIA memo that raised questions about Oswald's motive. The memo cites a 1963 Associated Press article that ran in a newspaper shortly before the assassination, quoting Fidel Castro as saying, "U.S. leaders would be in danger if they helped in any attempt to do away with leaders of Cuba."
Grassley and Jones, as well as Kennedy scholars, wonder whether the remaining secret documents might reveal clues suggesting Oswald had help--or confirm he acted alone.
"The papers should be released. We, the people, paid for all of this," said Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics and author of a book about Kennedy.
"We want to see what they [the government] knew and when they knew it," he told Fox News.
Sabato said he has little doubt that Oswald was the only shooter in Dealey Plaza as Kennedy rode in an open motorcade with his wife, Jacqueline, and Texas Gov. John Connally and his wife.
But Sabato said he questions whether others assisted or had knowledge of Oswald's plot.
"The remaining question is: Did anyone help him or was it merely that people knew and didn't report it in time to save Kennedy's life?"
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. What do you know about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy? Ask your parents and grandparents about their memories of that day and the following days. Take notes and use the opportunity to spur conversations about historical events and your family members' role in history.
- 4. Do you think Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone? Why or why not?
- 5. What is accomplished by revealing all the documents concerning the assassination and the investigation? Should President Trump authorize their release? Why or why not?
- 6. What is accomplished by keeping the documents concerning the assassination and the investigation classified? The article cites the possibility of information that could be vital to "national security." What could be contained in the documents that would affect national security in 2017?
- 7. The assassination of JFK is considered one of those moments in time when everyone who remembers it knows exactly where they were when they heard the news. What event can you recall that has had that effect on you and your friends?
Click here to view more: www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/09/27/jfk-assassination-lawmakers-call-on-trump-to-release-all-classified-documents.html
Posted October 03, 2017
Supreme Court kicks off blockbuster term: Cases to watch
By Ariane de Vogue,
CNN Supreme Court Reporter
Washington (CNN)
A full-strength Supreme Court will take the bench Monday for what could be the most consequential term in decades, as the ideologically split justices consider cases as diverse as religious liberty, immigration, cell phone privacy, voting rights and possibly the legality of President Donald Trump's controversial travel ban.
"There is only one prediction that is entirely safe about the upcoming term, and that is it will be momentous," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said at an event at Georgetown Law recently.
The justices spent most of last term with only eight members rendering narrow opinions--at times--in an attempt to ward off 4-4 splits.
But that's all over now.
Justice Neil Gorsuch has settled into his new role as a staunch conservative, filling the role previously held by the late Justice Antonin Scalia.
That means there are five conservatives and four liberals on the bench, with Justice Anthony Kennedy resuming his post as the swing vote from the conservative- to liberal-leaning side. Sources say he has been seriously considering retiring, and liberals fear that their last remaining chance at a win on issues--like LGBT rights--might rest with him.
Here are the big issues this year:
Travel ban
Leading the docket, until recently, was a challenge to Trump's signature policy: the travel ban. The justices were scheduled next week to hear oral arguments and decide whether the President was legally justified when he temporarily blocked travel from several Muslim-majority countries, citing national security concerns.
Challengers argue that the executive order violates the Constitution. They say the President was motivated in part by religious animus and point to some of the things Trump said during the campaign calling for a Muslim ban.
"The President has claimed limitless authority to exclude any alien he wishes," Neal Katyal, the lead lawyer for Hawaii, wrote. "This court has the power and the duty to police these excesses."
But the administration says the White House has the authority to act to restrict immigration.
"The Constitution and Acts of Congress confer on the President broad authority to suspend or restrict the entry of aliens outside the United States, when he deems it in the Nation's interest," Acting Solicitor General Jeffrey Wall wrote in court papers.
Late last spring the justices allowed part of the travel ban to go into effect, pending appeal, for foreign nationals who "lack any bona fide relationship with any person or entity in the United States." They were scheduled to hear oral arguments October 10--but that's now been postponed.
The twist: Last month, the President replaced a major provision of his controversial March executive order with new restrictions that have yet to go before any court.
Now, the justices must decide whether they should hear the challenge, or send the case back down to the lower courts to take a fresh look.
Immigration
The court this week will rehear two immigration-related cases will be watched closely for tea leaves of what justices are thinking on the travel ban, although they don't pertain to it specifically.
Monday, the court will rehear a case concerning mandatory deportation of lawful permanent residents for criminal convictions.
The Sessions v. Dimaya case was argued before the court in January, before Gorsuch was nominated and confirmed. At the end of June, the justices signaled they were divided 4-4 on at least some aspects of the case and wanted Gorsuch to weigh in.
Tuesday, justices rehear another immigration related case, Jennings v. Rodriguez. The case was brought by a class of immigrants--some who sought entrance at the border, others lawful permanent residents--who are fighting removal and arguing that they cannot be held in prolonged detention. After six months of detention, they seek hearings to prove that they are neither a flight risk nor a danger to society.
"Both cases implicate the scope of the government's authority over different classes of immigrants in ways that won't directly bear on the travel ban litigation, but could provide important clues into what the key justices are thinking," said CNN legal analyst and University of Texas Law School professor Steve Vladeck.
Voting rights and gerrymandering
Tuesday, justices will tackle a case that could reshape electoral maps across the country.
At issue is partisan gerrymandering--or the length to which legislators go when they manipulate district lines for partisan advantage. Democratic voters in Wisconsin are challenging maps they say were drawn unconstitutionally to benefit Republicans.
While the Supreme Court has a standard limiting the overreliance on race in map drawing except under the most limited circumstances, it has never been successful in developing a test concerning the overreliance on politics.
Wisconsin, in its arguments, says that both the challengers have no power to bring such a claim and that the issue should be decided not by the judiciary but the political branches.
Redistricting is an issue close to former President Barack Obama, who has vowed to dedicate part of his post-presidency to the issue. Prominent Republicans such as Arizona Sen. John McCain and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger have filed briefs in support of the challengers, arguing that the issue does not only adversely impact Democrats.
"It's not a Democratic or a Republican issue," Schwarzenegger said in a recent conference call, "it's simply a power issue."
Another election law case, Husted v. Randolph Institute, will be heard in early November dealing with Ohio's method of removing names from its voter rolls. A federal appeals court ruled that the program violates the National Voter Registration Act.
Religious liberty
One of the most controversial cases of the term pits claims of religious liberty against LGBT rights.
At the center of the case is Jack Phillips, who owns a bakery called Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado. In 2012, he refused to make a cake to honor a couple's same-sex marriage, citing his religious beliefs. Lower courts ruled in favor of the couple, citing a state anti-discrimination law.
Now Phillips, who calls himself a "cake artist," is asking the Supreme Court to protect his rights, and he received a big boost last month from the Trump administration.
"Forcing Phillips to create expression for and participate in a ceremony that violates his sincerely held religious beliefs invades his First Amendment rights," acting Solicitor General Jeff Wall wrote for the Justice Department in briefs filed to the court.
"The government may not enact content-based laws commanding a speaker to engage in protected expression: An artist cannot be forced to paint, a musician cannot be forced to play, and a poet cannot be forced to write," Wall added.
Louise Melling, an ACLU lawyer representing the plaintiffs, says that the Masterpiece case is "making a radical argument."
"When you look at it, they are saying there is a constitutional right, whether it's rooted in speech or religion, to discriminate," she said in an recent interview.
"A ruling for the bakery would have implications far beyond LGBT people and would put in jeopardy our longstanding laws against discrimination," she said.
Cell phone privacy
The court will also hear a major case concerning privacy in the digital age when it determines whether investigators need to obtain a warrant for cell tower data to track and reconstruct location and movements of cell phone users over extended periods of time.
The case was brought by the ACLU on behalf of two men who were arrested after a string of robberies in Michigan and Ohio. At trial, the government's evidence included records from the defendants' phones that showed that the men used their phones within a close radius to several robberies.
How the justices decide the issue could provide a framework for other issues such as facial recognition technology and surveillance law.
Most courts have held that there is a diminished privacy interest in this area because the information has already been provided to third parties such as phone companies.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. The article mentions lower court decisions that affected the cases. Do you know the process or progression to submit a case for a U.S. Supreme Court hearing? Why does the Court decide to hear certain cases and refuse to hear others? If the party that brought the case disagrees with the ruling, what recourse do they have?
- 4. Do you think the Supreme Court fulfills an important function in our country? Why or why not?
- 5. Why are justices appointed and not elected to the bench? Which method do you think creates a more impartial situation? Why does the article mention if a justice is considered to be conservative or liberal?
- 6. According to the article, the Court is considering several important cases. Which case do you think is the most significant? Why? What are some of the implications of the case? Do you think any of the cases or the decisions will affect you?
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2017/10/02/politics/supreme-court-blockbuster-cases-to-watch/index.html
Posted September 26, 2017
NFL players, coaches, owners lock arms, kneel during national anthem
From ESPN.com
NFL players across the league knelt, locked arms, raised their fists and even refused to come out of the locker room during the national anthem Sunday. They were joined by coaches and even owners.
It comes in the wake of President Donald Trump's recent comments and tweets on protests during the anthem.
It started early Sunday morning in London, as more than a dozen Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars players knelt during the U.S. national anthem at Wembley Stadium. The kneeling players then stood for the singing of the U.K. national anthem.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh, Jaguars coach Doug Marrone and Jaguars owner Shad Khan stood with the players during the anthem.
Trump on Friday night criticized NFL players who lodge protests during the national anthem.
Speaking at a political rally in Huntsville, Alabama, Trump said: "Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out. He's fired! He's fired!"
On Sunday, Trump tweeted he was pleased to see so many NFL players locking arms while also decrying those who knelt. He later tweeted the NFL needed to change its policy concerning anthem protests.
"Great solidarity for our National Anthem and for our Country. Standing with locked arms is good, kneeling is not acceptable. Bad Ratings!" - @realDonaldTrump
"Sports fans should never condone players that do not stand proud for their National Anthem or their Country. NFL should change policy!" - @realDonaldTrump
Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs, however, said it was Trump's comments that incited some players to kneel, including himself.
"Personally, I think the comments made about my brothers who decided to protest and kneel is kind of what made us no longer be silent," Suggs said. "We stand with our brothers. They have the right to protest. We knelt with them today. Non-violent protest is as American as it gets. We knelt with them today and let them know we are a unified front. There is no dividing us. I guess we're all sons of b----es."
Added teammate Mike Wallace: "Sometimes when you feel things go [too] far, you have to make a statement. I felt strongly about it. ... After yesterday, it went too far. I just felt strongly about it today. So I did what I did. I didn't need anybody to tell me yes, no, whatever. That was just the way I felt."
There was scattered booing by fans in all stadiums as protests were made Sunday.
In Chicago, as the anthem began in Soldier Field, several Pittsburgh Steelers coaches were on the sideline, including coach Mike Tomlin, while the players were not present as they stayed in the locker room.
The Steelers players took the field within a few seconds of the anthem's conclusion, just after the fireworks launch, with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger one of the first out of the tunnel. Left tackle Alejandro Villanueva, an Army Ranger who served in Afghanistan, was seen on the CBS broadcast at the edge of the tunnel during the anthem, hand over heart.
The Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans also stayed in the locker room during the national anthem before their game in Nashville later Sunday afternoon.
"We showed we have power as people and that's what we were doing today. I think that it was super impressive," Seahawks defensive lineman Michael Bennett said after the Seahawks' 33-27 loss.
An NFL official told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter that no fines are being considered for those players who stayed in the locker room during the anthem.
NFL owners were among those across the league who responded this weekend to President Trump's comments and tweets.
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft on Sunday became the first NFL owner who made a donation to Trump's campaign to speak out.
"I am deeply disappointed by the tone of the comments made by the President on Friday," Kraft said. "I am proud to be associated with so many players who make such tremendous contributions in positively impacting our communities. Their efforts, both on and off the field, help bring people together and make our community stronger."
During the playing of the anthem prior to the Patriots' game against the Houston Texans, Tom Brady stood and locked arms while 20 or so of his teammates knelt. All of the Texans stood and locked arms.
New Orleans Saints running backs Adrian Peterson, Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara were among a group of 10 players who sat on the bench during the national anthem for the first time Sunday at Carolina.
No Saints players had sat or knelt during the anthem before--though they did organize a teamwide display of unity and hand-holding with the rival Falcons after the anthem on a Monday Night Football game last year.
Saints quarterback Drew Brees was among those standing for the anthem. After the game, he passionately explained why he'd continue to do so.
"I will always feel that, if you are an American, that the national anthem is the opportunity for us all to stand up together, to be unified, and to show respect for our country," Brees said. "To show respect for what it stands for, the birth of our nation. There will always be issues with our country, there will always be things we're battling. And we should always strive to make those things better. But if the protests become that we're going to sit down, or kneel, or not show the respect to the flag of the United States of America and everything that it symbolizes, everything it stands for, and everything our country has been through to get to this point... I do not agree with that.
"I feel like that is a unifying thing. The national anthem and standing for the national anthem, and looking at the flag with a hand over the heart is a unifying thing that should bring us all together. And say, 'You know what? We know things are not where they should be, but we're going to work and strive to make things better.' To bring equality to all people--men, women, no matter your race, creed, religion, it doesn't matter. Equality for all. But if you're an American, then I will always believe that we should be standing, showing respect for our flag, with our hand over our heart."
Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, executives and players locked arms with servicemen and women and police officers during the playing of the anthem, and safety Malcolm Jenkins--who has been demonstrating for social justice since Week 2 of last season--continued to raise his first above his head.
Defensive end Chris Long has placed an arm around Jenkins as a sign of support since the events in his hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia, in August. He was joined by several teammates surrounding Jenkins this week. Wide receivers Torrey Smith and Marcus Johnson also raised their fists.
Green Bay Packers tight end Martellus Bennett, who had stood with his fist raised for the past two games, instead sat on the bench during the anthem. He was joined by teammates Lance Kendricks and Kevin King as other Packers players linked arms in two ground on their sideline.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, Falcons owner Arthur Blank and Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf were on the field with their teams, locking arms with players while the anthem was played.
Blank said he stood on the sideline not only to show support for the players and coaches, but also to back his public statement denouncing President Trump's criticism of players protesting during the anthem.
Across the field, Tampa Bay Buccaneers players DeSean Jackson and Mike Evans knelt during the anthem.
In Detroit, anthem singer Rico LaVelle took a knee and raised his fist at the conclusion of the song.
Detroit Lions owner Martha Ford and her three daughters, who are usually long gone from the field by the time player introductions begin, remained on the sideline as Detroit's team was introduced and stood next to Jim Caldwell with linked arms. Fans booed the Lions as they protested, which included eight players linking arms while kneeling.
The crowd in Indianapolis also booed loudly as the Colts locked arms and some knelt. About 20 Cleveland Browns players--all African-American--knelt during the anthem. Browns running back Duke Johnson, in a group standing behind those who knelt--apparently in support --waved the crowd on.
The entire Buffalo Bills sideline took the unusual step of walking about 10 yards toward the middle of the field for the national anthem. Several players then knelt for the national anthem. More than 30 players from the Denver Broncos knelt during the anthem, including members of the practice squad.
Every New York Jets player, coach and staff member linked arms during the anthem. Acting owner Christopher Johnson, the younger brother of owner Woody Johnson, was among them.
For the first time, there were players on the New York Giants--Damon Harrison, Olivier Vernon and Landon Collins--who knelt during the anthem. Other players stood with arms locked.
More than 10 Kansas City Chiefs players sat during the anthem. On the opposing sideline, most Los Angeles Chargers players locked arms, a few sat down and one--Melvin Ingram--took a knee.
"I have tremendous respect for our flag and the men and women who defend it," said a statement by Chargers owner Dean Spanos, who stood with players, coaches and GM Tom Telesco with locked arms. "Ours is the greatest nation in the world, one in which people are able to speak freely and stand up publicly for their beliefs. Our players, as do all Americans, have every right to speak their mind and from their heart. It was an honor to join them on the field today."
The Carolina Panthers stood for the anthem, as they have since the season began. Julius Peppers was not on the field, however, and said after the game that he made the choice to do so because he felt it was the appropriate thing to do.
"I want to get one thing clear," Peppers said. "This wasn't about disrespecting the military, the flag, police, first responders, none of that. It was about me making a decision as a man on my own two feet, and I wasn't going to ask somebody else to do anything with me.
"I just thought it was appropriate to stay in because we know what went on this week with the comments that were made by the president. I felt like he attacked our brothers, my brothers in the league, so I felt that it was appropriate to stand up with them and stay in the locker room."
Panthers coach Ron Rivera, meanwhile, said he believes that all players should continue to stand.
"We need to look at the flag and listen to the national anthem," Rivera said. "We need to think it and vision it for an America that we believe in, that is free from injustice, free from bigotry and free from prejudice. Then when you guys ask me, we tell you that ... we believe in America, that we support our military, we support our first responders and we most certainly do not believe in racism and bigotry and we want to see that out of this country."
The Cincinnati Bengals also continued to stand for the anthem--most with their arms linked. A few stood with their hands on their hearts. Nobody on the Bengals has kneeled during the national anthem since the protests began last year.
"Football and politics don't mix easily," said a statement issued by the Bengals prior to the game. "Fans come to NFL games to watch great competition on the playing field and that's where our focus should be."
Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder linked arms with corners Bashaud Breeland and Josh Norman during the national anthem before the Sunday night game against the Oakland Raiders. The entire team linked arms, but seven players opted to take a knee: receivers Jamison Crowder, Josh Doctson and Brian Quick, tight end Niles Paul and Jordan Reed and linebackers Ryan Anderson and Chris Carter.
Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said the team wanted to stay in the locker room during the anthem but because of the timing of prime-time games, they could not because they would have missed the coin toss and also have been penalized. Most of the Raiders remained seated or took a knee during the anthem, including the entire offensive line, which is comprised of all minority players and is the lone all-black starting unit in the NFL, and the defensive line. Some stood with interlocked arms, as did Del Rio, and quarterback Derek Carr appeared to pray while looking skyward and standing.
In addition, the NFL re-aired a 60-second spot--called "Inside These Lines"--during the Sunday night game that also appeared during Super Bowl LI. The NFL describes it as a video that "demonstrates the power of football to bring people together."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think the media is overplaying the protest? Why or why not?
- 4. What do you think of the protest? Do you think you know enough about why the players are protesting? Do you agree or disagree? Support your position.
- 5. What is President Trump's goal when he speaks or tweets about the NFL protests?
- 6. Why do you think the owners made such strong statements about the right to nonviolent protest?
- 7. Does the First Amendment right to free speech stop if you are in the public eye or an entertainer/sports figure, as some claim? Is the president advocating suppression of free speech? Why or why not?
- 8. How would you feel if players on your school teams joined the protest and took a knee during the national anthem before a game?
Click here to view more: www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/20800784/nfl-players-coaches-owners-kneel-lock-arms-national-anthem
Posted September 19, 2017
Iran, North Korea expected to dominate Trump's first UN General Assembly
By Kevin Liptak, CNN White House Producer
Updated 4:54 PM ET, Mon September 18, 2017
United Nations (CNN) President Donald Trump totes his "America First" stance this week to the United Nations General Assembly, the annual inundation of diplomats and world leaders who this year await the new US leader with uneasy anticipation.
The summit in Trump's hometown--New York City--has become the quickest-paced diplomatic event on the calendar for an American president. Trump arrived to the soaring, green-hued assembly hall facing open questions about his approach to hot-button issues like climate change and the Iran nuclear accord.
His schedule over four days is stacked with one-on-one talks with foreign counterparts eager to discuss those global flash-points, as well as the deepening standoff with North Korea. The centerpiece, however, comes Tuesday during Trump's first UN address, a landmark foreign policy moment at the eight-month mark of his presidency.
"This will be a great week, we look forward to it, as far as North Korea is concerned, I think that most of you know how I feel," Trump said as he strode into the UN headquarters building on Monday.
Once deeply critical of the UN--right down to its iconic emerald marble--Trump as President has achieved his principal diplomatic wins at the body's Security Council, which has passed waves of sanctions on North Korea.
His first formal comments inside the headquarters building, however, focused not on diplomacy but on real estate.
"I actually saw great potential right across the street," he said at the beginning of a session on UN reform, referring to the Trump World Tower apartment building on United Nations Plaza.
He said it "turned out to be such a successful project" due to its proximity to the modernist headquarters building nearby.
He offered a more skeptical view of the UN's efficacy or its value to the United States.
The UN "has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement," Trump said at the start of a session focused on reforming the institution.
"We seek a United Nations that works to regain the trust of people around the world," Trump said, insisting that member states "cut through bureaucracy" to better drive positive change.
"I encourage all member states to look at ways to take bold stands at the United Nations with an eye toward changing business as usual," Trump said.
Adhering to tradition?
For Trump, Tuesday's speech and the ensuing flurry of diplomacy presents an opportunity to more fully articulate a global agenda that has confounded allies and foes alike.
"The world is still trying to take the measure of this President," said Jon Alterman, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "For a number of leaders, this is going to be their first chance to see him, to judge him, to try to get on his good side ... they will have been preparing for a chance encounter for weeks."
Administration officials say Trump is unlikely to unload on the UN in the way he has in the past. Instead, the President's aides are preparing an address that largely adheres to tradition by rallying countries behind condemnation of rogue regimes like North Korea and Iran. Trump dubbed North Korean leader Kim Jong Un with a new nickname over the weekend, labeling him "Rocket Man" on Twitter in reference to the rogue nation's recent missile tests.
Speaking Friday, Trump's top national security aides previewed a UN message centered on themes of "accountability and sovereignty" over the course of Trump's four days in New York. The President hopes to relay the message that countries must become more responsible for their own security while signaling the days of US lecturing over issues like human rights are ending.
"He slaps the right people, he hugs the right people, and he comes out with the US being very strong in the end," Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said in a preview of Trump's remarks.
"He will urge all states to come together to address grave dangers that threaten us all," added H.R. McMaster, the White House national security adviser.
Since taking office, Trump has dug rifts with allies on climate change and trade. But he's also spoken inconsistently on those issues, fostering a degree of confusion over his stance by issuing vague and sometimes contradictory statements.
In most areas, however, Trump has demonstrated a level of restraint on executing the types of foreign policy shifts that he promised when running for office. He followed the Pentagon's advice to send additional troops to Afghanistan, despite the urging from some of his conservative advisers to pull out entirely. He's postponed, at least for now, moving the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a campaign promise that would upend his efforts to broker a peace agreement in the region.
And he has yet to discard the Iran nuclear deal, though he is considering steps to weaken it, potentially as early as this month. That issue is expected to dominate parts of Trump's agenda this week, including talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.
Ahead of that meeting, Trump said "you'll be seeing very soon" his decision on the Iran deal. He faces an October deadline for re-certifying Iran's compliance with the agreement. Iran's leader, Hassan Rouhani, addresses the UN body on Wednesday.
'Speed dating from hell'
In New York, Trump will spend the evenings at Trump Tower, his longest stretch at home since taking office in January. He'll be joined on the trip by Haley, Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, each of whom will maintain their own schedules of talks. Tillerson has mandated the State Department reduce its footprint at the General Assembly this year, part of a broader effort to streamline the agency's activities. The centerpiece diplomatic event is seen as a test of Tillerson as his standing in the administration comes under scrutiny.
Like most years, some major world leaders are sending envoys to the General Assembly instead of attending themselves. China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin are both remaining at home, as is German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who faces reelection next weekend.
But Trump will still convene talks with more than a dozen world leaders over the course of his four-day stay in New York. He will meet individually with the leaders of France, Israel, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Turkey, Afghanistan and Ukraine, the White House said. He'll meet jointly with the leaders of Japan and South Korea for lunch on Thursday.
And he'll host two large gatherings for Latin American and African leaders on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.
"It's kind of like speed dating from hell," Alterman said of the yearly diplomatic spree.
Trump's advisers insisted Friday the sessions would be substantive.
"They're going to find out we are going to be solid, we're going to be strong," Haley said. "No one is going to grip and grin. The United States is going to work."
When President Barack Obama first attended the UN General Assembly in 2009, he was met with widespread adoration from world leaders, who broke protocol by applauding during his largely optimistic address. Eight years later, Obama delivered a far darker speech, implicitly rebuking then-candidate Trump's views on trade and immigration. Obama himself will deliver rare public remarks in New York on Wednesday.
There are few expectations Trump will be met with similar adulation from the UN body. Trump has largely discounted the United Nations in the past, characterizing the 72-year-old institution as underperforming and overspending. During his presidential run, he impugned the body as "not a friend to freedom."
Earlier this decade he waged a public battle with the UN after officials refused his offer to oversee renovations of the iconic headquarters building on Manhattan's East Side. He even sniffed at the Italian marble on the General Assembly hall rostrum, offering on Twitter to "replace (it) with beautiful large marble slabs if they ask me."
The acrimony dates back to a dispute over the Trump World Tower, once the tallest residential building in the world. UN diplomats, including then-Secretary General Kofi Annan, questioned how Trump secured zoning rights, saying the gray glass skyscraper would cast shadows on the UN headquarters nearby.
Legal challenges were unsuccessful, however, and today Trump's building stands across the street from the UN garden and a Soviet statue depicting St. George slaying a dragon, titled "Good Defeats Evil."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Does this article have any bias? Why or why not?
- 3. Do you think the United Nations is an important force in the world? Why or why not?
- 4. One of President Trump's tasks is to rally "countries behind condemnation of rogue regimes like North Korea and Iran." If you wrote the speech to the U.N., what would you say to get other countries aligned with the United States?
- 5. Ambassador Nikki Haley is quoted as saying, "He slaps the right people, he hugs the right people." What do you think this means? Who are the "right people"?
- 6. Who is most vital on the world stage--the president, the secretary of state, or the United States ambassador to the United Nations? Why? What role does each fulfill?
- 7. What did President Trump mean when he said the United Nations was "not a friend to freedom"? Do you agree with that statement? Why or why not? Support your position.
Click here to view more: www.cnn.com/2017/09/18/politics/donald-trump-unga-preview/index.html
Posted September 11, 2017
The Hi-Way Tabernacle church in Cleveland, Texas
Trump tweets support for Texas churches seeking FEMA money after Harvey; lawsuits already filed
By Justin Wm. Moyer
September 8
President Trump stepped into a hot church-state dispute Friday night, tweeting support for Texas churches that were damaged by Hurricane Harvey and now want assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to rebuild.
Trump's tweet came after three Texas churches filed a lawsuit this week challenging a policy from FEMA that excludes houses of worship from disaster relief grants, and as Hurricane Irma barreled toward the southeastern United States.
Tweet text: Churches in Texas should be entitled to reimbursement from FEMA Relief Funds for helping victims of Hurricane Harvey (just like others). - @realDonaldTrump
The Harvest Family Church, the Hi-Way Tabernacle and the Rockport First Assembly of God were all damaged during Harvey, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for Southern District of Texas. The First Assembly of God lost its steeple, roof and church van, while the other two churches were severely flooded. In addition, the Hi-Way Tabernacle serves as a FEMA staging center, sheltering up to 70 people and distributing more than 8,000 emergency meals.
Yet the churches will not be eligible for recovery money from FEMA, which "categorically excludes houses of worship from equal access to disaster relief grants because of their religious status," according to the lawsuit, which asks the court to declare FEMA's church exclusion policy unconstitutional and seeks an emergency injunction preventing its enforcement.
"The churches are not seeking special treatment; they are seeking a fair shake," the lawsuit reads. "And they need to know now whether they have any hope of counting on FEMA or whether they will continue to be excluded entirely from these FEMA programs."
FEMA excludes buildings that provide "critical service" or "essential government services" from repair if more than half their space is used for religious programming, the suit said. Museums and zoos are eligible for relief, but churches are not.
"If the Churches were to cease all religious activity in their houses of worship, those buildings would become assistance-eligible," the lawsuit read.
A FEMA spokesman declined to comment on pending litigation.
This issue is not new. In 2002, President George W. Bush made news when his administration approved a $550,000 grant to a Jewish school devastated by an earthquake. After Katrina in 2005, the Bush administration said that parochial schools, nursing homes and other faith-based institutions could get federal disaster aid but that the government would not pay to rebuild houses of worship.
This week's lawsuit comes three months after the Supreme Court decided that a church in Missouri could get government money to resurface its playground -- a major religious-liberty decision that has set the stage for similar cases, some experts say.
"The consequence is, in all likelihood, a few extra scraped knees," Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote in Trinity Lutheran v. Comer. "But the exclusion of Trinity Lutheran from a public benefit for which it is otherwise qualified, solely because it is a church, is odious to our Constitution all the same, and cannot stand."
Diana Verm of Becket, a nonprofit Washington law firm that seeks to defend religious liberty, said the churches sued FEMA partly because of the Trinity case.
"This is a time of crisis in Houston," she said. "Churches are some of the helpers, doing everything they can to get back on their feet. Yet they are denied the same relief other nonprofits are getting from FEMA."
When FEMA provides money to communities stricken by natural disaster, not everyone can get it. For example, community centers "operated by a religious institution that provides secular activities" are eligible, according to the agency's policy guide, but other religious institutions may not qualify.
Alex Luchenitser, the associate legal director for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, another D.C.-based nonprofit, said the Trinity decision was not applicable to the church litigation. That decision allowed a church to get funding for a nonreligious function, he said; the Texas churches are seeking money for "core facility" repair.
"We know a lot of people in Texas are suffering, and we are sympathetic," he said. "But the fact that something bad has happened does not justify a second wrong." He added: "Taxpayers should not be forced to protect religious institutions that they don't subscribe to."
FEMA funds have been used to reimburse churches before. When money went to churches after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, officials said the decision was unprecedented, and some -- including some of the faithful--wondered whether the funding was appropriate.
"The people have been so generous to give, that for us to ask for reimbursement would be like gouging for gas," the Rev. Flip Benham, the director of the antiabortion group Operation Save America, said at the time. "That would be a crime against heaven."
Founded more than 15 years ago, the 300-member Hi-Way Tabernacle in Cleveland worked with FEMA during Hurricanes Rita and Ike, the lawsuit said, and turned its gym into "a warehouse for the county" during Harvey. The church's pastor said Hi-Way would do the work anyway but would like some help.
"The Tabernacle is here to help people," Pastor Charles Stoker said in a statement. "If our own government can help us do that, that'd be great. And if not, we're going to keep doing it. But I think that it's wrong that our government treats us unfairly just because we're Christians."
Justin Wm. Moyer is a reporter for The Washington Post.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. The First Amendment in the Bill of Rights addresses separation of church and state in this phrase: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." What do you think the authors were addressing in the newly created United States?
- 3. Why do we continue to debate the meaning of the amendment? What are some of the issues that cause dissension? Do you think we need this amendment and its protections today? Why or why not? Support your position.
- 4. Charles Stoker, pastor of Hi-Way Tabernacle, said, "But I think that it's wrong that our government treats us unfairly just because we're Christians." Why does he say the government is "unfair"? What do you think of his statement?
- 5. Churches do not pay federal income taxes. Do you think a church should receive federal tax money from FEMA or from other government agencies? Explain your position.
- 6. If you could rewrite the amendment, how would you address the separation of church and state in the United States? What language would you use? How would you ensure it addresses various faiths--and those who do not believe in religion--equally?
Click here to view more: www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/09/07/texas-churches-damaged-during-harvey-sue-fema-for-federal-funding-denied-houses-of-worship
Posted May 23, 2017
Fact-Checking a Mogul's Claims About Avocado Toast, Millennials and Home Buying
BY LINDA QIU AND DANIEL VICTOR, THE NEW YORK TIMES
Millennials have enough problems as it is. Must they give up their avocado toast, too?
In an interview with Australia's "60 Minutes" on Monday, Tim Gurner, a 35-year-old real estate mogul in Melbourne, suggested that young adults would be more likely to be able to buy a home if they curbed their discretionary spending, citing that expensive brunch item.
"When I was trying to buy my first home, I wasn't buying smashed avocado for $19 and four coffees at $4 each," he said. "We're at a point now where the expectations of younger people are very, very high. They want to eat out every day; they want travel to Europe every year.
"The people that own homes today worked very, very hard for it," he said, adding that they "saved every dollar, did everything they could to get up the property investment ladder."
The advice spread on social media, and it was not well received. Some found the statement impractical or insulting.
I spent all my avocado money paying rent on my apartment, or maybe for my bus pass. I'm such a bad millennial.
--Sarah (@SRRSkelley)
@hannahgais @NomikiKonst Rent $800
Student loan $500
Health insurance $300
Medicine $100
Avocado toast $0
But oh I must just be a jaded millennial. #drowningindebt
--Aabbytwotonez (@aabbytwotones)
hello it is me, token millennial, and I love avocado toast more than I love the idea of buying a home and filling a garage with junk
--Ann-Marie Alcántara (@itstheannmarie)
In fact, research suggests that people from 18 to 34, a group often referred to as millennials, are no more freewheeling with their spending on travel and dining than other generations. And it would take a lot of skipped avocados to put a dent in the heavy costs of homeownership, which is not always a prudent financial goal.
According to the Food Institute, which analyzed Bureau of Labor Statistics expenditure data from 2015, people from 25 to 34 spent, on average, $3,097 on eating out. Data for this age group through the decades was not readily available. But the bureau's report indicated that this group spent $305 more than people from 55 to 64--a group that encompasses some baby boomers--and $89 more than the overall average, including spending among people ages 35 to 54.
The truth is, even if millennials assumed the eating-out habits of baby boomers, it would take around 113 years before they could afford a down payment on a home (assuming a 20 percent down payment on the median price for a home in the United States, $315,000 in March 2017, and a 1 percent yearly yield rate).
Yes, you would surely save money by choosing to make your own avocado toast at home (perhaps with some cucumber soup).
The average price of a single avocado in March was $1.25, according to the Hass Avocado Board. One Twitter user, Nora Biette-Timmons, calculated that a serving of avocado toast cost her about $1.65--or one-477,896th the average price of a home in Brooklyn. Compare that with New York City brunch prices, where you are likely to spend $10 to $20 for ornately dressed toast, and the savings are clear.
But all generations of Americans are eating out more now, with food away from home rising to 43.1 percent of food expenditures in 2012, from 25.9 percent in 1970. It is not clear if millennials are driving that trend.
As for Mr. Gurner's second suggestion--skipping the European vacation--there is indeed an opportunity for savings, but research suggests millennials are the generation spending the least on travel.
Millennials spent $4,832 per year on vacations, just below the $5,078 by Gen-Xers and $5,012 by boomers, according to MMGY Global's Portrait of American Travelers in 2016. The study surveyed 2,948 adult travelers with annual incomes over $50,000.
Millennials were less likely than older generations to say they were cutting back on travel because of budget concerns but were also more likely to have difficulty getting time off work. They were also more likely to say they were too busy to get away.
Another wrinkle in pitting age-specific preferences against buying a house: Homeownership is historically lower among young adults and has declined across most age groups since the 2008 financial crisis as the ratio of home prices to median household income has climbed.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Who is considered a millennial? How are they portrayed in the beginning of this article by real estate mogul Tim Gurner?
- 3. What does Gurner imply with his statement, "We're at a point now where the expectations of younger people are very, very high"? How does he compare millennials to other generations?
- 4. Rather than blaming frivolous purchases of avocado toast and annual European trips for why young people aren't buying more houses, what other reasons could exist?
- 5. In reality, how do the spending patterns of young adults compare to those of other age groups? In general, do you feel that millennials are stereotyped? How so?
- 6. How are your generation and your parents' generation different (if at all) in their perspectives on earning, saving, and spending money? Give specific examples.
Click here to view more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/15/business/avocado-toast-millennials.html
Posted May 16, 2017
Tributes to the Confederacy: History, or a Racial Reminder in New Orleans?
BY ALAN BLINDER, THE NEW YORK TIMES
The workers, wearing helmets and bullet-resistant vests, have worked at night in New Orleans. Protesters have been kept at a distance, streetcars have sometimes been stopped and traffic has been rerouted. Litigation and outrage have not been in short supply.
New Orleans is halfway through a bitterly contested plan to remove four Confederate monuments from public spaces in the city.
A monument to a Reconstruction-era insurrection was taken down last month. This past week, workers dismantled a statue of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy. The city intends to soon remove two other monuments--statues of the Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and P. G. T. Beauregard.
City officials, pressed by Mayor Mitch Landrieu, declared the monuments to be nuisances months after nine black churchgoers were killed in a racially motivated massacre in Charleston, S.C. The courts ultimately allowed the removals to go forward, and the city said it was weighing where to display the monuments so they could be "placed in their proper historical context from a dark period of American history."
But the mayor's approach has been controversial in New Orleans, where protests have turned tense and the authorities have feared an outbreak of violence.
In separate interviews, a leading critic and a prominent supporter of the monuments reflected on the turmoil in New Orleans, the legacy of a protracted debate and the place of Confederate-focused symbols that still stand across a changing South.
The interviews, conducted after the removal of the Davis statue, have been condensed and edited.
Angela Kinlaw
Ms. Kinlaw helped steer the Take 'Em Down NOLA movement, which urged city leaders to remove the monuments. She is an educator who has lived in New Orleans for about four years.
Why do you want these monuments to come down?
It's a necessary part of the struggle toward racial and economic justice.
The statues are intended to send a message to black folks to stay in their places. We don't see the time, energy and resources going into promoting the kind of images, the kinds of systems that people need to really thrive.
This art is not reflective of the majority of people in the city. The majority of the people in this city are black folks, and it doesn't reflect them.
When people say, "This is a topic that's just come up," it's absolutely inaccurate. This is a fight that's been going on for decades.
New Orleans is a liberal city in a conservative state. Are you surprised to see the monuments actually being removed?
I think that I'm always cautiously optimistic, and I say that because no matter what breakthroughs we have, we're clear that our work is never done. Even though we can have an appreciation that the mayor finally gave in to an ordinance for four of these monuments to white supremacy, the reality is that they're all over the city. You should take down these four, and you should take down the others.
But are you surprised to see even these four coming down?
We've always believed it was possible. It required will.
The mayor has talked about how he thinks the removal of the monuments will foster reconciliation. How will that happen?
Reconciliation is going to require us to really put some truth on the table about what we're dealing with. If reconciliation is going to happen through policy or through legislation, there's going to have to be a shift in power, a shift in resources.
Supporters of the monuments walked around New Orleans waving Confederate battle flags. David Duke, the former Ku Klux Klan leader and Louisiana native, was a prominent critic of the decision to remove the monuments. What do you think of your opponents?
I'm not as concerned about the folks who come out and wave their flags. They are problematic, no doubt. I'm more concerned about the rich ruling class that has decision-making power and resource power to determine people's destinies within the city.
As long as folks, people see it as symbols, they think it's in isolation. But all of these things are connected. People wouldn't be working so hard to defend them if they didn't matter. As they see them coming down, they question their own power.
What do the successes with the monuments mean for the future?
It's helped us understand that we can't put our complete trust and faith in elected officials. We as the people have to unify and demand what it is we need. The government's not just going to move and roll over and do right by people. We have to demand that.
It becomes challenging when everybody's fighting for different things at different times. Now people realize the power of coming together collectively.
Richard A. Marksbury
A former dean at Tulane University and a member of the Monumental Task Committee, a volunteer-run group that supports keeping the city's existing monuments, Mr. Marksbury was part of the legal effort to keep the statues.
Why should these monuments be left in place?
I'm a cultural anthropologist--I'm 66 years old, I was in the Peace Corps, I did my research overseas, and I helped two different peoples try to record and save their cultural heritage--so my whole life has been dedicated to trying to preserve cultural heritage, which means I don't believe in tearing down anything.
We have very wealthy donors who would pay for bronze plaques explaining who these men were, what they fought for, what happened to try to educate people. I'm an educator, so I think there's ways to educate people without tearing anything down.
So what or who is driving the uproar? The mayor?
This was a man-made crisis. We didn't have an issue. This was a one-man show from the top down for self-serving reasons.
In 1993, the City Council passed an ordinance, and the way this nuisance ordinance is triggered is any citizen can come to the Council and make a presentation and say, "This monument violates the ordinance." We had three black mayors who never invoked it. Nobody ever cared about it, nobody ever used it until Mayor Landrieu did.
What about the other critics? The mayor isn't alone, so what are the motives of the others?
I think it's part of the social-economic problems we have in America and in our cities, whether it's high unemployment among young people and a lot of crime and school systems that are broken.
These are mostly young people, and this gives them some opportunity to protest some aspect of the government. Deep down, I don't think it has anything to do with the monuments because when these monuments are down, they're going to migrate to another thing.
The monuments are just symbolic of issues, and it's a way out to vent, quite frankly, and the mayor opened the door to vent that way.
How much of an effect do you think David Duke had on the debate? He's been on Twitter a lot.
Any effect he had was minimal. He's a flash point, and people love to mention his name.
Mitch Landrieu created this man-made disaster, and the press wants to create the David Duke involvement. It's just nonexistent. If he's tweeting, he's tweeting.
Supporters of the monuments have sometimes been lumped together as racists. How do you feel about that? Does it bother you that the rhetoric has become what it is?
I didn't know I had been lumped in with anybody.
I've had threats, and I've had to call 911. But no one's called me any names. I have a pretty good reputation with the people that know me. I ran a division at Tulane where I gave people second and third chances for education.
No one has looked me in the face and called me any names. Maybe they do it behind my back, but I've never been lumped in with anybody that I know of because I've never made it a race issue. I've made it an issue about education and destroying or sanitizing history.
How does this episode shape the city's culture?
That's the $64,000 question. It's a sad situation. This issue has brought more racial tension than anything I've seen or witnessed in the 44 years I've lived here, and I think most adults, black or white, living here would say the same thing. It's sad.
Also, we don't know how it will end. If anybody thinks it's going to end when these monuments are down, they're kidding themselves. Take 'Em Down says they want to take down another 128.
This will not go away anytime soon.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first paragraph of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" List the who, what, when, and where of this news item. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. When a statue that pays tribute to an impactful figure is erected, is there an unsaid promise or expectation that the statue will always be there?
- 3. Why do you think New Orleans mayor Mitch Landrieu wants these statues removed?
- 4. Summarize the two sides of this battle being presented by Ms. Kinlaw and Mr. Marksbury. What is at stake for each side?
- 5. The pyramids of Egypt were built by slave labor, as was the Roman Colosseum, and even the White House. Should these historical sites be torn down as well? Is this even a fair comparison to make? Why or why not?
- 6. What do you think about the Confederate monuments of New Orleans? Should they be removed or remain in place? What is the best way to end this conflict? Share your perspective.
Click here to view more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/12/us/tributes-to-the-confederacy-history-or-a-racial-reminder-in-new-orleans.html?emc=edit_th_20170514&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=79869507
Posted May 9, 2017
Oxford High School students begin project called '13 Reasons Why Not'
BY MONICA DRAKE, THE OAKLAND PRESS
In the popular Netflix show "13 Reasons Why," the main character gives 13 reasons why she wants to die. But, for students at Oxford High School [Michigan], they are giving 13 reasons to live.
Beginning this week and continuing for 13 days, a recording of a different student will play during the morning announcements. In the recording, played for the entire student body, the teens reveal a problem they're struggling with. At the end of the recording, instead of blaming someone, the students thank a classmate who has helped them.
This project was the brainchild of Dean of Oxford High School Pam Fine in memory of Megan Abbott, a freshman who [committed] suicide four years ago.
"I watched the series. I thought it accurately depicted the problems that teenagers in high school are facing now. But it was incredibly troubling to me that suicide was portrayed as being, almost, inevitable, like she had no other option," said Fine.
"The idea was to come up with 13 reasons why not, because that was not portrayed in the show. ... Even though it can get very dark, there is always hope. Our message is that there are no 13 reasons why. Suicide is not an option."
The project was kept secret. So, while students were expecting to hear the normal Monday morning announcements, they were surprised to hear the voice of senior Riley Juntti.
"Worthless. Self-centered. No morals. Easy. Grimy. Cake face. You would be better off dead. That's just the start of what you would label me as every day for two years," Juntti said in her recording.
At the end of the recording, instead of naming the person she was talking about, she thanked a classmate. "This tape is for you Elise Godfrey. You saw me when no one else did and continued to listen, share and appreciate the small things with me. Thank you for your kindness I cannot repay. You are one of my 13 reasons why not."
Afterward, Juntti's phone and social media accounts blew up with support from her classmates --some who she's never met. One tweet read, "Riley Juntti is braver than anyone for doing what she did."
Juntti said she knew she may receive backlash from what she said, but she didn't care. She wanted to help the girls she knows who have been victims of sexual, physical or emotional abuse.
"Standing up for what is right has always been more important to me than my peers' approval, and this project wasn't an exception," she said.
"Oxford has come together to create an environment this past week where talking about mental illness is socially acceptable. ... I've helped people come forward with their struggles and that's more than what I can ask for from this project."
Tuesday morning's announcement was by Jordan Jadan, the captain of the Oxford Wildcat's basketball team. Unbeknownst to his fellow classmates, Jadan has had a rough year. He moved in with his grandmother after his mom moved to Florida for her job. During this life change, he's been receiving several explicit and degrading text messages from a previously close family member.
"I've had no one to talk to, and it's been hard," he said. "I know I could have given up a long time ago. ... My reasons to live are my two little sisters and my mom."
"There's always someone who cares about you. You're never alone. There's always something to live for."
Since this started, Fine said an outpouring of students have been writing out their stories, wanting to be one of the 13 kids featured during the morning announcements. The remainder of the recordings, which will air every day until May 17, will be selected from these submitted stories.
"It was a risk, and it's paid off. ... I'm incredibly thankful for the response," she said.
Oxford High School Principal Todd Dunckley is supportive of this project.
"I think it makes students realize that, every day, they can affect someone with their words and actions," he said. "It's a nice way to start the day, to be quite honest."
In Memory
Megan Abbott, 15, killed herself on May 31, 2013 in a wooded area behind Oxford High School. Fine said she wanted to do this project for her and for her sister Morgan, who is currently a junior at the school.
Morgan said she loves the idea and, in response to the project, she has seen positive messages written on the mirrors in the bathroom and notes in each stall saying, "You're beautiful."
Amy Hafeli, Megan and Morgan's mom, said, "I thought it was a wonderful idea. It brought a positive spin on something so negative."
Megan was diagnosed with depression, and Hafeli said she also showed signs of borderline personality disorder. Before Megan died, she was being enrolled into dialectical behavior therapy.
"I wish we could have gotten her in there, but she just couldn't wait for it, " Hafeli said. "I understand that she was in pain. But I couldn't get her to understand that life can still be wonderful."
Hafeli and Morgan said they wish Megan was alive to hear these messages.
"I think if Megan had something like this going on in school when she was there, we would have had more time with her," said Morgan.
Hafeli added, "I'm proud of the school for getting involved and for putting that message out there - not just when it happens, but being proactive about it. Because, once it happens, what can you do? You can't bring the kid back."
Last year, in honor of what would have been Megan's graduation year, Hafeli and her husband Darrin started the "Pay It Forward" Scholarship Fund. They awarded three students $1,000 and two students $500 from the college savings that would have gone to Megan. This is their way to try and give students another "reason why not."
"If we can save another family from going through this, then we're all about it," said Hafeli.
For more information, visit www.facebook.com/RipMeganAbbott. For more information about Oxford High School, visit oxfordhigh.oxfordschools.org. For anyone who is contemplating suicide or knows someone who is, call Common Ground's 24-hour crisis line at 1-800-231-1127.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first paragraph of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" List the who, what, when, and where of this news item. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Have you ever watched the extremely popular Netflix series 13 Reasons Why or read the book that it was based on? What's your opinion of the show, the characters, and the plot?
- 3. Is the show a benefit or detriment to teens that are already combating depression or suicidal thoughts? Does it raise awareness about teenage suicide, or do you agree with the Dean of Oxford High School, Pam Fine, that the show portrays to viewers that suicide is almost inevitable?
- 4. How are Oxford High School students changing the discussion with their project "13 Reasons Why Not"? Do you think that this (or something similar) could be an impactful project to do at your school?
- 5. Should the makers of a hit TV show created solely for the purpose of providing captivating entertainment be scrutinized or held accountable for how their show presents teenage suicide to viewers? Why or why not?
- 6. How could you help a friend who told you they were extremely depressed or having suicidal thoughts? Who could you turn to for support and what would you do?
- 7. Privately reflect on your life, friends, family, and experiences. Write freely about your experiences with suicide or depression, whether they are about you personally or someone in your life. What would be one of your strongest "13 Reasons Why Not"?
Click here to view more: //www.theoaklandpress.com/general-news/20170504/oxford-high-school-students-begin-project-called-13-reasons-why-not#author1
Posted May 02, 2017
Women's access to family leave is not improving, but men's is
BY DAVID TRILLING, APRIL 20, 2017
The United States is the only developed country not to offer women paid maternity leave. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 gives some employees the option to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave, but many do not qualify. Others cannot afford the lost paychecks, or fear absence could cost them their jobs. The U.S. Department of Labor says only 12 percent of private-sector workers receive paid maternity or paternity leave.
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump promised a policy change: "We can provide six weeks of paid maternity leave to any mother with a newborn child whose employer does not provide the benefit," he said during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
For now, paid benefits are mandated by a handful of states. But even the most generous states do not offer full pay to new mothers for anything close to the 14 weeks recommended by the United Nations' International Labor Organization. (The National Conference of State Legislatures lists state laws.)
According to a new paper in the American Journal of Public Health, the number of American women taking maternity leave is not changing, but the number of fathers on paternity leave is rising (together these absences are often known as "family leave"). Moreover, the benefit is largely accruing to women who are white and educated.
Jay Zagorsky at the Ohio State University used data from the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey (which is used primarily to calculate the unemployment rate) from 1994 through 2015. The period saw rapid economic growth and many women enter the workforce. Some of his findings:
◾ The number of men on leave grew from 5,800 per month in 1994 to 22,000 per month in 2015.
◾ The number of women on leave changed little over the study period (around 273,000 per month), even as births rose and fell. Zagorsky found "no statistically significant trend over time in the rate of women on maternity leave in either monthly or yearly data."
◾ Men were far more likely to be paid during their leave than women, at an average of 66.1 percent across the whole period compared to 47.5 percent for women.
◾ The number of men whose leave was paid grew almost twice as fast as the number of women: 0.44 percentage points per year for men and 0.26 percentage points per year for women.
◾ A number of data underscore how women on leave were statistically different than the women who gave birth during this period:
◾ 63.3 percent of babies were born to married women, but 75.5 percent of mothers on leave were married.
◾ 56.5 percent of births were to white women, but 68.8 percent of mothers on leave were white.
◾ 21.7 percent of births were to Hispanic women, but 12 percent of mothers on leave were Hispanic.
◾ 20.8 percent of births were to women with less than a high-school education, but 5.7 percent of women on leave had less than a high-school education.
◾ 49.7 percent of births were to women who had attended at least some college, but 71.6 percent of mothers on leave had attended at least some college.
◾ The average age of a woman on leave is 2.4 years older than the average woman who had given birth.
◾ The adoption of family paid leave policies in a few states "did not appear to have any statistically measurable impact on the national number of people on leave."
Zagorsky confesses surprise at the findings, which are not attributable to women leaving the workforce. "This suggests, but cannot prove, that the benefits of the large economic expansions did not flow to women with newborn children," he writes. (Because of the way they were collected, the data are unable to show the total length of leave for mothers or fathers.)
Other research
About 82 percent of Americans say women should receive paid leave after the birth or adoption of a child, according to the Pew Research Center; of those, 41 percent believe women should receive 12 weeks or longer. Of the 69 percent who believe men should receive paid leave, 18 percent say the leave should be 12 weeks or longer. Meanwhile, 15 percent of Americans say men should not be able to take any paternity leave, paid or unpaid; about 3 percent say the same for women.
Women are now the breadwinners in 40 percent of American households with children, says a 2013 study by the Pew Research Center, up from 11 percent in 1960.
The U.S. is one of only four countries (out of 167 studied) that does not offer paid leave to mothers after they give birth or adopt a child, according to a 2010 report by the International Labor Organization. The three others -- Liberia, Papua New Guinea and Swaziland -- rank near the bottom of most development indices. [...]
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Is paid family leave a basic right that citizens (both women and men) deserve to receive or an optional job benefit that an employer has the freedom to offer at will? Who should pay for the time off, the employer or the government? Explain your perspective.
- 3. Draw conclusions: What does the data show about the demographics of women on leave in comparison to women who gave birth during the same time period?
- 4. Can maternity leave be considered frictional unemployment? Why or why not?
- 5. Weigh in: If maternity leave benefits will be offered to all working women in the U.S., how long should they be paid to be at home with their newborn child? What about the fathers?
- 6. Why do you think more men are taking paternal leave and are far more likely to be paid during that leave than women? What information is being left out? What data was confusing?
- 7. Extension: Briefly research and compare the United States' policy on paid leave to mothers with that of another developed country. How are the policies similar and different? Which is better and why?
Click here to view more: https://journalistsresource.org/studies/society/gender-society/maternity-leave-paternity-leave-women-access
Posted April 25, 2017
Bible classes in schools can lead to strife among neighbors
BY FRANK S. RAVITCH, THE CONVERSATION
A federal lawsuit was filed recently against the Mercer County, West Virginia Board of Education, challenging a Bible program in the elementary schools. The plaintiffs are the Freedom From Religion Foundation and two parents and their children. One parent and both children have kept their names anonymous due to fear of reprisal.
The Bible class was listed as an elective, but almost all students enrolled. The complaint alleges that the few who opted out were harassed and discriminated against. One of the plaintiffs in the case had already suffered harassment.
In my research for the book I wrote in 1999, "School Prayer and Discrimination," I explored what happens to religious minorities and dissenters when public schools engage in sectarian prayer and Bible reading.
There is a long history of discrimination and even violence linked to Bible reading and school prayer.
What the law says
Students have always been free to pray or read the Bible on their own or with friends during free time at school. In public schools these days, student religious groups have access to school facilities before and after school to the same extent as any other noncurriculum-related student group. Any school that violates these principles would also violate the Constitution.
In contrast, school-endorsed Bible courses that promote a religious perspective have been unconstitutional since a 1963 U.S. Supreme Court ruling prohibited school-sponsored prayer and Bible reading.
Over the years, there have been a number of attempts--often supported by state legislatures--to get around the prohibition on Bible reading by offering Bible courses. If offered as electives and taught "objectively," such classes could be considered constitutional.
What this means is if a public school offers a class that focuses on religion or the Bible, the material would have to be taught without promoting any particular religious position. Those of us in the law and religion field sum it up as, "Teach it, don't preach it."
These classes cross the line if they endorse or favor a particular religious view. The Mercer County case will thus examine if the class, as alleged, is overtly sectarian and promoted by the school, and hence unconstitutional.
Significantly, in many such cases where students opt out or dissent, parents have evidence of discrimination and harassment aimed at their children.
In fact, the United States Supreme Court acknowledged the concern about community members and school officials engaging in harassment of dissenters in an important footnote in a recent school prayer decision, Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe. The case challenged the practice of having a student deliver a prayer over the public address system before each home varsity football game.
The United States Supreme Court quoted a lower court order prohibiting any attempt "to ferret out the identities of the plaintiffs in this cause, by means of bogus petitions, questionnaires, individual interrogation, or downright 'snooping.'" The lower court had said it wanted the "proceedings addressed on their merits, and not on the basis of intimidation or harassment..."
As is evident from the above example, there are good reasons why families are often afraid to challenge these practices and want to remain anonymous, even when they raise the issue.
History of persecution
The history related to school-sponsored or endorsed Bible reading and prayer in the public schools is full of harassment, discrimination and even violence.
It goes back to the early 19th century, when Bible reading and prayer, in what were then known as "common schools" (a precursor to today's public schools), were used to promote anti-Catholic sentiments. At that time, Catholics were persecuted for refusing to participate in Protestant Bible reading in the common schools.
Nineteenth-century Catholic Canon Law specified that Catholics reading the Bible in English could read only the Douay Bible, which was the English translation approved by the Vatican. Schools, however, often required reading from the King James Bible, which, aside from its controversial history and translation concerns, included a dedicatory preface that referred to the pope as the "man of sin."
Priests were literally tarred and feathered for encouraging their congregants not to participate in Protestant Bible reading and prayer in schools. Conflict over Catholic objections to Protestant Bible reading and prayer in the common schools was used as an excuse by anti-Catholic individuals, who opposed Irish immigration to the United States, to start riots. Several people were killed during such riots in Philadelphia in 1844.
Such instances continued well into the 20th and 21st century. In 1995, for example, students in a Mississippi elementary school who refused to take part in prayer that violated their family's Lutheran faith faced serious discrimination. One such student was forced to wear headphones so he could not hear the prayer.
The family finally filed a lawsuit (which they won). However, they received bomb threats and death threats as a result of filing the lawsuit; the harassment of the children got even worse. In other cases children were beaten up for refusing to take part in school-endorsed religious activities in public schools.
And in what is perhaps one of the worst cases in the last half-century, a family in Little Axe, Oklahoma, who belonged to the Church of the Nazarene, a Protestant Christian church, had their house firebombed after they objected to school-supported religious activities favoring a different Protestant sect.
Why it can hurt religion
The truth is, school-sponsored Bible classes and Bible reading don't hurt only religious minorities and dissenters, they can also hurt religion generally.
As Roger Williams (the founder of the current state of Rhode Island) noted more than 100 years before the founding of the United States, government support and influence can corrupt religion even if it seeks to promote it.
In several of his most famous writings, he wrote about the corrupting effect government can have on religion:
"God requireth not a uniformity of religion to be enacted and enforced in any civil state; which enforced uniformity (sooner or later) is the greatest occasion of civil war, ravishing of conscience, persecution of Christ Jesus in his servants, and of the hypocrisy and destruction of millions of souls."
This history shows how such insistence on sectarian Bible teaching could lead a dominant religious group to discriminate and even act violently. From my perspective as a law and religion scholar, these situations do not seem to promote the values of loving one's neighbor and protecting those in harms[sic] way that a number of religions, including Christianity, espouse.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Explain the conflict around religion in schools that this article presents. Who are the plaintiffs and what are their complaints?
- 3. The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof... How does this correspond to the Bible reading in Mercer County elementary schools? Are these schools violating the separation of church and state? Why or why not?
- 4. Share two historical examples cited in the article of how Bible reading and prayer in public schools were related to harassment or violence.
- 5. The writer of this article has a very clear opinion. What is it?
- 6. Weigh in: To what extent (if at all) do you feel discussions on religion, Bible reading, and prayer should be allowed in public schools? Explain your perspective.
Click here to view more: https://theconversation.com/bible-classes-in-schools-can-lead-to-strife-among-neighbors-75378
Posted April 18, 2017
United Airlines Passenger May Need Surgery, Lawyer Says
BY MITCH SMITH, THE NEW YORK TIMES
CHICAGO--In an hourlong news conference that touched on race, policing and airline manners, a lawyer for the passenger dragged off a United flight on Sunday listed his client's injuries: a broken nose, a concussion, two knocked-out teeth and sinus problems that may require reconstructive surgery.
"For a long time, airlines, United in particular, have bullied us," the lawyer, Thomas A. Demetrio, said Thursday in downtown Chicago.
"Are we going to just continue to be treated like cattle--bullied, rude treatment?" asked Mr. Demetrio, who placed the blame for his client's injuries on a "culture of disrespect" at United Airlines and overly aggressive tactics from Chicago aviation police officers. He said a lawsuit was likely.
The video of Dr. David Dao, 69, of Kentucky, being bloodied as he was pulled off the flight in order to make room for four United employees has ignited conversation and outrage around the world. The three Chicago aviation police officers who removed Dr. Dao from the plane have been placed on administrative leave.
After initially defending the airline's policies, United's chief executive apologized. United has offered a refund to every passenger on the flight and has promised to no longer have the police remove passengers from planes that are too full.
"This horrible situation has provided a harsh learning experience from which we will take immediate, concrete action," the company said in a statement Thursday. "We have committed to our customers and our employees that we are going to fix what's broken so this never happens again."
Those assurances have done little to quell the outrage, visible in the phalanx of news cameras from around the world that assembled Thursday to hear from Mr. Demetrio and Crystal Dao Pepper, one of Dr. Dao's five children. Mr. Demetrio said he thought the company's apology had been "staged," and said he was not aware of any attempts by United officials to contact Dr. Dao.
"What happened to my dad should have never happened to any human being regardless of the circumstances," Ms. Dao Pepper said. She said her father was catching a connecting flight in Chicago to his home in Louisville, Ky., after a vacation in California.
Federal lawmakers have called for investigations, and officials from United and Chicago's Aviation Department faced a panel of city aldermen on Thursday who demanded answers and offered pointed critiques.
"This, I think, pulled off the Band-Aid that shows there's a lot of resentment among American consumers toward airlines generally," an alderman, Brendan Reilly, said. "One would hope that this would serve as a wake-up call."
Like others, Mr. Demetrio questioned United's approach to resolving the overbooking situation. He said Dr. Dao needed to get back to Kentucky that night, but increasing the compensation offer might have enticed another passenger to agree to take a later flight.
"How high are they going to go?" Mr. Demetrio said. "Eventually, someone's going to say 'Yeah, I'll leave.'"
Even as millions have watched the footage of Dr. Dao screaming as he was removed from the flight, his family has asked for privacy. Mr. Demetrio said that his client fled Vietnam in the 1970s and that he and his wife worked as physicians in Kentucky. He said four of Dr. Dao's children are also doctors.
"He left Vietnam in 1975 when Saigon fell, and he was on a boat and he said he was terrified," Mr. Demetrio said, recalling a conversation with his client. "He said that being dragged down the aisle was more horrifying and terrible than what he experienced in leaving Vietnam."
Dr. Dao has not spoken publicly about the ordeal, and Mr. Demetrio declined to comment on his whereabouts, other than saying he was in a secure location. While some have pointed to the episode as an example of racism toward Asians, Mr. Demetrio said he did not believe race played a role in what happened.
Mr. Demetrio, a well-known Chicago personal injury lawyer who has handled several high-profile cases, said the eventual lawsuit would probably be filed in the Illinois court system. In the meantime, he said Dr. Dao was hoping to recover quietly and never set foot on another airplane.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. In this scenario, what would have been the best course of action for United Airlines to take with a passenger who refused to comply and exit the plane, while an entire cabin full of passengers couldn't take off until a seat was freed up?
- 3. Have you ever had a negative experience with flying? Share your experience. If you were in Dr. Dao's shoes and were asked to exit the plane, what would you have done?
- 4. The overbooking tendencies of airlines have definitely been brought into the spotlight because of this event. Why does overbooking occur in the first place with modern reservation methods? What has already changed and what further changes do you think will occur because of this fiasco?
- 5. Dr. Dao refused to comply with airline rules and had to be removed, but then he was excessively injured in the removal process by police. Who is at fault here? Do you think this entitles Dr. Dao to a potential multimillion dollar settlement?
Click here to view more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/us/united-passenger-david-dao-chicago.html?emc=edit_th_20170414&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=79869507
Posted April 11, 2017
New Pittsburg, Kan., High School principal resigns after student journalists question her credentials
By Mará Rose Williams
The Kansas City Star
April 4, 2017 5:03 PM
Days after student reporters at Pittsburg High School in Kansas dug into the background of their newly hired principal and found questionable credentials, she resigned from the $93,000-a-year job.
"She was going to be the head of our school, and we wanted [to] be assured that she was qualified and had the proper credentials," said Trina Paul, a senior and an editor of the Booster Redux, the school newspaper. "We stumbled on some things that most might not consider legitimate credentials."
Minutes into a closed special meeting [April 3] of the Pittsburg Community Schools Board of Education, board president Al Mendez emerged to announce to a packed boardroom that Amy Robertson, the new principal, had resigned.
"In light of the issues that arose, Amy Robertson felt it was in the best interest of the district to resign her position," Superintendent Destry Brown said in a statement after the executive session.
The board agreed with that decision and said [it] will reopen the principal position Wednesday morning and contact others who had applied for the job to see if they are still interested.
"Our goal is to find the best person to be our principal that we can find," Brown said. "I know the students want that too."
Pittsburg journalism adviser Emily Smith said she is "very proud" of her students. "They were not out to get anyone to resign or to get anyone fired. They worked very hard to uncover the truth."
Student journalists published a story [March 31] questioning the legitimacy of the private college--Corllins University--where Robertson got her master's and doctorate degrees years ago. U.S. Department of Education officials, contacted by The Star, confirmed student reports; the federal agency could not find evidence of Corllins in operation. The school wasn't included among the agency's list of schools closed since 1986. Robertson earned her bachelor's degree from the University of Tulsa.
Students found and The Star confirmed the existence of several articles referring to Corllins as a diploma mill--where people can buy a degree, diploma or certificates. And searches on the school's website go nowhere. No one from the university responded to emails sent by The Star this week.
Contacted by email Friday, Robertson, who has lived off and on for 19 years in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, said, "The current status of Corllins University is not relevant because when I received my MA in 1994 and my PhD in 2010, there was no issue."
She also said, "All three of my degrees have been authenticated by the US government." Robertson declined to comment directly on students' questions about her credentials, saying, "I have no comment in response to the questions posed by PHS students regarding my credentials because their concerns are not based on facts."
The Pittsburg Board of Education approved hiring Robertson at its meeting March 6.
In a news release about the hiring, district spokesman Zach Fletcher said that "Robertson comes to Pittsburg with decades of experience in education."
Robertson is CEO of Atticus I S Consultants, "an education consulting firm where she gained leadership and management experience at the international equivalence of a building administrator and superintendent," the release said.
Robertson, after application reviews and interviews with administrators, faculty and students, "emerged as the best fit" for the job, said Brown. He said the district relies on the Kansas Department of Education to approve a candidate's credentials.
"I felt like she is very knowledgeable about what is going on in education today in college and career readiness, she is very familiar with Common Core, she knows about how a building works and about maintaining a safe environment," he said.
He was surprised students questioned Robertson's credentials.
"The kids had never gone through someone like this before," Brown said. But he said he encouraged them to seek answers. "I want our kids to have real-life experiences, whether it's welding or journalism."
Despite questions, Brown said Friday that the district's school board had "100 percent supported the Robertson hire."
Tuesday night he said he felt bad about how it all turned out. "I do feel it is my responsibility. As superintendent I feel like I let the teachers and the students down. I publicly admit that."
Robertson, who he said also has a teaching degree from the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England, isn't licensed in Kansas. She would have had to take classes at Pittsburg State University, pass a test and acquire her license before she could officially hold the principal post. That isn't uncommon for someone hired from outside the state, Brown said.
Maddie Baden, a 17-year-old Pittsburg High junior, said the student news staff began looking into Robertson's background after an electronic search of her name turned up several articles published by Gulf News about an English language school connected to Robertson in Dubai.
The 2012 articles said Dubai's education authority had suspended the license for Dubai American Scientific School and accused Robertson of not being authorized to serve as principal of that school. The private, for-profit school received an "unsatisfactory" rating on Dubai education authority inspection reports every year from 2008 to 2012 and was closed in September 2013.
"That raised a red flag," Baden said. "If students could uncover all of this, I want to know why the adults couldn't find this."
She had originally interviewed Robertson for a routine school newspaper story "to introduce the new principal to the community," Baden said. "No one knew who she was."
Pittsburg is about 90 minutes south of Kansas City on U.S. 69. The high school has 900 students.
Six students worked about three weeks looking into Robertson's past work and education.
When they went to Corllins University's website, "We found a website that didn't work," Baden said. And a student checking with the Council for Higher Education Accreditation found that Corllins was not listed in its database of 7,600 schools accredited by a recognized accrediting agency in the United States.
But officials there told The Star the school could have been accredited in the past.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Is it appropriate for student journalists to investigate school officials after their being hired? Should there be a limit as to which topics student journalists research? How far is too far?
- 3. Do you think the information the students discovered was enough to disqualify Amy Robertson from the principal position? Do you agree that she should have resigned? Why or why not?
- 4. Could this fiasco have been prevented if the district searched locally for an applicant familiar with Kansas state schools? Should a principal be familiar with the community they will be leading? What does this story say about the hiring process of this school district? Predict how school hiring as a whole could change because of this story.
- 5. The First Amendment protects free speech. The rights are not unlimited, but in 1969 the Supreme Court ruled that students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." What does this mean to you and students at your school? What rights are protected and which ones are not? Explain your perspective on whether all First Amendment rights should apply to students while in school just as they would to an adult citizen elsewhere.
Click here to view more: //www.kansascity.com/news/local/article142682464.html
Posted April 4, 2017
Inside Your Brain: Social Media Could Be Rewiring the Way We Communicate
BY CHANNEL ONE NEWS, MARCH 29, 2017 TRANSCRIPT
[...] Emily: Oh! Oh my -- sorry about that. I was just Snapchatting my cat back. Anyway, I don't have to tell you guys how distracting social media can be. Some people are so glued to their phone they are practically addicted. Arielle Hixson today takes a look at how social media could be rewiring the way we communicate inside your brain.
Tamia Taylor: I always grab it. It's always in my hand.
Arielle: As a freshman in college, my cousin Tamia is a pro at social media.
Tamia: I send out 100 Snapchats, and then I will probably get double that because I don't answer all of them.
Arielle: And she can't fight the urge to check her accounts all day long: waking up, brushing her teeth, playing basketball, on her way to class, during class, at a campus event -- just to make plans, she still has to take out her phone, at lunch, in her second class and hanging out with friends, of course. But she is not the only one.
Lauren Sherman: The thing that's new about social media is the way that this social learning happens has changed. One of the reasons is that with mobile social media, teens have access to their peers more than ever. So they're in that peer context almost constantly.
Arielle: Back in the day, communication was limited. Shy of a letter, phone call or meeting in person, there wasn't this constant social stimulation at your fingertips. So we have gone from speaking face-to-face to connecting screen-to-screen.
Tamia: One of the main reasons for these social platforms is to stay connected with people, get information out there, receive information -- basically, be nosy in everyone's lives -- and then people can check in on you as well.
Arielle: Today, there is a real concern that teens are not learning how to communicate and are not developing empathy -- the ability to understand how someone else is feeling. Lack of empathy can increase bullying, cheating and even have a negative influence on mental health. Communicating online means you don't have to face in-person consequences, so you might be more likely to make mean comments or cyberbully.
Some experts are saying that teens are losing their ability to communicate with others because of technology. What do you think about that?
Tamia: I agree to an extent. I feel like because people are so invested in their phones, their technology, that emojis and acronyms have been substituted for expression and communication.
Arielle: And these days, our interactions are numbered -- literally.
Sherman: Interactions online are now quantitative, so that means there's a number associated with them. And that's something that has never really happened before.
Arielle: Lauren Sherman, a postdoctoral researcher at Temple University, examined the way teens perceive information online. She did this by studying a social media platform many of you use every day: Instagram.
Lauren found that teens were more likely to like a picture that already had a lot of likes. And something else happened when teens liked these pics: There was more activity in the reward circuitry of the brain. So for teens getting a like on social media feels just like winning a prize.
Tamia: I still post to get likes.
Arielle: Researchers also found that the rewards part of the brain really lit up when they saw a lot of likes on their own photos, which might persuade them to get on social media more. So you could say social media is affecting the way we adapt to our environment.
Sherman: If I'm a teenager, and I post a picture on Instagram, and it gets a lot of likes, and I post another, similar picture, and it gets a lot of likes, over time I'm probably more likely to post these kinds of pictures.
Arielle: And it can take a lot of planning to post these popular and rewarding pictures.
So you plan your outfit around the post?
Tamia: Yeah, I'll plan my -- like, if it's an event, I'll plan what I'm going to wear and then, like, depending on where the location is, then I'll think of, like, where I want to take the picture, and then, before anything starts, I'll get the picture out of the way.
Arielle: A study last year suggests the more time young people spend on social media, the less happy they are about their lives and that unhappiness hits girls harder than boys.
Sherman: It can be really hard sometimes when you see that your friends look like they are always having fun, and they always look perfect. And then you think about the fact that they've chosen the moments that really make them happy and that they want to remember.
Tamia: There are certain platforms where you seem as though you are the perfect person who always has adventures, but in reality it's a once-in-a-while type thing.
Arielle: The best way to navigate this fast-paced world is to maintain a tech-life balance, if there is such a thing ...
Sherman: One thing that is important is for teens to be developing digital literacy skills, skills that allow them to use social media and use other digital media in a way that's responsible and a way that makes them feel comfortable.
Arielle: ... one text at a time. Arielle Hixson, Channel One News [...]
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. How connected via social media are you? How motivated are you by likes, positive comments, etc.? How much time do you spend on it daily? Add up the seconds, or minutes, from each time your fingertips touch your phone to use an app until you stop and resume what you were doing. What could you do with that time if it wasn't spent on social media?
- 3. What two skills do some experts say that teens today aren't learning because of technology? Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?
- 4. Why do you think increased social media usage would result in a person feeling less happy with their own life? Why are girls more affected than boys?
- 5. What's your opinion on this transcript as a whole: Is there something to be said about being too connected via social media instead of making in-person connections, or is this being blown out of proportion? Share your perspective.
Click here to view more: https://www.channelone.com/transcript
Posted March 28, 2017
WhatsApp must not be 'place for terrorists to hide'
BY BBC UK
There must be "no place for terrorists to hide" and intelligence services must have access to encrypted messaging services, the home secretary has said.
Khalid Masood killed four people in Westminster this week. It is understood his phone had connected to messaging app WhatsApp two minutes earlier.
[UK Home Secretary] Amber Rudd said she would be meeting technology firms this week.
A WhatsApp spokeswoman said the company was "horrified at the attack" and was co-operating with the investigation.
Meanwhile, a 12th arrest has been made by officers investigating the attack. The 30-year-man was detained in Birmingham on Sunday on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts.
All messages sent on WhatsApp have end-to-end encryption, meaning they are unreadable if intercepted by anyone, including law enforcement and WhatsApp itself.
So while Masood's phone is believed to have connected with the app, police may not know what, if anything, was communicated.
Speaking to BBC One's Andrew Marr Show, Ms Rudd said: "It is completely unacceptable, there should be no place for terrorists to hide.
"We need to make sure that organisations like WhatsApp, and there are plenty of others like that, don't provide a secret place for terrorists to communicate with each other.
"It used to be that people would steam open envelopes or just listen in on phones when they wanted to find out what people were doing, legally, through warranty.
"But on this situation we need to make sure that our intelligence services have the ability to get into situations like encrypted WhatsApp."
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said authorities already had "huge powers".
There had to be a balance between the "right to know" and "the right to privacy", he said.
The Facebook-owned company, which has a billion users worldwide, has said previously that protecting private communication is one of its "core beliefs".
Tim Cook, the chief executive of Apple which also uses end-to-end encryption, has previously said it would be "wrong" for governments to force Apple to "build a back door" into products.
But Ms Rudd said: "I would ask Tim Cook to think again about other ways of helping us work out how we can get into the situations like WhatsApp on the Apple phone."
Europol director Rob Wainwright echoed Ms Rudd's call for changes.
"I would agree something has to be done to make sure that we can apply a more consistent form of interception of communication in all parts of the way in which terrorists invade our lives," he told Andrew Neil on the BBC's Sunday Politics.
The victims of the Westminster attack were commemorated at the beginning of England's World Cup qualifier against Lithuania at Wembley Stadium.
Before kick-off, four wreaths were laid in the centre of the pitch by Metropolitan Police Acting Commissioner Craig Mackey, London Mayor Sadiq Khan, FA chairman Greg Clarke and Culture Secretary Karen Bradley.
A minute's silence was also observed by fans and players.
Masood, 52, killed three people and injured 50 when he drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge on Wednesday.
He then fatally stabbed a police officer before being shot dead by police--all within 82 seconds.
Ms Rudd would not confirm who shot Masood, amid claims it was a bodyguard for Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon.
Can the government access encrypted data?
A provider could co-operate with authorities and decrypt data, says Will Knight, a senior editor at MIT Technology Review. But done properly, encrypted data can be difficult or impossible to access.
WhatsApp maintains only those involved in a message can read the contents due to end-to-end encryption.
There are sometimes "backdoors", Mr Knight says, and intelligence services have exploited those to retrieve the keys needed to decrypt messages. But backdoors may then be exploited by criminals, or hostile governments.
Prof Ross Anderson, from Cambridge University, points out that if companies do co-operate, and try to keep quiet about it, it won't take long for the tech-savvy to cotton on.
And criminals or terrorists will merely divert to one of the many other messaging services, based overseas, he adds.
Scotland Yard has said it believes Masood acted alone, and while officers were "determined" to find out whether he had been inspired by terrorist propaganda, it was possible his motive would never be known.
A 58-year-old man, who was arrested in Birmingham the morning after the attack under the Terrorism Act, remains in custody, while a 32-year-old woman arrested in Manchester remains on police bail.
Eleven people were initially arrested over the incident and nine people in total have been released without charge.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. What is the issue being debated? Identify the two sides in this argument and their positions.
- 3. WhatsApp is an app for video, phone, and messaging communication, used by over one billion people globally. Does the government have a right to request access to Masood's phone messages from this app two minutes before his attack? Why or why not? What information could access to these messages provide to the government?
- 4. Benjamin Franklin said, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." Interpret Franklin's opinion. How would he weigh in on this article?
- 5. Should the government have the power to review ALL communications to prevent terrorism and other crimes from happening in the future? Should they only be allowed to intercept communication that directly relates to a crime committed? What do you think is more important: privacy or safety? Explain your position.
Click here to view more: //www.bbc.com/news/uk-39396578
Posted March 21, 2017
Where are the world's happiest countries?
BY KATIA HETTER, CNN
Norwegians have more reason than ever to celebrate the International Day of Happiness.
After ranking fourth for the last two years, Norway jumped three spots and displaced three-time winner Denmark to take the title of "world's happiest country" for the first time.
Denmark dropped to second place this year, followed by Iceland, Switzerland, Finland, Netherlands, Canada, New Zealand and Australia and Sweden (which tied for ninth place), according to the latest World Happiness Report, released Monday by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network for the United Nations.
Denmark has won the title three of the four times the report has been issued, while Switzerland has won the title just once.
The United States came in 14th place, dropping one place from last year.
Other superpowers didn't fair better than Northern Europe either.
Germany came in 16th place for the second year, while the United Kingdom moved up four spots to 19th place and Russia moved up seven spots to 49th place. Japan moved up two spots to 51st place, while China moved up four spots to 79th place.
People in the Central African Republic are unhappiest with their lives, according to the survey of 155 countries, followed by Burundi (154), Tanzania (153), Syria (152) and Rwanda (151).
Happiness is many things
Happiness isn't just about money, although it's part of it.
Real gross domestic product per capita is one of the key measurements, said the report.
Others include generosity, a healthy life expectancy, having someone to count on, perceived freedom to make life choices and freedom from corruption, the report's authors argued.
They said it's a better measure of human welfare than analyzing education, good government, health, income and poverty separately.
"The World Happiness Report continues to draw global attention around the need to create sound policy for what matters most to people--their well-being," said Jeffrey Sachs, the report's co-editor and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, in a statement.
"As demonstrated by many countries, this report gives evidence that happiness is a result of creating strong social foundations. It's time to build social trust and healthy lives, not guns or walls. Let's hold our leaders to this fact."
Not just about the money
Norway rose to the top of the rankings despite declines in oil prices, demonstrating that what countries do with their money--not just the increase in finances--matters.
"It's a remarkable case in point," said report co-editor John Helliwell of the University of British Columbia.
"By choosing to produce oil deliberately and investing the proceeds for the benefit of future generations, Norway has protected itself from the volatile ups and downs of many other oil-rich economies."
"This emphasis on the future over the present is made easier by high levels of mutual trust, shared purpose, generosity and good governance," added Helliwell, who is also co-director of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research.
"All of these are found in Norway, as well as in the other top countries."
Happiness at work
This year's report also focused on happiness in the workplace.
"People tend to spend the majority of their lives working, so it is important to understand the role that employment and unemployment play in shaping happiness," said Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, a professor at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School.
"The research reveals that happiness differs considerably across employment status, job type, and industry sectors."
De Neve, who co-authored the report's chapter on happiness at work, added that people in well-paid roles are happier, but money is only one predictive measure of happiness.
"Work-life balance, job variety and the level of autonomy are other significant drivers," said De Neve.
"There is a clear distinction in happiness between white and blue collar jobs with managers or professionals evaluating the quality of their lives at a much higher level than those in manual labor jobs even controlling for any possible confounding factors."
The report focused on other factors affecting happiness.
"In rich countries the biggest single cause of misery is mental illness," said Professor Richard Layard, director of the Wellbeing Programme at the London School of Economics' Centre for Economic Performance.
The birth of 'Gross National Happiness'
Credit goes to the tiny country of Bhutan for shining a light on happiness. Its prime minister first proposed a World Happiness Day to the United Nations in 2011 and launched an international focus on happiness.
The U.N. General Assembly declared March 20 as World Happiness Day in 2012, recognizing "happiness and well-being as universal goals and aspirations in the lives of human beings around the world."
The first of five World Happiness Reports was first published in April 2012 in conjunction with the U.N. High Level Meeting on happiness and well-being. Since 2012, many governments and governmental organizations have made well-being or happiness a priority.
In February, the United Arab Emirates held a full-day World Happiness meeting. There was World Happiness Summit in Miami on March 17-19, while Erasmus University in Rotterdam is hosting three-day meeting on happiness research and policy starting Monday.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. According to this report, where are the world's happiest countries? What commonalities do the top seven countries share?
- 3. Give three possible reasons why you think the United States came in 14th place, one spot lower than last year. Why are all of the world's superpowers at 14th place or lower?
- 4. The article states that happiness isn't just about money. What other factors were used to measure happiness? Have the researchers got it right?
- 5. This report relies on simple and subjective questions, such as this one: "Imagine a ladder, with steps numbered from 0 at the bottom to 10 at the top. The top of the ladder represents the best possible life for you and the bottom of the ladder represents the worst possible life for you. On which step of the ladder would you say you personally feel you stand at this time?" How would you respond to this question? Explain your feelings.
- 6. What insight does this report provide about the relative happiness of the world? Do you agree with the findings? Why or why not?
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2017/03/20/travel/worlds-happiest-countries-united-nations-2017/
Posted March 14, 2017
Engineers give America's infrastructure a near failing grade
BY LAUREN THOMAS AND JOHN W. SCHOEN, CNBC
America's infrastructure is close to failing.
That's the assessment of the American Society of Civil Engineers, which released its 2017 "infrastructure report card" Thursday, giving the nation's overall infrastructure a grade of D+.
The report came a day after President Donald Trump held a high-profile meeting with a group of executives to discuss his campaign pledge to invest a trillion dollars to upgrade the nation's critical infrastructure, such as highways, bridges, airports and dams.
Details of any spending plan have yet to be released, and it remains to be seen how the Trump administration will pay for the proposed spending.
His spending target, moreover, represents less than a quarter of what's needed to bring the condition of U.S. infrastructure up to a level that would earn it a B grade, according to ASCE estimates.
To reach a comprehensive grade, the association said it evaluated 16 categories of infrastructure, ranging from rail to schools to airports to dams. Its committee consists of civil engineers from across the country who assessed categories such as capacity, condition, funding and public safety, to assign grades across the 16 segments.
Since 1998, grades have been near failing and averaging only Ds, due to "delayed maintenance" and "under investment across most categories," the engineers said.
In addition to assigning grades to America's ports and parks, the 2017 report card projected a total investment of $4.59 trillion that would be required to bring U.S. infrastructure from where it stands today--at a D+--to a B grade.
"We need our elected leaders ... to follow through on those promises with investment and innovative solutions that will ensure our infrastructure is built for the future," ASCE President Norma Jean Mattei said in a statement.
To close what the association has calculated to be a $2 trillion, 10-year infrastructure investment gap, the nation needs to up investments from all levels of government and the private sector from 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent of Gross Domestic Product by 2025, the report said.
"Infrastructure owners and operators must charge, and Americans must be willing to pay, rates and fees that reflect the true cost of using, maintaining, and improving infrastructure," the group said.
Awaiting Trump's infrastructure plan
With a Trump administration in the White House now, advocacy groups are keeping a close watch on the Republicans' agenda to see how they move forward on infrastructure spending.
"While Congress and states have made some effort to improve infrastructure, it's not enough," Greg DiLoreto, a past ASCE president, said in a statement. DiLoreto said a bill is "overdue" and is costing each American roughly $3,400 per year in disposal income.
In his first speech to a joint session of Congress, Trump last week proposed $1 trillion in infrastructure investment, "financed through both public and private capital."
That investment, he said, would create "millions of new jobs."
Though infrastructure investment was a major theme of his campaign, the issue has largely taken the back seat to Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act and pass tax reform.
On Wednesday, though, Trump made strides toward announcing a more formal infrastructure plan, meeting with leading members of the private sector, such as SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk and Vornado Realty Trust Chief Executive Steve Roth, asking for their perspectives.
Despite Trump's vocal support for ambitious investment, the White House has yet to release substantive details.
Trump has also suggested that private investors play a role in rebuilding infrastructure. But critics of that approach say the number of potentially profitable projects is limited.
"[Private investment] would not deliver many of the most important needed projects for roads and bridges, public transit, schools and public housing," the Center on Budget Policies and Priorities wrote in a report. "Rather than public investment ... the Trump plan relies entirely on private projects through which investors would own the projects, get huge federal tax credits equal to a stunning 82 percent of their equity investment, and make profits from the tolls or fees they would charge to consumers."
The group said Trump's "plan" has no way of ensuring that infrastructure projects flow to communities that are currently underserved by investments, and the administration's ideas of funding are based on many "unrealistic assumptions."
"There's a broad recognition that we need to significantly increase infrastructure investment on a range of things," said Michael Leachman, the center's director of state fiscal research. "But how do you most effectively do that? There's some misguided worry about the debt required to fund big infrastructure projects," he said.
Federal vs. state
States are also stepping up to fund the overhaul of infrastructure, much of which they own, even as many struggle to balance their budgets.
"The Federal government has an important role to play, but the vast majority of infrastructure is owned by states and localities," Leachman said.
That state burden has been amplified by a maintenance backlog that can pose a threat to public safety, as was recently highlighted by last month's emergency spill along the Oroville Dam in California.
The event was a wake-up call for many, the first event of this kind in more than half a century. An emergency order forced nearly 190,000 residents to evacuate their homes.
The average age of the nation's more than 90,000 dams is 56, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers, with over 15,000 classified as "high hazard" in 2016.
"The number of dams identified as unsafe is increasing at a faster rate than those being repaired," the group said in a statement. About 14 percent of dams are owned or regulated by federal agencies, leaving the rest to states and municipalities, according to the group's data.
Whether federal or state owned, dams in particular are getting less attention in the media than "high profile" bridges or airports, said Tim McCarty, risk control manager at Trident Public Risk Solutions.
The news from the ACSE report card wasn't all bad.
Rail infrastructure received the highest rating--a B--this year. Bridges, ports and solid waste all received C+ grades, implying more effort has been made in these segments.
-- CNBC's Jacob Pramuk contributed to this report.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Critically examine the U.S. infrastructure report card (shown above). What trends do you observe over the years? In what areas have there actually been positive growth? Which grade do you find the most worrisome? Why?
- 3. Could this report be biased at all? What might be the motivation behind the American Society of Civil Engineers' negative report on U.S. infrastructure?
- 4. How would your parents react if you came home with a D+ on a report card? Would there be consequences? What impact will this grade have on our country if it does not improve?
- 5. What is the estimated amount to get the country's infrastructure grade to a B, and where is this money supposed to come from? Who's responsible for paying for it? Would you be willing to pay a toll (fee) to use all freeways and bridges if you knew they were guaranteed to be in excellent condition? What other ways could funds be raised?
Click here to view more: //www.cnbc.com/2017/03/09/engineers-give-americas-infrastructure-a-near-failing-grade.html
Posted March 7, 2017
Facebook Launches A New Tool That Combats Fake News
BY AMIT CHOWDHRY, FORBES
During the presidential campaign late last year, substantial amounts of misleading information in the form of fake news spread about President Donald Trump and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Facebook and Google. Google responded by banning fake news outlets from the AdSense display ad network and by tweaking the Google News algorithm to filter out fake news. And Facebook has just launched a tool that flags fakes news in the News Feed, according to a tweet posted by Gizmodo investigative reporter Anna Merlan.
In the screenshot above, you will notice a headline that says "Trump's Unsecured Android Device Source Of Recent White House Leaks." This fake news article was spread by a website called TheSeattleTribune.com. While this domain might sound legitimate and the homepage does not show any signs of the website being a fake news source, it has an inapparent disclaimer that says "The Seattle Tribune is a news and entertainment satire web publication. The Seattle Tribune may or may not use real names, often in semi-real or mostly fictitious ways. All news articles contained within The Seattle Tribune are fictional and presumably satirical news--with the exception of our 'list style' articles that include relevant sources." However, the article about President Trump's "unsecured Android device" was viewed nearly 200,000 times and TheSeattleTimes.com financially benefitted from duping people into thinking it was real news.
Fortunately, Facebook's new tool appears to be showing that the article was "Disputed by Snopes.com and PolitiFact" so that users should not be fooled into thinking that it is true going forward. Snopes is a website that clears up misinformation that spreads on the Internet and PolitiFact fact-checks political claims by officials. All of the non-partisan fact-checkers that Facebook appointed to help with the prevention of misinformation are required to sign a "Code of Principles" by the Poynter non-profit school for journalism.
Back in December 2016, Facebook said that it would bury fake news articles and label them as hoaxes in the News Feed. Facebook also made it easier to report a hoax if you see one on Facebook by clicking on the upper right-hand corner of a post and tapping on "It's a fake news story." After a story is flagged as disputed, it will be reviewed by the third-party fact-checkers. And if has been proven to be a fake news story, then the post cannot be turned into an ad or promoted. Here is a video that Facebook posted in December about the new reporting tool: https://vimeo.com/195753689
Facebook is also compiling a list of website domains that have been notorious for posting fake news so that it is automatically flagged.
As the words "fake news" became more mainstream over the last few months, President Donald Trump started using them on a regular basis to describe some of the larger news outlets such as CNN and The New York Times.
Former President Barack Obama also acknowledged that the spread of fake news on Facebook became a major problem during Hillary Clinton's campaign trail. "The way campaigns have unfolded, we just start accepting crazy stuff as normal. And people, if they just repeat attacks enough and outright lies over and over again, as long as it's on Facebook and people can see it, as long as it's on social media, people start believing it. And it creates this dust cloud of nonsense," said Obama during a Hillary for America rally in Ann Arbor last year.
One of the biggest victims of fake news was a pizza restaurant in Washington, D.C. called Comet Ping Pong. A fake news article claiming Hillary Clinton and her aides were involved in human trafficking at the Comet Ping Pong location in Washington, D.C. quickly spread on social media. So a 28-year-old from North Carolina fired his rifle inside the pizzeria and attempted to search for child slaves. Later he surrendered to the police after discovering there weren't any child slaves there. This incident has been labeled as "PizzaGate."
Initially, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was skeptical that the spread of fake news on Facebook could have influenced the election. During an interview at the Techonomy conference in November 2016, Zuckerberg said that it was a "pretty crazy idea." But about a month later, he published a Facebook status that said: "While we don't write the news stories you read and share, we also recognize we're more than just a distributor of news. We're a new kind of platform for public discourse--and that means we have a new kind of responsibility to enable people to have the most meaningful conversations, and to build a space where people can be informed."
Facebook's Fake Advertisement Problem
Interestingly, Forbes staff writer Matt Drange recently pointed out that Facebook is also vulnerable to fake advertisements. Facebook ads are being created that appear to be directing users to a trustworthy website, but it redirects them somewhere else when the ad is clicked on using a bait-and-switch approach also known as "domain spoofing" and "clickjacking." This can be done in the Facebook ad platform where users are able to manually enter the URL displayed in each ad. Google faces a similar problem with its AdWords platform and the Internet giant ended up having to remove 1.7 billion ads in 2016 alone--which is more than double the previous year.
Facebook spokesman Tom Channick told Drange that the ability to edit the URL is "not always misleading or malicious." As an example of the URL changing feature being beneficial, Channick said a nonprofit that is running a donation campaign through a third-party site would likely want to display the organization website URL in the ad instead.
When Will I See The Facebook Post Disputes?
Facebook posts that have been flagged as disputes are not appearing for everyone yet. It seems like Facebook is rolling out the feature over time. Most likely, every Facebook user should see this feature appear in the coming weeks.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Have you seen fake news articles or ads promoted on social media? How do you know? What did you do to distinguish the real from the fake?
- 3. Do you use Facebook? What's your opinion of it? What other social media sites do you use where possible fake news is easily spread?
- 4. Is fake news a recent phenomenon, or has it always been there lurking in the corners of the interweb? Why do you think there is suddenly such an influx of fake news in the mainstream? Do you feel that mainstream news as a whole is accurate and objective?
- 5. Is fake news dangerous to our society? Harmless satire? Justify your perspective.
- 6. What are your thoughts about Facebook's new fake news tool? Is this a good way to prevent the spread of misinformation? Is Facebook doing enough? Will this tool actually make a difference?
Click here to view more: https://www.forbes.com/sites/amitchowdhry/2017/03/05/facebook-fake-news-tool/#7fde8c907ec1
Posted February 28, 2017
Oscars Poll: 66 Percent of Trump Voters Turn Off Awards Shows When Speeches Get Political
BY THR STAFF
A THR and National Research Group survey reveals how Clinton voters and Trump voters view the Oscars differently.
And you thought Obamacare was a hot-button issue. According to a new THR poll, Americans are nearly as divided about the Oscars as they are about health care.
The survey--conducted by the National Research Group, which in early February canvassed 800 people (half Hillary Clinton voters, half Donald Trump voters) for their opinions about movies, award shows and politics--reveals that two-thirds of Trumpsters have turned off their TV sets because of an actor giving a political speech at the podium, compared to just 19 percent of Clinton voters.
Even if they don't hit the off button, 44 percent of Trump voters find awards speeches "too political" while Clinton supporters want more politics at the Academy Awards; 43 percent say they want winners to reference Trump's temperament in their speeches (compared to 8 percent of Trump voters), 39 percent would like more discussion of women's rights at the Oscars (8 percent for Trump voters) and 34 percent would like more talk about Trump's seven-nation travel ban (7 percent for Trump voters).
In general, 68 percent of Trump voters say they "dislike" political speeches at the Oscars while only 23 percent of Clinton voters feel the same. About the only area of agreement is that neither side finds Oscar acceptance speeches particularly convincing: Only about a quarter of respondents on both sides of the political fence said their opinion about an issue has ever been changed by an awards show.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Does the survey and data obtained have validity? Why or why not? Could anything have been done differently to improve the credibility of the results?
- 2. What's your take on mixing politics with awards shows? Is there a place for political speeches at an awards show? Do you personally like seeing/hearing them?
- 3. Do the political speeches made by celebrities influence how you think about politics? Why or why not?
- 4. Analyze this infographic as a whole. How do Democratic and Republican supporters differ in their opinions about political speeches during awards shows? What other observations can be made?
- 5. Does the divide being displayed exist because a Republican president is currently the one being criticized? Would the statistics be consistent if Hillary Clinton were currently in office? Explain your perspective.
- 6. Reflect on the proverb, "Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones." What does it mean to live in a glass house? Is this saying applicable to Hollywood?
Click here to view more: //www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/oscars-poll-66-trump-voters-turn-awards-shows-speeches-get-political-978268
Posted February 21, 2017
Philadelphia's Soda Sellers Say Tax Has Reduced Sales by as Much as 50%
BY JENNIFER KAPLAN, BLOOMBERG
• Distributors, retailers say revenue is down in city stores
• Levy of 1.5 cents per ounce on sugary drinks began on Jan. 1
Philadelphia's six-week-old tax on sweetened beverages is already taking a toll on drink distributors and grocers, with some reporting sales drops of as much as 50 percent.
Canada Dry Delaware Valley--a local distributor of Canada Dry Ginger Ale, Sunkist, A&W Root Beer, Arizona Iced Tea and Vita Coco--said business fell 45 percent in Philadelphia in the first five weeks of 2017, compared with the same period last year. Total revenue at Brown's Super Stores, which operates 12 ShopRite and Fresh Grocer supermarkets, fell 15 percent at its six retailers in the city.
"In 30 years of business, there's never been a circumstance in which we've ever had a sales decline of any significant amount," said Jeff Brown, chief executive officer of Brown's Super Stores. "I would describe the impact as nothing less than devastating."
Philadelphia became the first major U.S. city to implement a soft-drink tax when it approved a levy of 1.5 cents per ounce on sweetened beverages in June, almost doubling the price of 12 packs of cans and two-liter bottles. The legislation gave momentum to the anti-soda movement, further battering an industry that was already facing long-term sales declines amid increasing health concerns. Following Philadelphia with similar measures were the California cities of San Francisco and Oakland; Boulder, Colorado; and Cook County, Illinois, home of Chicago.
City Limits
Canada Dry Delaware Valley Chief Operating Officer Bob Brockway said he expects his business will decline by at least a third over the course of the year. He distributes more than 20 percent of all soft drinks in Philadelphia market. Even though retailers just outside the city limits have gotten a sales bump, that increase isn't enough to offset the drop in Philadelphia. Brockway said he'll have to lay off 30 of his 165 employees in the area in March. Depending on summer sales, the layoffs will probably continue, he said.
The sales declines are hurting grocery stores and bodegas in poor neighborhoods, where shoppers tend to buy in bulk, more than convenience stores, Brockway said. A 12-pack of cans for $2.99 is subject to a $2.16 tax. A $1.89 single-serve 20-ounce bottle, on the other hand, is only 30 cents more expensive now.
City officials say that because the levy is assessed at the distributor level, it isn't technically a sales tax. The reason that some prices have doubled is because distributors have chosen to pass along the increase to their customers, they say.
At Brown's stores, many of which were established in places previously designated as food deserts, beverage sales are down 50 percent. Jeff Brown said he's had to cut 5,000 to 6,000 hours of employment per week, the equivalent of about 280 jobs. Beverages are the biggest category in a grocery store, he said, with 4,000 products. When consumers drive outside the city to find cheaper prices, Brown said he's losing the non-beverage portion of their carts as well.
Accelerating Trend
The tax has accelerated declines in sweetened-beverage sales that were already in motion. Per capita soda consumption in the U.S. hit a three-decade low in 2015, according to Beverage Digest, a trade publication. Brockway says he hasn't had an increase in his sugar-sweetened beverage portfolio in the last eight years.
"The consumer over the last 10 years has already told us that we need to develop brands and packages that are either good for you or better for you," he said. "All that's happening with this tax is that it's accelerating that consumer dynamic."
Philadelphia's plan differed from about 40 other attempts to enact soda taxes in cities across the U.S. because Mayor Jim Kenney focused on the potential fiscal benefits of a tax, not public health. The levy is expected to generate $409.5 million over five years, according to Kenney, a first-term Democrat. Of that amount, $314 million would go to programs such as expanding pre-kindergarten and renovating recreation centers and libraries.
Too Soon
Advocates of the tax say it's far too soon to know what its impact will be. A 50 percent sales decline is significantly larger than what would be expected based on the results of previous sugary-beverage taxes in Mexico and Berkeley, California, according to Jim Krieger, executive director of Healthy Food America, an organization that supports soda taxes.
"This is just an attempt by industry to whip up the troops and try to turn back sound public policy," Krieger said. "The bottom line is that the purpose of the tax was to raise money for important needs and to serve the residents of Philadelphia, and it's doing precisely that."
The mayor's office said a drop in revenue was to be expected early in the year. For distributors, declines are higher than forecast because retailers stocked up on pre-tax inventory, said Mike Dunn, a spokesman for Kenney. Retailer declines will likely subside some as shoppers become more used to the new prices, stop driving out of the city to purchase groceries and substitute sugary drinks with more healthful, untaxed beverages, he said.
The American Beverage Association, a trade group representing Coca-Cola, PepsiCo Inc. and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, has challenged the tax in court.
Philadelphians for a Fair Future, a group that supported the tax, received donations from former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose philanthropy supports anti-smoking campaigns and other health initiatives. Bloomberg also gave more than $18 million to campaigns in support of the Oakland and San Francisco soda-tax initiatives, finance records show. The former mayor is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.
If the tax proves financially successful, it will spread to more parts of the country, according to John Stanton, professor of food marketing at Saint Joseph's University.
"If Philadelphia shows big revenues and there's not a huge amount of complaint, every city in the country will be doing it," he said. "It's a beautiful way to tax people and make them think you're doing them a favor."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. If the new Philadelphia soda tax is not a sales tax (because it's assessed at the distributor level), then why have soda prices as much as doubled in many instances?
- 3. It's understandable that soda companies would have lower sales initially as a result of this tax's implementation, but why are grocery store chains, such as Brown's Super Stores, being hurt by the soda tax?
- 4. Do you think that this tax on soda infringes on Philadelphians' freedom to choose whichever beverages that they'd like without penalty? Why or why not?
- 5. Is this tax a government overreach of power or an example of necessary government intervention to promote healthy lifestyles? Explain your position.
- 6. What are the benefits that the city of Philadelphia stands to gain from the new soda tax? What additional benefits could there be?
Click here to view more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-17/philly-soda-sellers-say-tax-has-reduced-sales-by-as-much-as-50
Posted February 14, 2017
Coed CYO hoops team defies archdiocese order to kick girls out, forfeits season
BY JESSICA REMO, NJ ADVANCE MEDIA, FEBRUARY 12, 2017
On Friday night, after four years of CYO basketball together, the nine boys and two girls on the St. John's 5th grade team had to make a decision: Play without the girls or give up the rest of the season.
Two weeks prior, the team was told by the league's director that they should never have played as a coed team and the girls would not be allowed to play on the team for the last two games of the season. Parents said the team's record was wiped, too, since the girls had played in those games "illegally."
But no one expected what was coming next: The boys, hearing the news, decided they simply would not play ball without their girl teammates.
After the team and their opponents from St. Bartholomew the Apostle in Scotch Plains suited up for the game at the St. John's gym, refs said they had been instructed by the league director, Rich Donovan, not to work if the girls played.
For 15 minutes, there was a stalemate as the teams, coaches and officials couldn't come to an agreement about what should happen next. Couldn't the St. Bart's players just play an unofficial game, with the girls included, and collect a win due to the "official" game being forfeited? Would playing cause them any repercussions from the league?
"One parent told me it's my decision (whether the girls play), but I said no way, I'm not making this decision for 11 10-year-olds," says St. John's coach Rob Martel.
And so even though they were sure of what the answer would be, the parents posed the question to the kids again.
"Is your decision to play the game without the two young ladies on the team, or do you want to stay as a team as you have all year?" asked parent Matthew Dohn. "Show of hands for play as a team?"
Eleven hands shot up in unison. No one raised a hand when asked the alternative.
Assistant coach Keisha Martel, who is also the mom of one of the girls, Kayla Martel, reminded the team of the consequences. They had been told that playing the girls in any game would mean the rest of the season would be forfeited.
"But if the girls play, this will be the end of your season. You won't play in the playoffs," she warned.
"It doesn't matter," one boy replied and others echoed, before the team began to chant, "Unity!"
In the crowd, supporters cheered along. Several parents began to cry.
"Pride. Just pure pride," answered parent Denise Laskody through tears when asked what she thought of the vote. "These kids are doing the right thing. We don't have to tell them what to do. They just know. It's amazing."
The refs wouldn't take the court. The St. Bart's team, who had already warmed up, exited the gym. Some St. Bart's parents, hearing about the drama, told St. John's parents they were sorry and that they would have loved to have played, but it was out of their hands. The St. Bart's coach would not comment for this story.
Still, the St. John's team had decided, come what may, they were playing a game of basketball Friday night. Half of the St. John's players wore navy blue T-shirts parents had ordered with "#unitygames" emblazoned on the fronts. They played against the other half of their team, girls included. Two older girls from other St. John's teams volunteered as refs. With big smiles, the team took to the court for the last time together.
The decision to remove the girls came two weeks ago, after a complaint was filed when St. John's played St. Theresa's, a few miles away in Kenilworth. There, another crusade is being waged - the family of a 7th grade girl, Sydney Phillips, sued after the school wouldn't allow her to play for its boys basketball team. Phillips and her sister were expelled from the school after the suit, but on Feb. 3, an appeals court judge ruled they must be allowed to return to school.
Jim Goodness, spokesman for the archdiocese of Newark, said rules specifically state the teams should be boys or girls only, and said St. John's athletic director, Jack Cajuste, admitted he made an error in allowing the team to exist this way for the past four years.
Cajuste, when approached at the game on Friday, declined to comment and demanded NJ Advance Media staff leave the gym, but then allowed reporters to remain so long as we did not take any more photos inside the gym.
Before eating pizza at a party in the school's teacher's lounge after the game, one of the boys led the prayer.
"We are all here today supporting the girls and having this fun game," he said. "It's been a great season and it's been fun having all you guys play basketball. Amen."
One of the girls, Kayla Martel, told NJ Advance Media she knows her teammates have her back.
"It has a big impact on me because it shows that they care. I'm part of them just as they're part of me and they don't want to break that bond just like I don't want to break that bond," Kayla Martel said. "I think the rules are ridiculous."
It seemed the battle could still be won at a point: Seeing the boys' resolve, parents took up the fight and even had St. John's pastor, Rev. Robert G. McBride, hand-deliver a letter to the archdiocese's newly installed cardinal, Joseph W. Tobin.
The parents say Tobin initially took their side, saying the girls could at least finish out their season, but days later, he rescinded his decision, citing legal issues, they say.
"My understanding is there were conversations, but at the end of day the vicar general notified everyone that the situation needs to remain the way it was discussed with them," Goodness said of Tobin's decision.
Alexandra Costa, a mother of one of the boys on the team also wrote to the league director, relaying her experience playing as a girl on a boys soccer team.
"I learned to play tougher and earn my keep and it prepared me for life in a special way for which I am extremely grateful. ... This glass ceiling that you are trying to replace was shattered over 25 years ago. Let's not go back in time. Rest assured that I am willing to stand behind these girls as someone did for me many years ago. Not to mention, it's the right thing to do as Catholics. They are 10-year-old children. They have a lifetime of disappointments ahead of them; let's not create an unnecessary one now."
In a reply to Costa's email, Donovan said he understood her frustration and anger, but the facts are their roster is illegal per league guidelines, it was reported by another program and the proper protocols must now be followed. Donovan did not respond to a request for comments on the decision.
In league rules obtained by NJ Advance Media, there is no mention of whether the teams in the St. John's team's division--the JV black league--can or cannot be coed, though other divisions are mentioned as strictly boys or girls teams.
The girls have played with the boys for this long because there were not enough interested girls their same age to form a separate team, the parents say. In the Kenilworth case, the Phillips are facing the same issue of a lack of interest and no team for their daughter to join other than the boys team. When told about the boys sticking up for the girls at St. John's, Scott Phillips said "that's what teamwork is all about."
"That team should be commended, the coaches should be commended and the parents should be commend[ed] for raising kids like that," he said when reached Friday.
And what will happen next year? If the girls can't get enough girls their age to play, they would be without a team or forced to play for another parish in the league, parents said. But they cannot continue with the boys they've always played with.
"They're kids and all they wanted to do was play," said Rob Martel. "This is adults that couldn't figure out how to let the kids play two more games. This isn't the WNBA or NBA. ... They're just trying to get better, and I think they got better today."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Beyond merely keeping boys and girls on separate teams, what other purposes could the league rule that prohibits coed teams have? Is it a just rule?
- 3. Should girls and boys be forced to play on separate teams? If there is no girls team available at a school for a particular sport, shouldn't girls be given the option to play on the boys team? Why or why not?
- 4. If the reverse situation occurred where boys wanted to play on a girls team against other all-girls teams because no boys teams were available, would that be acceptable? Is there a double standard?
- 5. Looking at the bigger picture, should all sports be coed? Would this change work for all sports, or just some? Who would coed sports have a bigger impact on, boys or girls? Explain your perspective.
Click here to view more: //www.nj.com/union/index.ssf/2017/02/st_johns_cyo_girls_cant_play_with_boys_basketball.html
Posted February 7, 2017
Refugee Family's Journey to America
BY CHANNEL ONE NEWS
FEBRUARY 6, 2017
...Tom: So if you have been paying attention to the news at all, I am sure you guys have heard about the travel ban put in place by President Trump. It temporarily banned travel from certain countries and, of course, the Refugee Program. It has been back and forth in court. Some say it is about safety; others argue it is unconstitutional.
Over the weekend a judge put it on hold, but both sides are due back in court today, and it could all change again. If the ban is allowed, one group that will be barred indefinitely is Syrian refugees. So we wanted to know more about the process for refugees to come here. Keith Kocinski went to Massachusetts to meet one family and hear their story.
Keith: Just like many of us, Jawad and Jehad Shalabi wake up before the sun comes up, get dressed, grab breakfast, kiss their mother goodbye and head to school. But this life is very different from their life just a few years ago, when every day there was a chance these two brothers wouldn't make it home safely.
Jehad Shalabi: Sometimes I have nightmares about living in the dangerous conditions. I see and hear a lot of bombs going off and one of the buildings falling down.
Keith: Jawad and Jehad and their mother, Lina, left Syria shortly after the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011. Citizens revolted against the government, and the government began cracking down on protestors and other groups. The chaos and civil war allowed the terror group ISIS to take hold there and in nearby Iraq. More than 400,000 Syrians have died in the war--many citizens caught in the crossfire.
Lina Radwan: Before the revolution everything was beautiful, and it was safe, and it was a normal country. At the beginning of the revolution, there was a lot of fear, and I could not get out of the house. I heard bombs and rockets, and there was always the sound of snipers, but I didn't know what side the snipers were from.
Keith: The family fled to nearby Lebanon and then Egypt, where they applied to become refugees, a legal designation for a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution or natural disaster.
Cheryl Hamilton: Nobody chooses to be a refugee, by any means. The choice is often made for you.
Keith: Refugees get certain rights under international law, including help moving to another country. But it isn't quick or easy.
Radwan: In Egypt I applied with the UN, and I got accepted, and then I had my first interview. After that, interviews followed interviews--about seven in total. The security check took most of the time. We had fingerprinting and eye scanning. They accepted us, and then we had a medical checkup, and the whole thing took about two years.
Keith: That is part of the around 20-step process refugees currently have to go through before entering the United States, starting off by registering with the United Nations. Then, there is an interview with the United Nations. Refugee status needs to be granted by the United Nations.
Then they receive a referral for resettlement in the United States, followed by an interview with State Department contractors, then the first background check, higher-level background check, another background check, first fingerprint screening, second fingerprint screening, third fingerprint screening, review at the United States Immigration headquarters.
Then, some cases are referred for additional review, followed by an extensive, in-person interview with Homeland Security officers--Homeland Security approval is required--screening for contagious diseases, cultural orientation class. Then, they get matched with an American resettlement agency, a multi-agency security check before leaving for the United States and the last step: a final security check at an American airport.
But is it enough to make sure terrorists and those trying to cause harm to Americans are kept from pretending to be refugees to get into the U.S.? Well, President Donald Trump doesn't think so.
President Donald Trump: I am establishing new vetting measures to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America. We don't want them here.
Keith: Trump recently imposed a 90-day travel ban from seven Middle Eastern Muslim-majority countries and a 120-day halt to the country's Refugee Program, closing the border to all refugees and for Syrian refugees like Jehad and Jawad. The ban doesn't have an end date.
The president has said we need "extreme vetting" of refugees, but he hasn't said what would change in the 20-step process. According to the Cato Institute, no refugees have carried out fatal terrorist attacks on U.S. soil since the Refugee Act of 1980.
Over the past 40 years, a total of three and a quarter million refugees came into the U.S. from all over the world. Out of those millions, 20 were convicted of some form of terrorism charges. And of the recent attacks on U.S. soil, like Orlando or San Bernardino, those were committed by U.S. citizens. America's biggest attack--September 11--that was committed by people from countries not included in the ban, like Saudi Arabia.
Cheryl Hamilton is the director of partner engagement for the International Institute of New England, an organization in charge of resettling refugees.
[Keith:] Do you believe that the steps in the process that is currently in place are enough to ensure our security?
Hamilton: I think what we have seen is that there is no other immigrant coming to this country that is screened as rigorously as refugees, so I do feel confident about it. You're talking about a program that's 35 years old, and there has never been an attack on U.S. soil by a refugee.
Keith: Jawad and Jehad are grateful they made it to the U.S. eight months ago, before the ban. Jawad and Jehad moved here to Lowell, Massachusetts. And if you walk around the streets here, you will see a variety of restaurants and faces from many different places around the world. That is because one-fourth of the around 100,000 people that live here were born in a different country.
As for Jawad and Jehad, they will continue their fresh start and new life here playing soccer, studying and following their dreams.
Jehad and Jawad: The president needs to protect his country. There should be strict rules to make sure that people coming in don't have weapons, and they need to check the person out before they come to the U.S. Not everyone is a terrorist, and I ask Donald Trump to step back on his decision banning refugees from coming to the United States.
Keith: Keith Kocinski, Channel One News.
Tom: Now, of the 5 million Syrian refugees, the U.S. has accepted about 14,000; that is less than 1 percent. And two-thirds of them are women and children under 12...
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Many articles and editorials about the temporary travel ban have come out since the executive order was signed. How is this story different? Do you detect a bias? If so, in what way?
- 3. What has President Trump stated is the purpose of the travel ban? Who is affected, and for how long?
- 4. Summarize the current vetting process that refugees must go through before gaining entry to the United States. How do you think this rigorous process could be made more efficient and effective?
- 5. What is your perspective on the temporary travel ban and halt to the refugee program? List and analyze the potential costs and benefits of this government action.
Click here to view more: https://www.channelone.com/transcript
Posted January 31, 2017
What is an executive order? And how do President Trump's stack up?
BY AARON BLAKE
President Trump's first week in office has been marked by two things: controversy (over things like his inaugural crowd size and voter fraud accusations), and executive orders.
The first is old hat for Trump. But for casual observers--and even some political junkies who are paying close attention to Trump's policy moves--the second might be a little foreign. Trump signed two more executive orders on Friday, attempting to fulfill his promise of "extreme vetting" to keep potential "radical Islamic terrorists" out of the United States.
So what is an executive action or executive order? And how unusual is what Trump is doing with them?
Below, an explainer.
What is an executive order?
Basically, an executive order is an official statement from the president about how the federal agencies he oversees are to use their resources.
It falls under the broader umbrella of "executive actions," which derive their power from Article II of the Constitution, and it is the most formal executive action. Executive actions also include presidential memorandums (which are a step below executive orders and basically outline the administration's position on a policy issue), proclamations and directives.
An executive order is not the president creating new law or appropriating new money from the U.S. Treasury--both things that are the domain of Congress; it is the president instructing the government how it is to work within the parameters that are already set by Congress and the Constitution.
Trump's executive order on building a border wall, for example, basically establishes building the wall as a federal priority and directs the Department of Homeland Security to use already-available funding to get the ball rolling on its construction.
The president's executive orders are recorded in the Federal Register and are considered binding, but they are subject to legal review. (More on that next.)
How can a president do this?
In a word: carefully. Executive orders have often been the subject of controversy, with the opposition party accusing the president of overstepping his authority and acting like a dictator. Basically, they're arguing that he's changing the law rather than working within it.
This came up most recently after former president Barack Obama signed executive orders exempting the children of illegal immigrants and parents of legal children from deportation. They are known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals--or DACA--and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents--or DAPA.
The plans would shield about 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation, but Republican governors and attorneys general have sued, alleging that Obama was essentially implementing immigration reform on his own--overstepping his authority. In June, the Supreme Court deadlocked, leaving a federal judge's ruling blocking the programs in place.
And questions have already arisen about the legality of an early Trump executive order involving illegal immigration: his order denying federal funding to sanctuary cities. Expect a court fight there, too.
What is the history of executive orders?
They have been around for as long as we've had presidents, in fact--all the way back to George Washington.
Some of the most historically significant--whether for good or ill--include:
• The Emancipation Proclamation (Abraham Lincoln)
• The suspension of habeas corpus during the Civil War (Lincoln)
• Sending federal troops to integrate Little Rock, Ark., schools (Dwight Eisenhower)
• The internment of Japanese Americans (Franklin Roosevelt)
• The desegregation of the Armed Forces (Harry Truman)
How do Trump's number and scope of executive orders compare, historically?
While Trump's first days in office have seemed to be full of executive actions, that's not really all that uncommon. A new president often shows up with many directives for the agencies he takes oversight of.
Back in 2009, for example, Obama signed nine executive orders in his first 10 days and 16 total in January and February.
Trump is under that curve so far. Through his first seven days, he has signed six executive orders (along with eight memorandums and one proclamation).
Of course, many executive orders can be pretty mundane; the true measure is how far he goes with his orders. That's a measurement that's both subjective and subject to legal review. To judge for yourself, see the orders and memorandums for yourself here.
Trump's executive orders before Friday--the border wall, sanctuary cities, beginning the repeal of Obamacare and expediting the Keystone XL pipeline--rankled Democrats who disagree with those policies. And that is even more the case with Friday's executive orders, which Democrats have argued amount to a thinly veiled ban on Muslim immigrants and refugees.
Whether any of them overstep Trump's authority or the spirit of the Constitution, though, is a debate that will occur in the coming weeks and months.
What are the political advantages and disadvantages of executive orders?
Executive actions are sometimes derogatorily referred to as "legislating by executive order"--basically, what a president does when Congress won't comply with his wishes.
That's not always the case--especially on more minor executive orders--but often, it is. Obama's executive orders on immigration, for example, came after years of failed attempts at comprehensive immigration reform, and Obama cited those failures when pitching the need for executive action that even he once suggested was beyond his authority. And any president would rather have Congress's stamp of approval on something controversial like that.
The political downside to executive orders, then, basically boils down to two things: 1) Getting struck down by the courts, and 2) Looking like you can't pass your agenda through Congress and are acting as an all-powerful executive--in a system designed to limit absolute power.
The upside is, of course, that you can try to do this all by yourself, with just the stroke of a pen. (And then hope for the best.)
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. What are "executive orders"? What makes them so controversial?
- 3. How do President Trump's number and scope of executive orders stack up comparatively?
- 4. What limits are currently in place on the executive orders of presidents and what limits do you think there should be? Can an executive order be reversed?
- 5. What are the political advantages and disadvantages of a president using executive orders to take action on issues?
- 6. Do you think that any order bypassing Congress (and our country's legislative process) should automatically be deemed illegal (unconstitutional)? Why or why not?
Click here to view more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/01/27/what-is-an-executive-order-and-how-do-president-trumps-stack-up/?utm_term=.a412849c9c6c&wpisrc=nl_most-draw7&wpmm=1
Posted January 24, 2017
Donald Trump Sworn In as the 45th President of the United States: 'The Time for Empty Talk Is Over'
BY KATIE REILLY
He took the oath of office at noon
After running a bruising and unprecedented campaign, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th President of the United States on Friday.
His inaugural address repeated the populist message that helped him win the election.
"Today, we are not merely transferring power from one administration to another, or from one party to another, but we are transferring power from Washington D.C. and giving it back to you, the people," Trump said after taking the oath of office, administered by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. "The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country. Their victories have not been your victories. Their triumphs have not been your triumphs."
His speech, which ran less than 20 minutes, stressed a nationalistic policy focused on America and working people. As he did during his campaign, Trump painted a bleak picture of America's economic standing and warned that the country's borders must be protected "from the ravages of other countries."
"We've made other countries rich, while the wealth, strength and confidence of our country has dissipated over the horizon," he said. "From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land. From this day forward, it's going to be only America first. America first."
Trump's speech focused little on healing the lasting divisions of the presidential campaign--made evident by protesters gathered in the nation's capital to demonstrate opposition to the incoming president.
"The crime and the gangs and the drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential--this American carnage stops right here and stops right now," he said.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton--who was defeated by Trump in a tight presidential race--attended the inauguration with her husband, former President Bill Clinton.
"I'm here today to honor our democracy & its enduring values. I will never stop believing in our country & its future," she said in a tweet shortly before the ceremony began.
Bill Clinton was among several previous commanders-in-chief in attendance, including former Presidents Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush. Former President George H.W. Bush could not attend due to health concerns.
Trump pledged to bring back jobs, wipe out "radical Islamic terrorism" and restore American industry and factories.
"The time for empty talk is over," he said. "Now arrives the hour of action."
Trump's inauguration was preceded by Mike Pence's swearing-in as Vice President with an oath of office administered by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, praised the peaceful transition of power in his opening remarks, describing the historic event as "not a celebration of victory, but a celebration of democracy." His remarks were followed by invocations from several religious leaders.
New York Sen. Chuck Schumer also spoke at the ceremony. His remarks stood in contrast to much of Trump's rhetoric during the divisive presidential campaign, as he stressed that Americans are united--"whatever our race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, whether we are immigrant or native-born, whether we live with disabilities or do not, in wealth or in poverty."
Shortly after the inauguration, Trump signed executive orders formally nominating members of his cabinet and a waiver allowing retired Marine Gen. James Mattis to serve as defense secretary despite a law that would have required him to be out of active military duty for seven years. He also signed a proclamation creating the National Day of Patriotism.
Trump and First Lady Melania Trump spent the morning participating in the traditions that coincide with every presidential inauguration, visiting the White House for tea and coffee with the Obamas, who have sought to emphasize the importance of a peaceful transition of power.
The Obama administration spent its final hours in the White House readying their former offices for the complex task of preparing 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue for a new president, as Obama concluded his round of farewells.
He made a final visit Friday morning to the Oval Office, where he left a parting letter to Trump on the Resolute desk--a presidential tradition. Asked if he had any final words for the American people, he said only, "Thank you."
Hours later, Trump concluded his speech--his first as president--with a promise to the American people.
"From mountain to mountain, from ocean to ocean, hear these words: you will never be ignored again," he said. "Your voice, your hopes and your dreams will define our American destiny."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. With Donald Trump being sworn in as the 45th president of the United States, how is this the 58th inauguration ceremony?
- 2. What does the author mean when she writes, "His inaugural address repeated the populist message that helped him win the election"? What does it mean to promote a populist message?
- 3. What issues did President Trump discuss during his inaugural address?
- 4. Were you able to watch any of the inauguration day ceremonies? Did your parents watch? What's your opinion of this transition of power?
- 5. What were the three main pledges that Trump made in his inaugural address?
- 6. What now? Make a prediction as to the first major change that President Trump will tackle in his new role. What impact might the new president have on the nation?
Click here to view more: //time.com/4640703/donald-trump-inauguration-day-2017/
Posted January 17, 2017
As robots take jobs, Europeans mull free money for all
BY JOHN LEICESTER, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PARIS (AP)--I am, therefore I'm paid.
The radical notion that governments should hand out free money to everyone--rich and poor, those who work and those who don't--is slowly but surely gaining ground in Europe. Yes, you read that right: a guaranteed monthly living allowance, no strings attached.
In France, two of the seven candidates vying to represent the ruling Socialist Party in this year's presidential election are promising modest but regular stipends to all French adults. A limited test is already underway in Finland, with other experiments planned elsewhere, including in the United States.
Called "universal income" by some, "universal basic income" or just "basic income" by others, the idea has been floated in various guises since at least the mid-19th century. After decades on the fringes of intellectual debate, it became more mainstream in 2016, with Switzerland holding a referendum--and overwhelmingly rejecting--a proposed basic income of around $2,500 per month.
"An incredible year," says Philippe Van Parijs, a founder of the Basic Income Earth Network that lobbies for such payments. "There has been more written and said on basic income than in the whole history of mankind."
But before you write a resignation letter to your boss in anticipation of never needing to work again, be warned: there are multiple questions, including how to finance such schemes. Here is a look at the issues:
WHY THE MOUNTING INTEREST?
In a word, robots. With automated systems and machines increasingly replacing human workers, France could lose 3 million jobs by 2025, says Benoit Hamon, a former education minister campaigning for the French presidency on a promise of gradually introducing no-strings-attached payments for all. As work becomes scarcer, a modest but regular guaranteed income would stop people from fearing the future and free up their time for family, the needy and themselves, he argues.
It could also encourage people to take risks, start businesses and try new activities without the risk of losing welfare benefits.
The other pro-basic income candidate for the Socialist Party presidential ticket is outsider Jean-Luc Bennahmias. Like Hamon, the former European Parliament lawmaker argues that it is pointless to expect the return of economic boom times, with jobs for all.
"Growth at two, three, four or five percent in western countries: it's finished," he said in a televised debate last week. "We have to speak the truth."
Outside research backs up their arguments. An Oxford University study in 2015 estimated nearly half of the American workforce is at risk of automation.
PUT TO THE TEST
Finland's small-scale, two-year trial that started Jan. 1 aims to answer a frequent question from basic income opponents: With a guaranteed 560 euros ($600) a month, will the 2,000 human guinea pigs--drawn randomly from Finland's unemployed--just laze around?
Budget constraints and opposition from multiple quarters stymied ambitions for a broader test, says Olli Kangas from the Finnish government agency KELA, which is responsible for the country's social benefits.
"It's a pretty watered down version," he said in a telephone interview. "We had to make a huge number of compromises."
Still, he argues that such studies are essential in helping societies prepare for changed labor markets of the future.
"I'm not saying that basic income is the solution," he said. "I'm just saying that it's a solution that we have to think about."
In the Netherlands, the city of Utrecht this year plans to trial no-strings welfare payments that will also allow test groups to work on the side if they choose--again, in part, to study the effect on their motivation to find work.
To prepare for "a world where technology replaces existing jobs and basic income becomes necessary," Silicon Valley startup financier Y Combinator says it plans a pilot study in Oakland, California, paying recipients an unconditional income because "we want to see how people experience that freedom."
THE COST
Obviously, expensive. Hamon proposes the gradual introduction of basic income schemes in France, starting with 600 euros ($640) per month for the nation's poor and 18-25-year-olds before scaling up payments to 750 euros ($800) for all adults--for a total estimated annual cost of 400 billion euros ($425 billion).
Part of the cost could be financed by taxing goods and services produced by automated systems and machines, he says. Opponents argue that doing so would simply prompt companies to move robots elsewhere, out of reach of French tax collectors.
Doing away with housing, family, poverty and unemployment benefits could free up more than 100 billion euros ($106 billion) to fold into a replacement basic income scheme.
There'd also be less red tape, saving money that way, too, but switching to basic income would still require new taxes, a 2016 Senate report said.
It estimated that paying everyone 500 to 1,000 euros ($530-$1,100) per month would cost 300 billion to 700 billion euros ($745 billion-$320 billion) annually. It recommended starting with three-year pilot schemes with trials involving 20,000-30,000 people.
THE CONS
Costs aside, opponents argue that guaranteed incomes would promote laziness and devalue the concept of work. Hamon's opponents for the Socialist presidential ticket dispute as false his argument that jobs for humans are growing scarcer.
Ultimately, to see the light of day, basic income schemes will need political champions, said Van Parijs.
"We need radical ideas as targets and then we need clever tinkering to move in that direction," he said.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Explain the idea of "universal basic income." Who would this benefit? Where is this idea becoming increasingly popular?
- 3. What effects are robots and technological advancements having on the economies of developed countries?
- 4. "Guaranteed incomes would promote laziness and devalue the concept of work." Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Defend your position.
- 5. Weigh the pros and cons of having a basic income system here in the U.S. Is this a good thing for our country to consider doing? Why or why not?
Click here to view more: //www.seattletimes.com/business/as-robots-take-jobs-europeans-mull-free-money-for-all/
Posted January 10, 2017
How did Fort Lauderdale suspect get gun back?
BY DARRAN SIMON, CNN
(CNN) -- He was incoherent and agitated. Voices in his head told him to join ISIS, according to law enforcement sources.
Authorities were so concerned when Esteban Santiago visited the FBI Anchorage, Alaska, office in November that they confiscated his gun and ordered a mental health evaluation. A month later, Santiago retrieved the weapon from police headquarters.
Last week, Santiago, 26, used that same gun, law enforcement sources said, to kill five people and wound several others at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Santiago confessed to planning the assault, according to court papers.
As authorities work to pinpoint Santiago's motive, others are asking another question: Why did the suspected gunman still have his firearm?
Federal law
The federal Gun Control Act bars a person "who has been adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to any mental institution," from owning a firearm.
That means a court or a lawful judicial authority must have issued an order requiring an involuntary mental health commitment, according to CNN legal analyst Paul Callan, a former New York City homicide prosecutor.
"Unless there was some sort of a court order requiring involuntary commitment for mental health treatment, under existing gun control legislation, he could not be deprived of his constitutional right to possess a weapon," Callan said.
Callan added, "People who submit to voluntary mental health treatment don't lose their right to possess firearms under current US law."
Callan said mental health authorities are required by law to warn potential targets of a possible violent attack if the patient reveals this during their treatment.
It's unknown how long Santiago spent in the medical facility for his mental evaluation and what it revealed.
Gun control laws pertaining to the mentally ill
Some states have adopted tougher restrictions than federal laws on gun ownership for people with mental health issues.
In Maryland, a person may not possess a regulated firearm if the person suffers from a mental disorder or "has a history of violent behavior" against other persons, according to the Washington, D.C.-based National Conference of State Legislatures.
"Some other states include voluntary commitment in their barriers to gun ownership," said CNN legal analyst Danny Cevallos, a personal injury and criminal defense attorney.
In the District of Columbia, police have to confirm that a registration applicant "has not been voluntarily or involuntarily committed to any mental hospital or institution" in the five years immediately preceding the application. The applicant must present medical documents showing they have recovered from the mental issue that led to the commitment, according the law.
Alaska, however, follows the federal law on mental health and gun ownership.
Santiago's brother, Bryan, told CNN in an interview he believed the shooting rampage stemmed from mental issues that surfaced after Santiago's 10-month tour in Iraq while serving in the Puerto Rico National Guard.
Santiago requested medical help from the military and federal agencies, his brother said. He received some treatment.
In Santiago's meeting with the FBI, he told them an intelligence agency was telling him to watch ISIS videos, law enforcement sources said. He said he didn't intend to harm anyone, the FBI said.
The FBI said it closed its assessment of Santiago after conducting database reviews, checking with other agencies and interviewing family members, according to a senior federal law enforcement official.
"There is a big difference between recognizing something is very off about a person and them being actually adjudicated with a mental defect or involuntarily committed," said Cevallos.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Who does the federal Gun Control Act prevent from having a gun? Under this law, who can still carry a firearm?
- 3. Why did the Fort Lauderdale shooter still have his gun? Should the federal or state governments be able without a court order of mental defect to block someone from having a gun when they recognize "something is very off about a person"? Why or why not?
- 4. What could be done to reduce gun violence? Would fewer guns result in less gun violence?
- 5. Does limiting gun ownership go against the Second Amendment? What do you think?
- 6. With the increase in gun violence, should schools consider arming teachers and guards? Weigh the costs and benefits of having armed teachers or guards in your school.
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2017/01/09/us/fort-lauderdale-shooting-suspect-gun/
Posted January 3, 2017
My father came here illegally. But in many ways he was a red-blooded American
BY HECTOR BECERRA
My father was working as a forklift operator at a Los Angeles factory five decades ago when a trucker from out of state began to insult him. My dad was a Mexican immigrant, though that's not what the trucker called him, over and over again.
It was a thing that would inspire many law-abiding, red-blooded Americans to at least ponder the possibility of punching someone's lights out.
And my old man would have decked "Big Bad John" on principle, but he had an Achilles' heel: He had young children to feed and he was in the country illegally. He had to grit his teeth and take it. Then his boss showed up and ripped into the trucker, telling him to take his cargo and never come back.
This boss, my father said, was white. And no matter how many times, glassy-eyed with memories, he told it, this man was the hero of the tale.
My father was like so many immigrants of his generation from Mexico: Coming north, without proper papers, looking for work and a better life for their families. Over the years, my father and people like him were demonized by those who felt they were ruining California and praised by others who believed their work ethic and labor were a boon to the state.
During the tough times, it was easy to feel like an outsider, alienated for not being American. That wasn't quite my dad.
::
He had a sixth-grade education, thanks to a Mexico whose stamina for relentlessly poor governance and knack for driving out its citizens was impressive. So he carved out his own learning, going to night school in L.A. to get his high school degree soon after his arrival.
My father read Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Steinbeck and Melville from our childhood porch in Boyle Heights. In spiral notebooks he composed verses to Mexican songs about his hometown in Jalisco state, like the one he first penned as a teenager, just a few years after his father died when he was 12 -- and just a few years before he crossed into the U.S. in the trunk of a car.
By 1980, he had become a legal resident, and no longer had to worry about being caught in a work raid.
Naturally intelligent and curious about language, he jotted down obscure English words. He would be reading a novel, stop mid-sentence, and ask what a certain word meant. Though my father had a distinct Mexican accent, his English was excellent. But more than anything besides his name, that accent flagged him as Mexican to people like the trucker.
And therefore not American. Not then, not ever, no matter what, for some people.
He never complained about it. He worked and he learned, relentlessly. In one notebook, with yellow strips of paper as markers, he wrote categories of words. People. Places. Fruits and animals. Gods and rivers. Abas, the uncle of Mohammed. Agenor, prince of Troy, son of Antenor. Francis Bacon. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.
We bought him subscriptions to "National Geographic," reading being about the only way he traversed the wide world, other than a trip he took to a frigid Detroit for his machinist job in Orange County. That job, with its 12-hour shifts and six days of work, brought our family into the middle class.
In the 1990s, I took a 2,100-mile trip to Nashville to intern for the Tennessean newspaper. My father eagerly volunteered to take a few days off from work to help me drive there. He portrayed it as just being a helpful dad. But I knew he wanted to see America.
He showed a child-like awe as we drove east on Interstate 40, through Arizona and New Mexico, through Texas and Oklahoma, where my 1989 Ford Escort threatened to hydroplane as we drove through a powerful storm; in the blinding rain, a raging refinery fire.
As Memphis loomed, we came across the mighty Mississippi. I was a bottle of angst, unable to appreciate the great vistas that passed through my car window. The Ozarks and Waffle House were all the same to me. But my father's eyes widened as he veered into English and exclaimed: "Jiminy Cricket! Look at that, mijo."
::
Around that time, my youngest sister turned in an essay for her high school Spanish class. Inspired by our father's stories, it was called "Mi Familia."
"My dad has said that I'm his favorite," Michelle wrote in one passage. "I find that doubtful, though I'd like to believe that it's true. He says I'm the one most like him. Always a book in hand and an idea in my head."
My father chauffeured his youngest from middle school in Boyle Heights to UCLA, sometimes after completing a long graveyard shift. He said seeing her walk onto the Westwood campus, her blond hair in a bun and lugging a large backpack, was like watching a baby turtle crawling on the sand into the vastness of the ocean.
She was 22 years old and just about to graduate when she died in 2005, killed by a reckless teenage driver.
Days later, my father sat on the porch and recounted a dream he had about Michelle. He's walking with her on a teeming street in a massive city. She walks faster and faster and soon he can't keep up. She disappears and he spends the day looking for her -- finally returning to the loneliness of a hotel room as night descends.
On the mantle he finds a note, not unlike those he scribbled on his entire life: Me adelanté.
I went ahead.
About two years ago, I visited my parents in Boyle Heights and sat down with my father on the porch. He asked me to administer a practice U.S. citizenship exam for him. We had been nagging him on and off for years to become a citizen, telling him we would pay the costs and that he would ace the exam.
I read about 100 questions. He got every single answer right.
He never got to take the test. Soon the cancer he had lived with for more than a decade crept into his bones. For the first time, he did chemotherapy. It seemed to be working until it no longer did.
I never heard him complain about dying. Confined to a bed during a large family gathering, he apologized to me for not having bought us a larger home. He died last October, leaving in his wake children and grandchildren who had opportunities he never had.
I think about what I told him the day he breezed through that practice U.S. citizenship exam. It was my only half-serious attempt to scare him.
"Dad, you never know how the mood of the country could change," I said. "How people will feel about immigrants. It might not be enough to be legal. The best thing is to be an American."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of an article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. After reading this editorial, what did you learn about the author's father? Does the author have an underlying intent or message directed to you, the reader? What is it?
- 3. What does the author mean by, "Dad, you never know how the mood of the country could change... It might not be enough to be legal"?
- 4. The father in this story became a legal resident of the U.S. in the 1980s but was not able to become a citizen before he passed away. Should the government allow immigrants who have come here illegally to become U.S. citizens? Why or why not?
- 5. How would you confront the issue of illegal immigration if you were president? Do you feel that more should be done to stop illegal immigration? Do the rules governing legal immigration need to be changed--perhaps made more streamlined--to make the process easier? How would you ensure secure borders for the safety of your citizens? Explain your perspective.
Click here to view more: //www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-my-father-20161229-htmlstory.html
Posted December 13, 2016
What Donald Trump and Democrats in Congress have in common
BY REENA FLORES CBS NEWS DECEMBER 12, 2016, 6:00 AM
Donald Trump may have won the presidency as a Republican, but there are nonetheless several policy issues where Democrats could find some common ground with him.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York, the incoming Senate minority leader, opened the door in November to cooperating on certain legislative agendas.
"Surprisingly, on certain issues, candidate Trump voiced very progressive and populist opinions," Schumer said in an NBC News interview.
And even some of the most liberal wing of the party could see eye-to-eye with the president-elect on some issues, as Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren noted in a recent speech to the AFL-CIO's Executive Council.
"He spoke of the need to reform our trade deals so they aren't raw deals for the American people," Warren said. "He said he will not cut Social Security benefits. He talked about the need to address the rising cost of college and about helping working parents struggling with the high cost of child care."
Here are some of the major points where Democrats and Mr. Trump agree:
Megamergers:
Mr. Trump has promised to halt AT&T's $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner.
"As an example of the power structure I'm fighting, AT&T is buying Time Warner and thus CNN, a deal we will not approve in my administration because it's too much concentration of power in the hands of too few," he said in an October speech in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
The same day Mr. Trump gave that speech, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who ran in the Democrats' presidential primary, tweeted a similar message, urging the administration to "kill" the merger.
The president-elect can also find a Democratic ally in Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, who led--and won--the Senate battle against Comcast's attempt to buy Time Warner Cable two years ago.
In a November interview with "CBS This Morning," Franken slammed the merger attempt by AT&T and Time Warner as a "vertical integration," bringing together the largest satellite-TV provider and the second-largest wireless company, and noted the pitfalls for customers.
"This raises prices for consumers--it always does," Franken said. "This concentration--this consolidation of media is not good for consumers... and usually leads to worse service. Even worse service."
Glass-Steagall:
In October, Mr. Trump pushed for a "21st century" version of the Glass-Steagall law, a 1933 piece of legislation that mandated a separation between commercial banks and investment banks. The regulation was effectively neutered in the late 1990's by President Bill Clinton, and the consequence of that rollback was the consolidation of big banks--and some have argued that the 2008 financial crisis came about in part because of the rollback.
The GOP platform this year also called for the reinstatement of Glass-Steagall. While most Democrats prefer to modify Dodd-Frank, the 2010 Wall Street overhaul measure that was intended to help prevent another financial crisis, many liberals, including Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have, like Mr. Trump, called for the reinstatement of Glass-Steagall.
But Hamilton Place Strategies' Tony Fratto, a former Treasury official in the George W. Bush administration, doesn't believe this idea is going anywhere--in a column for Yahoo Finance in July he wrote that it was "really dumb politics, a desperate lurch toward the populism of the far left," and diversification actually helped save the banks.
Mr. Trump's latest economic picks may well agree with Fratto on this count. Mr. Trump has named three individuals who work or used to work for investment banking giant Goldman Sachs, a bank which has also diversified its business after the financial crisis.
Steve Mnuchin, has been nominated as treasury secretary, Steve Bannon, will be chief strategist at the White House, and, of course, Chief Operating Officer and Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn, was chosen by Mr. Trump to advise him on economic policy as National Economic Council director.
Carried interest loophole:
Mr. Trump, like his general election rival Hillary Clinton, said multiple times on the campaign trail that he wanted to get rid of the "carried interest deduction"--a loophole in the tax code which allows money managers to count their earnings as capital gains instead of ordinary income.
"The rich will pay their fair share, but no one will pay so much that it destroys jobs, or undermines our ability as a nation to compete," Trump said at an economic policy speech in Detroit during his campaign. "As part of this reform, we will eliminate the carried interest deduction and other special interest loopholes that have been so good for Wall Street investors, and for people like me, but unfair to American workers."
For those that make their money in private equity, real estate, or venture capital, this carried interest loophole is significant: Most long-term capital gains are taxed at a top federal rate of 23.8 percent (this includes the 3.8 percent tax on net investment income). In comparison, the highest income bracket is taxed at a 39.6 percent rate.
A 2013 estimate by the Congressional Budget Office, predicted that closing the loophole would produce approximately $17 billion in revenues over a ten-year period.
Progressive voices like Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren have praised Mr. Trump on the issue, even during the campaign trail days.
"He talks about some important economic issues," Warren told the Boston Globe in March. "He came out last month and said hedge fund managers should be taxed at the same rates as everyone else. He's right on that."
Social Security:
Donald Trump has promised Americans, "We're gonna save your Social Security without making any cuts. Mark my words."
"There's tremendous waste, fraud and abuse, and we're going to get it," he said in South Carolina in February. "But we're not going to hurt the people who have been paying into Social Security their whole life and then all of a sudden they're supposed to get less."
Liberal advocacy group Social Security Works, which opposes benefit cuts, is counting on the president-elect's ability to fight Republicans in Congress on the issue.
"Paul Ryan has spent decades working to cut, privatize, and dismantle these vital programs," Nancy Altman, a co-founder of the group, said in a press release. "We hope that the President-elect's pledge is one he will honor. In standing up to Ryan and other powerful Republicans, he would be standing up for the American people."
But some of the people Mr. Trump is choosing do not appear to share his view of entitlements. Former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, who was chosen to be a part of Mr. Trump's "landing team" for the Social Security Administration, has previously called for the privatization of Social Security, CNN reported in November.
Trade agreements:
Mr. Trump ran his campaign in part on his opposition to trade deals, particularly the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership pushed heavily by President Obama.
During his campaign, he said things like, "TPP would be the death blow for American manufacturing," and that it was "pushed by special interests who want to rape our country, just a continuing rape of our country."
Here, the president-elect falls in line with the more liberal wing of the party on the issue. Progressives like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders even pulled Hillary Clinton to the left of her previous stance during her primary campaign (In her 2014 book "Hard Choices," she wrote that she had once hoped TPP would be the "gold standard" for international trade agreements). These Democrats, like Mr. Trump, have cautioned that TPP would only contribute to further outsourcing of American jobs and might undermine U.S. labor and environmental standards.
Paid maternity leave:
Earlier this year, Mr. Trump unveiled a childcare and maternity leave policy that continues to be championed by his daughter, Ivanka, who has had a prominent role in her father's business empire and in his presidential transition.
The plan includes instituting six weeks of paid maternity and making all child care expenses tax deductible.
Some Democrats, like House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, have panned the proposals as insufficient.
"Just like his tax plan, Donald Trump's maternity leave and childcare plan is designed to benefit the wealthy, while leaving hard-working women and families behind," the California Democrat said in a statement shortly after the policy was proposed. "Unsurprisingly, LGBT families, fathers and adoptive parents have no place in Trump's pinched notion of hard-working America."
But the president-elect's plan is more than most Republicans have called for, and he may find an ally on the issue in Warren, who gave a nod to Mr. Trump's policies for women in a speech to the AFL-CIO speech.
"He talked about the need to address the rising cost of college and about helping working parents struggling with the high cost of child care."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Before reading this article, what things would you have thought that Donald Trump, our Republican president-elect, and Democrats in Congress had in common? Could you have named any issues that they agreed on?
- 2. With this article as the exception, do you think that the media works to deepen the divide between Democrats and Republicans? Why or why not? What are the benefits to media sources in having an American people that are much divided on government issues?
- 3. After reading the article, were you surprised that Trump had multiple views on policy issues that align with people like Senator Bernie Sanders? What are three policy issues that Trump aligns with Democrats on? Explain his position on each issue.
- 4. What's not being said? Does the author hint at anything or leave out any important information? Is there an undertone of bias in the writing, or is this piece written pretty objectively? Give specific examples.
- 5. Of the many issues not discussed in this article, such as immigration, gun control, and national defense, what topic do you think divides this nation the most? How so? How can we as a country work better to bridge those divisions?
- 6. If you could ask Donald Trump one serious question about an issue that he'll need to tackle as president, what would it be?
Click here to view more: //www.cbsnews.com/news/what-donald-trump-and-democrats-in-congress-have-in-common/
Posted December 6, 2016
Dakota Access Pipeline could be rerouted
BY JASON HANNA, MAX BLAU AND SARA SIDNER, CNN
Near Cannon Ball, North Dakota (CNN)
Celebrations, tears of joy, chanting and drumming rang out among thousands of protesters after the US Army announced it will not--for now--allow developers to build a portion of the Dakota Access Pipeline under Lake Oahe here.
The Army will not let the pipeline cross the federally administered reservoir on the Missouri River "based on the current record," because the decision requires more analysis, including a deeper consideration of alternative routes, Assistant Secretary of the Army Jo-Ellen Darcy wrote in a letter Sunday.
"A more robust analysis of alternatives can be done and should be done ... before an easement is granted for the Dakota Access Pipeline to cross the Missouri River on Corps land," Darcy wrote.
The news has been cheered by Standing Rock Sioux Tribe members and their supporters who argue that the pipeline, if it were to rupture at the lake, would endanger the tribe's water supply. The tribe's reservation lies a half-mile south of the proposed crossing location.
But tribal leaders warn their fight isn't over, as the Army's statement does not rule out approval for the current plan in the future.
"We are asking our supporters to keep up the pressure, because while President Obama has granted us a victory today, that victory isn't guaranteed in the next administration," said Dallas Goldtooth, lead organizer for the Indigenous Environmental Network.
The pipeline's builders, Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics Partners, said late Sunday that they still would press for the project's completion "without any additional rerouting in and around Lake Oahe."
The companies alleged the Army's move was an attempt to delay a decision on the crossing "until President Obama is out of office." The companies received permission from the Corps to cross the lake in July, but they need a second form of permission--the easement from the Army under the Mineral Leasing Act.
"The White House's directive today to the Corps for further delay is just the latest in a series of overt and transparent political actions by an administration which has abandoned the rule of law in favor of currying favor with a narrow and extreme political constituency," the developers said in a news release.
Protesters 'ready to keep going'
The $3.7 billion pipeline project would move about 470,000 barrels of crude oil daily from two North Dakota oil fields to an existing crude oil market near Patoka, Illinois. The pipeline would stretch across 1,172 miles through four states.
The North Dakota oil fields are said to contain an estimated 7.4 billion barrels of undiscovered oil.
The Army's decision comes after protesters spent months camping out in the area. The tribe, besides voicing concerns about water, also has said the construction would cut through sacred land and destroy burial sites.
The protests were largely peaceful but sometimes devolved into chaos, as law officers fired rubber bullets and tear gas and sprayed water at some activists they say were unruly. Authorities say some protesters set fires, vandalized construction equipment and threw objects at officers.
North Dakota's governor had ordered protesters to leave their campsite by Monday, citing harsh weather conditions. The Army Corps of Engineers had warned that activists could be arrested if they hadn't left by Monday, but the agency later said it had no plans to forcibly remove those who stay.
Instead of backing away, the protesters have recently come out in full force, even inviting US military veterans to join their already robust presence.
"I'm really happy that I'm here to witness it and celebrate with a lot of my elders and the youth, but I think that we also need to keep in mind that we need to be ready to keep going," protester Morning Star Angeline Chippewa-Freeland said.
Army: Look for alternative routes
The tribe sued the Army in an attempt to stop the crossing after the Army Corps of Engineers granted permits in July.
Darcy's decision Sunday comes three weeks after her office announced it was delaying a decision about whether to grant the easement amid protests from the tribe and its supporters.
Since that time, she wrote, representatives of the Army, the pipeline backers and tribal officials discussed additional measures that "could further reduce the risk of a spill or pipeline rupture," including pipeline safety enhancements.
These proposals, as well as alternative routes and a deeper examination of the risk of a spill, need to be discussed further, Darcy said.
She called for the drafting of an official environmental impact statement, a months-long process that would require further study and allow the public to weigh in. She did not announce a timetable or propose alternate routes for the pipeline.
Her letter noted that one previously proposed alternative--having the pipeline cross the Missouri River about 10 miles north of Bismarck, which itself is well north of Lake Oahe--was eliminated early in the planning phase.
Pipeline supporters speak out
Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics Partners said Sunday night that they believe the Army's decision was a politically motivated move triggered by the White House.
Since the studying proposed by Darcy would take months, it remains to be seen how Obama's departure from the presidency on January 20 will affect events.
Jason Miller, spokesman for the transition team of President-elect Donald Trump, said Monday that the pipeline is generally "something that we support construction of." The Trump administration will review the matter after the inauguration, Miller said.
House Speaker Paul Ryan tweeted his criticism of the Army's announcement, calling the intervention "big-government decision-making at its worst."
"I look forward to putting this anti-energy presidency behind us," Ryan tweeted.
North Dakota's sole member in the House of Representatives, Rep. Kevin Cramer, a Republican, slammed Obama.
"It was becoming increasingly clear he was punting this issue down the road," Cramer wrote in a statement. "Today's unfortunate decision sends a very chilling signal to others who want to build infrastructure in this country."
Opponents ready for next fight
The Army's decision may be useful in a court challenge, according to Jan Hasselman, an Earthjustice staff attorney representing the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.
"If the incoming administration tries to undo this and jam the pipeline through despite the need for an analysis of alternatives, we will certainly be prepared to challenge that in court," he said. "It's not so simple for one government administration to simply reverse the decisions of the former one."
May Boeve, the executive director leading environmental action group 350.org, celebrated the decision but also sounded a warning against any future plans to reverse it.
"The fight against Dakota Access has fired up a resistance movement that is ready to take on any fossil fuel project the Trump administration tries to approve," she said. "On Dakota Access and every other pipeline: If he tries to build it, we will come."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. What was (or still is) at stake for Native Americans? Do you think this matter is resolved or entering its next phase?
- 3. Apply what you know about the history of the government and its relationship with Native Americans. Should that past affect how this issue is viewed today? Is this a conflict with the government, with corporations, or both? Are they separate issues?
- 4. Should others who joined the protest have as much of a voice as the residents who might be affected by the pipeline? Why or why not?
- 5. What do you know about the history of social protest in the United States? Have you participated in a protest at your school or in your town? What did you accomplish? Do you think there is value in nonviolent protest?
- 6. Is completing the pipeline--or stopping the pipeline--necessarily a win-lose situation? Is there a compromise solution that might satisfy both protesters and pipeline supporters? And if not, is there a resolution that might be deemed fair and equitable considering all of the circumstances? Explain your perspective, and support your claim with examples from this article.
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2016/12/05/us/dakota-access-pipeline/index.html
Posted November 29, 2016
Cuban-American millennials anticipate role in evolving Cuba
BY TAMARA LUSH | AP
MIAMI -- Isabella Prio was born in Miami, is 20 now and a junior at Boston College who fully expects to return to Cuba someday and help shape the island's future. But she's never been to the country where her grandfather was once president and refuses to visit until it's a democracy.
Cherie Cancio, 29, also was born in Miami and runs tours to the island for young Cuban-Americans eager to explore their heritage.
Two daughters of exile. Both passionate in wanting to effect change in a country that has been in the grasp of the Castro brothers' authoritarian rule for decades, but very different in their approaches.
For the hundreds of thousands of children like Prio and Cancio born of Cuban exiles -- some two and three generations removed from the island -- Fidel Castro's death potentially opens a door to a world long off-limits. Or at the least, it seems to bring it within closer reach.
Millennial Cuban-Americans say Castro's death at the age of 90 symbolically offers hope for improved dialogue between the countries. Some thought the dialogue had begun under President Barack Obama, who visited Cuba in March. But with President-elect Donald Trump, the future of diplomacy between the two countries is uncertain.
"It's definitely in the hands of the young people to take it over," Prio said. "We just have to be careful about how we go about it."
How that dialogue will unfold is anyone's guess, and while attitudes are shifting, the community is still divided on the best way to chart a new course for the island -- or whether Miami's exiles even should play a role.
Prio, a finance and marketing student, still won't visit until the Castro regime steps down, and democracy is restored. For now, she's disappointed when she sees friends' photos of Cuba on Instagram and Facebook. Her views are more in line with people her parents' and grandparents' age.
"Young Cuban-Americans really want engagement on the island," said Guillermo Grenier, a professor of sociology at Florida International University in Miami and a lead investigator of the FIU Cuba Poll, an annual poll of Cuban-Americans co-sponsored by the Cuban Research Institute.
Still, said Grenier, "how younger Cuban-Americans feel about Fidel Castro dying is kind of independent" of their interest in engaging with the island.
The most recent Cuba Poll was taken in August. It showed that Cuban-Americans ages 18 to 39 are disenchanted with the embargo, desire expanded business opportunities and favor the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
"There's been a shift of millennial Cuban-Americans, who are more open to President Obama's policies," says Cancio, whose father reached Florida on the Mariel Boatlift in the 1980s.
She admits that the children of exiles grapple with wanting to learn about their heritage while being respectful of their parents' struggles. Many millennials want to go to Cuba but are hesitant to do so out of respect for their parents' position that the Castro regime must relinquish power and democracy installed before any substantial engagement.
"We all respect the sacrifices and the history of our parents, especially those of us from Miami," she said.
That's why she believes in educating Cuban-Americans, while building bridges with folks in Cuba.
"We want Cuban Americans to visit Cuba, experience it, talk about it, and think about what an emerging Cuba means for them and their communities in the U.S.," reads the website of CubaOne, Cancio's nonprofit.
Still, Cancio doesn't believe that she, or the Miami-born children of exiles, has a role to play in reshaping Cuba. That's up to the people on the island, she says.
"I have the freedom here to support whatever policies I want. I don't know I should have that freedom in another country, even if my father was born there."
Javier Gonzalez, a 21-year-old University of Miami junior, feels that Cuba is his birthright. His father came from Cuba and hasn't returned. Gonzalez also hasn't visited.
"A free Cuba or nothing," said Gonzalez, who is majoring in political science, economics and aquaculture.
Gonzalez attended Belen Jesuit Preparatory School in Miami -- a private school that was once in Havana, only to be seized after Castro took power and expelled from the island.
Castro himself was a 1944 graduate of the school. Gonzalez says many of his teachers knew Castro or studied with him, and the exile experience permeated daily high school life, as it did for him at home.
Each day while walking to his Latin American studies class, Gonzalez would pass the wall of martyrs, a photographic journey of all the alumni who died fighting "for a higher cause," including attempting to oust Castro. Many were political prisoners under the Castro regime.
Gonzalez thinks of Cuba as his home, and someday, of returning to what he calls "paradise lost."
Castro's death "isn't equivalent to liberty, but it's a step toward liberty," says Gonzalez.
When news of Castro's death broke, he texted Prio, his friend. They and their high school friends who were home for the Thanksgiving break knew where to meet up: Cafe Versailles in Little Havana, with its signs that say "La Casa del Exilio," or, "house of the exiles."
Prio, who has friends at her school in Boston who questioned her jubilation over Castro's death, tried to explain her feelings.
"He's not a human being, he's a monster," she said. "It's perfectly acceptable to celebrate his death."
Said Gonzales: "it's not celebrating death, it's celebrating the life that could be."
Prio's grandfather, Carlos Prio Socarras, was president of Cuba from 1948 until 1952, when Fulgencio Batista organized a coup and overthrew the government. Socarras fled the country and backed Castro financially; it was the worst decision of his life, he later said.
Like Gonzalez, Prio believes she will someday go to Cuba and hopes to play a part in its rebuilding.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Why does Fidel Castro's death offer symbolic hope to millennial Cuban-Americans?
- 3. "It's definitely in the hands of the young people to take it over... We just have to be careful about how we go about it." Do you think that this is a legitimate statement for a Cuban-American who's never been to Cuba to make? Do foreign-born children of exiles have a role to play in reshaping Cuba or is that position held only by current citizens of Cuba?
- 4. Does this article reinforce what critics in the comments call the "millennial mindset," a sense of entitlement held by those 18-35 that is not necessarily deserved? Why or why not?
- 5. History has shown that communist regimes don't go away just because a leader dies. Raúl Castro succeeded his older brother as president in 2008 and though some progress has been made, human rights violations continue in Cuba. Do you think positive change will truly happen now that Fidel Castro is dead? What else needs to happen for Cuba to reshape and rebuild?
Click here to view more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/cuban-american-millennials-anticipate-role-in-evolving-cuba/2016/11/28/c5331da4-b53e-11e6-939c-91749443c5e5_story.html
Posted November 15, 2016
#TooYoungToVote but not too young to critique campaign coverage
BY KELLY WALLACE, CNN
(CNN) -- The silence spoke volumes.
When I asked 14 members of a New York middle school newspaper whether they thought the media did a good job covering this most unusual presidential campaign, not one student raised his or her hand.
Griffin Must, co-editor-in-chief of his school's paper, InsidetheHalls.com, summed up what a lot of his peers seem to be feeling about the nonstop election coverage over the past 18 months.
"I believe (the media) could have done a better job on policies and finding what citizens need to know to vote," said Griffin, 13 and an eighth-grader at Mott Hall II, one of the most diverse middle schools in Manhattan. "Yes, you can focus on the scandals, but maybe dig in deep, like why did this person do it?"
The scandals -- from questions about Hillary Clinton's private email server to offensive comments made by Donald Trump on the "Access Hollywood" tape, plus accusations of sexual assault -- got too much attention, some students said, leaving little time for the issues that matter most when it comes to running the country.
"That's what everyone's really attracted to. They're all attracted to this drama," said Saira Medunjanin, an eighth-grader. "I'm attracted to the drama. I want to see what's going on, but it really draws away from what's the main purpose: Why are these people running for president?"
'Draw them in with the drama'
So what would they do if they were running a news network, newspaper or digital news outlet? They may be #tooyoungtovote, but they're not too young to have interesting ideas about what they would do differently.
Jonas Yukins, a seventh-grader, said that if he were covering the campaign today, he would intertwine the scandalous topics that people seem to want to hear a lot about with coverage of the important issues confronting the next president.
"If I was on TV, I could be talking about the emails or something and then slightly change the subject without it being noticeable and start talking about gun control or climate change," he said.
"I would draw them in with the drama, but then I would go into (the candidates') beliefs and statements, and I would forget about the drama," said Jada Isabel Hugo, an eighth-grader.
Griffin, who hopes to run for the presidency someday (he already promised me the first interview!), said he'd try to see how the scandal affects one of the candidates' policies or something they have said before and work that into a story. If that weren't possible, he said, he'd do two stories: one on the scandal and another on the issues.
"I bet you most of the time, if you have a catchy title, they'll click on both," he said. "A good headline always sells it."
Pressing for answers
A few of the students said they would press the candidates more to answer the questions they're asked.
"I would ask you to answer the question," Nia Mills, a seventh-grader, said when I asked her to role play and pretend I was either Trump or Clinton. "I would ask you the question again so that you can give me a direct answer instead of just saying another complete off-topic answer."
But what if the candidate still wouldn't answer the question?
"I would assume that they're not prepared, they don't know the answer, and then move on," said Jada Isabel, who would like to go into a career in journalism. "And I'd state that aloud. I'd say that 'you don't know the answer; you're not comfortable answering the question,' and then I'd move on to the next candidate."
Hannah Kitson, a seventh-grader, would ask the candidates more questions about their personal lives, such as what qualities they value in a friend, and light-hearted topics such as where they like to get pizza.
"I think (the media) could have done a better job at actually looking at their personal life a little bit," said Hannah, who will probably choose law over journalism when she gets older. "If you look inside of how they are on the inside, you could see something completely different, and I think that's what people should be voting based on."
Loucas Tzanis, an eighth-grader, said the media spent too much time focusing on just a few candidates, namely Trump and Clinton, as well as Bernie Sanders, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz when they were still battling it out for their respective parties' nominations.
"I'd probably want to interview a bunch of the other candidates, see their points of view on stuff," he said. "Go and maybe interview the third party, because not a lot of people notice that there's a third party, so go into the things that nobody really notices."
Lingering damage?
In my conversations with these budding journalists, I also heard concerns about what they believe is damage left behind by the media and reporting that was not always objective.
"I think the media has a bad bias," said Max Freund, an eighth-grader. "The bias is bad, because it's forcing the viewers and readers to be biased, because it gives them this mindset that that's how they should vote."
Isaac Wolff, also in the eighth grade, is concerned about all the arguments, the anger and the back-and-forth we've seen in the media over the past year and a half.
"There are people that might say something about a candidate, and then people will get mad at that," Isaac said. "There are people who say things that they don't mean. There are people who say really weird things that they actually do mean. There are people who just announce that they're voting for people for the wrong reasons."
What would have helped would have been more fact-checking of the candidates' statements and arguments, said Leon Leveau, a seventh-grader who had the idea of bringing a school newspaper to Mott Hall II last year. He is also the paper's co-editor-in-chief.
"The news organizations need to have live or a bit after-the-fact fact-checking" to make it clear what statements by the candidates are truths and which are lies, said Leon.
Asked whether he's optimistic the media will do a better job in the 2020 election, he said he was.
"I think they will, because they'll have candidates that are more predictable, probably," he said with a chuckle.
Marlon Lowe, Mott Hall II's dynamic principal, said his students are learning a valuable lesson from working on a school newspaper at a time when information is available 24/7 to teenagers.
"This is such a refreshing change from where things are going right now because I know we have a problem in society where what's spread on social media is now becoming fact, and there is no fact-checking. There is no validation of information. It's just a stream of information, and we process everything that we're receiving," Lowe said.
"I think, going through this process, these young men and women will appreciate information and the nuances of providing it, sharing it and knowing what's factual and what's not."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What did you think of the 2016 presidential election campaign coverage? Did you read or watch the news with family or friends and discuss it?
- 2. Do you think the mainstream media reported on the issues that concern you? Are your concerns different than ones that received a lot of attention?
- 3. What did the mainstream media focus on in this election? Did you detect any bias towards one candidate over the other? Provide examples to reinforce your inference.
- 4. The article mentions fact-checking. What role does the media play in fact-checking? How much responsibility should fall on the voters to do their own research on statements made by the candidates?
- 5. What role does social media play in politics? How did social media help make 2016 one of the most unprecedented campaign seasons in history in the context of media coverage?
- 6. If you had been able to ask one question of the candidates, what would it have been? If they dodged or didn't directly answer the question, how would you elicit the information you wanted to know?
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2016/11/10/health/middle-school-newspaper-media-coverage-presidential-campaign/index.html
Posted November 10, 2016
5 surprising lessons from Trump's astonishing win
BY ERIC BRADNER, CNN
Washington (CNN) -- Donald Trump's election victory proved -- once and for all -- that 2016 was the year that everything the political class thought it knew was wrong.
Trump's defeat of Hillary Clinton turned on its head years of wisdom about how campaigns operate, how America's demographics are changing and how a controversial nominee can affect down-ballot candidates.
Here are the five biggest surprises of Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning:
1) Trump won
The polls were wrong. Projection models were wrong. Veterans of previous presidential campaigns were wrong.
Trump's victory is one of the most stunning upsets in American political history.
American voters swept Republicans into power, handing the GOP the White House, the Senate and the House in a wave that no one saw coming.
Political professionals will now spend the coming weeks and months studying just how and why everyone missed it.
2) There is a Trump coalition
Overwhelming support from white, working-class voters swept Trump to victory.
Most important: Democrats' so-called "Blue Wall" of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin crumbled, with Trump winning two of the three outright, and leading in Michigan in the early Wednesday hours.
Democrats won urban areas, as usual. But Clinton ran far behind President Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 numbers in exurban America. And in rural regions, white voters supported Trump by margins that often topped 40 percentage points.
In some places, it was the "hidden" Trump supporters the campaign had touted but polls never found. Elsewhere, it was Democratic turnout falling off from 2012 levels.
The difference was particularly evident in states where Clinton had struggled in the Democratic primary against Bernie Sanders, whose protectionist message on trade largely matched Trump's.
3) There wasn't a Clinton coalition
Or, at least, strong turnout from new Latino voters and support from college-educated women was nowhere near enough to match Trump's strength with white voters.
Clinton was hurt by a downtick in African American turnout, which had helped Obama.
But her loss also reflected the reality for a Democratic Party that has drifted leftward and relied more heavily on an urban base in the Obama years. "Blue dogs" -- conservative Democrats -- are gone. And the working-class voters who used to support politicians like Bill Clinton were nowhere to be found for Hillary Clinton.
4) Campaign tools are limited
Clinton's campaign infrastructure was as impressive as any ever assembled. It had targeted, identified and reached crucial voters in battleground states.
She'd also outspent Trump on TV ads, set up many more field offices, and dispatched more staff to swing states, much earlier.
Trump, meanwhile, ran a scattershot organization, entirely reliant on the Republican National Committee for all get-out-the-vote operations.
None of it mattered.
Or, perhaps, it did -- Clinton, after all, won Nevada, a testament to the left's organizing prowess, and she came close in Florida after racking up huge leads in the heavily populated, heavily Latino southeastern portion of the state.
But it was not enough. Clinton's operation didn't catch problem areas in the Rust Belt. By the time Clinton and Obama made last-minute visits to Michigan this week and closed the campaign in Philadelphia on Monday night, it was too late.
5) No down-ballot damage
Republicans everywhere assumed Trump would be a drag on the party's hopes of keeping Senate control.
He wasn't. At all. And in some states, Trump appears to have helped Republicans.
He had coattails, outperforming the GOP Senate candidates in Indiana and Missouri, and ran roughly even with those in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, New Hampshire and Wisconsin.
The results suggested there just weren't many split-ticket voters -- a reality that would have terrified Republican senators prior to the election, but that turned out to work in the party's advantage.
"Democrats believed they had the golden ticket when Donald Trump officially earned the nomination," Ward Baker, the executive director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said in a memo early Wednesday morning. "They worked to nationalize every race -- and when the bottom fell out of Clinton's candidacy, they had no message, no strategy, and no ability to pivot to local issues."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first section of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" Identify the four Ws of this article. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. What is meant by "everything the political class thought it knew was wrong"? Who is the "political class"? How could the national polls leading up to the election have been so off?
- 3. What connection is established between Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump supporters?
- 4. What made Trump's campaign strategy effective when perhaps for any other candidate it would have failed?
- 5. By now, you've probably heard many opinions about the election results. How do YOU feel in the wake of the turbulent 2016 presidential election? How do the results affect you, personally?
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2016/11/09/politics/donald-trump-wins-biggest-surprises/index.html
Posted November 8, 2016
FEW BENEFITS TO DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME--SHOULD WE SCRAP IT?
BY LAURA GRANT
This weekend, public service announcements remind us to "fall back," ending daylight saving time (DST) by setting our clocks an hour earlier on Sunday, Nov. 6. On Nov. 7, many of us will commute home in the dark.
This semiannual ritual shifts our rhythms and temporarily makes us groggy at times when we normally feel alert. Moreover, many Americans are confused about why we spring forward to DST in March and fall back in November, and whether it is worth the trouble.
The practice of resetting clocks is not designed for farmers, whose plows follow the sun regardless of what time clocks say it is. Yet many people continue to believe that farmers benefit, including lawmakers during recent debates over changing California DST laws. Massachusetts is also studying whether to abandon DST.
Changing our clocks does not create extra daylight. DST simply shifts when the sun rises and sets relative to our society's regular schedule and routines. The key question, then, is how people respond to this enforced shift in natural lighting. Most people have to be at work at a certain time--say, 8:30 a.m.--and if that time comes an hour earlier, they simply get up an hour earlier. The effect on society is another question, and there, the research shows DST is more burden than boon.
No energy savings
Benjamin Franklin was one of the first thinkers to endorse the idea of making better use of daylight. Although he lived well before the invention of light bulbs, Franklin observed that people who slept past sunrise wasted more candles later in the evening. He also whimsically suggested the first policy fixes to encourage energy conservation: firing cannons at dawn as public alarm clocks and fining homeowners who put up window shutters.
To this day, our laws equate daylight saving with energy conservation. However, recent research suggests that DST actually increases energy use.
This is what I found in a study coauthored with Yale economist Matthew Kotchen. We used a policy change in Indiana to estimate DST effects on electricity consumption. Prior to 2007, most Indiana counties did not observe DST. By comparing households' electricity demand before and after DST was adopted, month by month, we showed that DST had actually increased residential electricity demand in Indiana by 1 to 4 percent annually.
The largest effects occurred in the summer, when DST aligns our lives with the hottest part of the day, so people tend to use more air conditioning, and late fall, when we wake up in the dark and use more heating with no reduction in lighting needs.
Other studies corroborate these findings. Research in Australia and in the United States shows that DST does not decrease total energy use. However, it does smooth out peaks and valleys in energy demand throughout the day, as people at home use more electricity in the morning and less during the afternoon. Though people still use more electricity, shifting the timing reduces the average costs to deliver energy because not everyone demands it during typical peak usage periods.
Other outcomes are mixed
DST proponents also argue that changing times provides more hours for afternoon recreation and reduces crime rates. But time for recreation is a matter of preference. There is better evidence on crime rates: Fewer muggings and sexual assaults occur during DST months because fewer potential victims are out after dark.
So overall, the net benefits from these three durational effects of crime, recreation and energy use--that is, impacts that last for the duration of the time change--are murky.
Other consequences of DST are ephemeral. I think of them as bookend effects, since they occur at the beginning and end of DST.
When we "spring forward" in March we lose an hour, which comes disproportionately from resting hours rather than wakeful time. Therefore, many problems associated with springing forward stem from sleep deprivation. With less rest people make more mistakes, which appear to cause more traffic accidents and workplace injuries, lower workplace productivity due to cyberloafing and poorer stock market trading.
Even when we gain that hour back in the fall, we must readjust our routines over several days because the sun and our alarm clocks feel out of synchronization. Some impacts are serious: During bookend weeks, children in higher latitudes go to school in the dark, which increases the risk of pedestrian casualties. Dark commutes are so problematic for pedestrians that New York City is spending $1.5 million on a related safety campaign. And heart attacks increase after the spring time shift--it is thought because of lack of sleep--but decrease to a lesser extent after the fall shift. Collectively, these bookend effects represent net costs and strong arguments against retaining DST.
Pick your own time zone?
Spurred by many of these arguments, several states are considering unilaterally discontinuing DST. The California State Legislature considered a bill this term that would have asked voters to decide whether or not to remain on Pacific Standard Time year-round (the measure was passed by the State Assembly but rejected by the Senate).
On the East Coast, Massachusetts has commissioned research on the impacts of dropping DST and joining Canada's Maritime provinces on Atlantic Time, which is one hour ahead of Eastern Standard Time. If this occurred, Massachusetts would be an hour ahead of all of its neighboring states during winter months, and travelers flying from Los Angeles to Boston would cross five time zones.
These proposals ignore a fundamental fact: Daylight saving time relies on coordination. If one state changes its clocks a week early, neighboring states will be out of sync.
Some states have good reason for diverging from the norm. Notably, Hawaii does not practice DST because it is much closer to the equator than the rest of the nation, so its daylight hours barely change throughout the year. Arizona is the sole contiguous state that abstains from DST, citing its extreme summer temperatures. Although this disparity causes confusion for western travelers, the state's residents have not changed clocks' times for over 40 years.
In my research on DST I have found that everyone has strong opinions about it. Many people welcome the shift to DST as a signal of spring. Others like the coordinated availability of daylight after work. Dissenters, including farmers, curse their loss of quiet morning hours.
When the evidence about costs and benefits is mixed but we need to make coordinated choices, how should we make DST decisions? When the California State Senate opted to stick with DST, one legislator stated, "I like daylight savings. I just like it." But politicians' whims are not a good basis for policy choices.
The strongest arguments support not only doing away with the switches but keeping the nation on daylight saving time year-round. Yet humans adapt. If we abandon the twice-yearly switch, we may eventually slide back into old routines and habits of sleeping in during daylight. Daylight saving time is the coordinated alarm to wake us up a bit earlier in the summer and get us out of work with more sunshine.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Daylight saving time (DST): What is it and why do we have it? Is it a friend or foe?
- 2. Examine the poster at the top of the page. Why could it have been considered a "victory" for Congress to pass the daylight saving bill in 1917?
- 3. How can proponents of DST claim that it reduces crime rates? Do you agree or disagree with their claim? Why?
- 4. Why can't every state just make their own DST and time zone preferences and do what works best for them? Provide two examples of states that do this.
- 5. Using the article as your evidence, conduct a cost/benefit analysis of daylight saving time. Do your results show that there are more costs (negatives) or benefits (positives) to keeping DST? Should we scrap it?
Click here to view more: //www.newsweek.com/few-benefits-daylight-saving-time-scrap-it-516694
Posted November 1, 2016
The hubris of the 2016 candidates
BY STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN
Washington (CNN) Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are better at beating themselves than each other.
They're not just the most unpopular presidential nominees in recent memory: In the epic drama of the 2016 election, they're also tarnished heroes who are perpetually humbled by their own self-defeating flaws.
The rivals, playing out their tragicomic duel on the grandest electoral stage, are like two Shakespearean protagonists falling prey to hubris, the excessive pride that can make a politician believe the rules that govern normal mortals do not apply to them.
Clinton's penchant for secrecy and distaste for disclosure have been the common theme in the deepest morasses of her long political career. Trump's overwhelming ego and self-obsession are at the root of the most damaging controversies that have raged around his wild presidential campaign.
And only one can survive. Within 10 days, the loser will see their hopes destroyed and partly have themselves to blame. The winner will go on to a presidency that at least in part will entail a battle against their fatal flaws.
Right now, it's Clinton who's on defense.
Her hopes of calmly cruising to an easy election win were shattered by FBI Director James Comey's sudden announcement Friday that the bureau is reviewing emails potentially related to Clinton's personal email server.
The new controversy centers on emails found on a device shared by Clinton's close aide Huma Abedin and her estranged husband, Anthony Weiner.
The Democratic nominee is responding by going on offense, accusing the FBI chief of interfering in the climax of a crucial political battle.
"It's pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information right before an election," Clinton told supporters in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Saturday.
Whether Clinton's complaint is valid or not, the case would never have been thrust into the frenzied final days of the presidential election were it not for her decision to use a private email server in the first place -- something she has admitted is a mistake.
The move was consistent with a character trait that has haunted Clinton throughout a quarter century in national politics. Critics argue that from the Whitewater real estate drama through the various pseudo scandals of the Clinton administration to her own campaign's missteps, she has made controversies worse by keeping things too close to the vest.
Neera Tanden, president of the liberal think tank Center for American Progress, asked the obvious question to Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta.
"Why didn't they get this stuff out like 18 months ago? So crazy," Tanden wrote to Podesta in March 2015, according to hacked emails released by WikiLeaks.
Tanden then answered her own question: "They wanted to get away with it."
Clinton also attempted to escape scrutiny by the reporters for much of her campaign, going months without a press conference at one point.
Things changed in September, when the campaign finally brought reporters on Clinton's plane. Since then, she's regularly held informal gaggles and press conferences -- but even this shift, it seemed, happened grudgingly.
Clinton joked that her aide, Jennifer Palmieri, had forced her to the back of her plane to meet journalists.
"Good morning, everybody. I will come back later. Jen has convinced me I need to," Clinton said.
Clinton's allies defend her obsession with privacy by saying there's never been a political figure so unfairly victimized by her enemies -- by the "vast right-wing conspiracy" Clinton lambasted while she was first lady.
But justified or not, the tendency for opaqueness stings her again and again.
It was on display with her refusal to release speeches she gave to big Wall Street banks that became an issue with her Democratic rival Bernie Sanders. When the speeches were revealed in a WikiLeaks hack, their anodyne nature made everyone wonder what the fuss was about.
Clinton didn't disclose her diagnosis of pneumonia, but her fainting spell at a September 11 memorial event forced the campaign to come clean, renewing complaints that she simply doesn't want the public to know what is going on.
Trump can't resist a fight
Trump is also a master of self-immolation.
His gargantuan ego perpetually has him in hot water and leaves him volcanic at the smallest personal slight. It's a character glitch that's embroiled him in politically damaging spats with the parents of a fallen US Muslim solider, a Venezuelan beauty queen and an Indiana-born federal judge of Mexican heritage.
Trump's hubris was on display in the most damaging moment of his campaign, the release of a decade-old video showing him boasting about how his power and wealth meant he could make unwanted advances on women.
"When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything ... You can do anything," Trump told "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush.
Most presidential candidates at least give lip service to the idea that their campaigns are an expression of the will of the American people. Not Trump.
Since he descended the golden escalator in Trump Tower last year to jump into the race, it's been all about Trump: his wealth, how smart he is, which famous people he knows, and -- until his fortunes took a dive -- his poll numbers. It's an approach that has allowed him to leverage his outsize personality and anti-establishment fervor to his advantage among adoring crowds. But the flip side has hurt him.
Last week, for instance, he trampled all his own closing argument in a speech at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by lashing out at women who accused him of sexual assault.
He's also ignored the advice of political aides like Paul Manafort and Kellyanne Conway, who helped revive his campaign but then saw the nominee veer off on his own direction, causing his political fortunes to plummet.
And he's also now gone months without a formal press conference.
While each candidate seems unable to prevent their own deficiencies from defining their campaigns, they've been uncannily good at exploiting their rival's flaws.
Clinton's obsessive secrecy, which has drawn her into repeated scandals and pseudo-scandals over quarter of a century on the national political stage is the building block on which Trump has built his "Crooked Hillary" caricature.
"This is the biggest political scandal since Watergate," Trump said on Saturday in Colorado, expanding his denunciation of her honesty and character.
Clinton, meanwhile, based her entire debate strategy around his fundamental flaw. She knew he'd be unable [to] resist her provocations as she jabbed him over his bank balance, personality and treatment of women.
And she exploited his short fuse when his ego takes a hit, to bolster her case that he's unfit to be commander in chief.
"A man you can bait with a tweet is not a man we can trust with nuclear weapons," Clinton said during her Democratic convention address.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Using context clues, explain the meaning of "hubris." What does Collinson mean in writing that the candidates are both "like two Shakespearean protagonists falling prey to hubris"?
- 2. Throughout the article, the author cites many character flaws of both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Does he ever hint at who he believes to be the weaker candidate? If so, how?
- 3. What's your take on both candidates? Contrast the weaknesses of Clinton and Trump, citing at least three specific examples from the text for each candidate.
- 4. Why is Clinton currently on the defensive? What makes these emails such a big deal?
- 5. Some are saying that FBI Director James Comey's actions are in violation of the Hatch Act, which bars government officials from using their power to influence elections. Was Comey's release just before elections self-motivated and against the law, or rightful and upholding the law? Explain your perspective.
- 6. Who will win it all? With less than a week before the Presidential Election of 2016, make your final prediction! Next, predict what the implications of their victory could be for the future of this country.
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2016/10/29/politics/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-personalities/index.html
Posted October 25, 2016
'To be white is to be racist, period,' a high school teacher told his class
BY CLEVE R. WOOTSON JR.
The lecture at the Norman, Okla., high school was intended to heal the racial divides, a student said.
The discussion's premise: White people are racist.
All of them.
Following that discussion, an Oklahoma teacher is under fire and a high school is mired in the debate about how teachers should inject themselves into conversations about race in the United States.
NBC affiliate KFOR reported on the controversy last week after receiving a recording from an offended student at Norman North High School.
In the recording, the teacher shows a YouTube clip about imperialism. A man in the video uses white-out on a globe to illustrate how European influence spread across the world.
The discussion follows.
In the recording, the teacher asks: "Am I racist? And I say yeah. I don't want to be. It's not like I choose to be racist, but do I do things because of the way I was raised."
"To be white is to be racist, period," the teacher says.
The teacher has been identified by the Norman Transcript as James Coursey.
The offended student told KFOR in an interview that she felt picked on because she is white.
"Half of my family is Hispanic, so I just felt like, you know, him calling me racist just because I'm white ... I mean, where's your proof in that?" said the student, who was not named by the station. "I felt like he was encouraging people to kind of pick on people for being white."
"You start telling someone something over and over again that's an opinion, and they start taking it as fact," she said.
As word of the lecture spread, some have criticized the teacher's tactics.
"Why is it okay to demonize one race to children that you are supposed to be teaching a curriculum to?" the girl's father asked in an interview with KFOR.
Some critics called Coursey's comments hypocritical and racist and have called for his job, the Norman Transcript reported.
But students who support the teacher walked out of the high school in protest Tuesday. Student organizers released a statement that the school district shared with media outlets.
"What has been reported in the news doesn't accurately portray what happened in our philosophy class, nor does it reflect what we believe in at our school," said a student who organized the demonstration and participated in the lecture but was not identified by the district. "The information was taken out of context and we believe it is important to have serious and thoughtful discussions about institutional racism in order to change history and promote inclusivity."
The school district has not said whether the teacher is facing disciplinary action.
But Superintendent Joe Siano said the conversation, while important, could have been handled better.
"Racism is an important topic that we discuss in our schools," Siano said in a statement emailed to The Washington Post. "While discussing a variety of philosophical perspectives on culture, race and ethics, a teacher was attempting to convey to students in an elective philosophy course a perspective that had been shared at a university lecture he had attended.
"We regret that the discussion was poorly handled. When the district was notified of this concern it was immediately addressed. We are committed to ensuring inclusiveness in our schools."
Scott Rogers, a former blogger for Conservative Voice, suggested the teacher went too far and told his Twitter followers the educator should be fired.
But Paul Ketchum, a liberal studies professor from the University of Oklahoma, told the Norma[n] Transcript that research supports Coursey's comment, even if the way he put it was problematic.
"I think it was a rookie error in teaching about race," Ketchum told the newspaper. "You go for the big term when a less loaded term would be better to make it a teachable moment.
"That's where this teacher's going to face a lot of blowback, because most of the students at Norman North are white and come from white families. That's why they might view this as an attack on them. And I get that. It's statistically not correct, but I understand why they would react that way.
"My deepest sympathies to the teacher, because he is going to get hammered."
Ketchum added that media coverage of Coursey's comment "tells us just how significant race still is."
The incident illustrates the tightrope teachers walk between engaging students in the important issues of the day and staying neutral in a room filled with impressionable youths.
Implicit bias -- the belief that we all have unconscious opinions about race, gender and ethnicity that subtly affect our actions -- has been discussed in police stations, school rooms and on CNN. The nation has been grappling with the issue as it debates whether officers are more likely to use deadly force against minorities and whether teachers discipline black students more severely.
For teachers, racial bias can be an engaging, relevant civics lesson as much as it is a prescient social issue, educators and experts say. But conversations about race in an educational setting are delicate.
Still, the conversations are happening in schools whether teachers are involved or not.
Over the summer, students at a private school in Florida drew scorn when they had an Instagram debate about which was a more respectful way to use a racial slur for black people. Last month in Montana, two students made national headlines when one wore a shirt that said "White Power" on the front and another's had the word "Redneck" and a picture of the Confederate battle flag.
For Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center, teacher Kathleen Melville wrote a blog post titled "Talking With Students About Ferguson and Racism" about the difficulty -- and the necessity -- of discussing race in U.S. high schools.
"Talking about race is not entirely new to my ninth-grade students, but it's definitely not a comfortable topic, at least not at school. As I get to know my students at the beginning of the year, I notice how they tiptoe around the issue. One student uses the term "white people" and then immediately apologizes to me: "Sorry, Miss. No offense. I mean Caucasian." Another student mentions the demographics of a neighborhood, saying there are a lot of white people, and someone else responds, 'Oooh! Don't say that! That's racist!' ...
"This work with students does not come easily. The sanctioned curriculum avoids it and many administrators frown on it. But we need schools that give teachers wide latitude to tailor curricula to students' needs."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Was this teacher in the wrong? Should he be fired? What should the penalty be (if any) for making these statements?
- 2. Do you think this story could simply be a case of the media taking a theoretical (albeit a little controversial) debate out of context and blowing it up into something bigger than it is? How often do you think media bias occurs from mainstream media sources?
- 3. There's no denying that race is a sensitive topic, not just in the classroom, but in day-to-day life as well. What's your personal experience? Do you openly talk about race issues? Do you avoid the discussion altogether as much as possible? Or is it somewhere in between?
- 4. How are teachers on a tightrope? What is meant by that expression? As part of your response, examine the following quotation: "...the tightrope teachers walk between engaging students in the important issues of the day and staying neutral in a room filled with impressionable youths."
- 5. Is it okay for teachers to say something extremely controversial to students (which may or may not be their actual opinion) in order to "hook" them and engage them in the rest of the lesson? Where do you draw the line?
Click here to view more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2016/10/19/to-be-white-is-to-be-racist-period-a-high-school-teacher-told-his-class/?wpisrc=nl_most-draw7&wpmm=1
Posted October 18, 2016
Black doctor says Delta Air Lines staff didn't believe she is a doctor during in-flight medical emergency
BY TOBIAS SALINGER
A black doctor said a Delta Air Lines flight attendant told her, "Oh no, sweetie, put your hand down," when she tried to help during a medical emergency.
Delta announced an investigation Thursday as a Facebook post by Dr. Tamika Cross, an OBGYN resident, spread outrage against the airline. Cross said staff questioned her credentials when she offered to aid an unresponsive man aboard a flight from Detroit to Minneapolis Sunday morning.
"I'm sure many of my fellow young, corporate America working women of color can all understand my frustration when I say I'm sick of being disrespected," Cross wrote in the post. It had been shared over 25,000 times by Thursday afternoon.
"Discrimination of any kind is never acceptable," Delta spokeswoman Catherine Sirna said in a statement. "We've been in contact with Dr. Cross and one of our senior leaders is reaching out to assure her that we're completing a full investigation."
A man did pass out on the flight mentioned by Cross, Flight DL945, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport spokesman Patrick Hogan told MLive. Paramedics treated the patient when the flight landed, Hogan said.
Cross said she had volunteered when the man lost consciousness for the second time on the flight and the attendant yelled to a colleague to ask if there were any physicians on the plane.
"She said to me, 'Oh no, sweetie, put your hand down, we are looking for actual physicians or nurses or some type of medical personnel, We don't have time to talk to you," Cross wrote.
The flight attendant then began "bombarding me with questions" when Cross identified herself as a doctor again, she said. A white doctor then walked down the aisle to offer his services, according to Cross.
"She says to me, 'Thanks for your help, but he can help us, and he has his credentials," Cross wrote. "(Mind you he hasn't shown anything to her. Just showed up and fit the 'description of a doctor') I stay seated. Mind blown. Blood boiling."
The man who went unresponsive soon woke up and began answering questions, and the flight attendant finally asked Cross for her help. She later apologized to Cross several times and asked if she wanted credit for extra air miles, according to Cross.
"I kindly refused," Cross said. "This is going higher than her. I don't want SkyMiles in exchange for blatant discrimination."
The airline released an update Friday morning saying that three medical professionals had identified themselves but only one "was able to produce documentation of medical training." Delta executives defended the flight attendant's questioning of Cross as following protocol.
"Flight attendants are trained to collect information from medical volunteers offering to assist with an onboard medical emergency," Delta executives said.
"When an individual's medical identification isn't available, they're instructed to ask questions such as where medical training was received or whether an individual has a business card or other documentation and ultimately to use their best judgment."
Efforts to reach Cross, 28, were not immediately successful. A representative for the McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston said she was on call for baby deliveries Thursday afternoon.
Cross serves as the chief resident for obstetrician and gynecologist residents at the Harris Health Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, according to UTHealth. She is currently completing her fourth and final year of residency in the program.
The Artemis Medical Society, a networking and advocacy group for women physicians of color, released a letter Thursday afternoon its president, Dr. Myiesha Taylor, sent to Delta CEO Ed Bastian.
"In this present day we are shocked that there are individuals and corporations who continue to demonstrate beliefs that certain individuals are unable to be a physician simply because of their ethnicity and/or gender," Taylor wrote.
"Delta Air Lines, as an Atlanta-based corporation, should be acutely aware of the history of racism and sexism in our nation and how it continues to cast a long shadow in our society."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Everyone gets treated poorly sometimes. Was this a case of racial discrimination or an honest mistake? Who gets to decide?
- 2. Besides racial bias, what are two other ways that Dr. Tamika Cross was possibly pre-judged by the flight attendant? What stereotypes do we assume of doctors? Why?
- 3. How do these perceived roles play a part in society and the workplace? Why are female doctors so often confused for nurses? What other professions have a strong gender bias?
- 4. Why did the Delta executives defend the flight attendant's questioning of Cross? Do you think the airline's protocols are reasonable when they are looking for a doctor during a flight?
- 5. What's the difference between personal prejudice and social inequality? If we all treated each other better, would that solve racism? Why or why not? If we stopped noticing race, would it just go away?
Click here to view more: //www.nydailynews.com/news/national/black-doctor-delta-staff-didn-doctor-article-1.2829724
Posted October 11, 2016
This creepy clown craze is not a laughing matter
BY ANDREA PEYSER
Red noses. White painted faces. Floppy oversized shoes.
Knives. Stalking. Threats of bodily attacks.
The horror. The horror.
Creepy clowns -- creatures out of a million waking and dozing nightmares -- were once considered frightening but harmless beings, prone to wielding hand-shockers, water pistols and scarlet lips.
Not anymore.
For many sufferers of crippling coulrophobia -- a term for "fear of clowns," derived from the ancient Greek word for "one who goes on stilts" -- this is no joke. Sightings of menacing Pennywise wannabes, whether hoaxes spawned by Internet jokers or actual, breathing bozos in circus suits, are terrifying adults and traumatizing children throughout the United States and beyond.
Perhaps the first evil-being sighting this year came as Madonna, now 58, donned a garish costume and war paint. Riding a tiny tricycle, she sang "Tears of a Clown" in a concert in Australia in March, making a point about sad singers in grotesque makeup, or something. Scary.
Have we all gone mental? Or have pranksters seized on a phobia as deeply ingrained in the culture as wicked witches, headless horsemen and nearly naked pop stars?
The Great Clown Panic of 2016 prompted an impassioned plea from horrormeister Stephen King, creator of the homicidal clown in his novel-turned-TV miniseries "It," scheduled to come out as a movie next year.
"Hey, guys, time to cool the clown hysteria -- most of em are good, cheer up the kiddies, make people laugh," he tweeted.
Reports of evil creepers have been traced to the early 1980s, before the Internet took off. But the current crisis began in earnest on Aug. 20. Residents of an apartment complex in Greenville County, SC, reported that maniacs with bulbous noses freaked out adults and tried to lure kids into the woods with large sums of money. Local sheriff's deputies found no clown paraphernalia.
Then, reports of sightings of potentially dangerous deviants spread like magic mushrooms from the South to the North and out to California.
Officials of New Haven, Connecticut, public schools banned kids from wearing clown costumes this Halloween. Students at Merrimack College in Massachusetts were ordered to "shelter in place" for more than 30 minutes last week and a dorm was evacuated after social-media reports came in of an armed clown on campus, which was deemed a practical joke. More than a dozen children, teens and adults have been arrested all over the country on charges ranging from filing false reports to making terroristic threats.
Most horrifically, a dispute over a clown mask like one featured in the movie "Purge," perched on the head of a 16-year-old boy in Pennsylvania, resulted in his fatal stabbing last month, authorities say, allegedly by a 29-year-old man.
The clown catastrophe has hit New York City and its suburbs like a toxic pie in the face.
Schools in two districts on Long Island were put on lockdown one September day, kids forbidden from playing outside. A Queens public high school was threatened with violent clowns on Facebook. This prompted the Police Department's deputy commissioner for counterterrorism and intelligence to declare the reports phony.
"Don't believe the hype, and don't be afraid of the clowns," John Miller said at a news conference.
But then, a 16-year-old boy was chased through a subway station on the Upper East Side by a knife-wielding person dressed as a clown. A Queens man said a Pagliacci pretender stood outside his bedroom window and beckoned him while holding a knife.
The mania has even crossed The Pond, with a half-dozen sightings of evil ones in multicolored suits and pancake makeup reported in Britain, some brandishing knives.
This has gone far enough.
Fighting the fetish, performers in full clown regalia plan to march in a "Clown Lives Matter" protest this Saturday in Tucson, Arizona.
"These people are taking something innocent and wholesome and perverting it to create fear," Randy Christensen, a clown performer and president of the World Clown Association, wrote in The Post. "This is not clowning."
As Halloween approaches, the clown epidemic shows no sign of letting up.
Repeat after me: Creepy clowns are not real. Creepy clowns are not real.
They'll only vanish if we all face our fears and tell the spooky ones to take a hike. I know you can do it.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The clown craze: What is happening? How did this whole fiasco begin?
- 2. In reality, how big is this problem? Is this something that is being blown out of proportion or underestimated in its severity?
- 3. What is an unintended economic consequence of the creepy clown epidemic spreading across the U.S.? Who's being affected besides the people being scared by the creepy clowns?
- 4. How could the creepy clown costumes be used in ways that would be far more damaging to society?
- 5. Should our government consider banning the sale of creepy clown costumes, or would that be an overreach of government power?
- 6. If you were in a situation where a clown was approaching you, what would you do? Could you keep your cool?
Click here to view more: //nypost.com/2016/10/10/this-creepy-clown-craze-is-not-a-laughing-matter/
Posted October 4, 2016
The Shifting Symbolism of the Gadsden Flag
BY ROB WALKER
In January of 2014, an African-American maintenance mechanic for the United States Postal Service in Denver filed a complaint charging that he had been subjected to racial discrimination. Specifically, as a recent Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filing on the matter put it, one of the man's co-workers "repeatedly wore a cap to work with an insignia of the Gadsden Flag." The cap design in question involves a coiled rattlesnake over the phrase "DON'T TREAD ON ME," against a yellow background. You've seen it.
The Postal Service dismissed the complaint. But, this summer, that decision was reversed by the E.E.O.C., which, after some procedural back-and-forth, ordered the agency to investigate the matter. Eugene Volokh, a professor at the U.C.L.A. School of Law, brought this to the public's attention through the Volokh Conspiracy, his legal-affairs blog on the Washington Post's Web site. Observers of a particular ideological bent reacted with alarm or outrage: "Is the Gadsden Flag Racist?," "Government Ruling: Wearing 'Don't Tread on Me' Gadsden Flag Can Be Racist & 'Racial Harassment,'" "Obama Administration: 'Don't Tread on Me' Clothes Are Racist," and so on.
There was no such definitive "ruling," from the Obama Administration or anyone else. The E.E.O.C. (which whipped up a dedicated page to correct misreporting around "the Gadsden Flag case") had merely told the Postal Service, in long-winded legal terms, to look into the complaint. But however cooked up the notion that there was some kind of federal crackdown on the design, the controversy does point to something real. In recent years, the Gadsden flag has become a favorite among Tea Party enthusiasts, Second Amendment zealots--really anyone who gets riled up by the idea of government overreach. It's also been appropriated to promote U.S. Soccer and streetwear brands. And this reflects a deeper question, one that's actually pretty compelling: How do we decide what the Gadsden flag, or indeed any symbol, really means?
One answer involves history. The Gadsden flag is one of at least three kinds of flags created by independence-minded colonists in the run-up to the Revolutionary War, according to the writer and historian Marc Leepson, the author of "Flag: An American Biography." Liberty flags featured that word on a variety of backdrops; the Pine Tree flag floated the slogan "An Appeal To Heaven" over a depiction of a pine tree. Neither endured like the design of Christopher Gadsden, a Charleston-born brigadier general in the Continental Army. His was by far the coolest, with its menacing rattler and provocative slogan.
The snake, it turns out, was something of a Colonial-era meme, evidently originated by Benjamin Franklin. In 1751, Franklin made the satirical suggestion that the colonies might repay the Crown for shipping convicts to America by distributing rattlesnakes around England, "particularly in the Gardens of the Prime Ministers, the Lords of Trade and Members of Parliament; for to them we are most particularly obliged." Later, in what may be America's first-ever political cartoon, Franklin published the famous "Join or Die" image, which depicts the American colonies as segments of a snake. Among other borrowers, Paul Revere put the snake in a seventeen-seventies newspaper nameplate. Gadsden's venomous remix, for a flag used by Continental sailors, depicted the reassembled rattler as a righteous threat to trampling imperialism. "The origins of 'Don't Tread On Me,'" Leepson summarizes, "were completely, one hundred percent anti-British, and pro-revolution." Indeed, that E.E.O.C. directive agrees, "It is clear that the Gadsden Flag originated in the Revolutionary War in a non-racial context."
And yet, no symbolic meaning is locked in time. At the risk of proving Godwin's law (which holds that all online debates work their way to some invocation of Nazis), consider the swastika. A symbol of well-being associated with Buddhists for thousands of years, it was used by commercial brands and even occasionally adorned U.S. and British military aircraft before the Second World War. But the Nazi regime's black, white, and red treatment, and its association with anti-Semitism, violence, aggression, hatred, and death, obliterated the design's earlier meaning in the West and beyond.
The shift in the swastika's meaning is, in some ways, an outlier: there's no disputing its ugly symbolism today. (It would likely not be difficult for, say, a Jewish worker to convince the E.E.O.C. that a colleague's insistence on wearing a swastika cap was evidence of harassment.) Other symbols suggest the fluidity and ambiguity of meaning--and the underground, almost in-group messaging symbols can send. In the early nineteen-nineties, the Los Angeles Raiders logo (now the Oakland Raiders), which involves an eye-patched football player and crossed swords, had supposedly been so widely adopted by "street gangs" that many schools in the Western U.S. banned it because of "the connection between Raiders gear and gang activity," according to a Times article from that era. More recently, a cartoon character called Pepe the Frog, invented by the artist Matt Furie as a kind of slacker humanoid amphibian back in 2005, has been repurposed in shadowy corners of the Internet--maybe ironically, maybe not--as a winky symbol of white nationalism. "Pepe can be used by the alt-right to slyly say 'I'm one of you,'" Motherboard explained after Donald Trump, Jr., shared a Pepe meme on Instagram earlier this month, and a surprising number of reports, as well as the Hillary Clinton campaign, agreed.
As for Gadsden's creation: after the Stars and Stripes was adopted as the official flag of the United States (with little fanfare or recorded debate, Leepson notes), the Gadsden design remained something of a Revolutionary relic for many years. By the nineteen-seventies, it had some popularity in Libertarian circles, as a symbol of ideological enthusiasm for minimal government and the rights of individuals; there was little mainstream interest in the flag as late as the summer of 2001, when Chris Whitten, who described himself in an e-mail as having "a background in the broader Libertarian movement," started a Web site dedicated to the history of the flag (and associated merch). Traffic spiked after the September 11th terrorist attacks, Whitten says, and searches (and sales) also climbed as the Tea Party movement emerged. The symbol's appeal spread through pop culture, as an all-purpose signifier of swaggering defiance. In 2014, Alabama became the seventh state to approve a specialty license plate with a Gadsden design.
Along the way, it picked up other connotations: strident anti-government sentiment, often directed with particular vehemence at the first African-American President. As the E.E.O.C. gingerly suggested, the symbol is now "sometimes interpreted to convey racially-tinged messages in some contexts," citing the flag's removal from a New Haven fire station after a black firefighter complained, and a 2014 incident in which two Las Vegas police officers were killed and their bodies covered by the flag. (The officers were white, but the shooters reportedly "spoke of white supremacy" and "the start of a revolution," and were presumably sending that message with the flag.) Other skirmishes around the flag's display, largely centered on its association with the Tea Party, have entangled small businesses, homeowners' associations, and even an empty building. "People who collect historical flags like to fly them occasionally," John M. Hartvigsen, president of the North American Vexillological Association, says. But some have shied away from "historical display" of the Gadsden flag because "it can now communicate a political sentiment that may not be theirs."
Observers of the Gadsden flag's resurgence--both pro and con--frequently end up comparing it to the Confederate battle flag. Hartvigsen says the version of that flag that we're familiar with today was originally used by Confederate war veterans' groups and the like, and was then embraced by the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacists. This association with racial hatred, and the flag's historic roots as an emblem of a would-be government that embraced slavery, has long made the flag offensive to many. John Coski, a historian who wrote the 2005 book "The Confederate Battle Flag: America's Most Embattled Emblem," said in an e-mail that he suspects the flag still has "multiple meanings," even if defenses involving regional pride and the like have been increasingly challenged and marginalized. Coski is aware that any ambiguity about that flag is unfathomable to those who see its meaning as aggressively racist--and settled. Sentiment against that flag crested last year with the mass shooting at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina. The accused murderer, Dylann Roof, was an avowed racist who had photographed himself with the Confederate flag; after the murders, South Carolina removed it from the capitol grounds, and mainstream retailers like Walmart and Amazon stopped selling merchandise that featured the design.
We have no real context for what that aggrieved postal worker experienced, or for the motives of his Gadsden-fan colleague. But however that incident is ultimately resolved as a matter of workplace regulation, it's not going to settle some definitive meaning of the "Don't Tread On Me" rattler. "Symbols are emotion-charged," Hartvigsen, the flag expert, said. We care about and interpret them on a personal level. And that's why the facts of a symbol's history and associations can be compiled, documented, and studied, but they still won't be the whole story. "Flags very much have the meaning of the individual who is displaying it, or seeing it," Hartvigsen continued. More significant, those may be two wildly divergent, but equally fervent, perspectives. The Gadsden flag is just the latest example that disagreements and ambiguity do not undermine the emotional power of a symbol. Sometimes, in fact, they are its source.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Who gets to decide what any symbol or flag really means?
- 2. Is this debate over the Gadsden flag a free speech issue?
- 3. What is the historical meaning of the Gadsden flag? Why was it created?
- 4. The author states, "no symbolic meaning is locked in time." Provide two specific examples from the text that reinforce how symbols can shift in meaning over time.
- 5. Is this paranoia by people who see racism everywhere they look, or is there a basis for the recent complaints that the Gadsden flag is racist? Explain your perspective.
- 6. After reading this article, what is your perception of the Gadsden flag?
- 7. What's more important, liberty or equality? Defend your position.
Click here to view more: //www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-shifting-symbolism-of-the-gadsden-flag
Posted September 27, 2016
Insiders: The heat is on Hillary
BY STEVEN SHEPARD
"She will have to answer every single question flawlessly, exude gravitas...not cough, wear an acceptable pantsuit, smile enough, be likable, not laugh and have a good hair day. Donald Trump will just have to show up," said an Ohio Democrat.
The pressure is on Hillary Clinton.
Insiders in both parties agree: Clinton, having lost most of her lead over the past few weeks and bringing more experience to the stage, faces higher expectations than Donald Trump when the two square off for the first debate on Long Island.
That's according to The POLITICO Caucus -- a panel of activists, strategists and operatives in 11 key battleground states. Roughly equal percentages of Democrats (69 percent) and Republicans (74 percent) said Clinton is under more pressure to perform than Trump. But Democrats mostly lamented the low expectations for Trump, a relative political neophyte who has exhibited little command of the issues.
"She shouldn't be [under more pressure], but so long as he avoids standing on stage and vomiting on himself, the press will give Trump a glowing review," said a Nevada Democrat -- who, like all respondents, completed the survey anonymously. "Hillary will need a strong performance to demonstrate that she passes and Trump fails the commander-in-chief test."
"The media and Trump himself have set the bar too low for Trump," a New Hampshire Democrat added. "Presidents don't get graded on a curve, and candidates in debates shouldn't be either."
One Ohio Democrat detected a double standard for the first female major-party nominee.
"Hillary Clinton has spent a public lifetime of being held to a strikingly different standard, and this debate will be no exception," said the Ohio Democrat. "She will have to answer every single question flawlessly, exude gravitas, look presidential, channel Bill's and Barack's oratorical mastery, not raise her voice, not cough, wear an acceptable pantsuit, smile enough, be likable, not laugh and have a good hair day. Donald Trump will just have to show up."
Republicans also said Clinton was under greater scrutiny on Monday night, but for different reasons: tightening polls that show Trump eclipsing Clinton in some battleground states.
"Somehow she needs to reverse the trend," said an Ohio Republican. "Never seen anyone do it before. This will be her chance -- and maybe her last chance."
"She has to stop [Trump's] momentum with a strong debate performance, and she has to be able to stand on the stage for 90 minutes and look healthy for 90 minutes or the whole issue of her health comes back with a vengeance," added a Virginia Republican. "All [Trump] has to do is not say anything racist or sexist and look like he could be president."
Among those insiders who said Trump was under more pressure -- 31 percent of Democrats and 26 percent of Republicans -- most pointed to the GOP nominee's volatile personality.
"Hillary Clinton is expected to do well. She is a policy wonk," said a Michigan Republican. "The pressure is on Donald Trump not to lose his cool. He has been doing very well in his public appearances, but that is with the assistance of a TelePrompTer. He will have no such help at the debate, and if I were coaching Hillary Clinton, I would be encouraging her to get him as riled up as possible. To win the debate, all Trump really needs to do is meet expectations, keep his cool, and look presidential."
"The question we are all waiting to have answered is: Can he be serious?" added a Michigan Democrat. "Can he answer questions directly? How will he react (or overreact) when he is directly challenged? Can he control his temper?"
Two other takeaways from the pre-debate survey:
Most insiders expect Clinton to "win" the debate.
Majorities in both parties peg Clinton as most likely to be the victor on Monday night: 76 percent of Democrats and 59 percent of Republicans.
"Media look at who best answered questions, and that will likely be Hillary," said an Iowa Republican.
"[Clinton's] mastery of issues and policies and no-nonsense delivery will prevail over bluster, name-calling and promises that can never be kept," added a New Hampshire Democrat.
But not all Democrats were so optimistic about Clinton -- or the media through which voters will interpret the debate.
"The press wants Trump to win," said a Florida Democrat. "Their disdain for her, plus desire to keep the race alive, means unless he really screws up, they'll give him the win on the most absurd grade curve ever."
Some Republicans also claimed media bias -- in the other direction.
"The media has never been more in the tank for a candidate in modern history: CNN, NBC, ABC and POLITICO will all say she won," a Virginia Republican said. "But then again everyone also 'knew' that Carter beat Reagan in their debate as well."
Insiders think the debate will matter.
Asked whether they expect the debate to have a significant impact on the race, most insiders in both parties think it will generate momentum for one of the candidates.
Among Democratic insiders, 66 percent believe Clinton will benefit from the debate, 11 percent think Trump will get a bounce and 23 percent don't expect the debate to move the needle.
"Trump will flounder, ramble and lie (because he always does)," a Michigan Democrat predicted. "The moderators will challenge him, and he'll get mad. He'll complain afterwards that they picked on him and favored Hillary. First impressions are hard to shake off, and this won't go well for him."
The numbers were flipped for Republicans, with slightly less enthusiasm for the GOP standard-bearer: 52 percent think the debate will help Trump, 26 percent think it will help Clinton and 22 percent said it wouldn't have a significant impact.
"Trump has the most to gain by appearing presidential and even-tempered," said a New Hampshire Republican. "He does that successfully, and he cuts into Hillary's greatest strength."
But some Republicans said Clinton could stunt Trump's momentum with a strong performance Monday night.
"If she pins his ears back, [it helps her]," said an Iowa Republican. "If it's a draw, it's a net negative for her. She has to have something to stop his momentum. She's got to hit him with a brick."
Other insiders, however, doubted whether the debate would have a significant, permanent effect on the race.
"We're past the era of the big debate swings: the bloodless Dukakis death penalty answer, the Reagan age quip, the Bentsen "you're no John Kennedy" moments," an Iowa Republican said. "Swing voters are like the California Condor, a critically endangered species disappearing at an alarming rate. Opinion media, partisan polarization, and two highly unpopular candidates make this a battle over a very small group of voters in about a dozen states, and whatever bounce comes out of this debate will dissipate as quickly as it appears."
Added a Florida Democrat: "Does a damn thing matter this year? I think not."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. According to the article, why was there more pressure on Hillary Clinton to perform well leading up to Monday night's presidential debate?
- 2. What does it mean to refer to Donald Trump as a "political neophyte"?
- 3. There are two angles of political bias represented in this article, a conservative one against Clinton, and a liberal one against Trump. Which bias is stronger? Use examples from the article to defend your position.
- 4. Did you watch the first presidential debate? In your opinion, who won? How does this compare to the predictions that were made in the article?
- 5. Why weren't Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein allowed to participate in the debate? Do you feel that it's wrong for the media to limit third-party involvement in presidential debates? Why or why not?
- 6. In a world where social media, daily headlines, and free media apps saturate the mainstream with election info, how important do you think a TV debate really is?
Click here to view more: //www.politico.com/story/2016/09/debate-trump-clinton-caucus-228654
Posted September 20th 2016
NY, NJ bombings: Suspect charged with attempted murder of officers
BY EVAN PEREZ, SHIMON PROKUPECZ, EMANUELLA GRINBERG AND HOLLY YAN, CNN
New York (CNN) - The man suspected in Saturday's bombings in New York and New Jersey was captured on Monday after a frantic manhunt and shootout.
Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, was charged with five counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer after a shootout Monday with police in Linden, New Jersey, Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park said. He is also charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Authorities said Rahami is "directly linked" to bombings Saturday in New York City and Seaside Park, New Jersey, and is believed to be connected to pipe bombs found Sunday night in Elizabeth, New Jersey, sources said.
"We have every reason to believe this was an act of terror," New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday.
But many questions remain, chief among them, why did he do it? And, is anyone else responsible?
The arrest
Rahami was captured after the owner of a bar in Linden, New Jersey, found him sleeping in the doorway of his bar Monday morning. Harinder Bains, owner of Merdie's Tavern, said he was watching CNN on his laptop from another business across the street. At first, he thought he was some "drunk guy" resting in the vestibule. Then, he recognized Rahami and called police.
"I'm just a regular citizen doing what every citizen should do. Cops are the real heroes, law enforcement are the real heroes," Bains told CNN's Anderson Cooper.
When officers responded, Rahami pulled out a handgun and opened fire, striking an officer in the chest. A foot chase ensued, during which Rahami shot at a police car, causing a bullet to graze another officer in the face.
The chase ended when Rahami was shot multiple times. He was taken to a hospital for surgery. Officers Angel Padilla and Peter Hammer were taken to the hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.
Rahami was not initially cooperative with police who tried to interview him, a law enforcement official said.
Authorities believe the "main guy" has been caught but the investigation continues to determine if Rahami had help, sources told CNN.
Though FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr., said there is "no indication" of an active operating cell in the New York area, evidence suggests Rahami was not acting alone, sources told CNN.
As the investigation continues, law enforcement has stressed there is no reason to believe a bomber is on the run.
The investigation
Initially, a garbage explosion at a Marine Corps charity race in Seaside Park, New Jersey, seemed to be an isolated incident. Two other unexploded bombs were found nearby and no one was wounded in the blast.
Then came another blast Saturday night in New York's Chelsea neighborhood, injuring 29 people. As law enforcement cordoned off the area, investigators found a pressure cooker four blocks away.
Dark-colored wiring was connected by silver duct tape to what appeared to be a cell phone. Ball bearings and BBs were among pieces of metal that appeared to be packed inside, a federal law enforcement official said. A handwritten note found next to it contained ramblings, including references to previous terrorists, including the Boston Marathon bombers.
Surveillance video shows a man believed to be Rahami dragging what appears to be a duffel bag with wheels near the site of the West 23rd Street explosion about 40 minutes before the blast, according to multiple local and federal law enforcement sources.
About 10 minutes later, surveillance video shows the same man with the same duffel bag on West 27th Street, multiple law enforcement sources said.
In the video, the man leaves the duffel bag where police later found the unexploded pressure cooker. After he leaves, the video shows two other men removing a white garbage bag believed to contain the pressure cooker from the duffel bag and leaving it on the sidewalk, according to a senior law enforcement official and another source familiar with the video.
Investigators have not determined if those two men are connected to the man with the duffel bag, the sources said.
Rahami was identified Sunday afternoon through a fingerprint, a senior law enforcement official said. Evidence from the cell phone on the pressure cooker also led to Rahmani's identification.
A traffic stop Sunday night of five people in New York led to searches and interviews in Elizabeth, New Jersey, said Sweeney with the FBI. Rahami's last known address was in Elizabeth, the same city where the backpack with explosives was found Sunday night.
The latest bomb discovery
The backpack with five bombs inside was found in a wastebasket around 9:30 p.m. on Sunday outside a neighborhood pub in Elizabeth, about 16 miles from New York City. Two men found the backpack about 500 feet from a train trestle and alerted police, officials said.
As bomb technicians deployed a robot to examine the devices, one of the bombs detonated. The remaining four were taken to an FBI laboratory at Quantico, Virginia, Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bollwage said.
Police checked all garbage cans in the immediate area but found no other suspicious items.
By Monday, authorities said they believed Rahami was linked to the explosion.
Who is the suspect?
Rahami first came to the United States in 1995 as a child, after his father arrived seeking asylum, and became a naturalized US citizen in 2011, according to a law enforcement official who reviewed his travel and immigration record.
Rahami traveled for extended periods to Afghanistan and Pakistan in the last five years, officials said. While in Pakistan in July 2011, he married a Pakistani woman. Two years later, in April 2013, he went to Pakistan and remained there until March 2014, visiting Afghanistan before returning to the United States.
Upon returning from both visits he told officials he was visiting family, satisfying any concerns immigration officials had at the time.
His family runs First American Fried Chicken in Elizabeth, the city's mayor said. The family has a history of clashes with the community over the restaurant, which used to be open 24 hours a day, Mayor Chris Bollwage said.
In 2011, the family sued the city of Elizabeth, and its police department, alleging discrimination and harassment against Muslims stemming from disputes over the restaurant's hours. Investigators searched the building on Monday, Bollwage said.
'Bigger than ever' NYPD presence
The bombings came as New York hosts world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly this week.
Heightened security across the city is common during the UNGA. But after the Chelsea bombing, Cuomo said 1,000 additional New York State Police officers and National Guard troops will be deployed to patrol bus terminals, airports and subway stations.
"You should know you will see a very substantial NYPD presence this week -- bigger than ever," de Blasio said.
Substantial police presence notwithstanding, life appears to have returned to normal, whether you call it resilience or resignation.
As President Obama said Monday, "we all have a role to play as citizens" by making sure we don't succumb to fear.
People in the region are tough and resilient, he said.
"They don't get scared," he said. "That's the kind of strength that makes me so proud to be an American. And, that's the kind of strength that is going to be absolutely critical, not just in the days to come, but in the years to come."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Most events have a cause and effect. What do you consider to be the potential cause(s) and effect(s) of the New York and New Jersey bombings? Why would Ahmad Khan Rahami go to such great lengths to plan this?
- 2. Who has been most affected by the weekend bombings: local citizens, cities, the country, or the world? Explain your perspective.
- 3. In your own words, what is "terrorism"? Why was there a delay in labeling these bombs as terrorist acts? What makes something an act of terror rather than malicious lawbreaking?
- 4. They say that history repeats itself. What historical event is similar to this one? Compare and contrast the two events and their outcomes.
- 5. If you were suddenly in the shoes of New York Mayor de Blasio or New York Governor Andrew Cuomo following this event, what would be your next steps?
Click here to view more: //www.cnn.com/2016/09/19/us/new-york-explosion-investigation/
Posted September 14th 2016
After outcry, Facebook will reinstate iconic Vietnam War photo
BY JETHRO MULLEN AND CHARLES RILEY @CNNTECH
Facebook will reverse course and allow users to post the iconic "Napalm Girl" image hours after facing fierce criticism for censoring one of the most famous war photographs in history.
"After hearing from our community, we looked again at how our Community Standards were applied in this case," a spokesperson for Facebook said in a statement. "Because of its status as an iconic image of historical importance, the value of permitting sharing outweighs the value of protecting the community by removal, so we have decided to reinstate the image on Facebook where we are aware it has been removed."
The photograph, which depicts a naked girl fleeing a napalm attack during the Vietnam War, was said to have violated Facebook's ban on images of naked children.
Facebook says the picture will be available to share "in the coming days." It also promised to work to "improve our policies to make sure they both promote free expression and keep our community safe."
The editor of a top Norwegian newspaper on Thursday addressed an open letter to Zuckerberg saying he was "upset, disappointed -- well, in fact even afraid" about Facebook's impact on media freedom.
Espen Egil Hansen said his newspaper, Aftenposten, received a demand from Facebook to remove the iconic Vietnam War photo.
"Less than 24 hours after the email was sent, and before I had time to give my response, you intervened yourselves and deleted the article as well as the image from Aftenposten's Facebook page," Hansen wrote.
Kim Phuc, the Vietnamese girl pictured in the 1972 photo, was not available for comment. But Phuc's personal manager, Anne Bayin, said she supports the use of the image.
"Kim is saddened by those who would focus on the nudity in the historic picture rather than the powerful message it conveys," Bayin said in an email to CNNMoney. "She fully supports the documentary image taken by Nick Ut as a moment of truth that captures the horror of war and its effects on innocent lives."
His complaint highlights growing concern about Facebook's vast and expanding influence over news and other content seen by more than a billion people around the world.
"You create rules that don't distinguish between child pornography and famous war photographs," Hansen wrote to Zuckerberg. "Then you practice these rules without allowing space for good judgment."
Earlier Friday, Facebook said it recognized that the photo is iconic, but stressed that it's "difficult to create a distinction between allowing a photograph of a nude child in one instance and not others."
'Editing our common history'
The pressure intensified on Friday when Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg accused the company of deleting the image from her own public page.
"What they do in removing such pictures, whatever their reasons, is to edit our common history," Solberg said in a statement that urged Facebook to face up to its responsibilities as a major media platform.
In an interview with CNN's Richard Quest shortly before Facebook reversed course, Solberg said that the social network "should have not a machine-run, but a moral-run way of editing things."
The saga began when Norwegian author Tom Egeland posted a series of historic war photographs on Facebook.
The social network removed one of the images -- the famous Vietnam photo of the naked girl, Kim Phuc, fleeing the napalm attack -- and later suspended Egeland's account after he posted a reaction to the deletion.
When Aftenposten posted its article about what happened to Egeland on Facebook, that too fell foul of the rules.
"You even censor criticism against and a discussion about the decision -- and you punish the person who dares to voice criticism," Hansen wrote.
Ut's dramatic photo won a Pulitzer Prize and is regarded as one of the most memorable images of the 20th Century. Despite its graphic nature, the photo has been credited with helping to turn U.S. public sentiment against the war in Vietnam.
Hansen told CNNMoney's Nina Dos Santos on Friday that Zuckerberg is now "the most influential editor-in-chief in the world."
"With that follows a great responsibility," Hansen said. "I ask him to think through what he is doing ... to the public debate all over the world."
An attack on democracy?
Rolv Erik Ryssdal, chief executive of Aftenposten's publisher, said in a statement that Facebook's position "is not acceptable" and constitutes an attack on democracy and freedom of expression.
Zuckerberg has tried to fend off pressure about Facebook's role in managing what articles and images people see.
"We're a technology company, we're not a media company," he said last month. "We do not produce any of the content."
Facebook says it relies on users to report offensive content. Items they flag are then reviewed by teams of workers around the world who speak many languages, including Norwegian.
But some media experts say the system is fatally flawed.
"Whether intentional or desired or not, Facebook does now play a critical role in the distribution of news," Jeff Jarvis, a journalism professor at the City University of New York, wrote earlier this year. "An editor -- or perhaps an ethicist-in-chief -- could help set the services standards and policies."
Jarvis seized on Hansen's letter to Zuckerberg, tweeting that it's an example of "exactly why I keep suggesting Facebook needs a top level journalist."
Facebook was engulfed by controversy in May over how news stories were chosen for its "trending topics" box. Last month, it removed the humans responsible for manually writing news descriptions and headlines for the section, turning the job over to software programs.
Seth Fiegerman and Aaron Smith assisted with this story.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. The first paragraph of a news article should answer the questions "Who?", "What?", "When?", and "Where?" List the who, what, when, and where of this news item. (Note: The rest of a news article provides details on the why and/or how.)
- 2. Have you seen this image before? Are you familiar with the events surrounding it? Discuss with the class.
- 3. "Context" is defined by Merriam-Webster as "the words that are used with a certain word or phrase and that help to explain its meaning; the situation in which something happens: the group of conditions that exist where and when something happens." Does context matter when we decide if an image or a piece of writing is offensive? Should the image be judged solely on its contents?
- 4. Is Facebook censoring content or protecting its users from offensive images? What's the perceived difference between "censoring" and "protecting"?
- 5. What is Solberg implying in the following quote? "What they do in removing such pictures, whatever their reasons, is to edit our common history." How could a social media website change historic events of the past?
- 6. What do YOU think: Was Facebook correct to remove the image? Defend your position. Why do you think Facebook ultimately caved and is reinstating the image?
Click here to view more: //money.cnn.com/2016/09/09/technology/facebook-censorship-vietnam-war-photo/index.html
Posted May 25th 2016
US lifts Vietnam arms embargo in move to counter China
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS CONTRIBUTED TO THIS REPORT.
President Obama lifted the decades-long U.S. arms embargo against Vietnam on Monday in an apparent effort to shore up the communist country's defenses against an increasingly aggressive China - though he faced criticism that the move takes away U.S. leverage to press for human rights freedoms.
Obama announced the full removal of the embargo at a news conference in Hanoi alongside Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang. The president said the move was intended as a step toward normalizing relations with the former enemy and to eliminate a "lingering vestige of the Cold War."
The embargo was imposed in 1984. The United States partially lifted the ban in 2014, but Vietnam pushed for full access as it tries to deal with China's land reclamation and military construction in nearby seas.
Obama, in announcing the agreement Monday, said every U.S. arms sale would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis going forward. Vietnam has not bought anything, but removing the remaining restrictions shows relations are fully normalized and opens the way to deeper security cooperation.
"At this stage both sides have developed a level of trust and cooperation, including between our militaries, that is reflective of common interests and mutual respect," Obama said.
U.S. lawmakers and activists, though, had urged Obama to press for greater human rights freedoms in the one-party state before lifting the embargo. Vietnam holds about 100 political prisoners and there have been more detentions this year.
"In one fell swoop, President Obama has jettisoned what remained of U.S. leverage to improve human rights in Vietnam -- and (has) basically gotten nothing for it," Phil Robertson, with Human Rights Watch, said.
In Beijing, China's Foreign Ministry outwardly praised the move, with a spokeswoman saying China hoped "normal and friendly" relations between the U.S. and Vietnam would be conducive to regional stability. China itself remains under a weapons embargo imposed by the U.S. and European Union following 1989's bloody military crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations centered on Beijing's Tiananmen Square.
Obama said the United States and Vietnam had mutual concerns about maritime issues and the importance of maintaining freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. He said that although Washington doesn't take sides on the territorial disputes, it does support a diplomatic resolution based on "international norms" and "not based on who's the bigger party and can throw around their weight a little bit more," a reference to China.
Lifting the arms embargo will be a psychological boost for Vietnam's leaders as they look to counter an increasingly aggressive China, but there may not be a big jump in sales.
Obama was greeted Monday by Quang at the Presidential Palace, where Obama congratulated Vietnam for making "extraordinary progress." Quang praised the expansion in security and trade ties between "former enemies turned friends" and called for more U.S. investment in Vietnam.
Obama also made the case for stronger commercial and economic ties, including approval of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement that is stalled in Congress and facing strong opposition from the 2016 presidential candidates. The deal, which includes Vietnam, would tear down trade barriers and encourage investment between the countries that signed it.
Critics worry it would cost jobs by exposing American workers to low-wage competition from countries such as Vietnam.
Obama and Quang earlier attended a signing ceremony touting a series of new commercial deals between U.S. and Vietnamese companies valued at more than $16 billion. The deals included U.S. engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney's plans to sell 135 advanced engines to Vietnamese air carrier Vietjet, and Boeing's plans to sell 100 aircraft to the airline.
Obama is the third sitting president to visit Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Four decades after the fall of Saigon, now called Ho Chi Minh City, and two decades after President Bill Clinton restored relations with the nation, Obama is eager to upgrade relations with an emerging power whose rapidly expanding middle class beckons as a promising market for U.S. goods and an offset to China's growing strength.
The United States is eager to boost trade with a fast-growing middle class in Vietnam that is expected to double by 2020. That would mean knocking down auto, food and machine tariffs to get more U.S. products into Vietnam.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What is an "embargo"? Why has the U.S. had an embargo against Vietnam since 1984?
- 2. What reasons do advocates give for ending the Vietnamese embargo? Why are many people against the end of the U.S. embargo on Vietnam?
- 3. Why is President Obama actively working to bolster relations with Vietnam? What do his efforts have to do with China?
- 4. Obama is also pushing for more commercial and economic ties to Vietnam and other East Asian countries with the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. Why do you think the 2016 presidential candidates would be opposed to this trade pact? What are the risks for the future?
- 5. What do you think: Is our renewed connection to Vietnam a good thing? Let's not forget that they are still a nation where citizens lack basic rights, such as freedom of speech, and people who speak against the government become political prisoners or worse. We fought against communist Vietnam for nearly 20 years. Weigh the pros and cons. Do the benefits outweigh the costs?
Click here to view more://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/05/23/us-lifts-vietnam-arms-embargo-in-move-to-counter-china.html
Posted May 18th 2016
Zuckerberg: Facebook probing claims 'trending topics' is biased
BY CHRISTINE SEIB
Mark Zuckerberg has kicked off a probe into claims Facebook suppressed pro-conservative stories and forced others to artificially appear in the social media site's influential "trending topics" list.
In a post on Thursday evening, the Facebook CEO said that being open to all viewpoints was at the "core of everything Facebook is and everything I want it to be."
"Every tool we build is designed to give more people a voice and bring our global community together," he said.
Zuckerberg's comments came after tech blog Gizmodo kicked off a furor on Monday over whether Facebook allowed its "trending topics" module to move organically in line with users' interests, or manipulated it by using news judgment similar to that employed by traditional media outlets.
Gizmodo cited former Facebook "news curators," who claimed that fellow curators had routinely prevented stories with a conservative slant from appearing on the site's "trending topics" list.
Gizmodo cited other ex-curators who also claimed that they "forced" stories into the trending topics module, which appears on users' pages on the desktop site to let them know what topics are most popular with other users, before they were actually trending.
The claims appeared at odds with Facebook's assertion that trending topics were identified by algorithms and only then reviewed by the trending topics team to meet certain standards, such as whether the topic was tied to a current, real news event.
Zuckerberg said in his post that the company took the Gizmodo claims very seriously and was conducting a full investigation to ensure the integrity of its trending module was upheld.
"We have found no evidence that this report is true," he said. "If we find anything against our principles, you have my commitment that we will take additional steps to address it."
In addition to the investigation, Zuckerberg said he would invite "leading conservatives and people from across the political spectrum" to share their views with him.
Gizmodo said one former news curator said that conservative stories appeared to have been suppressed in line with the curators' personal political viewpoints or knowledge of the topic. Another former curator supported the allegations, the website said.
Others claimed that they were explicitly instructed by their managers at Facebook to manipulate the trending topics algorithm by inserting topics into the module before they had gathered momentum among Facebook users.
Gizmodo's sources cited the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack in Paris, events in the Syrian conflict and the Black Lives Matter movement as instances where the trending topics team injected topics into the module.
A day after the Gizmodo report, Facebook's search vice president, Tom Stocky, denied that Facebook had ever artificially inserted stories into trending topics. Stocky also said that suppressing stories was "technically not feasible."
"Facebook does not allow or advise our reviewers to systematically discriminate against sources of any ideological origin and we've designed our tools to make that technically not feasible," he said. "At the same time, our reviewers' actions are logged and reviewed, and violating our guidelines is a fireable offense."
The Gizmodo report prompted Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, to write to Zuckerberg to ask for more details on the allegations. The committee has oversight on issues of internet communications, consumer protection and media issues.
The U.K. newspaper The Guardian on Thursday published what it said were internal Facebook guidelines that showed the extent to which human curators could shape the computer-generated trending topics list. Facebook then published its own overview of how trending topics worked.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Facebook has always claimed to be a non-biased media source, focused on openness to all viewpoints. What are the allegations currently being made about the company? If these allegations are true, how could they affect Facebook as a whole?
- 2. How is public opinion formed? Facebook is the largest media company on the planet: When it comes to the presidential election, how could influencing the trending topics be dangerous?
- 3. Facebook is a publicly traded company and has the freedom to do what it wants, as long as its shareholders (and maybe its users) are happy. Does the government have any right to intervene here?
- 4. Even if Facebook is filtering their news selections, is it any different than other existing media bias, such as Fox News' conservative leanings or Huffington Post's seemingly liberal bias? If readers don't trust Facebook as a news source, do you think the company would lose a significant amount of profits and users, or are they big enough to ignore this story and conduct business as usual, since the site is so much more than just a news venue?
- 5. The first core concept of media literacy is: All media messages are "constructed." Since all media is created by someone, doesn't it all have some form of bias? If you feel like you can't trust news websites to report the truth without putting a spin on it, who can you trust? Which news websites do you consider neutral, solid sources to use?
- 6. How big of an effect do you think mass media bias has on American citizens? As voters, are most Americans smart enough to do their own research and see through the skewed agendas or do we tend to accept what we hear and read? How could you test the effect of political bias in the media with your family, friends, and acquaintances?
Click here to view more://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/13/mark-zuckerberg-says-facebook-is-investigating-claims-pro-conservative-stories-were-suppressed.html
Posted May 11th 2016
North Korea Expels BBC Journalists Over Coverage
BY CHOE SANG-HUN
SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea expelled a BBC reporting crew on Monday for what it deemed a disrespectful portrayal of the country and its leader, Kim Jong-un, as Mr. Kim used a rare Workers' Party congress to cement his grip on power.
More than 100 foreign journalists were granted visas to visit North Korea for the duration of the seventh congress of the Workers' Party, the first such political gathering in 36 years. But the authorities there blocked those journalists from actually covering the event, forcing them to rely on state-run, propaganda-filled domestic news media to glean details of the meeting.
The BBC reported that its correspondent, Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, who had arrived with a delegation of Nobel laureates before the congress, was detained on Friday and questioned for eight hours before being made to sign a statement.
O Ryong Il, the secretary general of the North's National Peace Committee, said that Mr. Wingfield-Hayes's coverage had distorted facts and "spoke ill of the system and the leadership," The Associated Press reported.
A producer, Maria Byrne, and a cameraman, Matthew Goddard, were also being expelled on Monday, the BBC said. They, along with Mr. Wingfield-Hayes, were stopped on Friday as they were trying to leave the country.
In one of his reports, Mr. Wingfield-Hayes said that his team was "in trouble" after shooting a segment in front of a statue of the North's founding president, Kim Il-sung, in which he said something on camera that he said government minders deemed disrespectful. He said the officials demanded that the video be erased. Mr. Wingfield-Hayes did not elaborate on what he had said.
Mr. Wingfield-Hayes described North Korea in one report as "one of the most isolated, impoverished and repressive places on earth." He later expressed frustration that North Koreans he wanted to interview ran away when he approached and that "everything we see looks like a setup."
Before its four-day session ended on Monday, the congress bestowed Kim Jong-un with a new top title, chairman of the Workers' Party, after he called for a more vigorous development of nuclear weapons and missiles, state-run news media reported. The announcement was made during the 10 minutes that a small group of foreign journalists was allowed, for the first time, to watch the meeting, The A.P. reported from Pyongyang, the North's capital.
The congress also elevated two of Mr. Kim's closest aides -- the party secretary, Choe Ryong-hae, and Pak Pong-ju, the prime minister and chief economic official -- to join the presidium of the party's Politburo. Mr. Kim leads the presidium, which has two other members: Kim Yong-nam, the head of Parliament, and Hwang Pyong-so, the chief political officer of the military.
Mr. Kim, the third-generation leader in his family's dynastic rule of North Korea, had been widely expected to use the congress to cement his grip on power and have his crucial policies, including the so-called byungjin policy of increasing a nuclear arsenal while rebuilding the economy, adopted as official party lines.
The party meeting took place shortly after the United Nations Security Council imposed a new round of tougher sanctions to punish the North for its recent nuclear and long-range rocket tests. But the decision adopted by the congress upheld Mr. Kim's campaign to expand his country's nuclear arsenal "both in quality and quantity" by producing more diverse and smaller nuclear warheads.
It also said the country should launch more satellites. The United Nations has condemned the North's satellite program as a cover for developing an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Mr. Kim also said that his country proudly stuck fast to its "socialist path of our own choosing" by successfully repelling "the confusing winds of bourgeois liberalization, reform and openness from around us."
In its decision, the congress also said that North Korea would act like a "responsible nuclear power," would not share its nuclear knowledge abroad and would work for "the denuclearization of the world." It said it would improve ties with other countries, including South Korea, if they respected the North.
But the North made no commitment to denuclearizing itself. Instead, it demanded that the United States prove that it is no longer hostile by stopping its annual joint military drills with South Korea, withdrawing its troops from the peninsula and signing a peace treaty.
South Korea dismissed the overture as propaganda, saying that dialogue was possible only when the North convinced the South that it was ready to give up its nuclear weapons.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What is the significance of the seventh congress of the Workers' Party? What may have been North Korea's goal in inviting 100 international journalists to the country for this meeting, only to block them from attendance?
- 2. Describe the two policies that Kim Jong-un focused on during this political gathering. How could his two policy goals be contradictory?
- 3. What consequences will North Korea face by continuing to build an arsenal of nuclear weapons?
- 4. If you had the opportunity to travel to North Korea as a journalist, knowing of the government's past treatment of visitors, would you take the risk? Why or why not?
- 5. North Korea identifies itself as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, a communist state. Is North Korea more communist or fascist? Compare and contrast the two government types to defend your position.
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/10/world/asia/north-korea-expels-bbc.html
Posted May 4th 2016
5 years ago the U.S. killed Osama bin Laden. Did it matter?
BY NICOLE GAOUETTE, CNN
Five years after U.S. Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden at his Pakistani compound, more groups of violent Islamic extremists threaten global security than at any time in history.
Terrorist attacks stretching from Paris and Brussels to Istanbul and the skies over the Sinai Peninsula speak to the virulent reach of ISIS, while intelligence officials and analysts say al Qaeda affiliates are poised for a resurgence in the coming year and may pose the greater long-term danger.
President Barack Obama and key members of his inner circle spoke to CNN's Peter Bergen about the raid that killed the mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks for the "Anderson Cooper 360°" special on Monday at 8 p.m. ET: "'We got him': President Obama, Bin Laden and the Future of the War on Terror." Bergen's exclusive interview marks the first time Obama has sat down with a journalist in the Situation Room.
Bin Laden's death in 2011, nearly a decade after his al Qaeda organization launched the attacks of September 11, 2001, sent an unmistakable message that the U.S. will wreak vengeance on those who attack it, no matter how long it takes or how far it has to go.
Obama told Bergen that when the SEALs broached the final door bin Laden hid behind, "hopefully at that moment, he understood that the American people hadn't forgotten the some 3,000 people who he had killed."
Obama's administration has pointed to the raid as evidence that despite his wariness of foreign engagement, the President isn't loathe to act forcefully in American interests and has dealt a drastic blow to al Qaeda and global terror.
Obama has come under a rain of criticism, particularly from Republican presidential candidates, that he lacks an aggressive anti-terror and foreign policy.
He often responds by telling critics that if they doubt his commitment to act, they should "ask Osama bin Laden."
Roots of the problem remain
But cutting off the head of the snake did little to address deep problems of corruption, repression and sectarianism in the countries where these terror groups take root and spread, according to government officials and analysts. They point to an arc of jihadism that stretches today from Western Africa to the Middle East through to Asia.
In short, terrorism will be with us for decades.
"Five years after the killing Osama bin Laden, it's not wrong to be fairly pessimistic in our outlook on the world," said Matthew Henman, head of the Terrorism and Insurgency Center at IHS Jane's, which analyzes international security risks.
The Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, told senators in February that "there are now more Sunni violent extremist groups, members and safe havens than at any time in history."
For now, Clapper estimated that ISIS, a rebel off-shoot of al Qaeda, is stronger globally than bin Laden's group and said it remains intent on striking on U.S. soil. He assessed that the number of foreign fighters traveling to the conflict zones in Syria and Iraq in the past few years -- later setting up cells that can be activated to deadly effect as in Paris and Brussels -- is without precedent.
Indeed, ISIS has seized the headlines with its toxic self-promotion, technological savvy and bloody attacks. CIA Director John Brennan has said its expansion into Libya is a deeply worrying factor, not to mention its franchises in places like Indonesia, Nigeria, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
But it is al Qaeda that could be the bigger problem in the future.
Clapper told senators on the intelligence committee that even though al Qaeda's core leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan has largely been decimated, the group's affiliates are resilient and resurgent.
"Despite counterterrorism pressure that's largely decimated the core leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Al Qaida affiliates are positioned to make gains in 2016," Clapper said.
He singled out al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and Syria's al-Nusra Front as the two most capable al Qaeda branches. Other offshoots include al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb in northern Africa and al Shabab in Somalia.
Al Qaeda's more flexible approach
Despite al Qaeda's failure to become the global jihadi hegemon that bin Laden had envisioned, its affiliates and more flexible ideological approach mean it could reemerge as a more serious threat than ISIS.
Intelligence officials say al Qaeda, like ISIS, hasn't abandoned its desire to develop chemical or biological capabilities that they could use against the West.
Scott Stewart, vice president of tactical analysis at Stratfor, is among the experts who say ISIS may not have as much staying power because of its rigid ideology. In contrast, he said, al Qaeda has taken a more inclusive approach and "has actually been much more effective since they've moderated over the last decade."
Al Qaeda has developed a strategy of embedding in the local population and getting popular support for its goals after the U.S. successfully deployed Iraq's Sunni tribes against them in the so-called Sunni Awakening. That experience taught them that if they minimize the gap between them and local population, "it's very hard to exploit that gap, which is key to counterterrorism," Henman said.
In contrast, he pointed to the ISIS model "which is, 'we'll lead and the people will follow -- or we'll kill them'."
Al Qaeda's greater flexibility also means they're more willing to form alliances with groups that don't reflect their views.
"To use an American political metaphor, they're Big Tent jihadis now," Stewart said, pointing to al Qaeda cooperation in Syria with other groups.
"They'll work with other guys against the common enemy, and that's something the Islamic State won't do as much," Stewart said. "In these places, it's giving the al Qaeda guys a foot up."
Syria's al-Qaeda offshoot Jabat al-Nusra illustrates the point. While there's barely a difference in ideology or objectives between al-Nusra and ISIS, one distinction is that ISIS quickly declared they'd established a Caliphate.
Jabat al-Nusra builds local ties
In contrast, Jabat al-Nusra is playing a much longer game, building relations with local groups and actors and making itself indispensable in the opposition "so its power is growing and it becomes inseparable from other elements in the country," Henman said, while ISIS will "brook no opposition and spends a lot of energy fighting other groups."
In the longer term, it will be far harder for the U.S. and allies to remove al Qaeda affiliates like al-Nusra because of the way it's ingraining itself into local areas. In contrast, Henman said, "because Islamic State is so polarizing, it will be somewhat easy to create a gap between the group and the local population."
In the case of al-Nusra, another factor that could make the al Qaeda the tougher long-term challenge is the support it gets from Sunni regional powers allied with the U.S.
That is going to be one of the more intractable issues in terms of resolving the conflict in Syria, analysts said, as the U.S. looks for ways to delegitimize groups flush with foreign funding and supplies.
But for now, the administration and the allies from more than 60 countries who make up the anti-ISIS coalition are focused on defeating ISIS.
That may be a miscalculation, warned Henman.
"Because ISIS has been grabbing all these headlines, people haven't been focusing on al Qaeda and there's potential for that to be a serious mistake," Henman said. "Not in that they'll underestimate them, but in making sure there are adequate resources to counter them."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. In the five years since the U.S. killed Osama bin Laden, what has been the effect on world terrorism?
- 2. How has al Qaeda changed its tactics in recent years? What evidence does the author give as to why al Qaeda could actually become a more serious threat than ISIS?
- 3. What, if any, is the difference between political and religious terrorism? Is one form more acceptable than the other?
- 4. Is the use of terror tactics ever justified? Why or why not? If yes, when? Is it possible for governments to cause terror? Provide an example.
- 5. Would you agree with the complaints that Obama is weak on anti-terror strategy and that killing bin Laden was equivalent to cutting off the head of a snake without taking care of the deeper problems in the region? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2016/05/02/politics/terrorism-bin-laden-raid-2016-isis/
Posted April 27th 2016
'Bathroom bills' focus on the trans community but could affect another group more
BY STEVEN PETROW
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. -- The political storm around HB2, North Carolina's sweeping "bathroom bill," has focused on its implications for transgender individuals, but much less has been written about what it means for the "gender nonconforming." By that I mean those women and men, girls and boys whose appearance doesn't fit neatly into traditional male and female boxes -- or restrooms. To be blunt: It has been cruel.
Gov. Pat McCrory (R) has been quick to blame outsiders, notably the "PC elite" and the media, for "smearing our state" over the HB2 debacle, which by some estimates could cost the state's economy hundreds of millions of dollars. But that's not all that concerns North Carolina native Jamie Lamkin, 50, a former librarian, who said the new law invites discrimination and harassment against women like herself and her daughter.
Because of her height (5-foot-10), hair (short) and build (she calls it "square"), Jamie has been called "sir" more often than she can recall -- even when she has worn a dress. "It's happened to me my whole life," she said with a sigh. Double down on that for her 15-year-old daughter, Sofie, who has short spiky hair and sports "fuzzy legs;" she's often mistaken for a boy. Women like Jamie and Sofie are likely to be the most frequent victims of the law.
"People have all these misconceptions about gender, a very narrow view of what a boy or girl should look like," Jamie said. She recently posted on Facebook that she has seen reports of "folks being questioned about their gender identity, simply being looked at funny, or being thrown out of places because they don't match a norm for the bathroom they're entering."
I sat down to talk with the two women in their Chapel Hill townhouse last week and got quite an earful. Jamie started off by talking about a deeply unsettling visit to a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop in Durham recently: "We had our milk and doughnuts, and I went to the bathroom, a single-use restroom that said, 'Women.' As I was walking out, and Sofie was about to go in, this lady stopped her, called her 'sir' and told her she was going to the wrong restroom. That's when this 'Mama Bear' pretty much lost it. She's not transgender. She's a girl. Just because she has short hair, wears jeans and T-shirts -- and doesn't have that 'girly' look, they question my child's gender."
Sofie smiled awkwardly as she listened to her mom tell the story, adding that many people seem to think girls should be wearing "skirts and dresses and [carrying] a little handbag."
Since the passage of HB2 last month, Jamie said, "It all feels different now." Fearing the proliferation of self-appointed restroom gender monitors, she said, "I've had to have a serious conversation with Sofie about safety entering the women's bathroom. I told her if anyone questioned who she was, to immediately fetch me."
Jamie's friend Kathleen Roose, a registered nurse, shows her support on Facebook: "Without [diminishing] the very real discrimination and danger trans people are facing, HB2 also constitutes a way to police gender conformance in people who do identify with their chromosomal sex but don't conform with normative gender expression."
In fact, gender nonconforming tweens and teens, such as Sofie, outnumbered trans youth by nearly 2 to 1 in a study done of Los Angeles-area foster youth by Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law.
"The statistics showing relatively high prevalence of gender nonconformity mean that [HB2] puts more youth at risk than many realize," explained Gary Gates, an expert in LGBT demographic and policy issues. "It's a catch-22 for these kids. Trying to use the bathroom can result in verbal and physical assault while avoiding bathrooms can bring health problems like urinary tract and kidney infections."
As you can tell, my sympathies lie with those who are judged and discriminated on the basis of their appearance. I know just how hurtful these kinds of comments are. When I was in my mid-teens, my grandmother hated my shoulder-length hair (which I was convinced made me look like David Cassidy or James Taylor), telling me harshly, "You look like a girl." I tried to explain that I looked like a boy with long hair, but no, I had to fit into either "the boy box" or "the girl box." Neighborhood boys thought much the same, using that as an excuse to beat me up and call me various slurs.
At the same time, I also understand that most Americans haven't thought much about gender identity, and such out-of-the-box thinking is new and, to some, deeply unsettling. Take Lee Tart, a North Carolina farmer, who told the Raleigh News and Observer that he didn't think he had ever met a transgender person. When asked what the term meant to him, he described a man "all dolled up with makeup and clothes." Once he learned more, he immediately worried about "some guy dressing up" who might put his daughters in "jeopardy." It's that lack of familiarity and understanding that defines the challenge ahead.
In many respects, the United States has come a long way since my long-haired days. Facebook now allows users to add their own gender, so maybe we are getting accustomed to living out of the box. Unless, as Jamie cautions, "you're going to the bathroom. Then you do have to fit into one of those little boxes."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Who does the article say could be more affected by HB2 (North Carolina's "bathroom bill") than the transgender community?
- 2. There is a lot of fear in the air around this issue, from both sides of the debate. What are the fears of people who are against HB2? How do they differ from those in support of the law?
- 3. Consider the unintended consequences of this North Carolinian law. How could it potentially affect the economy? What about crime?
- 4. Propose two other possible solutions as alternatives to this state law. Examine the costs and benefits of each of these solutions.
- 5. What do you think will be the result? Should the power to decide on issues like this remain with the state governments, or do you think it will get to the Supreme Court as a national issue?
- 6. Weigh in! Political dissent is what makes our democracy great, so long as you provide evidence to back up your position, and remain open to the differing perspectives of others. What is your opinion of the "bathroom bill"? Thoroughly explain your position and be prepared to share it with others, if time allows.
Click here to view more:https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/bathroom-bills-focus-on-the-trans-community-but-could-affect-another-group-more/2016/04/24/c5026920-0a26-11e6-bfa1-4efa856caf2a_story.html
Posted April 20th 2016
'Drone' hits British Airways plane approaching Heathrow Airport
A plane approaching Heathrow Airport is believed to have hit a drone before it landed safely, the Metropolitan Police has said.
The British Airways flight from Geneva was hit as it approached the London airport at about 12:50 BST with 132 passengers and five crew on board.
After landing, the pilot reported an object - believed to be a drone - had struck the front of the Airbus A320.
Aviation police based at Heathrow have launched an investigation.
Police said no arrests have been made.
If confirmed, it is believed to be the first incident of its kind in the UK.
A British Airways spokesman said: "Our aircraft landed safely, was fully examined by our engineers and it was cleared to operate its next flight."
The airline will give the police "every assistance with their investigation", the spokesman added.
A Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesman said it was "totally unacceptable" to fly drones close to airports, and anyone flouting the rules can face "severe penalties, including imprisonment".
Steve Landells, from the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), said it had been "only a matter of time before we had a drone strike". He called for greater enforcement of existing rules.
Analysis
Leo Kelion, Technology editor
Flying a drone near an airport can already be punished with up to five years in prison, and rules also forbid taking them above 400ft (122m) or near buildings and crowds of people.
But the latest incident will only add to the pressure for further steps to be taken.
The US recently introduced a compulsory registration scheme so any drone recovered from an accident can be traced back to its owner.
In addition, officials could make it mandatory for drones to run geo-fencing software - that would prevent them flying in restricted areas.
The Department for Transport has promised to publish a strategy for unmanned aircraft this year.
And pilots have also called for the DoT to fund tests into what would happen if a drone got sucked into an engine or crashed into a plane's windscreen.
Last month, the British Airline Pilots Association noted that while the threat of bird strikes had been well researched there was little data about how much damage a drone could cause a plane.
'Severe penalties'
The incident follows a warning earlier this year by the head of the International Air Transport Association that drones flown by the general public are "a real and growing threat" to civilian aircraft.
Tony Tyler called for drone regulations to be put in place before any serious accidents occur.
The UK Air Proximity Board - which investigates near-miss incidents in UK airspace - said there have been a number of serious near-misses at UK airports involving drones.
Category A incidents - the most serious - were reported at Stansted, Heathrow, London City and Manchester airports last year.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What's the big deal about drones all of a sudden? Haven't radio-controlled model airplanes been flying the skies for over 50 years?
- 2. Explain the differences between privately owned drones and those used by the U.S. government in military operations.
- 3. How are toy drones currently regulated in the U.S.? For 2015 alone, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration recorded more than 1,400 cases of drones coming close to planes. Given this information, do you think enough is being done to regulate drone use?
- 4. What are three ways that toy drones could be used to better the lives of everyday Americans?
- 5. Do you think toy drones could be used as weaponry by amateur terrorists?
- 6. What about drone use by our government: do drone strikes make the United States safer by decimating terrorist networks across the world or create more terrorists than they kill?
- 7. Critics of American drone strikes say that they are secretive, lack ample legal oversight, and prevent citizens from holding their leaders accountable. Should targeted U.S. drone strikes be viewed as government abuses of power? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.bbc.com/news/uk-36067591
Posted April 13th 2016
Obama's executive orders you never hear about
By Gregory Korte, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON -- President Obama, often criticized by Republicans for constitutional overreach for his use of executive orders to get around Congress, signed the 254th executive order of his presidency Friday -- allowing the Peace Corps to change its logo.
In his seven years in office, he's also used executive orders to change the name of the National Security Staff to the National Security Council staff, to allow the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports to also consider the role of nutrition, and to prohibit government employees from texting while driving.
And, showing that executive orders can attend to even the smallest details, Obama signed an executive order in 2014 to correct a typographical error in a previous executive order -- which governed the format of executive orders.
Executive orders are often thought of as the most muscular form of presidential authority. And in some cases, they are. Executive orders can declare national emergencies, impose sanctions on other countries, set federal purchasing policies, and dictate the working conditions for 3 million federal employees.
But more often than not, they deal with more mundane matters of bureaucracy.
"Particularly since Bush, this notion that every executive order constitutes an imperial power grab by the president -- it just doesn't match up with the facts on the ground," said William Howell, a University of Chicago professor and author of Politics Without Persuasion: The Politics of Direct Presidential Action.
"It's not all power grabs. A lot of it is clearly trivial stuff," he said.
That's one reason why simply counting the number of executive orders issued by a president is a poor measure of how sweeping his use of executive power is. So while President Obama has noted that he's issuing fewer executive orders than any president in 100 years, it's debatable how many of those executive orders encroach on the power of Congress.
"It is not so much the number of executive orders but executive orders that are in direct violation or in opposition to the intent of the Congress," said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., in a debate over the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison last year.
To figure out how many executive orders are truly significant. Howell has looked at mentions of executive orders on the front page of The New York Times, in court decisions and the congressional record. He estimates that only 10% to 15% of executive orders have significant public policy implications -- a proportion that's increasing over time as presidents issue fewer executive orders overall.
And most executive orders -- perhaps 60%, according to a study by Bowdoin College professor Andrew Rudalevige -- aren't even written by the White House.
"A lot of these orders are formulated in a department or in an inter-agency process, and they make their way up rather than down," Rudalevige said. "Often the departments are ordered to do things that they've asked to be ordered to do."
That appears to be the case with the executive order Obama signed Friday. Under a 1979 executive order by President Carter, the president alone has the authority "to adopt and alter an official seal or emblem of the Peace Corps." So unless Obama wanted to personally sign off on the new design, the Peace Corps needed to ask for the legal authority to do it themselves.
In a report to Congress Friday, the White House said the Peace Corps executive order would allow "more robust brand protection as the agency pursues communications and volunteer recruitment campaigns and future strategic partnerships." Peace Corps Press Director Erin Durney said the agency was looking forward to making changes in the emblem in the future.
Presidents use executive orders to make minor changes in policy only because the previous policy was set by executive order.
Of marginal importance
One extreme example comes from the executive orders governing executive orders themselves. In 1961, President Kennedy signed Executive Order 11030, which governed the process for writing and approving executive orders. He dictated that the left margin on executive orders be from 1½ inches.
When President George W. Bush updated that order in 2006, he reduced the margin to 1 inch, but left "inches" plural.
And so when Obama updated the procedure again in 2014, the first thing he did was to change "1 inches" to "1 inch."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What are "executive orders"? What makes them so controversial?
- 2. By only pointing out minor executive orders that he's signed, do you think the article is downplaying Obama's potential overreaches of presidential power? Is there an inherent bias on the part of the author? Explain your reasoning.
- 3. What limits are currently in place on the executive orders of presidents and what limits should there be? Can an executive order be reversed?
- 4. Should any order that bypasses Congress (and our country's legislative process) automatically be deemed illegal or unconstitutional? Why or why not?
- 5. How much do you think executive orders cost the American people? As just one example, Obama signed an order for civilian federal employees to receive a 1% pay raise last December without telling Congress how much those raises would cost.
- 6. Does having approximately 3 million federal employees make the President of the United States the largest employer, bigger even than Walmart? Are federal employees what people refer to when they talk about bureaucracy? Has the number of federal employees grown or shrunk over the years? Can you find a graph to support your conclusion?
Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2016/04/11/obama-executive-orders-peace-corps/82835834/
Posted April 6th 2016
California, New York enact US-highest $15 minimum wages
By Michael R. Blood and Don Thompson | AP
LOS ANGELES -- California and New York acted Monday to gradually push their statewide minimum wages to $15 an hour -- the highest in the nation -- as Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders again seized on wage disparity and the plight of the working poor in their fight for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Clinton joined New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo at a raucous rally in Manhattan as he signed the law that will gradually boost that state's pay rate. The former first lady predicted the movement will "sweep our country."
Sanders said in a statement that his campaign is about building on the steps in California and New York "so that everyone in this country can enjoy the dignity and basic economic security that comes from a living wage."
The new laws in California and New York mark the most ambitious moves yet by legislatures to close the national divide between rich and poor. Experts say other states may follow, given Congress' reluctance to act despite entreaties from President Barack Obama.
In a statement, Obama commended California and again urged Congress to raise the federal minimum wage. "It's time for Congress to step up and do what is right for every hard-working American and for our economy," he said.
In Los Angeles, Gov. Jerry Brown was cheered by union workers -- some chanting in Spanish -- as he signed a bill into law that will lift the statewide minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2022.
The bill's effects could vary widely in the vast and diverse state, from sparsely populated mountain and desert areas to inner city Los Angeles and wealthy Silicon Valley.
While it was a victory for those struggling on the margins of the economy and the politically powerful unions that pushed it, business groups warned that the higher wage could cost thousands of jobs as employers are forced to provide steadily bigger paychecks.
A $15 base wage will have "devastating impacts on small businesses in California," Tom Scott, executive director of the state branch of the National Federation of Independent Business, said in a statement. "Ignoring the voices and concerns of the vast majority of job creators in this state is deeply concerning and illustrates why many feel Sacramento is broken."
The bill was pushed through the Legislature by Democrats -- who control both chambers -- without a single Republican vote. A nonpartisan legislative analysis put the cost to California taxpayers at $3.6 billion a year in higher pay for government employees.
Brown, a Democrat, never specifically addressed criticism of the bill but argued the decision to set the nation-leading wage was about "economic justice."
"Economically, minimum wages may not make sense," the governor said. "But morally and socially and politically they make every sense, because it binds the community together and makes sure that parents can take care of their kids in a much more satisfactory way."
The California bill will bump the state's $10 hourly minimum by 50 cents next year and to $11 in 2018. Hourly $1 raises will then come every January until 2022, unless the governor imposes a delay during an economic recession. Businesses with 25 or fewer employees have an extra year to comply.
Wages will rise with inflation each year thereafter.
Brown negotiated the deal with unions to head off competing labor-backed ballot initiatives that would have imposed swifter increases.
About 2.2 million Californians now earn the minimum wage, but University of California, Irvine, economics professor David Neumark estimated the boost could cost 5 to 10 percent of low-skilled workers their jobs.
Brown has said California, with the world's eighth largest economy, can absorb the raises without the problems predicted by opponents.
California and Massachusetts currently have the highest statewide minimum wage at $10. Washington, D.C., stands at $10.50. Los Angeles, Seattle and other cities have recently approved $15 minimum wages, while Oregon officials plan to increase the minimum to $14.75 an hour in cities and $12.50 in rural areas by 2022.
New York's state budget includes gradually raising the $9 minimum wage to $15, starting in New York City in three years and phasing in at a lower level elsewhere. An eventual statewide increase to $15 would be tied to economic indicators such as inflation.
Sanders has made the $15 wage a foundation block of his candidacy, while Clinton backs Senate legislation that would enact a federal minimum wage of $12 an hour, with the ability of individual cities and states to set a higher threshold.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What is the current minimum wage in the state that you live in? Do you feel that it's a fair amount? Is it a "living wage"? Why or why not?
- 2. Use information from the article, along with your prior knowledge, to do a cost/benefit analysis weighing the pros and cons of raising the minimum wage. Does a wage increase ultimately have more benefits or more consequences?
- 3. Could raising the minimum wage actually cause job loss? Think specifically about the effects of wage increases on small businesses.
- 4. Besides increasing the minimum wage, propose three options that our government could put into effect to stimulate the economy.
- 5. Why do we even have a minimum wage? Who was it created to protect? Would it make sense to just do away with minimum wage laws altogether and let businesses pay what they can afford while workers negotiate for wages?
- 6. Years ago, when unions won higher wages for factory workers, workers were happy... but the unintended consequences were surprising. Some companies found that it was cheaper to have machines build products than to have people do that work. Also, people in China willing to work for less, replaced many U.S. factory workers. Now most everything sold by companies like Walmart is made in China and/or via automated processes. What are some other potential unintended consequences of raising wages again?
Click here to view more:https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/california-governor-set-to-approve-highest-minimum-wage/2016/04/04/24c2ffb8-fa2e-11e5-813a-90ab563f0dde_story.html
Posted March 30th 2016
Alabama District to Monitor Students' Social Media Accounts
By Raymond Scott
An Alabama school district intends to begin monitoring its students' social media and, if necessary, punish them accordingly for the content of their posts.
Dr. Casey Wardynski, the superintendent of Huntsville City Schools, says a robust monitoring system for students' social media accounts is justified in the wake of fights throughout the school district. Students have circulated posts and videos on social media to plan, rally, and aggravate the confrontations between themselves.
Wardynski argues that if the district had the power to monitor these posts, it could prevent these conflicts before their outbreak. "We're going to implement a procedure that directly addresses an area that's become a real concern again, which is how violence in our schools - how threats to our schools - interact with social media and how social media can play a role, if we pay attention to it, in heading off problems."
According to Aaron Homer of the Inquisitor, Alabama already has a social media monitoring program that was set up in 2014 through the Students Against Fear (SAFe) Program. The program has monitored the social media accounts of 600 students. The program, spearheaded by Wardynski, was implemented after the National Security Administration (NSA) reported a potential threat to a teacher to authorities in the Alabama district.
The program is unable, however, to target all of the district's 24,000 students. It has a much more limited scope, targeting only a few hundred. Wardynski wants to expand this program to provide teachers, police, and administrators of potential threats against school and student safety.
Anna Claire Vollers writing for the AL.com, which covers news from Alabama, the school's director of operations would be empowered to use supervision technology, tips from students and teachers, and information from campus security officers to pinpoint potential troublemakers. In doing so, they would have access to these students' social media posts and could punish students for postings regardless of whether such posts were done privately or publicly.
Various activists, public officials, and civil liberties groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), have raised objections to the expansion of the surveillance program, which was also heavily criticized at the time of its inception.
The expansion of the surveillance program in Alabama comes at a moment when educators and local authorities nationwide are debating the merit of monitoring students' social media. A writer for eSchoolNews, Jerry Davich, cites several instances from this year in which students have been arrested after posting threateningly cryptic sentiments on their social media profiles.
"I truly believe this technology is a game-changer for both public and private safety," said Sheriff David Lain of Porter County, Indiana, where there had been an occurrence of school officials using monitoring technology to prevent a potentially dangerous incident.
Indeed, school monitoring procedures have also been instituted throughout California and Canada. Amidst the specter of school shootings, there will be an intensified push among law enforcement and school officials to do everything they can to maintain the safety of campuses and school districts. "There may be some occasions when monitoring by school authorities may be justified, but it should only be conducted under very delimited, transparent and accountable conditions," says Andrew Clement, a professor of information studies at the University of Toronto.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Do you think school officials' monitoring of students' social media is warranted? Is the reason given--fights among students--enough for such surveillance? Support your position with three current examples.
- 2. In their ruling of the 1969 Tinker v. Des Moines case, the Supreme Court said, "Students don't shed their constitutional rights at the school house gates." Do you think school districts have the legal grounds to monitor student social media? Why or why not?
- 3. Is this a violation of students' civil liberties and more specifically their First Amendment freedoms? What do exceptions to the First Amendment say about the values of our country?
- 4. Are there circumstances that justify the greater good over privacy concerns? If giving up some privacy could stop terrorist attacks, would you agree to government monitoring of social media? Should a court have to order a search warrant as they do when a home or car is searched for evidence?
- 5. Have you heard of "mission creep"? What could be the effects of mission creep under these circumstances?
- 6. The National Security Administration has repeatedly said that they do not monitor the content of phone calls or social media, and that they gather only bulk data of who calls whom. If that is true, then how would the NSA know about a message between students that was threatening? Are the American people in control of their employees at the NSA?
Click here to view more://www.educationnews.org/technology/alabama-district-to-monitor-students-social-media-accounts/
Posted March 23rd 2016
As Obama Arrives, Cuba Tightens Grip on Dissent
BY DAMIEN CAVE AND JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS
HAVANA -- President Obama touched down in Cuba on Sunday, pledging to interact directly with the Cuban people and accelerate engagement between the United States and Cuba after more than a half-century of hostility.
He is the first sitting American president to visit in nearly nine decades, and Cubans of all political persuasions had eagerly awaited his arrival.
But hours before Air Force One landed at José Martí International Airport, the challenges inherent in normalizing relations with a Communist police state were laid bare, as dozens of arrests were made at the weekly march of Ladies in White, a prominent dissident group.
The protest, which takes place most Sundays outside a suburban church here, was widely seen as a test of Cuba's tolerance for dissent during the presidential trip, and the arrests confirmed that Cuba was maintaining its long history of repressive tactics, if not intensifying their reach.
For Mr. Obama -- who is scheduled to meet Tuesday with dissidents including the leader of Ladies in White, Berta Soler -- the detentions threw a spotlight on the core challenge of the visit: how to work with the Castro government while expressing concern for its handling of human rights and free expression.
"We thought there would be a truce, but it wasn't to be," said Elizardo Sánchez, who runs the Cuban Commission on Human Rights and National Reconciliation. He noted that the arrests had taken place "in the moment that Obama was flying in the air to Cuba."
Security and control are mainstays of any country preparing to host the president. But Cuba, a nation still working out just how much to open up to the world -- and to its own people -- after decades of isolation, has gone above and beyond to prevent embarrassing surprises.
The baseball game where Mr. Obama will watch Cuba's national team play the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday is an invitation-only event, with most seats going to government loyalists. Some of the Old Havana shops near where Mr. Obama strolled on Sunday evening had been ordered to stay closed. The police have been sweeping up prostitutes from nightclubs and beggars from the streets.
Mr. Sánchez, who is among the dissidents expected to meet with the president on Tuesday, said that in the first two weeks of March, 526 critics of the government had been detained. While dissidents are often held for a few hours for printing fliers, staging street protests or just planning them, he and others said Mr. Obama's visit had set in motion a broader campaign.
On Saturday, Mr. Sánchez himself was held for three and a half hours at the Havana airport. He said he had been separated from his wife; sent to a cold, windowless room; and told that he was not being "detained" but rather "retained."
"Can I make a phone call?" he said he had asked, as officials made copies of every document in his bag. "No," came the reply.
"It's the climate of intimidation the government is creating for Obama's visit," said Mr. Sanchez, a graying, steady critic of President Raúl Castro's government. "Right now what you see is preventive repression, so it does not occur to anyone to say anything to Obama while he is here."
For decades, Cuban officials have treated every interaction with the United States as a test of sovereignty, and their approach to Mr. Obama's visit is partly an effort to project competence, confidence and a new commitment to a calibrated friendship.
No matter what Mr. Obama says about freedom during his three-day stay, the Cuban government has made it clear that Cubans of all ideologies will be expected to behave.
"The government of Cuba is like a father," said Carlos Alzugaray Treto, a former Cuban diplomat who writes about the country's political dynamics. "Strong, but worried about the family."
For the United States, there are more visible signs of change. Billboards lashing imperialism a few months ago now denounce violence against women, or laziness. And beautification is suddenly competing with decay.
Fresh blue paint graces the baseball stadium ahead of Tuesday's game. With a rush of repaving, much of Mr. Obama's route through the city could be mapped out by the scent of fresh tar.
But the Cubans' response to all this improvement is not simply appreciation: After decades of you'll-get-what-we-give-you government, their version of thank you is often salted with sarcasm.
"Everyone wants to know how we Cubans feel about Obama coming," said Yamile Suárez, 36, shrugging near a freshly repaved road in central Havana. "I'm frankly just happy that giant pothole finally got filled in, so if I have him to thank for it, thanks, Obama!"
Control is the subtext. Some Cubans describe the government's efforts as the directing of an elaborate, predictable performance. "The government manipulates everything," Mr. Sanchez said.
Other countries certainly engage in similar acts of stage management and repression -- China, for example. And José Daniel Ferrer, an opposition activist in Santiago de Cuba, the island's second-largest city, said that while pressure from the government had increased in recent months, it was largely in response to growing activism.
"It's the third law of Newton: The greater the actions for democracy, the greater the repressive reaction by the regime," he said.
Several of his organization's members had been arrested and released in the past week, Mr. Ferrer said. He added that the authorities were watching his house full time, making him wonder what will happen when he leaves it to attend the gathering of about a dozen dissidents with Mr. Obama at the United States Embassy on Tuesday.
How the Cuban government and local journalists respond to that and other elements of the visit will be closely watched.
Beyond Mr. Obama's speech to the Cuban people on Tuesday, which will be broadcast on national television, it is not clear how much Cubans will get to see or hear of him.
One young reporter who works for a major government news outlet said he and his colleagues had been brought into a room two weeks ago and reminded that anything posted to social media regarding Mr. Obama's visit would result in more than just a slap on the wrist. No photographs, no commentary, no interviews with foreign reporters -- not even private discussions with friends.
Some independent journalists and scholars maintain that the government has loosened the reins since Dec. 17, 2014, when Mr. Obama and Mr. Castro announced the restoration of relations.
It is clear that the flow of information in Havana is increasing. Wi-Fi hot spots can be easily found, just by looking for crowds of young Cubans gathered in clusters.
Elaine Díaz, an independent journalist in Havana and a former Nieman fellow at Harvard, said her reporting and that of her colleagues who cover contentious issues, like housing, were being passed around with increasing frequency, by email, zip drive and private networks.
"We're focusing on the problems in Cuba that are separate from the United States," she said. "We're focused on what's happening here."
Whether that or something else leads to broader civic and economic change, and when, is the question that all Cubans seem to want answered.
Mr. Sánchez -- who spent the weekend discussing his detention with foreign reporters, who could visit, and members of the alternative Cuban news media, who called in -- said change would depend not on Mr. Obama, but rather on Fidel Castro, the architect of the 1959 revolution; President Castro, his brother; and their families.
"What the government gives, it can take away in a second," he said, silencing a cellphone in his pocket.
"What we need is reform. What we need are laws. That's what will create real change."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. What is unique about President Obama's visit to Cuba?
- 2. Is normalizing relations with Cuba good for the United States? Weigh the pros and cons.
- 3. Do you think it's fair to say that the human rights violations in Cuba are no worse than those in other countries that we do have full relations with, such as China, Saudi Arabia, and Iran? Why or why not?
- 4. What do you think President Obama's primary goal is in renewing relations with Cuba after more than 50 years of tension? How might this goal differ from President Castro's vision for political reunification with the U.S.?
- 5. How will the future of Cuba unfold? Do you see Cuba's government transitioning to a democracy? Will it remain a communist police state? Perhaps something in between? Make a prediction!
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/21/world/americas/cuba-obama-visit-havana-dissidents.html?ref=todayspaper
Posted March 16th 2016
First Read: A Scary Time in American Politics
BY CHUCK TODD, MARK MURRAY AND CARRIE DANN
A scary time in American politics
We love American politics because of its excitement, its unpredictability, and its clash of ideas and policies. But we've never seen this in our lifetimes until now -- when politics becomes scary. And that has been the overarching political story over the past 96 hours, as Donald Trump rallies have featured sucker punches, scuffles, unrest, and even a protester trying to jump on the stage. We're all on edge that something even scarier might happen, which is something Trump supporter Ben Carson suggested on "Today" this morning. "I think certainly if the protesters continue with their Alinksy-ite tactics, there is a real possibility of escalation because those who are the victims of them have two choices: They can submit to them and meekly just do whatever those protesters want them to do, or they can fight back. And if they decide to fight back there could be an escalation." And as we said on Friday, it's on the candidate for setting the tone at his/her rallies. But on "Meet the Press" yesterday, Trump said he wasn't responsible for the unrest. "I don't accept responsibility; I do not condone violence in any shape." And he mentioned that he's "instructed" his people to look into covering the legal fees for the man who sucker punched the protester.
Where is the rest of the GOP establishment?
Yesterday, NBC's Hallie Jackson reported that Mitt Romney will campaign today for John Kasich during two stops in Ohio -- all in an effort to stop Trump. (Jackson reports that the campaigning isn't an endorsement.) But we have to ask: Where is the rest of the Republican Party? The Bushes? The Cheneys? Paul Ryan? Condi Rice? After the last 96 hours in politics, their silence is pretty stunning.
NBC/WSJ/Marist polls: Trump ahead in Florida, Illinois; Kasich leads in Ohio
Tuesday brings us GOP and Democratic primaries in Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio -- with Florida and Ohio being winner-take-all states on the Republican side. And we're dubbing tomorrow Separation Tuesday, because we're either going to see Trump and Clinton further separate themselves from their competition, or we won't. On Sunday, we released three new NBC/WSJ/Marist polls:
And this morning, Quinnipiac has new Republican numbers for Florida (Trump 46%, Rubio 22%, Cruz 14%, Kasich 10%) and Ohio (Trump 38%, Kasich 38%, Cruz 16%, Rubio 3%).
Why Clinton winning three of five Separation Tuesday states would be a good night for her -- and why losing three would be another rough night
Meanwhile, our NBC/WSJ/Marist polls show Hillary Clinton leading all three states:
The Clinton camp insists that the polling in Ohio is closer, and Quinnipiac finds her up by five points in the Buckeye State, 51%-46%, while it has her leading Sanders 60%-34% in Florida. And the Clinton campaign is insisting that it will still best Sanders in delegates -- no matter what happens in Ohio, Illinois, or Missouri. "Even if he won in Ohio [and] Illinois," Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook told the New York Times, "we would still have more delegates on the 15th because of their performance in delegate-rich Florida and North Carolina." That's true. But Clinton winning three out of the five states on Tuesday -- say Florida, North Carolina, and Ohio -- would be a good night for the campaign. But losing three out of five -- with the polling lead in Ohio -- would produce another round of negative news cycles like we saw after Michigan. Starting at 6:00 pm ET, MSNBC features back-to-back Sanders/Clinton town halls.
Doing the delegate math: Why Florida and Ohio are so important for Trump
Below is our latest math after GOP delegates were awarded from DC and Wyoming over the weekend, and here is the stark reality: Trump really needs to win both Florida and Ohio to be on a path to winning 1,237 delegates. And after the past weekend, you could argue that he has no margin for error -- if he's short, you could see a real effort to deny him the nomination in Cleveland.
Trump currently holds an 84-delegate lead over Ted Cruz
Doing the delegate math on the Democratic side
Hillary leads Sanders by 626 delegates: Hillary Clinton currently holds a 217-delegate lead over Bernie Sanders when it comes to pledged delegates, 766 to 549. And it's a 626-delegate lead when you add superdelegates to the total, 1,198 to 572.
On the trail
Hillary Clinton stumps in Chicago, Springfield, IL and Charlotte, NC, while Bill Clinton hits Greenville, NC... Bernie Sanders spends his day in Ohio, hitting Columbus, Youngstown and Cleveland before heading to North Carolina... Donald Trump holds rallies in Hickory, NC, Tampa, FL and Vienna, OH... Ted Cruz spends his day in Illinois... Marco Rubio is in Florida... And John Kasich is in Ohio.
Countdown to FL, IL, MO, NC, OH contests: 1 day!
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Does the first paragraph statement, "we've never seen this in our lifetimes until now -- when politics becomes scary," represent editorial bias or fact? Have riots ever broken out during the presidential election process before?
- 2. In regard to Trump, Marco Rubio was recently quoted saying, "...he is tapping into peoples' anger, and instead of saying, 'I know you're angry, you have a right to be angry, here's how we're going to fix it,' he says to them, 'I know you're angry, you should be even angrier, here's who we should be angry at, give me power so we can go after them.'" Do you agree or disagree with his assessment of Donald Trump's political tactics? Could these tactics create a dangerous environment? Explain your perspective.
- 3. Are the authors giving you enough detail in the section titled "Doing the delegate math on the Democratic side" for the information to make sense? How could a "pledged delegate" be different from a "superdelegate," and how can they change the numbers so much in Clinton's favor?
- 4. Bernie Sanders had a surprising win in Michigan that really got the media buzzing. If, despite current poll predictions, he wins big Tuesday, do you think he could still pull ahead to win the presidential nomination?
- 5. A few weeks back, you were asked who you would vote for based on what you knew about the candidates at that moment in time. American politics is always evolving. As you've learned more about each candidate and their views, has your opinion changed? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/first-read-scary-time-american-politics-n537806
Posted March 9th 2016
'Just Say No' anti-drug campaign helped define Nancy Reagan's legacy
BY JOE MOZINGO, SONALI KOHLI AND ZAHIRA TORRES
Drugs already had a strong grip in Compton High School when Maple Cornwell became assistant principal in 1983. Crack cocaine was just making its debut.
Educators had few tools to fight what would quickly turn into an epidemic.
Into this void came the voice of Nancy Reagan, with a message for children around the nation: "Just Say No."
The campaign against drugs became Reagan's most memorable achievement -- lauded by some for showing the destruction addiction wrought, condemned by others who say it helped lead to mass incarceration and demonized black communities, and shrugged off by many who thought the message was naively simplistic and ineffectual.
"I don't think students really got the message," Cornwell said.
She said the pull of drugs was just too strong: "I think once drugs started to come in, it just took over students' mind-sets, it took over their goals."
From the early days of her husband's presidency, Nancy Reagan decided to focus on the anti-drug cause. She said she came up with the name of her campaign at a meeting with schoolchildren in Oakland, when a girl asked her, "Mrs. Reagan, what do you do if somebody offers you drugs?"
"Just say no," the first lady replied.
Schools around the country formed "Just Say No" clubs, in which students did community service and made pledges to not try drugs. The refrain became the mantra of the anti-drug movement and greatly raised Reagan's profile as first lady. She appeared on hit shows such as "Dynasty" and "Diff'rent Strokes" to deliver her message and made hundreds of appearances around the country.
"Without Nancy Reagan, there would not have been the public climate to support drug abuse prevention," said Ivy Cohen, president of the Just Say No Foundation from 1987 to 1997. "She galvanized attention to the issue."
In 1981, when President Reagan took office, more than 1.3 million people tried cocaine for the first time, according to estimates from the Office of National Drug Control Policy. In 1991, that number was down to below 500,000.
Dr. Herbert Kleber, director emeritus of the Columbia University Division on Substance Abuse, said tolerance of drugs in the 1960s and 1970s had led to vast abuse. Even among circles of professionals in staid suburbia, lines of cocaine were laid out at parties much as their parents had mixed highballs.
Kleber said Reagan's campaign probably helped change public opinion a notch, but many other factors did as well. The death of star college basketball player Len Bias of a cocaine overdose in 1986 shocked many people unaware of the stimulant's dangers. And the crack cocaine epidemic and the gang warfare that came with it ripped apart neighborhoods and revealed to America deeply destructive aspects of illegal drug use.
"My experience is 'Just Say No' wasn't terribly effective," Kleber said. "But it was better than not doing it."
In 1989, no longer first lady, Reagan came to Los Angeles to boost her image as an anti-drug crusader. With dozens of reporters in tow, she and Police Chief Daryl F. Gates watched as officers stormed a suspected "rock house" in South Los Angeles.
Police arrested 14 men and women on a variety of drug charges and allegedly confiscated about a gram of crack. Officers gave her a tour of the house before she retired to an air-conditioned RV, "freshened her makeup and then waded out among the cameras," according to a Times story.
"I saw people on the floor, rooms that were unfurnished ... all very depressing," the former first lady reported.
Ethan Nadelmann, founder and executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, a New York City group working to end the war on drugs, said "Just Say No" was part of an unrealistic goal of a "drug-free society" that led to mass incarceration in minority communities and beyond, "something we're only beginning to recover from now."
He said Reagan's message might have resonated with younger children, but not the adolescents who needed to understand the realities of drugs. "The 'Just Say No' campaign made about as much sense as a just-say-no campaign with respect to sex education," he said.
"Teachers, educators, the government, parents need to provide something other than an abstinence-only message for the majority of young people who do in fact end up trying, experimenting or using drugs before they turn 18."
In Compton, instead of "Just Say No" clubs, Cornwell and other teachers tried to combat drug use among students by connecting with them one-on-one, and starting clubs or activities that kept them busy after school. She said that the problem was serious, but that a minority of students were drug users.
Others say the message resonated. In Northridge, Napa Street Elementary School Principal Brenda Fernandez said the slogan became a regular and serious topic of conversation with her parents, and guided her as a child.
Now, Fernandez, 44, said it resonates with her students. Last week, her school teamed up with the Los Angeles Police Department's baseball team for a "Just Say No" program that expanded on Reagan's message, asking students to take pledges against drugs, gangs, crime and bullying.
Fernandez said not everyone will identify with the slogan but its simplicity allows educators to reinforce important topics with children.
"It was such a part of our culture that it's been one of those things that's ingrained in us," Fernandez said. "It's just one of those catch phrases that will be part of us for ages to come."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Depending on whom you talk to, you'll get very different opinions on the effectiveness of the "Just Say No" movement. Use close reading to identify the three major perspectives about the anti-drug campaign covered in this article.
- 2. Critics of the "Just Say No" campaign have said that it reinforced the school-to-prison pipeline and the problems we have today with mass incarceration. Analyze this perspective. How could a program aimed at promoting a drug-free lifestyle actually hurt society?
- 3. Many feel that the war on drugs is a losing battle which our country has already spent, and continues to spend, far too much money on. What's your opinion about the war on drugs? Are drugs still far too easy for teens to get their hands on, or are things getting better in your community?
- 4. Do you think less addictive drugs, like marijuana, should be decriminalized and made completely legal in the U.S.? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-nancy-reagan-drugs-20160307-story.html
Posted March 2nd 2016
Donald Trump wants to 'open up' libel laws so he can sue press
BY DYLAN BYERS
Donald Trump said Friday that if elected president he will change the nation's libel laws in order to make it easier to sue news organizations.
"One of the things I'm going to do if I win... I'm going to open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money," Trump said during a rally in Fort Worth, Texas.
"We're going to open up those libel laws so when The New York Times writes a hit piece, which is a total disgrace, or when the Washington Post, which is there for other reasons, writes a hit piece, we can sue them and win money instead of having no chance of winning because they're totally protected," he said. "We're going to open up libel laws and we're going to have people sue you like you've never got sued before."
Those remarks immediately drew criticism from journalists, including The New Yorker's John Cassidy, who wrote: "Trump takes attacks on media to new level -- says as president he'll try to gut the First Amendment."
No federal libel law currently exists, because libel suits are handled in state courts.
Since 1964, when the Supreme Court ruled on "New York Times vs. Sullivan," public individuals who wish to sue media companies for libel are required to prove that the news organization knowingly published false information with malicious intent.
The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said in 2012 that he "abhors" the ruling, saying it gives news organizations the freedom to "libel public figures at will so long as somebody told you something."
Trump, who frequently belittles the media as "dishonest scum," has accused several news outlets and journalists of lying about him. He would likely have a long line of people to sue, from Fox News host Megyn Kelly to NBC's Katy Tur to radio host Hugh Hewitt.
He has been particularly critical of the New York Times of late, given recent reporting they've done that has questioned the true extent of his wealth and the amount of influence he has in New York.
On Friday, Trump called the Times "a failing paper."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Use context clues from the article to explain the meaning of "libel." How is libel different than slander?
- 2. What are the rights guaranteed to U.S. citizens under the First Amendment? How could Trump's comments about libel laws and the media be an attempt to "gut the First Amendment"?
- 3. Is the media currently getting away with too much by only being able to be sued if it's proven that they published information that they knew was false and malicious? Why or why not?
- 4. Has the press always been this way and we're just more sensitive to possible corruption now, or has it gotten a lot worse in recent years? Explain your perspective.
- 5. How does Donald Trump get away seemingly unscathed by stories of political controversies and/or bias that continue to pop up involving him? Do you think he is viewed differently or held to a separate standard than other presidential candidates?
Click here to view more://money.cnn.com/2016/02/26/media/donald-trump-libel-laws/
Posted February 24th 2016
Winners and losers from South Carolina, Nevada make their pitch on CNN
BY TOM LOBIANCO, ERIC BRADNER AND Z. BYRON WOLF
Donald Trump cruised to victory in the South Carolina Republican primary and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz are battling to be the chief Republican challenger to him. Hillary Clinton also defeated Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in Saturday's other contest, the Nevada Democratic caucuses.
All five of those candidates appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday morning to give their take on the night's events.
Hillary Clinton, coming off a hard-fought victory in the Nevada caucuses on Saturday, appeared exclusively on CNN and acknowledged she has work to do in convincing independent voters and others that she's trustworthy.
"I understand that voters have questions -- I'm going to do my very best to answer those questions. I think there's an underlying question that maybe is really in the back of people's minds and that is, 'Is she in it for us or is she in it for herself?' " Clinton said.
"I think that's a question that people are trying to sort through. And I'm going to demonstrate that I've always been the same person, I've always been fighting for the same values, fighting to make a difference in people's lives, long before I was in elected office, even before my husband was in the presidency," she said.
Asked if she has a problem she needs to address among Latino voters because entrance polls show her losing them to Sanders, Clinton said the actual voting tallies paint a different picture.
"That's just not what our analysis shows," she said. "We don't believe the so-called entry polls are particularly accurate. If you look at the precincts, if you look at where we dominated, there's a lot of evidence we did well with every group of voter."
Trump predicts he'll face Clinton, break turnout records
Donald Trump's general election prediction: He'll face Hillary Clinton, and the two will bring out "the greatest turnout in history."
"Frankly, if she gets indicted, that's the only way she's going to be stopped. I think it's going to be Hillary and myself," the Republican real estate mogul said.
Trump's comments came the morning after he cruised to victory in South Carolina's primary -- giving him two wins and one second-place finish in the first three GOP contests.
He laid out his own road map to general election victory, pinpointing two states -- Michigan and New York -- that he said he'd sweep into the Republican column.
"I'll win states that aren't in play. I'll win states that Republicans don't even think of," Trump said.
And he predicted he'd earn a "tremendous amount" of support from African-Americans.
"I'm going to do great with the African-Americans. African-American youth is 58% unemployed. African-Americans in their prime are substantially worse off than the whites in their prime, and it's a very sad situation," he said.
For Trump, Saturday's South Carolina victory was an important one in stunting challenges from top-tier rivals like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz -- but also because it knocked his foil, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, out of the race.
He also clarified a comment he made last week that seemed to suggest he supported an individual mandate for health insurance.
Rubio says he can 'unify' the GOP
Marco Rubio is portraying himself as the lone candidate who can unite Republicans now that the party's presidential field is narrowing.
"I give us the best chance to unify," the Florida senator said.
He said the GOP race is increasingly about "who can win."
"Who do the Democrats fear most? Who do they not want to run against? I think everyone now acknowledges that's me," he said. "We've got to bring the Republican Party together. We're not gonna win -- we're not going to beat Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders -- if we're still divided in September or October."
While Donald Trump won South Carolina's primary Saturday, Rubio was buoyed by a slim second-place finish over Texas Sen. Ted Cruz -- and perhaps even more by a key rival, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, deciding to drop out after that primary.
He said the race has a "different dynamic now," with three real contenders -- Trump, Cruz and himself.
Cruz: I'm the only one who has beaten Trump
Ted Cruz argued that since he's the only candidate who has been able to beat Donald Trump, he's the candidate conservatives should turn to as the chief alternative to the businessman.
"It is now apparent that the only campaign that can beat Donald Trump and that has beaten Donald Trump is our campaign," he said in an interview on "State of the Union" with CNN's Jake Tapper.
Cruz dismissed the idea that he underperformed in South Carolina, a state with a strong religious and evangelical population -- both attributes that should favor him. And he downplayed Trump's victory, arguing that his lead narrowed in recent weeks and the margin of victory should have been greater.
Cruz also swiped that Rubio should have done better in South Carolina and tried to lump the policy proposals of Donald Trump in with Hillary Clinton's.
Sanders brushes off Nevada loss
Bernie Sanders brushed off his Saturday Nevada loss to Hillary Clinton, saying that just a few months his campaign was still considered a "fringe campaign" that would never have come within striking distance there.
"The truth is that for a campaign that started out as a fringe campaign at 3% in the polls we have enormous momentum," Sanders told CNN's Jake Tapper on Sunday's "State of the Union." "You have noticed that one of the recent national polls actually had us ahead of Hillary Clinton, in state after state her margin is narrowing. So I think people are responding to our message of a rigged economy where ordinary Americans work longer hours for lower wages and almost all new income goes to the top one percent."
Sanders lost Nevada by about five points. He played up his success among Latino voters there, but acknowledged the need to do better among black voters.
"I believe we won the Latino vote, which is a huge, huge way forward for us. We did badly with the African-American vote," Sanders said.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. This article's tone makes it sound like the Republican presidential nomination is a three-man race. Who are they leaving out? Do you think the slight of the other candidates is intentional? Explain your perspective.
- 2. Do you agree with Donald Trump's prediction that the general election for the presidency will come down to him and Hillary Clinton? Why or why not?
- 3. Based on your own opinions of the candidates and what you've heard in the media, who do you think will be the next to drop out of the race? Who would you vote for at this moment in time?
- 4. Young white college students have been huge supporters of Bernie Sanders, while he struggles to get the African-American vote. Sanders' platform addresses income inequality--the difference between the rich and the poor--and he wants higher taxes and more social programs, like making public colleges free for everyone. With such progressive plans, why do you think he's struggling to get the African-American vote?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2016/02/21/politics/south-carolina-nevada-state-of-the-union/
Posted February 17th 2016
Oregon Standoff Ends as Last Militant Surrenders
BY DAVE SEMINARA, RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA AND KIRK JOHNSON
PRINCETON, Ore. -- They implored the last holdout in the armed occupation of a wildlife refuge here to think about the Holy Spirit. They explained that the First Amendment was about freedom of speech and the Second was about the right to bear arms, and said that they were in that order for a reason. They asked him what he thought Jesus would have done in his situation.
He, in turn, asked for pizza and marijuana, criticized a government that condoned abortion and drone strikes, and talked about U.F.O.s and dying rather than going to prison.
In the final moments, a standoff fed by big ideas about the role of government came down Thursday morning to the grievances and fears of one troubled young man, and the tense but successful efforts of his sympathizers and F.B.I. agents to coax him to surrender, ending the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Oregon.
"I'm actually feeling suicidal right now," said David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio, the last of the remaining protesters to leave the wildlife sanctuary, during telephone negotiations over his surrender. "I will not go another day as a slave to this system. I'm a free man. I will die a free man."
In an extraordinary conclusion to the 40-day occupation, the four final holdouts, in a conversation streamed live online to tens of thousands of listeners, spoke with supporters trying to persuade them to give up, including Gavin Seim and KrisAnne Hall, both antigovernment activists; Michele Fiore, a Republican state legislator from Nevada; and the Rev. Franklin Graham, the evangelist. Three of the occupiers emerged in quick succession, hands raised in surrender, but Mr. Fry at first refused.
For the next hour and a quarter, sitting alone in a tent, hugging a blanket, he veered between resignation and agitation, rambling across a wide range of issues and conspiracy theories, as the audience listening on the live stream, operated by Mr. Seim, climbed as high as 30,000. Mr. Fry said that bankers caused wars, and that the government suppressed breakthrough inventions and was "chemically castrating everybody," and occasionally he could be heard talking on another phone with the F.B.I.
Then, suddenly, it was over. "One more cookie, one more cigarette," he said, just before leaving his hide-out. "Alrighty then."
With the end of the standoff -- which left one protester dead and 25 others indicted -- the movement behind the occupation moved to a new phase. Ammon and Ryan Bundy, the brothers who spearheaded the occupation and now sit in a Portland jail, have vowed to escalate their fight, using the court as a platform.
"Now we go from the refuge to our next battleground, which is the court system and legislation," Ms. Fiore told reporters. She and Mr. Graham accompanied F.B.I. agents to the refuge Thursday, reassuring the holdouts as they gave themselves up, and she said she hugged each of them and the F.B.I. negotiators.
The occupation highlighted longstanding grievances over federal government ownership and management of vast acreage in the West. The Bundy brothers' father, Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher, was arrested Wednesday on charges related to the armed standoff in 2014 between his supporters and federal agents. He and his supporters, like the Oregon occupiers, maintain that the federal government does not have the legal right to own so much land and is too restrictive on ranchers using it.
From the start, the Malheur standoff had a foot firmly planted in unfiltered live media, bypassing mainstream journalists, whom the protesters called tools of the government. Pete Santilli, who has an online talk show, was a frequent presence, interviewing and supporting the occupiers on his YouTube channel; he is among the jailed. Mr. Fry live streamed videos of the occupation and posted them online, while other protesters gave interviews on talk radio.
The occupiers repeatedly called on people from around the country to join them at the refuge. But the mass movement they hoped for never materialized. Critics said the protesters relied on a strained reading of the Constitution that the courts have rejected. And many experts argued that, in fact, ranchers -- along with loggers, miners and others -- get the use of federal land at bargain prices, heavily subsidized by taxpayers.
But Western lands experts and supporters of the occupation's goals said that however quietly the standoff ended, and however garbled its message was at times, the deeper meaning will continue to resonate, because the occupiers in some ways reframed one of the nation's oldest and thorniest arguments. The question of who should control land in the West -- often a dry matter of economics in the past -- has now been pulled into the polarized political terrain that has already made the nation a house divided.
In the 1980s and early '90s, in what is now called the Sagebrush Rebellion, ranchers in the West protested higher prices that the federal government wanted to charge to let cattle graze on public lands. That fight, said David J. Hayes, a former deputy secretary of the Department of the Interior -- the agency that oversees hundreds of millions of acres of Western lands -- was largely over money.
The new argument, as the occupiers said repeatedly, is not overtly about money at all -- rather, it is a much broader fight about the role of government and what constitutes federal overreach.
"The claim is that the land belongs to private parties, and that public ownership is a foreign concept in our Constitution," said Mr. Hayes, who served in the Clinton and Obama administrations, and now teaches law at Stanford University. "That's a relatively new one," he added, "and it finds no credible support in the U.S. Constitution."
However alien their arguments might seem to people in the East and in urban areas, where the federal government holds relatively little acreage, it has power in the rural West, where Washington controls more than half the land. But in this region, opinions were bitterly divided over the occupation; many people who supported its aims opposed its methods, and resented what they saw as interference and grandstanding by outsiders like the Bundys.
The occupation of the refuge, about six hours' drive from Portland, began on Jan. 2. Armed militants demanded the release of two local ranchers who were imprisoned on arson charges for burning public lands. They also called for federal lands that had been in private hands, generations ago, to be turned over to ranchers or to local government.
The standoff appeared to be faltering in late January, when several prominent occupiers -- including Ammon and Ryan Bundy -- were arrested while venturing out of the refuge. A spokesman for the group, LaVoy Finicum, was killed, and several of the remaining occupiers heeded calls by the Bundys to go home.
But four of them held out for another two weeks, before revealing in a live-streamed conversation Wednesday that they intended to surrender on Thursday. They invoked the death of Mr. Finicum as evidence that the government did not want a peaceful conclusion, saying that they feared being killed, too.
On Thursday morning, Ms. Fiore urged the last four militants to surrender so they could continue to spread their message. "A dead man can't talk, a dead man can't write," she told them. "We have to just stay together, stay alive."
Sean Anderson, his wife, Sandy, and Jeff Banta emerged after 9:30 a.m. But Mr. Fry, still on the phone with Mr. Seim, Ms. Hall and an F.B.I. agent, resisted until almost 11 a.m.
"I'm paying taxes, and it's going for abortion," Mr. Fry said, and also for "murder of millions in the Middle East." Later, he said, "My concern is that if I go to prison, I'll probably be raped."
In a telephone interview, Mr. Fry's father, William Fry Jr., 56, said he had spoken with his son after the arrest. "He said, 'Hi, I'm O.K., I'm going to be fine.' "
The two had been in contact during the occupation, and the elder Mr. Fry said he supported his son in "trying to make a change, to save our country from the problems that we've got."
About 50 or 60 cars were parked at the roadblock outside the sanctuary on Thursday, where protest sympathizers mixed with journalists. Thomas Wagner, 32, an unemployed security guard from Christmas Valley, Ore., stood atop his pickup truck in full military fatigues, and said, "I came here to support these four patriots, to let them know that they are not being abandoned."
In Burns, the town closest to the refuge, people raised American flags up and down the main street to celebrate the occupation's end. "This is better than the Fourth of July," said Bekka Riess, 15, beaming as she put flags up. "Maybe now we can finally get our town back."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Close Reading Exercise: Was Michele Fiore one of the occupiers in the standoff or a sympathizer working for a peaceful resolution? Use evidence from the text.
- 2. Take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with other government standoffs in our country's recent history. How is the result of this government standoff different than the outcomes of past standoffs, such as Ruby Ridge and Waco?
- 3. This standoff brought the issue of government land control in the West to the center stage, as the federal government controls more than half of the land in this part of the U.S. Who do you feel should control this land? Does our federal government have a right to maintain control of so much land and its taxation for private use, or is this an overreach of government power, as the protesters maintained?
- 4. On that note, who controls the American Indian reservation land? Is it controlled by the American Indians or by the federal government?
- 5. Do you think that this protest was a case of "right intentions, wrong methods"? At what point is enough, enough? What would have to happen for you to make such a stand against your government?
- 6. Make a prediction: What, if anything, do you think will happen as a result of this government standoff and the media attention it received? Do you see any kind of resolution in the future that would meet the approval of both citizens in the western U.S. and the federal government?
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/12/us/oregon-standoff.html
Posted February 10th 2016
North Korea satellite 'tumbling in orbit,' U.S. official says
BY RALPH ELLIS, K.J. KWON, TIFFANY AP AND TIM HUME, CNN
The satellite North Korea fired into space on Sunday is "tumbling in orbit" and incapable of functioning in any useful way, a senior U.S. defense official told CNN.
Sunday's launch of the long-range rocket triggered a wave of international condemnation and prompted strong reaction from an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council.
North Korea maintained the launch was for scientific and "peaceful purposes."
South Korea has recovered about 270 pieces of debris, believed to have come from the rocket launch, from the ocean Sunday and is working to analyze the objects, a South Korean Defense Ministry official told CNN.
North Koreans celebrated the country's launch of a satellite into orbit with an official fireworks display Monday night in Pyongyang, state broadcaster KCTV reported.
"We hope that the future of our space technology keeps growing and shines like these fireworks in the sky," an announcer on the North Korean broadcaster said during coverage of the celebrations in the capital.
Yoon Dong Hyun, vice director of the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces, struck a defiant note in a speech at the celebrations, vowing the country would continue developing its aerospace technology in the face of international sanctions. Efforts by other countries to block such an advance were "nothing more than a puppy barking towards the moon," he said.
The United States and other nations widely viewed the deployment of the dual-use technology as a front to test a ballistic missile, especially coming on the heels of a purported hydrogen bomb test last month.
Pyongyang carried out both acts in defiance of international sanctions.
At an emergency meeting Sunday, members of the Security Council "strongly condemned" the launch and reaffirmed that "a clear threat to international peace and security continues to exist, especially in the context of the nuclear test."
It vowed to undertake punitive actions against North Korea, announcing plans to "adopt expeditiously a new Security Council resolution with such measures in response to these dangerous and serious violations," according to a statement read by Venezuela's ambassador to the United Nations after the meeting.
Sanctions already in place against Pyongyang ban it from working with nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, blacklist certain figures and organizations and prohibit the import of luxury goods.
Warning shots fired
South Korean President Park Geun-hye called the launch a "challenge to world peace," while her government announced it would begin talks with the United States to deploy a defense system called Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, which can intercept missiles in flight.
A U.S. defense official told CNN that plans to implement the missile defense system had been accelerated in response to the launch, and it could potentially be deployed within weeks.
China has criticized the plans to implement THAAD, and it summoned the South Korean ambassador following Seoul's announcement on the system.
South Korea also planned to reduce the personnel at the Kaesong Industrial Complex, a joint economic development zone between the two Koreas, from 650 to 500 "in consideration of safety of our people," the South Korean Unification Ministry said.
South Korea fired warning shots Monday morning after a North Korean patrol boat crossed the maritime border between the Koreas, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
The North Korean boat withdrew about 20 minutes later, the ministry said.
Such incidents are not uncommon, CNN's Paula Hancocks reports. But the timing of this one -- so soon after North Korea's rocket launch -- will likely bring additional scrutiny to the incident, she said.
Satellite in orbit
The Kwangmyongsong carrier rocket blasted off from the Sohae launch facility at 9 a.m. Sunday (7:30 p.m. ET Saturday), entering orbit nine minutes and 46 seconds after liftoff, North Korea's state news agency KCNA reported.
A state TV newsreader said that the launch had been personally ordered and directed by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who was pictured smiling in official photographs as he oversaw the launch, and that more satellite launches were planned.
A senior U.S. defense official said the rocket headed toward space and, based on its trajectory over the Yellow Sea, "did not pose a threat to the U.S. or our allies."
At least two new objects have been detected in Earth's orbit and are being tracked, a spokesman for U.S. Strategic Command told CNN on Sunday. The objects appeared to be the satellite and the final stage of the rocket booster, said arms control expert David Wright, co-director of the Union of Concerned Scientists Global Security Program.
Japan's analysis indicated parts of the rocket fell in four locations offshore after takeoff, the Japanese Prime Minister's office said via Twitter.
A South Korean lawmaker said Sunday that intelligence suggested the launch had likely been timed to coincide with the Super Bowl and Chinese New Year to maximize international media impact.
"The date of the launch appears to be in consideration of the weather condition and ahead of the Lunar New Year and the U.S. Super Bowl," said Jo Ho-young, chairman of the South Korean National Assembly Intelligence Committee.
Swift condemnation
The United States, South Korea, Japan, China, Russia, Britain, Germany, France, the European Union and NATO issued statements condemning the launch.
Both China and Britain summoned North Korea's ambassadors to their capitals protest the launch, their governments said.
Satellite -- or nuclear missile?
At present, North Korea is believed to have one satellite in orbit, the Kwangmyongsong 3-2, though doubts have been raised about whether it is functioning.
U.S. officials have said the type of rocket in Sunday's launch is dual-use, meaning the same technology that can be employed to send a satellite into orbit is the same that can deliver a nuclear warhead.
China, the Soviet Union and the United States all used intercontinental ballistic missiles, or ICBMs, to launch satellites in the past. During the Cold War, both the United States and the Soviet Union used ICBMs as warhead delivery systems as well as in the early development of their space programs.
The Unha rocket used to launch North Korea's last satellite is believed to be based on the Taepodong long-range ballistic missile, which has an estimated range of around 5,600 miles (9,000 kilometers).
That would put Australia, much of Western Europe and the U.S. West Coast in range of a North Korean warhead.
According to experts, North Korea has at least a dozen and perhaps as many as 100 nuclear weapons, though at present it lacks sophisticated delivery mechanisms.
Increased pressure on China
The launch will heighten international pressure on China, North Korea's biggest foreign investor, to do more.
Wary of creating a refugee crisis should Kim's regime collapse, China has been unwilling to implement sanctions that would really put a choke on North Korea's economy.
"Sanctions are definitely not the aim," an editorial published Sunday by Chinese state news agency Xinhua said. It did, however, note that Foreign Minister Wang Yi would "continue to exercise strategic composure and play a constructive role in helping seek a solution to the peninsular conundrum."
Alison Evans, senior analyst for Asia-Pacific at IHS Country Risk, said that Pyongyang had likely calculated that by carrying out the rocket launch so soon after the January 6 nuclear test -- before the international community had responded to the latter with new sanctions -- it might face less severe repercussions than if the launch and test were responded to individually.
However, she said, there's not a lot more the international community can do to sanction Pyongyang.
"There are some things that haven't yet been touched upon, like North Korean labor exported abroad, which brings in a lot of foreign currency for the North Korean government," she said.
"But if anything, it would be China's implementation of existing sanctions that would tighten the screws on North Korea."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Do we, as nuclearized countries (United States, Russia, Great Britain, etc.), have a right to criticize North Korea for desiring the same nuclear capabilities? Is it hypocritical of us to do so? Why or why not?
- 2. Explain what international sanctions are. How effective have economic sanctions been in the past?
- 3. Even though China condemned the missile launch, why are they resistant to cracking down on North Korea? Why would China want to remain their ally?
- 4. After reading this article, how big of a threat do you think North Korea is to the United States? Is the nuclear power of North Korea more worrisome than the conflicts with ISIS in the Middle East?
- 5. How should the United States respond to the new threat that North Korea poses? Is it time for the U.S. to respond militarily, or should we continue to keep the peace?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2016/02/08/asia/north-korea-rocket-launch/
Posted February 3rd 2016
Five things you need to know about Zika
BY SANDEE LAMOTTE, CNN
A relatively new mosquito-borne virus is prompting worldwide concern because of an alarming connection to a neurological birth disorder and the rapid spread of the virus across the globe.
World Health Organization Director-General Margaret Chan said, "The level of alarm is extremely high," which is why they are considering declaring a public health emergency.
The Zika virus, transmitted by the aggressive Aedes aegypti mosquito, has now spread to at least 24 countries. The WHO estimates 3 million to 4 million people across the Americas will be infected with the virus in the next year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning pregnant women against travel to those areas; health officials in several of those countries are telling female citizens to avoid becoming pregnant, in some cases for up to two years.
"As long as the mosquito keeps reproducing, each and every one of us is losing the battle against the mosquito," Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said on Friday. "We have to mobilize so we do not lose this battle."
The U.S. Defense Department is offering voluntary relocation to pregnant employees and their beneficiaries who are stationed in affected areas.
"That's a pandemic in progress," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. "It isn't as if it's turning around and dying out, it's getting worse and worse as the days go by."
Peru became the most recent country to report a Zika case, with its health minister saying Friday that the country's National Institute of Health confirmed the virus in a Venezuelan patient who came to Peru from Colombia.
Here are five important things to know about Zika:
1. What is Zika and why is it so serious?
The Zika virus is a flavivirus, part of the same family as yellow fever, West Nile, chikungunya and dengue. But unlike some of those viruses, there is no vaccine to prevent Zika or medicine to treat the infection.
Zika is commanding worldwide attention because of an alarming connection between the virus and microcephaly, a neurological disorder that results in babies being born with abnormally small heads. This causes severe developmental issues and sometimes death.
Since November, Brazil has seen 4,180 cases of microcephaly in babies born to women who were infected with Zika during their pregnancies. To put that in perspective, there were only 146 cases in 2014. So far, 51 babies have died.
Other Latin American countries are now seeing cases in newborns as well. On Saturday Colombia reported over 2,000 pregnant women have tested positive for the virus while in the United States one Hawaiian baby was born with microcephaly linked to the Zika virus after his mother returned from Brazil. Several states have confirmed the virus in individuals who traveled to areas where the virus is circulating, including Illinois, where health officials are monitoring two infected pregnant women.
The CDC is asking OB-GYNs to review fetal ultrasounds and do maternal testing for any pregnant woman who has traveled to one of the 24 countries where Zika is currently active.
A smaller outbreak of Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder that can lead to life-threatening paralysis, is also linked to Zika in a several countries.
2. How is Zika spread?
The virus is transmitted when an Aedes mosquito bites a person with an active infection and then spreads the virus by biting others. Those people then become carriers during the time they have symptoms.
In most people, symptoms of the virus are mild, including fever, headache, rash and possible pink eye. In fact, 80% of those infected never know they have the disease. That's especially concerning for pregnant women, as this virus has now been shown to pass through amniotic fluid to the growing baby.
"What we now know," said Dr. Lyle Petersen, director of the CDC's Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, "is that fetuses can be infected with the virus. That's not new for infectious diseases, but it is new for this virus."
"This is a very remarkable and unusual situation," agreed Fauci, "because the other flaviviruses don't do that to our knowledge. You just don't see that with dengue or West Nile or chikungunya."
In addition, the CDC says there have been documented cases of virus transmission during labor, blood transfusion, laboratory exposure and sexual contact. While Zika has been found in breast milk, it's not yet confirmed it can be passed to the baby through nursing.
There have been only two documented cases linking Zika to sex. During the 2013 Zika outbreak in French Polynesia, semen and urine samples from a 44-year-old Tahitian man tested positive for Zika even when blood samples did not. Five years before that, in 2008, a Colorado microbiologist named Brian Foy contracted Zika after travel to Senegal; his wife came down with the disease a few days later even though she had not left northern Colorado and was not exposed to any mosquitoes carrying the virus.
Canadian Blood Services, which manages most of Canada's supply of blood and blood products, is asking all potential blood donors who have traveled anywhere other than Canada, the United States or Europe to delay donating blood until one month after their return as a precaution even though the risk of a donor infecting a recipient is very low. The American Red Cross says it is considering asking donors to self-defer for 28 days but is not taking this step yet.
3. Where is the Zika virus now?
The Zika virus is now being locally transmitted in Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, Suriname, Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Venezuela, says the CDC.
Zika has arrived in the United States, but only from travelers returning from these infected areas. The concern, of course, is whether these imported cases could result in locally transmitted cases within the United States.
The Aedes albopictus, or Asian tiger mosquito, which along with Aedes aegypti transmits Zika virus, is present in many areas of the United States.
If mosquitoes in the United States do become carriers, a model created by Toronto researchers found more than 63% of the U.S. population lives in areas where Zika virus might spread during seasonally warm months. A little over 7% of Americans live in areas where the cold might not kill off the mosquito in the winter, leaving them vulnerable year round.
4. What can you do to protect yourself against Zika?
With no treatment or vaccine available, the only protection against Zika is to avoid travel to areas with an active infestation. If you do travel to a country where Zika is present, the CDC advises strict adherence to mosquito protection measures: Use an EPA-approved repellent over sunscreen, wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts thick enough to block a mosquito bite, and sleep in air-conditioned, screened rooms, among others.
If you have Zika, you can keep from spreading it to others by avoiding mosquito bites during the first week of your illness, says the CDC. The female Aedes aegypti, the primary carrier of Zika, is an aggressive biter, preferring daytime to dusk and indoors to outdoors. Keeping screens on windows and doors is critical to preventing entry to homes and hotel rooms.
5. What's being done to stop Zika?
Researchers are hard at work in laboratories around the world trying to create a Zika vaccine. A clinical trial for a Zika virus vaccine could begin this year, according to Fauci.
"While in development, it's important to understand we won't have a vaccine this year or even in the next few years, although we may be able to have a clinical trial start this calendar year," he said.
Until those efforts bear fruit, health officials are implementing traditional mosquito control techniques such as spraying pesticides and emptying standing water receptacles where mosquitoes breed. The CDC is encouraging local homeowners, hotel owners and visitors to countries with Zika outbreaks to join in by also eliminating any standing water they see, such as in outdoor buckets and flowerpots.
Studies show local control is only marginally effective, since it's so hard to get to all possible breeding areas. And since Aedes aegypti has evolved to live near humans and "can replicate in flower vases and other tiny sources of water," said microbiologist Brian Foy, the mosquitoes are particularly difficult to find and eradicate.
Another prevention effort is OX513A, a genetically modified male Aedes aegypti, dubbed by critics as the "mutant mosquito" or "Robo-Frankenstein mosquito." The creation of British company Oxitec, OX513A is designed to stop the spread of Zika by passing along a gene that makes his offspring die. Since females only mate once, in theory this slows the growth of the population. Each OX513A carries a fluorescent marker, so he can be tracked by scientists.
Key West, Florida, residents gave the genetically modified male his monster nicknames while protesting a trial release of the mosquito in 2012 as a way to combat an outbreak of dengue fever in South Florida. That effort is under review by the Food and Drug Administration.
But field trials in Brazil in 2011 were hugely successful, according to Oxitec, eliminating up to 99% of the target population. A new release of males in the Pedra Branca area of Brazil in 2014 was 92% successful, according to the company. The mosquito has also been tested in the Cayman Islands, Malaysia and Panama.
Last year, Oxitec announced plans to build an OX513A mosquito production facility in Piracicaba, Brazil, that it says will be able to protect 300,000 residents.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. After reading this article, what else would you like to know about the Zika virus? Do you feel like any information was left out?
- 2. How do you feel the current Zika virus compares to the spread of the Ebola virus in 2014? Is it fair to call this virus a pandemic? An epidemic? Why or why not?
- 3. How safe from the virus, and the mosquitoes that spread it, do you feel in the region where you live? Do you think enough is being done here in the U.S. to prevent the spread?
- 4. Knowing that Brazil has seen over 4,000 cases of this virus already, should they still be allowed to host the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro? Would you be willing to travel internationally to an area that is infected if you took proper precautions?
- 5. Why would citizens in places such as Key West, Florida protest the release of OX513A, the "mutant mosquito," if it is hugely successful in the elimination of mosquitoes carrying the Zika virus? Explain possible negative consequences of releasing genetically modified mosquitoes.
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/health/zika-what-you-need-to-know/index.html
Posted January 27th 2016
Political outsiders surge in Iowa in last week before caucuses
BY ERIN KELLY, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON -- With just a week left until the Iowa Caucus, "outsider" presidential candidates Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders appeared to be building momentum over "establishment" candidates and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg hinted he might enter the race as an independent.
The influential Des Moines Register Saturday night endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio in the Republican race, rejecting Trump and Sanders in favor of Rubio's "optimism" and Clinton's experience. But Sanders held a narrow lead over Clinton in a CBS Iowa poll released Sunday. In a new Fox News poll, Trump held a sizable lead over Cruz with Rubio in third place; Cruz had held the lead in the same poll three weeks ago. The CBS poll showed the same top three for the Republicans.
The poll results gave new weight to a New York Times report over the weekend that Bloomberg has instructed his advisers to draw up plans for a potential presidential bid and will make a decision by early March. Bloomberg would offer himself as a moderate alternative if it appears likely that Trump or Cruz will win the GOP nomination and Sanders will become the Democratic nominee, the Times reported.
Clinton said Sunday that won't be necessary because she will ultimately win the Democratic nomination. Even if Sanders wins Iowa and New Hampshire -- where he is ahead in polls -- Clinton's campaign believes she has the advantage in other early primary states such as South Carolina and Nevada, where her strong support among African American and Latino voters could help her prevail.
"The way I read what he (Bloomberg) said is if I didn't get the nomination, he might consider it," Clinton said on NBC's Meet the Press. "Well, I'm going to relieve him of that and get the nomination so he doesn't have to (run)."
The candidates are continuing to converge on Iowa between now and the Feb. 1 caucus day. Candidates from both parties have scheduled a total of nearly 100 campaign appearances in the state over the next week, according to a list compiled by the Des Moines Register. Republicans will also hold another debate Thursday in Des Moines, hosted by Fox News.
Sanders, a Democratic Socialist who often rails against the wealth and power of the top 1%, said he would welcome the prospect of facing two billionaires if Trump wins the GOP nomination and Bloomberg enters the race.
"I think the American people do not want to see our nation move toward an oligarchy, where billionaires control the political process," Sanders said on Meet the Press. "I think we'll win that election."
While Trump and Cruz battle it out for the conservative wing of the GOP, Rubio was working to position himself as a more mainstream alternative.
"We feel very positive about the momentum that's gaining as we get closer to the caucuses," Rubio told Fox News Sunday, touting his endorsements from Iowa newspapers. "And as you know from prior experience, caucus-goers in Iowa, many make up their mind on the day of the caucus or the days leading up to it. So we feel we are gaining momentum at just the right time."
Former Florida governor Jeb Bush said he believes that Republicans will ultimately see that Trump would be "a disaster" for the party despite the public perception of Trump's strength.
"It's not strong to denigrate women, it's not strong to insult Hispanics...and God forbid it's not strong to disparage the disabled," Bush said on CNN.
Trump, meanwhile, repeated charges that Cruz, is too unlikable to win. Cruz is unpopular with his fellow GOP senators for his frequent attacks on his own party members.
"I am a conservative, but I get along with people," Trump said Sunday on Meet the Press. "Ted cannot get along with people. He's a nasty person."
Cruz, in an interview with George Stephanopoulos that aired Sunday on ABC's This Week, said he is only disliked in Washington.
"I've said many, many times, the biggest divide we've got in this country politically, it's not between Democrats and Republicans, it's between career politicians and Washington in both parties and the American people," Cruz said.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Using your own prior knowledge and context clues, define "caucus." Even many adults don't truly understand the election process. How important is it for a candidate to win these first state caucuses?
- 2. With former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg hinting that he may run for president if Hillary doesn't win the nomination, who else do you think could come out of the shadows and join the presidential race late in the game? Are there any other people that you think would be excellent candidates to join the race?
- 3. Since Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are currently the frontrunners of the 2016 election, what do you think would happen if they don't win the presidential nominations? Would they run as third-party candidates?
- 4. Does a candidate need to be liked by the people to be a good leader? Is that a legitimate requirement?
- 5. How much has your class, and you personally, followed the presidential election? If you had to vote for the next president tomorrow, who would it be? On the flip side, who are you most afraid of having as the next president? Explain your views.
Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/01/24/political-outsiders-surge-iowa-last-week-before-caucuses/79264666/
Posted January 20th 2016
The Future of Big Data and Analytics in K-12 Education
Are schools ready for the power and problems of big data?
BY BENJAMIN HEROLD
Imagine classrooms outfitted with cameras that run constantly, capturing each child's every facial expression, fidget, and social interaction, every day, all year long.
Then imagine on the ceilings of those rooms infrared cameras, documenting the objects that every student touches throughout the day, and microphones, recording every word that each person utters.
Picture now the children themselves wearing Fitbit-like devices that track everything from their heart rates to their time between meals. For about a quarter of the day, the students use Chromebooks and learning software that track their every click and keystroke.
What you're seeing is the future of K-12 education through the eyes of Max Ventilla, the CEO of AltSchool, a Bay Area startup that represents the most aggressive, far-reaching foray into the world of big data and analytics that the K-12 education sector has seen to date.
Eventually, Ventilla envisions AltSchool technology facilitating an exponential increase in the amount of information collected on students in school, all in service of expanding the hands-on, project-based model of learning in place at the six private school campuses the company currently operates in Silicon Valley and New York City.
He sees all those torrents of data flowing from the classroom into the cloud, where AltSchool engineers will have built systems for merging the disparate streams into a single river of information. AltSchool software and algorithms created by Silicon Valley's top developers and data scientists would then search the waters for patterns in each student's engagement level, moods, use of classroom resources, social habits, language and vocabulary use, attention span, academic performance, and more.
The resulting insights--say, that 6th graders perform better in math after exercising, or that the girls in a particular science class are bored because boys use the lab equipment more frequently, or that Johnny is using new vocabulary words in conversations with his friends--would be fed to teachers, parents, and students via AltSchool's digital learning platform and mobile app, which are currently being tested. The information would be accompanied by scheduling tips, recommendations for more gender-neutral science activities, and a playlist of assignments customized to each student.
How those suggestions are used, and whether they make a difference in how well each student learns, would also be tracked, creating a never-ending feedback loop of insights, experiments, recommendations, and product tweaks.
"We don't want to improve some aspects of what schools do. We want a different kind of universe in which schools can exist 30 years from now," said Ventilla, a 35-year-old Yale University graduate who previously worked as the head of personalization at online-services-giant Google.
For better or worse, it's not just pie in the sky talk.
And while Ventilla's plans may seem grandiose, there are some good reasons to pay attention to what the company is doing.
For one, Ventilla has attracted top talent from his old employer, as well as leading companies in consumer technology and some of the top independent schools in the region. The AltSchool team has already prototyped and deployed some of the systems inside its own schools. And fueled by $133 million in venture capital from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and others, AltSchool's 50-plus engineers, data scientists, and developers are designing tools that could be available to other schools by the 2018-19 school year.
Still, lots could go wrong. Among other barriers, AltSchool is almost certain to provoke a backlash from parents and privacy advocates who see in its plans the potential for an Orwellian surveillance nightmare, as well as potentially unethical experimentation on children.
But even if the company crashes and burns, some key observers hope its efforts will better illuminate the possibilities and pitfalls confronting a sector still wrestling with the questions of whether and how to embrace analytics.
From Retail to Education Analytics
As vice president of research and development for retail-analytics firm RetailNext, George Shaw helped large stores usher in similar changes.
Mostly, that meant using video cameras to monitor shopping floors, then applying software and algorithms to the resulting footage to categorize people into shoppers versus employees, for example; track their locations and movements; document each item they touched; and connect all that information with what they ended up buying.
Now AltSchool's head of technical research and development, Shaw is at the forefront of developing similar "passive observation" techniques for education.
The first big step toward that goal is the company's AltVideo camera system, now installed in every classroom across all six AltSchool campuses. For now, the footage is mostly used by teachers and administrators on an ad hoc basis--if someone wants to review a particularly fruitful interaction with a student, for example.
But Shaw is helping lead the company's efforts to begin what he calls "automated metadata production" on that footage. To begin that process, AltSchool is, now testing motion-tracking algorithms similar to those used in both the NBA and retail analytics. Eventually, that could expand to include applying advanced facial recognition, affect detection, and computer-vision algorithms to the footage to generate digital data on students' engagement levels, emotional states, and more.
Reasons for Skepticism
Before dismissing such a plan as hopelessly audacious, consider Mediratta's pedigree.
For a decade, the 45-year-old Colgate University graduate was a top engineer at Google, where he was responsible for the technological and analytics infrastructure behind the company's home page, through which users enter billions of Internet searches every day.
"Heat maps" of activity in AltSchool classrooms are generated by applying motion-tracking algorithms to video footage from constantly running cameras. To date, the information has been used primarily for operational purposes--to guide the company's real estate team in finding properties easily converted to classroom space.
"We will get to the point where we have the same kind of big-data opportunities that Google has," Mediratta said, "and we'll be able to take advantage of them."
Even so, it's difficult to envision the country's 100,000 or so public schools--in many places still struggling just to get adequate Internet and Wifi connections--adopting such radically new methods.
"It's not difficult to find many others who have been very accomplished, and brought a lot of money to the table, and still fell short of their own lofty goals," said Douglas A. Levin, the president of EdTech Strategies, a consulting group on school-technology issues.
For their part, AltSchool's founders say that's why they are playing the long game.
The company isn't trying to create technology tools that have to be quickly sold and shoehorned into traditional public schools. It intentionally avoided the charter-management route taken by other presumptive innovators with big plans to change American public education.
Instead, AltSchool's strategy is to invest heavily in research and product development, while also continuing to open more private "micro-schools" that serve as labs for those tools to be deployed, tested, and used to generate the data that is ultimately the company's lifeblood.
The idea is to first establish a network of schools delivering high-quality education; then develop the technologies that can support the expansion of that network; and ultimately leverage the ever-growing amount of data the network produces to continually make the whole system, schools and technology alike, smarter and more effective.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Considering how difficult and frustrating it can be at times to interact with technology, like going through an automated menu when you call a big company, how effective do you think the methods promoted by Pearson will be?
- 2. Can a machine effectively analyze students by reading their emotions? What if the technology inaccurately gauges your emotions or reactions? What could happen?
- 3. How do you personally feel about cameras and other technology in your school interacting with other non-school governmental bodies to collect and analyze your medical and emotional information?
- 4. Would you rather deal with your teacher or a machine? Which is smarter about meeting YOUR needs? Are teachers obsolete or do we still need them? Explain your perspective.
Click here to view more://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/01/13/the-future-of-big-data-and-analytics.html
Posted January 13th 2016
Mich. school head to DPS: Address health, safety issues
BY KIM KOZLOWSKI AND JAMES DAVID DICKSON
Detroit -- With more than half of Detroit Public Schools closed Monday by a teacher sickout, Michigan's top school official called for the district's emergency manager to address health and safety issues in classroom buildings - hours after union leaders and members publicized problems at two public events.
State superintendent Brian Whiston said in a statement that DPS Emergency Manager Darnell Earley should set up a meeting with state, local and district representatives in response to a press conference and a rally where teachers complained of buildings with leaky roofs, rat infestations, broken boilers and shortages of books and other supplies.
"I care deeply about the safety and well-being of teachers in Detroit, just as I do the students," Whiston. "They all still need to be in the classrooms teaching and learning, though. If buildings have health and safety issues, they need to be addressed immediately with the district administration and all appropriate agencies."
In response, DPS spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski said the district "places a top priority on creating a good working and learning environment for our students and staff."
"As such we work every day to ensure that our school buildings are safe, clean and in good repair," Zdrodowski said in a statement. "Our Operations Department works very closely with all regulatory agencies to ensure we meet their guidelines. When issues are brought to our attention, we investigate and take the appropriate actions to address them in as timely a manner as possible - even in the face of the very serious budget constraints necessitated by the District's financial crisis."
Mayor Mike Duggan said in response to "substandard conditions in school buildings" reported by the Detroit Federation of Teachers, he plans Tuesday to visit "a number of those schools" with the heads of the Detroit Health Department and the Detroit Buildings, Safety Engineering and Environmental Department.
"Based on what we find, the City of Detroit will take whatever enforcement action is necessary to make sure all Detroit Public Schools are compliant with all health and building codes," Duggan said in a statement.
Sixty-four public Detroit Public Schools -- more than half of the district -- were closed Monday, as rolling teacher sickouts continued to move through Michigan's largest school district.
Besides building conditions and supply shortages, teachers are upset by large class sizes, pay and benefit concessions, and a state plan to create a new, debt-free Detroit school district. DPS, which has been run by a series of state-appointed emergency managers since March 2009, has $515 million in past debts and unpaid vendor and pension bills.
At a lunchtime rally outside DPS's Fisher Building headquarters, teachers said the district's students are being jeopardized by poor building conditions and a shortage of educational materials.
Students lack textbooks and other supplies and come to learn in buildings where roofs are leaking and they breathe mold every day, said Kimberly Jackson, a seventh-grade teacher at Paul Robeson Malcom X Academy. Even some bathrooms don't even have toilet paper, she said.
"We are set up for failure," Jackson said to a crowd that cheered and chanted that they'd had enough.
"No other district ... would allow their children to be inside a school building under those conditions," she said. "Many of our (classes) are way oversized -- some with as many as 50 children inside one classroom. It's time out for that. It's time out for biz as usual, it's time out for working in deplorable schools."
Teachers, joined by parents and children, took turns talking about their frustration over conditions in the schools. Holding signs and chanting, the group of about 200 people marched around the building.
The rally was organized by DPS Teachers Fight Back -- a grassroots group formed a week ago by teachers, parents and community members who want the best education for the students, Jackson said.
They outlined demands that include improving working conditions, decreasing classroom sizes and restoring staff positions, pay and benefits. They also called for local control to be restored at DPS.
"Our goal is not to shut the schools down," said Jackson. "Our goal is to have a quality education for our children. ... We've been trying to make do with what we have. Our children deserve better."
Joann Jackson attended the rally with her two grandchildren, 6-year-old Larry Price and 10-year-old Alayah Price, both students at Robeson.
"I am sick and tired of what is happening in Detroit Public School system," Joanna Jackson said. "We are $4.5 billion in deficit. Every time I turn around, I am asking where's the money? No one seems to know."
Alayah, a fifth-grader, said she knows why she was not in school Monday: because there's not enough money to get books that she needs. There are some books, but not all.
"When I am trying to do my school work, I want to do all of it, not some of it because we don't have all of our books," Alayah said.
Duggan said the state needs to address the district's dire finances, saying that between 30 percent and 40 percent of state funding for Detroit schools "is now going to pay debt instead of going to teaching our children."
He also called on teachers to stop forcing school closures.
"I understand the teachers' frustration, but our children need our teachers in the classroom," Duggan said in his statement. "I encourage the teachers to end the sickouts and remain in the schools, and I encourage our state officials to move quickly to address these pressing educational problems."
The chairman of the state Senate Education Committee condemned the sickout, calling it "an illegal strike."
"... It's damaging the district, and most tragically, it's hurting children," Sen. Phil Pavlov, R-St. Clair Township, said in a statement. "Detroit students and their parents deserve to know they aren't alone. I'm actively working with my colleagues to address these escalating work stoppages, to hold individuals who break the law accountable, and to put Detroit students first."
Last week, five public schools in Detroit were closed due to sickouts, including at Cass Tech, Renaissance and Martin Luther King Jr. high schools. The district has 46,325 students in its 107 school buildings.
Teachers at another school, Wayne Elementary on the east side, attempted a sickout Wednesday, but the district was able to get the building staffed, according to a teacher who attended a Sunday night meeting of the Strike to Win Committee. During that gathering, teachers shared their plans for Monday's action.
Steve Conn, the ousted president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, has been calling for teachers to stay home in protest. "It's great," Conn told The News on Monday.
On Sunday, Conn had told reporters he expected three dozen closures -- and added that "an all-out strike will be the only way to save public education in Detroit."
At Sunday's meeting, Conn called his Jan. 20 reinstatement hearing with the American Federation of Teachers, which has placed the DFT in trusteeship, "D-Day." Monday, Conn said that if he's not reinstated, the Strike to Win committee will pursue a full-blown strike.
"It's all one thing -- the degradation of local control of our schools," Conn said.
Though teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan, Conn brushed off those concerns Sunday.
"Teachers strikes have always been illegal, but I've been through four of these," Conn said.
Conn was removed from office and expelled from the DFT in August by the union executive board, which found him guilty of internal misconduct charges, including illegal cancellation of meetings and failure to investigate abuse of members.
At a news conference Monday morning, Bailey and other union officials, teachers and parents expressed frustration about conditions in many DPS schools and called for public hearings.
"The deplorable conditions in our schools have created a serious environmental and educational crisis that is being ignored. We refuse to stand by while teachers, school support staff and students are exposed to conditions that one might expect in a Third World country, not the United States of America," Bailey said. "The children of Detroit, Flint or any other community should not be exposed to atrocious, environmental hazards."
Bailey said health and safety hazards include rat and other rodent infestations, crumbling walls, holes in ceilings, cracked sidewalks and broken boilers and no heat. She also said DPS has 170 teaching vacancies and that some special education classrooms have no textbooks.
In a statement to The News, Andrea Bitely, spokeswoman for Attorney General Bill Schuette, did not address the legality of the rolling sickouts or what recourse the state might pursue. "Staff may have complaints," the statement reads, "but not showing up for work hurts the kids and parents, not the administrators. We feel for these families because this is outrageous, no matter where it happens."
Dave Murray, spokesman for Gov. Rick Snyder, told The News in a statement that "the best thing for Detroit children is to be in school and get the best education they can so they are able to reach their full potential. Students in school also have access to nutritious meals and social service programs that can help address outside of school challenges that affect learning.
"We understand why some are frustrated. Gov. Snyder is working to improve academics and finances in Detroit schools. Right now, the district pays a figure equal to $1,100 per child for debt service ... The Governor's plan would (allow) that money to be better spent in the classroom."
That plan includes splitting the district into two entities. The first, old DPS, would exist just to pay down debt. New DPS would educate students. New DPS would be run initially by a board appointed by the governor and the mayor of Detroit, but by 2021 full control would be shifted to an elected board.
Detroit City Councilwoman Mary Sheffield, who attended the Strike to Win meeting Sunday to "stand in support" for teachers, said she would like to see City Council have a hand in choosing the board, if the governor's plan were enacted.
In fall 1999, Detroit Public Schools had more than 150,000 students enrolled and no budget deficit when teachers began the school year with a nine-day strike. The district imposed no fines, and teachers got a 6 percent raise, phased in over three years, better dental insurance, and smaller class sizes in some schools, according to Detroit News archives.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. With the problems of large class sizes, teacher dissatisfaction, poor academic performance, and growing debt that the Detroit Public School system faces, do you agree or disagree with Stephen Conn that "an all-out strike will be the only way to save public education in Detroit"? Explain your perspective.
- 2. Though teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan, protesting does make a strong statement and gets things done. Where do you draw the line between necessary protesting for basic work rights and uncalled for disruptions to public education? Do these teachers have a right to be striking?
- 3. Staff not showing up for work hurts the students and parents of the affected schools, but teachers have tried to show their dissatisfaction with school conditions and are frustrated to see no change. What other ways could teachers effectively promote change without putting students at a disadvantage?
- 4. Governor Snyder's new plan is to split the district in two in order to better manage the district and pay off the looming debt. Do you think that this might help solve Detroit's public education problems or is it just a stopgap measure for the district's deeper issues?
Click here to view more://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2016/01/11/detroit-schools-sickout/78619102/
Posted January 6th 2016
Armed protesters refuse to leave federal building in Oregon
BY HOLLY YAN AND JOE SUTTON, CNN
Two days after taking over a federal building, armed protesters in Oregon are refusing to budge until they get what they want.
The problem is, they haven't specified what it would take to get them to leave.
What started Saturday as a rally supporting two local ranchers led to a broader anti-government protest and now the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge building near Burns.
"We will be here as long as it takes," protest spokesman Ammon Bundy told CNN by phone from inside the refuge.
"We have no intentions of using force upon anyone, (but) if force is used against us, we would defend ourselves."
Bundy, 40, is the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who drew national attention in 2014 after staging a standoff with federal authorities.
And like his father, Bundy said he is standing up to the federal government over land rights.
"This is about taking the correct stand without harming anybody to restore the land and resources to the people so people across the country can begin thriving again," he said.
Here's what led up to the occupation and what may happen next:
It started with a march for ranchers
Protesters gathered Saturday in Burns to denounce the five-year sentencing of Dwight and Steven Hammond -- father-and-son ranchers who were convicted of arson.
The Hammonds have said they started a fire in 2001 to reduce the growth of invasive plants and to protect their property from wildfires, CNN affiliate KTVZ-TV reported, but that the fire got out of hand.
The father and son are scheduled to turn themselves in Monday afternoon to serve their sentences.
Bundy said officials are unfairly punishing the Hammonds for refusing to sell their land. He said it's an example of the government's overreach, especially when it comes to land rights.
But according to Billy J. Williams, the acting U.S. attorney in Oregon, the Hammonds were rightfully convicted after setting fire to about 130 acres of public land in an attempt to cover up poaching.
In an opinion piece for the Burns Times Herald, Williams wrote that the five-year sentences are the minimum for the crimes the Hammonds committed.
Then came the occupation
After the rally supporting Hammonds, some protesters broke into the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge building.
"This refuge -- it has been destructive to the people of the county and to the people of the area," Bundy said.
He said the refuge has taken over the space of 100 ranches since the early 1900s.
"They are continuing to expand the refuge at the expense of the ranchers and miners," Bundy said.
He also said Harney County, in southeastern Oregon, went from one of the state's wealthiest counties to one of the poorest.
CNN has not independently corroborated Bundy's claims.
No employees were inside the building when protesters broke in, officials said.
Bundy said his group is armed but said he would not describe it as a militia. He declined to say how many people were with him, saying that information might jeopardize "operational security."
What the protesters want
When asked what it would take for the protesters to leave, Bundy did not offer specifics.
"The people will need to be able to use the land and resources without fear as free men and women. We know it will take some time," he said.
"I would tell any federal agent that the people are enforcing their rights and expressing their rights to restore their land and resources back to the people."
Bundy did not explicitly call on authorities to commute the prison sentences for the Hammonds. But he said their case illustrates officials' "abuse" of power.
"We are not terrorists," Bundy said. "We are concerned citizens and realize we have to act if we want to pass along anything to our children."
The Hammonds keep their distance
But the Hammonds said they don't want help from Bundy's group.
"Neither Ammon Bundy nor anyone within his group/organization speak for the Hammond family," the Hammonds' attorney, W. Alan Schroeder, wrote to Harney County Sheriff David Ward.
What authorities are doing
As of early Monday morning, there was no police presence at the building. But the FBI said it is taking the lead on investigating the situation.
"The FBI is working with the Harney County Sheriff's Office, Oregon State Police and other local and state law enforcement agencies to bring a peaceful resolution to the situation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge," the agency's Portland office said in a statement.
"Due to safety considerations for both those inside the refuge as well as the law enforcement officers involved, we will not be releasing any specifics with regards to the law enforcement response."
How the community is reacting
The protest has prompted Harney County School District 3 to call off classes for the week, Superintendent Dr. Marilyn L. McBride said.
The federal Bureau of Land Management office in Burns is also closed until further notice, the agency said.
And even though Bundy is not calling his group a militia, others in the community are.
"I don't like the militia's methods," local resident Monica McCannon told KTVZ. "They had their rally. Now it's time for them to go home. People are afraid of them."
What might happen next
Bundy's call for supporters to join him might "turn into a bad situation," said CNN law enforcement analyst Art Roderick, a retired U.S. marshal who investigated anti-government militias.
"What's going to happen hopefully (is) ... we don't go out there with a big force, because that's what they're looking for," he said. "The last thing we need is some type of confrontation."
He said that law enforcement has learned how to handle these types of situations in which a law may have been broken but there hasn't been any eruption of violence and no threats to lives yet.
The best approach now, Roderick said, is to wait the group out and try to figure out how to bring a peaceful resolution.
A 'Y'all Qaeda' threat?
Some Twitter users decried what they say is a double standard in the public's reaction to the occupation. They said gunmen who took over the federal building aren't called terrorists because they're white.
"#YallQaeda waging #YeeHawd on America and we're still calling it a 'peaceful protest,'" John Hulsey tweeted. "It's domestic terrorism and we need to shut it down."
But others were quick to hit back with their own accusations of double standards.
"Justified or not, it's a protest against government abuse of power. If Oregon is terrorism, then so is #BlackLivesMatter," Paul Joseph Watson wrote.
CNN national security analyst Juliette Kayyem said there's no doubt the armed protesters in Oregon are "domestic terrorists."
"Simply because they are not Muslim jihadists does not mean they are authorized to threaten or use violence to support their political cause," she wrote in an opinion piece.
Blogger Larry Waldbillig pointed out the historical irony of the gunmen trying to take land originally settled by Native Americans.
"Very confused why white militiamen are claiming they're 'taking back' land that was stolen by their white ancestors," he tweeted.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- 1. Do you believe that the federal government is overreaching in their authority when it comes to managing lands that were once privately owned by citizens?
- 2. Some call them terrorists, while others call them patriots. Is perception reality? What is your take on the anti-government protest going on in Oregon? Should it be described as a peaceful protest or domestic terrorism? Defend your opinion.
- 3. Where do you draw the line between your right as a citizen to protest the federal government and actively working to subvert the government?
- 4. This protest is said to be against the abuse of government power. Was the comparison made by Paul Joseph Watson, which equates this protest to those affiliated with Black Lives Matter, fair? Why or why not?
- 5. Russell Means was an activist for the rights of Native American people and a prominent member of the American Indian Movement (AIM). He led several conflicts between 1971 and 1973 that resulted in two deaths and over $2 million in government building damages. Means is viewed by many as an activist for indigenous peoples' rights and as a hero. He was never sentenced to prison for his actions. Compare and contrast this example to what is happening today in Oregon. Are the situations similar or different?
- 6. Make a prediction. How do you think the standoff in Oregon will be resolved?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2016/01/04/us/oregon-wildlife-refuge-protest/
Posted December 16th 2015
All Politicians Lie. Some Lie More Than Others.
BY ANGIE DROBNIC HOLAN
Washington — I’m a political fact-checker, which is usually an automatic conversation starter at parties. These days, I get two questions repeatedly: “Is it worse than it’s ever been?” and “What’s up with Donald Trump?”
I’ve been fact-checking since 2007, when The Tampa Bay Times founded PolitiFact as a new way to cover elections. We don’t check absolutely everything a candidate says, but focus on what catches our eye as significant, newsworthy or potentially influential. Our ratings are also not intended to be statistically representative but to show trends over time.
Donald J. Trump’s record on truth and accuracy is astonishingly poor. So far, we’ve fact-checked more than 70 Trump statements and rated fully three-quarters of them as Mostly False, False or “Pants on Fire” (we reserve this last designation for a claim that is not only inaccurate but also ridiculous). We haven’t checked the former neurosurgeon Ben Carson as often as Mr. Trump, but by the percentages Mr. Carson actually fares worse.
Carly Fiorina, another candidate in the Republican race who’s never held elective office, does slightly better on the Truth-O-Meter (which I sometimes feel the need to remind people is not an actual scientific instrument): Half of the statements we’ve checked have proved Mostly False or worse.
Most of the professional politicians we fact-check don’t reach these depths of inaccuracy. They tend to choose their words more carefully.
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, for example, has ratings of Mostly False, False and Pants on Fire at the 40 percent mark (out of a sizable 117 statements checked). The former Florida governor Jeb Bush’s negative ratings are at 32 percent out of 71 statements checked, a percentage matched by two other Republican contenders, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Senator Rand Paul.
In the Democratic race, Senator Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton are evenly matched at 28 percent (based on 43 checks of Mr. Sanders and 140 checks of Mrs. Clinton). Outside of the primary campaign, we’ve continued checking the public statements of Bill Clinton since 2007; he comes out slightly ahead of President Obama in his truth-telling track record.
The president has the distinction of being the most fact-checked person by PolitiFact — by a wide margin, with a whopping 569 statements checked. We’ve rated nine of those Pants on Fire.
Even though we’re in the midst of a presidential campaign full of falsehoods and misstatements, I see cause for optimism. Some politicians have responded to fact-checking journalism by vetting their prepared comments more carefully and giving their campaign ads extra scrutiny.
More important, I see accurate information becoming more available and easier for voters to find. By that measure, things are pretty good.
Mr. Trump’s inaccurate statements, for example, have garnered masses of coverage. His claim that he saw “thousands of people” in New Jersey cheering the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, grabbed headlines but the stories were about the rebuttals.
When Ms. Fiorina mischaracterized a video about Planned Parenthood during an early debate, it was a significant part of the post-debate coverage, while Mrs. Clinton’s sometimes misleading statements about her email accounts have been generating close, in-depth scrutiny for most of 2015.
Today’s TV journalists — anchors like Chuck Todd, Jake Tapper and George Stephanopoulos — have picked up the torch of fact-checking and now grill candidates on issues of accuracy during live interviews. Most voters don’t think it’s biased to question people about whether their seemingly fact-based statements are accurate. Research published earlier this year by the American Press Institute showed that more than eight in 10 Americans have a positive view of political fact-checking.
In fact, journalists regularly tell me their media organizations have started highlighting fact-checking in their reporting because so many people click on fact-checking stories after a debate or high-profile news event. Many readers now want fact-checking as part of traditional news stories as well; they will vocally complain to ombudsmen and readers’ representatives when they see news stories repeating discredited factual claims.
That’s not to say that fact-checking is a cure-all. Partisan audiences will savage fact-checks that contradict their views, and that’s true of both the right and the left. But “truthiness” can’t survive indefinitely in a fact-free vacuum.
If Mr. Trump and his fans saw video of thousands of people cheering in New Jersey, why has no one brought it forward yet? Because it doesn’t exist.
Fact-checking’s methodology emphasizes the issue at hand and facts on the ground. Politicians can either make their case or they can’t. Candidates’ fans may complain about press bias, but my impression is that less partisan voters pay a lot of attention to these media moments, especially when elections are close and decided by a few percentage points. Trust and integrity are still crucial assets for a politician.
Contrary to the prophecies that truth in politics is doomed, I’m encouraged by the effect that fact-checking is having. When friends conclude despondently that the truth doesn’t matter, I remind them that people haven’t started voting yet. I don’t take current polls too seriously because data suggests that most people don’t settle on a candidate until much closer to casting their vote.
In the end, it’s the voters who will punish or reward candidates for what they’ve said on the campaign trail. I’m confident that Americans have the information they need to help them choose wisely.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Examine the data displayed in the chart above. The chart shows that ALL Republican candidates lie more than Democratic candidates. Do you believe this information to be true? Why or why not?
- Define the word “bias.” Could political bias potentially be at work in this opinion article even though it is reportedly based only on facts? Do a little digging. Does The New York Times, the publisher of this editorial, tend to exhibit political bias? What about PolitiFact, the fact-checking organization that provided the data for this editorial?
- Remember, the first rule of media literacy is that everything you read or see was created by a human being with a point of view. Is it possible that the writer of this article skewed the criteria in favor of those people she liked? Is it possible that she herself engaged in half-truths? Is it possible that someone can write an article or post something in the mass media that is just a plain lie?
- With so much media bias floating around from both left and right perspectives, it’s getting harder and harder to sift through the bias and be an informed voter. What can you do to get neutral information about politics that allows you to form your own opinions?
- The author of this editorial states that though the current presidential campaigns are “full of falsehoods and misstatements, I see cause for optimism.” What’s your take on this? Is the age of internet and fact-checking helping to alleviate the public distrust of political candidates, or merely making it easier to spot the liars? Explain your perspective.
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/13/opinion/campaign-stops/all-politicians-lie-some-lie-more-than-others.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=1
Posted December 2nd 2015
Black Friday Just a Day This Year, No Longer a Bellwether
BY HIROKO TABUCHI
If the lines at Target or Macy’s this Black Friday seemed shorter than in years past, shoppers have the Internet to thank.
More people shopped online over the Thanksgiving weekend than in brick-and-mortar stores, according to a closely watched survey released by retail’s biggest trade group, the National Retail Federation. (Spending at physical stores still dwarfs online spending, however.)
The trade group also stuck by its forecast on Sunday that retail sales this holiday season will rise 3.7 percent this year, below last year’s growth of 4.1 percent. For the first time in over a decade, however, the group did not release estimates of total spending for the holiday weekend.
The federation’s chief executive, Matthew Shay, said big shifts in consumer behavior made Black Friday weekend sales less of a bellwether for holiday spending, or for the state of the American consumer.
Shoppers are taking advantage of a deluge of sales and promotions to shop when they want, and how they want, he said.
Retailers, in turn, are scrambling to offer sales earlier each year, both in stores and online.
“Shopping has changed and the consumer has changed and retailers have changed,” Mr. Shay said. “Retailers are heavily promoting starting the day after Halloween.”
Meanwhile, there is “a broad and deep expectation” among shoppers that sales and promotions will continue far beyond Black Friday, and less of an imperative to spend over the weekend, Mr. Shay said.
The importance of Black Friday has long been more myth than fact. Black Friday is generally not the year’s biggest shopping day. MasterCard estimated that shoppers bought more on Dec. 23 last year, presumably in a late scramble for Christmas gifts.
And Black Friday’s importance has waned even further in recent years, as retailers offered holiday sales earlier and longer. Some industry experts have questioned whether the holiday season itself is losing significance as retailers increasingly offer sales all year round. And data shows that consumers are spending less on clothing and shoes and more on traveling, eating out and on their cars and homes.
Still, holiday promotions — many of them on Black Friday — remain critically important for some products, like new gadgets and technology.
“For new categories, historically, over half of the volume in early years shows up in the fourth quarter,” Shawn DuBravac, chief economist of the Consumer Technology Association, said on Sunday. That has been true for DVDs, high-definition TVs, Blu-ray technology and Apple’s iPad, he said.
“That’s what we’ll likely see with smartwatches this year,” he said. “Half of overall volume for smartwatches should show up in the holiday quarter.”
But for the consumer technology industry over all, about 27 percent of the year’s sales came during the holiday quarter, only slightly more than during other times of the year, he said.
The National Retail Federation, which surveyed about 4,300 consumers before and during the Thanksgiving weekend, said that shoppers had spent or planned to spend $300 over the weekend this year. Because of a change in methodology, that figure was not directly comparable to the $381 that consumers said they had spent or would spend in the group’s survey last year.
Nearly 102 million people said they shopped in stores over the Thanksgiving weekend, the trade group said, compared with more than 103 million who said they had shopped online. Some did both, and over all, more than 151 million people shopped over the weekend, according to the federation’s survey.
Getting an early reading of holiday sales has always been based on guesswork. A more accurate measure of holiday spending will not be available until the Department of Commerce releases retail spending figures next month for November, and for December in January.
ShopperTrak, which estimates sales at about 12,000 brick-and-mortar retailers worldwide using location analytics, said that combined sales in the United States on Thanksgiving and Black Friday totaled about $12.1 billion. That compares with an estimate of $12.3 billion spent over those two days in stores last year.
But Kevin Kearns, ShopperTrak’s chief revenue officer, cautioned against reading too much into those results. ShopperTrak’s data showed greater spending before Black Friday, he said.
“This year, we saw Black Friday ads emerge before Halloween, as retailers aimed to get at the shopper’s wallet early,” he said in a statement. Over all, ShopperTrak forecasts that retail sales will climb 2.4 percent this holiday season.
Data from Adobe that aggregated sales on about 4,500 retail websites underscored the growing importance of online shopping. Shoppers spent a record $7.2 billion online on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, Adobe said, a 14.3 percent jump from the previous year. About a third of purchases came from mobile devices, according to Adobe.
The company predicted that shoppers would spend another $3 billion on Monday, when retailers offer fresh deals on electronics and other merchandise. (On the other hand, the significance of so called Cyber Monday is also declining, as online shopping becomes ubiquitous. “I anticipate the term will slowly go away,” said Mr. DuBravac of the Consumer Technology Association.)
Mr. Kearns, of ShopperTrak, said that shopping websites were also changing the way people shop in stores.
“Shoppers are researching products ahead of time, targeting their store visits and arriving in-store with the intention of making a purchase,” Mr. Kearns said.
Social media also played a part in shaping shopper sentiment going into the holiday weekend, he said. In particular, he suggested, more shoppers may be staying away from stores on Thanksgiving Day as part of a “social backlash against store openings on the holiday.”
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Traditionally, Black Friday has always been a bellwether. Using context clues, explain the meaning of a “bellwether.”
- In what ways has the internet changed consumer behavior? Think about the big picture. What effect could these changes have on the economy as a whole?
- What are your holiday spending habits? Do you partake in the Black Friday shopping craze, prefer to shop from the convenience of your home on Cyber Monday, or both?
- How do brick and mortar stores actually make money on Black Friday? If it makes money, should stores have Black Friday more often?
- Increasingly, American consumers are comparison-shopping to find the best deals online vs. in-store. As shopping patterns continue to evolve, do you think Black Friday will completely cease to exist in the not-so-distant future? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/30/business/black-friday-just-a-day-this-year-no-longer-a-bellwether.html
Posted November 25th 2015
My white neighbor thought I was breaking into my own apartment. Nineteen cops showed up.
The place I call home no longer feels safe.
BY FAY WELLS
On Sept. 6, I locked myself out of my apartment in Santa Monica, Calif. I was in a rush to get to my weekly soccer game, so I decided to go enjoy the game and deal with the lock afterward.
A few hours and a visit from a locksmith later, I was inside my apartment and slipping off my shoes when I heard a man’s voice and what sounded like a small dog whimpering outside, near my front window. I imagined a loiterer and opened the door to move him along. I was surprised to see a large dog halfway up the staircase to my door. I stepped back inside, closed the door and locked it.
I heard barking. I approached my front window and loudly asked what was going on. Peering through my blinds, I saw a gun. A man stood at the bottom of the stairs, pointing it at me. I stepped back and heard: “Come outside with your hands up.” I thought: This man has a gun and will kill me if I don’t come outside. At the same time, I thought: I’ve heard this line from policemen in movies. Although he didn’t identify himself, perhaps he’s an officer.
I left my apartment in my socks, shorts and a light jacket, my hands in the air. “What’s going on?” I asked again. Two police officers had guns trained on me. They shouted: “Who’s in there with you? How many of you are there?"
I said it was only me and, hands still raised, slowly descended the stairs, focused on one officer’s eyes and on his pistol. I had never looked down the barrel of a gun or at the face of a man with a loaded weapon pointed at me. In his eyes, I saw fear and anger. I had no idea what was happening, but I saw how it would end: I would be dead in the stairwell outside my apartment, because something about me — a 5-foot-7, 125-pound black woman — frightened this man with a gun. I sat down, trying to look even less threatening, trying to de-escalate. I again asked what was going on. I confirmed there were no pets or people inside.
I told the officers I didn’t want them in my apartment. I said they had no right to be there. They entered anyway. One pulled me, hands behind my back, out to the street. The neighbors were watching. Only then did I notice the ocean of officers. I counted 16. They still hadn’t told me why they’d come.
Later, I learned that the Santa Monica Police Department had dispatched 19 officers after one of my neighbors reported a burglary at my apartment. It didn’t matter that I told the cops I’d lived there for seven months, told them about the locksmith, offered to show a receipt for his services and my ID. It didn’t matter that I went to Duke, that I have an MBA from Dartmouth, that I’m a vice president of strategy at a multinational corporation. It didn’t matter that I’ve never had so much as a speeding ticket. It didn’t matter that I calmly, continually asked them what was happening. It also didn’t matter that I didn’t match the description of the person they were looking for — my neighbor described me as Hispanic when he called 911. What mattered was that I was a woman of color trying to get into her apartment — in an almost entirely white apartment complex in a mostly white city — and a white man who lived in another building called the cops because he’d never seen me before.
After the officers and dog exited my “cleared” apartment, I was allowed back inside to speak with some of them. They asked me why I hadn’t come outside shouting, “I live here.” I told them it didn’t make sense to walk out of my own apartment proclaiming my residence when I didn’t even know what was going on. I also reminded them that they had guns pointed at me. Shouting at anyone with a gun doesn’t seem like a wise decision.
I had so many questions. Why hadn’t they announced themselves? Why had they pointed guns at me? Why had they refused to answer when I asked repeatedly what was going on? Was it protocol to send more than a dozen cops to a suspected burglary? Why hadn’t anyone asked for my ID or accepted it, especially after I’d offered it? If I hadn’t heard the dog, would I have opened the door to a gun in my face? “Maybe,” they answered.
I demanded all of their names and was given few. Some officers simply ignored me when I asked, boldly turning and walking away. Afterward, I saw them talking to neighbors, but they ignored me when I approached them again. A sergeant assured me that he’d personally provide me with all names and badge numbers.
I introduced myself to the reporting neighbor and asked if he was aware of the gravity of his actions — the ocean of armed officers, my life in danger. He stuttered about never having seen me, before snippily asking if I knew my next-door neighbor. After confirming that I did and questioning him further, he angrily responded, “I’m an attorney, so you can go f— yourself,” and walked away.
I spoke with two of the officers a little while longer, trying to wrap my mind around the magnitude and nature of their response. They wondered: Wouldn’t I want the same response if I’d been the one who called the cops? “Absolutely not,” I told them. I recounted my terror and told them how I imagined it all ending, particularly in light of the recent interactions between police and people of color. One officer admitted that it was complicated but added that people sometimes kill cops for no reason. I was momentarily speechless at this strange justification.
I got no clear answers from the police that night and am still struggling to get them, despite multiple visits, calls and e-mails to the Santa Monica Police Department requesting the names of the officers, their badge numbers, the audio from my neighbor’s call to 911 and the police report. The sergeant didn’t e-mail me the officers’ names as he promised. I was told that the audio of the call requires a subpoena and that the small army of responders, guns drawn, hadn’t merited an official report. I eventually received a list from the SMPD of 17 officers who came to my apartment that night, but the list does not include the names of two officers who handed me their business cards on the scene. I’ve filed an official complaint with internal affairs.
To many, the militarization of the police is primarily abstract or painted as occasional. That thinking allows each high-profile incident of aggressive police interaction with people of color — Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray — to be written off as an outlier.
What happened to them did not happen to me, but it easily could have. The SMPD sent 19 armed police officers who refused to answer my questions while violating my rights, privacy and sense of well-being. A wrong move, and I could have been shot. My complaint is not the first against the department this year. This spring, the local branch of the NAACP and other concerned residents met with SMPD to discuss several incidents of aggressive policing against people of color. The NAACP asked SMPD for demographic information on all traffic, public transportation and pedestrian stops; so far, the department has promised to release a report of detailed arrest data next year.
The trauma of that night lingers. I can’t un-see the guns, the dog, the officers forcing their way into my apartment, the small army waiting for me outside. Almost daily, I deal with sleeplessness, confusion, anger and fear. I’m frightened when I see large dogs now. I have nightmares of being beaten by white men as they call me the n-word. Every week, I see the man who called 911. He averts his eyes and ignores me.
I’m heartbroken that his careless assessment of me, based on skin color, could endanger my life. I’m heartbroken by the sense of terror I got from people whose job is supposedly to protect me. I’m heartbroken by a system that evades accountability and justifies dangerous behavior. I’m heartbroken that the place I called home no longer feels safe. I’m heartbroken that no matter how many times a story like this is told, it will happen again.
Not long ago, I was walking with a friend to a crowded restaurant when I spotted two cops in line and froze. I tried to figure out how to get around them without having to walk past them. I no longer wanted to eat there, but I didn’t want to ruin my friend’s evening. As we stood in line, 10 or so people back, my eyes stayed on them. I’ve always gone out of my way to avoid generalizations. I imagined that perhaps these two cops were good people, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what the Santa Monica police had done to me. I found a lump in my throat as I tried to separate them from the system that had terrified me. I realized that if I needed help, I didn’t think I could ask them for it.
Editor’s note: The Santa Monica Police Department told The Washington Post that 16 officers were on the scene but later provided a list of 17 names. That list does not match the list of 17 names that was eventually provided to the writer; the total number of names provided by the SMPD is 19. The department also said that it was protocol for this type of call to warrant “a very substantial police response,” and that any failure of officers to provide their names and badge numbers “would be inconsistent with the Department’s protocols and expectations.” There is an open internal affairs inquiry into the writer’s allegations of racially motivated misconduct. After this essay ran online, Police Chief Jacqueline A. Seabrooks released an additional statement. “The 9-1-1 caller was not wrong for reporting what he believed was an in-progress residential burglary,” she wrote. “Ms. Wells is not wrong to feel as she does.”
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- The officers that showed up after the report of a potential burglary forced their way into this woman’s home with large dogs and guns drawn. Were they out of line? What do you think is a reasonable protocol for police response to residential burglary?
- Do you think that the number of police officers arriving at the scene was influenced by the reported race of the perpetrator—because a Hispanic individual was reported breaking into a predominantly white area?
- With so much fear in the air, how can police strike a balance between legitimate action against crime and overkill because of recent anti-police violence?
- What can be done for many people out there, like Fay Wells, who have had such negative interactions with police, to restore their faith and trust in law enforcement?
Click here to view more:https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/11/18/my-white-neighbor-thought-i-was-breaking-into-my-own-apartment-nineteen-cops-showed-up/
Posted November 18th 2015
More than half the nation's governors say Syrian refugees not welcome
BY ASHLEY FANTZ AND BEN BRUMFIELD, CNN
More than half the nation's governors -- 27 states -- say they oppose letting Syrian refugees into their states, although the final say on this contentious immigration issue will fall to the federal government.
States protesting the admission of refugees range from Alabama and Georgia, to Texas and Arizona, to Michigan and Illinois, to Maine and New Hampshire. Among these 27 states, all but one have Republican governors.
The announcements came after authorities revealed that at least one of the suspects believed to be involved in the Paris terrorist attacks entered Europe among the current wave of Syrian refugees. He had falsely identified himself as a Syrian named Ahmad al Muhammad and was allowed to enter Greece in early October.
Some leaders say they either oppose taking in any Syrian refugees being relocated as part of a national program or asked that they be particularly scrutinized as potential security threats.
Only 1,500 Syrian refugees have been accepted into the United States since 2011, but the Obama administration announced in September that 10,000 Syrians will be allowed entry next year.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations said Monday, "Defeating ISIS involves projecting American ideals to the world. Governors who reject those fleeing war and persecution abandon our ideals and instead project our fears to the world."
Authority over admitting refugees to the country, though, rests with the federal government -- not with the states -- though individual states can make the acceptance process much more difficult, experts said.
American University law professor Stephen I. Vladeck put it this way: "Legally, states have no authority to do anything because the question of who should be allowed in this country is one that the Constitution commits to the federal government." But Vladeck noted that without the state's participation, the federal government would have a much more arduous task.
"So a state can't say it is legally objecting, but it can refuse to cooperate, which makes thing much more difficult."
Kevin Appleby, director of migration policy at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said one tactic states could use would be to cut their own funding in areas such as resettling refugees. The conference is the largest refugee resettlement organization in the country.
But "when push comes to shove, the federal government has both the plenary power and the power of the 1980 Refugee Act to place refugees anywhere in the country," Appleby said.
More than 250,000 people have died since the violence broke out in Syria in 2011, and at least 11 million people in the country of 22 million have fled their homes. Syrians are now the world's largest refugee population, according to the United Nations. Most are struggling to find safe haven in Europe.
In announcing that his state would not accept any Syrian refugees, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted Monday on his personal account, "I demand the U.S. act similarly," he said. "Security comes first."
In a letter to President Barack Obama, Abbott said "American humanitarian compassion could be exploited to expose Americans to similar deadly danger," referring to Friday's deadly attacks in Paris.
In a statement from Georgia's governor, Republican Nathan Deal, he said Georgia will not accept Syrian refugees "until the federal government and Congress conducts a thorough review of current screening procedures and background checks."
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley also rejected the possibility of allowing Syrian refugees into his state and connected refugees with potential terror threats.
"After full consideration of this weekend's attacks of terror on innocent citizens in Paris, I will oppose any attempt to relocate Syrian refugees to Alabama through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program," Bentley said Sunday in a statement.
"As your governor, I will not stand complicit to a policy that places the citizens of Alabama in harm's way."
There is currently no credible threat against the state, the governor's office said, and no Syrian refugees have been relocated to Alabama so far.
As the list of states blocking refugees grows, at least one state, Delaware, announced that it plans to accept refugees.
"It is unfortunate that anyone would use the tragic events in Paris to send a message that we do not understand the plight of these refugees, ignoring the fact that the people we are talking about are fleeing the perpetrators of terror," Gov. Jack Markell said in a statement.
States whose governors oppose Syrian refugees coming in:
-- Alabama
-- Arizona
-- Arkansas
-- Florida
-- Georgia
-- Idaho
-- Illinois
-- Indiana
-- Iowa
-- Kansas
-- Louisiana
-- Maine
-- Massachusetts
-- Michigan
-- Mississippi
-- Nebraska
-- Nevada
-- New Hampshire
-- New Jersey
-- New Mexico
-- North Carolina
-- Ohio
-- Oklahoma
-- South Carolina
-- Tennessee
-- Texas
-- Wisconsin
States whose governors say they will accept refugees:
-- Colorado
-- Connecticut
-- Delaware
-- Hawaii
-- Pennsylvania
-- Vermont
-- Washington
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder said the state would "put on hold our efforts to accept new refugees."
"Michigan is a welcoming state and we are proud of our rich history of immigration. But our first priority is protecting the safety of our residents," he said in a statement.
Snyder demanded that the Department of Homeland Security review its security procedures for vetting refugees but avoided blanket suspicion of people from any region.
"It's also important to remember that these attacks are the efforts of extremists and do not reflect the peaceful ways of people of Middle Eastern descent here and around the world," Snyder said.
And Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson posted on his official Twitter account that he would "oppose Syrian refugees being relocated to Arkansas."
Mississippi, Ohio bristle at taking refugees
The governors of Ohio and Mississippi also announced their states would not allow Syrian refugees.
Jim Lynch, a spokesman for Ohio Gov. John Kasich, issued this statement:
"The governor doesn't believe the U.S. should accept additional Syrian refugees because security and safety issues cannot be adequately addressed. The governor is writing to the President to ask him to stop, and to ask him to stop resettling them in Ohio. We are also looking at what additional steps Ohio can take to stop resettlement of these refugees."
Kasich is a Republican presidential candidate.
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant wrote on Facebook that he was working with the state's homeland security department to "determine the current status of any Syrian refugees that may be brought to our state in the near future.
"I will do everything humanly possible to stop any plans from the Obama administration to put Syrian refugees in Mississippi. The policy of bringing these individuals into the country is not only misguided, it is extremely dangerous. I'll be notifying President Obama of my decision today to resist this potential action."
Louisiana: 'Kept in the dark'
Louisiana governor and GOP presidential candidate Bobby Jindal complained bitterly in an open letter to Obama that the federal government had not informed his government about refugees being relocated to his state last week.
"It is irresponsible and severely disconcerting to place individuals, who may have ties to ISIS, in a state without the state's knowledge or involvement," Jindal said in his letter Saturday.
He demanded to know more about the people being placed in Louisiana to avoid a repeat of the Paris attacks and wanted to know whether screening would be intensified for refugees holding Syrian passports.
And he suggested Obama hold off on taking in more refugees.
"It would be prudent to pause the process of refugees coming to the United States. Authorities need to investigate what happened in Europe before this problem comes to the United States," Jindal said.
Republican candidate Donald Trump called accepting Syrian refugees "insane."
"We all have heart and we all want people taken care of, but with the problems our country has, to take in 250,000 -- some of whom are going to have problems, big problems -- is just insane. We have to be insane. Terrible," Donald Trump said at a rally in Beaumont, Texas.
It's not clear why Trump used the 250,000 figure.
The Obama administration has previously announced plans to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees next year.
While addressing reporters on Monday, Obama called out Republican candidates who have objected to admitting refugees to the United States.
"When I hear a political leader suggesting that there should be a religious test for which a person who is fleeing from a war torn country is admitted... when some of those folks themselves come from families who benefited from protection when they were fleeing political persecution, that is shameful," the President said. "We don't have religious tests to our compassion."
New York: 'Virtually no vetting'
A senior White House security official attempted to allay concerns about the vetting of Syrian refugees.
On NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, White House Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said, "We have very extensive screening procedures for all Syrian refugees who have come to the United States. There is a very careful vetting process that includes our intelligence community, our National Counter Terrorism Center, the Department of Homeland Security, so we can make sure that we are carefully screening anybody that comes to the United States."
New York Rep. Peter King, speaking on Fox News, cast doubt on Rhodes' comments.
"What he said about the vetting of the refugees is untrue. There is virtually no vetting cause there are no databases in Syria, there are no government records. We don't know who these people are."
On Sunday, investigators said that one of the Paris bombers carried Syrian identification papers -- possibly forged -- and the fear of Syrian refugees grew worse.
"It's not that we don't want to -- it's that we can't," Florida Sen. and Republican presidential hopeful Marco Rubio told ABC's George Stephanopoulos. "Because there's no way to background check someone that's coming from Syria."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Explain the meaning of the word "vetting." With virtually no existing Syrian databases or records to consult, how can countries more effectively vet Syrian refugees?
- Do you think that governors in various US states now closing their borders and rejecting Syrian refugees are responding reasonably to the terrorist attack in Paris? Why or why not?
- Can a correlation be made between the current treatment of Syrian refugees in the US and the internment of Japanese US citizens in war relocation centers during World War II? Why or why not?
- What can our state and federal leaders do to ensure the security of citizens here in the US while still being compassionate to refugees fleeing oppression?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/11/16/world/paris-attacks-syrian-refugees-backlash/
Posted November 11th 2015
Gunman in Jordan kills 2 Americans, South African at police training site
BY TAYLOR LUCK AND WILLIAM BOOTH
AMMAN, Jordan — A Jordanian police officer opened fire Monday at a U.S.-backed security training center, killing two American contractors and a South African colleague, officials said. The gunman was killed at the scene as Jordan marked the 10th anniversary of deadly hotel bombings.
No additional details were immediately known about the slayings, including the identities or roles of those killed. At least six others, including two Americans, were wounded. One of the Americans was listed in “serious condition,” said Jordan’s minister of information, Mohammed Momani.
Also unclear was any direct connection to the anniversary of coordinated bombings on Nov. 9, 2005 at three hotels in Jordan’s capital Amman — killing 60 people and injuring more than 100 — but investigators Monday are likely to explore possible links. Al-Qaeda’s branch in Iraq claimed responsibility for the 2005 attacks in retaliation to Jordan’s pro-Western policies.
Jordan’s government-owned Al-Rai newspaper described the Americans as contractors, but gave no further details. It also identified the attacker as veteran police officer Anwar Bani Abdu, who served as a captain in the Jordanian police criminal investigation department before being transferred to the police training academy.
Jordan is a key Western ally and is part of the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State. The latest violence marks another blow to Jordan’s status as a haven of relative stability amid upheavals on its borders in Iraq and Syria.
In Washington, State Department spokesman John Kirby said U.S. officials were “in contact” with Jordanian authorities after the reports of the shootings. Kirby said Jordanian officials have “offered their full support.”
Kirby, however, gave no immediate details on the incident.
Jordan runs two highly regarded police training facilities outside the capital of Amman. The U.S.-funded Jordan International Police Training Center is currently instructing police officers who serve in Iraq, Libya and the Palestinian areas of the West Bank.
The Jordan International Police Training Center was established in October 2003 through an agreement between the Jordanian kingdom and the provisional government of Iraq, according to a U.S. State Department document. The U.S. government compensates Jordan for the costs to run the center.
Previous estimates by Jordanian and U.S. officials place the total number of U.S. military and police trainers in Jordan at around a thousand, stationed at air bases, army bases and the police training center.
Jordan prides itself on the professionalism of its security and military forces, providing training for 75,000 Iraqi, Libyan and Palestinian police forces over the years.
Over the past two years, Jordan and the United States have been involved in a controversial training program for Syrian rebel forces that has failed to produce an effective fighting force. Washington last month shifted policies to concentrate on assisting militiamen, including Syrian Kurds, who have experience battling the Islamic State.
The attack marks the first deadly strikes against envoys linked to U.S. programs since USAID official Lawrence Foley was gunned down in an Amman suburb by al-Qaeda-sympathizers in 2002.
In February, the Islamic State in Syria released a video showing a captured Jordanian pilot being burned alive in a cage. The incident sparked widespread anger and revulsion in Jordan and lead Jordan’s king, Abdullah II, to vow “relentless” strikes against Islamic State, an escalation that placed Jordan more squarely in the Syrian civil war.
In retaliation to the murder of its pilot, Jordan hanged two convicted terrorists who had ties to the Islamic State. Jordan has also cracked down, with prison terms, on anyone who waves Islamic State flags or expresses support for the group on the Internet.
Jordanian authorities say the country is home to over 1.3 million Syrian refugees, 630,000 of whom are registered by the United Nations. Jordan is home to more than 100,000 Iraqis who have fled conflict in their homeland.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- The terrorists of the Islamic State claim to be Muslim, but many practicing Muslims would say that they are merely extremists who call themselves Muslim. Ku Klux Klan members claim to be Christians, but most Americans agree that they are not at all Christian in their actions. What makes you a member of a religion? Does claiming to be a Muslim or a Christian make you one?
- Using context clues, explain what the word “coalition” means in the article.
- How important is it for the US and other western countries to continue to maintain the coalition with Jordan? Should the US continue to fund Jordan’s International Police Training Center?
- With borders shared by Iraq and Syria, and now this startling attack from within by one of its own police captains, what more can Jordan do to stay strong in the fight against the terrorism that has grown common in the region?
Click here to view more:https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/report-2-americans-killed-in-jordan-shooting-at-security-training-site/2015/11/09/63cdf6f8-86da-11e5-be8b-1ae2e4f50f76_story.html
Posted November 4th 2015
Russian plane crash in Egypt: Airline blames 'external influence'
BY JETHRO MULLEN AND SUSANNAH CULLINANE, CNN
The only reasonable explanation for the crash of a Russian passenger jet in Egypt is "an external influence," an executive from the airline that operated the flight said Monday, stressing that planes don't just break apart in midair.
Kogalymavia Flight 9268 broke into pieces before it hit the ground in a remote area of Egypt's restive Sinai Peninsula on Saturday, killing all 224 people on board.
The executive was not specific about what he meant by an external influence. Experts say it is too early to know for certain what caused the plane to break up at the start of what could be a lengthy investigation.
The state-run Russian news agency Sputniknews.com reported that the head of Rosaviatsia, the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, had told Rossiya-25 television that claims that external factors could have caused the crash were not based in fact.
"It is completely premature to speak about the reasons of this, as there are not grounds. And I'd like to call on the aviation community to refrain from any premature conclusions," it quoted Alexander Neradko, the agency chief, as telling the station.
CNN aviation correspondent Richard Quest suggested that the Kogalymavia official could have meant something abnormal and out of the ordinary had occurred.
"We exclude technical problems and reject human error," the Kogalymavia airline official, Alexander Smirnov, said at a Moscow news conference as he discussed possible causes of the crash.
He added that the crew did not issue any warnings or communications during the final moments, indicating that the flight crew must have been disabled and not able to radio out.
However, Smirnov said that while the plane's flight and voice data recorders had been recovered, they had not been read or decoded.
Officials have played down an apparent claim by Islamic militants in Sinai that they brought down the Airbus A321-200, saying technical failure is the most likely reason for the crash.
THE FLIGHT
Flight 9268 was on its way from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg early Saturday when it dropped off radar about 23 minutes into the flight, Egyptian officials say.
Air traffic controllers apparently didn't receive any distress calls from the pilots. "There was nothing abnormal before the plane crash," Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Hossam Kamel said Saturday. "It suddenly disappeared from the radar."
CNN's Richard Quest said it was "unusual" for an aircraft to go down roughly 20 minutes into a flight.
"At this point, a plane is on autopilot. It's reaching its initial cruising altitude, and there is little that can or should go wrong," he wrote in an analysis.
But the website Flightradar24, which tracks aircraft around the world, said it had received data from the Russian plane suggesting sharp changes in altitude and a dramatic decrease in ground speed before the signal was lost.
"It's disturbing to me. It indicates to me that something occurred possibly in the way of aerodynamic stall. I mean, an airplane just cannot fly at those lower speeds," said CNN aviation analyst Les Abend, although he cautioned that the Flightradar information was very preliminary.
THE CRASH
"Disintegration of the fuselage took place in the air, and the fragments are scattered around a large area" covering about 20 square kilometers (8 square miles), Viktor Sorochenko, executive director of Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee, told reporters Sunday.
Learning that the plane broke into pieces while in the air helps reduce the list of possible causes of the crash, but there are still plenty of scenarios, said CNN aviation analyst Peter Goelz.
"It narrows it down a little bit, but there are a number of issues that could have affected this plane," said Goelz, a former managing director of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB. "And terrorism has not been ruled out."
He suggested the disaster could have resulted from "some sort of catastrophic failure, perhaps caused by an earlier maintenance problem. It could have been a center fuel tank that might have exploded."
Former NTSB investigator Alan Diehl told CNN he believes the "final destruction" of the plane could have been from "aerodynamic forces or some other type of G-forces."
Investigators are expected to get a clearer idea of what happened to the aircraft from its flight data and cockpit voice recorders -- devices commonly known as black boxes -- both of which have been recovered, according to authorities.
THE PLANE
The Airbus A321-200 operated by the airline Kogalymavia passed a routine inspection before takeoff, Egyptian Airports Co. chief Adel Al-Mahjoob said Saturday.
According to the Aviation Safety Network, which tracks aircraft incidents, the same plane's tail struck a runway while landing in Cairo in 2001 and required repair. At the time, the aircraft was registered to the Lebanese carrier Middle East Airlines, registration records show.
Kogalymavia's Andrei Averyanov confirmed to reporters Monday that the plane had been damaged in 2001 but said it had most recently been thoroughly checked for cracks in 2013. Not enough time had passed for major cracks to develop to a critical size since then, he said.
The ex-wife of the plane's copilot, Sergei Trukhachev, said over the weekend that he had told his daughter he was concerned about the condition of the plane. "Our daughter had a telephone chat with him just before the flight," Natalya Trukhacheva told Russia's state-run NTV. "He complained before the flight that one could wish for better technical condition of the plane."
But a Kogalymavia said such reports were irresponsible and that there was no record of the pilot or crew making any complaints.
Executive Smirnov said that he had personally flown the plane in recent months and that it was "pristine."
The A321-200 was built in 1997, and Kogalymavia, which is also known as Metrojet, had been operating it since 2012, Airbus said in a statement. The aircraft had clocked around 56,000 flight hours over the course of nearly 21,000 flights, the plane maker said.
The Irish Aviation Authority said that the plane was registered in Ireland to Wilmington Trust SP Services (Dublin) Ltd, which leased the aircraft to Kogalymavia.
"As an Irish registered aircraft, in April/May 2015, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) conducted an annual review of the aircraft certifications in support of its annual Certificate of Airworthiness renewal process and all certifications were satisfactory at that point in time," it said.
THE VICTIMS
There were 217 passengers and seven crew members on board Flight 9268. Of the passengers, 209 were Russian, four were Ukrainian and one was Belarussian. The citizenships of three other passengers are unknown.
Twenty-five children were among the victims, including 10-month old Darina Gromova, who is shown in a photo posted on social media by her mother on October 15 at the start of the family's trip to Egypt. In the photo, Darina is looking out a window at planes on the tarmac of Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg.
Russian media reported that the disaster created a large number of orphans in Russia, as a lot of parents left their young children with relatives while they took vacations in Sharm el-Sheikh.
Early Monday, a Russian plane carrying the remains of 144 of the crash victims landed in St. Petersburg, Russia's state-run news agency RIA Novosti reported.
Another plane bringing more bodies is expected to depart Egypt later Monday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with his country's transport minister Monday to discuss the investigation and again expressed his condolences to the victims' families.
"This is a terrible tragedy and we are most certainly with you at this time with all our hearts and souls," Putin said, according to a Kremlin transcript of their meeting.
"I want to thank the people of St. Petersburg for the way they have responded. The whole country has seen this, everyone in Russia, and I want to thank you for your words of sympathy and condolence. In such tragic hours, it is certainly very important to feel the support of those close to you and know you have the entire country's sympathy over this terrible disaster."
THE INVESTIGATION
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday urged the public not to jump to conclusions. "These are complicated matters that require advanced technologies and wide investigations that might go on for months," he said.
Al-Sisi has promised Putin that he will allow "the broadest possible participation of Russian experts in the investigation," according to the Kremlin, and Russian officials have joined their Egyptian counterparts at the crash scene. Putin has also ordered Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to open an investigation into the crash, the Kremlin said.
Aviation investigators from France and Germany, the countries where the plane was manufactured, are also taking part in the inquiry.
Egyptian officials said Saturday that the two "black boxes" were being transported to Cairo for analysis.
The flight data recorder stores a vast array of information about the flight, such as air speed, altitude, engine performance and wing positions. The cockpit voice recorder captures sounds on the flight deck that can include conversations between the pilots and warning noises from the aircraft.
Russia's state-run official TASS news agency reported Monday that the "black boxes" had been inspected by top Russian officials and were said to be in a good condition. Egypt's Ministry of Civil Aviation later released a photo of one of the boxes.
THE REGION
In recent years, the Sinai Peninsula has been a battleground between ISIS-affiliated militants and Egyptian security forces. The vicious conflict has killed hundreds of people.
The militants appeared to claim responsibility for bringing down the Russian passenger jet in a statement posted online Saturday, but officials in Egypt and Russia disputed it.
Mahjoob, the airport official, said there was no evidence of a terrorist attack. And Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said the claim that terrorists brought down the plane with an anti-aircraft missile "cannot be considered reliable," according to RIA Novosti.
The Egyptian military said militants in Sinai have shoulder-fired anti-aircraft weapons that shoot only as high as 14,000 feet, far short of the more than 30,000 feet at which Flight 9268 was flying when it dropped off radar.
To reach such an altitude would require missiles using special launch pads and radar systems operated by engineers, the military said.
Kremlin spokesman Dimitry Peskov refused to discount terrorism, telling CNN's Matthew Chance on Monday that "only (the) investigation can rule out something."
Kogalymavia executives also said Monday that it was too early in the investigation to speculate or draw any conclusions. But Smirnov referred to purported footage of the crash posted by militants, saying: "Those images you have seen on the Internet, I think they are fake."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- If you were Russian President Vladimir Putin, what would your first reaction be to hearing about this crash, and what immediate actions would you take?
- How likely do you think it is that the “external influence” that caused the deaths of 224 innocent people is actually terrorism?
- Do you feel that it is safer to fly in today’s world than it was 15 years ago? Explain your perspective.
- If the black box data proves this to be an act of terrorism against Russia, could this event lead to World War III starting in this volatile region? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/11/02/africa/russian-plane-crash-egypt-sinai/
Posted October 28th 2015
Suspect in deadly Oklahoma crash due in court
JOHN BACON, USA TODAY
STILLWATER, Okla. — The suspect in a car crash that killed four people and wounded nearly 50 at Oklahoma State University's homecoming parade faces a court hearing Monday while investigators worked to determine why the tragedy happened.
The driver, Adacia Chambers, 25, was initially arrested and detained on suspicion of driving under the influence Saturday. Authorities on Sunday said they added four charges of second-degree murder.
Payne County District Attorney Laura Austin Thomas said Sunday she does not believe alcohol was a factor in the crash. The attorney representing Chambers said he believed mental illness, not intoxication, caused the crash.
"She doesn't remember a whole lot about what happened," attorney Tony Coleman told reporters. "There was a period where I think ... she could have even blacked out," he said.
"I don't believe right now that she was intoxicated," Coleman told The Oklahoman. "I have deep concerns about her competency at this point. I'm not a psychologist or psychiatrist, but I can tell you she's suffering from mental illness."
Police Capt. Kyle Gibbs declined to discuss the evidence against Chambers and asked any witnesses with photos and videos to contact investigators. Thomas earlier on Sunday told The Oklahoman that Chambers would likely be charged with driving under the influence of drugs. Alcohol was not thought to have been involved.
Thomas said Chambers would likely address bond conditions before a judge Monday afternoon.
Coleman, the attorney representing Chambers, told reporters on Sunday, "I absolutely can rule out alcohol as an intoxicant. He said Chambers' behavior when he spoke to her "was not consistent with someone coming out of an alcoholic stupor." He said family members who were with her late Friday did not see her consume any alcohol. Her boyfriend said she was sober when she left for work at a restaurant about 8:30 a.m. Saturday, he said.
The car was not part of the homecoming parade, according to police. Gibbs said Chambers drove her Elantra through several barriers and hit a parked police motorcycle before careening into the crowd.
Witnesses described a scene of chaos as bodies flew into the air from the impact and landed on the road. Three adults and a 2-year-old boy were killed and at least 46 others were hurt, including at least four critically injured. Hospitals initially said five were critically injured, but one of those was upgraded to fair condition on Sunday.
Coleman said he views the crash as a result of untreated physical or mental illness, saying that during a post-accident meeting at the jail, "I was not satisfied at all that I was communicating with a competent individual."
Chambers' father, Floyd Chambers of Oologah, told The Oklahoman he couldn't believe his daughter was involved and said she was not an alcoholic. He described her as "timid" and said she had attended homecoming festivities Friday night with family, but her boyfriend told him she was home by 10 p.m.
"This is just not who she is. They're going to paint her into a horrible person but this is not (her)," Floyd Chambers told the paper.
Two of the deceased were identified as local residents Bonnie Jean Stone and Marvin Lyle Stone, both 65. A third adult killed was Nikita Prabhakar Nakal, of Mumbai, India. She was a student at the University of Central Oklahoma, according to that school's president, Don Betz.
Oklahoma State identified the 2-year-old boy as Nash Lucas of Stillwater. His mother is a student at the university, a spokesman said.
Marvin Stone was a retired professor of agricultural engineering, who had been popular with students, a colleague said.
"He was loved by students and one of the best teachers we had," said Ron Elliott, the former head of the Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Department at OSU. "He just really had a gift for connecting with students and helping them learn," Elliott said in a telephone interview.
The homecoming game against Kansas was played as scheduled, players bowing their heads in prayer as the American flag fluttered at half-staff in Boone Pickens Stadiumunder orders from Gov. Mary Fallin, an Oklahoma State alumnus who attended the homecoming game. The university's homecoming is a major celebration, drawing more than 80,000 alumni, fans and area residents downtown. A pep rally before the game was canceled, said Stillwater Mayor Gina Noble, who was the parade's grand marshal.
Noble said the town's 50,000 residents are still in shock.
"We've never seen anything like this. We're taking our time to make sure we get everything right," she said. "We're shocked. We are definitely subdued in mood and we're still trying to understand."
Oklahoma State's homecoming famously attracts huge crowds to Stillwater each year. Before thousands of cheering orange-clad fans, the undefeated Cowboys beat winless Kansas 58-10.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- With four people killed and nearly 50 wounded in this crash, do you feel that the charge of four counts of second-degree murder is a just consequence for the accused crime? Why or why not?
- What should the government’s role be in situations like this? Should the government work harder to limit the issuance of driver’s licenses to people who may have mental illnesses? How can individuals who may need serious help, like Adacia Chambers, be identified before disaster strikes?
- Do you think the last two sentences of this article serving, as a football game recap, are out of place or inappropriate?
- Considering more people are killed annually by automobiles than by guns, should the government have stricter limits on who’s allowed to drive?
Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/10/26/suspect-deadly-oklahoma-crash-due-court/74613054/
Posted October 21st 2015
Boy, 6, fatally shoots toddler brother while playing ‘cops and robbers,’ dad arrested
MICHAEL E. MILLER
Michael Santiago needed a gun.
He was a former gang member who had snitched on his old crew and now feared for his life. So Santiago purchased a pistol on the street and kept it in the kitchen just in case.
Whether he needed to show his six-year-old son the weapon, however, is something that will likely haunt Santiago for the rest of his life.
On Saturday night, Santiago’s security scheme went horribly wrong when his six-year-old son found the loaded gun. The boy, who has not been named by police, then began playing “cops and robbers” with his younger brother, 3-year-old Eian, when the gun suddenly went off.
The bullet struck Eian in the face, killing him.
The Chicago shooting is the latest in a seemingly incessant string of American kids being killed by guns, often shot by other kids. This summer, another toddler was fatally shot by her 7-year-old brother here in D.C. Earlier this month, an 11-year-old boy in Tennessee was charged with first-degree murder after shooting his 8-year-old neighbor with a shotgun after an argument over puppies.
In the most recent case, however, it is the father who had been charged with a crime. Santiago, 25, has been charged with felony child endangerment for allegedly showing his eldest son where he kept the unprotected pistol.
The terrible family tragedy was set into motion when Santiago bought the weapon that would tear his own family apart.
Santiago was once a member of the Spanish Cobras, the second largest Latino gang on Chicago’s North Side, but he had gone straight by testifying against one of his former Cobra colleagues.
“In a videotape statement the defendant said he kept the gun for protection because he was a former gang member who snitched on a gang member in a murder trial,” prosecutor Joseph DiBella told a Cook County criminal courtroom on Sunday, according to the Chicago Tribune. Santiago bought a .32-caliber Smith & Wesson revolver from one of his Cobra connections.
But if Santiago was worried about protection, he was looking for threats in the wrong places.
“The gun was purchased off the street,” DiBella said. “It was kept loaded, and it was wrapped in pajama pants on top of the refrigerator.”
If that wasn’t insecure enough, Santiago allegedly decided to show his eldest son the deadly weapon.
“About a week prior to the shooting, he showed his older son where he kept the gun,” DiBella told the court, according to the Tribune. “[Santiago] took the gun from on top of the refrigerator, unwrapped the pajama pants and explained to the 6-year-old that the gun was only to be used by adults.”
Apparently the boy didn’t get the message.
On Saturday night at around 9 p.m., while Santiago was managing Papa Ray’s Pizza restaurant and his wife was at the grocery store, the boy climbed up to the top of the refrigerator. He and his younger brother, Eian, were playing cops and robbers.
They needed a gun.
The boy pointed the pistol at his brother and pulled the trigger. The bullet struck Eian in the face as he was eating mac and cheese, according to the New York Daily News.
The boys’ grandfather was the only adult at home to hear the shot. When the mother learned of the shooting, she called Santiago at work.
“He was in shock,” family friend George Rayyan told the Daily News. “He couldn’t understand his wife, she was crying so much.”
Santiago thought the refrigerator was too tall for his children to reach the handgun, Rayyan said: “He said in his eyes, that was the best spot, on the back of the fridge, because the kids couldn’t find it.”
“The gun shouldn’t have been there,” he added, “but everyone makes mistakes.”
“Confused why god chose such a young innocent kid is all that’s going through my head,” Rayyan wrote on a GoFundMe page he set up for the Santiagos after the shooting.
Police, however, have not been so forgiving: in the eyes of the law, it’s Santiago, not the Lord our savior, who is at fault.
According to DiBella, the prosecutor, Santiago has confessed on camera to showing his six-year-old son the gun and where it was kept. Authorities have charged him with felony endangerment of a child. If convicted, he could spend between two and 10 years in prison.
On Sunday, Santiago wiped back tears as DiBella recounted the child-on-child shooting, according to the Tribune. The prosecutor asked for a $1 million bail, drawing gasps of disbelief from Santiago’s family, the Tribune reported. But Judge James Brown took pity on Santiago after his attorney asked for a lower bond so the father could be with his grieving family.
“This is the ultimate tragedy,” Brown said, according to the Tribune. “And whether I said a $1 million bond or a lower bond, it’s not going to bring back this child.
“I’m sure the defendant did not intend for this to happen, but it happened,” Brown added, before lowering the bail to $75,000. “And it’s what happens when people have guns who shouldn’t have guns. That’s why we’ve had 2,300 people shot in Chicago so far this year.”
Brown wasn’t the only person to connect the child’s death to the broader issue of crime in Chicago.
The city, which has long battled gang violence, has seen a surge in shootings this year. Last month was the deadliest September in 13 years, with at least 60 homicides, according to the Tribune. Weekends with at least 50 people shot are becoming routine. And there have been 2,439 shootings in Chicago so far this year, nearly as many as the 2,587 all of last year, according to the Tribune’s “Crime in Chicagoland” Web site.
Santiago’s wife, Angie Lasalle, said her husband felt compelled to buy the gun because of crime in their Humboldt Park neighborhood.
“WE LIVE IN A TERRIBLE NEIGHBORHOOD,” she wrote on Facebook. “ANY GREAT MAN N FATHER WOULD WNT TO PROTECT HIS FAM. WE CNT EVEN GO OUTSIDE WITHOUT SOME SHOOTN IT WAS AN ACCIDENT PLEASE NO ONE WANTED THIS TO HAPPEN.”
Yet, prosecutors weren’t the only ones to blame Santiago for their son’s death, and Lasalle defended her husband online.
“PLEASE LET MY FAMILY GRIEVE IN PEACE,” she wrote, while also encouraging people to donate money to the GoFundMe page. “LEAVE OUT ALL YOUR NEGATIVE N RUDE COMMENTS TO URSELF.”
“OmG NO ONE KNWS THE PAIN IM GOIN THRU,” Lasalle wrote on Sunday night. “I CNT BELIEVE HES GONE MY BEAUTIFUL BABY BOY!!!I CNT FEEL CNT EAT SLEEP OH MY SWEET BABY BOY I MISS U SOOOOO MUCH.”
Facebook photos show Lasalle and Santiago laughing and cuddling. One picture shows Lasalle smiling as she is surrounded by three of her children.
If there is any silver lining to the tragic story, it is that Eian’s older brother apparently doesn’t understand the full horror of what happened.
“He’s OK,” the boy’s grandfather, Hector Salgado, said of the six-year-old shooter. “He doesn’t even remember.
“He doesn’t know nothing about it,” Salgado told the Tribune. “He thinks his brother is in the hospital sick.”
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- To what extent should a parent be legally culpable in a case like this? If Michael Santiago is sentenced to prison time, does this actually add to the punishment of the six-year-old child who accidentally fired the gun?
- With the recent influx of gun-related injuries and violence across the country, are greater gun control measures needed? What new laws, if any, would you propose regarding gun control?
- The gun used in this article was purchased illegally on the street. Would decreasing gun ownership actually reduce the amount of accidental deaths? Would strict gun control help to decrease overall violence and crime?
- The Second Amendment of the US Constitution reads: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." No right in the Bill of Rights is considered absolute. What limits on firearms has the Supreme Court ruled as constitutional in the past? What limits on firearms do you believe are constitutional, without going against the Second Amendment?
Click here to view more://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/10/19/boy-6-fatally-shoots-toddler-brother-while-playing-cops-and-robbers-dad-arrested/
Posted October 14th 2015
Q&A: Why unrest in Turkey affects the USA
GREGG ZOROYA, USA TODAY
The horrific suicide bombings that killed 95 people at a peace rally in the Turkish capital on Saturday showcase a growing crisis for a crucial U.S. ally in a region that's on fire over conflicts that have proven too divisive and complex to resolve.
The United States has long looked toward Turkey as a rock in a storm because of its strategic location — bridging Europe and Asia and sharing borders with Syria and Iraq. In Syria, civil war rages into its fifth year, and the rampaging Islamic State has seized large portions of both Syria and Iraq. Not far beyond Turkey's borders, new violence spreads among West Bank and Gaza Palestinians.
Here are four questions about the complicated rifts revealed by Saturday's explosions outside a train station in Ankara and what's at stake for the United States:
Who would carry out such an attack and for what reason?
No one has claimed responsibility, but there is no shortage of suspects. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu quickly said it was either Kurdish separatist rebels or Islamic State militants, both recent targets of Turkish military strikes. Leaders of the largely Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party or HDP — which rocked Turkey in June by capturing enough votes to gain a bloc of seats in the parliament — are deeply suspicious of the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for failing to prevent the massacre.
Even the Syrian government would have a motive for destabilizing a neighboring giant that has called for the removal of Syrian President Bashar Assad. "The Turks have threats coming at them from multiple directions at a level of political complexity that even those of us who spend an inordinate time ... looking at Turkey have a hard time with," said Steven Cook, an expert on Turkish politics at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Why is the Turkish government a target of suspicion in the wake of the blasts?
Erdogan has for four years worked to consolidate power, suppress political freedoms and transform Turkey from a secular to an Islamic nation. With a parliamentary supermajority he could push through necessary constitutional changes. But those plans were dashed by the June election results, which failed to give Erdogan the mandate he sought. Instead, the results showed the Kurds a peaceful avenue of influence through democratic rather than violent means.
Machinations by Erdogan have produced a second round of voting on Nov. 1, a sort of do-over, Cook said. But surveys show the Kurdish HDP party will likely repeat its gains in June, and Erdogan's opposition fears a campaign of intimidation by the government in response. Journalists and academics have been jailed. The bombs exploded against this backdrop of suspicion and fear. Meanwhile, Turks are growing increasingly impatient with Erdogan's political maneuvering. "The country cannot be holding elections until Erdogan sees an outcome he likes," said Oguzhan Ozbas, an associate professor of business and expert on Turkey at the University of Southern California.
What's at stake for Turkey in the short term?
There's fear of growing instability in a nation of 80 million that is a member of NATO. If the government holds Kurdish rebels responsible for the bombings and the HDP is routed at the polls Nov. 1, it "would send a message predominantly to Kurds: You have played by the rules ... (but) you are not actually welcome to play politics," Cook said. Analysts worry that if Erdogan sees himself once again likely to be denied a supermajority at the polls, he will postpone the elections or even suspend the constitution — steps further polarizing the nation.
Meanwhile, Kurdish successes against the Islamic State on Syrian and Iraqi battlefields, while one of the few bright lights for the U.S. goal of defeating the extremist group, are heightening fears among Turkish nationalists of growing Kurdish power to carve out an independent state from parts of Turkey, Syria and Iraq.
Why is Turkey so important to the U.S.?
Turkey has struggled to control its borders with Syria, allowing jihadist recruits from Western countries a pathway to join the Islamic State and, in turn, providing the terrorists a way to the West potentially to the United States. Turkey has also been hit hard by one of the largest refugee movements since World War II, as more 2.2 million fleeing Syria and other conflicts enter the country on their way northward to Europe.
The U.S. has a direct interest in seeing stability for its ally, but it also has a traditional desire to see rights of peaceful protesters safeguarded. "I think in this case, our strategic interests in the region ... and our commitment to democracy are probably on a head-on collision course," said Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, an associate professor of political science and an expert on Turkish politics at Northwestern University. "I think it's probably going to get darker (for Turkey), before it gets lighter."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- With the influx of terrorist activity and the loss of innocent lives in the Middle East, how much involvement should the US have in Turkey and the Middle East as a whole?
- Which countries should be our allies in the fight against the Islamic State, ISIL, or ISIS? What should the US expect of its allies?
- Thomas Jefferson said, “Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none…” Do you think this holds true today?
- Is the use of military force the only way to prevent terrorism? What are the other possible alternatives? Which strategy do you think is best and why?
- If a cause is considered legitimate, are any means to achieve its goals legitimate? How does one distinguish between a terrorist and a freedom fighter? Is terrorism "the weapon of the weak"?
Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/10/11/q-why-unrest-turkey-affects-usa/73777536/
Posted October 7th 2015
Facebook will use satellites to bring broadband to large parts of Africa
PAUL SAWERS
In its latest quest to open up Internet access to developing markets, Facebook has partnered with French satellite company Eutelsat Communications.
Scheduled for launch in the latter half of 2016, the multi-year initiative will “leverage satellite technologies to get more Africans online,” according to a press release. It will use the upcoming AMOS-6 satellite, a $200 million, 5-ton satellite built by Israel Aerospace Industries. Facebook and Eutelsat say they will create a system specifically aimed at bringing connectivity to large swaths of Sub-Saharan Africa, and will be “optimised for community and Direct-to-User Internet access using affordable, off-the-shelf customer equipment.”
For this latest project, Eutelsat is setting up a new company that will be based in London, and will oversee the African satellite broadband rollout. Facebook says it will work with “local partners” across Africa to help deliver services, using both satellite and terrestrial capacity.
“Facebook’s mission is to connect the world and we believe that satellites will play an important role in addressing the significant barriers that exist in connecting the people of Africa,” said Chris Daniels, VP of Facebook’s Internet.org program. “We are looking forward to partnering with Eutelsat on this project and investigating new ways to use satellites to connect people in the most remote areas of the world more efficiently.”
Founded in 1977, Paris-based Eutelsat provides satellite capacity for many parts of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas, and is used by thousands of TV, radio, and cable networks, powered by Eutelsat’s access to 39 satellites that orbit the Earth.
Although it now claims a whopping 1.5 billion monthly active users, Facebook has been looking to emerging markets to sustain its growth—markets that have hitherto been stymied by limited Internet access. Back in 2013, Facebook launched Internet.org, a collaborative project to help “connect the next five billion.” It went to market with some notable mobile-focused companies on board, including Samsung, Microsoft, and Qualcomm. A number of projects have emerged since then, including an India launch back in February that promised to bring Internet access to millions of new users.
However, Internet.org has faced increasing criticism for only permitting users access to Facebook services for free, and select local websites. The core complaint centered on the question of net neutrality, and whether Facebook should be dictating what content is accessible through its free app and mobile website. But a couple of weeks back, Facebook renamed the Internet.org apps and website as “Free Basics by Facebook,” and opened up to more developers and web services.
The broader Internet.org concept remains, however, and this will continue to give a platform for new ideas such as Aquila, a massive drone designed to deliver Internet access to developing countries. It’s a solar-powered aircraft that creates a 50-kilometer communications radius for up to 90 days. It’s similar to Google’s own experimental Project Loon, which promises Internet delivery by hot air balloons.
It looks like the battle of the tech giants to bring Internet access—and their own associated services—to the next few billion people is starting to heat up.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- What are Facebook’s true motives in providing free internet to large parts of Africa? Are they more concerned with eliminating third-world technology barriers or insuring that their customer base will continue to grow?
- Using context clues, explain the meaning of the phrase “net neutrality.”
- Does Facebook have a right to offer only limited access to first-time internet users in Africa, dictating which websites are accessible and ensuring that their own website is promoted? Why or why not?
- Instead of offering limited internet access, how do you think that these tech giant companies could better assist the needs of the people in these regions?
Click here to view more://venturebeat.com/2015/10/05/facebook-will-use-satellites-to-bring-broadband-to-large-parts-of-africa/
Posted September 30th 2015
HS football player accused of smearing Icy-Hot in opponent’s face
CBS LOS ANGELES
LOS ANGELES -- A high school football player in California is being accused of smearing Icy-Hot in an opposing player's face during a game, reports CBS Los Angeles.
Angel Salazar, a player for La Canada High School, was playing Salesian High School when the alleged incident occurred. In a video, a Salesian player appears to reach under Salazar's face mask and smear the heat-rub substance on his face.
"Our player came to the sidelines, and he was covered in Icy-Hot. Covered in his face," said La Canada Principal Ian McFeat to CBS LA.
McFeat said they are sharing the video and images with the media so it hopefully doesn't happen to any other athletes.
"That's the kind of substance that if it really got in your eyes, it can do some damage," McFeat added.
Clinical psychologist and Pepperdine University professor Judy Ho tells CBS LA that young athletes will often follow a coach's order out of respect and fear.
"When you're an athlete, you're constantly feeling like your job is on the line. There's always a question of are you going to get to play today," Ho added.
But, Ho says, phone cameras are making it easier to document incidents like the one at La Canada. And this incident is nothing new.
Earlier this month, two high school football players deliberately tackled a referee during a game. It happened in Marble Falls, Texas, during a 15-9 win by the home team.
One of the John Jay High School players is seen on video running into the back of the referee as he watched a play, and the other dove into the official. Both took running starts.
The player's claimed during a national broadcast interview last week that their coach directed them to strike the referee because of missed calls that had hurt the team. One player also contends that the ref used a racial slur towards a black player, a claim the referee's lawyer adamantly disputes.
Just last week, a football player from New Jersey also found himself in hot water after he was caught with an opposing player's helmet in his hands, and then used that helmet to strike the player in the head.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Do you think that playing football makes a person more violent? Why or why not?
- Are school districts taking the appropriate measures to control violence between teams during school sporting events? When, if ever, do you think that local law enforcement should step in?
- There is a discussion about ending the entire team’s season because of this violent act. Can we assume that other players or coaches knew what was going on? If they did, would ending the team's season be a just consequence?
- Bullying is such a huge problem on and off the field, in and out of the classroom. What can be done to prevent events like this from happening again in other schools?
- Why do we take high school sports so seriously? Where's the fun gone? Could it be that high school coaches are looking to have winning teams so that they can move up into the multimillion-dollar coaching world?
Click here to view more://www.cbsnews.com/news/high-school-football-player-accused-of-smearing-icy-hot-in-opponents-face/
Posted September 23rd 2015
Muslim teen Ahmed Mohamed creates clock, shows teachers, gets arrested
BY ASHLEY FANTZ, STEVE ALMASY AND ANNECLAIRE STAPLETON, CNN
(CNN) When Ahmed Mohamed went to his high school in Irving, Texas, Monday, he was so excited. A teenager with dreams of becoming an engineer, he wanted to show his teacher the digital clock he'd made from a pencil case.
The 14-year-old's day ended not with praise, but punishment, after the school called police and he was arrested.
"I built a clock to impress my teacher but when I showed it to her, she thought it was a threat to her," Ahmed told reporters Wednesday. "It was really sad that she took the wrong impression of it."
Ahmed talked to the media gathered on his front yard and appeared to wear the same NASA T-shirt he had on in a picture taken as he was being arrested. In the image, he looks confused and upset as he's being led out of school in handcuffs.
"They arrested me and they told me that I committed the crime of a hoax bomb, a fake bomb," the freshman later explained to WFAA after authorities released him.
Irving Police spokesman Officer James McLellan told the station, "We attempted to question the juvenile about what it was and he would simply only tell us that it was a clock."
The teenager did that because, well, it was a clock, he said.
On Wednesday, police announced the teen will not be charged.
Chief Larry Boyd said Ahmed should have been "forthcoming" by going beyond the description that what he made was a clock. But Boyd said authorities determined that the teenager did not intend to alarm anyone and the device, which the chief called "a homemade experiment," was innocuous.
Ahmed, who aspires to go to MIT, said he was pleased the charges were dropped and not bothered that police didn't apologize for arresting him. After he said he was interrogated by police without an attorney present, his lawyer, Linda Moreno, told reporters they wouldn't answer any more questions about the legal process.
Ahmed is suspended until Thursday, he said, but is thinking about transferring to another high school.
Social media reacts
Outrage over the incident -- with many saying the student was profiled because he's Muslim -- spread on social media as #IStandWithAhmed started trending worldwide on Twitter with more than 100,000 tweets Tuesday morning. The school's Facebook page is roiling with sharp criticism of the way the teen was treated, and the hashtag #engineersforahmed is gaining popularity.
President Barack Obama, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and thousands of others are showing support for Ahmed.
"Cool clock, Ahmed," Obama tweeted. "Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great."
The President would like the teen to join him and other scientists next month for the White House's annual Astronomy Night, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Wednesday.
Ahmed said Wednesday he was going to the White House.
Clinton tweeted that "assumptions don't keep us safe" and urged the teenager to "keep building."
"I think this wouldn't even be a question if his name wasn't Ahmed Mohamed," said Alia Salem of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "He is an excited kid who is very bright and wants to share it with his teachers."
Many criticized the school on Facebook. Its creator, Mark Zuckerberg, posted his support.
"Having the skill and ambition to build something cool should lead to applause, not arrest. The future belongs to people like Ahmed," Zuckerberg wrote. "Ahmed, if you ever want to come by Facebook, I'd love to meet you. Keep building."
Kevin McKinney posted, "How did a bunch of complete idiots end up accidentally running a school? Were you all yanked out of a zoo and given paychecks? Learning centers are for teaching ... not for ruining innocent people's lives with your racism and pathetic stupidity! ... "This kid is destined to be something great if the dimwits of Irving don't ruin him first."
Mocking Irving Schools' motto, Bill Cain wrote: "'Where children come first' ... to jail in handcuffs. Way to go, Irving."
Chance Williams posted, "Ahmed Mohamed deserves a public apology from you, the school administrators, police, and teachers involved in his arrest. I hope he sues, and the school district has to pay for his college education."
Teen's father saw son surrounded by police
Texas law stipulates that a person who commits a hoax bomb offense is one who "knowingly manufactures, sells, purchases, transports, or possesses a hoax bomb with intent to use" it or intentionally causes alarm or reaction.
Ahmed's father, Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed, who immigrated from Sudan and has twice run for that country's presidency, told CNN Wednesday that he was upset the school did not contact him immediately to tell him about the situation.
The first he heard of it was when he received a call from police, who said his son was being charged with having a hoax bomb, Mohamed said.
He rushed to the police station, where he saw his son "surrounded by five police and he was handcuffed," the father said. Ahmed told his father he'd asked to phone him but the police told him he could not because he was under arrest, Mohamed said.
"I asked if I could talk to or speak to my son and they told me, 'No, not right now' because they were taking his fingerprints and asking him questions," Mohamed said. "I asked if I could see the thing they were calling a bomb. The police never let me even see it but I knew what my son brought to school. It was an alarm clock that he made. He wakes up with it most mornings. ..."
A reporter at a news conference Wednesday asked Chief Boyd about the allegations that Ahmed was told he could not call his father and was interrogated alone for some time at the station.
"I'm not aware of that," the chief said, adding that the incident isn't being investigated.
Boyd was also asked if the teen's religious or ethnic identity played a role in how he was treated. The chief said it did not, and he praised the department's relationship with Irving's Muslim community.
However, he said, "We live in an age where you can't take things like that to school."
'People think Muslims are terrorists'
"My son is a very brilliant boy," Mohamed said. "We need people like him in this country."
The teen has never been in trouble, the father said, saying he thinks this is a case of Islamophobia. "My son's name is Mohamed -- people just think Muslims are terrorists but we are peaceful, we are not that way."
"We live in the land of opportunity to grow and help and the people who did this to my son, they do not see him that way," Mohamed continued. "My son said over and over that this was an alarm clock and my son only brought it to school to ask for help from his teachers, to show that he can do this amazing thing and maybe get appreciation and to show him (he can become) something bigger in the world -- an inventor."
Mohamed said it wasn't until after the fact that he received a call and an email from the school, telling him about Ahmed's arrest and informing him that his son had been suspended for three days.
The father and others were meeting Wednesday with attorneys to decide what steps, if any, they might take next, Mohamed said.
At the Wednesday news conference, a spokeswoman for the Irving Independent School District told reporters that the way the teen's experience has been described in media reports is "unbalanced."
She declined to explain why, citing the need to protect a student's privacy.
The statement she made was posted on the district's site Wednesday. When the family gives written permission to discuss the incident, the school will offer more information, she said.
Earlier in the day, MacArthur High School provided a statement to CNN in which it said it was cooperating with authorities and said privacy laws prohibited it from sharing details about student discipline. "We can assure everyone that school administrators are handling the situation in accordance with the Irving ISD Student Code of Conduct and applicable laws."
Mohamed isn't sure if his son will go back to school Thursday. He's afraid the police will keep his invention and he's worried about his son being called names.
But he's happy about the widespread outpouring of support. His family started the hashtag #Thankyouforstandingwithme.
"It gives him hope," the teen's father said. "Right now he is trying to just stay positive and is listening to the news about him and reading about people's comments him on social media. It's really too much for him to take in right now, but long term it will be good for him. He doesn't want to show he is a victim."
It was an English teacher who got spooked and reported Ahmed to the principal, the police said.
"We always ask our students and staff to immediately report if they observe any suspicious items and/or suspicious behavior," the school's statement reads. "If something is out of the ordinary, the information should be reported immediately to a school administrator and/or the police so it can be addressed right away. We will always take necessary precautions to protect our students and keep our school community as safe as possible."
A reporter spoke with the boy in his bedroom, which is full of equipment that allows him to tinker and create.
"Here in high school, none of the teachers know what I can do," Ahmed told the paper while he soldered metal and played around with a cable.
A middle school robotics club member, the teen has won awards for his inventions.
He recalled showing one teacher the clock and her telling him that she thought it was "nice" but he shouldn't show other instructors, according to the paper. The teen put the clock in his bookbag but an alarm beeped in the middle of sixth period and Ahmed showed the teacher what he had, the newspaper reported.
"She was like, it looks like a bomb," he said.
"I told her, 'It doesn't look like a bomb to me.'"
When Ahmed was called out of class, he said he was brought into a room with four police officers, one of whom said, "Yup. That's who I thought it was."
Ahmed told the Dallas Morning News that he felt aware of what he looked like and his name as the officers fired questions at him.
He recalled that one officer said to him, "So you tried to make a bomb?"
He disputed that and kept telling them he'd created a clock.
Meanwhile, the teen's defenders continue to slam the school and police.
"I really hope you guys are absolutely ashamed for possibly ruining the ingenuity of one bright kid who made a CLOCK for crying out loud. What kind of education does your professors have?" David Velez wrote on the school's Facebook page. "It sounds like they are the ones that need to be going back to school!"
"Shame on your school and its administration for arresting Ahmed Mohamed," wrote Jillian York. "Way to stifle a kid's creativity and energy. I hope you're all replaced with compassionate, non-racist, administrators and teachers."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Was Ahmed assumed guilty until he was able to prove himself innocent? Was his arrest handled in accordance with our laws?
- Should there be a consequence, (ie someone fired) for putting the student through this wrongful arrest?
- Many media sources are now saying that this story has a biased agenda, with people, such as Bill Maher, making statements that initial reports lacked perspective and that the clock DID look like a bomb. Obviously Ahmed Mohamed deserves an apology, but do you think the teacher that reported Ahmed was right to take such safety precautions? Defend your perspective.
- Was Ahmed Mohammed arrested and suspended because he brought a clock (that looked like a bomb) to school, or because he brought a clock (that looked like a bomb) to school while being Muslim. Do you think that his arrest was influenced by racial or religious profiling like the article suggests?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/09/16/us/texas-student-ahmed-muslim-clock-bomb/
Posted September 16th 2015
James Blake wants NYPD to fire officer who tackled him
'He shouldn't have a badge,' former tennis star says
BY DYLAN STABLEFORD
James Blake says the New York Police Department should fire the undercover officer who slammed him to the ground outside a New York City hotel last week after the retired tennis star was misidentified as a suspect in a fraudulent credit card ring.
"He shouldn't have a badge," Blake told the New York Times on Saturday, "because in my opinion what he's doing is tarnishing that badge."
The officer, James Frascatore, has been placed on desk duty in the wake of the incident, which occurred Wednesday on the sidewalk in front of the Grand Hyatt in midtown Manhattan as Blake was waiting for a car to take him to the U.S. Open. In surveillance footage released by the NYPD Friday, Blake is seen being tackled and handcuffed by Frascatore, who was wearing plainclothes and never identified himself as a police officer.
"My initial reaction, being naive, I guess, is this is probably a fan or someone just having fun and giving me a big hug, someone I don't recognize from high school," Blake told NBC News. "About three seconds later, I realized it wasn't someone giving me a friendly hug, that's for sure."
According to police, a courier working with the 38-year-old officer misidentified Blake as a suspect. Blake, who was detained for about 10 minutes until responding officers realized their mistake, suffered minor injuries.
"Physically, I'm OK," he told NBC News Saturday. "The emotional scars are going to take a little more time to heal, because I was embarrassed. I was embarrassed to be handcuffed, in the middle of the day, on 42nd Street."
The case has put a national spotlight on what critics say are overly aggressive tactics used by NYPD officers.
In a statement, Patrick Lynch, president of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, said that Blake's arrest was made "under fluid circumstances where the subject might have fled, and the officer did a professional job of bringing the individual to the ground."
Blake disagrees.
"It was completely unnecessary, whether I was a criminal or not," he said. "I still don't think the person they were looking for deserved to be treated the way I was treated. So that is the bigger issue right now, correcting that kind of behavior."
Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton apologized to Blake, but the former world No. 4 tennis player wants city officials to apologize to others who've been treated similarly.
At least seven people accused Frascatore of using excessive force in the past, according to the Times.
"I think there needs to be a public apology to all of them, all of those people who don't have the same stature I have," Blake told the newspaper.
"I'm lucky to be in the position I'm in to get a phone call myself from Mayor de Blasio to say I'm sorry, that's really nice," he told NBC. "But I've also spoken to a lot of people these past few days who have had similar situations happen to them, got emails from people saying it's happened to them, their brother, their father, their sister — and those are the people that deserve to get apologized to."
The incident has also renewed the debate over racial profiling. But Blake, who is biracial, doesn't believe Frascatore, who is white, was targeting him because of his race.
Nonetheless, the 35-year-old Yonkers, N.Y., native, who now lives in San Diego, said he is considering legal action as he calls for reform.
"I don't think this person should ever have a badge or a gun again," Blake told the Associated Press. "I don't think it's too much to ask."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- How often do you think incidents like this occur involving people who don’t have the resources or the public voice that Blake has?
- Do you think that this wrongful arrest occurred in part because of racial profiling, or was it entirely a case of excessive force used by the NYPD officer? Can the act of racial profiling ever be justified?
- In light of the recent occurrences of both police brutality and false accusations from the media directed toward police, do you think police officers should be required to wear body cameras? Why or why not?
- If you were in James Blake’s shoes, how would you have handled this situation? Did he overreact by publicizing his experience to multiple media outlets?
- Do you think a universal apology needs to be made to people who have experienced similar issues and don’t have the same public stature as Blake? If so, who should this apology come from?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/james-blake-nypd-officer-tackled-fired-191924496.html
Posted September 9th 2015
North and South Korea to hold family reunion next month for families separated by Korean war
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
North and South Korea agreed Tuesday to hold a reunion for families separated by the Korean war - the fruit of a deal struck last month after cross-border tensions came close to boiling over into outright conflict.
The reunion would be only the second to be held in five years in North Korea’s Mount Kumgang resort, with 100 participants from each side.
The two Koreas had committed themselves to organising the event - from October 20 to the 26th - two weeks ago in an accord that ended a dangerous military stand-off and pulled both sides back from the brink of an armed conflict.
The fact that they have followed through by agreeing a date and venue will be seen as a further positive sign, although the North has agreed to reunions in the past - only to cancel at the last minute.
Seoul was understood to have been pushing for an earlier date - before North Korea celebrates the 70th anniversary of the founding of its ruling Worker’s Party on October 10.
Pyongyang is planning a massive military parade and there has been speculation it might also launch a long-range rocket - a move that would trigger fresh UN sanctions and threaten the holding of the reunion.
The final dates were agreed at all-night talks between North and South Korean Red Cross officials in the border truce village of Panmunjom.
The chief South Korean delegate, Lee Duk-Haeng, confirmed that his side had requested a reunion at the “earliest possible date”, but the North side demurred, citing preparations for the October 10 celebrations.
Millions of people were separated during the 1950-53 Korean conflict that sealed the division between the two Koreas.
Most died without having a chance to see or hear from their families on the other side of the border, across which all civilian communication is banned.
About 66,000 South Koreans - many of them in their 80s or 90s - are on the waiting list for an eventual reunion, but only a very limited number can be chosen each time.
The reunion programme began in earnest after a historic North-South summit in 2000, and was initially an annual event.
But strained cross-border relations have allowed only one reunion in the past five years.
For those on the waiting list, the reunion selection process is an emotional roller-coaster - raising hopes of a meeting they have longed for but which, statistically, they are very unlikely to experience.
For the last event in February 2014, a computer was used to randomly select 500 candidates, after taking age and family background into account.
That number was reduced to 200 after interviews and medical exams, and the final list of 100 was drawn up after checking if relatives were still alive on the other side.
And even after all that, the reunion almost never happened, with 11th-hour, high-level negotiations required to prevent the North cancelling over South Korea’s refusal to postpone annual military drills.
Shim Goo-Seob, president of an association representing separated families in South Korea said he was disappointed that each side had again been limited to just 100 participants.
“It falls far short of our expectations,” Shim told AFP.
“If it carries on like this, what chance do the 60,000 others on the waiting list have of getting their turn?” he added.
Lee Duk-Haeng said the South planned to hand over the names of 50 South Koreans believed to have been held as prisoners of war in the North.
If any are found to be alive, their relatives in the South will be given a priority slot in Seoul’s final list of 100 participants, he said.
For the lucky ones who do take part, the reunions are hugely emotional - almost traumatic - affairs, with many of the elderly participants breaking down and sobbing as they cling to each other.
They typically last several days and the joy of the reunion is tempered by the pain of the inevitable - and this time permanent - separation at the end.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- What is the major issue described in this article? Would you label it as a humanitarian or political problem, or both? Explain your perspective.
- Should South Korea find a way to reunify its people with North Korea, for the sake of bringing together separated families? Why or why not?
- Using context clues, what does the word sanction mean? If North Korea chooses to launch a long-range rocket during their military parade, what type of United Nations sanctions do you think they would receive?
- The border between North and South Korea is one of the most volatile, tense, and militarized regions in the world. What can be done to ease the tension and help reunite families that have been isolated for 65 years?
Click here to view more://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/1856326/north-and-south-korea-hold-family-reunion-next-month-families
Posted September 2nd 2015
Marijuana Commerce Blossoms, But Challenges Abound
BY MICHAEL BODLEY AND CLARISSA COOPER
As marijuana prohibition falls in one state after another, cannabis sales are shifting from street corners to storefronts as opportunists line up to cash in on what optimists say is the biggest investment opportunity since the dot-com boom of the turn of the century.
Investors of all varieties are starting to look at marijuana as less of a stoner's fad and more of a serious business venture. The industry totaled $2.66 billion in U.S. sales in 2014, up 74 percent from $1.53 billion the year before, according to the ArcView Group, a cannabis industry investment network.
Business insiders said they expect the market to expand to many times its present size as more states legalize marijuana for both medical and recreational use.
Already the cannabis trade has not only brought in millions for dispensary owners and cultivators, it's also created a thriving ancillary market, driven job growth and boosted property values, marijuana advocates claim.
Still, the challenges are many for the kind of high-risk, high-reward investment that cannabis calls for. No industry since post-Prohibition alcohol has come close to having had a harder time getting off the ground, from strict regulation and heavy taxation to a lack of investors and banking services.
"A lot of people look at the cannabis industry and say, 'Oh my God, it's so much harder. (There are) so many barriers ... You've got endless problems,'" said Troy Dayton, CEO of the ArcView Group. "Well, some people see endless problems. Other people see endless problems disappearing fairly soon and see this as a great investment."
Dispensaries, cultivators not only ones making money
Jamie Perino, the CEO of Colorado-based Euflora dispensaries, said the three-store chain has so many customers that it wants to open more outlets, not only in Colorado but also across the country.
Perino estimated that Euflora, dubbed the "Apple store" of pot for its tablets next to every product displaying information about potency, strains and more, brings in 2.5 million visitors a year at its 16th Street Mall location in downtown Denver.
Perino isn't a marijuana enthusiast, but the financial opportunities were too good to pass up after Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012. Dispensaries began opening in 2014. After working in the building industry for 15 years, Perino made the switch.
"There were CEOs, CFOs, from pharmacy, banking, real estate," Perino said. "People were leaving their jobs to get into this industry, and I think that if they are getting into it, maybe they know something I should know. ... It's kind of being compared to the tech boom of several years ago and to be at the forefront of it is really exciting."
Colorado alone brought in about $79 million from taxes and fees on the marijuana industry in fiscal year 2015. On the fringes, ancillary business also have found money-making niches to fulfill the needs of marijuana businesses.
Cultivators need high-wattage lights to grow cannabis indoors. States have contracted seed-to-sale tracking systems to try and stop cannabis from slipping to the black market. Limousine companies shuttle paying customers from dispensary to dispensary.
J.B. Woods, co-owner of Greenpoint Insurance Advisors LLC, is based in the Denver area but specializes as an insurance broker for dispensaries nationwide. It's a necessity for companies storing marijuana by the pound and cash by the bundle.
"There are a couple of states who have made it really very clear that insurance is an important part of the licensing process," Woods said.
The security danger spawned by the all-cash industry also has created a secondary market of its own. Companies provide security cameras, alarm bells and guard dogs.
As acceptance spreads, industry matures
When the ArcView Group first started hosting conferences to connect marijuana businesses with cautious early investors, the events reinforced quite a few stoner stereotypes, ArcView CEO Dayton said.
He described a ragtag lot who cared more about smoking weed than making money off it. Many of the presenters looked uncomfortable in suits and ties and floundered through their pitches.
ArcView events now draw a sharply dressed mix of professionals who whip through presentations with practiced precision - a reflection of the maturing industry, Dayton said.
As more states legalize, shifting social attitudes have opened the door for a host of white-collar professionals who once shied away at the mere mention of marijuana. Lawyers are leaving their corporate firms behind. Bankers are closing down their tills. Business is serious. Business is brisk.
From Hawaii to New York, 23 states across the country, plus Washington, D.C., have approved marijuana for medical use, with Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Washington state and Washington, D.C., legalizing recreational marijuana, as well.
The legalization tide has flooded the marijuana market with entrepreneurs who must distinguish themselves amid rising competition.
There are hookahs and bubblers, volcano vaporizers and percolated bongs. Consumers slurp down THC-infused ice cream and gnaw on gummy bears. They slather on lotions permeated with marijuana oil and dollop out droplets of tinctures, cannabis extracted with alcohol. The secondary market of ancillary businesses has filled the gap to meet a growing demand for the latest and greatest way to get high.
Although it can be difficult to get into the dispensary business - with steep initial investments and time-consuming licensing - those who try said the potential profit in a growing market makes the endeavor worth it. State licenses can be hard to come by, but once in hand, caps on dispensaries can limit competition and provide a big payday.
Nearly two years ago, Illinois approved a medical cannabis pilot program. Dispensaries plan to open this year to serve the state's 2,600 approved patients.
Brad Zerman, who plans to open one of the state's 56 dispensaries, said he sees it as a smart business investment.
"I'm an entrepreneur. I've had businesses since I was 23 years old," Zerman said. "Everything about this business is difficult. You really just have to be up for a good challenge."
Though social attitudes are leaning more in marijuana's favor, the majority of traditional investors - who tend to be more conservative with their choices - have kept their caution.
Boston-based Dutchess Capital, a global money manager of more than $2 billion in assets, moved into marijuana in 2012, one of the first companies to invest in the field.
Doug Leighton, managing partner at Dutchess, said it "took a very long time to get comfortable, given the federal government's stance" on the Schedule 1 drug - a drug that has no medicinal benefits and can't be legally bought and sold. It makes investors wary of potential federal prosecution. But the potential profits outweighed the risk.
"We did our homework," Leighton said. "But it's weed. We're not going to lose. How are we going to lose?"
Headaches abound for marijuana entrepreneurs
Though promises of profit have lured entrepreneurs to marijuana, making money has proven anything but easy for many. Steep initial investments sting. Heavy taxes cut into bottom lines. The know-how to navigate complex regulations can separate those who make it from those who don't. For every successful business, many more fail, experts said.
"We've got a room full of banker's boxes with files from businesses who didn't succeed," said Woods, the Denver insurance broker.
To even apply for a license, many municipalities require dispensary hopefuls to lease a suitable location beforehand, so owners pay rent for months without knowing for sure if they'll ever be able to open.
Banking solutions are few and far between, and the Department of Justice has issued strict guidelines for any bank that touches marijuana proceeds. Because the federal government categorizes marijuana as an illegal, Schedule 1 drug, financial institutions are reluctant to deal with it, fearing federal repercussions.
Many in the industry must stuff stacks of currency in safes and pay state and federal taxes in cash.
Taxes, too, are tough. On tax returns, marijuana companies can't write off business expenses tied to the drug. Other lines of work rely on such tax breaks to make a profit.
Finding a suitable location has proven another challenge for marijuana businesses.
Strict zoning laws on the local level have generated a lucrative real estate market for compliant locations. In pot hotspots such as Denver, real estate prices have risen to reflect the growing demand.
A former commercial real estate broker, Matt Chapdelaine, co-founder of Chicago-based HerbFront, the United States' first online cannabis real estate listing service, estimates the fair market price for marijuana-zoned properties at 150 percent of their typical market value. Only 1 to 2 percent of all properties in most areas work for marijuana, he said.
The marijuana businesses that go on to do well and look to expand are often hampered by a shortage of sources for funding.
Some companies have turned to public offerings to build up capital, but reputable ones are few and far between, according to industry analysts and market research. Many are full of over-valuations and empty promises of impossible returns, said Michael Swartz, an analyst with Viridian Capital, a marijuana-focused investment firm.
"It's important in this industry to do your homework," he said. "There's an opportunity, but there are a lot of challenges and risks involved."
Bigger players could uproot smaller businesses
The marijuana economy of today - full of mom-and-pop shops and small-scale investors - could look a lot different a few years from now.
Industry experts liken pot today to alcohol in its early post-Prohibition years, full of early adopters trying to corner their own slice of the market before the bigger players move in.
There are interests within more than a dozen states pushing legalization initiatives in the 2016 election. Though the majority haven't yet gathered enough signatures to make it on the ballot - it's still early - the industry expects more states to follow the lead of Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington in legalizing marijuana.
As the market continues to grow - ArcView projects a $10.8 billion legal sales market by 2019 - interest from bigger players may pick up.
And if the federal government does make marijuana legal, the changes could be even bigger.
Dayton, the CEO of ArcView said he expects other highly regulated industries, like restaurant chains and food manufacturers, to snap up marijuana companies once it's safer to do so.
"Think of the wine market," he said. "Cannabis is just like that. Sure, there are the big producers, but there's also the small and the medium size. You're certainly going to see some consolidation."
A battle over branding looms over cannabis, Swartz said. The industry is still in its infancy, too young to have the marijuana equivalents of the Apples and the Walmarts and the Coca-Colas. Especially with restrictions placed on advertising most everywhere, it's too soon to tell which early starters will become go-to brands, but it looks to be a matter of time until consumer favorites emerge.
"It's going to be the brands," Swartz said. "It's going to be the Bacardi, the Grey Goose. That's where you're going to see the biggest market. It's going to be about quality, but what's even more important is that brand."
Without a solid and well-known specialty, mom and pop marijuana businesses will be swallowed up once bigger players move in, he said - it's just a matter of time.
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- How is decriminalization of marijuana different than the legalization of marijuana discussed in this article?
- Do you feel that the growth of the cannabis industry is beneficial to the United States economy? Why or why not?
- From the article, what are the pros and cons of the decriminalization of marijuana in 23 states across the country, plus Washington, D.C.?
- Should individuals be at liberty to use marijuana freely in all 50 states regardless of their medical needs? Does their marijuana use directly threaten other's liberties?
- With the federal government categorizing marijuana as an illegal, Schedule 1 drug, how can states continue to legalize its use? How will the conflict between state and federal marijuana laws be resolved? Predict what you think will happen in upcoming years.
Click here to view more://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/legal-pot/dotcom-2-0-marijuana-commerce-blossoms-challenges-abound-n414036
Posted August 26th 2015
Birthright citizenship issue hits home for Chicago business couple
By Rosa Flores, CNN | Updated 7:55 AM ET, Mon August 24, 2015
Chicago (CNN) A warm welcome and a special recipe for mangonada -- a mango ice cream cup topped with fresh mango slices and a tangy Mexican red sauce -- is the secret to their success, said Eladio and Judith Montoya, owners of Los Mangos, an ice cream and fruit shop in Chicago's Little Village.
"We weren't expecting the rapid growth. We opened our first location in 2012 and less than six months later, due to the great response from the people, we opened our second location," said Eladio Montoya, 35.
He and his wife, Judith, 33, became entrepreneurs when they conquered their fears three years ago and opened the doors of Los Mangos with $5,000 in savings. Today, they own seven locations across the Chicago metropolitan area and employ more than 50 people, with an eighth store on the way.
"It was very scary," Judith said about expanding to a second and then third location. Eladio finished her sentence with a smile and said, "We decided to take that challenge and it worked out."
But now they face another fear: what Donald Trump's rhetoric about ending birthright citizenship means for them and their extended family and friends, who include people who were born in America to undocumented immigrants.
They are particularly troubled by his intimations that he would revoke the citizenship of those who have already received it.
Trump said last week that he doesn't think people born in the United States to undocumented immigrants are citizens.
"I don't think they have American citizenship, and if you speak to some very, very good lawyers -- and I know some will disagree, but many of them agree with me -- and you're going to find they do not have American citizenship. We have to start a process where we take back our country. Our country is going to hell," the Republican presidential front-runner told Fox News on Tuesday night. Trump said he would "test it out" in the courts.
Trump has called for the deportation of all undocumented immigrants living in the United States, about 11 million people, and then allowing the "good ones" to return through an expedited legal process.
On Wednesday morning, he was questioned by CNN's "New Day" co-host Chris Cuomo about his call to end birthright citizenship as granted under the 14th Amendment, which states that "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the state wherein they reside."
Interpreting the 14th Amendment
"The 14th Amendment is very questionable as to whether or not somebody can come over, have a baby and immediately that baby is a citizen," Trump told Cuomo.
Trump didn't answer Cuomo's question about the retroactive application of his proposed policy, which if carried out, would mean Judith's two brothers, who were born to undocumented parents, could be stripped of their citizenship.
Judith said she doesn't feel safe, either, even though by the time she was born, her parents had obtained legal residency through a granting of amnesty in the 1980s.
Eladio and his family obtained legal residency in the 1980s through the amnesty, too, but he also thinks he could be affected if Trump's policy was imposed retroactively.
Eladio said he was 6 years old when his mother crossed him and three of his siblings illegally from Mexico's northern state of Sonora into Arizona. He was the youngest of the group, but remembers the details of the voyage very well.
"We crossed a fence that was broken. The person who was taking us, he guided us to the entrance and we just crossed," said Eladio, who remembers his mom maintaining a tight grip on his hand, because "she was scared."
"We had nothing in Mexico," recalled Eladio, explaining that they had left for better opportunity. "We lived on a small ranch. There were 11 houses in that ranch."
He said he and his family boarded a plane to Chicago shortly after crossing the broken fence and arrived in the city's Little Village, a neighborhood that today is predominantly Latino.
Eladio wondered how Trump's suggestion of allowing the "good ones" back after deportation would work.
"I consider myself good," said Eladio, but he pointed out that no one really knows what constitutes a "good" immigrant.
"Where does it stop?" Judith asked. "He said he's not going to separate families, that he's just going to send them back together, but where does it stop?"
Trump's focus on immigration is forcing his Republican competitors to take a stand.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker have sided with Trump on the issue of birthright citizenship, though they acknowledge that changing it would be difficult.
Still, they and other detractors argue that the country must enforce immigration laws and not unfairly reward those who break them by granting citizenship to their children -- and then potentially to the undocumented immigrants themselves who can then claim status through their children.
In addition, they contend that the birthright citizenship clause, an outlier in the developed world, encourages more people to take the risk of entering the United States without permission in order to secure citizenship for their children.
Some in GOP support birthright citizenship
Not all Republicans want to rescind the practice. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush oppose the repeal of the 14th Amendment.
But for the present time, Trump is gaining momentum and continues to lead the Republican race. Should his immigration policy come to pass, it could be life-changing for the Montoyas and their extended family.
"Our life is here. Our homes are here," Judith said.
"What is going to happen to our business? What's going to happen with our kids? What's going to happen to our employees?" Eladio asked, contemplating the prospect of losing his citizenship. "I would be forced to shut down our business that's creating jobs and feeding families."
But the Montoyas say they are willing to put Trump's comments about Mexicans being "rapists" and "killers" aside and invite the real estate mogul to any one of their Los Mangos locations, where everyone, they say, is welcomed with a smile.
"I want him to come here to my business and see that we are not criminals. We didn't come here to rob anybody," Eladio said. "We are not taking anybody's job."
If Trump were to come, Eladio has a message for him: "We are making America great."
Questions using Close Reading and Critical Thinking skills:
- Do you think that a baby born on American soil should automatically become an American citizen, even if both parents are not American citizens (jus soli)? Why or why not?
- Is birthright citizenship a real problem? Would ending it cause problems? How would doing away with it be beneficial to the US?
- Is the ending of birthright citizenship moral with regard to its treatment of children of illegal immigrants? Is it justified?
- Australia rescinded birthright citizenship in 2007, as well as New Zealand in 2006, Ireland in 2005, France in 1993, and the United Kingdom in 1983. The United States and Canada are the last remaining industrialized nations to grant automatic citizenship to every person born within country borders, regardless of their parents' nationalities or status. Make a prediction: What do you see happening to America’s birthright citizenship law with the upcoming 2016 Presidential Election?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/08/24/politics/donald-trump-birthright-citizenship-undocumented-immigrants/index.html
Posted August 19th 2015
Kerry urges 'genuine democracy' at U.S. flag ceremony in Cuba
By Daniel Trotta and Lesley Wroughton
HAVANA (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry declared a new era in relations as he celebrated restored diplomatic ties in Havana on Friday, but he also urged political change in Cuba, telling Cubans they should be free to choose their own leaders.
The first U.S. secretary of state to visit the Caribbean island in 70 years, Kerry presided over a ceremony to raise the U.S. flag over the newly reopened American embassy.
"We remain convinced the people of Cuba would be best served by a genuine democracy, where people are free to choose their leaders," he said in a country where the Communist Party is the only legal political party, the media is tightly controlled, and political dissent is repressed.
"We will continue to urge the Cuban government to fulfill its obligations under U.N. and Inter-American human rights covenants – obligations shared by the United States and every other country in the Americas," Kerry said, his words accurately translated into Spanish and broadcast live on Cuban state television.
His comments drew a firm riposte from Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, who defended his Communist government at a joint news conference and criticized the United States' own record on rights, referring to racial strife and police brutality in America.
Speaking later with reporters, Kerry said the U.S. Congress was unlikely to ever lift a punishing economic embargo on Cuba unless the Communist government improved its human rights record.
"There is no way congress is going to vote to lift the embargo if they're not moving with respect to issues of conscience," Kerry said.
Cuba fiercely rejects such conditions.
Josefina Vidal, the Cuban foreign ministry director of U.S. affairs and lead negotiator in talks on restoring diplomatic relations, told Reuters in an interview that Cuba's internal affairs were not negotiable and Cuba would never seek to placate those who have been trying to undermine the government from the United States.
"We are not going to make a decision to try to please or respond to people who don't want our well-being," Vidal said in an interview. "Cuba will never do anything, nor will it move its position one millimeter to try to respond."
The two countries were locked for decades in hostilities that outlived the Cold War. On Friday, both sides made clear the rapprochement would be slow and incremental, with less challenging issues being tackled first.
The sunlit ceremony at the embassy overlooking the Malecon, the broad esplanade along Havana's seafront, was a symbolic step in a path that opened last December when President Barack Obama and President Raul Castro announced they would seek to restore diplomatic ties, reopen embassies and work to normalize ties.
Speaking at a podium outside the embassy before U.S. Marines raised the American flag there for the first time in 54 years, Kerry made plain that despite the historic opening, Washington would continue to push for democratic reforms.
Cuba has long defended its style of government in the face of U.S. hostility and pressure to change since the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power.
Obama, a Democrat who has come under heavy criticism from Republican opponents and some in his own party over the policy shift toward Cuba, has said the rapprochement is partly because the attempt to force change by isolating the island did not work.
Three retired Marines who last lowered the flag in 1961 took part in Friday's ceremony, handing a new flag to the Marine Color Guard. As the flag was raised, there were loud cheers and applause from the crowd of U.S. and Cuban dignitaries and longtime proponents of U.S.-Cuban engagement, and from people watching from neighboring balconies.
The event took place nearly four weeks after the United States and Cuba formally renewed diplomatic relations and upgraded their diplomatic missions to embassies. While the Cubans celebrated with a flag-raising in Washington on July 20, the Americans waited until Kerry could travel to Havana.
CRITICISM OVER DISSIDENTS
Kerry was due to meet Cuban dissidents at the U.S. embassy residence in Havana later on Friday. But dissidents were not invited to the flag-raising in deference to the Cuban government. That drew complaints from opponents of the opening to Cuba, who say Havana has made no concessions in exchange for diplomatic ties.
"Secretary Kerry's visit is especially insulting for Cuba's dissidents," said Jeb Bush, a Republican candidate for next year's U.S. presidential election. He is also a former governor of Florida, home to the biggest Cuban emigre population.
"That courageous Cubans whose only crime is to speak out for freedom and democracy will be kept away from the official ceremony opening the U.S. Embassy is yet another concession to the Castros," Bush said.
With ties now restored, there are plenty of hurdles along the way to normal relations between the two neighbors.
Cuba wants the United States to end its economic embargo of the island, return the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay in eastern Cuba and halt radio and television signals beamed into Cuba. "Lifting of the blockade is essential to be able to have normal relations," said Rodriguez, the foreign minister.
At their news conference, Rodriguez said Havana also had concerns about human rights in the United States. "Cuba is not a place where there are acts of racial discrimination or police brutality that result in deaths; nor is it under Cuban jurisdiction the territory where people are tortured or held in a legal limbo," he said.
The Americans will press Cuba on human rights, the return of fugitives granted asylum and the claims of Americans whose property was nationalized by Fidel Castro's government.
Obama has used his executive power to relax some U.S. travel and trade restrictions, but the Republican-controlled Congress has resisted his call to end America's wider economic embargo.
"We are going to move in a very thoughtful and strategic way, build confidence and see how the transformation is working, and hopefully lay the groundwork for people to be able to see that it makes sense to lift the embargo," Kerry said.
QUESTIONS:
- Are Cuban officials making a fair comparison in equating Cuba’s numerous human rights violations to recent cases of racial strife and police brutality in America?
- Why do you suppose the Cuban government does not permit a free press, freedom of speech, and freedom to organize groups without government approval?
- What are the potential social, economic, and political effects of ending the economic embargo and restoring all diplomatic ties to Cuba?
- Is John Kerry (and the United States government) overstepping power by strongly urging an independent government to give up its current system and adopt that of a democracy? Do we as a country have a right to push our political views onto other countries?
- Do you think our relations with Cuba will change in the near future? How could these changes possibly affect your daily life?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/another-symbol-thawing-ties-kerry-raise-u-flag-050431013.html
Posted August 12th 2015
More than 200 feared dead in sinking of migrant boat
PALERMO, SICILY | BY WLADIMIR PANTALEONE
Hopes faded of finding more survivors on Thursday from a shipwreck in which 200 migrants are feared drowned, as rescue ships were called to the aid of more migrant boats in the same area of the Mediterranean.
"We are witnessing a genocide caused by European selfishness," said Palermo mayor Leoluca Orlando as the Irish navy ship LE Niamh docked in the port carrying some 370 survivors of Wednesday's disaster and 25 corpses, including three children.
Orlando, speaking on Italian television as hearses arrived to take the bodies away, called on European leaders to do more to prevent such disasters and to allow more refugees to re-settle in their countries.
After the survivors disembarked, some were escorted back on board to see if they could identify the dead children.
Police said they had detained five men suspected of having piloted the boat that overturned on Wednesday and of having had a role in trafficking the migrants.
Vessels from the Italian and Irish navies and humanitarian agency Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) saved about 400 people from the fishing boat, thought to have been carrying up to 600 people, mostly Syrians fleeing their country's civil war.
They found no more survivors after scouring the waters overnight. Italian vessels continued to search the area on Thursday, a coastguard spokesman said.
Seas were very calm on Thursday, perfect conditions to attempt the sea crossing, said a Reuters photographer aboard the privately funded Phoenix, a vessel run by MSF and the Migrant Offshore Aid Station.
The Phoenix was responding to a distress call for a boat carrying about 500 people, he said. The coastguard picked up 381 on Thursday morning, while an Italy navy ship took 101 from a large rubber boat, and the MSF vessel Argos rescued 87, according to their Twitter accounts.
Wednesday's tragedy occurred when the boat flipped over as the LE Niamh approached, probably because desperate passengers surged to one side as they spotted the ship.
"What happened here was because the boat was so overloaded, and the conditions were such that the boat started taking on water and it listed to one side, capsized and sank, all in the space of two minutes," Irish Defence Minister Simon Coveney said on Irish state radio RTE on Thursday.
The Irish ship is part of the European Union Triton mission, which was expanded after up to 800 migrants drowned in a shipwreck in April.
DEADLY BORDER AREA
The Mediterranean Sea is the world's most deadly border area for migrants. More than 2,000 migrants and refugees have died so far this year trying to reach Europe by boat, compared with 3,279 during the whole of last year, the International Organization for Migration said on Tuesday.
People-smugglers, mostly based in Libya and charging thousands of dollars for passage, have sent more than 90,000 migrants by sea to Italy so far this year, the UN refugee agency says. Italy took in 170,000 in 2014.
This summer's mass arrivals in both Italy and Greece show the crisis is worsening. Immigrants fleeing violence and poverty at home continue to pour in from Africa and the Middle East.
Many of the newcomers look to move swiftly to wealthier northern Europe, including to Britain from Calais, France.
In April, a 20-meter (66-foot) vessel capsized as it approached a merchant ship that had come to its assistance, and up to 900 people were killed. It was the deadliest shipwreck in the Mediterranean for decades and a symbol of Europe's long-running migrant crisis.
QUESTIONS:
- What motivated these refugees to make the momentous decision to leave their country permanently and travel to neighboring European countries?
- With undocumented immigration being an international issue, what actions can destination countries such as Italy and Greece take to address the increase in refugee populations?
- How would you curb the people-smugglers that are profiting greatly from running dangerous human trafficking webs?
- Do you believe that the European destination countries have a moral obligation to offer their assistance to immigrants, even if they are undocumented? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/06/us-europe-migrants-italy-idUSKCN0QB0SR20150806
Posted August 5th 2015
Cecil the Lion's Killer Should Be Extradited: Zimbabwe Minister
BY PETE WILLIAMS, REUTERS
Zimbabwe plans to seek extradition of the American dentist who killed Cecil lion during a hunting expedition earlier this month, a Cabinet minister said Friday.
Oppah Muchinguri — Zimbabwe's environment, water and climate minister — told a news conference that officials there are "appealing to the responsible authorities for his extradition to Zimbabwe so that he can be held accountable for his illegal action."
A spokesman for Zimbabwe's embassy in Washington told NBC News on Friday that a formal extradition request had yet to be received asking for 55-year-old Water James Palmer to be sent back to the African nation to face justice.
Under a 1998 treaty between the United States and Zimbabwe, a person can be extradited if they are accused of an offense that carries more than a year in prison.
In Zimbabwe, the illegal killing of a lion is punishable by a mandatory fine of $20,000 and up to 10 years behind bars.
"This is a very serious matter, and some of his accomplices have already appeared in court in Zimbabwe," the embassy spokesman said.
No charges have been announced against Palmer. Two guides whom he reportedly paid $50,000 to help him during his hunting trip face fines and jail time for alleged poaching and not having the proper permits.
Palmer, a resident of Eden Prairie, Minnesota, has admitted killing the 13-year-old lion, a favorite with foreign tourists and the subject of an Oxford University study. He has said he trusted his guides and believed all the necessary hunting permits were in order.
The extradition process in the United States begins when a foreign government makes its request to the U.S. State Department through its embassy in Washington.
If the State Department greenlights the request, it forwards it to the Justice Department's Office of International Affairs, which checks whether the request establishes probable cause that a crime was committed and that an American citizen is the offender.
If the request clears that hurdle, it is sent to the U.S. Attorney's Office responsible for the area where the citizen lives. Then the suspect can be extradited.
It's unclear whether Zimbabwe would slap Palmer with the same poaching charges as his professional guides or consider him an accomplice. Muchinguri said Palmer used a bow and arrow to kill the lion.
Palmer, a life-long big game hunter, managed to return to the U.S. before the authorities were aware of the controversy surrounding Cecil's death.
The killing has sparked social media outrage against Palmer. The White House said on Thursday it would review a public petition of more than 100,000 signatures to have him extradited.
Meanwhile, Oxford University, which was studying Cecil since 2008, said it has received 300,000 pounds (or the equivalent of $470,000) in donations.
TODAY analyst Lisa Bloom said Friday that the likelihood Palmer will be extradited is "pretty good," although he has the right to fight the extradition charges.
"We already know from his statement he's going to say, 'I relied on the local guides. I don't know Zimbabwe law. I trusted them, they let me down,'" Bloom said.
Palmer could also argue that Zimbabwe waited a month before seeking extradition, and only after global condemnation: "Walter Palmer can say, 'I'm being the subject of a witchhunt. This happened July 1. Zimbabwe didn't see fit to extradite me then,'" Bloom added.
QUESTIONS:
- Analyze the effects that the death of Cecil the Lion could have on the local community. Consider the political, social, and economic effects.
- What do you think: Should Walter Palmer be extradited to Zimbabwe for the killing of Cecil the Lion? Why or why not?
- Does the public have a right to petition the government to send Palmer back to Zimbabwe or are they overstepping their rights as citizens?
- In your opinion, what sort of punishment would fit the crime?
- Surely, lions have been killed by poachers in the past. Why has this killing in particular sparked such a public outcry from social media?
- Compared to other events such as war, modern slavery, terrorism, and racial tension, should this event have gotten as much coverage as it has?
Click here to view more://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/cecil-lions-killer-should-be-extradited-zimbabwe-minister-n401526
Posted June 10th 2015
What can be done to stop deadly floods?
By Harriet Festing
Updated 8:52 AM ET, Wed May 27, 2015
Harriet Festing directs RainReady at the Center for Neighborhood Technology, a national nonprofit organization. Started as a partnership with the city of Chicago, RainReady helps communities across the United States find solutions to too much or too little water through improved planning, technology innovation and implementation. Festing is the lead author of "The Prevalence and Cost of Urban Flooding" and the recently published report, RainReady Nation. The opinions expressed in this commentary are hers.
(CNN)The deadly rainfall that has left many parts of Houston underwater has happened before and can happen again -- not only in Texas but other cities that are unprepared. Houston has been known to flood even in moderately heavy rains -- some of its roads are designed to collect large pools of water when the city's drainage gets overwhelmed, which happens pretty often. And some parts of the city received an enormous amount of rain -- more than 11 inches.
Houston is a pretty flat city in a subtropical climate just barely above sea level. Under those circumstances, realistically flooding may be unavoidable, even though the city is taking steps through its RebuildHouston initiative to improve the drainage system and address problem flooding areas.
But the fact remains that in some cities even just a few inches of rain can result in flooded basements and washed-out roads. Why? Because the way we have built cities makes them flood.
When we pave over absorbent dirt and grasses, rainwater runs off asphalt and concrete and often ends up overwhelming drainage systems and, in severe cases, flooding homes. The more impervious surfaces a city has, the more likely it is that it will suffer from urban flooding. Sprawling, heavily paved cities such as Houston can be especially vulnerable.
The Center for Neighborhood Technology analyzed National Weather Service data in 10 major cities across the United States, including Houston's Harris County. We found that the residents in the county faced 145 flood warnings and alerts between 2007 and 2011 -- that's one every 12 days. Our research has also determined that flooding can happen in areas that are least expected -- for example, our study of urban flooding in Cook County, Illinois, home to Chicago, analyzed data on insurance payouts for flood damage from 2007 to 2011 and found that 97% of Cook County's ZIP codes experienced flooding, even if they were far from designated flood plains. Indeed some of the ZIP codes with the highest payouts had no flood plains in them at all.
Climate change will increase the frequency and intensity of rainstorms in much of the country. According to the federal U.S. Global Change Research Program, the type of heavy rainstorms that currently occur once every 20 years could happen at least twice as often in Southern states such as Texas if an aggressive emissions reduction program isn't implemented. In other parts of the country, these storms could become up to seven times more frequent. Severe storms that now happen every 20 years could come every four years by 2100.
As the threat of climate change escalates, cities and regions must get serious about finding solutions. Our priority is to identify those solutions that bring quick relief to flood-prone homes, are affordable and effective: This requires a coordinated program of investment across private and public property, to help upgrade homes and streets to make them resilient to wet weather events.
The Center for Neighborhood Technology created its RainReady program as a municipal-scale initiative designed to bring communities together to find solutions to the problems of too much or too little water. We've brought together property owners, municipal officials and stormwater drainage experts to identify a community's highest-priority drainage issues and determine the best set of strategies for minimizing property, yard and street flooding and the damage that comes with it.
Investments in natural and nature-based infrastructure to increase infiltration and collect rain where it falls, also known as green infrastructure, play a strong role in the RainReady program. Green infrastructure can, in some applications, be a more cost-effective approach than conventional stormwater infrastructure, and it can provide a whole set of benefits that "gray infrastructure" does not, including improved water and air quality, groundwater recharge, reduced stormwater runoff volume, additional wildlife habitat and recreational space and increased land values.
Coordinated landscaping, plumbing and building improvements for properties include backwater valves, downspout disconnection into dry wells and flood walls; runoff from alleys and parking lots can be captured through the installation of permeable pavement, trees and landscaped sidewalks; temporary water storage can be created from ponds, parks, urban forests and wetlands; and rain sensor networks can provide enhanced monitoring and flood alert systems for communities.
Building a resilient future needs to start now. Legislation such as the Urban Flooding Awareness Act, passed in Illinois last summer and currently being introduced at the federal level by Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Illinois, and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, is an important first step in assessing the scope of the problem.
To avoid flooding devastation takes planning and foresight but also constant monitoring. The fact of the matter is, once a heavy rainstorm hits, there's little a city can do to prevent flooding. Most preventative measures must be in place in preparation for these storms, because when the skies open up, all we can do is watch and learn where flooding is happening. Residents can play an important role in this monitoring by reporting pools of water hanging around long after the rains have gone to their municipalities.
While flooding may not be entirely preventable, that doesn't mean it has to be catastrophic. There are lessons we can learn from Houston and steps we should be taking to prepare for and mitigate devastating impacts that the coming rainstorms can bring.
QUESTIONS:
- Would you choose to live in an area prone to flooding? Why or why not?
- What does Houston do to prevent/deal with flash flooding? Have these actions proven effective?
- Conduct research to discover who is responsible for flood prevention and the cleanup efforts after a flood? Is it a city, state, or national government’s responsibility?
- People who live by rivers have been victims of floods long before global warming. Why would anyone build a home by a river?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/opinions/festing-stop-urban-flooding-houston/index.html
Posted June 3rd 2015
FIFA: U.S. alleges corruption, indicts 14; Switzerland opens separate probe
By Greg Botelho and Ed Payne, CNN
Updated 9:53 AM ET, Wed May 27, 2015
(CNN)Soccer's powerful, polarizing governing body found itself on the defensive on two fronts Wednesday, one a Swiss investigation into World Cup bidding and the other a sweeping, stinging U.S. indictment homing in on what America's top justice official called "corruption that is rampant, systemic and deep-rooted."
Swiss authorities raided FIFA's headquarters in Zurich on Wednesday, the same day they announced an investigation into the last two awarded World Cup bids -- to Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022 -- both of which had come under fire.
But the day's more definitive and, right now, damning action came out of the United States.
That's where the Department of Justice announced the unsealing of a 47-count indictment in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York, that detailed charges against 14 people for racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. They include FIFA officials accused of taking bribes totaling more than $150 million and in return providing "lucrative media and marketing rights" to soccer tournaments as kickbacks over the past 24 years.
"The defendants fostered a culture of corruption and greed that created an uneven playing field for the biggest sport in the world," FBI Director James Comey said in a news release. "Undisclosed and illegal payments, kickbacks and bribes became a way of doing business at FIFA."
Six people were arrested Wednesday in Zurich with help from Swiss authorities, among them Jeffrey Webb, a FIFA vice president and head of CONCACAF, the FIFA-affiliated governing body for North America and the Caribbean.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter is not one of those arrested or facing charges by U.S. authorities. But he was among those investigated, and officials say that part of the probe continues.
The cloud of alleged wrongdoing won't change Blatter's plans to travel to Canada, which has an extradition agreement with the United States, said FIFA spokesman Walter De Gregorio.
Nor will it affect executives from soccer's scandal-plagued governing body from gathering Friday to possibly elect Blatter to a fifth term, despite questions raised by Greg Dyke, the head of Britain's Football Association, in light of Wednesday's developments.
The plans for future World Cups in Russia and Qatar, which has been dogged by criticism for its treatment of foreign workers rushing to build stadiums, are still on as well, De Gregorio said.
Yet Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan, one of those challenging Blatter for FIFA's presidency, said Wednesday that "we cannot continue with the crisis."
"FIFA needs leadership that governs, guides and protects our national associations," said Ali, who has blasted FIFA's "culture of intimidation."
"Leadership that accepts responsibility for its actions and does not pass blame. Leadership that restores confidence in the hundreds of millions of football fans around the world."
De Gregorio, the FIFA spokesman, scarcely mentioned the U.S. indictment in a news conference Wednesday, though he did try to put a positive spin at least on the Swiss investigation.
"This for FIFA is good," he said. "It is not good in terms of image, and it's not good in terms of reputation, but in terms of cleaning up, in terms of everything what we did in the last four years."
This assessment was shared by others around the globe, albeit for different reasons. They include those, like English football legend Gary Lineker, who have long ripped FIFA as a self-serving, corrupt organization.
QUESTIONS:
- What is the most appropriate punishment for the charges?
- Which sports organizations have the best and worst reputations for being truthful businesses?
- Would you encourage/allow your child to watch these events, given these allegations and charges?
- Everyone knows bribes and kickbacks are not ethical, but are they illegal?
Click here to view more://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/football/fifa-corruption-charges-justice-department/index.html
Posted May 27th 2015
GM, Ford, And Others Want to Make Working on Your Own Car Illegal
Boldride Jeff Perez April 22, 2015
One of the inherent rights of owning a vehicle is the ability to get on one’s backside — a wrench in one hand and a grease rag in the other, and just tinker to your little heart’s desire. Since the vehicle was invented, it’s been an important facet within the community of gearheads.
General Motors — the same company responsible for 87 deaths related to faulty ignition switches, FYI — wants to take that right away from you citing safety and security issues. Along with a few other big names.
It’s called the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). It’s been around since 2000 and started as anti-Internet piracy legislation. But automakers want to use it to try and make working on your own car illegal. Yes, illegal. The general premise is that unlike cars of the past, today’s vehicles are so advanced and use such a large amount of software and coding in their general makeup, altering said code could be dangerous and possibly even malicious.
Listing the vehicle as a “mobile computing device,” the law would hypothetically protect automakers from pesky owners looking to alter any sort of technology in the vehicle that relates to the onboard computer. Flashing your ECU would be a big no no, which could also lead to all sorts of problems for aftermarket shops.
What GM, and even tractor companies like John Deere, argues is that you, as an owner, don’t actually own your car. Rather, you’re sort of just borrowing it for an extended amount of time and paying for the rights to use the technology. If it sounds ridiculous— it is. But it gets even more ludicrous.
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, John Deere argued that “letting people modify car computer systems will result in them pirating music through the on-board entertainment system.”
That’s right— pirating music. Through a tractor.
DMCA does give a little bit of leeway, though. While the act could hypothetically lock customers out of key safety features, it would still allow owners the ability to repair other areas of the vehicle’s onboard computer as they see fit. It’s a slim compromise, but one that may be more closely based in reality.
As it currently sits, there are 13 (!) large automakers on the list supporting the DMCA. Want to know who they are? Of course you do:
General Motors Company
BMW Group
FCA US LLC
Ford Motor Company
Jaguar Land Rover
Mazda
Mercedes-Benz USA
Mitsubishi Motors
Porsche
Toyota
Volkswagen Group of America
Volvo Cars North America
Ironically, one of the brands that relies most on technology in its vehicles — Tesla Motors — in not in support of DMCA. While other American companies like GM, Ford and Chrysler all agree that working on your own vehicle should be punishable by law.
Funny how three brands that pride themselves on American ingenuity don’t want customers to work on their cars.
QUESTIONS:
- Would you support the legislation suggested in this article? Why or why not?
- Should vehicle owners have to take and pass a class to be able to fix their own cars? Why or why not?
- Is this constitutional? Read through the US Constitution and find statements to support your position.
- What can responsible citizens do to voice their opinions for or against such legislation? Describe a “path of protest” that would need to be followed.
Click here to view more:https://www.yahoo.com/autos/s/gm-ford-others-want-working-own-car-illegal-160000229.html
Posted May 20th 2015
Teen Suspended for Fake Bomb Vest Prom Proposal Stands by His Actions
By SUZAN CLARKE Good Morning America
The teen who donned a fake bomb vest to issue a prom proposal and received a five-day suspension for his actions told ABC News that he stood by his idea and believes the school’s punishment was unfair.
Ibrahim Ahmad, 18, of La Center, Washington, pulled the stunt Tuesday during lunch at La Center High School. It was witnessed by the principal and disciplinary action followed swiftly after, but Ahmad said his peers didn’t have a problem with the idea.
“The people that were in the cafeteria understood what was going on. ... I had a friend help me make the posters. Teachers even saw me make the posters,” he told ABC News today.
Ahmad said he created the simulated device from a paint ball jacket and red tubes. Along with the vest he carried a sign that read: “I kno it’s a little late, but I’m kinda the bomb, Rilea will u be my date to prom?”
His proposal was well received, he said.
“They applauded. You know, it was funny. The cafeteria was just -- it was a happy moment,” he said, adding that his intended date, Rilea Wolfe, accepted the proposal.
Since Ahmad can no longer attend the Saturday event -- his suspension includes the prom -- he and Wolfe will instead go to dinner and a movie, he said.
Ahmad said he was born in Seattle and is of Middle Eastern background. Asked whether he understood why his actions could be viewed with particular sensitivity given the current climate, he replied: “Well, wouldn’t that just be fueling, like, the stereotypes?”
“Being a Middle Eastern child, you’re growing up with all these bomb jokes. It’s kind of like it’s always a thing that’s there but ... the people that were there, they understood the situation," he added.
Ahmad, who plans to study biology in college, told ABC News that he wouldn’t change his prom proposal if he had the opportunity, and he believes the school’s actions were too harsh.
“I’m not allowed to go on the school property and I can’t do soccer right now because I’m suspended but I feel like it’s -- five days is a bit much, ‘cause even kids that get into, like, fights, they get suspended for like a day and that’s something more serious,” he said. “What they said I did was I disrupted the learning environment of the study body. It was during lunch, so.”
Mark Mansell, the school district’s superintendent, did not respond to a message left for him by ABC News at his office today, but in an interview published Wednesday in The Columbian newspaper he said the punishment was warranted.
“I want all my kids to feel safe and supported, but there’s a line,” Mansell told the newspaper. “Given the way the world is today and school safety, even if one parent or one student was upset about this, it causes issues.”
A short video on the newspaper’s website shows the vest-wearing Ahmad making his proposal while onlookers cheer.
QUESTIONS:
- In your opinion, was the punishment warranted?
- Infer what could have happened had someone thought this was a threatening action.
- Is this “fueling stereotypes”? Why or why not?
- What might be some appropriate alternatives to his punishment?
Click here to view more:https://gma.yahoo.com/teen-suspended-fake-bomb-vest-prom-proposal-stands-012342422--abc-news-parenting.html
Posted May 13th 2015
Baltimore lifts curfew imposed after unrest, relieving many
By Scott Malone and Ian Simpson
BALTIMORE (Reuters) - The mayor of Baltimore on Sunday lifted a night curfew imposed on the city last week to stem a spate of looting and arson that followed the funeral of a young black man who died from injuries suffered while in police custody.
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said she believed sufficient calm had returned to allow her to end the 10 p.m.-5 a.m. curfew, which took effect last Tuesday after protests over the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray turned violent on Monday.
"My goal has always been to not have the curfew in place a single day longer than was necessary," the mayor said. "I believe we have reached that point today."
The mayor said the Maryland National Guard would begin withdrawing from the streets over the next week.
The surprise announcement on Friday by the city's chief prosecutor that she was bringing criminal charges against the six police officers involved in Gray's arrest has helped to defuse outrage over his death.
The protests in the mostly black city of 625,000 have been a reprise of nationwide anger that erupted last year after the deaths of unarmed black men in confrontations with police in Missouri, New York and elsewhere.
"What we saw over the past few days is not just the resiliency of our city, but also our communities coming together," the mayor told a news conference. "We want to heal our city."
Republican Governor Larry Hogan welcomed the decision by the Democratic mayor, who had faced criticism for what some saw as a slow initial response to Monday's violence.
"It's going to take a while for us to get totally back to normal, but I think lifting the curfew is a good idea," he said at a separate news conference on Sunday.
He said an additional 1,000 police officers and 3,000 National Guard troops had been brought in to help keep the peace but were now going home.
Hogan was among those who expressed concern over the financial impact of the curfew, which forced bars and restaurants to close early.
BUSINESSES HIT BY CURFEW
Baltimore's downtown Inner Harbor district, a tourist destination, resembled a ghost town on Friday and Saturday nights, normally its busiest times.
"Baltimore curfew is seriously hurting businesses glad to see it lifted," wrote someone on Twitter using the name God First.
But many tweets accused authorities of having applied the curfew selectively and mostly in black neighborhoods.
Asked to respond to criticism that the curfew was enforced more rigorously in black neighborhoods than elsewhere, a Baltimore Police spokesman said law enforcement was concentrating resources in areas of greatest concern.
“Our constitutional and moral obligation is to work to keep the city of Baltimore safe,” Captain J. Eric Kowalczyk said at a media briefing.
Baltimore residents praised the decision by prosecutor Marilyn Mosby to charge one of the officers involved in Gray's arrest with murder and five others with lesser crimes.
Mosby said the state medical examiner ruled Gray's death a homicide. She said he was unlawfully arrested and the officers repeatedly ignored his pleas for medical help while he was handcuffed, shackled and lying face down in the back of a police van.
Her swift decision to bring charges contrasted with decisions last year by grand juries to clear officers in the Missouri and New York deaths.
QUESTIONS:
- What causes a riot? Describe the potential long-term causes and more immediate causes. Research several riots and determine if the causes are similar or not. Why might this be?
- Analyze the effects of a riot. Consider the political, social, and economic effects.
- What can/should authorities do to stop situations such as the Baltimore riots from occurring? What can be done to stop the violence once it has already been started?
- Do you feel the timing is right to lift the curfew? Why or why not?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/baltimore-lifts-curfew-imposed-unrest-relieving-many-103102331.html
Posted May 6th 2015
Blacks blame shooting on police indifference to complaints
By JEFFREY S. COLLINS and MICHAEL BIESECKER April 9, 2015 5:48 PM
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — The fatal shooting of an unarmed black man fleeing from a police officer has stirred outrage around the nation, but people in this South Carolina city aren't surprised, calling it inevitable in a police department they believe focuses on petty crimes and fails to keep its officers in check.
There is almost nothing in Michael Thomas Slager's police personnel file to suggest that his bosses considered him a rogue officer capable of murdering a man he just pulled over for a broken tail light. People in the community he served say this reflects what's going wrong with policing today: Officers nearly always get the last word when citizens complain.
"We've had through the years numerous similar complaints, and they all seem to be taken lightly and dismissed without any obvious investigation," the Rev. Joseph Darby, vice president of the Charleston branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said Thursday.
The mostly black neighborhood in North Charleston where Slager fired eight shots at the back of Walter Lamer Scott on Saturday is far from unique in this regard, said Melvin Tucker, a former FBI agent and police chief in four southern cities who often testifies in police misconduct cases.
Nationwide, training that pushes pre-emptive action, military experience that creates a warzone mindset, and legal system favoring police in misconduct cases all lead to scenarios where officers to see the people they serve as enemies, he said.
"It's not just training. It's not just unreasonable fear. It's not just the warrior mentality. It's not just court decisions that almost encourage the use of it. It is not just race," Tucker said. "It is all of that."
Both Slager, 33, and Scott, 55, were U.S. Coast Guard veteran. Slager had the dismissed excessive force complaint and Scott had been jailed repeatedly for failing to pay child support, but neither man had a record of violence. Slager consistently earned positive reviews in his five years with the North Charleston Police.
Slager's new attorney, Andy Savage, said Thursday that he's conducting his own investigation, and that it's "far too early for us to be saying what we think." Slager's first attorney said he followed all proper procedures before using deadly force, but swiftly dropped him after the dead man's family released a bystander's video of the shooting.
The officer, whose wife is eight months pregnant, is being held without bond pending an Aug. 21 hearing on a charge of murder that could put him in prison for 30 years to life if convicted.
As a steady crowd left flowers, stuffed animals, notes and protest signs Thursday in the empty lot where Scott was gunned down, many said police in South Carolina's third-largest city routinely dismiss complaints of petty brutality and harassment, even when eyewitnesses can attest to police misbehavior. The result, they say, is that officers are regarded with a mixture of distrust and fear.
Slager's file includes a single excessive use-of-force complaint, from 2013: A man said Slager used his stun gun against him without reason. But Slager was exonerated and the case closed, even though witnesses told The Associated Press that investigators never followed up with them.
"It's almost impossible to get an agency to do an impartial internal affairs investigation. First of all the investigators doing it are co-workers of the person being investigated. Number two, there's always the tendency on the part of the departments to believe the officers," Tucker said.
Mario Givens, the man who accused Slager of excessive force in 2013, told the AP that Slager woke him before dawn by loudly banging on his front door, and saying "Come outside or I'll tase you!"
"I didn't want that to happen to me, so I raised my arms over my head, and when I did, he tased me in my stomach anyway," Givens said. "They never told me how they reached the conclusion. Never. They never contacted anyone from that night. No one from the neighborhood."
Givens said he's convinced Scott's death could have been prevented if Slager had been disciplined in his case.
"If they had just listened to me and investigated what happened that night, this man might be alive today," he said.
Darby also wonders if Saturday's fatal shooting might have turned out differently had the department thoroughly investigated the 2013 Taser complaint.
"I think he would have been rebuked instead of fired," Darby said. "But maybe it changes the way he sees things."
Darby and other civil rights leaders want North Charleston to create an independent citizens review board to review complaints against police, since "law enforcement is going to almost always give itself the benefit of the doubt."
Such boards are few and far between in South Carolina.
North Charleston police spokesman Spencer Pryor said Wednesday that the department now plans to review Givens' complaint, although he wouldn't say what difference that could make now.
QUESTIONS:
- Reverend Melvin Tucker stated: “Nationwide, training that pushes pre-emptive action, military experience that creates a warzone mindset, and legal system favoring police in misconduct cases all lead to scenarios where officers to see the people they serve as enemies.” Does this make sense?
- Are white people also at risk from out-of-control police officers?
- How often does “excessive force” occur and go unreported?
- What has been your experience with the police? Have you had a bad experience, and did you report it? Did you have a good and/or helpful experience, and did you report it? If complaining about unprofessional police officers is important, is it also important to commend good officers?
- How do the police officers in your town respond and react to situations like the one in the article? When they look at you, do they see you as their boss or as their enemy?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/cop-shot-man-back-had-prior-excessive-force-070234942.html
Posted April 29th 2015
After asking special needs student to remove letter jacket, principal defends his actions
By Cindy Boren March 30
A Kansas high school principal has come under fire for refusing to allow a student who plays for a special-needs basketball team to wear a letter jacket, sparking anger over just what constitutes sportsmanship at the high school level.
After his decision became a viral news story last week, Ken Thiessen, principal at Wichita East, explained in an open letter Sunday that, while he understands that “criticism for my actions and decisions comes with the job,” there have been “horrible comments from people who have no idea what East High is really all about.”
The controversy bubbled up when Michael Kelley, a student who has Down syndrome and autism, came to school wearing a letter jacket that his mother had purchased for him and Thiessen ordered him to put on a sweatshirt instead. The story, first reported by KSN.com, had generated, as of Monday, over 40,000 signatures on a Change.org petition urging special-needs students to be allowed to receive varsity letters if they participate on a school-sponsored team. Libby Hastings made the impassioned plea, writing:
My name is Libby and Michael is my classmate. Like Michael, I love sports. My passion is soccer and I wear my varsity letter with pride. It’s a symbol of all my hard work and the love I have for my school. Whenever I’m going out of town, I’m sure to wear my varsity jacket. It’s a way to keep home and the things I love close to me. Sadly, that opportunity isn’t afforded to all my classmates.
When I learned that Michael wasn’t allowed to earn a varsity letter, I thought it must have been a mistake. Wichita East High School is an amazing school in a community with a big heart, so I was surprised to find out that the school district doesn’t have a policy that ensures varsity letters can be earned for participating in special needs sports. This broke my heart and I knew I had to do something. Michael works just as hard as I do, shows just as much passion, and loves our school deeply. He deserves to be awarded a varsity letter just as much I do.
Thiessen based his decision on the distinction of “varsity level competition” even though Kelley had worn the jacket for quite some time. “Teachers told the parents they would prefer he not wear the letter on his jacket,” he told KSN. “We have considered it, and our decision was no. We decided that it is not appropriate in our situation because it is not a varsity level competition.”
He explained further in his open letter on the Wichita East website Sunday:
Since the Tri-County league was created five years ago, East High has honored student participants with letters and pins celebrating years of participation. I have fully supported the work that has been underway the last nine months by the Tri-County league’s board to develop an athletic lettering program that creates league-wide standards for Tri-County athletes to earn an athletic letter and recommend a letter design. If the league’s recommendation is that the letter looks just like each school’s varsity athletic letter, I can and will support that as well. Yes a comment was made about a year ago to Mr. Kelley’s parent concerning the appropriateness of the letter on the jacket; however he has continued to wear his East High letter jacket in the hallways of our school. Our students work hard to earn the letters, medallions, honor cords and other visible symbols that represent their achievements in high school, and I love to see that school pride displayed in our hallways.
Although there’s no official policy in the Wichita school system about giving letters to special-needs students, Kelley’s mother believes all sports that are school sanctioned should be treated equally.
“It’s not just my son, it’s every student that was out there last night,” Jolinda Kelley, Michael’s mother, said. “It’s every student that is there on Fridays, that plays their hardest.”
The story reached Adrian Griffin, the Chicago Bulls assistant who attended Wichita East. He was moved to donate an autographed jersey, basketball, and a Derek Rose bobblehead to raise money for team uniforms.
“I can’t tell you in words how that makes me feel, that someone who doesn’t even know my son or these other students would step out and stand up for them like this,” Jolinda Kelley told KSN.
QUESTIONS:
- What additional information might you like to have about this story?
- Who was right—the principal or the student who wore the jacket?
- Is there ever a right time to break the rules? Why or why not?
- What are the potential social and political effects of this story?
- What can be done to solve this problem? Create a realistic solution.
Click here to view more://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/early-lead/wp/2015/03/30/after-asking-special-needs-student-to-remove-letter-jacket-principal-defends-his-actions/?wprss=rss_sports
Posted April 22nd 2015
Supreme Court rejects free speech appeal over Cinco de Mayo school dispute
Officials in Morgan Hill are concerned about protesters converging at Live Oak High School on Cinco de Mayo.
By Lawrence Hurley March 30, 2015 10:20 AM
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday left intact an appeals court ruling that school officials in California did not violate the free speech rights of students by demanding they remove T-shirts bearing images of the U.S. flag at an event celebrating the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo.
The court declined to hear an appeal filed by three students at Live Oak High School in the town of Morgan Hill, south of San Francisco. School staff at the May 5, 2010, event told several students their clothing could cause an incident. Two chose to leave for home after refusing to turn their shirts inside out.
The school had been experiencing gang-related tensions and racially charged altercations between white and Hispanic students at the time. School officials said they feared the imposition of American patriotic imagery by some students at an event where other students were celebrating their pride in their Mexican heritage would incite fights between the two groups.
Lawyers for the students said that the fear that the T-shirts would offend others did not trump free speech rights because the act of wearing the shirts did not rise to the level of incitement to violence.
Three of the affected students - Daniel Galli, Matt Dariano, and Dominic Maciel - were involved in the lawsuit, which was filed on their behalf by their parents.
In the February 2014 ruling, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said officials did not violate the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech. School officials acted out of legitimate concerns of violence when they sent a handful of students home for refusing to change their American flag-embellished apparel, the court said.
The case is Dariano v. Morgan Hill Unified School District, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 14-720.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham)
QUESTIONS:
- Why and how are students’ rights while in school different than an average citizen’s rights? Is this right?
- Do you think the students’ right to free speech was violated? Why or why not? Quote the First Amendment as you support your position.
- How can schools effectively balance the celebration of all races, ethnicities, etc.? Did Live Oak accomplish this? Why or why not?
- What if this had been a religious celebration, rather than one of heritage? Would the outcome have been different? Why or why not?
- How can students, parents, and community members responsibly voice their approval or disapproval of this incident?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/supreme-court-rejects-free-speech-appeal-over-cinco-142019486.html
Posted April 15th 2015
High school basketball coach suspended over players' pink jerseys for breast cancer awareness
Published March 04, 2015 FoxNews.com
This photo, obtained by Fox affiliate KTTV, shows members of the Narbonne High School girls basketball team with one of the pink-lettered jerseys worn as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
A Los Angeles high school girls basketball team whose unsanctioned support for breast cancer awareness got it banned from a high school tourney is back in, but their coach won't be there to guide them.
Coach Victoria Sanders has been suspended for the remainder of the season for allowing the girls' basketball team at Narbonne High School in Harbor City, Calif., to wear jerseys with pink letters and numbers as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The "Gauchos" team -- No. 1 in their division -- was initially ousted from the tournament over what officials deemed a uniform violation, but was reinstated Tuesday into the Section Open Division playoffs, according to Fox affiliate KTTV.
While the team will face Palisades High in the section championship game Saturday at Cal State Dominguez Hills, Sanders will not be allowed to be there.
"We didn't do a crime. We didn't commit anything bad," Narbonne player Latecia Smith told KTTV. "This is all for a great cause."
This photo, obtained by Fox affiliate KTTV, shows one of the pink-lettered jerseys worn by the team as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
An assistant section commissioner observed the players wearing the pink-lettered jerseys during last Saturday's semifinal game against View Park, the Los Angeles Times reported. The team's official school colors are green, gold and black.
Sanders told the newspaper she was unaware the team needed approval to wear the jerseys -- which the girls had sported during an earlier game this season with no complaints.
"I was under the impression we were able to do it," Sanders told the paper. "I didn't know we had to fill out a waiver."
City Section Commissioner John Aguirre originally ruled Narbonne would have to forfeit its semifinal win because the jerseys were in violation of City Section rules. However, a three-person appeals panel reinstated the team a day later as an attempt "to meet the spirit of the rule and place kids first," according to the paper.
But Sanders was subsequently suspended as a result, and the team will be placed on probation next season and banned from having any home playoff games.
"Breast cancer awareness is in October, and there's a process for people to request color change," Aguirre said prior to the reinstatement. "The principal didn't even know about these numbers. If they're going to blatantly disregard these rules and regulations, they're going to affect kids."
Narbonne was on probation for an earlier violation of City Section rules, which reportedly played a role in the decision, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"The kids had no idea that they were in violation. The parents had no idea that they were in violation," parent Crystal Franklin told KTTV.
Major breast cancer research groups, meanwhile, praised the players for wearing the jerseys -- despite their punishment from officials.
"Like it or not, breast cancer is a team sport," said Shirley Horn, communications director at the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation in Santa Monica, Calif.
"The only way we are going to find the cause and learn how to prevent it is for women, like the Narbonne girls' basketball team, to participate in understanding and tackling the breast cancer problem," Horn said. "We hope that when these young women are older, they will participate in research through programs like our Army of Women® and Health of Women Study™."
QUESTIONS:
- Do you agree with the punishments the team and the coach received? Why or why not?
- In cases such as this, which is more important—adhering to rules or supporting a cause and/or team spirit? List reasons supporting both positions.
- How does your school or community support and raise awareness of issues such as breast cancer? What else can we do to show support and raise awareness?
- Why do organizations, such as sports teams and schools, have rules about these types of actions? Is it necessary? What is the goal behind creating such guidelines?
- If you were on this team, how do you think you would feel about the situation?
Click here to view more://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/03/04/high-school-basketball-coach-suspended-after-female-players-seen-wearing-pink/
Posted April 8th 2015
Egypt condemns to death Brotherhood chief, 21 others
Cairo (AFP) - Egyptian courts on Monday condemned to death Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and 21 other members of the banned movement in two separate cases over incitement to violence.
State news agency MENA said that Badie, 71, and 13 top Brotherhood members were found guilty of "plotting attacks aimed at sowing chaos" in Egypt in 2013. They were accused of setting up an "operations room" to prepare attacks against the state in the weeks after the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.
In November that year the Brotherhood was declared a "terrorist organization" as part of a brutal crackdown by the authorities against his supporters that left hundreds dead. Thousands have also been jailed, often in speedy mass trials that have sparked an international outcry over the fairness of such proceedings, with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressing his alarm.
MENA said among Badie's co-defendants sentenced to death were the Brotherhood's former spokesman Mahmud Ghazlan, former provincial governors and other senior members of the outlawed group.
Defense lawyer Ahmad Helmi branded the verdicts as "farcical", in a telephone interview with AFP. He said the verdicts were handed down even though the defense had not finished its closing arguments concerning five of the defendants.
MENA said the court had referred its verdict to Al-Azhar, the country's top Sunni Muslim authority, for an advisory opinion in accordance with Egyptian law before ratifying the death sentences. Al-Azhar's opinion is not binding with the court having the final say in the case, and could choose to commute the sentence which can later be challenged in an appeals court.
A total of 51 suspects, including the 14 sentenced to death Monday, are being tried in the case, 31 of whom are behind bars. The Cairo court said it would announce the final verdict in the case on April 11.
Meanwhile a court in the northern city of Mansura also sentenced to death eight Brotherhood members accused of setting up a "terror cell" and murdering opponents of the Islamist organization, MENA said.
Their verdicts were also referred to Al-Azhar, said the agency, adding that the court would give a final verdict in that case on June 22. Badie has already been sentenced to four life terms in separate trials and was condemned to death for incitement to violence but that sentence was overturned and he is now facing a retrial.
Since the overthrow of Morsi the authorities have launched a brutal crackdown against his supporters, including leaders from his Muslim Brotherhood, leaving hundreds dead and thousands jailed after often speedy mass trials. Morsi himself is facing several trials on charges that are punishable by death.
On March 7, Egypt carried out the first execution to a man involved in violent clashes two days after Morsi's ouster. The interior ministry said Mahmud Ramadan had thrown children from the roof of a building in the port city of Alexandria during violent clashes organized by the Brotherhood.
QUESTIONS:
- Egypt is now executing the supporters of the Brotherhood. The US claims to support democratically-elected governments. However, we did nothing when the Islamist government was overthrown. Did we let it happen because we did not like the Islamist government?
- Does the US Department of State support democracy and elections only if it likes the results? If that were so, would it make the US Department of State hypocrites?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/egypt-condemns-death-brotherhood-chief-13-others-181530192.html
Posted April 1st 2015
Ohio man cleared of murder after 39 years in jail to get $1 million payment
(Reuters) - An Ohio man freed last year after spending 39 years in jail for a murder he did not commit will receive more than $1 million from the state for his wrongful imprisonment, court records show.
An Ohio Court of Claims judge on Thursday ordered that just over $1 million be paid to Ricky Jackson, the longest-held U.S. prisoner to be cleared of a crime.
"Wow, I didn't know that," Jackson told the Cleveland Plain Dealer, which said he learnt of the payment from a journalist.
"Wow, wow, wow, that's fantastic, man. I don't even know what to say. This is going to mean so much," he said.
Jackson was convicted along with Wiley Bridgeman and Bridgeman's brother, Kwame Ajamu, for the 1975 murder of Harold Franks, a money order salesman in the Cleveland area, after a 12-year-old boy testified he saw the attack, court papers show.
The boy, Eddie Vernon, recanted his testimony years later, and told authorities he had never actually witnessed the crime. There was no other evidence linking Jackson to the killing.
Other witnesses confirmed the then-teenaged Jackson was on a school bus at the time of the killing. He had originally been sentenced to death but escaped because of a paperwork error.
Bridgeman was freed soon after Jackson, after the charges were dismissed last November. Although Bridgeman had first been freed in 2002, he was imprisoned again for a probation violation, defense attorneys said.
A Cleveland judge in December dropped all charges against Ajamu, who spent 27 years in jail before having his death sentence commuted and being freed in 2003.
The 39 years Jackson spent in jail was the longest time a prisoner had been held before being exonerated, the Ohio Innocence Project, which provided legal counsel to Jackson, and the National Registry of Exonerations said.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
QUESTIONS:
- With the US having the highest percentage of people in prison of any country in the world, are too many people in jail?
- The US holds the top spot with China and Iran for the most people executed each year. Is the death penalty a good idea, considering cases like this?
- What is the innocence project?
- Is a million dollars reimbursement enough money for the years of freedom he lost? What if he had been executed?
- Why was his case not reevaluated and he not released when the 12-year-old recanted the statement?
- Why was he given a death sentence when witnesses stated he was on a school bus at the time of the murder?
- Could this happen to you?
- What kinds of alternative punishments can society use instead of prison? Would they be effective?
- Pick two other countries and conduct research to learn about their crime and punishment. Compare them to the US, and record your thoughts. Which seem most effective? Who has the least/most crime? Is that adequately correlated to their punishments?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/ohio-man-cleared-murder-39-years-jail-1-063803465.html
Posted March 25th 2015
Let me sleep: Georgia trash man gets 30 days in jail for 5 a.m. pick up
In Sandy Springs, Ga., a sanitation worker was sentenced to 30 days in jail for picking up trash too early in a wealthy neighborhood. Was justice served?
If he keeps his nose clean, sanitation worker Kevin McGill of Sandy Springs, Ga., might just make it through his 30-day sentence (to be served on consecutive weekends) for disturbing wealthy residents by picking up the trash too early in the morning – just in time to celebrate National Garbage Man Day – June 17.
Mr. McGill, a new employee of a company contracted to do sanitation work in Sandy Springs, was cited for picking up trash just after 5 a.m. one morning, according to WSB-TV.
A city ordinance limits trash pickup to between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. in order to allow the wealthy suburbans there to sleep peacefully.
One of the fundamental questions raised by this case is whether an employee or the employer should be punished for a violation of the law. Typically, prosecutors go after the company.
But Sandy Springs prosecutor Bill Riley told local media that he’s tried citing companies with little result and so has chosen to go after the individual employees instead. “Fines don't seem to work,” Riley said, according to WSB-TV in Atlanta. "The only thing that seems to stop the activity is actually going to jail.”
Mr. Riley sought the maximum punishment of 30 days in jail – and the judge agreed. This is the second sanitation worker he has prosecuted for the same infraction.
Neither Mr. Riley nor the city spokesperson returned requests for comment.
“This is ridiculous!!!!. I guess the US postal mail carriers need not get ready for jail time too,” wrote John Arwood, founder of National Garbageman Day, second generation garbage man, and CEO of Arwood Waste on his Facebook page.
Kyle Brown also responded via Facebook, “As a garbage man myself I think this is stupid and for the DA to call garbage men a nuisance was just wrong how bout we go on strike and then see how he feels about sanitation workers just imagine take one city and stop all garbage collection for 30 days.”
Angela Piccinonna also responded to the Facebook post writing, “This is an atrocity. We own a garbage company in Miami and yes there are absolutely time restrictions, HOWEVER, we, the company, get those exorbitant fines should our company not follow the rules. If a driver is costing the company fines, we address it - the answer is not to JAIL the employee. As Americans, we should all find this unacceptable, whether in the trash industry or not, the government has ZERO right to jail you when you didn't commit a crime. Where is the Washington outrage on this? We have national coverage on other issues, but a man simply doing his job and getting put in jail over a time restriction is ok? I really hope this story goes national.”
While other upscale residential area have noise ordinances aimed at letting people get some shuteye in the pre-dawn hours, even Fairfax County in VA., nationally known for having wealthy, high-profile residents, isn't bringing the trash man to trial for waking the neighborhood.
Robert Scott has been with the Fairfax County, Va., Solid Waste Management Program for 32 years and says in an interview, “Here in Fairfax County we have Senators, Congressmen and Supreme Court justices in some pretty upscale residential areas and they don’t have a problem with us picking up at six a.m.”
Asked if the county would prosecute a sanitation worker for making a pickup prior to posted pickup times and disturbing the residents Mr. Scott says it would be more in line with his county’s practices to hold the company accountable, not the individual driver. “I am shocked by hearing of this story,” he says. “We would hold the hauler accountable and even then they’d likely get a warning. We wouldn’t go after the driver.”
Director of Customer Service at the Fairfax offices, Josie Raimey says in an interview, “We have a noise ordinance that prevents trucks and other noise prior to 6 a.m., but I’ve never heard of a company not backing their driver. I’m surprised the company employing him didn’t step up to his defense.”
Scott explains that the noise ordinance in Fairfax applies to any delivery truck including FedEx, UPS or trash. “Man, this is something,” he says. “I’m going to have to get a copy of that story and bring it up with my staff at our next meeting so they can see how far some people are willing to go.”
QUESTIONS:
- Is the employee getting punished for something his employer instructed him to do?
- Is the prosecutor acting cowardly by going after the employee and not the employer?
- Do people show garbage men the respect they deserve?
- Do the wealthy residents think they are more important than garbage men?
- Would the wealthy residents think differently about the importance of garbage men if the garbage men did not pick up their trash?
- Is it possible that this hardworking man is doing thankless work for people who consider him invisible? If he loses his job, he will then collect unemployment and possibly welfare. What do you think?
Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/let-sleep-georgia-trash-man-gets-30-days-213758415.html
Posted March 18th 2015
Obama, Bush, civil rights icons retrace Selma march
Aamer Madhani and David Jackson, USA TODAY1:32 p.m. EDT March 8, 2015
Crowds gathered in Selma, Alabama to remember Bloody Sunday and to hear remarks from President Obama and Rep. John Lewis. VPC
SELMA, Ala. — President Obama, speaking Saturday at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, placed Selma in the pantheon of historical sites alongside Concord, Gettysburg and Kitty Hawk.
Then Obama, joined by his wife Michelle and their daughters, walked hand-in-hand with one of the original Selma marchers, Rep. John, Lewis, D-Ga., across the 1,200-foot-long, steel-and-concrete bridge to commemorate the bloody civil rights confrontation 50 years ago that transformed America. Former president George W. Bush and other dignitaries and activists joined them.
It was a particularly poignant moment for a president who has traced the events on Bloody Sunday in 1965 to raising the nation's conscience and changing its voting laws, opening the way for his election as the country's first African-American president.
And an especially sweet moment for the 75-year-old Lewis, who suffered a cracked skull five decades ago when Alabama state troopers and Sheriff Jim Clark's posse used billy clubs and tear gas against civil rights activists as they attempted to march to Montgomery to demand the right to vote.
With temperatures heading to the 60s, thousands of people packed downtown Water Street, stretching away from the stage at the bottom of the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
"There are places, and moments in America where this nation's destiny has been decided," Obama told the crowd. "Many are sites of war — Concord and Lexington, Appomattox and Gettysburg. Others are sites that symbolize the daring of America's character — Independence Hall and Seneca Falls, Kitty Hawk and Cape Canaveral. Selma is such a place."
Obama used the very place he stood to underscore the challenge that civil right activists faced five decades ago. "The Americans who crossed this bridge were not physically imposing," he said. "But they gave courage to millions. They held no elected office. But they led a nation."
"They marched as Americans who had endured hundreds of years of brutal violence, and countless daily indignities — but they didn't seek special treatment, just the equal treatment promised to them almost a century before."
Before his speech, Obama signed legislation awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to these "foot soldiers" of the Selma voting rights demonstrations, including the eventual march to Montgomery that took place March 21-25, 1965.
The president attempted to draw a direct line from the past to the present — and the future — by addressing such sensitive issues as recent racial clashes in Ferguson, Mo., and political disputes over renewing the Voting Rights Act that Selma helped deliver.
He rejected those who argue that there had been little real change in the past 50 years. "To deny this progress, this hard-won progress — our progress — would be to rob us of our own agency, our own capacity, our responsibility to do what we can to make America better." He also rejected the notion that racism in America had been banished. "We just need to open our eyes, and ears, and hearts, to know that this nation's racial history still casts its long shadow upon us."
“Fifty years from Bloody Sunday, our march is not yet finished. But we are getting closer.” ~President Barack Obama
Instead, he argued, "Selma teaches us, too, that action requires that we shed our cynicism. For when it comes to the pursuit of justice, we can afford neither complacency nor despair."
"Fifty years from Bloody Sunday, our march is not yet finished, but we are getting closer," Obama told the crowd. "Two hundred and thirty-nine years after this nation's founding, our union is not yet perfect, but we are getting closer. Our job's easier because somebody already got us through that first mile. Somebody already got us over that bridge."
In the lead-up to the president's remarks, speakers blared gospel and '60s tunes, while a video board displayed documentary images from the civil rights area, including the replay of a phone conversation between President Lyndon Johnson and civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.
Celebrants snapped pictures of each other or of celebrities in the crowd that included Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III. Many of the parents and grandparents of people who lined Water Street couldn't vote in some states because of restrictive racial policies; that started to change on March 7, when state troopers attacked marchers on the bridge in Selma, sending more than 50 people to the hospital, but also galvanizing support for the federal Voting Rights Act later that year.
Ron Davis, only 2 years old during the Selma attack, lived to see millions of Americans join the voter rolls — and he grew up to be the two-term mayor of Prichard, Ala. "You think about what our ancestors did to fight for us," Davis said as he awaited Saturday's events.
Jan Meadows, 73, who traveled from Atlanta to Selma to hear Obama speak, said the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — combined with the Civil Rights Act the year before — "gave us the right to get political power." That power enabled African Americans to advance economically and socially, said Meadows, who became an architectural interior designer. "We were able to vote, we were able to elect black officials — we were able to go to school," she said.
There are also vast economic problems in Selma and elsewhere. Many boarded-up businesses in Selma's small downtown were decorated for Saturday's ceremony. The area's poverty and jobless rates remain high. "I'm hoping this will bring on changes, not just in Selma, but in the South," said Annice Jordan, 72, a retiree from Seattle who was born in Selma. "When it comes to poor people, things are sad."
For Sidney Willis. 69, of Mobile, Ala., this is his ninth straight Bloody Sunday commemoration. All these years later, Willis said, the event remains as poignant as ever. The commemoration helps assuage some of the hurt he felt as a black man coming of age in the South during a tumultuous moment for America, he said.
"I knew what it was to see segregation," Willis said. "When I was In the Coast Guard after high school, there were places the white guys could go that I wouldn't have been allowed to frequent. We've made progress from those days, but we still have a long way to go."
Luci Baines Johnson, the late president's younger daughter, recalled to USA TODAY being by her father's side the day he signed the voting act into law.
"This marks a sacred moment in our history," said Johnson, who traveled to Selma to join in the commemoration. "There were so many heroes that led to this day, the ones whose names we know but also those who were fighting in the shadows and whose names weren't recorded in the history books." Obama previously took part in the annual commemoration in 2007, when he was serving in the Senate.
The commemoration comes at another difficult period in race relations in America, following the recent high-profile killings by police of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., Eric Garner in Staten Island, N.Y., and Tamir Rice in Cleveland, all black men.
This week, the Justice Department issued a scathing report detailing institutional racism in the Ferguson Police Department, while clearing former police officer Darren Wilson for the shooting last summer of the unarmed 18-year-old Brown, whose killing galvanized nationwide protests. Brown's family announced this week their intention to file a wrongful death lawsuit against Ferguson and Wilson.
"I feel a direct connection to what happened in Selma and wanted to be here," said Gwenn Carr, the mother of Garner, who took part in the commemoration. "What happened back then, what's happening today, it's déjà vu."
Over the past two days, at forums and gatherings at some of the same Selma churches that served as the nerve centers of the 1965 movement, civil rights leaders have been calling on Americans to pressure Congress over the passage of stringent voter ID rules and other new voting rules that have been passed in several states after the Supreme Court struck down a key provision in the landmark legislation nearly two years ago.
In what is known as the Shelby ruling, the high court ruled that the Voting Rights Act formula used to determine which parts of the country would need federal approval — known as pre-clearance — to change their voting procedures was outdated. The court instructed Congress to write a formula that was reflective of current conditions, but Congress has yet to act.
"The Voting Rights Act is being dismantled," said Kirsten Moller, who traveled to Selma from San Francisco to be part of the commemoration. "We need to protect it. It's not a given. We need to be vigilant."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who was among the dozens of Washington lawmakers to travel to Selma this weekend, called out her fellow lawmakers for failing to take action on the Voting Rights Act, nearly two years after the high court decision.
"We have not in the United States Congress reinvigorated the Voting Rights Act gotten it back to the president for his signature," Warren said. "That's what we should be talking about today."
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, who was also in Selma on Saturday, said the issue should be debated by Congress, but he resisted Democrats' efforts to tie it to the Bloody Sunday anniversary.
"This is about more than tweaks of the Voting Rights Act," he said. "This is about how do we secure that we have equal justice and that we learn from lessons of the past."
Gatrice Benson, a Selma native now living in Georgia, got a call from her 73-year-old grandmother not long after Obama finished his speech.
Her grandmother, Mary Martin, tells stories about the flurry of activity around Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church in March 1965. The church, not far from her house, was at the center of organizing activity at the time of the voting rights marches. She couldn't join her granddaughter at the foot of the bridge on Saturday, but watched the television coverage.
"When she saw the pictures of Obama crossing the bridge, it was just so powerful," Benson said. "She cried and I cried, too." Eric Archie, 52, a construction manager from Montgomery, called the event "a celebration for me ... Something that divided us is now unifying."
Archie brought his 8-year-old son Amari, who he said became interested in history after seeing the film Selma. "I want him to see Selma," Archie said. "Maybe 50 years from now, he can tell his children he was at the 50th anniversary."
QUESTIONS:
- Research to learn about the Voter ID Rules. What position do you take on this issue? Is the Voter ID law fair/ just? Why or why not?
- Is racism still alive in the U.S.? Support your answer with logical defense.
- What kinds of social, political and economic effects may occur when voter demographics change- as they did when African Americans were given the right to vote?
- What can be done to improve race relations in your area, nationally, or internationally?
Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/03/07/selma-50th-anniversary-bloody-sunday/24552475/
Posted March 11th 2015
Teens criticized for giving students freedom over whether to say Pledge of Allegiance
By Michael Walsh Yahoo News
Four small words. One big backlash.
A few teen girls at South Portland High School in Maine are facing harsh criticism for giving their fellow students the option to abstain from reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
Senior Class President Lily SanGiovanni started adding the words "if you'd like to" when asking her peers to join her in promising their loyalty to the nation, according to local media.
SanGiovanni, Senior Class Vice President Morrigan Turner, and their friend Gaby Ferrell say they started to think seriously about the topic after some teachers made students feel uncomfortable for not conforming, the Bangor Daily News reported.
They discovered that state law requires schools to allow every student to have the opportunity to recite the Pledge of Allegiance but “may not require a student to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.”
"We are not doing this because we hate America or anything. We are really doing this because we understand there are people who choose to say the pledge and it means a lot to them and for others it doesn't," SanGiovanni told WCSH.
The young women want people to be free to think about what the pledge means to them and decide for themselves whether they want to participate.
Not everyone agrees.
Critics reportedly derided the girls on social media and sent emails to the school questioning the phrase’s inclusion in the morning announcements.
"There were some people saying we should go to Syria or Russia or Afghanistan and that will change us. It’s really hard to hear that coming from your community," Turner told the local paper.
Principal Ryan Caron told the NBC affiliate that he asked SanGiovanni to stop saying, "if you'd like to," because of school procedure, not outside pressure.
The girls, he said, would need to present their plan to say those words before the school board for approval.
"The fact that I was asked to take away the 'If you would like to,'" SanGiovanni said, "I felt like they were asking me to take away the law."
QUESTIONS:
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1. What's your opinion about the inclusion of the "If you'd like to..." phrase? Is it right to have it included? Why or why not?
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Click here to view more://news.yahoo.com/teen-girls-criticized-for-giving-students-choice-over-whether-to-say-pledge-of-allegiance-220757523.html
Posted March 4th 2015
2 Teenagers Were Eager to Shovel Snow. Then the Police Paid a Visit.
Eric Schnepf, left, and Matt Molinari, at Mr. Schnepf’s home in New Jersey. They are seniors at Bridgewater-Raritan High School. Credit Bryan Anselm for The New York Times
One evening last month, the night before a blizzard that threatened the Northeast with a lot of bluster, two young men in central New Jersey decided to take action.
Armed with about 100 fliers, Matt Molinari and Eric Schnepf, both 18 and seniors at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, went door to door in Bridgewater and then headed to Bound Brook, a neighboring town of about 10,000, to offer snow-shoveling services for a reasonable price the following day.
The ensuing combination of neighborhood vigilance, community policing, social media, local and national news coverage, libertarian ideology and the New Jersey Legislature swirled into an unexpected narrative about small-town living, or media fishbowls, or perhaps snowstorms.
After handing out about 40 fliers with their names and cellphone numbers, around 5:45 p.m. on Jan. 27, the two teenagers were stopped by police officers responding to a call that some suspicious characters were traipsing through yards, going door to door.
Mr. Molinari and Mr. Schnepf met the description and were told that soliciting without a permit was “technically illegal” according to a town ordinance, Mr. Molinari said. They were also violating the town’s travel ban, which had gone into effect at 5 p.m., six hours before the state’s.
Mr. Molinari and Mr. Schnepf went door to door in Bridgewater, N.J., offering shoveling services the night before a snowstorm last month. Credit Bryan Anselm for The New York Times
The teenagers were not charged, or given a written citation.
“We weren’t trying to break the law, and we only knew about the state travel ban at 11 p.m.,” Mr. Molinari said. Solicitation permits in the town can cost up to $200, and are valid for a year. Nonprofit groups are exempt from the fee but still have to apply for a permit before going door to door.
The ordinance does not apply to political campaigns, volunteer firefighters or real estate and insurance salesmen who have state licenses. The officers told the snow shovelers to go home because the roads were not safe and said the teenagers could come back the next day if their services had been requested.
The snowfall did not live up to its billing, and so they got only two requests for shoveling, and made about $50 each.
Mike Bal, a town resident whose home the boys visited, saw the police stop the shovelers. After hearing the boys’ account of the police encounter, he took to the “Bound Brook NJ Events” Facebook page, a town-affiliated forum, to express his outrage.
“Are you kidding me? Our generation does nothing but complain about his generation being lazy and not working for their money,” Mr. Bal wrote on the page. “Here’s a couple kids who take the time to print up flyers, walk door to door in the snow and then shovel snow for some spending money. And someone calls the cops and they’re told to stop?”
Josh Schroeder, who runs the Facebook page, posted the boys’ flier, because he “wanted to help them make money.” Both posts “went viral,” he said. News media vans descended on the town; Glenn Beck talked about it, calling the situation a confrontation between young American entrepreneurship and the limits of an overly bureaucratic government.
Since the two shovelers had put their cell phone numbers on the flier, which had been published in USA Today along with an article (the flier has since been removed), Mr. Molinari and Mr. Schnepf kept their phones off for a while, they said, because they were getting hundreds of texts and calls from people who wanted to express their support or hire them for snow removal.
“It was meant to be a good deed,” Mr. Schroeder said of posting the flier on Facebook. He said other news media outlets had skewed the story: “They twisted this into an antipolice thing,” he said. “It wasn’t the police’s fault — they were just doing their job.”
Michael Jannone, chief of the Bound Brook Police Department, said the verbal attacks on his department from outraged people across the country had been “vicious.”
“We’ve been called everything from fascists to Nazis to Gestapo,” Chief Jannone said. “Our officers were never going to give them a ticket for that,” he added. “I can’t even count the number of times I’ve paid $5 for a cup of lemonade from a lemonade stand — I didn’t tell those kids to get a permit either.”
Chief Jannone said the danger from the storm was real: About three minutes after the officers had left the shovelers, their patrol car slid in the snow into a telephone pole, causing $11,000 worth of damage.
He also worried about the situation’s effect on community policing: “There are already disheartening relations between communities and police around the country, and then you have something like this. It doesn’t help.”
State Assemblyman Michael Doherty, a Republican whose district includes Bound Brook and Bridgewater, said he thought the law “sends young people the wrong message” when it came to hard work and entrepreneurship.
“People have been shoveling snow for their neighbors for decades, if not a few hundred years,” he said in a telephone interview. “A law like this just shows how overbearing government can be.” So Mr. Doherty brought a bill before the Assembly this month, which stipulates that ordinances related to soliciting would not apply to snow-shoveling services offered within 24 hours of a predicted snowstorm.
In a statement about the bill, Mr. Doherty said, “We shouldn’t let government criminalize harmless childhood activities that were once rites of passage for tens of millions of American kids.”
Mr. Doherty is a frequent critic of Gov. Chris Christie, a fellow Republican, on policy issues — “I’m probably his No. 1 critic that speaks publicly,” Mr. Doherty said — but he said he thought Mr. Christie would support something like this.
Mr. Christie’s office did not respond to requests for comment. On Tuesday, the teenagers had another snow day and got back in business, shoveling about four inches of snow from two houses. One of the houses where they had cleared snow, a two-story, light-blue home, belonged to Daphne Ruben, a special-education teacher at their high school. By the late afternoon, the driveway and sidewalks in front of the house were clear.
Ms. Ruben said she had heard about the teenagers’ encounter with the law from another teacher. And on this morning, she said, she phoned Mr. Molinari at 8:30 to ask if she could hire the duo.
Her husband had recently had surgery, and she could not shovel the snow herself. She said she paid the two, who used shovels and snow blowers, with a check for $50, and gave them hot chocolate and chocolate-chip cookies before they left for baseball practice.
The police were not involved.
By TATIANA SCHLOSSBERGFEB. 19, 2015
Jason Grant contributed reporting.
QUESTIONS:
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1. Is the law ridiculous? Is the law overbearing?
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Posted February 25th 2015
Zombieland? Tech Wrecking Sleep for Scores of Teens: Study
Maybe they should be dubbed Generation-Zzzz.
Teens who bury their faces for hours on end in laptops, tablets, smart phones or TV screens during the days tend to suffer bad nights of sleep, researchers reported Monday.
"There are indications that today's teenagers sleep less than previous generations," said Mari Hysing, co-author and a psychologist at Uni Research Health in Norway. "There are some aspects of electronic devices that may give an additional arousal; the [screen] light may impact sleep hormone production, and also the social communication aspect" may stir adolescents to keep chatting deep into the night.
"We cannot conclude which time during the day was more detrimental [to sleep], but it seems that it is the cumulative daily amount which is important," Hysing added.
The research, published in the online journal BMJ Open, was based on the tech and sleep behaviors of 10,000 16- to 19-year-old boys and girls. They participated in the Norwegian youth@hordaland study during 2012. All were asked how much screen time they absorbed daily outside of school plus which electronic devices they used most, and when they normally went to bed, how long it typically took them to fall asleep, and when they usually arose on weekdays and weekends.
Some of the key findings:
- If a teen's total, daytime screen time surpassed four hours, that was associated with a 49 percent higher risk of taking longer than one hour to fall asleep when compared to adolescents whose cumulative daily screen time fell below four hours.
- Total screen viewing that exceeded two hours after school was "strongly linked" to both a longer period of tossing and turning before dreams finally came—and with shorter, nightly sleep duration.
- Teens who used two to three devices each day were more likely to sleep for less than five hours when compared to those used just one gadget.
How unhealthy is a five-hour night of sleep for kids that age?
On Monday, the National Sleep Foundation, along with an expert panel that included pediatricians and neurologists, recommended that teenagers between the ages of 14 and 17 get eight to 10 hours of restorative sleep each night — a full hour longer than the group had previously suggested.
The precise time each day that teens spend online, listening to digital music or watching television also appears to be critical in marring or bolstering sleep patterns. Hysing and colleagues noted that use of any device in the hour before bedtime was linked to a heightened risk of taking longer than 60 minutes to get to sleep, the authors said. Tapping tech while in bed seems especially unhealthy.
"Use of electronic devices may lead to an association between the bed with wakefulness, and ideally we want the bed and the bedroom to be associated with sleep," Hysing said.
But a leading parenting expert who viewed the findings disagreed that cumulative, daily screen time is the main culprit robbing teens of sleep.
"The quantity of screen time … is an outdated concept," said Dr. Deborah Gilboa, who also specializes in youth developing. "Homework alone often requires hours of screen use, and that is unlikely to change."
Instead, a better solution would be to teach teens that screen use can, in fact, impact their sleep, and to encourage them and their families "to find a healthy balance of screen use, vigorous exercise, and non-screen relaxation in order to improve sleep and health overall," Gilboa said.
"This study points out all of the reasons that we need to evaluate screen use in teens with sleep difficulty or too little sleep with the same — or more — thoroughness with which we evaluate caffeine and other stimulant use. It's becoming more and more clear that screens are brain stimulants," Gilboa added.
What more should parents do? And what can teens do to revise their sleeping habits and grab more slumber?
Current health experts suggest that teens and kids don't have a TV in their bedrooms. The Norwegian authors want to push that change further.
"There may be other electronic devices exerting the same negative influence on sleep, such as PCs and mobile phones. The results confirm recommendations for restricting media use in general," the authors conclude. But, their study didn't allow them to place specific restrictions on cumulative daily hours of screen time.
"We recommend that the adolescents, at the least, leave their electronic devices outside the bedroom before they go to sleep," Hysing told NBC News. "In other words, we do not recommend falling asleep with the TV on or with music on your ear. Ideally, the last hour before bed should be free of electronic devices."
First published February 2nd 2015, 7:35 pm By Bill Briggs, NBC News
QUESTIONS:
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1. How often do you get the required amount of sleep? What factors play a role in preventing a lack of sleep from happening every night?
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Click here to view more://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/zombieland-tech-wrecking-sleep-scores-teens-study-n298901
Posted February 18th 2015
Central High student: School alcohol test 'no big deal'
Central High School student Madi Remer said taking an alcohol breath test before a school dance is no big deal -- sometimes, it's even funny.
Ahead of this weekend's semi-formal dance, high school students were notified of a long-established Grand Forks schools practice that some schools nationwide have only recently adopted.
Remer said most students recognize the test is intended as a safety measure. She appreciates it -- the requirement makes the environment better for the entire school, she said. "Sometimes, I can't remember the answers (in the right order)," she said. "It's kinda funny."
Central Principal Buck Kasowski said the school hasn't had a positive test in several years. Students have readily accepted the rule and even find the exchange kind of fun. "It sounds like it wouldn't be that way, but it is," he said.
Long-time test
Central and Red River High School started requiring the tests for ninth- through 12th-graders at least a decade ago, said school principals. "I think there was a push across the nation for schools to do it," said Kasowski.
He remembers the decision being made without School Board involvement. Many districts in the state now also require testing, he said.
The process is quick. School administrators ask each student to say their name, grade level and school, and within that time administer the breath test. All students are notified of the test before each dance. For a positive result, students receive out-of-school suspension and a police citation.
When Central first started the practice, school officials were worried they might be seen as trying to catch students, which wasn't their intention, Kasowski said.
"But it didn't turn out like that at all," he said. Students today tell him the requirement "gives them a reason to say no and they like that," he said. "Nobody wants to be at a dance if a couple kids have been drinking," said Kasowski. "It just ruins it for everybody."
Remer and senior Jordyn McClain, who both sit on the student council, largely agreed with Kasowski's remarks. Remer said she's never felt that school administrators didn't trust students. She's always understood that students can't drink before dances and it's a safety rule akin to drug searches in parking lots, she said.
"They're just making sure that everyone is doing what they should be," she said. Usually, students will say something if principals are doing something that upsets them, McClain said. So far, she hasn't heard a word, she said.
Other versions
Schools nationwide have similar policies, with more turning to the practice in the past decade.
A school in Toronto started testing for the first time last year, while the Minnesota schools of Brainerd and Pine River had tested students in 1991.
Last year, the Perham (Minn.) High School dropped requiring all students test before prom after the Minnesota American Civil Liberties Union found it possibly violated student rights, implying students were automatically guilty rather than innocent until proven guilty, according to news reports. The ACLU has been involved with similar cases in different states.
Some districts only pursue a test if students behave in a suspicious manner. Others have involved school boards and voted against it.
In 1988, the Grand Forks district considered alcohol-detection equipment for the high schools -- not necessarily specifically for dances -- but School Board members and the superintendent at the time voted against the idea, according to a Herald article. It would blur the distinction between law enforcement agencies and schools, the superintendent said.
By Jennifer Johnson on Jan 30, 2015 at 4:48 p.m.
QUESTIONS:
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1. How do you feel about the consequences, like an out-of-school suspension or police citation, for a positive test? Is that a fair punishment? Too harsh? Too lenient? What do you think?
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Click here to view more://www.grandforksherald.com/news/education/3668132-central-high-student-school-alcohol-test-no-big-deal
Posted February 11th 2015
Samsung Privacy Policy: Watch What You Say Around Your Smart TV
Shhh ... not around the TV!
Samsung's privacy policy for its voice-recognizing smart televisions warns users not to discuss sensitive information around their devices because it could be transmitted to a third party.
"Please be aware that if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party through your use of Voice Recognition," the company's privacy policy said.
Parker Higgins, an activist with the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation, pointed out what he said were similarities between George Orwell's dystopian novel "1984" and Samsung's smart TVs.
A Samsung spokesperson told ABC News the company "takes consumer privacy very seriously."
"Samsung does not retain voice data or sell it to third parties," the spokesperson said. "If a consumer consents and uses the voice recognition feature, voice data is provided to a third party during a requested voice command search. At that time, the voice data is sent to a server, which searches for the requested content then returns the desired content to the TV."
Customers who are still worried about a potential spy lurking in their living room can easily disable voice recognition in the settings menu of their device.
Feb 9, 2015, 9:29 AM ET By Alyssa Newcomb Digital Reporter via Good Morning America
QUESTIONS:
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1. Could this policy be interpreted as an invasion of privacy? Conduct research on the latest privacy laws and technology to support your position.
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Click here to view more://abcnews.go.com/Technology/samsung-privacy-policy-watch-smart-tv/story?id=28829387
Posted February 4th 2015
This Isn’t the First Time Measles Vaccines Caused a Controversy
As long as there's been a measles vaccine, there have been parents worried about its effects
On Monday, the CDC confirmed that there are now more than 100 cases of measles in the United States — which means, an official pointed out, that the number of cases in one month is about as many as usually occur in a whole year. A large majority of doctors believe that the recent outbreak is linked to lack of vaccination among some children, whose parents may believe that the vaccine is dangerous and that measles is not, in spite of White House statements and scientific evidence to the contrary.
This means that, in the parlance of the decades before an effective measles vaccine was developed, 2015 might be called a “measles year.”
Because the disease is so highly contagious, an outbreak often meant that every child in a school system became sickened; their natural immunity would prevent another outbreak from occurring as long as enough of them were still in school; the next outbreak would come, like clockwork, when a critical mass of new students had entered the system. Not that the cycle took very long. TIME reported in 1934 that, for localized epidemics, every second or third year could be a “measles year.”
Then again, the public-health experts of 1934 would probably shrug at 2015’s figures: in that same article, New York City’s Health Commissioner reassured parents that New York’s 413 cases and two deaths in the first 10 weeks of that year — versus nearly 10,000 cases and 44 deaths in the same period of 1933 — did not qualify.
Which makes sense: in 1934 there was no way to vaccinate against measles. The immune system was well enough understood that sick children were often injected with the blood of a parent who had previously had the virus, in order to gain the antibodies, but the isolation of the actual virus itself was still years away. It was 1958 when the virologist John Franklin Enders announced that his team had grown a live, weakened version of the virus, which could be used to inoculate children against the more potent strain that they would otherwise encounter — in other words, a vaccine.
But, then as now, it wasn’t always easy to convince parents to get their children vaccinated.
For one thing, the earliest version of a vaccine, developed by Enders, actually did have a harmful side-effect: measles. Because it was a live-virus vaccine, most people who got it ended up getting a very mild case of the measles; many parents decided it wasn’t worth the shot. By the early ’60s, doctors had developed a compromise that involved giving the live vaccine alongside a serum that, like the early blood cure, contained antibodies that would fight the side-effects. A killed-virus vaccine developed later spared patients the rash and fever but was weak enough that it had to be re-administered several times in order to stick.
Both versions — live plus antibodies, dead plus booster shots — were approved for production in 1963. And, in the next years, progress was made toward a one-shot solution.
However, having the vaccine didn’t mean that parents were convinced to get their children vaccinated. A main issue was that parents — many of whom had themselves suffered with a mild case of the disease — didn’t think measles was bad enough to worry about. In 1967, when the federal government declared a goal of wiping out the disease that year by vaccinating as many as 10 million children, TIME wrote that the disease fighters were “hampered by the public’s unconcern”:
Perhaps because measles always seemed to be an unavoidable part of childhood, it has not loomed as threatening as other diseases, and its characteristic red spots have long been the butt of comic-strip jokes. There were almost 4,000,000 cases a year in pre-vaccine days. In more than 500,000 of the annual cases, according to [Dr. H. Bruce Dull of the National Communicable Disease Center], there were complications such as middle-ear infections; in 4,000 cases, there was encephalitis often with resulting mental retardation, deafness or blindness. In 400 to 500 cases, the disease ended in death.
Still, the public-awareness campaign about the real dangers of measles did not lead 1967 to be its last year in the U.S. In fact, by the late 1970s, the public-health threat had gotten worse in some ways: though more people were vaccinated, for the first time in history the adult population didn’t have near-complete natural immunity from having had the disease.
Measles wasn’t declared eliminated from the U.S. until 2000. But, though the virus was no longer endemic to the country’s population, the story of controversy over the disease and its prevention was nowhere near done: already that autumn, TIME warned readers that the nascent antivaccine movement might lead measles to make a return.
TIME.COM Lily Rothman Feb. 2, 2015
QUESTIONS:
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1. Should the government control vaccines for children? If so, to what extent should the government's involvement reach?
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Click here to view more://time.com/3692358/measles-vaccine-history/
Posted January 28th 2015
New police radars can 'see' inside homes
At least 50 U.S. law enforcement agencies quietly deployed radars that let them effectively see inside homes, with little notice to the courts or the public.
WASHINGTON — At least 50 U.S. law enforcement agencies have secretly equipped their officers with radar devices that allow them to effectively peer through the walls of houses to see whether anyone is inside, a practice raising new concerns about the extent of government surveillance.
Those agencies, including the FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service, began deploying the radar systems more than two years ago with little notice to the courts and no public disclosure of when or how they would be used. The technology raises legal and privacy issues because the U.S. Supreme Court has said officers generally cannot use high-tech sensors to tell them about the inside of a person's house without first obtaining a search warrant.
The radars work like finely tuned motion detectors, using radio waves to zero in on movements as slight as human breathing from a distance of more than 50 feet. They can detect whether anyone is inside of a house, where they are and whether they are moving.
Current and former federal officials say the information is critical for keeping officers safe if they need to storm buildings or rescue hostages. But privacy advocates and judges have nonetheless expressed concern about the circumstances in which law enforcement agencies may be using the radars — and the fact that they have so far done so without public scrutiny.
"The idea that the government can send signals through the wall of your house to figure out what's inside is problematic," said Christopher Soghoian, the American Civil Liberties Union's principal technologist. "Technologies that allow the police to look inside of a home are among the intrusive tools that police have."
Agents' use of the radars was largely unknown until December, when a federal appeals court in Denver said officers had used one before they entered a house to arrest a man wanted for violating his parole. The judges expressed alarm that agents had used the new technology without a search warrant, warning that "the government's warrantless use of such a powerful tool to search inside homes poses grave Fourth Amendment questions."
By then, however, the technology was hardly new. Federal contract records show the Marshals Service began buying the radars in 2012, and has so far spent at least $180,000 on them.
Justice Department spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said officials are reviewing the court's decision. He said the Marshals Service "routinely pursues and arrests violent offenders based on pre-established probable cause in arrest warrants" for serious crimes.
The device the Marshals Service and others are using, known as the Range-R, looks like a sophisticated stud-finder. Its display shows whether it has detected movement on the other side of a wall and, if so, how far away it is — but it does not show a picture of what's happening inside. The Range-R's maker, L-3 Communications, estimates it has sold about 200 devices to 50 law enforcement agencies at a cost of about $6,000 each.
Other radar devices have far more advanced capabilities, including three-dimensional displays of where people are located inside a building, according to marketing materials from their manufacturers. One is capable of being mounted on a drone. And the Justice Department has funded research to develop systems that can map the interiors of buildings and locate the people within them.
The radars were first designed for use in Iraq and Afghanistan. They represent the latest example of battlefield technology finding its way home to civilian policing and bringing complex legal questions with it.
Those concerns are especially thorny when it comes to technology that lets the police determine what's happening inside someone's home. The Supreme Court ruled in 2001 that the Constitution generally bars police from scanning the outside of a house with a thermal camera unless they have a warrant, and specifically noted that the rule would apply to radar-based systems that were then being developed.
In 2013, the court limited police's ability to have a drug dog sniff the outside of homes. The core of the Fourth Amendment, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote, is "the right of a man to retreat into his own home and there be free from unreasonable governmental intrusion."
Still, the radars appear to have drawn little scrutiny from state or federal courts. The federal appeals court's decision published last month was apparently the first by an appellate court to reference the technology or its implications.
That case began when a fugitive-hunting task force headed by the U.S. Marshals Service tracked a man named Steven Denson, wanted for violating his parole, to a house in Wichita. Before they forced the door open, Deputy U.S. Marshal Josh Mofftestified, he used a Range-R to detect that someone was inside.
Moff's report made no mention of the radar; it said only that officers "developed reasonable suspicion that Denson was in the residence."
Agents arrested Denson for the parole violation and charged him with illegally possessing two firearms they found inside. The agents had a warrant for Denson's arrest but did not have a search warrant. Denson's lawyer sought to have the guns charge thrown out, in part because the search began with the warrantless use of the radar device.
Three judges on the federal 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the search, and Denson's conviction, on other grounds. Still, the judges wrote, they had "little doubt that the radar device deployed here will soon generate many questions for this court."
But privacy advocates said they see more immediate questions, including how judges could be surprised by technology that has been in agents' hands for at least two years. "The problem isn't that the police have this. The issue isn't the technology; the issue is always about how you use it and what the safeguards are," said Hanni Fakhoury, a lawyer for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
The Marshals Service has faced criticism for concealing other surveillance tools. Last year, the ACLU obtained an e-mail from a Sarasota, Fla., police sergeant asking officers from another department not to reveal that they had received information from a cellphone-monitoring tool known as a stingray. "In the past, and at the request of the U.S. Marshals, the investigative means utilized to locate the suspect have not been revealed," he wrote, suggesting that officers instead say they had received help from "a confidential source."
William Sorukas, a former supervisor of the Marshals Service's domestic investigations arm, said deputies are not instructed to conceal the agency's high-tech tools, but they also know not to advertise them. "If you disclose a technology or a method or a source, you're telling the bad guys along with everyone else," he said.
Brad Heath, USA TODAY1:27 p.m. EST January 20, 2015
QUESTIONS:
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1. Refresh yourself on the language and interpretation of the 4th Amendment. Is this a violation of the 4th amendment? Why or why not? Use the amendment to support your position.
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Click here to view more://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/01/19/police-radar-see-through-walls/22007615/
Posted January 21st 2015
A new study shows that excessive rates of suspension impact the academic achievement of all students in a school, whether they are the ones suspended or not. | Terry Vine via Getty Images
To Increase Test Scores, Schools Should Stop Suspending Students, Says Study
To raise students’ test scores, schools should stop pushing out troublesome students, argues a new report.
A recent report published in December’s issue of the American Sociological Review finds that students in schools with high rates of suspensions suffer academically -– even if they are not being suspended themselves. The report, compiled by University of Indiana professor Brea Perry and University of Kentucky professor Edward Morris, concludes that high rates of suspensions can have a negative impact on the test scores of students who have not been suspended, and that schools may be better served by only suspending students in moderation.
Evidence shows that high incarceration rates can have a devastating impact on offenders, as well as on surrounding families and communities. The researchers set out to see if a similar tactic would yield the same results in schools -– if high rates of suspension could negatively impact other students' academic achievement.
To glean their results, researchers followed about 16,000 middle school and high school students in a Kentucky district over the course of six semesters. They tracked the students’ scores on a statewide test administered three times a year, and compared it to their schools’ suspension rates during the time of test taking. Researchers controlled for factors that are correlated with a school’s suspension rate, like poverty. They also adjusted for factors like the annual number of drug infractions in a school, violent infractions and incidents of disruptive behavior, so that a school’s normal level of crime would not confound “the association between suspension and achievement,” says the report.
Perry told The Huffington Post the researchers adjusted for these factors so that “any effect suspension has is over and above those events occurring. We wanted to find if something about the punishment itself ... is harmful to students above and beyond the disruption of being in a high violent context.”
Researchers found that high rates of school suspensions had a substantial negative impact on individual students' test scores –- especially in schools with typically low levels of violence.
“Low and moderate levels of suspension are benign … there is no benefit or harm,” said Perry. But when the suspension levels become "excessive," it starts to affect "the achievement of non-suspended students.”
She continued, “[Excessive suspension caused] negative consequences in all schools, but it was especially harmful when the level of violence in school is low. … Suspension is most detrimental when it is probably perceived by students as illegitimate, overused or used inappropriate. Kids are looking around saying, ‘This is happening way too often, things in school are great, and you’re using suspension.’”
According to the report, when a school with typically low levels of violence experiences high rates of suspension, “the predicted percentile score in reading achievement decreases from about 54th at the mean level of suspension to 28th at very high levels of suspension.” Overall, researchers conclude that high suspension rates "can create a heightened sense of anxiety" for students and that "turnover of suspended students in and out of classrooms creates unstable, socially fragmented environments."
Suspension rate disparities in the studied district mirrored national suspension disparities –- meaning that African-American students were disproportionately suspended at the same rates reflected in national data.
The research demonstrates that suspension should be used as a last resort, limited to situations where the safety of students is threatened, said Perry. She noted that a school used in the study recently implemented its own suspension diversion program, in which misbehaving students were asked to sit and do homework rather than being sent away. She says the school saw an increase in test scores.
“There’s nothing good about [suspension] for suspended kids, but also nothing good about it for non-suspended kids,” said Perry.
Posted: 01/14/2015 11:15 am EST Updated: 01/14/2015 12:59 pm EST
QUESTIONS:
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1. What alternative punishments could possibly replace suspensions? Do you think the community, students and parents would support these? Why or why not?
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Click here to view more://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/14/suspension-impact-students_n_6466520.html?cps=gravity_1787_-6157395816263259764
Posted January 14th 2015
What Taco Bell And McDonald's Meals Look Like After 2 Years Of Just Sitting There
Jessica Freed A Michigan chiropractor has been saving a Taco Bell chicken taco and McDonald's cheeseburger with fries for two years, and none of the items have appeared to rot.
Dr. Jaqueline Vaughn purchased the meals in early 2013 and put them on display in her office, Vaughn Chiropractic, in Waterford, Michigan.
The meals have remained there ever since, sitting uncovered next to the patient sign-in sheet.
None of the food has grown mold or started to smell, according to Jessica Freed, a chiropractic assistant who works in the office.
Jessica Freed "You would think there would at least be bugs coming around, but we don't see any at all," Freed told Business Insider.
She said the office displays the food to remind patients that fast food is unhealthy.
"Fast food is just terrible for you," she said. "We are showing our patients that it won't mold and even the bugs won't touch it."
Here's a close up of the taco:
Jessica Freed Stories about McDonald's hamburgers that last years before rotting are frequently cited as evidence that fast food is loaded with preservatives.
McDonald's USA offers another explanation.
In the right environment, our burgers, fries and other menu items could decompose. The reason our food may appear not to decompose comes down to a matter of simple science. In order for decomposition to occur, you need certain conditions – specifically moisture. Without sufficient moisture – either in the food itself or the environment – bacteria and mold may not grow and therefore, decomposition is unlikely. So if food is or becomes dry enough, it is unlikely to grow mold or bacteria or decompose. Food prepared at home that is left to dehydrate could see similar results. Look closely, the burgers you are seeing are likely dried out and dehydrated, and by no means "the same as the day they were purchased."
Dr. Keith Warriner, the program director at the University of Guelph's Department of Food Science and Quality Assurance, gives a lengthier explanation that you can read here.
Yahoo News. By Hayley Peterson January 7, 2015 2:24 PM
QUESTIONS:
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1. This display is a creative way to spread awareness about healthy and unhealthy diet choices.
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Click here to view more://finance.yahoo.com/news/taco-bell-mcdonalds-meals-look-192415924.html
Posted January 7th 2015
Connecticut teen with cancer forced by state to undergo chemo treatments
A 17-year-old cancer patient and her mother are locked in an unprecedented legal battle with the Connecticut state government over the teen’s right to refuse chemotherapy treatment, Fox CT reported.
The girl, identified only as “Cassandra C." in court documents, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in September. At the time, doctors at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (CCMC) recommended she receive chemotherapy. After she refused treatment— with her mother’s support— Connecticut’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) stepped in.
According to the Hartford Courant, Cassandra believes chemotherapy can cause her as much or more damage as the cancer at this point. Hodgkin's lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system. As it progresses, it compromises the body's ability to fight infection.
“She knows the long-term effects of having chemo, what it does to your organs, what it does to your body. She may not be able to have children after this because it affects everything in your body. It not only kills cancer, it kills everything in your body,” Cassandra’s mother, Jackie Fortin, said in a video published on the Hartford Courant’s website.
Cassandra was taken into temporary custody by DCF in November, and her mother was ordered to cooperate with medical care administered under the agency’s supervision, after the hospital reported her to the agency.
Cassandra underwent two chemotherapy treatments before running away from home. When she returned, she refused treatment. The teen’s doctors testified at a trial court hearing, after which it was decided that she was to be removed from her home and remain in DCF custody— and that DCF was authorized to make medical decisions on her behalf.
Cassandra and her mother appealed the ruling and their case will be heard Thursday at the Connecticut Supreme Court in Hartford. The family claims that, by allowing DCF to use their judgment over that of Cassandra’s family, without the finding of incompetence on their behalf, the forced treatment violates the family’s constitutional rights. Additionally, they claim that the state should recognize the “mature minor doctrine” that requires that a court first determine if a minor is not adequately mature enough to be allowed to make medical decisions on her own.
“It’s a question of fundamental constitutional rights-- the right to have a say over what happens to your body-- and the right to say to the government ‘you can’t control what happens to my body,’” Cassandra’s mother’s attorney, Michael S. Taylor, told Fox CT. A public defender represents Cassandra.
According to Cassandra and her mother, Connecticut’s common law and public policy dictate that DCF cannot force the teen to receive medical treatment over her and her mother’s knowing and informed objection.
“The Supreme Court of the state has never ruled on this issue, the Supreme Court of the United States has not ruled on this issue. So it’s very significant not just for our client, and for the minor child, but for the law in general,” Taylor told the news channel.
Fortin told the Hartford Courant that even prior to her diagnosis, Cassandra would have opted not to undergo chemotherapy. “This is her decision, and she’s very intelligent enough to make this decision on her own,” Fortin said. “She does not want poisons in her body, and she does not want to be forced through the state or the government to force her to do such a thing. And right now, at this moment, she is being forced chemo upon her against her wish.
Side effects of chemotherapy can include nausea, hair loss, vomiting, fatigue, and diarrhea, according to the National Cancer Institute.
"Connecticut Children's is working closely with the State of Connecticut Department of Children and Families in this matter," Bob Fraleigh, spokesman for the Connecticut Children's Medical Center, said in a statement to FoxNews.com. "We are grateful that the state Supreme Court has agreed to take on this very important case and we look forward to their guidance.”
Published January 05, 2015 | FoxNews.com
QUESTIONS:
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1. Should any government employee be able to force medical treatment that you don't want?
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Click here to view more://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/01/05/connecticut-teen-with-cancer-forced-by-state-to-undergo-chemo-treatments/
Posted December 17th 2014
Cop's Act of Kindness Toward Shoplifting Grandma
Stacy, Johnson and Johnson’s granddaughter. Photo by Joe Songer/AL.com
When Tarrant, Alabama Police Officer William Stacy was called to the Dollar General store on Saturday, December 6, he wasn’t especially surprised. “We get shoplifting calls at Dollar General all the time,” he tells Yahoo Parenting. “Usually people are stealing things like makeup or phone chargers – not things they need to get by.”
So when Stacy arrived to find 47-year-old Helen Johnson stealing eggs to feed her two daughters, her niece, and two young grandkids, he knew this incident was different. Johnson explained to Stacy that her family hadn’t eaten since Thursday. So instead of making an arrest, the officer, 23, bought Johnson a carton of eggs. “When she mentioned the kids and said they were hungry, that’s when I knew I wanted to buy the eggs,” Stacy says. “No matter what financial situation kids are in, it’s not their fault they’re hungry.”
Johnson tried to give Stacy the $1.25 she had in her pocket for the eggs, which cost $1.75 plus tax, but instead he asked only for a promise she wouldn’t shoplift again. Johnson told local news AL.com that she was shocked by the officer’s good deed. “I was like ‘Oh my God, thank you Jesus for this man,” she said. “He is my hero.”
The act of kindness was caught on video by another customer, Robert Tripp, and posted to Facebook, where it was been viewed more than 966,000 times and has received more than 22,000 likes. It has been shared nearly 13,000 times.
After letting Johnson go home, Stacy says his Lieutenant helped her sign up for the Tarrant Fire Department’s Toy Drive, which provides Christmas toys and food for families at the holidays. By that Wednesday, when Stacy returned to work, donations from across the country started pouring in for the Johnson family – a response to the viral video, which Tripp labeled #feelgoodstoryoftheday. “It took an entire shift to take all the stuff to her house and unload it,” Stacy says of the afternoon he spent delivering groceries to the Johnsons . “I’ve taken three Tahoe loads of food to her house, and I know a food bank came to bring her food, and they also got a Christmas tree donated.”
Stacy says he’s hoping this story will inspire people to donate to other hungry families as well. “It’s a rough city to live in,” Stacy says of Tarrant. “There are a lot of people who need food.” Stacy says the Tarrant Police Department is using this opportunity to start a fund to help feed the community as a whole.
On Facebook, users are calling Stacy “an angel in disguise,” but the officer says he was just doing his job. “There’s a real trust issue between law enforcement and citizens right now, but hopefully this shows we are not robots who just want to arrest people,” Stacy says. “We have hearts – you have to have a big heart and clear conscience of mind to do this job."
Stacy says he still can’t believe the attention the story has gotten, since he didn’t know the interaction was filmed in the first place. “I don’t see myself as a hero. I’m not a big fan of cameras and the spotlight, I just want to do my job, do it the right way, and spend time with friends and family.”
The officer doesn’t have kids of his own, but says his fiancée has a 6-year-old son. “I’ve known him since he was one and I consider him one of mine,” he says. “I know what it’s like to have kids, and it’s tough. It’s the holidays, and I’m glad I could help this family.”
The Tarrant Police Department is still collecting donations for the Johnson family and other local residents.
To donate, send checks to:
Tarrant Police Department Charity Fund Or Tarrant Police Department Charity Fund Johnson Family People’s First Credit Union 1140 Ford Ave. Tarrant, AL 35217
QUESTIONS:
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Do you think there are more unreported acts of kindness than acts of misbehavior by police officers? |
Click here to view more:https://www.yahoo.com/parenting/cops-act-of-kindness-toward-shoplifting-grandma-105274449522.html
Posted December 10th 2014
5 surprising things everyone should know about standardized tests
Standardized tests have become a lot more common — and a lot more controversial — in the past 15 years. This year, the Common Core will change the state assessments that most students take at the end of the year. But there is still plenty people don't know about standardized testing, including these five facts, which might surprise you:
1. Standardized tests are more common in urban school districts than suburban ones.
There hasn't been a large-scale national study of standardized testing. But studies of testing policies in different school districts have found that students in urban districts are tested more often than students in suburban districts — almost twice as much at some grade levels, according to the Center for American Progress. Urban high school students take three times as many standardized tests as suburban high school students. That means they're probably also spending more time on test preparation. And studies have found that the more time teachers spend preparing students for standardized tests, the less time they spend on subjects that aren't tested, such as science, art, and civics.
2. Most standardized tests are self-imposed by school districts, not the federal government.
Standardized testing became far more common after No Child Left Behind was passed in 2001. For the first time, the law required schools to test students in reading and math in third through eighth grades and once in high school. The new Common Core tests that will make their debut in most states next spring will replace those federally required state tests.
But studies from the Center for American Progress and the American Federation of Teachers have found many of the tests students take aren't required by federal law. Instead, they're assigned by school districts, either to help prepare students for federally mandated tests or for other purposes.
Some common district tests, the ACT PLAN and ACT EXPLORE, help prepare students for the ACT. Other district tests are meant to measure whether students are progressing enough to pass state assessments at the end of the year. This means that even without a change to federal law, school districts have some control over how much time students are spending taking tests.
3. Parents don't hate standardized testing as much as you think.
Only 26 percent of parents said in a 2013 Associated Press poll that their children are taking "too many" standardized tests.
Still, as the number of standardized tests grows, so does the number of parents who pull their children out of standardized tests. In New York public schools, an epicenter of the opt-out movement, the number of students whose parents pulled them out of standardized tests increased fourfold from 2012 to 2013. But students who were opted out made up less than 0.5 percent of all students in the district.
The idea of standardized testing is still more popular than not: 59 percent of parents in a Gallup and Phi Delta Kappa poll said "using standardized computer-based tests to measure all students' progress and performance" is a good idea.
4. It's easier to improve standardized test scores in math than in reading.
Math is a skill that students mostly learn in school. Reading skills, on the other hand, are more intertwined with students' backgrounds — everything from their family income to how many words they heard early in life. That's why even students enrolled at high-achieving schools typically make bigger gains in their reading skills than their math skills. And it could explain why math scores have grown more quickly than reading scores for 9- and 13-year-olds since 1971.
5. Schools feed students all kinds of things in hopes of improving their test results.
A Florida elementary school gave students three tablespoons of Mountain Dew and some trail mix before state standardized tests for years until a student's grandmother complained, and the principal said research found those particular foods helped lift students' scores. Other classrooms hand out peppermints, citing a study at the University of Cincinnati that found the smell of peppermint makes students more alert and focused.
In Virginia, schools at risk for penalties due to low standardized test scores served students more calories at lunch on test days than at other times, according to a 2002 working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research. The calories were more likely to be "empty calories" — sugary treats without nutritional value. And the manipulation might have worked: test scores went up at schools that fed students more calories, and the increase was statistically significant in math. "The recent trend toward increased testing may, in its own small way, further exacerbate America’s recent epidemic of childhood obesity," the researchers wrote.
www.vox.com Updated by Libby Nelson on December 3, 2014, 8:30 a.m. ET
QUESTIONS:
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1. Why might urban schools use standardized testing more than others? |
Click here to view more://www.vox.com/2014/12/3/7323467/standardized-tests-mountain-dew
Posted December 3rd 2014
Dad, Teenage Daughter Reunited by Battle Against ISIS in Kobani
KOBANI, Syria — A teenager who is fighting ISIS in this symbolic border town only discovered that her father had also taken up arms when she bumped into him on a street corner. Pervin Kobani, the 19-year-old daughter of a farmer, is among the Kurdish female fighters have been helping to protect Kobani from an onslaught by the Sunni militants. ISIS has been trying to seize the town since mid-September. Pervin said she left home two years ago and joined the Syrian Kurdish women's self-defense force, which has now been integrated with male fighters.
When Pervin was reunited with her father three weeks ago, she was surprised to see him holding a gun. She didn't know that he had decided to fight. "I was so proud of him, and it made me want to fight more," Pervin said. "We won't allow the terrorist groups in until the last drop of our blood." Her father, Farouk Kobani, joined the town's defenders in mid-September, when ISIS launched their attack. After months without news, he was delighted to see his daughter. Pervin says he is now her comrade first — but she hugs him like a father anyway.
NBC News - First published December 2nd 2014, 10:12 am
QUESTIONS:
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1. Define the terms; Kurdish, Sunni |
Click here to view more://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/isis-terror/dad-teenage-daughter-reunited-battle-against-isis-kobani-n259741
Posted November 26th 2014
Middle School Girl Sent To Principal’s Office After Refusing To Be Weighed In Front Of Her Class
A physical fitness assessment program is under scrutiny after a middle school student in Iowa refused to be weighed in front of her classmates. During a check-up in her physical education class, Ireland Hobert-Hochtold told her teacher that she didn’t want to take part in the FitnessGram program, a fitness measurement tool her school has used for at least four years.
Ireland’s decision landed her in the principal’s office. “I don’t feel like it’s [the school's] business,” Ireland told the Des Moines Register. “I feel like it’s my doctor and my mom and my own business — or maybe not even my own, because I don’t need to know that right now.”
The FitnessGram program, which has been in existence since 1982, assesses six areas of health-related fitness — including body composition, flexibility, muscular strength and endurance, and aerobic capacity. Once physical education teachers conduct tests, they measure scores using the Healthy Fitness Zone standards. School administrators use the reports in letters addressed to parents that explain the importance of physical activity and outline “areas for improvement.”
Right now, 21 states require schools to hold obesity screenings and send letters home in cases when students’ BMI exceeds a certain level. BMI, however, often doesn’t provide a holistic picture of fitness level. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends supplementing BMI tests with assessments like skinfold thickness measurements.
While school officials tout the FitnessGram program as a tool in combating the nation’s childhood obesity problem, the process has been likened to fat shaming. Critics point out that it may bring on body image problems in youngsters, compelling them to develop eating disorders.
Earlier this year, a third grader expressed her displeasure to the New York Post after receiving a letter from the New York City Department of Education that placed her in the “overweight” category. A mother in Florida also spoke out against the state’s department of public health after receiving a letter that placed her physically fit daughter “at risk” for obesity. Upon visiting FitnessGram’s website, the mother found out that “at-risk” actually meant “overweight.”
Clinical psychologist Michael Feldman says that the BMI tests and letters could reinforce these negative feelings among youngsters, especially girls.
“[Fat letters] insinuate that children are to blame for their condition and that they lack awareness or willpower. And because “fat letters” are a collaboration between the child’s school, parents and doctor, kids are likely to feel that school officials, health care professionals and possibly their own parents are ganging up on them over their weight,” Feldman argued in a Psychology Today article last year. “This will simply validate their fears that they are somehow bad or subpar because their body is unacceptable.”
According to the National Eating Disorders Association (NESA), many elementary and middle school-aged girls report concerns about their weight and body shape. More than 40 percent of girls in the first through third grade say they want to be thinner. Among 10-year-olds, more than 80 percent express wishes to be thinner. NESA has repeatedly warned against using the FitnessGram assessments, saying that could influence young students to skip meals, vomit, or take laxatives.
In Pleasant Hill, Iowa, Ireland’s act of defiance against the FitnessGram program has compelled a couple of her classmates to take a similar position and refuse to participate. It also may prompt a policy change, as the school board will discuss whether to stop weighing kids in the school system. Last year, Massachusetts’ school board voted 10 to 1 to stop sending “fat letters” after five years of doing the practice, citing parents’ privacy concerns and the inadequacy of the BMI as an indicator of obesity.
Ireland’s mother, Heather Hobert-Hoch, told the Des Moines Register that she fully support’s her daughter’s decision. “She doesn’t want her weight taken anywhere,” Hobert-Hoch said. “The family stopped using a scale years ago and Ireland has been very happy since then. It’s very common among young girls, and even women, to become obsessed with the number on the scale.”
Parent and eating disorder awareness groups have railed against similar well-meaning but insensitive efforts to combat childhood obesity — like a public health campaign in California that circulated an altered photo of an overweight girl on the web and a series of television ads in Georgia that said “Being fat takes the fun out of being a kid.”
by Sam P.K. Collins Posted on November 21, 2014 at 12:38 pm
QUESTIONS:
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Do you think it is the student's right to refuse, or should she have participated in the program as the other students did in class? |
Click here to view more://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/11/21/3595689/middle-school-girl-boycotts-fitness-test/
Posted November 19th 2014
The Dutch boy mopping up a sea of plastic
Boyan Slat is a 20-year-old on a mission - to rid the world's oceans of floating plastic. He has dedicated his teenage years to finding a way of collecting it. But can the system really work - and is there any point when so much new plastic waste is still flowing into the sea every day?
"I don't understand why 'obsessive' has a negative connotation, I'm an obsessive and I like it," says Boyan Slat. "I get an idea and I stick to it."
This idea came to him at the age of 16, in the summer of 2011, when diving in Greece. "I saw more plastic bags than fish," says Slat. He was shocked, and even more shocked that there was no apparent solution. "Everyone said to me: 'Oh there's nothing you can do about plastic once it gets into the oceans,' and I wondered whether that was true."
Over the last 30 to 40 years, millions of tons of plastic have entered the oceans. Global production of plastic now stands at 288 million tons per year, of which 10% ends up in the ocean in time. Most of that - 80% - comes from land-based sources. Litter gets swept into drains, and ends up in rivers - so that plastic straw or cup lid you dropped, the cigarette butt you threw on the road… they could all end up in the sea.
The plastic is carried by currents and congregates in five revolving water systems, called gyres, in the major oceans, the most infamous being the huge Pacific Garbage Patch, half way between Hawaii and California.
Although the concentration of plastic in these areas is high - it's sometimes described as a plastic soup - it's still spread out over an area twice the size of Texas. What's more, the plastic does not stay in one spot, it rotates. These factors make a clean-up incredibly challenging.
"Most people have this image of an island of trash that you can almost walk on, but that's not what it's like," says Slat. "It stretches for millions of square kilometers - if you went there to try and clean up by ship it would take thousands of years." Not only that, it would be very costly in terms of both money and energy, and fish would be accidentally caught in the nets.
Slat had always enjoyed working out solutions to puzzles, and while pondering this one, it came to him - rather than chase plastic, why not harness the currents and wait for it to come to you?
At school, Slat developed his idea further as part of a science project. An array of floating barriers, anchored to the sea bed, would first catch and concentrate the floating debris. The plastic would move along the barriers towards a platform, where it could then be efficiently extracted. The ocean current would pass underneath the barriers, taking all buoyant sea life with it. There would be no emissions, and no nets for marine life to get entangled in. The collected ocean plastic would be recycled and made into products - or oil.
The high school science project was awarded Best Technical Design at Delft University of Technology. For most teenagers, it would probably have ended there, but Slat was different. He had been interested in engineering from a very young age. "First I built tree houses, then zip-wires, then it evolved towards bigger things," he says. "By the time I was 13, I was very interested in rocketry." This led him to set a Guinness World Record for the most water rockets launched at the same time: 213, from a sports field in his native Delft. "The experience taught me how to get people crazy enough to do things you want, and how to approach sponsors." Useful skills, as it turned out.
When Slat began studying aerospace engineering at Delft University, the idea of cleaning up the oceans just wouldn't let him go - he says it niggled at him like "an asymmetrically positioned label" on a pair of boxer shorts. He set up a foundation, The Ocean Cleanup, and explained his concept in a TedX Talk: How the Oceans can Clean Themselves. Then, six months into his course, he made the decision to pause both university and social life to try make it a reality.
His entire budget consisted of 200 euros (£160) of saved-up pocket money, so he spent a few desolate months trying to get sponsorship. "It was so disheartening, because no-one was interested," he says. "I remember one day contacting 300 companies for sponsorship - only one replied, and that, too, resulted in a dead end."
But then something happened. On 26 March 2013, months after it had gone online, Slat's TedX talk went viral. "It was unbelievable," he says. "Suddenly we got hundreds of thousands of people clicking on our site every day. I received about 1,500 emails per day in my personal mailbox from people volunteering to help." He set up a crowd-funding platform that made $80,000 in 15 days.
Slat still doesn't know what made his idea take off like that, but he describes it as a great relief. "A year ago I wasn't sure it would succeed," he says. "But considering the size of the problem it was important to at least try."
The amount of plastic being discarded into the marine environment is such that we could eventually see an ocean where the amount of plastics is roughly one third the total biomass of fish - 1lb of plastic for every 2lbs of fish, according to Nicholas Mallos from Ocean Conservancy, which organizes coastal clean-ups.
According to the UN Environment Programme there are on average 13,000 pieces of floating plastic per square kilometer of ocean - but that goes up to millions of pieces in the gyres. Many of these particles end up being accidentally ingested by marine animals, which can die of starvation because of the plastic filling their stomachs.
Albatrosses are particularly vulnerable because they feed on the eggs of flying fish, which are attached to floating objects - now most likely a piece of plastic. Dr Jan Andries van Franeker from the Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies (IMARES) in the Netherlands has some of these objects in a pot in his office: a toothbrush, cigarette lighters, floaters from fish nets, a golf ball, a tampon applicator - all found in albatross chick's carcasses. "The plastics may not directly kill the bird, but it will have less energy reserves and it will have a higher load of chemicals so if things get problematic at sea, or if you have to raise a chick, those are the ones that die first," he told the BBC.
Turtles tend to be the victims of plastic bags, which when immersed in water look just like jellyfish. Evolutionary adaptations make it impossible for turtles to reject bags once they've started to eat. "Because jellyfish are so slippery, turtles have a system in their throat that stops their prey from slipping out, so even if you find out it's a plastic bag, it has to go in all the way," says van Franeker.
The amount of industrial plastic pellets van Franeker finds in the birds has halved since the 1980s - it seems the industry has at least partially cleaned up its act. "It's an economic loss if the factory loses raw product," he says. "Unfortunately with consumer plastic, there is little profit in taking back waste. It doesn't cost us anything to throw it away."
But the cost to us could be very high, in the long term.
Plastics can act as a sponge and soak up chemicals in the water. "There are a lot of pollutants in the oceans now, things like DDT," Nancy Wallace, director of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Debris Program, told the BBC. "Those chemicals adsorb on to the plastic and we know birds and fish are eating those pieces of plastic - so the question is, how does that transfer up the food chain and what is the impact?"
By Vibeke Venema-BBC World Service 16 October 2014 Last updated at 19:04 ET
QUESTIONS:
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1. List the possible barriers that are faced with executing a project like this. Discuss them in class. |
Click here to view more://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29631332
Posted November 12th 2014
Police Use Department Wish List When Deciding Which Assets to Seize
A Buick LeSabre was seized in September by the Robbinsville Police Department in New Jersey.
Credit: Mark Makela for The New York Times
The seminars offered police officers some useful tips on seizing property from suspected criminals. Don’t bother with jewelry (too hard to dispose of) and computers (“everybody’s got one already”), the experts counseled. Do go after flat screen TVs, cash and cars. Especially nice cars.
In one seminar, captured on video in September, Harry S. Connelly Jr., the city attorney of Las Cruces, N.M., called them “little goodies.” And then Mr. Connelly described how officers in his jurisdiction could not wait to seize one man’s “exotic vehicle” outside a local bar. “A guy drives up in a 2008 Mercedes, brand new,” he explained. “Just so beautiful, I mean, the cops were undercover and they were just like ‘Ahhhh.’ And he gets out and he’s just reeking of alcohol. And it’s like, ‘Oh, my goodness, we can hardly wait.’ ”
Mr. Connelly was talking about a practice known as civil asset forfeiture, which allows the government, without ever securing a conviction or even filing a criminal charge, to seize property suspected of having ties to crime. The practice, expanded during the war on drugs in the 1980s, has become a staple of law enforcement agencies because it helps finance their work. It is difficult to tell how much has been seized by state and local law enforcement, but under a Justice Department program, the value of assets seized has ballooned to $4.3 billion in the 2012 fiscal year from $407 million in 2001. Much of that money is shared with local police forces.
The practice of civil forfeiture has come under fire in recent months, amid a spate of negative press reports and growing outrage among civil rights advocates, libertarians and members of Congress who have raised serious questions about the fairness of the practice, which critics say runs roughshod over due process rights. In one oft-cited case, a Philadelphia couple’s home was seized after their son made $40 worth of drug sales on the porch. Despite that opposition, many cities and states are moving to expand civil seizures of cars and other assets. The seminars, some of which were captured on video, raise a curtain on how law enforcement officials view the practice.
From Orange County, N.Y., to Rio Rancho, N.M., forfeiture operations are being established or expanded. In September, Albuquerque, which has long seized the cars of suspected drunken drivers, began taking them from men suspected of trying to pick up prostitutes, landing seven cars during a one-night sting. Arkansas has expanded its seizure law to allow the police to take cash and assets with suspected connections to terrorism, and Illinois moved to make boats fair game under its D.W.I. laws, in addition to cars. In Mercer County, N.J., a prosecutor preaches the “gospel” that forfeiture is not just for drug arrests — cars can be seized in shoplifting and statutory rape cases as well.
“At the grass-roots level — cities, counties — they continue to be interested, perhaps increasingly so, in supplementing their budgets by engaging in the type of seizures that we’ve seen in Philadelphia and elsewhere,” said Lee McGrath, a lawyer for the Institute for Justice, a public interest law firm that has mounted a legal and public relations assault on civil forfeiture.
Much of the nuts-and-bolts how-to of civil forfeiture is passed on in continuing education seminars for local prosecutors and law enforcement officials, some of which have been captured on video. The Institute for Justice, which brought the videos to the attention of The Times, says they show how cynical the practice has become and how profit motives can outweigh public safety.
In the sessions, officials share tips on maximizing profits, defeating the objections of so-called “innocent owners” who were not present when the suspected offense occurred, and keeping the proceeds in the hands of law enforcement and out of general fund budgets. The Times reviewed three sessions, one in Santa Fe, N.M., that took place in September, one in New Jersey that was undated, and one in Georgia in September that was not videotaped.
Officials offered advice on dealing with skeptical judges, mocked Hispanics whose cars were seized, and made comments that, the Institute for Justice said, gave weight to the argument that civil forfeiture encourages decisions based on the value of the assets to be seized rather than public safety. In the Georgia session, the prosecutor leading the talk boasted that he had helped roll back a Republican-led effort to reform civil forfeiture in Georgia, where seized money has been used by the authorities, according to news reports, to pay for sports tickets, office parties, a home security system and a $90,000 sports car.
In defense of the practice, Gary Bergman, a prosecutor with the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, said civil forfeiture had been distorted in news reports. “All they hear is the woman was left on the side of the road and the police drove off with her car and her money, no connection to drugs,” he told other prosecutors at the session. “I’m not saying that that doesn’t happen — it does. It should not. But they never hear about all the people that get stopped with the drugs in their cars, in their houses, the manufacturing operations we see, all the useful things we do with the money, the equipment, vehicles. They don’t hear about that.”
In an interview, Mr. Connelly said that the Las Cruces ordinance does only what the State Supreme Court has said is permissible. Sean D. McMurtry, the chief of the forfeiture unit in the Mercer County, N.J., prosecutor’s office, said forfeiture contributes to only a small percentage of local budgets but it is a good deterrent and works especially well against repeat offenders, such as domestic violence perpetrators who repeatedly violate a restraining order. “We’re very proud of our forfeiture operation,” he said in an interview.
But in the video, Mr. McMurtry made it clear that forfeitures were highly contingent on the needs of law enforcement. In New Jersey, the police and prosecutors are allowed to use cars, cash and other seized goods; the rest must be sold at auction. Cell phones and jewelry, Mr. McMurtry said, are not worth the bother. Flat screen televisions, however, “are very popular with the police departments,” he said.
Prosecutors boasted in the sessions that seizure cases were rarely contested or appealed. But civil forfeiture places the burden on owners, who must pay court fees and legal costs to get their property back. Many seizures go uncontested because the property is not worth the expense.
And often the first hearing is presided over not by a judge but by the prosecutor whose office benefits from the proceeds, and who has wide discretion in deciding whether to forfeit the property or return it, sometimes in exchange for a steep fine.
Mr. McMurtry said his handling of a case is sometimes determined by department wish lists. “If you want the car, and you really want to put it in your fleet, let me know — I’ll fight for it,” Mr. McMurtry said, addressing law enforcement officials on the video. “If you don’t let me know that, I’ll try and resolve it real quick through a settlement and get cash for the car, get the tow fee paid off, get some money for it.”
One criticism of civil forfeiture is that it results in widely varied penalties — one drunken driver could lose a $100,000 luxury car, while another forfeits a $2,000 clunker. In an interview, Mr. McMurtry acknowledged that he exercises a great deal of discretion. “The first offense, if it’s not anything too serious, we’ll come up with a dollar amount, depending on the value of the car and the seriousness of the offense,” he said. “I try to come up with a dollar amount that’s not so high that they can’t afford it, but not so low that it doesn’t have an impact. If it’s a second offense, they don’t get it back.”
Prosecutors estimated that between 50 to 80 percent of the cars seized were driven by someone other than the owner, which sometimes means a parent or grandparent loses their car. In the Santa Fe video, a police officer acknowledged that the law can affect families, but expressed skepticism of owners who say they did not know their relative was running afoul of the law.
“I can’t tell you how many people have come in and said, ‘Oh, my hijito would never do that,’ ” he said, mimicking a female voice with a Spanish accent.
By SHAILA DEWAN NOV. 9, 2014
QUESTIONS:
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As you may have learned in US History, the fourth amendment of the constitution guarantees that citizens shall be secure against unreasonable searches and seizures. Does this practice violate the US constitution? |
Click here to view more://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/10/us/police-use-department-wish-list-when-deciding-which-assets-to-seize.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0
Posted November 5th 2014
Wisconsin High School Runner Carries Competitor to the Finish Line
When Teagan Monfils looks back at her high school cross country running record, she will forever have a DQ, or disqualification, next to one important race.
That DQ mark will, however, as her coach says, have “one heck of a bold asterisk by it.”
Monfils, a junior at Shawano High School in Shawano, Wisconsin, was disqualified from a sectional cross country 5K race Saturday for carrying a competitor across the finish line.
“I’m out there watching our girls compete and had a parent come up and asked if I watched the finish line,” Monfils’ coach, Steve Stomberg, told ABC News today. “I said, ‘No,’ and she told me that Teagan had been disqualified.”
“I went to the officials and they confirmed they had to disqualify her for aiding another runner,” Stomberg said. “They said they were very proud of what she did, but that is the rule.”
Officials were following National Federation of State High School Associations rules that say you can't aid or assist another runner.
Monfils told local ABC affiliate WBAY that she knew the rules, but she didn’t think of the consequences when she stopped to help the runner.
“I know you're not supposed to touch another runner,” Monfils told the station. “At that point, before I even thought about I'm going to get disqualified if I touch her, I was just like, the first thing was I need to help her, because she needs to finish."
The injured runner, a senior from DC Everest High School, was taken by ambulance to a hospital but was not seriously injured, according to Stomberg.
Monfils’ coach said the two girls, who were both disqualified, have been in touch on social media and plan to reunite soon.
“She’s just kind of like these are things that we should do and athletes should help other athletes,” Stomberg said of the Monfils’ reaction to the attention her good deed has received. “It just came natural to her, nothing out of the ordinary.”
A video of the finish line moment captured by a spectator shows a handful of runners running pass Monfils towards the finish line, not stopping as Monfils struggled to carry her competitor with her.
“It’s just remarkable about all the kids that went by her, but something told Teagan that she wasn’t going to qualify for state and she wanted to help this athlete out,” Stomberg said. “It was incredible.”
Monfils has been running since the fifth grade, according to Stomberg, who added Monfils’ act of sportsmanship was a first in his 16 years of coaching.
“You see sportsmanship things that take place and people encouraging each other but to actually see someone stop and pick someone up and help them across the finish line, I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said.
Oct 29, 2014, 3:20 PM ET By Katie Kindelan via Good Morning America
QUESTIONS:
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The dilemma: School administrators create the rules. Should they, in some instances, use common sense to override the rules? What do you think? |
Click here to view more://abcnews.go.com/US/wisconsin-high-school-runner-carries- competitor-finish-line/story?id=26548458
Posted October 29th 2014
Girl, 14, wounded in Washington state school shooting dies,
gunman death ruled a suicide
A 14-year-old girl shot by a student gunman at a Washington state high school Friday has died, hospital officials said late Sunday. Officials at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett identified the victim as Gia Soriano, a freshman at Marysville-Pilchuk High School, about 30 miles north of Seattle. Her death brings the total number of victims from Friday's shooting to three, including gunman Jaylen Fryberg.
The other victim was identified Monday as 14 year old Zoe R. Galasso, by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s office. Galasso lived in Marysville and was a student at the school. The Snohomish County Sheriff's office issued a statement saying Galasso died of a gunshot wound to the head. The statement also said the medical examiner identified Fryberg, 15, saying he died of a “handgun wound of the head,” and ruled his death a suicide.
"We are devastated by this senseless tragedy," Galasso’s family said in a statement, read at a news conference by Dr. Joanne Roberts. "Gia is our beautiful daughter, and words cannot express how much we will miss her." Roberts said Gia's family was donating her organs for transplant.
Three other student victims remained hospitalized Sunday. Earlier Sunday, parents and students gathered in a gymnasium at the school for a community meeting, with speakers urging support and prayers and tribal members playing drums and singing songs. Fryberg was from a prominent Tulalip Indian tribes family. "We just have to reach for that human spirit right now," said Deborah Parker, a member of the Tulalip Indian tribes. "Our legs are still wobbly," said Tony Hatch, a cousin of one of the injured students. "We're really damaged right now."
Of the wounded students, only 14-year-old Nate Hatch showed improvement, getting upgraded to satisfactory condition Monday in intensive care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Hospital spokeswoman Susan Gregg said Hatch was awake and breathing on his own. Fifteen-year-old Andrew Fryberg remained in critical condition in intensive care. Both are cousins of Jaylen Fryberg. Meanwhile, Shaylee Chuckulnaskit, also 14, remained in critical condition in intensive care at Providence Regional Medical Center. Fryberg died in the attack after a first-year teacher intervened. The makeshift memorial on a chain link fence by the school, which will be closed this week, continued to grow Sunday. Balloons honoring the victims and the shooter adorn the fence along with flowers, stuffed toys and signs.
Meanwhile, the close-knit community on the nearby Tulalip Indian reservation struggled with the news that the shooter was a popular teenager from one of their more well-known families.
A tribal guidance counselor said no one knows what motivated Fryberg. "We can't answer that question," said Matt Remle, who has an office at the high school. "But we try to make sense of the senselessness."
In the nearby community of Oso, where a mudslide this spring killed dozens, people planned to gather to write condolence letters and cards. Remele said he knew Fryberg and the other students well. "My office has been a comfort space for Native students," he said. "Many will come by and have lunch there, including the kids involved in the shooting."
They all were "really happy, smiling kids," Remle said. "They were a polite group. A lot of the kids from the freshman class were close-knit. Loving. "These were not kids who were isolated," he said. "They had some amazing families, and have amazing families.
"These factors make the shooting that much more difficult to deal with, "Maybe it would be easier if we knew the answer," Remle continued. "But we may never know."
Published October 27, 2014 The Associated Press contributed to this report.
QUESTIONS:
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A. Consider the challenges that face your school system when trying to keep the students safe. |
Click here to read more:
Posted October 22nd 2014
Hong Kong Protests Pause as Students Talk to Government
Wearing matching black T-shirts bearing the slogan "Freedom Now!", five students sat down with representatives of Hong Kong's government Tuesday for talks aimed at defusing a month-long political crisis.
Thousands of people jammed around large screens set up at a tent-strewn protest site to watch the dialogue, with periodic cheering during the opening remarks by student leader Alex Chow and jerring when Chief Secretary Carrie Lam spoke. The students urged the government to build trust by putting forward "realistic and feasible" road map for democratic development. "The Hong Kong government is in the best position to get the people of Hong Kong to go home," said Chow.
First published October 21st 2014, 8:44 am
QUESTIONS:
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What are your thoughts about the actions taken by the government? By the student protesters? |
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Posted October 15th 2014
Pathway to a Paycheck: San Diego Program Trains
High Schoolers for Health Jobs
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – One Sunday in August, the normally sleepy parking lot of South Bay Community Services was abuzz with activity. Balloons adorned a dozen or so booths, each providing information about different health issues: immunizations, nutrition, exercise. Visitors were weighed at one station, had their blood pressure taken at another, then their blood sugar at another—all free of charge. Nearby, kids could play hopscotch, jump rope, or Frisbee.
Although there were a few doctors milling around, most of the health fair volunteers were teenagers. They’re part of Medical Pathways, a job-training program based at San Ysidro High School, whose chain link fence frames the outskirts of Tijuana less than two miles away. More than four out of five students at the border school live in poverty, with median family income less than $28,000 a year. Much of the student population is transient and seasonal, and almost all of the students are bilingual. Health-wise, San Ysidro is hurting; there are high rates of obesity, diabetes, dental disease, and teen pregnancy.
Sheila Krotz, a former nurse who started working as an administrator at San Ysidro High School nearly a decade ago, saw a way to help fill that gap by creating a pipeline to the medical field for her students. “It’s a pretty simple concept, really,” she said. “This community needs more bilingual health care workers, so we create the local workforce.”
When a biology teacher quit unexpectedly, Krotz stepped in to pinch-hit, and realized “there wasn’t any direction” in the science curriculum or anybody “looking at long-term outcomes at how to improve [the health of the] community.” So Krotz created the Medical Pathways program, a multi-pronged approach to encourage students to take four years of science and seek out medical training. This fall, Krotz became dean of a San Diego charter school but has maintained an advisory role at Medical Pathways, which lives on through several science teachers divvying up the work of fundraising, recruitment, curriculum, and internship placements.
The program recruits students in local middle schools then guides students through four years of medically-focused science classes, beginning with anatomy and physiology. Funded by grants from University of California-San Diego and other sources, the classrooms are well-supplied with model skeletons, plastic dummies, and intricate diagrams. Since the program’s inception nine years ago, Medical Pathways has grown to include an extracurricular group called Medics Club for younger students; internship programs at the local clinics and recently at UC-San Diego’s renowned medical center; and the new summer program at the nearby Kaiser Permanente hospital, which culminates in a student-run community health fair.
“Most of the people in my community don’t know how to take care of themselves,” said Riki Broadway, a recently graduated Medical Pathways student who came to the United States from Mexico in 5th grade. “[At the fair] we tell them what healthy eating means, what does their blood pressure mean. We give them care since they don’t have money or medical insurance.”...
By Nona Willis Aronowitz
QUESTIONS:
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What do you think of the program? What are the benefits for the students and the community? Write up a proposal of a program or club that would improve your school and community. |
Click here to read more:
Posted October 8th 2014
After Protests Over History Curriculum, School Board Tries To Compromise
Hundreds of Colorado high school students have walked out of class in the past two weeks to protest proposed changes to the Advanced Placement history curriculum.
The firestorm of protest was sparked by a resolution in August from Jefferson County school board member Julie Williams. When she heard that conservatives across the country were upset about the new AP history curriculum, she proposed a committee to review the district's courses.
The resolution stated that AP history classes should promote "patriotism and ... the benefits of the free-enterprise system" and should not "encourage or condone civil disorder." "Basically, what I am asking for is for history to be taught complete," Williams said in an interview with the local Fox affiliate. "So the good, the bad, the ugly, without bias."
Jefferson County, Colorado's second-largest school district, has been in turmoil ever since a conservative majority was elected to the school board in November 2013, but Williams' proposal set off a new wave of unrest.
It started with 100 students, including Ben Smith from Standley Lake High School, northwest of Denver. He says students don't want their history censored and don't like that the resolution called for promoting the positive aspects of U.S. history. "The negative parts of American history aren't necessarily unpatriotic," Smith says."We need to know those things so we don't repeat them in the future."
by JENNY BRUNDIN October 03, 2014 5:05 AM ET
QUESTIONS:
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What do you think? Do you agree or disagree? Explain your thoughts and comments. |
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Posted October 1st 2014
Echoing Tiananmen, 17-year-old Hong Kong student prepares for democracy battle
Editor's note: Joshua Wong was arrested Friday night after trespassing in the Hong Kong SAR's government complex as part of the student protests. Police searched his university dorm room and confiscated several items, including his computer and phone, according to protest organizers. He was released Sunday, police and a student spokeswoman said.
Hong Kong (CNN) -- He's one of the fieriest political activists in Hong Kong — he's been called an "extremist" by China's state-run media — and he's not even old enough to drive.
Meet 17-year-old Joshua Wong, a skinny, bespectacled teen whose meager physical frame belies the ferocity of his politics. Over the last two years, the student has built a pro-democracy youth movement in Hong Kong that one veteran Chinese dissident says is just as significant as the student protests at Tiananmen, 25 years ago.
Echoing the young campaigners who flooded Beijing's central square in 1989, the teen activist wants to ignite a wave of civil disobedience among Hong Kong's students. His goal? To pressure China into giving Hong Kong full universal suffrage. Wong's movement builds on years of pent-up frustration in Hong Kong.
When the former colony of the United Kingdom was returned to Chinese rule in 1997, the two countries struck an agreement promising Hong Kong a "high degree of autonomy," including the democratic election of its own leader. But 17 years later, little resembling genuine democracy has materialized. China's latest proposal suggests Hong Kongers may vote for their next leader, but only if the candidates are approved by Beijing.
Wong is bent on fighting the proposal — and impatient to win. "I don't think our battle is going to be very long," he tells CNN. "If you have the mentality that striving for democracy is a long, drawn-out war and you take it slowly, you will never achieve it. "You have to see every battle as possibly the final battle — only then will you have the determination to fight."
Youth awakening
Doubt him if you like, but the young activist already has a successful track record of opposition. In 2011, Wong, then 15, became disgusted with a proposal to introduce patriotic, pro-Communist "National and Moral Education" into Hong Kong's public schools.
With the help of a few friends, Wong started a student protest group called Scholarism. The movement swelled beyond his wildest dreams: In September 2012, Scholarism successfully rallied 120,000 protesters — including 13 young hunger strikers — to occupy the Hong Kong government headquarters, forcing the city's beleaguered leaders to withdraw the proposed curriculum. That was when Wong realized that Hong Kong's youth held significant power.
"Five years ago, it was inconceivable that Hong Kong students would care about politics at all," he says. "But there was an awakening when the national education issue happened. We all started to care about politics."
Asked what he considers to be the biggest threats to the city, he rattles them off: From declining press freedom as news outlets change their reporting to reflect a pro-Beijing slant, to "nepotism" as Beijing-friendly politicians win top posts, the 17-year-old student says Hong Kong is quickly becoming "no different than any other Chinese city under central administration."
By Wilfred Chan and Yuli Yang, CNN updated 10:18 AM EDT, Sun September 28, 2014
QUESTIONS:
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What were the student protests at Tiananmen all about? (Take a look: //www.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/asia/tiananmen-square-fast-facts/) What do you think of Joshua Wong's organization, Scholarism? Do you think it will be successful and/or make a difference? |
Click here to read more:
Posted September 24th 2014
White House Fence-Jumper Omar Gonzalez Held Without Bail
President Obama is "concerned" about Friday's breach of the White House by a man with a knife, but continues to have "confidence" in the agency assigned to protect him and his family, officials said on Monday.
Press Secretary Josh Earnest revealed the president's feelings at a Monday press briefing. "(The president) did indicate his family lives in the White House and so he is obviously concerned," said Earnest. "At same time he has confidence in the Secret Service to do challenging work." He said that Obama also expressed confidence in a review officials are conducting to see if any changes in security protocols are needed.
Meanwhile, the man accused of scaling the security fence had his first appearance in federal court on Monday afternoon. Omar J. Gonzalez, 42, of Copperas Cove, Texas, is facing charges of unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds while carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon. At the brief healing on Monday, a federal prosecutor called Gonzalez "a danger to the president," and the judge ruled that he be held without bail at least until his next court date on October 1.
Prosecutors also revealed that Gonzalez had been stopped on August 25 while walking along the south fence of the White House with a hatchet in his waistband—but he was not arrested. And on July 19th, he was charged in Whythe County, Virginia, with evading arrest and possession of a weapon after he was found in possession of numerous weapons, including a sawed-off shot gun, and map with the White House circled, prosecutors said. On Sept. 19, the day he jumped over White House fence, investigators found his vehicle contained 800 rounds of ammunition both in boxes and magazines, as well as two hatchets and a machete, prosecutors said.
The Army says Gonzalez served from 1997 until his discharge in 2003, and again from 2005 to December 2012, when he retired due to disability. Gonzalez is accused of scaling a perimeter fence, running across the lawn and entering the presidential mansion before federal agents stopped him. Obama and his family were away at the time. Secret Service Director Julia Pierson has ordered...
First published September 22nd 2014, 7:18 am
QUESTIONS:
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What are the responsibilities of the Secret Service? Will Gonzalez receive a fair trial based on his alleged crime? Discuss in small groups or as a class, what the advantages and disadvantages would be if you were a child of the President? |
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//www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/white-house-fence-jumper-omargonzalez-held-without-bail-n208626
Posted September 16th 2014
U.S. Military in Ebola Fight Won't Be in Direct Contact With Patients
The 3,000 U.S. troops set to deploy to West Africa to battle the spread of Ebola will be working in high-risk areas but won’t be in direct contact with patients. Still, as a precaution, the military’s engineers, medical specialists and logisticians will be given special training, protective gear and general vaccinations as part of Operation United Assistance, NBC News has learned.
The first team will arrive in Liberia to join a three-person Disaster Assistance Response Team already in the country and be tasked with planning. After them, a command and control unit will set up a Joint Force Command in the capital of Monrovia, and will be led by a still unnamed general officer. The engineers will set up at least 17 Ebola treatment units, while the medical professionals will train other health-care workers—up to 500 per week—in Liberia.
It’s unclear whether the troops will be armed, but the Joint Force Command will make that determination on a location by location basis. All the personnel will receive training on Ebola transmission and dangers, but the people who are going have been chosen because they already have expertise in their respective fields. The U.S. military has previously responded to humanitarian crises, often after natural disasters, and in 1992 worked with the United Nations to bring relief during Somalia’s famine.
First published September 16th 2014, 1:34 pm
QUESTIONS:
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What does this outbreak mean to the United States? What can be done in the US to be proactive in preventing the spread of this virus? What can you, as students to do protect yourselves? What do you think about President Obama sending US troops into West Africa? |
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//www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/u-s-military-ebola-fight-wontbe-direct-contact-patients-n204591
Posted September 10th 2014
Obama Vows to 'Degrade and Ultimately Destroy' ISIS
President Barack Obama vowed Friday to “degrade and ultimately destroy” the militants of ISIS — an organization that he said was too dangerous to be simply contained.
He said that NATO countries agreed on the need for immediate action against the militants, who have rampaged across Syria and Iraq and have vowed to establish a caliphate across the Middle East. He also said that Arab states, including those with a Sunni majority, must help as well.
The president spoke from Wales at the conclusion of a NATO summit that was called to deal with Russian aggression in Ukraine but that was somewhat overshadowed by the ISIS threat.
“You can’t contain an organization that is running roughshod through that much territory, causing that much havoc, displacing that many people, killing that many innocents, enslaving that many women,” he said. “The goal has to be to dismantle them.”
By NBC NEWS
QUESTIONS:
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What do you think of the statements made by our president? Does this mean we will go to war? What would the impact be on America if we were to simply contain this group? |
Click here to read more:
//www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukraine-crisis/obama-vows-degrade-ultimatelydestroy-isis-n196686
Posted September 3rd 2014
Demonstrators take part in a protest to demand higher wages for fast-food workers outside McDonald's in Los Angeles, California May 15, 2014. Photo by Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
Fast food workers plan nationwide strike on Thursday
Thousands of fast food workers across the United States will once again go on strike this Thursday, representatives of the Fight for 15 movement announced Monday night. The new strike will likely be comparable in size to the last one, which occurred in mid-May and affected fast food restaurants in 150 U.S. cities. But unlike any previous strikes in the fast food industry, Thursday’s action is likely to feature acts of civil disobedience in at least a handful of cities. If workers do risk arrest on Thursday, that would represent a significant escalation in movement tactics and militancy.
This week’s strike will be the first major fast food worker action since the first-ever Fight for 15 convention, which took place in late July. Many of the workers who attended the conference expressed a desire to escalate the campaign, and a handful of scheduled speakers extolled the virtues of civil disobedience. At the end of the convention, workers agreed to a resolution saying they would do “whatever it takes” to win.
09/01/14 06:47 PM–Updated 09/02/14 09:44 AM By Ned Resnikoff
QUESTIONS:
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What are the pros and cons of raising the minimum wage? How does it affect you? What does it mean to the economy? Will raising the minimum wage push McDonald's to automate more and lay off workers? |
Click here to read more:
//www.msnbc.com/msnbc/fast-food-workers-nationwide-plan-strike-thursday
Posted August 27th 2014
US begins surveillance flights over Syria after Obama authorization
The U.S. has started flying surveillance drones over Syria after President Obama authorized the missions, two senior Defense officials told Fox News, in a move that could pave the way for eventual airstrikes against Islamic State targets in the country. A decision still has not been made, at least publicly, to launch airstrikes in Syria. But the Obama administration would likely need additional intelligence on possible targets should the president take that step. Sources told Fox News that Obama approved surveillance missions in Syria for the first time over the weekend; they have since begun. It remains to be seen whether the Syrian government will raise any objections to the move. On Monday, the Syrian regime demanded that the U.S. seek permission before launching any airstrikes on its territory against Islamic State targets, but did not discuss its position on surveillance drones. The internal discussion over whether to expand the U.S. mission...
Published August 26th 2014 - FoxNews.com
QUESTIONS:
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What are the benifits of using drones in hostile territories? What role will drones play in our national security? |
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//www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/08/26/obama-authorizes-use-surveillance-drones-oversyria/
Posted August 20th 2014
Violence engulfs Ferguson with gunfire and tear gas
FERGUSON, Missouri – Multiple shootings, fire bombs and tear gas marked the worst night of violence in the St. Louis suburb that has been engulfed in tensions since a white police officer killed an unarmed black teenager on Aug. 9.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon announced early Monday that he was “directing the highly capable men and women of the Missouri National Guard to assist,” in restoring peace and order to the community.ve photo essay.
Calm day in Ferguson takes dark turn The worst night of violence in this St. Louis suburb that has been engulfed in tensions since a white police officer killed an unarmed black teenager on Aug. 9. Residents, many with children in tow, had turned out for what began as a peaceful protest Sunday evening seeking justice for Michael Brown, the 18-year-old who was shot six times by a police officer who allegedly stopped Brown for blocking a residential street.
The protesters marched toward a police command center set up in a shopping mall parking lot when heavily armed law enforcement fired on the crowd using tear gas and rubber bullets. An MSNBC reporter witnessed children suffering the effects of the gas, including two young African-American girls – one dressed in a pink tank top coughing as she struggled to push the shirt up over her mouth and nose while a woman rushed her from the scene.
08/18/14 01:04 AM—UPDATED 08/18/14 09:05 AM - By Amanda Sakuma and Zachary Roth
QUESTIONS:
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Describe this conflict in your own words. What do you think of this situation? What is your opinion? |
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//www.msnbc.com/msnbc/least-1-dead-violence-engulfs-ferguson
Posted June 4th 2014
The Remarkable, Top-Secret Deal With the Taliban to Free US Soldier
U.S. Special Forces rescued the 28-year-old in a top-secret mission in the Khost Province in Afghanistan.
Bowe Bergdahl could be reunited with his family as soon as Wednesday, part of a carefully managed reintegration program the military uses for freed captives. Bergdahl is being debriefed at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany after a harrowing five-year captivity and dramatic release.
His release came Saturday, with U.S. drones and helicopters overhead in case the deal turned deadly. A team of so-called “black” U.S. special operators – those who are part of the most secretive missions – moved deep into Khost Province in Afghanistan for the prearranged meeting. Close to 20 Taliban surrounded Bergdahl – a tense exchange, but no shots were fired as the 28-year-old was hustled into a waiting helicopter, officials said.
By ABC NEWS | Good Morning America, 06-02-2014
QUESTIONS:
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What are your thoughts of the prisoner exchange? What are the repercussions of President Obama negotiating with terrorists? Discuss the pros and cons with your students? |
Click here to read more:
//gma.yahoo.com/remarkable-top-secret-deal-taliban-free-us-soldier-092621878--abc-news
Posted May 28th 2014
Watchdog: Monitors Missing in Eastern Ukraine
Contact has been lost with a team of European military observers monitors in volatile eastern Ukraine, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said Tuesday. The news from the European security watchdog came as Ukraine's military fought fierce battles with pro-Moscow separatists in the eastern city of Donetsk. The OSCE said its four-member team was on a "routine patrol" east of Donetsk when contact was lost Monday evening at around 6:00 p.m. local time (10:00 a.m. EST). "We have been unable to re-establish communication until now," the security watchdog said in a statement. "We are continuing with our efforts and utilizing our contacts on the ground." Both the Ukrainian government and regional authorities are aware of the situation, the statement added. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but rebel groups have previously kidnapped OSCE monitors in Ukraine, according to the Reuters news agency. So far, Ukraine's military forces have had little success against rebels who have declared independent "people's republics" in two provinces of the eastern industrial heartland where about 20 people have been killed in recent days Russia's foreign ministry has urged Kiev to halt what it called "military operations against its own people" and said it wanted the OSCE to investigate clashes with pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk. The OSCE deployed civilian monitors across Ukraine in March to help try to defuse the crisis in the country's east.
Cassandra Vinograd, first published May 27th 2014, 9:28 am. Reuters contributed to this report.
QUESTIONS:
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Discuss with your students, what it might be like to be a citizen in Ukraine during this government crisis. What are they feeling? What are their options? |
Click here to read more:
//www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukraine-crisis/watchdog-monitors-missing-eastern-ukraine-n115271
Posted May 21st 2014
U.S. Charges China With Cyber-Spying on American Firms
The Justice Department filed criminal charges against five hackers in the Chinese military Monday, accusing them of stealing American trade secrets through cyber-espionage. The efforts were directed at six American victim companies in the nuclear power, metals and solar products industries: Westinghouse Electric, U.S. subsidiaries of Solar World AG, U.S. Steel, Allegheny Technologies and Alcoa. The United Steel Workers union was also targeted. “This is a case alleging economic espionage by members of the Chinese military and represents the first-ever charges against a state actor for this type of hacking,” Attorney General Eric Holder said. "Enough is enough," Holder said at a press conference. FBI Director James Comey told NBC News, “For too long, the Chinese government has blatantly sought to use cyber-espionage to obtain economic advantage for its state-owned industries.” The FBI tracked the computer attacks to Unit 61398 of the Third Department of the People's Liberation Army, headquartered in a building in Shanghai, officials said. Authorities said what amounted to "21st century burglary" benefited the Chinese competitors of the U.S. victims,...
NBC News. Reuters contributed to this report. First published May 18th 2014, 9:59 PM
QUESTIONS:
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What are some of the possible effects this crime could have on these American businesses? What are your thoughts on the U.S. government pressing charges on the Chinese officials? |
Click here to read more:
//www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/u-s-charges-china-cyber-spying-american-firms-n108706
Posted May 14th 2014
North Korea rages over South's drone allegations
(CNN) -- North Korea has slammed a South Korean investigation that found that Pyongyang had flown small drones over the border to take photos of strategic sites.
The South Korean findings, released last week, are a "charade for confrontation," the North's Korean People's Army said in a statement reported by state media Monday. The statement suggested that the South Korean government was "floating the fiction" about the drones' origin "in a foolish bid" to divert public attention away from the Sewol ferry disaster.
"Smoking gun"
Officials in Seoul say the three tiny unmanned aircraft were found in March and April on the ground in South Korean territory near the heavily militarized border with the North. Analysis of the drones turned up a "smoking gun" that all three had been sent by North Korea and were set up to return there, the South Korean Defense Ministry said last week. The small, single-engine propeller planes carried Japanese-made digital cameras and looked as though they could have come from a hobby shop.
By Jethro Mullen, CNN updated 7:56 AM EDT, Monday May 12, 2014
Question:
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Would you say this article is biased? If so, in favor of which party? Provide evidence to support your response.
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Click here to read more: //www.cnn.com/2014/05/12/world/asia/koreas-drones/index.html?hpt=wo_c2
Posted May 7th 2014
"I will sell them," Boko Haram leader says of kidnapped Nigerian girls
(CNN) -- Fears for the fate of more than 200 Nigerian girls turned even more nightmarish Monday when the leader of the Islamist militant group that kidnapped them announced plans to sell them. "I abducted your girls. I will sell them in the market, by Allah," a man claiming to be Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau said in a video first obtained by Agence France-Presse. "There is a market for selling humans. Allah says I should sell. He commands me to sell. I will sell women. I sell women," he continued, according to a CNN translation from the local Hausa language. Boko Haram, listed by the United States as a terrorist organization, means "Western education is sin." In his nearly hourlong, rambling video, Shekau repeatedly called for Western education to end. "Girls, you should go and get married," he said. The outrageous threat means the girls' parents worst fears could be realized. Parents have been avoiding speaking to the media for fear their daughters may be singled out for reprisals. "Wherever these girls are, we'll get them out," Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan vowed Sunday. But he also criticized the girls' parents, saying they weren't cooperating fully with police. "What we request is maximum cooperation from the guardians and the parents of these girls. Because up to this time, they have not been able to come clearly, to give the police clear identity of the girls that have yet to return," he said.
By Aminu Abubakar. Josh Levs and Barbara Starr, CNN updated 11:22 AM EDT, Mon May 5, 2014
Question: |
How can social media outlets increase global awareness of this horrific crime? What should the U.S. do to help the kidnapped girls and why?
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Click here to read more: //www.cnn.com/2014/05/05/world/africa/nigeria-abducted-girls/index.html?hpt=wo_c2
Posted April 30th 2014
Ukraine crisis: Who will blink first, Vladimir Putin or the West?
(CNN) -- Russia's seizure of Crimea last month may have unfolded with a lightning quickness, but Vladimir Putin and the West are now engaged in a much slower match of wits on a chessboard stretching across most of eastern Ukraine. Rather than going for checkmate, both sides now seem content to wait for the other to make a mistake. Putin made a strong first move by placing 40,000 troops on the border -- and separatists, who are not officially linked to Russia, on the ground in Ukraine. Now Moscow is waiting for the pro-Western government in Kiev to try to retake the parts of the east it has seemingly lost. In Russia's eyes, any such move from the capital would legitimize an overwhelming counterattack -- a re-run of the Georgia crisis in 2008, when President Mikheil Saakashvili lost his nerve, shot first, and prompted a Russian invasion.
Putin's problem is time; he cannot wait forever to strike. Troops cannot remain ready for combat for many months at a time. Separatists in eastern Ukraine are lost without outside support, and may become nervous as time drags on without any glimpse of a light at the end of the tunnel. On the other side of the board are U.S. President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Ukraine's fledgling government. The biggest challenge for Obama and his German counterpart is to keep a united Western front. They need to uphold a credible threat of massive economic sanctions ...
By Ulrich Speck, political analyst, special to CNN updated 9:18 AM EDT, Mon April 28, 2014
Question: |
What does the next step mean to the U.S.? How will this effect our country in the long run? What new sanctions are being put in place?
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Click here to read more: //www.cnn.com/2014/04/28/opinion/ukraine-putin-west-chess/index.html?iid=article_sidebar
Posted April 23rd 2014
Venezuelans Protest for 'Resurrection of Democracy'
Hundreds of protesters rallied on Sunday to demand the "resurrection" of Venezuelan democracy while effigies of both President Nicolas Maduro and opposition leaders were paraded for burning in a local Easter Day tradition.
Though millions of Venezuelans have headed for Caribbean beaches and family gatherings over the Easter period, student demonstrators have sought to keep a nearly three-month protest movement going with religious-themed demonstrations.
After a barefoot rally and a "Via Crucis" march in the style of Jesus' tortured walk towards crucifixion, the students gathered on Sunday in a Caracas square for a demonstration denominated "Resurrection of Democracy." Easter marks the day Christians believe Jesus was resurrected from the dead after being crucified.
— Reuters
Question: |
What are the benefits of a democracy to the Venezuelan people? What might the benefits of this democracy be to the world?
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Click here to read more: //www.nbcnews.com/storyline/venezuela-crisis/venezuelans-protest-resurrection-democracy
Posted April 16th 2014
From Burgers to Banks, Russia Sanctions Start to Bite
Among the spate of unintended consequences of Vladimir Putin’s Crimean landgrab is the closure of the three highly popular McDonald’s outlets in the Black Sea peninsula—in Sebastopol, Simferopol, and Yalta, according to the Russia media. The 500 or so McDonald’s staff were given the choice of relocating to branches of the American fast food chain elsewhere in Ukraine, or accepting a severance package and not moving. Most of them opted to stay put, the reports say, doubtless in the expectation that the hamburgers would soon be sizzling again under Russian management, as affiliates of Russia’s own McDonald’s operation of more than 200 outlets (the one in Pushkin Square, in Moscow, has the distinction of being the world’s busiest).
More serious is the virtual disappearance from Crimea of the banking system as Ukrainian and foreign banks have closed their branches. PrivatBank, the largest bank in Ukraine, shuttered its 339 branches...
Question: |
What would be the most unexpected goods or service made unavailable? |
Click here to read more: //www.worldaffairsjournal.org/blog/roland-flamini/burgers-banks-russia-sanctions-start-bite
Posted April 9th 2014
Is It The Black Box? "It Will Be Extremely Difficult to Recover"
The news that a pinger locator has detected signals consistent with transmissions from an aircraft black box is “very encouraging” but the mystery of missing Flight MH370 remains far from being solved, an aviation expert said Monday.
“It’s taken everybody by surprise that they have managed to find a ping,” Adrian Gjertsen, of U.K.-based Airsupport Aviation Services Limited, told NBC News “It’s very encouraging but even if it is from the plane, it will be extremely difficult to recover from the ocean.”
Question: |
Will finding the black box be enough? Will it answer all of our questions? |
Click here to read more: //www.nbcnews.com/storyline/missing-jet/it-black-box-it-will-be-extremely-difficult-recover-n73416
Posted April 2nd 2014
NORTH, SOUTH KOREA EXCHANGE FIRE ACROSS DISPUTED WESTERN SEA BORDER
North and South Korea fired hundreds of artillery shells into each others waters Monday in a flare-up of animosity that forced residents of five front-line South Korean islands to evacuate to shelters for several hours, South Korean officials said. South Korean Marines fired artillery shells across a disputed sea border after North Korean shells from a live fire drill conducted by Pyongyang fell into the water south of the frontier, Seoul officials told the Associated Press. There were no reports of any injuries. Residents on the front-line South Korean islands spent several hours in shelters during the firing.
Question: |
Was it a mistake for the South Koreans to respond to the North Koreans with their own salvo? |
Click here to read more: //www.foxnews.com/world/2014/3/31/north-korea-plans-live-fire-drills-near-disputed-sea-boundary-south-korea-says/
Posted March 25th 2014
Crimea Crisis: Ukrainian Troops Pull Out
Russian forces have been systematically seizing Ukrainian ships and military installations in Crimea, including a naval base near the eastern Crimean port of Feodosia, where two injured servicemen were taken captive on Monday and as many as 80 were detained on-site, Ukrainian officials said.
Question: |
Do the Russians have the right to force the Ukrainians out of Crimea? |
Click here to read more: //www.cbc.ca/news/world/crimea-crisis-ukrainian-troops-pull-out-1.2583852
Posted March 18th 2014
Could the mystery of Malaysia Airlines 370 then be explained as an act of terrorism?
To answer that you have to assess both the capabilities and the intentions of the known terrorist groups that might want to hijack such a plane. And you have to ask the question: Cui bono? For whose benifit? The al Quaeda-affiliated group, Jemaah Islamiyah, has a presence in Malaysia as well as in the Phillippines and Indonesia. But the group has been under sustained law enforcement pressure for more than a decade after...
Question: |
What do you think happened to the plane? Do you believe it will be found? |
Click here to read more: //www.cnn.com/2014/03/17/opinion/bergen-flight-370-terrorism-role/index.html?iid=article_sidebar