#construction training programs in philadelphia

[pttedu]

Does One Learn Professional Skills For Concreting Jobs In A Construction Training Program ?

Construction training program teach basic skills for concreting jobs. Read more to learn how you can become an expert construction technician.

[pttiedu]

Elevate Your Skills: Invest in a Construction Training Programs Pays Off. With PTTI enhance your skills and knowledge and go from novice to skilled professionals. With hands-on training and expert guidance, our programs empower you to master the craft of construction. Expand your knowledge, enhance your abilities, and unlock a world of career opportunities.

[dutch-and-flemish-painters]

Frans Geffels - Dinner Party on a Terrace - 1660s

oil on canvas, 85.1 x 102.5 cm

Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pennsylvania, USA

Frans Geffels, known in Italy as Francesco Geffels (25 August 1624 – 18 February 1694) was a Flemish painter, printmaker, architect, stage designer and designer of ephemeral structures for solemn and festive occasions. After training in his native Antwerp, he was mainly active in Mantua, where he was prefetto delle fabbriche to the Duke, a role that gave him the direction of the artistic and construction activities undertaken by the Ducal court. He worked also on projects for the local aristocratic class of Mantua. In addition, he completed projects for the Liechtenstein princes and for the imperial court in Vienna.

He was both a canvas and fresco painter. He created portraits, history subjects, military scenes, architectural scenes and genre art, in particular merry companies. Geffels is mainly remembered as the designer of some of the key examples of Baroque architecture in Mantua.

He was born in Antwerp as the son of a laborer in a sugar refinery and a mother who operated a cheese shop. He trained in the guild year 1635/36 with Daniel Middeleer (also called Daniel Middeler and Daniël de Middelaer). Middeleer was a painter, printmaker and publisher. Geffels became a master in the local Guild of St. Luke some time between 18 September 1645 and 18 September 1646. By 1653 he was already abroad for some time.

He was likely recruited to work in Mantua in 1659, by his fellow Flemish painter and architect Daniel van den Dyck. Van den Dyck had been appointed by duke Carlo II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua as the prefetto delle fabbriche ('Prefect of the Buildings'), a position which combined the duties of official court painter, architect, surveyor of the Ducal construction program and engineer for theatrical stage design.[8] Geffels was working as an architect at the court.

Geffens spent some time in Vienna in 1660-1661 where he worked for the Imperial Court. He returned to Mantua where he became, like van den Dyck before him, prefetto delle fabbriche of the duke of Mantua in 1663. He took the place of his compatriot van den Dyck had died in the previous year. In 1664 Geffens was granted citizenship of Mantua. He was described in official records as an artist who was skilled in creating devices for the theatre.

Geffels remained in the service of the Dukes of Mantua for 30 years. He worked in 1667 in Vienna on commissions for Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein. There existed a close relationship between the Viennese court and the dukes of Mantua through marital links. The Empress Dowager Eleonora Gonzaga (1630–1686) was the third wife of Emperor Ferdinand III and the sister of Charles II Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers. He also participated on a book containing the libretto by Francesco Sbarra for the opera Il pomo d'oro scored by Antonio Cesti, which was staged twice in July 1668 on the occasion of the marriage of Emperor Leopold I and Margaret Theresa of Spain. The book was illustrated with prints depicting the various sets used during the staging of the opera. The folio de luxe edition of the book holds a print designed and etched by Geffels showing the opera's performance with Emperor Leopold I and his bride in attendance. The theatre in which the opera was staged had been purpose-built on the occasion of the couple's wedding after a design by Ludovico Ottavio Burnacini. The theatre was destroyed during the Turkish siege of Vienna in 1683 and Geffens' print now serves as the sole evidence of the interior layout of the theatre. In the print, the imperial family is shown sitting at the front. In the foreground there is a row of soldiers. Geffels had himself worked on the illusionist ceiling paintings for the court theatre, which are also shown in the print.

Even after his return to Mantua later in 1668, Geffels maintained contact with the Viennese court, as evidenced by his collaboration on the three-volume book by Gualdo Priorato with the title Historia di Leopoldo Cesare and also by his paintings depicting the Relief of Vienna in 1683 (Wien Museum Karlsplatz) and the Retaking of Buda in 1686 (Hungarian National Museum).

Geffens' official duties at the Mantua court included the design and execution of ephemeral objects and structures used on the occasion of important court-related events. In January 1666 he collaborated with Andrea Seghizzi on the decorations and objects made for the funeral of Duke Charles II Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers in the Basilica palatina di Santa Barbara in Mantua. When in 1776 Empress Claudia Felicitas of Austria died in Vienna not long after giving birth, her aunt Isabella Clara of Austria, Duchess of Mantua, had a funeral mass performed in the church of the Mothers of St. Ursula of Mantua, where the Duchess had become a Poor Clare nun. Frans Geffels was commissioned to design and construct a funeral monument that was set up in the middle of the church during the mass. It was mounted on four large marble-coloured pedestals, adorned on the top front with imperial eagles in low-relief. A print of the design was included in the book by Antonio Gobio and Geffels entitled Le essequie celebratesi nella chiesa delle MM. RR. Madri di S. Orsola di Mantoua: d'ordine della serenissima signora arciduchessa Isabella Clara d' Austria, duchessa di Mantoua, Monferrato, &c., per la morte dell' imperatrice augustissima Claudia Felice lei nipote published in Mantua in 1676 by Francesco Osanna, printer to the Duke.

As a court painter and architect, Geffels was not prohibited from taking on private commissions. An important private commission was the redesigning of the Sordi Palace for Benedetto Sordi. He created frescoes in the palace and had the sculptor Gian Battista Barberini provide sculptured decoration of the façade and interior of the palace.

He remained in office until his death in Mantua on 18 February 1694. He was buried in the Church of San Martino which he had himself redesigned. He was the last prefetto delle fabbriche of the duke of Mantua as the role was split over multiple persons after his death.

[marryslittlelambs]

Avenues Early Learning Centre in Shenzhen

The educators at avenues early learning centre create a warm homely atmosphere and welcome families. They believe that children learn best through strong connections with their family and the community. They also provide opportunities for family involvement and park excursions.

Students come from a wide range of backgrounds. Their parents include hedge-fund managers, entrepreneurs and tech millionaires, as well as celebrities like Suri Cruise, daughter of Tom and Katie Holmes.

Play Spaces

Designed to connect students with the natural avenues early learning centre, the Early Learning Center is located on the edge of an urban village surrounded by existing banyan trees. A bridge and elevated walkways weave through the lush canopies of these trees, creating a ‘top-of-the-world’ environment for children to explore and learn.

The concept of connections is central to the design, from physical connections in the form of bridges and walkways, to visual connections enabled by precise cuts in the existing building. The main atrium is centered in the middle of the floor plate and allows for diagonal views throughout the entire three-story building. Pods are arranged around the atrium with writable glazing that creates a fun and interactive learning surface. Thresholds and niches provide children with the duality of partial seclusion and visual connectivity, while bringing them more aware of their space and how they interact with other students.

The center is a training site for Gateway Community College students in Early Childhood Education, Human Services, Psychology, Nursing and other programs and provides a quality childcare option for Philadelphia parents. This is a unique way for students to learn about child development and apply theoretical concepts in a realworld setting.

Library

Avenues Shenzhen Campus is a re-imagined educational environment located in the Tanglang Industrial Zone of Shenzhen, an urban village in Nanshan district. The adaptive reuse master plan transforms a cluster of existing buildings into a vibrant campus for Nursery through Grade 12 and accommodates 1,600 students.

The school’s library is a gathering place for both quiet and social learning and reading. It features a collection of audio and video materials, a spacious children’s room on the second floor and a reference department, reading area and local history room on the third.

Teachers at Avenues are encouraged to build strong, nurturing relationships with the children in their care and emphasize the importance of a partnership between home and school. They are also encouraged to incorporate physical play and exercise into the curriculum, as these are key habits that help children develop a healthy body and mind. Integrated shade structures and multi-functional tiered seating are positioned on roof terraces to provide comfortable outdoor spaces.

Music & Art Lessons

A wide variety of educational activities are provided throughout the day, including sensory experiences like play dough, goop and water play. Construction with blocks, magnets and recycled items encourage divergent thinking, while art lessons and open ended exploration develop creativity and imagination.

Children are involved in medium to long term projects, which develop their knowledge and understanding of concepts through an emergent curriculum. This learning is based on the interests of the children, and often leads to social investigations.

The centre provides a warm and caring atmosphere where each child and their family feel welcome and secure. Its staff foster within each child an awareness and acceptance of others, developing respect for those who may be different in terms of lifestyle, abilities or culture. The centre also runs a number of regular incursions and visits from community services such as Henny Penny egg hatching, Dental to You and Physi Kids. The in-house chef prepares a daily menu for all age groups, which is guided by Healthy Eating Guidelines. Morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and a late afternoon snack are provided.

Local Excursions

The Avenues pre kinder program will come from a variety of neighborhoods, and students will have the opportunity to explore different cultures in their classrooms. Students will learn the fundamental lessons of language immersion and interdisciplinary learning, laying the groundwork for lifelong benefits.

Students will be encouraged to develop healthy habits of eating and exercise during the formative years of childhood, establishing good habits for their lives as adults. Avenues faculty will also promote a healthy partnership between school and home to foster a positive learning environment for all children.

The professional onsite chef at Avenues Early Learning Centre Murarrie works closely with the management team and parents to provide a seasonal rotating menu guided by nutritional requirements. The centre regularly utilises family recipes and caters for allergies. There are a number of long term employed educators within the centres and this ensures familiar faces for children to arrive and depart with each day. The centre is rated Exceeding through the National Quality Standards.

[bettercareersguide]

CONSTRUCTION CRAFT LABORER APPRENTICE TRAINING OPPORTUNITY - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

apprenticeship applications for Laborer's District Council's Joint Apprenticeship Program will be made available to interested applicants. Consider a Career as a Construction Craft Laborer. Our apprenticeship program gives you the training, education and... http://dlvr.it/SmDpBg

[autismcental234]

Center For Autism And Associated Disabilities Faculty & Staff

Many of them use Applied Behavior Analysis Therapy, or ABA therapy, to grasp and work on certain behaviors. Early intervention for kids with autism helps their growth and teaches them useful expertise to succeed. This course provides a basis for educators to raised position themselves to grasp their students’ mental health challenges, and to empower themselves to provide compassion and helps using sensible assets and methods of their classroom. After school programs are designed to permit students from the final training inhabitants to receive further tutoring and help vocational coaching via farming. These packages also permits, enables, and encourages true inclusion, as we provide a protected environment for all.

Our physicians evaluate sufferers and develop a comprehensive plan for every patient which could be shared with the caregiver, referring physician, college and/or community program. Our mission is to improve the standard of life for people with Autism Spectrum Disorders and their households. We continually try to be the premier resource centre for autism for specialised autism companies in Philadelphia and its surrounding counties by offering packages that meet the precise wants of each particular person affected by autism. Parents, academics, employers, and service providers need access to up-to-date, accurate details about autism.

When my son first got here to Hope Center he was lower than three years old, made minimal eye contact, spoke only a few phrases and couldn't sit in a single spot for greater than a couple of seconds. He has grown leaps and bounds during the last two years at Hope Center. He has accomplished his UKG now with very good grades and he's doing significantly better than his friends at his faculty in English vocabulary.

Our multidisciplinary team of developmental specialists is committed to addressing these issues and supporting people and their families from infancy by way of maturity, multi function location. We continue to recruit households in a number of websites throughout Israel and develop ground-breaking analysis with national and worldwide impression. Matt and Susan sought and located professionals to deliver the really helpful intervention to Blake at their house. During the method nevertheless, they acknowledged the necessity for extra remedy centers and sources within the Cincinnati area to help households who had been battling the reality of raising a toddler identified with ASD. On September eleven, 2001, while Americans have been experiencing devastation on a nationwide degree, Matt and Susan Brennan were experiencing a crisis of their own. They had been sitting in an workplace at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, receiving a analysis of autism spectrum disorder for his or her youngest son.

TEACCH relies on the concept folks with autism thrive on consistency and visible studying. It provides lecturers with methods to regulate the classroom construction and improve academic and different outcomes. For example, every day routines may be written or drawn and positioned in clear sight.

Early intervention allows them to learn how to be unbiased at a younger age. By the time they reach maturity, they’ll be succesful of do many issues by themselves without counting on their parents for care. To present assist to the family of kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder . "Participants gained a greater understanding of their college students' behaviour, discovered centre for autism new methods to help students in the classroom, and received practical information that they passed alongside to their colleagues." This course will present informative sources for assessment choices, intervention strategies for the treatment of tension, and counsel lodging to meet particular person needs.

Search right here for contact info for members of the Children’s program administration group. "God has chosen this path for her, and surrounded her with angels here on Earth, her Anderson staff, to look after her till we can centre for autism see her once more. Thank you from the underside of my heart..." Thank you for being a member of our community and interesting with Anderson in the direction of profitable outcomes for all.

We conduct equally complete re-evaluations for patients to ensure they're receiving essentially the most appropriate companies at completely different stages of their lives. Anderson Center International’s particular consultative status with the United Nations permits us to register and take part in United Nations events, conferences and different activities, sharing our experience with the world. In order to supply dad and mom and professionals with an impartial, unbiased evaluation of causal and therapy efficacy points, ARI seeks no monetary assist from special interest groups or drug manufacturers. Your reward of any size goes immediately towards supporting the well being and well-being of individuals affected by autism through progressive, impactful research and training. The Hope staff has been instrumental in noticeable growth and progress of our daughter.

[space-mermaid-writing]

House Arrest [Loki X Reader] Chapter 1

Summary: You are Clint’s 'little' sister and actually a trained Shield agent. But you gave that up a few years ago and became a Chef, because you wanted a normal live. Then one day Natasha shows up at your door and takes you to the Avenger Tower for a while for security reasons.

Tags: Reader is an former Shield Agent, chef!reader, Reader Barton, 2012 Avenger vibes, everything is still alright, Slice of Life, Avengers Family, Loki has a good heart, still the god of mischief, Slow Burn, mention of food and cooking

Read it on AO3

Chapter 1: New Home

It's just before midnight when you finally get off work. You really like your job, but the hours are murder. Being a chef at one of the most expensive five-star restaurants in Philadelphia has its price. You take off your apron, which has hardly any stains from the last few hours on it, and throw it in the wash. The white jacket goes neatly into your locker and is replaced by a cardigan and a scarf. It’s a cool night. With a last good bye to your colleagues, who are still putting the dishes into the dishwashers, you make your way home.

The night is dark, but the streets are lit by lanterns and the windows of closed stores. Even if it had been pitch black, it wouldn't have worried you to have to walk alone through the empty alleys. Last year a guy had tried to rob you and threatened you with a knife. You had given him a broken nose and several stab wounds in the shoulder. After all, you had been trained at Shield. But the poor guy didn’t know that.

Half an hour later you arrive at your apartment. It's more functional than nicely furnished, and everything is a bit of a pick 'n' mix. But you don't mind it, because you spend most of your time at work anyway. At home you don't feel such great importance to culinary variety when it comes to your own food. A pizza or French fries with ketchup were always welcome. After all, you've been standing at the stove long enough at work. Tired, you decide to wait until breakfast for your next meal and, after a quick change of clothes, just fall into bed.

Fortunately, the next day is your day off. You make good use of it and sleep in. Afterwards you have an nice brunch with eggs, bacon and toast and after a short shower you go into town to do some errands. The sun is shining warmly from the sky and it's a beautiful spring day. If this holds up until the weekend, maybe you'd visit the weekly market and see what exotic and rare foods you can grab there. You love these little trips, even if you rarely find the time.

About two hours later and with three full shopping bags, you re-enter your apartment. It's on the second floor of a rather nondescript building, but the interior is very modern, with pastel-colored, high walls. You put everything in the kitchen cabinets and then brew yourself a tea/coffee, with which you make yourself comfortable on the couch and turn on the TV. It's time to relax a little. So you zap through the programs, watch the rest of an episode of your favorite series and then decide to watch a reality series, which is not exactly known for its quality but is entertaining. So the noon goes by until suddenly the doorbell rings. You get up to see if it's the mailman or a neighbor with a package. But a look through the peephole shows you that it is neither. Surprised, you open the door "Nat!" Natasha Romanoff is a friend of you and your brother, as well as the godmother of his children. But due to her job you rarely see each other. "Hey," she greets you with a small smile. "Can I come in?" "Sure." You lead her into the living room, where you turn off the TV. "What can I get you? Tea, coffee, milkshake?" "Coffee is fine." You disappear into the kitchen for a moment as she sits down in the armchair. Natasha was a rare visitor. Mostly she came with some news from Clint. You see him even less because he spends what little free time he has mostly with his wife and the two kids. Understandable. You don't hold it against him and try to visit them on holidays or for birthdays at her farm.

It doesn't take long until you return to the Russian woman with a new cup and some pastries and sit down on the couch again. "Well," you ask her curiously. "What do I owe the pleasure?" Natasha reaches for her cup. "It’s rather inconvenience. But first tell me if you’ve observed anything unusual lately." Questioningly, you look at her. "What do you mean?" "Nothing weird? You sure?", she asks. "Tell me what I'm supposed to have seen, please," you prompt her, both impatient and confused. Natasha gets right to the point. "You're being monitored." "By Shield?" "By Hydra." Stunned by this news, you remain silent. Natasha uses this pause to drink her coffee. "Oh, this is really good." But you don't listen to her at all, because various thoughts are circling in your head. And again you try to remember if you have noticed anything: same people you met, vehicles, anything. But you got pretty used to your life and didn't pay attention at these things. "Anyway, I'm here to pick you up. For your own safety it’s best if you stay with us for a while," Natasha finally breaks the silence and you look up. "What could Hydra possibly want from me? I don't know any internal secrets anymore. There are better to kidnap than me." "That's what we're trying to figure out right now." "Well, the danger doesn't seem to be acute", you note. "If they wanted to grab me, I wouldn't be sitting here by now. Thanks, but I decline and prefer to stay here. I have my job and the apartment." And now that you know what's going on, you can pay attention and take the necessary precautions, too. "Thanks for warning me." Natasha, on the other hand, doesn't look like she gives you a choice. "You know Shield has its ways to convince you?", she reminds you, but you shrug. Why would such a large organization bother with a single civilian like you? "What does my dear brother say about this matter?", you ask instead. "He hasn't been informed yet." Ergo, they deliberately leave him out of it so that he can't protest. You know this kind of approach of Shield.

Clint understands and supports you in your civilian life, even though he protested the loudest back when you announced your exit. "How’s he?", you want to know from Natasha, who is now finishing her coffee. "He's alive." That can mean just about anything from being happy and healthy to badly hurt but breathing. Better than being dead, you guess. "He's out in Africa with Steve right now." "Busy, huh?" "As usual." She stands up as a sign that she has nothing more to say for the day, and you walk her to the door, where you bid her farewell. "We'll talk again soon," she promises, but admittedly you have little desire to do so right now. "Sure," you reply and close the door behind her.

Well, that were some news. You put her empty cup in the sink and pause thoughtfully by the window. How could you have missed Hydra's agent, you ask yourself while glancing out. Your new life made you too comfortable. But it also takes up a lot of time and energy. And anyway, you dropped out because you didn't want to be cautiousness all the time anymore. You wanted a normal life with a normal job and normal problems. Away from agents, assassinations and super powers. You didn't want to check every day on your way to work if you were being followed, secretly monitored or if someone else was out to get you. That's why you’ve chosen this life. With a sigh, you sit back down on the couch. The past never leaves you alone, you guess. But tomorrow would be a long day even without these new old worries.

~~

The advantage of being a chef is usually that you don't have to get up at the crack of dawn for work. Most Restaurants open at noon, some even in the evening. So does the one where you work. There are preparations to be made before opening time, but you can still sleep through the morning, do some housework, and then head to the restaurant in the sunny afternoon. That's where the trouble starts, though. Just as you're about to open your locker to change your clothes, someone taps you on the shoulder. It's your boss, who hands you a letter. You can tell immediately from his serious expression that something is wrong. And when you open the envelope, you discover your resignation. You look up, perplexed, but you lose out in the following discussion. You don't even get a decent explanation, and that’s what annoys you the most. You're pretty sure your skills aren’t the issue, neither is the way you work. Nor the way you treat your colleagues, with whom you get along very well, even if the tone among cooks is a bit rough. You go back to your apartment, now in a bad mood. It‘s unbelievable! The sunny weather seems like a mockery to you now, and the people you meet along the way are in far too good a mood, in your opinion. It will be hell to find another good job as this was.

Arriving back home you immediately get more bad news: your landlord put a notice on your apartment door. The bathrooms in the building will get completely renovated soon and will be unusable for several weeks. Plus the heavy construction noise during the day. And the water would be turned off. It would be best to find temporary substitute apartment, so they recommend. "Haha...ha..." You laugh dryly and unlock the door. Was that a coincidence? When Natasha had been here yesterday? Probably not. You know Shield's methods and that it’s easy for them to take away your job and your apartment just to get their way. You have two options: either you accept the offer before Shield gets any more stupid ideas, or you run away and try to hide. With a sigh you go into your bedroom and throw a suitcase on the bed, in which you pack clothes, the most important documents and some things from the kitchen you need for work. Not everything fits, so you add a second travel bag. Meanwhile, you think about who you could complain to. Your brother was a favorite target of yours, but he a) had nothing to do with this matter and b) was not in the country. Which’s a shame, because you'd really like to have him by your side right now. If you wanted to complain to Shield directly, Fury would probably be the best person to do it. But you hold too much respect for him to vent your anger to him. Maybe just the next Shield agent who would come to you on this matter would have to step in. You know someone would definitely get back to you. With one last look around your apartment, you leave it and lock the door. Then you shoulder your bag and make your way out.

Just as you're thinking about getting a large coffee from Starbucks down the street, a red sports car pulls up to the side of the road. Natasha at the wheel. "Hmph..." You walk over to her and throw your luggage in the back seat. Then you take a seat in the passenger seat yourself. "Just for the record, I'm not happy with this." "I can see that." She tries to give a sympathetic smile, but you know this is just a job to her. "Well then, off to the Bat Cave, Wayne." "Does that make you Robin?", the Russian asks, driving off. "I guess", you reply snippy, not interested in keeping the conversation going. Fortunately, Natasha wasn't exactly the talkative sort either, so you have some peace and quiet to get your thoughts in order.

It takes you just under two hours to drive from Philadelphia to New York with city traffic slowing you down a bit. Otherwise, you would have arrived earlier at the former Stark Tower. It's been the Avenger Tower for some time now, but that doesn't make much difference, except that Tony Stark seems to be too lazy to put the remaining letters back on it.

Natasha parks in the private underground garage and you take the elevator up to the grand lobby. She tells you about the current residents here. There’s the usual staff, who are of course always present. Of all the Avengers, Bruce Banner is living here permanently. "He actually hardly ever leaves the lab," the Russian explains. "I'm currently living here, too. Every now and then Thor stops by, but mostly he prefers to explore the world. And his brother Loki is here. There have been some...problems with him and he's sort of under supervision here. Tony trusts technology more than Asgard. The owner of the house, by the way, is out visiting an outpost right now." "There are even Avengers outposts?" Natasha nods as she walks you down the halls to the living area. "But don't tell Hydra." "Sure", you promise unfazed. "Speaking of which, if I want to go out to visit someone, do I need a key or how does this work?" "It's better if you stay here in the house for now. It's for your safety, after all." "For how long?", you want to know. The answer is short. "As long as necessary." "So I'm sort of locked in here”, you state. That's typical Shield. As soon as there's any problem, an agent is sent in to put everything in solitary arrest or quarantine. As long as it’s shielded from the rest of the world. Natasha stops in front of a door that is now yours, but doesn't look directly at you, which as much of an answer as you get. "I'll be fine on my own now, thanks," you smile politely but not genuinely at her, and after she assures you that you're free to move around inside the building, you head off with your luggage in your new apartment.

[multiverseforger]

Robin the Boy WonderEdit



Characters from an illustration by N. C. Wyeth for "Robin Hood" (1917) by Paul Creswick. The look inspired Jerry Robinson's design for Robin.[6]:83



Dick Grayson as Robin in his first appearance, on the cover of Detective Comics #38 (April 1940), along with Batman. Art by Bob Kane.

The character was first introduced in Detective Comics #38 (1940) by Batman creators Bill Finger and Bob Kane. Robin's debut was an effort to get younger readers to enjoy Batman. The name "Robin, The Boy Wonder" and the medieval look of the original costume are inspired by the legendary hero Robin Hood. The costume was designed by Jerry Robinson who drew it from memory based on Robin Hood illustrations by N. C. Wyeth.[6]:83

In his first appearance, Dick Grayson is a circus acrobat, and, with his parents, one of the "Flying Graysons". Robin was born on the first day of spring, son of John Grayson and Mary Grayson, a young aerialist couple. While preparing for a performance, Dick overhears two gangsters attempting to extort protection money from the circus owner. The owner refuses, so the gangsters sabotage the trapeze wires with acid. During the next performance, the trapeze from which Dick's parents are swinging snaps, sending them to their deaths. Before he can go to the police, Batman appears to him and warns him that the two gangsters work for Tony Zucco, a very powerful crime boss, and that revealing his knowledge could lead to his death. When Batman recounts the murder of his own parents, Dick asks to become his aide. After extensive training, Dick becomes Robin. They start by disrupting Zucco's gambling and extortion rackets. They then successfully bait the riled Zucco into visiting a construction site, where they capture him.

Robin's origin has a thematic connection to Batman's in that both see their parents killed by criminals, creating an urge to battle the criminal element. Bruce sees a chance to direct the anger and rage that Dick feels in a way that he himself cannot, thus creating a father/son bond and understanding between the two. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, DC Comics portrayed Batman and Robin as a team, deeming them the "Dynamic Duo", rarely publishing a Batman story without his sidekick; stories entirely devoted to Robin appeared in Star-Spangled Comics from 1947 through 1952.

The character history of the Earth-Two Robin accordingly adopts all of the earliest stories featuring the character from the 1940s and 1950s, while the adventures of the mainstream Robin (who lived on "Earth-One") begin later in time and with certain elements of his origin retold. Both were depicted as separate, though parallel, individuals living in their respective universes, with the "older" Earth-Two character eventually reaching death in Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Teen TitansEdit

1964's The Brave and the Bold #54 introduces a junior version of the Justice League of America. This team is led by the modern-day Robin, residing on Earth-One, and was joined by two other teenage sidekicks, Aqualad (sidekick of Aquaman) and Kid Flash (sidekick of the Flash), to stop the menace of Mr. Twister.

Later, the three sidekicks join forces with Speedy and Wonder Girl in order to free their mentors in the JLA from mind-controlled thrall. They decide to become a real team: the Teen Titans. By virtue of the tactical skills gleaned from Batman, Robin is swiftly recognized as leader before the Titans disband some years later.

In 1969, still in the Pre-Crisis continuity, writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Neal Adams return Batman to his darker roots. One part of this effort is writing Robin out of the series by sending Dick Grayson to Hudson University and into a separate strip in the back of Detective Comics. The by-now Teen Wonder appears only sporadically in Batman stories of the 1970s as well as in a short-lived revival of The Teen Titans.

In 1980, Grayson once again takes up the role of leader of the Teen Titans, now featured in the monthly series The New Teen Titans, which became one of DC Comics's most beloved series of the era. During his leadership of the Titans, however, he had a falling out with Batman, leading to an estrangement that would last for many years.

NightwingEdit

In the pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity, the maturing Dick Grayson grows weary of his role as Batman's young sidekick. He renames himself Nightwing, recalling his adventure in the Kryptonian city of Kandor, where he and Batman meet the local hero of the same name. In post-Crisis continuity he is fired by Batman after being shot by the Joker and becomes Nightwing. He maintains this identity during his role in the Teen Titans, and occasionally returns to assist Batman and his successors as Robin in the form of Jason Todd and Tim Drake, Tim in particular becoming a younger brother figure to him.

When Bruce's back is broken by Bane during the Knightfall story arc, Bruce selects Jean-Paul Valley as his replacement as Batman as he does not want to burden Dick with the role and fears that Dick may go after Bane in revenge. However, when Valley proves to be too unstable to be Batman, Bruce undergoes a rigorous recovery and training program with the aid of Doctor Shondra Kinsolving and Lady Shiva to restore him to full health, defeating Valley with Dick and Tim's aid. However, feeling that he needs to re-evaluate Batman and his mission after Valley's defeat, Bruce leaves Gotham once again, after appointing Dick as his successor during the "Prodigal" story arc. While acting as Batman, Dick is left with a clearer idea of the psychological stresses Bruce must endure in the role, as well as facing some of Bruce's newer enemies — such as Killer Croc, the Ventriloquist and the Ratcatcher — while settling his own long-standing issues with Two-Face.

Miniseries and afterwardEdit

In Nightwing: Alfred's Return #1 (1995), Dick Grayson travels to England to find Alfred Pennyworth who had resigned from Bruce Wayne's service following the events of the KnightSaga. Before returning to Gotham City together, they prevent an attempted coup d'état against the British government that involves destroying the Channel Tunnel under the English Channel.

Later on, with the Nightwing miniseries (September to December 1995, written by Dennis O'Neil with Greg Land as artist), Dick briefly considers retiring from being Nightwing forever before family papers uncovered by Alfred reveal a possible link between the murder of the Flying Graysons and the Crown Prince of Kravia. Journeying to Kravia, Nightwing helps to topple the murderous Kravian leader and prevent an ethnic cleansing, while learning his parents' true connection to the Prince; they witnessed the original Prince being killed and replaced with an impostor who became as bad as his predecessor (although Zucco killed the Graysons before the conspirators could do anything about it). In the aftermath, Dick returns to his role as Nightwing, recognizing that, for all his problems with Bruce, Bruce never made him become Robin or join his crusade, accepting that he imitated Bruce's example because Bruce was worthy of imitation.

In 1996, following the success of the miniseries, DC Comics launched a monthly solo series featuring Nightwing (written by Chuck Dixon, with art by Scott McDaniel), in which he patrols Gotham City's neighboring municipality of Blüdhaven, relocating there to investigate a series of murders and remaining as he recognized that the city needed protection. He remains the city's guardian for some time, facing foes such as Blockbuster and new villains such as Torque, and even becomes a police officer so that he can make an impact on the city's criminal activity in both parts of his life. Later, Grayson divides his duties between Bludhaven and Gotham after a devastating earthquake and the subsequent decision to declare Gotham a No Man's Land, Grayson occasionally assisting his mentor and other members of Bat-Family in maintaining and restoring order in Gotham until it is fully rebuilt. When the Justice League vanished into the past fighting ancient sorceress Gamemnae, Nightwing was selected as the leader of the reserve League created by an emergency program Batman had established in the event of his League being defeated, Batman describing Nightwing as the only person he could have picked to lead the new team.

Eventually, the original League are restored, and Nightwing departs along with some of his League-although others remain as some of the original team take a leave of absence-although Batman notes that his leadership of the League proves that he is ready for more responsibilities. However, the death of Blockbuster prompts Nightwing to leave Bludhaven due to his crisis of conscience; Blockbuster was killed by vigilante Tarantula and Nightwing did not stop it even when he had the chance to do so. While Nightwing returns to Gotham to heal after assisting Batman in dealing with a series of gang wars, Blüdhaven is destroyed by the Secret Society of Super-Villains when they drop Chemo on it.

During the battle of Metropolis, Grayson suffers a near-fatal injury from Alexander Luthor, Jr. when he shields Wayne from Luthor's attack.[7] Originally, the editors at DC intended to have Grayson killed in Infinite Crisis as Newsarama revealed from the DC Panel at WizardWorld Philadelphia:[8]

It was again explained that Nightwing was originally intended to die in Infinite Crisis, and that you can see the arc that was supposed to end with his death in the series. After long discussions, the death edict was finally reversed, but the decision was made that, if they were going to be keeping him, he would have to be changed. The next arc of the ongoing series will further explain the changes, it was said.

After spending some time away with Bruce and Tim to heal and rebuild after their harsh times prior to the Crisis, Dick relocates to New York, but has trouble finding work as both Dick Grayson and Nightwing. During the Batman R.I.P. storyline, Nightwing is ambushed by the International Club of Villains. He is later seen being held in Arkham Asylum, where one of the surgeons, in reality also the civilian identity of ICoV member Le Bossu, arranged for Nightwing to be admitted under the name of Pierrot Lunaire (another ICoV member) and be kept both heavily drugged and regularly beaten by staff to subdue him. Scheduled for an experimental lobotomy by Le Bossu himself, he manages to free himself and come to Batman's aid for the finale of the story arc.

Batman: RebornEdit

Following the events of Batman's apparent death during the Final Crisis, Nightwing has closed down shop in New York so as to return to Gotham, where after the events of "Battle for the Cowl", he assumes the identity of Batman, with Damian Wayne, Bruce Wayne's biological son, as the new Robin.[9]

The new team of Batman and Robin is the focus of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's Batman and Robin series.[10] Their dynamic reverses the classic dynamic of Bruce and Dick, by having a lighter and friendlier Batman paired with a more intense and dark Robin. Over time, Dick's experience as the Dark Knight would harden his personality as his mentor.

During this period, Dick Grayson as Batman also features as a member of the Justice League in a short-lived run by writer James Robinson. After an intense confrontation with the Club of Villains and the mysterious Doctor Simon Hurt (who has established fake evidence that he is actually Bruce's father Thomas Wayne), Hurt is defeated when Bruce returns to the present. However, Bruce leaves Dick to continue to act as Batman in Gotham with Damian as his partner while he sets up the new 'Batman Incorporated' program, Bruce publicly identifying himself as Batman's financial backer to justify a global Batman-themed operation where he funds multiple other vigilantes.

The New 52 (2011–2016)Edit

See also: The New 52

Dick Grayson is re-established as Nightwing following DC's Flashpoint crossover event, after which the publisher relaunched all of its titles and made alterations to its continuity as part of an initiative called The New 52. In the new status quo, Bruce Wayne is once again the only Batman, and Dick, like the other members of the adoptive family, is a few years younger. Dick, despite being 19 is drawn a bit shorter than in his pre-relaunch frame. This is likely due to adding believability to his acrobat past.[11] According to various interviews it is stated that Dick was adopted at 16, as opposed to 12. This is due to the DCNU's timeline existing for five years.[12] Dick Grayson is shown in flashbacks as Robin with a revamped version of the Robin costume in Nightwing (vol. 3) #0 (November 2012) and Batman and Robin Annual (vol. 2) #2 (March 2014).



Dick Grayson in his New 52 Robin costume from Batman and Robin Annual, vol. 2 #2 (March 2014). Art by Doug Mahnke and Patrick Gleason

In his civilian identity he is attacked by an assassin named Saiko who insists that he is the fiercest killer in Gotham.[13] The series Batman Incorporated relaunches with a second volume, continuing its story while taking into account the New 52's continuity changes; Dick is now depicted as Nightwing, and not as Batman, but the change is not addressed in the comic itself. In Nightwing, Dick inherits the deed to the circus from a dying C. C. Haly and begins a relationship with his childhood friend acrobat Raya Vestri. Saiko tortures Haly for information on Nightwing's secret identity, and the old man dies in Dick's arms after telling him the circus holds a terrible secret.[14] Investigating leads, he tracks down a supervillain named Feedback, who used to be a childhood friend, but does not learn anything.[15] Following Haly's clues, he finds a mysterious Book of Names in the circus that has his name on the last page.[16] Later the circus announces they will be doing a memorial show on the anniversary of the night Dick's parents were murdered, and Saiko attacks by detonating a massive explosion.[17]

It is then revealed that the circus has been training assassins for years, and Saiko was a childhood friend using Raya as an accomplice. Grayson had been selected to become a new Talon for the Court of Owls, but when Batman adopted him, Saiko took his place. The killer plummets to his death and Raya turns herself in. Returning to the Batcave, Bruce reveals to Dick that the current Talon is his great-grandfather William Cobb.[18] During the Night of the Owls event Dick faces Cobb, who was revived while protecting Mayor Hady.[19] Following the event, Dick decided to keep Haly's Circus in Gotham and plans to invest in turning an abandoned amusement park into their new location without Bruce's money.[20] He works with Sonia Branch, the daughter of Tony Zucco, the crime boss who murdered Dick's parents, into getting a loan for this plan by investing his entire trust fund despite being a high-risk due to Saiko's recent attack. The problems arise because of the guilt Sonia feels towards her father's actions [21] and many members of the circus are afraid for their lives because of the previous disasters and accuse Dick Grayson of being a flake, making it hard for those who choose to stay.[22]

The "Death of the Family" crossover event across the Batman-related comic books led to a major shift in Nightwing's status quo. During the storyline, one of Dick's friends Jimmy Clark, who worked as a circus clown, was murdered by the Joker because Joker felt like Jimmy was a knockoff of him. Nightwing later discovers Joker broke Raya out of prison, infected her with his Joker venom and has forced her to fight him while wearing a makeshift Nightwing costume. The toxin eventually killed Raya, though Nightwing tried in vain with an anti-toxin to save her. Nightwing then discovered that Joker left a message on Raya's abdomen that he was targeting Haly's Circus next.[23] However upon arriving there, Joker unveils his plan to burn the circus to the ground and then infects Nightwing with his gas that not only causes him to experience hallucinations of Jimmy and Raya, but he is soon attacked by the other members of Haly's Circus that were also affected by the toxin allowing Joker to capture him.[24]

In the aftermath, Haly's Circus is gone, with Dick broke as a result for having lost his investment. While the other circus members survived since Joker used a different Joker venom on them, they blame Dick and decide to leave after Raya and Jimmy's funeral, though deep down they know it is not his fault. Dick becomes bitter from his loss. After he used excessive force to bring down some criminals that tried to plunder valuables from the remains of the circus, Damian, having been monitoring him, is able to talk some sense into Nightwing, which helps him recover.[25]

Nightwing is later deeply affected by the death of Damian following his murder at the hands of Damian's clone, the Heretic, in Batman Incorporated. With Damian's death and potential resurrection becoming an obsession of Batman's, Dick is shunned by Bruce when he tries to tell him to move on, in Batman and Nightwing (a retitled Batman & Robin #23).

Later, the Nightwing series changes its setting to Chicago, Illinois. Sonia Branch reveals to Dick an e-mail that indicates that her father Zucco is still alive. After giving the address to Red Robin to try and track down who sent it, Robin uncovers that Zucco is residing in Chicago. Nightwing moves to Chicago in order to find and arrest Zucco, who is now living under the assumed identity of Billy Lester, an assistant to the mayor. Soon after arriving in Chicago, Dick meets his new roommates, a photojournalist named Michael and a computer specialist named Joey. After leaving the apartment to meet with Johnny Spade, a borderline criminal who steals and sells information, their meeting is interrupted by the police. A short chase results in the accidental destruction of a newly rebuilt subway. Meanwhile, a criminal hacker called the Prankster tortures, maims and kills criminal con men who are untouchable by the police.

The Chicago story is later abruptly ended by Nightwing's role in a larger company-wide crossover event. After the Crime Syndicate invade Earth Prime at the conclusion of the "Trinity War" Justice League storyline and defeat the Justice League, the DC crossover story Forever Evil depicts Nightwing's capture by the Crime Syndicate, who expose his secret identity to the world. Following their escape from the Syndicate, Batman and Catwoman decide to rescue him. He then is invited by Owlman to help defeat the Crime Syndicate, which he accepts. Nightwing is severely beaten by Ultraman and is attached to a device from a parallel world known as the Murder Machine, which is controlled by his heart rate and is reportedly impossible to escape from alive. When Batman and Lex Luthor arrive to free him, Lex stops his heart in order to fool the system so he can disarm it. However, Batman, enraged over what Lex has done, attacks him. Luthor explains it is not too late to save Grayson.[26] In an uncharacteristically heroic moment, Luthor injects Grayson's heart with adrenaline, which successfully revives Grayson. Cyborg enters, having defeated Grid, and Grayson joins Batman, Cyborg and Catwoman in freeing the Justice League from the Firestorm Matrix. After the defeat of the Syndicate, Grayson is seen with Batman in the Batcave. Batman tells him that he has to send him on the most dangerous mission he could possibly undertake.

GraysonEdit

The Nightwing title concluded in April 2014 at issue #30, and was replaced with a new title, Grayson, which depicts Dick having given up his life as Nightwing at age 22 and going undercover as an agent of the Spyral organization where the former Batwoman Kathy Kane works.[27] Written by Tim Seeley and former CIA counter-terrorism officer Tom King, the career change for Dick Grayson comes from the urging of Batman himself, who convinces him to remain dead to the world. Seeley stated that the series will be "leaning into" Grayson's sex symbol status. The character's look also is redesigned with no mask, but a blue-and-black outfit calling back to his pre-New 52 Nightwing counterpart with an addition of a "G" on his chest, said to be reminiscent of the Robin "R".[28][29]

In the "Agent of Spyral" storyline, Dick (known as Agent 37) is enlisted by Mister Minos, the director of Spyral, after having been chosen by Helena Bertinelli to serve as a new candidate. However, Dick serves as a mole under Batman due to their agenda of unmasking heroes by collecting the Paragon organs, organs in which contains the DNA of the Justice League and bestows meta-bioweapons the ability to use their powers. He assists Spyral's agenda to know more about Minos and his endgame, resulting in Spyral attaining most of the scattered organs. In a later story arc, Minos betrays Spyral and attempts to leak its secrets. To his surprise he finds the new Agent Zero, who reveals that she, along with the upper echelon of Spyral, had used Minos to attract Dick into Spyral and kills Minos as he has outlived his life full of humor.[30][31]

During Batman and Robin Eternal, Grayson finds himself working with various other members of the Bat-Family-during the time when Bruce Wayne is amnesiac after his resurrection against the ruthless villain known only as "Mother", who, it is revealed, briefly met with Batman early in Grayson's career as Robin, believing that he shared her views on using trauma to make people stronger. Mother intends to trigger a global collapse with the reasoning that the survivors will rebuild a stronger world after being broken by tragedy and without the hindrance of parents to force their ideals on them, but Grayson and the rest of the Family are able to defeat her, Dick affirming that Batman helps the Robins become their own people who can avoid the mistakes he made in dealing with his own trauma rather than Mother's belief that she and Batman each teach people to use their trauma to define themselves. At the conclusion of the storyline, Dick meets with the restored Batman, assuring Bruce that, unlike Mother, he never forced his ideals on them, but simply gave them all an example that they chose to emulate while avoiding following it so exactly that they became like him.

When the Court of Owls plant a bomb inside Damian Wayne, they are able to blackmail Dick into officially joining their organization, although all sides are aware that Grayson intends to try and use his new position against them.[32] The Grayson series ended at issue #20, where in the final issue, it was revealed that all knowledge of Dick's identity was erased from most of the world with one of Spyral's satellites, allowing Dick to resume his superhero activities as Nightwing once again.[3]

DC RebirthEdit

Starting with the DC Rebirth relaunch in 2016, Dick returned to being Nightwing with his black and blue costume, his Spyral contacts having wiped all global evidence of his dual identity and the bomb removed from Damian. He uses his new skills and expertise in espionage moving forward.[33] Nightwing is prominently featured in two Rebirth books: the fourth volume of Nightwing, his own solo book, and Titans, where Dick teams up with the other original Teen Titans after Wally West returns to the universe; through Wally, Dick remembers events of his life prior to Flashpoint and The New 52.[34] After the Titans are forcibly disbanded by the Justice League, Dick creates a new Titans team after the rupture of the Source Wall consisting of Donna Troy, Raven, Steel (Natasha Irons), Beast Boy, and Miss Martian.[35]

In his solo book, Dick is paired with a vigilante named Raptor and the two plan to bring down the Court of Owls from the inside. Barbara criticizes Dick's willingness to trust him and does not agree with his methods. Though Raptor seemed willing to play by Dick's rules of not killing, he tricks Dick into agreeing to a plan that results in the deaths of all of the Parliament of Owls in Sydney. After knocking Dick out, Raptor goes to Gotham and kidnaps Bruce during a conference. Nightwing confronts him alone in the ruins of a circus in Paris. Raptor reveals that he grew up in the circus as a child and fell in love with Dick's mother, Mary, as they stole from the rich and powerful in Paris. Raptor watched over Dick in the shadows as he grew up, and developed a hatred for Bruce Wayne as he represented everything he and Mary were against and felt it was dishonoring her memory to have Dick raised by him. Dick defeats Raptor and rescues Bruce in time.[36]

After joining forces with the pre-Flashpoint Superman to defeat the latest attack of Doctor Destiny, Dick contemplates checking out Bludhaven, based on Superman's reference to how the pre-Flashpoint Grayson acted as the city's guardian for a time,[37] and ultimately decides to go there.[38] While there he meets a supervillain rehabilitation group called the Run-Offs, all of which were villains he and Batman defeated in the past. He finds that most of them are being framed for crimes around the area and works with them to find the true culprits.[39] After solving the case and clearing their names, Dick begins dating their leader Shawn Tsang, known as the former criminal the Defacer.[40] Shawn is kidnapped by Professor Pyg after Dick discovers she might be pregnant with his child, and he teams up with Damian to track Pyg down and rescue her.[41] After Shawn is revealed not to be pregnant, she ultimately breaks up with Dick, who focuses his efforts on taking down criminals such as Blockbuster, the returning Raptor, the Judge, and Wyrm.[42]

During one of his nightly patrols with Batman, Nightwing is shot by KGBeast and nearly killed.[43] As a result, he suffered from severe memory loss and attempted to build a new life in Bludhaven. He changed his name to Ric, gave up being Nightwing, and became a taxi driver that frequently went to bars. With Bludhaven suffering from an increase in crime from the vigilante's absence, a detective named Sapienza comes across Dick's abandoned hideout in the subway and decides to become the new Nightwing.[44] Sapienza recruits a team of his friends in law enforcement to help him, and together they make a team of Nightwings using Dick Grayson's old uniforms. In addition to Sapienza, the team consists of Malcolm Hutch, the deputy chief in the Bludhaven fire department, Zak Edwards, vice of the 10th precinct, and Colleen Edwards, detective of the 14th precinct.[45]

During Year of the Villain, Ric is captured by William Cobb, his grandfather who is a Talon. A brain surgeon that Bruce hired to take care of Dick after he was shot named Dr. Haas was secretly a member of the Court, who was using a mystical memory crystal to alter Dick's memories and eventually shape him into becoming a Talon himself. William Cobb forces Ric to wear goggles and puts Dick under his spell. As a Talon, Grayson fights off other Nightwing heroes. A Nightwing hero name Connor Red shoots at Grayson's mask, making his eye visible. Connor Red pleads for mercy saying he has a family, and as the sun comes up Dick Grayson suddenly breaks out of his grandfather's control. Dick Grayson starts to remember his adventures as Nightwing. Ric defeats Talon, and saves his girlfriend Bea.[46] Afterwards, he journeys to Switzerland to learn more answers about his past from Dr. Haas, who attempts to use the crystal to alter his memories once more. However, an explosion seemingly sends her down a river to her death while Ric is able to retrieve the memory crystal she used on him. During the "Joker War" storyline, the Joker steals the memory crystal and uses it to brainwash Grayson into believing he is the Joker's adopted son, "Dicky Boy" and turns him against the Bat Family in his latest war against Batman. After Barbara gets the crystal back, Bea uses it to allow him to fully regain his memories as Dick Grayson.[47

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Friday, March 26, 2021

Border crossings strain resources in Rio Grande Valley (AP) Elmer Maldonado spent a week in immigration custody with his 1-year-old son after crossing the Rio Grande through Texas to request asylum. One night, the Honduran father and son slept on the dirt under a bridge shivering from the cold temperatures at an intake site where large groups of migrants turn themselves in to Border Patrol officers. His experience illustrates a cycle that is repeating itself thousands of times a week amid a dramatic rise in migrant children and families at the U.S.-Mexico border: They arrive in the middle of the night by the dozens and are kept at outdoor intake sites, then taken to overcrowded detention facilities well past the 72-hour court-imposed limit. From there, the families are either released into the U.S. or expelled to Mexico, the lucky ones dropped off at a COVID-19 testing site with documents. Children traveling without their parents go to federal shelters that are also quickly filling up. The process is largely out of the public eye. The Associated Press has not been allowed in any of the Border Patrol facilities. Journalists are often limited by authorities even when going to the banks of the Rio Grande to witness the process and talk to immigrants.

Capitol fencing removed 77 days after deadly riot (USA Today) An imposing fence-line strung with razor wire has been removed from the outer perimeter of the U.S. Capitol complex, more than two months after the deadly siege. Capitol Police said Wednesday that local streets blocked by the network of barriers also had been re-opened to traffic, though authorities said they are prepared to “quickly ramp up security at a moment’s notice, if needed.” An inner-perimeter fence around the actual Capitol building will remain in place while police and lawmakers continue to hash out a long-term security plan.

US saw estimated 4,000 extra murders in 2020 amid surge in daily gun violence (Guardian) For exactly a year during the pandemic, the United States did not see a single high-profile public mass shooting. But a surge in daily gun violence contributed to an estimated 4,000 additional murders throughout 2020, in what experts warn will probably be the worst single-year increase in murders on record. Early estimates suggest the US may have seen at least 4,000 more murders last year than in 2019, and potentially as many as 5,000 more, according to projections based on FBI data, though complete official statistics will not be available until the fall. Many of the homicides are concentrated in communities of color that have historically seen the worst burden of daily gun violence, including in Philadelphia, St Louis, Chicago and Oakland.

In Myanmar, a New Resistance Rises (NYT) In a jungle in the borderlands of Myanmar, the troops sweated through basic training. They learned how to load a rifle, pull the pin of a hand grenade and assemble a firebomb. These cadets are not members of Myanmar’s military, which seized power last month and quickly imposed a battlefield brutality on the country’s populace. Instead, they are an eclectic corps of students, activists and ordinary office workers who believe that fighting back is the only way to defeat one of the world’s most ruthless armed forces. After weeks of peaceful protests, the frontline of Myanmar’s resistance to the Feb. 1 coup is mobilizing into a kind of guerrilla force. In the cities, protesters have built barricades to protect neighborhoods from military incursions and learned how to make smoke bombs on the internet. In the forests, they are training in basic warfare techniques and plotting to sabotage military-linked facilities. The opposition is a defensive response to the military’s mounting reign of terror. The Tatmadaw has cracked down on peaceful protesters and unarmed bystanders alike, killing at least 275 people since the coup, according to a monitoring group.

Torch relay for Tokyo Olympics kicks off its 121-day journey (AP) The torch relay for the postponed Tokyo Olympics began its 121-day journey across Japan on Thursday and is headed toward the opening ceremony in Tokyo on July 23. The relay began in northeastern Fukushima prefecture, the area that was devastated by the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and the meltdown of three nuclear reactors. About 18,000 died in the tragedy. About 10,000 runners are expected to take part, with the relay touching Japan’s 47 prefectures.

Taiwan beefing up its defenses (South China Morning Post) Taiwan has begun mass production of a long-range missile and is developing three other models, a senior official said on Thursday, in a rare admission of efforts to develop strike capacity amid growing pressure from mainland China. The island’s armed forces are in the middle of a modernization program to offer a more effective deterrent, including the ability to hit back at bases deep within mainland China in the event of a conflict.

Some Australians return home as others evacuated in floods crisis (Reuters) Australians hit by devastating floodwaters began returning to their homes on Thursday as skies cleared and authorities accelerated clean-up efforts, though fresh evacuation orders were issued in some areas where water levels were still rising. Relentless rains for five straight days—the worst downpour in more than half a century—burst river banks, inundating homes, roads, bridges and farms and cutting off entire towns in Australia’s east. More than 40,000 people were forced to move to safe zones and two men were killed after their cars became trapped in floodwaters. Water continued to flow from overloaded dams and rivers on Thursday, particularly in New South Wales state, leading authorities to urge caution. Major flooding also continues in Sydney’s western suburbs of North Richmond and Windsor, while fresh evacuation orders were issued for some areas in the centre of the state.

One man’s mission offers Beirut neighbourhood a vision of hope after blast (Reuters) The sheer scale of the destruction in Beirut’s Karantina district after the massive explosion at the port last August made rebuilding a daunting feat. That was where Marc Torbey El Helou, a charity worker, came in. The low-income neighbourhood was one of the closest to the blast that killed 200 people. It stands across from the giant, mutilated grain silo that has become a symbol of the tragedy. Helou decided a day after the explosion to dedicate himself, and the aid group he runs, to rebuilding the neighbourhood. Just removing the rubble required 300 truckloads. Some buildings needed immediate help to stop them collapsing. Helou says the same of Karantina’s residents. “There were children here who would not laugh or play for months.” Helou’s charity, Offre Joie (Joy of Giving), has repaired Lebanese districts hit by war and violence since 1985. “Unfortunately, it means we have the experience for this,” said Helou, 33, who has used a wheelchair since a diving accident in 2016. With the Lebanese state hollowed out by decades of corruption and failure, it fell to aid groups and volunteers like Helou to rebuild the city. Offre Joie took on six blocks in Karantina and nearby. That includes the homes of about 350 families. More than seven months after the explosion, one of the largest non-nuclear detonations on record, many residents have yet to return. But the streets are bustling with life again, and the buildings never looked so good. The charity’s budget was trapped in the bank thanks to controls imposed during Lebanon’s financial crisis. But donations poured in from abroad: up to three million dollars in cash, construction material and containers full of food. Thousands of volunteers also came, including engineers and psychologists.

Musical Chairs But The Song Never Ends (NYT) Four elections in two years have failed to give Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the necessary 61 seats to form a coalition government with a majority in Parliament. With more than 90% of Wednesday’s vote counted, Netanyahu’s right-wing alliance had 52 seats and his opponents had 56. And the gridlock extends beyond the election. Administrative stagnation has left Israel without a national budget for two consecutive years in the middle of a pandemic, and with several key Civil Service posts unstaffed. The idea that the political deadlock paralyzing the country isn’t going to get better, and in fact appears to have gotten worse, has Israelis pondering the viability of their electoral system, the functionality of their government and whether the divisions between the country’s various politics—secular and devout, right-wing and leftist, Jewish and Arab—have made the nation unmanageable. A Tel Aviv-based analyst said Israel isn’t yet a failed state, like Lebanon, because it still has institutions. “But there is definitely erosion,” she said. “Not having a budget for two years—this is really dangerous.”

Saudi official denies threat to harm UN Khashoggi investigator (Reuters) A senior Saudi official denied on Thursday he had threatened to harm the human rights expert who led the U.N. investigation into the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, after the United Nations confirmed the expert’s account of the threat. Agnes Callamard, the U.N. expert on summary killings, has said that a Saudi official threatened at a Jan. 2020 meeting in Geneva that she would be “taken care of” if she was not reined in following her investigation into the journalist’s murder. She said the remark was interpreted by U.N. officials as a “death threat”. The United Nations confirmed her account on Wednesday, describing the remark as a “threat”. Neither Callamard nor the United Nations has identified the Saudi official who made the remark. However, the head of Saudi Arabia’s human rights commission, Awwad Alawwad, identified himself as the official on Thursday, while denying he had intended any threat.

Stuck ship in Egypt’s Suez Canal imperils shipping worldwide (Washington Post) A skyscraper-sized cargo ship wedged across Egypt’s Suez Canal further imperiled global shipping Thursday as at least 150 other vessels needing to pass through the crucial waterway idled waiting for the obstruction to clear, authorities said. The Ever Given, a Panama-flagged ship that carries cargo between Asia and Europe, ran aground Tuesday in the narrow, man-made canal dividing continental Africa from the Sinai Peninsula. In the time since, efforts to free the ship using dredgers, digging and the aid of high tides have yet to push the container vessel aside—affecting billions of dollars’ worth of cargo. Overall, famed shipping journal Lloyd’s List estimates each day the Suez Canal is closed disrupts over $9 billion worth of goods that should be passing through the waterway. A quarter of all Suez Canal traffic a day comes from container ships like the Ever Given, the journal said. “Blocking something like the Suez Canal really sets in motion a number of dominos toppling each other over,” said Lars Jensen, chief executive of Denmark-based SeaIntelligence Consulting. “The effect is not only going to be the simple, immediate one with cargo being delayed over the next few weeks, but will actually have repercussions several months down the line for the supply chain.”

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