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newstfionline · 4 years ago

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Tuesday, March 23, 2021

Drug companies defend vaccine monopolies in face of global outcry (Washington Post) Abdul Muktadir, the chief executive of Bangladeshi pharmaceutical maker Incepta, has emailed executives of Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, and Novavax offering his company’s help. He said he has enough capacity to fill vials for 600 million to 800 million doses of coronavirus vaccine a year to distribute throughout Asia. He never heard back from any of them. The lack of interest has left Muktadir worried about prolonged coronavirus exposure for millions of citizens of Bangladesh and other low-income nations throughout Asia and Africa who are at the back of the global queue for shots. Drug companies have rebuffed entreaties to face the emergency by sharing their proprietary technology more freely with companies in developing nations. The companies are lobbying the Biden administration and other members of the World Trade Organization against any erosion of their monopolies on individual coronavirus vaccines that are worth billions of dollars in annual sales. The fights over vaccine supply are not just over a moral duty of Western nations to prevent deaths and illness overseas. Lack of supply and lopsided distribution threaten to leave entire continents open as breeding grounds for coronavirus mutations. Those variants, if they prove resistant to vaccines, could spread anywhere in the world, including in Western countries that have been vaccinated first.

Colorado marks latest mass tragedy after 10 killed (AP) A shooting at a crowded Colorado supermarket that killed 10 people, including the first police officer to arrive, sent terrorized shoppers and workers scrambling for safety and stunned a state that has grieved several mass killings. A lone suspect was in custody, authorities said. The attack in Boulder, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Denver and home to the University of Colorado, stunned a state that has seen several mass shootings, including the 1999 Columbine High School massacre and the 2012 Aurora movie theater shooting. Monday’s midafternoon attack was the seventh mass killing this year in the U.S., following the March 16 shooting that left eight people dead at three Atlanta-area massage businesses, according to a database compiled by The Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University.

COVID-19 strikes Brazil’s Congress as third senator dies (Reuters) A third senator has died of COVID-19 in Brazil, raising questions around precautions taken in the country’s Congress where as many as one-in-three lawmakers has been infected with the virus devastating Latin America’s largest nation. Senator Major Olimpio, a former policeman who backed and later fell out with far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, was declared brain dead on Thursday by doctors at a Sao Paulo hospital where he had been in intensive care for three weeks. Brazil has become the epicenter of the pandemic, with by far the highest current daily death toll anywhere in the world. “People are very scared, and they are afraid to go to work,” said Silvio Ribas, a press secretary for Senator Lasier Martins, a 78-year-old politician who was released from hospital on Thursday after two weeks fighting COVID-19. At least 145 of the 513 members of the lower house have tested positive for the coronavirus in the past 12 months, along with 31 of 81 senators, according to a survey by news portal Poder360.

Spain hopes number of foreign tourists will rebound to half pre-pandemic level this year (AP) Spain hopes the number of foreign tourists visiting its sun-kissed islands and picturesque villages can rebound this year to half pre-pandemic levels, Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto said on Monday. “Maybe the ideal goal is ... to get half of the tourists we had in 2019. This, for the industry, would be an achievement,” she said in an event held by Europa Press news agency. In 2019, Spain had the world’s second highest number of foreign visitors at more than 80 million. This plummeted by more than 80% to 19 million tourists in 2020, the lowest level since 1969, as a result of the travel restrictions imposed to curb the pandemic. Tourism accounted for around 12% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 and one job in eight.

Court orders French celebrity magazine to pay homeless man €40,000 (Le Parisien/France) Since its founding in 1949, the iconic French weekly Paris Match has published countless photos of the rich and powerful—and every now and then, a paparazzi shot might cost them. Last week, instead, the magazine was ordered to pay serious money to a homeless man for running a photograph of him without his permission. A court in Nanterre, west of Paris, ordered Paris Match to pay 40,000 euros to the man for running his picture. “Everyone, no matter their degree of celebrity, their wealth, their present or future occupation, has a right to privacy and enjoys exclusive right over their image which allows them to oppose its use […] without prior authorization,” the court wrote in its decision. The photo, published without the man’s consent in January 2018, showed the unnamed 48-year-old smoking crack cocaine on a metro platform in the French capital’s 18th arrondissement. Unlike other people in the photograph, his face was unblurred, the daily Le Parisien reports. Alerted by friends who recognized him in the Paris Match article, the homeless man sued the magazine: In May 2019, the magazine was ordered to pay him 10,000 euros in damages, but failed to remove the photograph from its website and app, resulting in an additional 30,000-euro fine last week. Le Parisien quoted the man as saying that he used some of the money to “help out friends” and that he now may be able “to get [his] wife and children back.”

Merkel Seeks Four-Week Lockdown Extension in German Setback (Bloomberg) Chancellor Angela Merkel proposed keeping German lockdown restrictions in force for another four weeks after Covid-19 cases rose beyond a level that may prompt government action to avoid health-care overload. The plan would extend and slightly tighten existing curbs through April 18, according to a chancellery draft seen by Bloomberg. Merkel and regional government leaders will discuss the proposals on Monday during talks on how to proceed with the lockdown amid an upward curve of infections in Europe’s biggest economy.

Russia’s top diplomat starts China visit with call to reduce U.S. dollar use (Reuters) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began a visit to China on Monday with a call for Moscow and Beijing to reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar and Western payment systems to push back against what he called the West’s ideological agenda. Lavrov, on a two-day visit to China, is expected to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart at a time when both countries’ ties with the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden are badly strained. U.S. and Chinese officials on Friday concluded what Washington called “tough and direct” talks in Alaska, while Russia’s ambassador arrived back in Moscow on Sunday for consultations after Biden said he believed President Vladimir Putin was a killer. Russia is also braced for a new round of U.S. sanctions over what Washington says was its meddling in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, which Moscow denies. Speaking to Chinese media before the start of his visit, Lavrov said Moscow and Beijing were compelled to develop independently of Washington in order to thwart what he said were U.S. attempts to curb their technological development. ��We need to reduce sanctions risks by bolstering our technological independence, by switching to payments in our national currencies and global currencies that serve as an alternative to the dollar,” Lavrov said, according to a transcript of his interview released on Monday. “We need to move away from using international payment systems controlled by the West.”

Turkey’s turmoil (Foreign Policy) U.S. President Joe Biden joined with Europe to condemn Turkey over its decision to annul its ratification of an international treaty on preventing violence against women. Turkey’s exit from the treaty, known as the Istanbul Convention, brought thousands to Turkey’s streets in protest of the move. Turkey was one of the initial signatories and the first nation to ratify the convention. In a White House statement, Biden called the action “deeply dissappointing” and a “disheartening step backward.” The Turkish presidency released a statement on Sunday saying the convention had been “hijacked by a group of people attempting to normalize homosexuality.” Turkey’s currency was also rocked on Saturday after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired central bank governor Naci Agbal. The Turkish lira fell 15 percent against the U.S. dollar after the news broke.

In Myanmar’s hinterland, army uproots ethnic Karen villagers (AP) In the jungles of southeast Myanmar, the army was shooting and otherwise oppressing civilians long before last month’s military coup. This largely unseen repression continues even now. In the country’s remote southeast, an army offensive has driven as many as 8,000 ethnic Karen people to flee their homes in what aid groups say is the worst upheaval there for nearly 10 years. They’re now living in the jungle, with fears growing for their health and security, and no prospect of an early return. This crisis in the borderlands has been overshadowed by the deadly crackdown on the mass movement protesting the military’s takeover of power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. But it also is a reminder of the brutal force Myanmar’s army has long used against civilians, and in particular the country’s ethnic minorities.

Think Covid’s Messed Up Your Travel Plans? Try Getting Into China. (NYT) Leave your partner and children behind. Quarantine for up to a month. Get inoculated with a Covid-19 vaccine from China, if you can find one. And prepare yourself for an anal swab. For the past year, people trying to go to China have run into some of the world’s most formidable barriers to entry. To stop the coronavirus, China bans tourists and short-term business travelers outright, and it sets tough standards for all other foreigners, even those who have lived there for years. The restrictions have hampered the operations of many companies, separated families and upended the lives of thousands of international students. Global companies say their ranks of foreign workers in the country have dwindled sharply. At a time of strained tensions with the United States and other countries, China is keeping itself safe from the pandemic. At the same time, it risks further isolating its economy, the world’s second-largest, at a moment when its major trade partners are emerging from their own self-imposed slumps. Other countries have their own travel restrictions, though few are as tight.

Dozens of towns isolated by flooding in Australian state (AP) Hundreds of people have been rescued from floodwaters that have isolated dozens of towns in Australia’s most populous state New South Wales and forced thousands to evacuate their homes as record rain continues to inundate the country’s east coast. Around 18,000 people had been evacuated from flooding in New South Wales by Monday and emergency services feared up to 54,000 people could be displaced with rain forecast to continue until Wednesday. A year ago, vast swathes of New South Wales had been charred by unprecedented wildfires following years of drought that gripped most of the state. Some of the same areas were now being by inundated by one-in-50-year and one-in-100-year rain events. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian said up to 38 parts of the state had been declared natural disaster areas. “I don’t know any time in our state’s history where we have had these extreme weather conditions in such quick succession in the middle of a pandemic,” Berejiklian told reporters. “So, they are challenging times for New South Wales.”

Israel revokes permit of Palestinian foreign minister (Washington Post) Israel on Sunday revoked the VIP permit of the Palestinian foreign minister after he returned to the West Bank from a trip to the International Criminal Court in the Hague, Israeli and Palestinian officials confirmed. The move appeared to be Israeli retaliation for Palestinian support for the ICC’s war crimes investigation against Israel. A Palestinian official said Foreign Minister Riad Malki was stopped Sunday as he entered the West Bank from Jordan through the Israeli-controlled crossing. Malki’s VIP card was seized, the official said. Losing the VIP status makes it harder for him to move through Israeli military checkpoints in the West Bank, and traveling abroad will require Israeli permission. The ICC’s chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, announced earlier this month that she was opening an investigation into possible war crimes by Israel committed in the occupied West Bank and blockaded Gaza Strip.

Small, cheap spy satellites mean there’s no hiding place (Economist) In the middle of last year, Ecuadorians watched with concern as 340 foreign boats, most of them Chinese, fished just outside the Exclusive Economic Zone (eez) around their country’s westernmost province, the Galapagos Islands. The law of the sea requires such vessels to carry gps-based automatic identification systems (ais) that broadcast where they are, and to keep those systems switched on. Some boats, however, failed to comply. This regular radio silence stoked fears that the boats concerned were sneaking into Ecuador’s waters to plunder its fish. Both local officials and China’s ambassador to Ecuador denied this, and said all the boats were sticking to the rules. In October, however, HawkEye 360, a satellite operator based in Virginia, announced it had detected vessels inside Ecuador’s eez on 14 occasions when the boats in question were not transmitting ais. HawkEye’s satellites could pinpoint these renegades by listening for faint signals emanating from their navigation radars and radio communications. HawkEye’s satellites are so-called smallsats, about the size of a large microwave oven. They are therefore cheap to build and launch. HawkEye deployed its first cluster, of three of them, in 2018. They are now in an orbit that takes them over both of Earth’s poles. This means that, as the planet revolves beneath them, every point on its surface can be monitored at regular intervals. Quilty Analytics, a research firm in Florida, expects the number of radio-frequency (rf) intelligence satellites of this sort in orbit to multiply from a dozen at the beginning of January to more than 60 by the end of next year.

Whoopsie, container overboard (Wired) Since November, at least 2,980 containers have fallen off cargo ships in the Pacific Ocean, in at least six incidents that have outfitted Davy Jones’ Locker with stocks of vacuum cleaners, frozen shrimp, some Kate Spade swag and more. Rising imports and bad weather have led to the above-typical cargo losses, as the 2,980 lost in the past few months is over twice the annual amount lost from 2008 to 2019. Bad weather is the main cause: the Essen attributed its 750 lost containers to “heavy seas,” the Eindhoven lost 260 containers after a blackout in the middle of a storm, and the Apus lost over 1,800 containers in gale force winds and large swells, one of the worst losses ever.

#headlines #news

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crowbarstodd · 5 years ago

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Course Of Nature (3)

Chapter Summary: Marinette doesn’t hate Robin, Chat and Nightwing have basically adopted each other, and the kids finally get to hear something about The Light from the secretive adults. Rating: Still G Word Count: 2,532 (it increases with every chapter ooft) Pairing: Daminette

Prologue | One | Two | Three | Four

When she was seven years old, Marinette was grounded for the first time. It was nothing big; no television for a whole day, but the events leading up to it stuck with her as she grew.

It was early spring and the bakery her parents ran had been up for only four months, bringing about a slew of changes her younger self was hardly prepared for. One of the worst of which (worst being subjective to the temperament of her seven-year-old-self) was the plum dacquoise.

Dacquoise was typically made with hazelnuts and almonds, a delicious combination in their own right. But the addition of the tarty fruit taste of fresh plums was heaven on her tongue.

Plum dacquoise was her favourite cake — her favourite dessert. It was, in the Dupain-Cheng household, her cake. So when she found her father baking it one morning, she let herself dissolve in delight like sugar in water.

The plum dacquoise sat on the bakery display case, and not once did her parents offer her a slice. Instead, as 7pm rolled around, they gave it to Mrs. Bisset in a pink box, tied shut with a white bow.

Marinette cried.

Her cake was in the hands of some evil stranger and her parents smiled as the witch exited the bakery. Exited the bakery with her cake.

She didn’t understand, and her parents didn’t understand her anger, not until she lobbed a plum at her own father’s head, shrieking her head off the entire time.

“I didn’t realise, sweetheart,” her father said, holding her tight in his arms, both apologetic and drained. “But you have nothing to be jealous about.”

They still sold the cake, it would be silly not to when it was undoubtedly a bestseller, but they did rename it ‘Marinette’s Dacquoise,’ and she was content to settle for that.

(Her parents, however, weren’t and promptly sent her to her room and told her not to even think about asking to watch Totally Spies when she was naughty enough to throw a fruit at her dad.)

————————

Marinette didn’t notice the nail marks on the palms of her hands until Alya pointed them out during class the next day. “Girl! She gasped, running a smooth thumb over the blistering marks, “what happened?!”

She had got a well of bad excuses to offer so she faked a laugh and offered the easiest one. “I guess I must have gotten too stressed about designing and managed to do this without realising.”

Alya shot her a look, one that made it obvious her best friend knew she was lying, but wouldn’t ask out of respect, and the fact that she had her own secrets, leaving Marinette to stew in guilt and whatever other feelings her inevitable zone-out introspection uncovered. Coming late at least had the perk of avoiding questions and over-thinking. Not that she was excusing her usual temporal tendencies, but kwami she really could have had a pleasant morning if she just let herself sleep in again.

The indents on the inside of Marinette’s hand were a faded pink, and if she was careful, they would be gone within the next three days. Stupid Robin. Sure, he didn’t press his nails against her skin, but if he hadn’t been so infuriatingly overbearing, she wouldn’t have hurt herself thinking about him. No, not thinking — fuming about him.

Alya’s focus on her new injuries was abated when Nino walked into the classroom, complaining loudly to a mildly bemused looking Adrien. “And all he does is get mad at LB. That’s so not cool man. I mean, at least I heard he did anyway.”

Interest peaked, Alya inserted herself into their conversation. “Who gets mad at Ladybug?”

“That new hero,” Nino frowned, “Lark or whatever — the bird one. I heard he’s like, mad rude.”

Marinette raised her brows at his words. He’d patrolled with her and Robin earlier in the week so she knew that he knew Robin’s name. She wasn’t sure if his sudden forgetfulness was to enforce his civilian cover, but she had a feeling he was at least slightly motivated by spite. Robin hadn’t been kind to him at all, reacting to all his friendly advances with harsh words and cold looks.

Adrien placed a placating hand on Nino’s shoulders as they sat. “Maybe he just seemed rude. Nobody’s really met him yet, and he might be nicer than you think.”

It was pretty typical of Adrien to try and play peacemaker, but this time Marinette winced, knowing that they were the complete wrong words to say. “I’m just saying what I saw!” Nino insisted, “but that new hero shouldn’t be wandering around Paris. He’ll cause more Akumas than he’ll stop.”

Alya leaned forward and tapped on her desk, looking far too used to Nino’s rant. “Watch what you say,” she warned. “Ladybug probably picked him like she picked most of the new heroes, I’m sure she wouldn’t choose someone for no reason.”

Alya’s argument was presented with mild boredom, as if she was repeating an argument. Marinate figured she probably was, seeing how Alya and Nino knew of each other’s identities. and she tried not to feel bad knowing she’d caused two of her friends such grief all while resisting the urge to bang her head on the table. Yeah, in no universe would she pick someone like him.

“No way,” Nino said, “Ladybug hates him!”

Marinette defended him without thinking. Sure he was controlling and arrogant, and they were more like tectonic plates on a collision course than actual partners, but she didn’t hate him. “Maybe it’s because you don’t know a lot about him yet,” she suggested. “Besides, how would you even know if Ladybug hated him?”

Adrien nodded as if she had made a very good point, which she would have if she didn’t know exactly why Nino thought Ladybug would hate Robin. Poor Carpace had been caught in the middle of a particularly turbulent screaming match between herself and her new bird-brained companion, and had suffered from their tempestuous personalities the most. Yeah, she felt a little bad pushing him into the corner like this, but her stomach stirred, unsettled, the more she heard Nino talk bad about Robin.

“He might turn out to be a really good guy,” Marinette continued. “If he was so bad, why would he waste his time helping people?”

Truth be told, Robin was the opposite of a really good guy. He was terrible, and yet Marinette found that it gnawed on her when someone other than herself was spitting insults about him behind his back.

It’s because she knew him, or at least knew him the best out of the Parisian heroes, she thought. (On some level, she was aware that this was probably not the only reason for her discomfort, but she wasn’t particularly keen on exploring that certain part of her brain, so she shoved it aside and left it alone with all her other, more minor issues.)

Marinette was more than a little relieved when Miss Bustier entered the room, timely as ever, calling for class to begin.

Six heroes sat cross-legged around a small, round tea-table, and all Marinette could think was how the whole situation felt like a set-up for a joke.

Across from her was Batman, sipping tentatively from Master Fu’s ceramic cups, struggling to fit more than three fingers into the handle. It was unsettling to be in his presence, more so now in the stifling silence than the first time they’d met when she and Robin had been a second away from hurtling furniture at each other. The whites of his mask blocked out his eyes completely, the same as Robin and Nightwing, though with Batman it looked far more threatening, making him appear like some sort of spectre or creature of the night. (A cryptid, the stranger part of her brain supplied.)

Marinette took the quiet moment as a chance to finally inspect her new allies’ outfits. She recognised some materials used; the very obvious skin-tight kevlar that Nightwing and Batman preferred, durable and bulletproof. (When was the last time she’d even seen a gun in Paris? They were removed probably a month after the first Akuma, she’d genuinely forgotten they were real concerns outside France.) The inside of Robin and Batman’s cowls were Nomex or something similar, though upon closer inspection she realised that the capes didn’t look quite so loose or light, appearing firm for some unknown reason. Marinate itched with the urge to ask what material and fabrics they used.

She mapped their costumes out in her mind, imagining how she’d sew kevlar together, black and dyed blue to form the abstract shape of a bird, or how she’d construct the shape of Batman’s helmet (did it even have a specific reason for being bat-shaped?) with a styrofoam head of her own design for there was no way a typical store would sell a bat-shaped bust.

“We’ve decided to work with the League on this situation,” Batman announced, pulling her from her thoughts, finally breaking the silence with a small ‘clink’ as he set his cup down. “We’ll be working in units to dismantle The Light player by player. The Miraculous holders of Paris and the heroes assigned to Gotham will be working against Hawkmoth and Queen Bee. Do not attempt to engage with other major players, the League has it handled. Further instructions will be given at the appropriate time.”

He said it as if he expected them all to accept it. Marinate didn’t even know what The League was. If she was sure of anything, it was that she was sorely disappointed, as the announcement had killed any chance of her working with Wonder Woman in the future. Unless the Amazon unexpectedly moved to Gotham? Was that even allowed?

It didn’t escape her notice how Robin absorbed the new orders quietly, accepting it with a simple nod like some sort of soldier, though he was very obviously scowling, as if offended by something Batman had said or done.

Nightwing groaned at the announcement, slouching in his seat. “There’s no chance of you telling us about the other teams is there?”

“The more you know, the more dangerous it is if you get compromised,” Batman grunted. “Focus on your mission.”

Master Fu hummed in agreement, refilling teacups as though this was a quaint Sunday tea and not an official hero briefing. Marinate admired him for it.

“When you say Miraculous holders of Paris…”

“Yes,” Master Fu said, answering her unfinished question, “we will be needing help from at least three other heroes. I’m sorry Ladybug, but this time I took the liberty of choosing them.” He opened his palm to pass over three miraculous’.

From her peripherals, she spotted Robin lean forward slightly, obviously curious, but still too stiff to be clear with his emotions. Chat had no such qualms, invading her private space so he could have clear view of the jewelry. He spluttered out a surprised squawk, turning his head to watch her reaction, then turning it back to the jewellery, oscillating rigidly like a broken fan.

In Master Fu’s palm, three miraculous’ sat, gleaming softly as the metal reflected the yellow lights of the living room. The turtle and the fox were unsurprising, expected even. It was the bee that had shocked both herself and Chat into silence.

“Queen B?” Marinette asked, disbelieving. “Are you sure Master? I thought it was unsafe for her to continue?”

Chloe was stubborn at best, and though she’d taken steps to improve since she’d first become a hero, she really wasn’t somebody Marinette would trust to save the world.

Master Fu hummed, taking his time to respond to her questions as usual. “It took a lot of deliberating,” he admitted, “but we need her tenacity.”

She took the Miraculous’ from his, still unsure, but trusting of his judgment. “If you really think so…”

“Woah, so they all have different powers?” Nightwing’s voice broke through the cotton building in Marinette’s head, and she took a moment to admire his vivacity. It was easy in their line of work to fall into sullenness, but he seemed energetic and friendly beyond belief, she couldn’t help but grin.

Yeah, he would be great for her Kitty.

“Sure thing,” Chat said, “Except for Ladybug, she has two abilities, and Paris would be lost without her wielding them.”

She shoved Chat’s shoulders lightly, though it was obvious that she was pleased with his compliments. “Paris needs the cat too,” she said, speaking frankly. “The best offense a miraculous could provide.”

“Definitely seems like it,” Nightwing agreed readily. “The cat is the best one for sure.”

More delighted at his praise toward her partner than offended at his obvious disregard of her, Marinette beamed at his words, glancing at Chat to discern his reaction. Her partner was staring at the older hero as if he had hung the moon himself and declared it belong to Chat.

“You really think so?”

“Of course I do.”

There was something else there, something that Marinette was missing, but she couldn’t find it in herself to pry when Chat was glowing so bright he outshone the sun.

“You really are the best,” she said instead of asking. She wasn’t totally sure what they were on, but her friend more than deserved the reassurance she often forgot to give him, and now was as good a time as any.

Robin tutted loudly, fuse blown by something that had happened during the exchange, though she didn’t know what, storming off. He was polite enough not to slam the door, knowing he was a guest at Master Fu’s house, but Marinette didn’t miss the way he pressed harder on his steps on purpose so that his stomps were heard loud and clear.

Marinette recognised the heated exit; the wordless anger and the need to attract attention. It reminded her of plum dacquoise.

The silence that followed was tense and confusing.

“Sorry about him,” Nightwing said, though Robin was neither his fault or his responsibility, at least in Marinette’s mind.

Master Fu and Batman had left sometime in their conversation, Jasmine tea cold indicating that they were long gone (there was no way Master Fu would ever let tea turn cold in his presence) and Marinette appreciated the small victory. At least there was no adult to lecture them about whatever it was that just transpired.

Chugging the rest of his tea, Nightwing stood. He worried his lip, obviously concerned about Robin, eyes flickering from the door to Chat. “I have to go get him,” he said.

It was Chat’s turn to patrol that night with his new partner, which was the only reason Marinette let herself say, “I’ll go.”

Unwilling as she was to do it, she wouldn’t quit until she’d calmed him down or sent him home safely. (Not that she knew where he lived, but he’d be fine in a tree of sorts, he was a bird after all.) Something told her he wouldn’t settle for a simple re-naming, or anything simple at all.

End Notes: Someone’s jealous~!

Hope you guys liked this chapter! The next one is gonna be a bit of a monster though it will feature a splash of Tikki, Tim and Alya, and more civilian Mari. I feel like this story is taking so long to fully set up, I want MariDami to be friends already but hhhhh,,, development.

I sort of wanted to pick Deathstroke or Ra’s instead of Queen Bee so it’d be more personal but she just worked better with the plot that I wanted to write so rip.

Tag List:

@just-rant-and-write-fic-idea @kceedraws @mystery-5-5 @2sunchild2 @i-like-fairytail-and-stuff @treebrosha @mooshoon @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @aarushi-03 @ladylb @crazylittlemunchkin @kurogaya913 @ki117h3dr4g0n @xxmadamjinxx @sidefrienda @7-sage-7 @throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen @felicityroth @tritaledkitsune @constancetruggle

Feel free to comment/ask to be tagged/untagged!

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thisissoccer · 4 years ago

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usa haiti soccer 2021

CHICAGO (July 10, 2021)—The U.S. Men’s National Team will launch its quest for a seventh confederation championship when it opens the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup against Haiti on Sunday, July 11 in Kansas City, Kan.

Coverage from Children’s Mercy Park begins at 9 p.m. ET on FS1, Univision and TUDN. Fans can follow the USMNT during the tournament on Twitter (@USMNT), Instagram (@USMNT), Facebook and the official U.S. Soccer App.

2021 GOLD CUP – USMNT ROSTER BY POSITION (CLUB; CAPS/GOALS) GOALKEEPERS (3): 22-Brad Guzan (Atlanta United; 64/0), 18-Sean Johnson (New York City FC; 9/0), 1-Matt Turner (New England Revolution; 1/0)

DEFENDERS (8): 21-George Bello (Atlanta United; 1/0), 2-Reggie Cannon (Boavista/POR; 18/1), 20-Shaq Moore (Tenerife/ESP; 5/0), 4-Donovan Pines (D.C. United; 0/0), 12-Miles Robinson (Atlanta United; 3/1), 16-James Sands (New York City FC; 0/0), 3-Sam Vines (Colorado Rapids; 3/0), 5-Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; 14/2)

MIDFIELDERS (6): 23-Kellyn Acosta (Colorado Rapids; 31/2), 6-Gianluca Busio (Sporting Kansas City; 0/0), 17-Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy; 24/7), 10-Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders; 20/0), 19-Eryk Williamson (Portland Timbers; 0/0), 14-Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes; 12/0)

FORWARDS: (6): 7-Paul Arriola (D.C. United; 35/8), 11-Daryl Dike (Orlando City; 3/1), 8-Nicholas Gioacchini (Caen/FRA; 3/2), 13-Matthew Hoppe (Schalke/GER; 0/0), 15-Jonathan Lewis (Colorado Rapids; 7/2), 9-Gyasi Zardes (Columbus Crew; 56/12)

USA SCHEDULE – 2021 GOLD CUP Date

Opponent

Venue

Time (ET)

TV Info

Sunday, July 11

Haiti

Children’s Mercy Park; Kansas City, Kansas

9 p.m.

FS1, Univision, TUDN

Thursday, July 15

Martinique

Children’s Mercy Park; Kansas City, Kansas

10 p.m.

FS1, UniMás, TUDN

Sunday, July 18

Canada

Children’s Mercy Park; Kansas City, Kansas

5 p.m.

FOX, Univision, TUDN

WHAT IS THE GOLD CUP? Held every two years, the Gold Cup is the regional championship for Concacaf, the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football. Just like in the European Championships and Copa America, lifting the trophy brings prestige and regional supremacy. Over the course of 15 previous Gold Cup tournaments, the United States has lifted the trophy six times (1991, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017), just behind all-time leaders Mexico with eight (1993, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2019). Canada is the only other tournament champion, coming away with the title in 2000.

Placed in Group B, the U.S. opens the tournament against 2019 semifinalists Haiti on July 11, faces Martinique on July 15 and wraps up the group stage against Canada on July 18. The top two teams in each of the four groups advance to the quarterfinals (July 24-25 in Arlington, Texas and Glendale, Ariz.). The semifinals are scheduled for July 29 in Austin and Houston, before the championship match on Aug. 1 in Las Vegas.

ROAD TO VEGAS BEGINS In the middle of a jam-packed 2021 schedule, the Gold Cup provides an opportunity for the USMNT to pick up its second regional trophy of the summer. In June, the USA clinched the inaugural Concacaf Nations League title with a thrilling extra-time victory against Mexico, and now the U.S. will look to take home more hardware at the confederation championship.

This year’s competition takes on additional importance as the USMNT’s final gathering before 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying kicks off in September. The tournament will provide invaluable experience against Concacaf opposition in a high-pressure environment as 12 players have the chance to compete in official competition for the USA for the first time.

DEVELOPING THE PLAYER POOL Nineteen of the 23 players on the Gold Cup roster weren’t a part of the USMNT’s Nations League roster, providing an almost entirely new group of players exposure to high-level Concacaf competition. This experience is essential as World Cup qualifying kicks off in the fall, especially with a new format that includes more games over a shorter period of time. Eight teams will compete for three berths to the World Cup during the course of seven months rather than 18, and four of five international windows will include teams playing three matches in seven days, meaning depth will be critical.

Five players will aim to earn their first USMNT cap at the Gold Cup - Gianluca Busio, Matthew Hoppe, Donovan Pines, James Sands and Eryk Williamson - while seven others are looking to make their first appearance in official competition: George Bello, Daryl Dike, Nicholas Gioacchini, Shaq Moore, Miles Robinson, Matt Turner and Sam Vines.

EXPERIENCED CORE Despite arriving in Kansas City with a roster that averages just under 25 years of age, the USMNT brings six players who have Gold Cup titles under their belts: Brad Guzan and Sean Johnson (2 each), Kellyn Acosta, Paul Arriola, Cristian Roldan, and Gyasi Zardes (1 each). Three more bring prior experience at the tournament: Reggie Cannon, Jonathan Lewis and Walker Zimmerman.

Midfielder Sebastian Lletget is the only USMNT player to appear in all 11 of the team’s matches over the last two calendar years and is tied for the team’s goal-scoring lead this year with three tallies.

BACK HOME IN KC Born and raised in Overland Park, Kan., forward Nicholas Gioacchini is returning home for the first time since the age of eight, when his family moved to Italy. After a spell in Maryland, the Gioacchinis moved back to Europe and Nicholas launched his pro soccer career with Paris FC in 2017 before moving to Caen, his current club, the following year. The forward made his international debut and scored his first two USA goals in the 6-2 win against Jamaica in November and now will look to make his mark during the Gold Cup group stage in his hometown.

CANNON AIMS FOR ANOTHER TROPHY Defender Reggie Cannon is fresh off of a big June with the USMNT, helping the team lift the Concacaf Nations League trophy and scoring his first international goal in the friendly against Costa Rica. After playing a key role for the USA during the 2019 Gold Cup, Cannon made the move overseas to Portuguese club Boavista and is confident that he’s raised his game as he aims for his second regional title of the summer. Listen to the USMNT defender speak with Jordan Angeli and Charlie Davies on this week’s episode of The U.S. Soccer Podcast.

LAST TIME OUT The USMNT played four matches during the June international window, attempting to simulate the cadence of the new World Cup qualifying format. Sebastian Lletget struck first for the USA vs. Switzerland in the team’s first match, but the U.S. fell 2-1. In the Nations League, a hard-fought 1-0 semifinal win vs. Honduras set the stage for an instant classic USA-Mexico match in the Concacaf Nations League Final, a dramatic 3-2 victory.

WATCH: USMNT Defeats Costa Rica 4-0 | June 9, 2021

The USMNT capped off the international break with an emphatic 4-0 win against Costa Rica that saw both Cannon and forward Daryl Dike net their first international goals. With the result, the USA has won its last 10 matches against Concacaf opponents, a promising trend heading into the confederation championship.

Gold Cup roster members Kellyn Acosta, Cannon, Lletget and Jackson Yueill were all a part of the USA’s Nations League squad, while Dike and Zimmerman both appeared in the friendly vs. Costa Rica. Hoppe was a part of the USMNT matchday squad vs. Switzerland.

USA ROSTER NOTES Players on the roster average 13 caps overall and five caps in official competition.

Nineteen of the 23 players represent a total of 13 different clubs in Major League Soccer. Atlanta United and Colorado Rapids lead the way with three players each, followed by D.C. United, New York City FC (2 each); Columbus Crew, LA Galaxy, Nashville SC, New England Revolution, Orlando City SC, Portland Timbers, San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders and Sporting Kansas City (1 each).

Defenders Reggie Cannon (Boavista; Portugal) and Shaq Moore (Tenerife; Spain) and forwards Nicholas Gioacchini (Caen; France) and Matthew Hoppe (Schalke; Germany) make up the European-based contingent.

Sporting KC midfielder Gianluca Busio and NYCFC defender James Sands are the two players on the roster to earn their first USMNT call-ups. Sands turned 21 on July 6, the day of his first USMNT training session.

Shaq Moore earns his first USMNT call-up since November 2018. With five international appearances to his name, the 24-year-old right back comes to his first camp under Gregg Berhalter after making 41 league appearances with Tenerife during the 2020-21 Spanish Segunda campaign.

A veteran of the USA’s 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup side, Moore last appeared in the USMNT’s 1-0 defeat to Italy on Nov. 20, 2018 in Genk, Belgium.

Gyasi Zardes’ team-leading 16 Gold Cup caps currently place him in a tie with Kyle Beckerman and Pablo Mastroeni for 10th on the USMNT's all-time Gold Cup appearances list.

Since 2018, Zardes leads all U.S.-eligible players in MLS with 47 goals. The veteran striker also sits eighth all-time on the USMNT's Gold Cup scoring list with four goals.

Midfielder Cristian Roldan made his international debut during the 2017 Gold Cup, starting the team's 3-2 win against Martinique on July 12, 2017, in Tampa. The USA will play Martinique on July 15, three days after the four-year anniversary of that match.

USMNT AT THE GOLD CUP Beginning with the inaugural title in 1991, the U.S. has lifted the Gold Cup on six occasions. The USA returned the trophy home in 2002 and won again in 2005, 2007, 2013 and 2017.

The USA has more wins in the Gold Cup than any other nation, going 61-9-9 all-time.

The U.S. has gone an impressive 35-1-4 during the group stage.

The USMNT has advanced to the final on 11 occasions: 1991, 1993, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017 and 2019.

The USA has made it to the semifinals in 14 out of 15 tournaments, missing out only in 2000.

USA-HAITI The USMNT is 6-6-5 against Haiti all-time. Les Grenadiers are one of only two Concacaf teams against which the USA does not hold a winning record – the other is Mexico.

The USA is unbeaten in its last five matches (3-0-2) vs. Haiti and undefeated in three Gold Cup meetings with the Caribbean nation (2-0-1).

The U.S. and Haiti last met in the 2015 Gold Cup group stage in Foxborough, Mass., a 1-0 win for the USA. Gyasi Zardes teed up Clint Dempsey for the lone goal just after halftime to help the USMNT secure the top spot in Group A.

Their first meeting came in qualifying for the 1954 World Cup, with two victories for the USA in Port-au-Prince on the strength of goals scored by National Soccer Hall of Famers Bill Looby and Efrain Chacurian.

HAITI ROSTER (CLUB; CAPS/GOALS) GOALKEEPERS (3): 12-Josue Duverger (Vitoria/POR; 1/0), 23-Isaac Rouaud (J3S Amilly/FRA; 0/0), 1-Brain Sylvestre (Miami FC/USA; 0/0)

DEFENDERS (8): 4-Ricardo Ade (Muschuc Runa/ECU; 17/1), 2-Carlens Arcus (Auxerre/FRA; 20/1), 22-Alex Christian (Atyrau/KAZ; 29/0), 3-Francois Dulysse (New England Revolution II/USA; 0/0), 17-Martin Experience (Avranches/FRA; 0/0), 6-Jems Geffrard (HFX Wanderers/CAN; 19/0), 13-Kevin Lafrance (AEK Larnaca/CYP; 39/5), 5-Stephane Lambese (Orleans/FRA; 8/0)

MIDFIELDERS (6): 21-Bryan Alceus (Gaz Metan Medias/ARM; 22/0), 15-Dutherson Clerveaux (Cavaly; 1/0), 10-Derrick Etienne (Columbus Crew/USA; 25/3), 8-Zachary Herivaux (Birmingham Legion/USA; 17/0), 14-Leverton Pierre (USL Dunkerque/FRA; 0/0), 19-Steeven Saba (Violette; 14/1)

FORWARDS (6): 7-Carnejy Antoince (Orleans/FRA; 1/2), 18-Ronaldo Damus (Orange County SC/USA; 2/0), 16-Don Louicius (Hobro IK/DEN; 2/0), 11-Roberto Louima (Violette; 4/0), 9-Duckens Nazon (Sint-Truiden/BEL; 44/26), 20-Frantzdy Pierrot (Guingamp/FRA; 23/14)

IN FOCUS: HAITI Haiti earned its berth to the 2021 Gold Cup as one of three preliminary qualifiers. Prior to the tournament proper, 12 teams gathered in Ft. Lauderdale and played out three four-team brackets to determine the competition’s final three entrants.

The top seed in the Gold Cup prelims, Haiti topped Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 6-1 in its opening match with Duckens Nazon bagging a brace.

In the Gold Cup berth-clinching match vs. Bermuda, Les Grenadiers used a first-half hat trick from Frantzdy Pierrot to win 4-1 and advance to its eighth confederation championship.

Nazon (26 goals) and Pierrot (14 goals) are the leading scorers on the roster and have combined for 13 goals this year. Nazon’s 49 caps also lead the team.

Haiti had an impressive showing at the 2019 Gold Cup, reaching the tournament semifinals for its highest finish. The Haitians topped their group with three straight victories and came from behind to beat Canada in the quarterfinals before losing to Mexico on a penalty in extra time.

Haiti is 8-11-5 all-time at the Gold Cup. The Carribean nation has advanced past the group stage in four of seven previous appearances.

Former Haiti defender Jean-Jacques Pierre became Haiti’s head coach at the start of 2021 and has led the team to a 5-2-0 record entering the Gold Cup. It’s his first major coaching job after a long playing career across Argentina, France, Greece, Haiti and Uruguay.

Five players are based in the USA, highlighted by Columbus Crew midfielder Derrick Etienne Jr., a teammate of U.S. forward Gyasi Zardes. Goalkeeper Bryan Sylvestre (Miami FC), midfielder Zachary Herivaux (Birmingham Legion) and forward Ronaldo Damus (Orange County SC) play in the USL Championship, while defender Francois Dulysse plays in USL League One at New England Revolution II.

Haiti has players based in 11 different countries. In addition to three in Haiti, Les Grenadiers ply their trade in France (seven), the U.S. (five), Armenia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, Kazakhstan and Portugal (one each).

Live Broadcast: Coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1, Univision & TUDN - Kickoff: 9 p.m. ET

LINEUP NOTES: USMNT vs. Haiti

2021 Concacaf Gold Cup July 11, 2021 Children’s Mercy Park; Kansas City, Kan. Live Broadcast: Coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1, Univision & TUDN Kickoff: 9 p.m. ET Social Media: @USMNT on Twitter and Instagram; @ussoccer on Facebook , The U.S. Soccer App

Tonight’s USMNT Starting XI vs. Haiti: 1-Matt Turner, 3-Sam Vines, 5-Walker Zimmerman, 7-Paul Arriola, 9-Gyasi Zardes, 12-Miles Robinson, 14-Jackson Yueill, 15-Jonathan Lewis, 17-Sebastian Lletget (capt.), 20-Shaq Moore, 23-Kellyn Acosta

Substitutes: 18-Sean Johnson, 22-Brad Guzan, 4-Donovan Pines, 6-Gianluca Busio, 8-Nicholas Gioacchini, 10-Cristian Roldan, 11-Daryl Dike, 13-Matthew Hoppe, 16-James Sands, 19-Eryk Williamson, 21-George Bello

GAME NOTES | FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HAITI | USMNT GOLD CUP TRIVIA USMNT Starting XI Cap Numbers (including this match): Gyasi Zardes (57), Paul Arriola (36), Kellyn Acosta (32), Sebastian Lletget (25), Walker Zimmerman (15), Jackson Yueill (13), Jonathan Lewis (8), Shaq Moore (6), Miles Robinson (4), Sam Vines (4), Matt Turner (2)

USMNT Starting XI Gold Cup Cap Numbers (including this match): Gyasi Zardes (17), Paul Arriola (11), Kellyn Acosta (6), Walker Zimmerman (4), Jonathan Lewis (2), Sebastian Lletget (1), Shaq Moore (1), Miles Robinson (1), Matt Turner (1), Sam Vines (1), Jackson Yueill (1)

Tonight’s Starting XI has an average age of 25 years, 360 days.

The Starting XI averages 17 caps.

Defender Reggie Cannon has experienced right hamstring soreness in the last 24 hours and is being held out as a precaution. His status is day-to-day.

Sebastian Lletget captains the USMNT for the first time tonight. The 28-year-old midfielder is the 12th different player to wear the armband under head coach Gregg Berhalter.

Ten of 11 starters hail from Major League Soccer, with right back Shaq Moore (Tenerife; Spain) as the lone foreign-based player.

Moore is one of four players making their USMNT debuts in official competition tonight, joining goalkeeper Matt Turner and defenders Miles Robinson and Sam Vines.

Turner (eligible to represent Lithuania) and Moore (eligible to represent Trinidad and Tobago) will both become officially cap-tied to the USMNT once the opening whistle blows tonight.

Moore earns his first USMNT appearance since playing in the 1-0 friendly defeat to Italy on Nov. 20, 2018 in Genk, Belgium.

Kellyn Acosta, Sebastian Lletget and Jackson Yueill were all part of the U.S. roster during last month’s Concacaf Nations League triumph.

Making his 17th Gold Cup appearance tonight, forward Gyasi Zardes moves past Kyle Beckerman and Pablo Mastroeni for sole possession of 10th on the USMNT’s all-time Gold Cup caps list.

The only starter to previously appear against Haiti, Zardes came on as a halftime substitute and assisted on Clint Dempsey’s goal two minutes later in a 1-0 Gold Cup group stage win on July 10, 2015 in Foxborough, Mass.

Walker Zimmerman earns his first start since the 1-0 win against Costa Rica on Feb. 1, 2020.

Zimmerman and Miles Robinson partner together in central defense for the first time tonight. It’s the 13th different central defensive pairing deployed under Gregg Berhalter.

Tonight’s match marks the second time the trio of Kellyn Acosta, Sebastian Lletget and Jackson Yueill will work together in midfield. The three previously lined up at the start of the USA’s 7-0 win against Trinidad and Tobago on Jan. 31, 2021 in Orlando.

Gianluca Busio, Matthew Hoppe, Donovan Pines and James Sands would earn their USMNT debuts should they enter the match tonight.

Four players beginning the match on the bench would become cap-tied to the United States should they play tonight against Haiti: George Bello (Nigeria), Gianluca Busio (Italy), Daryl Dike (Nigeria), Nicholas Gioacchini (Italy and Jamaica).

A midfielder with Sporting KC, Busio would have the opportunity of making his USMNT debut in his home club stadium.

Meanwhile, Gioacchini would get to represent the U.S. just 17 miles from where he grew up in Overland Park, Kansas.

Teams are allowed five substitutions during the group stage of the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup.

The USA holds an even 6-6-5 record in 17 all-time matches against Haiti. Les Grenadiers are one of two Concacaf nations the USMNT does not have a winning record against.

The USA is 2-0-1 against Haiti in Gold Cup play.

The USMNT is 20-6-3 in 29 matches under Gregg Berhalter.

The United States Men’s National Team opened up Group B play at the 2021 Gold Cup with a 1-0 victory over Haiti last night in Kansas City. It gave them 3 points to keep them on pace with Canada, who beat Martinique in the first match of the doubleheader. For the USMNT, there were some positives and some areas for improvement in a match where they seemed very sluggish at times and still have some questions to answer as they move forward in the tournament. Here’s what we learned.

No urgency on attack.

USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter was “disappointed” in the lack of urgency that the attack showed against Haiti, a team that entered the match with 5 of its players sidelined due to testing positive for Covid.

“I missed the urgency to score more goals and to be dangerous and first pass forward and aggressive,” Berhalter said during the post-match press conference. “To me, it was way too slow, way too backwards. Not enough intent to turn it around and get them get them defending in the penalty box. And then once we’re in the penalty box, I didn’t like the runs, the movement in the box. I didn’t like the service. So from the attacking end, we were disappointed with the intent that we showed tonight.”

The team didn’t have enough runs forward to sustain an attack. You had consistent play down the right side, particularly with Shaq Moore. Paul Arriola did well at times before he was forced off early in the first half due to injury. However, the left side of Jonathan Lewis and Sam Vines didn’t do enough to keep Haiti on their toes, despite Sam Vines scoring the lone goal for the Americans. The USMNT needed to gas out Haiti, who was short staffed and playing compact for most of the match to conserve energy. Instead, the Americans played right into Haiti’s game, and Haiti felt more comfortable withstanding any attack and trying to turn quick counters down the field when the American midfield would make a mistake.

Gianluca Busio showed why people should be very excited about his future.

The 19-year-old Italian American made his USMNT debut last night in front of his home fans in Kansas City when he subbed on for Jackson Yueill in the 62nd minute, and he certainly made an impression with his play. He played with confidence and was constantly looking to drive the attack forward. With every touch he took last night, the Children’s Mercy Park crowd of 12,664 cheered loudly, and he gave them reasons to do just that. He had a shot on goal late in the match that was an absolute laser that required an incredible save by Haitian goalkeeper Bryan Sylvestre, but Busio was a breath of fresh air on a night where the attack felt stagnant.

The winger depth chart has become super thin.

Hopefully, the injury to Paul Arriola is not a serious one, but even before that, Gregg Berhalter admitted that he didn’t have a lot of depth at the wings on this roster. Now, with Arriola having to sub off due to injury in the 14th minute of last night’s match, the winger group is even thinner. Nicholas Gioacchini replaced Arriola at right wing, and Daryl Dike eventually subbed on for Jonathan Lewis on the left wing. That’s 2 guys that normally operate as 9s for club and country. Matthew Hoppe, another 9, is also someone that Berhalter believes has the movement to play on one of the wings. So, who will start against Martinique on the wings remains to be seen, but with the focus on creating scoring opportunities already heightened for this group and with the lackluster effort last night, there will be more eyes on who Gregg Berhalter decides to play on that forward line as they progress in the Gold Cup.

Those are some of the things we learned. What did you take away from last night’s match? Hit the comments and discuss.

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Philly to require masks; N.J. public schools will reopen in the fall; businesses reopen as Southeastern Pa. en

Latest 2: 30 PM – 06/26/20

Latest ‘I do see people being a little more fearful of sitting inside’

Delaware County business owners welcomed the green phase of reopening with cautious optimism on Friday as gyms, hair salons, and indoor restaurants and bars reopened from the coronavirus shutdown.

In Havertown, a few people enjoyed the warm, sunny weather as they ate lunch outside at Kettle, a daytime cafe on the corner of Brookline Boulevard and West Chester Pike. Inside a propped-open door, owner Sarah Brautigan and manager Marie Stinger talked with a couple servers, who had been called back now that indoor dining was permitted in the region.

“We’re all so excited,” said Brautigan, smiling behind her blue surgical mask.

“We’ve been very successful with outdoor dining,” she added. But “today, I do see people being a little more fearful of sitting inside.”

Between 8 a.m. and noon Friday, Stinger said the cafe sat only five tables inside, with all others requesting outdoor seating. The cafe had offered outside seating in the yellow phase, too.

Across the street, the staff at Dynamic Image Hair Salon had flipped the sign on the door to “Open” for the first time in months. Around it were signs about social distancing and the face mask requirement, as well as a typed-up message that read “We have missed you so much!” Inside, a couple people chatted with hairdressers as they got their hair cut.

A couple doors down, Havertown Health and Fitness owner Mark Rodney showed a sole gym-goer the new cleaning stations and spaced-out machines inside his facility. Business had been steady over the first few hours, Rodney said, not much slower than a typical, pre-pandemic weekday morning at his neighborhood gym. Because he knows most of the members well, he said he doesn’t expect issues with compliance.

In Upper Darby, the famous Llanerch Diner had no customers inside just before lunchtime. Red white and blue balloons lined its entryway, ready to greet diners on its reopening day.

Outside Manoa Tavern a mile away, employees unloaded cases of beer from a truck. Inside the bar, flat-screen TVs were turned to sports reruns.

“Just the setup has been crazy,” said manager Joe Favazza, who said they’d only sat one table as of noon. He expected a few slow days before people start to return to the neighborhood mainstay, he said.

Farther west in Newtown Square, Corinthian Wellness Salon and Spa was doing steady business, even though the chair-less waiting area didn’t show it. They’re taking only two clients at a time for hair styling, and asking customers to call the salon when they pull up so they can be let in.

“I miss the salon environment,” employee Alyssa Boppell said from behind a clear barrier at the reception desk. “Usually this place is loud and bustling.”

American Airlines will book flights to full capacity, ending social distancing efforts

DAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer

American Airlines flight 755 from Paris France arrives at Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, PA on March 12, 2020.

American Airlines, the most prominent carrier at Philadelphia International Airport, will start booking flights to full capacity next week, ending any effort to promote social distancing on its planes while the United States sets records for new reported cases of the coronavirus.

American’s move matches the policy of United Airlines but contrasts sharply with rivals that limit bookings to create space between passengers to minimize the risk of contagion.

Delta says it is capping seats at about 60% of capacity and Southwest at about 67%, both through Sept. 30. JetBlue says it will leave middle seats empty through July 31 unless the person is traveling with a passenger in an adjoining seat.

Philly health commissioner calls out Archdiocese for loosening mask restrictions

MONICA HERNDON / Staff Photographer

City of Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley, seen here back in March, called for the Archdiocese to require all congregants to wear masks.

Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said he had not seen the new guidance from the Archdiocese, which said that masks would now be recommended rather than required.

“I would hope the Archdiocese would take this very seriously and require everyone in those services to wear masks,” he said.

Farley said that religious services are “particularly high risk” for spreading the coronavirus and noted that several outbreaks of the virus can be linked to religious gatherings.

South Jersey counties experience increase in coronavirus transmissions

ELIZABETH ROBERTSON / Staff Photographer

Trudy Genna puts her feet up as she relaxes on a bench with husband Vito Genna on a bench in Cape May, N.J. on May 3, 2020.

Burlington, Gloucester, Cape May and Ocean counties are among 16 in the state where transmission rates have increased in recent weeks, Gov. Phil Murphy’s office confirmed Thursday.

Murphy said the state’s overall rate of transmission was dropping slightly, and that he was seeing “a good picture, overall” in terms of hospitalizations and other metrics.

”We are still in the fight. We are still in the war,” Murphy said, urging New Jersey residents to continue social distancing, wearing masks and getting tested for the virus. “This is the fight of our lives.”

‘Today feels wonderful’: Across Bucks Counties, open businesses and happy customers

Vinny Vella / Staff

Bill Patouhas ties a â€œWelcome Backâ€ sign to a railing outside the Red Lion Diner, the eatery he manages in Horsham, on Friday, June 26, 2020, as Southeastern Pennsylvania counties entered the “green” reopening phase.

Across Bucks County on Friday, businesses that were unable to open previously such as gyms, hair salons and restaurants, were hives of activity.

Crowds of people flocked to the outdoor pools at the Newtown Athletic Club in the borough of the same name while others filed into the nearby gym to work out on machines and treadmills.

Owner Jim Worthington said he was surprised at the high volume of regular customers that returned Friday. His staff at the sister location, the Horsham Athletic Club, spent Friday in a training session, learning how to properly sanitize workout machines ahead of their opening Monday.

“It’s been tremendous,” he said. “I’ve had people come up to me with tears in their eyes. This is a big part of people’s lives, not just fitness but the sense of community and mental health it provides.”

There was a palpable giddiness among people walking the streets in the county, from the small town business corridors in Lower Bucks, to Main Street in Doylestown, the county’s seat.

Lance and Alma Schneider beamed from behind their face masks on their way out of the Red Lion Diner in Horsham. The couple had been making weekly trips down from Point Pleasant, a tiny hamlet near New Hope, to see if the diner had opened its doors.

Their trip Friday finally was successful.

“We’re just so thrilled to be able to get back to our normal routine,” Alma Schneider said as diner manager Bill Patouhas lashed a large “Welcome back” sign to the diner’s outdoor railing.

“But we’re doing so with caution,” she added. “I’m happy people are being sensible, not like the states down south.”

A few miles up Route 611, at Moxie’s Salon in Doylestown, Carmen Tempesta was putting the finishing touches on a hair cut. He said the reopening measures created some obstacles—it’s not exactly easy to cut hair around the elastics of a face mask, and stylists have to take the time completely disinfect their stations between customers. But the entire day’s slot of appointments had been booked well in advance.

“Everyone likes to look good. That’s why you come to the salon, you feel better,” he said. “It’s a part of mental health.”

Marilyn Whitekettle agreed, as Tempesta dried her curls.

“Today feels wonderful, almost like Christmas,” she said. “This is a stressful time, and you need to look to find things to elevate your mood when there’s not much there to elevate it.”

Philly requires masks as city sees increase in new cases

YONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney wears a mask ahead of a press conference on Sunday, May 31, 2020.

A second wave of the coronavirus is beginning in Philadelphia, Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said Friday as he announced increases in new cases, implemented a requirement for all residents to wear masks, and said he would reconsider whether the city can move into the “green” phase next week.

“Cases in the community are no longer decreasing,” Farley said, as he announced 143 new cases of COVID-19 in Philadelphia residents Friday.

Masks are now mandatory in Philadelphia for people at all indoor public places or when outdoors near people who are not members of one’s own household, Farley said.

Philadelphia officials will reconsider moving into the “green” phase next week and allowing more businesses to open.

“‘We are going to reconsider and determine what, if anything, of that next batch can reopen on Friday,” he said.

Farley said that some additional activities could reopen safely “if we are really vigilant about the mask use.” But others, such as indoor dining at restaurants, may not be able to resume.

City officials had set a target of reaching 80 cases per day in order to move into the “green” phase of reopening. In the past week the daily case count has averaged more than 100, Farley said.

“I don’t think [new cases] are rising fast, but they do appear to be increasing,” he said.

Farley said officials have noted spikes in teens ages 16 to 19, which appear to be linked to social gatherings.

And as cases rise at a faster rate in many other states, Farley said that wave “will inevitably hit Philadelphia to some degree.”

New Jersey schools will reopen in the fall

JOSE F. MORENO / Staff Photographer

School in New Jersey, like the Octavius V. Catto Community School, In Camden, will reopen in the fall at least part-time, the state announced on Friday.

New Jersey public school students will receive in-person instruction at least part-time come fall, the state education department said in guidance issued to districts Friday.

School systems will have wide latitude in exactly what school looks like in the fall, but must meet minimum guidelines, including social distancing, temperature checks, contact tracing, mandatory face coverings for school staff and visitors, with masks strongly encouraged for students amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

While educators did strong work shifting from in-person to remote instruction once Gov. Phil Murphy ordered New Jersey schools closed March 18 as the coronavirus bore down on the region, students need to return to classrooms in whatever way possible, Education Commissioner Lamont O. Repollet said.

Plans, which must be announced no less than four weeks prior to the start of the school year, will be developed locally, in collaboration with the community, officials said. That’s likely to mean that some districts might opt for students attending school on alternating days and others on alternating weeks. Others may use space creatively to bring some groups of students into buildings daily.

Students and adults who exhibit symptoms will be told to self-isolate. If they test positive, schools will notify local health officials, staff and families.

‘It’s nice to feel normal’: King of Prussia Mall opens for the first time in over three months

YONG KIM / Staff Photographer

Shoppers enter and leave the King of Prussia Mall on Friday, June 26, 2020. The King of Prussia Mall reopened today, after a 10 week coronavirus shut down.

For the first time in more than three months, shoppers strolled through the King of Prussia Mall Friday, enjoying a change of scenery as Philadelphia and its surrounding counties officially entered the green phase of reopening.

Although nearly half of the mall’s 400 stores were still shuttered, shoppers clutched bags filled with clothes and shoes — finally enjoying the experience in person rather than online for the first time since the mall closed from the coronavirus on March 14. While parking lots appeared full, the groups inside were sparse, with more than enough space to spread out as they walked around.

Reminders of health precautions were posted all around the mall, which is the largest in the country. Masks are required for all employees and customers , and entrances have been limited to monitor who comes in. Employees must also have their temperatures taken daily.

The bathrooms only allow for every other sink to be used, and stickers on the floor remind people to move one way and stay six feet apart.

Ellie Rushing / Staff

Staffers at American Eagle Outfitters at the King of Prussia Mall celebrated the store’s reopening with balloons and energetically greeting customers with extra masks and hand sanitizer. “Welcome back, fam!” said a sign outside the store.

Stores that did reopen, like Madewell, Lululemon, and Footlocker, hoisted “We’re open!” signs in their windows. American Eagle Outfitters celebrated the big day with balloons and energetic staffers greeting customers with extra masks and hand sanitizer. Meanwhile, the stores surrounding it, like Zara, Steve Madden, and Lilly Pulitzer, remained dark and closed.

Stores assigned staffers to count customers to ensure capacity remains under 25%. For popular stores like Footlocker and Lululemon, a dozen waiting customers lined up outside, eager to get their hands on the latest sale.

Jennifer Michael and her son Jonathan, 11, of Aston, Pa. came to the mall to grab some new hiking shoes from L.L. Bean.

“It’s a lot less crowded than we thought,” Jonathan said. “We looked at the parking lot and thought there’d be more people inside.”

“If it were really crowded, we would have just got what we needed and left,” said Jennifer Michael, relieved. “But since nobody’s here, we’ll walk around.”

“We want to be safe, but it’s nice to feel normal,” she said.

Watch live: First White House coronavirus task force briefing in two months

The White House coronavirus task force will hold it’s first public briefing in two months, as coronavirus cases surge back to peak levels.

The briefing is scheduled to begin at 12: 30 p.m. at the headquarters of the Department of Health and Human Services. You can watch it here, via NBC News:

Final Pa. county will move into ‘green’ phase of reopening

ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / Staff Photographer

An old-style street sign marks the intersection of S. 8th and Cumberland streets in Lebanon, Pa.’s historic business district.

Lebanon County, the last of 67 counties remaining in the “yellow” phase, will move into the “green” phase of reopening on July 3, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Friday.

“We will soon have all of our counties in green,” Wolf said in a statement. “A milestone worth a cautious celebration of the hard work and collaborative spirit of Pennsylvanians. But we must remember that the restrictions that remain in the green phase will help us continue to enjoy the freedoms this phase allows for.”

Trump cancels trip to New Jersey amid coronavirus surge

Morry Gash / AP

President Donald Trump leaves the stage after speaking at an event at Fincantieri Marinette Marine, Thursday, June 25, 2020, in Marinette, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

In an about-face, President Trump will not travel to his golf club in Bedminster, N.J. today, according to pool reports.

The schedule change comes as coronavirus cases are surging in the country, returning to peak levels seen back in April.

Earlier this week, a White House spokesperson said Trump was traveling to New Jersey despite the state’s quarantine, which requires anyone coming into to the Garden State from areas with a high level of community spread of the coronaviru to quarantine for 14 days.

Trump visited Arizona earlier this week, one of eight states listed under the new quarantine plan, which is also in effect in New York and Connecticut.

16 NBA players have tested positive for coronavirus

STEVEN M. FALK / Staff Photographer

After the Sixers-Pistons game, the last game played at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Wednesday, March 11, 2020.

The NBA announced on Friday 16 players have tested positive for the coronavirus. On June 23, 302 NBA players were tested, the league said, but did not disclose which players have contracted the virus.

“Any player who tested positive will remain in self-isolation until he satisfies public health protocols for discontinuing isolation and has been cleared by a physician,” the league said in a statement.

Biden says he would require all Americans wear masks in public

Matt Slocum / AP

Democratic presidential candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden, left, listens to Laura Raslevich, of Pittsburgh, during a meeting in Lancaster on Thursday with families who have benefited from the Affordable Care Act.

Former Vice President Joe Biden said if he were president, he would make it a federal requirement that all Americans wear masks due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I would insist that everybody in public be wearing that mask,” Biden, who visited Lancaster on Thursday, said during an interview on Pittsburgh CBS affiliate KDKA. “Anyone to reopen, it would have to make sure that they walked into a business that had masks.”

Coronavirus cases appear to be rising in states with relaxed policies on wearing masks. In 16 states where masks are simply recommended — including Texas and Arizona — new coronavirus cases have risen by about 84% over the last two weeks, according to an Inquirer analysis.

Meanwhile, in 11 states that require people wear masks in public, new cases have fallen by about 25%.

Delaware requires masks be worn in all public settings. Both Pennsylvania and New Jersey only require that employees and patrons of certain businesses wear masks.

“The one thing we do know, these masks make a gigantic difference,” Biden said.

Regular weekly recycling collection to resume in Philly

MICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer

Philadelphia sanitation workers toss garbage bags from the trash cans in Rittenhouse Square into their trash truck to be hauled away on April 2, 2020.

Regular weekly recycling collections in Philadelphia will resume Monday, July 6, the city announced Friday.

The Streets Department said residents should hold their recycling materials the week of June 29 through July 3. Residents should expect delays in collections to subside as the amount of trash placed curbside is expected to decrease.

The city shifted to every other week collections back on April 6 in response to the coronavirus pandemic. City workers will continue to practice social distancing, so residents are asked to not approach employees during collections.

Archdiocese of Philadelphia to loosen mask requirements

JESSICA GRIFFIN / Staff Photographer

Archbishop Nelson J. Pérez greets representatives from Blessed Trinity Elementary School after they received chrome books from the technology team from the Archdiocese Office of Catholic Education, at the Archdiocese, in Philadelphia, April 20, 2020.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is expanding capacity for its indoor services and loosening its requirements on masks now that the region has moved to the “green” reopening phase.

In a statement to congregants, Father Dennis Gill outlined the new guidelines, which include:

Indoor occupancy capacity can increase to 75%, up from 50%.

Masks, which had previously been required, are now just recommended for congregants age 3 and older.

Parishes are encouraged to restore their typical Mass schedule if adjustments were made for Sundays and weekdays.

While Pennsylvania requires people to wear masks while indoors in businesses, houses of worship are excluded from Gov. Tom Wolf’s order. Instead, the state says these institutions are “strongly encouraged to institute social distancing and other mitigation measures like masking at their gatherings.”

Parishes will continue to livestream services and maintain the dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass in person. Singing “should be kept to a minimum,” and social distancing guidelines will remain in place. The full statement can be read here.

Two Philly-area casinos to reopen today

JOSE F. MORENO / Staff Photographer

Vanessa Harkins, staff (showgirl) looks on while wearing a face mask during reopening day at the Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino and Racetrack in Chester, PA. Friday, June 26, 2020. The Harrah’s is the first Philadelphia area casino to reopen.

Two Philadelphia-area casinos will open Friday thanks to Southeastern Pennsylvania moving into the “green” phase.

Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack in Chester and Valley Forge Casino Resort are both scheduled to reopen at 11 a.m. Both will operate at 50% capacity with social-distancing rules making face masks required.

Wind Creek Bethlehem and Parx Casino in Bensalem are slated to reopen on Monday.

Rivers Casino Philadelphia in Fishtown has not yet set a reopening date due to Philadelphia’s modified “green” reopening, which keeps restrictions in place for some businesses and activities. According to the city, casinos will be allowed to reopen sometime after July 3.

Atlantic City’s nine casinos will be permitted to reopen July 2 at 25% capacity, Gov. Phil Murphy announced earlier this week. Patrons and employees will be required to wear masks.

What’s open in the suburbs today but not in Philly

HEATHER KHALIFA / Staff Photographer

People dine outside at Fette Sau in Fishtown on Friday, June 12, 2020. While indoor dining can resume in the suburbs, residents in Philadelphia will have to wait at least a week.

Every county in Southeastern Pennsylvania moved into the state’s “green” phase of expanded reopening from coronavirus restrictions at midnight. But Philadelphia entered a more-restrictive “modified” green phase, where some additional restrictions will be maintained until at least July 3.

Under the green phase, masks will still be required when entering a business. Large gatherings of more than 250 people are prohibited. Working from home is still strongly encouraged.

These activities and businesses can reopen today in Philadelphia and the suburbs:

Residential swimming pools and private swim clubs

Zoos (outside only)

Personal services such as salons, barbers, and spas

Small indoor social and religious gatherings (up to 25 people)

These activities and businesses can reopen today in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties. But they won’t be allowed in Philadelphia until July 3 at the earliest:

Outdoor group recreational and sports activities for youth and adults

Gyms and indoor exercise classes

Schools and colleges

Libraries and museums

Indoor shopping malls

Outdoor performances and small outdoor events (up to 50 people)

Restaurants with indoor seating (with occupancy restrictions)

These activities and businesses can also reopen in the suburbs, but will remain closed indefinitely in Philadelphia:

Casinos

Large outdoor events (up to 250 people)

Theaters and indoor events (with occupancy restrictions)

Large indoor social and religious gatherings (more than 25 people)

Senior services involving gatherings, such as adult daycare

All but one county in Pennsylvania have entered the ‘green’ phase of reopening

ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / Staff Photographer

An old-style street sign marks the intersection of S. 8th and Cumberland streets in Lebanon, Pa.’s historic business district. Nearly 40 percent of the county’s known coronavirus cases trace back to a single Lebanon zip code – 17046.

As of 12: 01 a.m., every county in Southeastern Pennsylvania has entered the state’s green phase of expanded reopening from coronavirus restrictions, while Philadelphia will enter a “modified” green phase.

The only county in Pennsylvania that remain in Gov. Tom Wolf’s more restrictive yellow phase is Lebanon County because of an increase in COVID-19 cases there.

Under the green phase, masks will still be required when entering a business. Large gatherings of more than 250 are prohibited. Working from home is still strongly encourage.

Some of the changes from yellow to green include:

Restaurants and bars can open at 50% occupancy.

Entertainment venues such as theaters, casinos, and shopping malls, can open at 50% occupancy.

All businesses operating at 50% occupancy in the yellow phase can increase to 75% occupancy.

After uptick in coronavirus cases, Delaware delays next phase of reopening

Randall Chase / AP Photo

Delaware Gov. John Carney meets with staffers during a tour of the State Health Operations Center back in May.

Delaware Gov. John Carney announced late Thursday afternoon that he was delaying the next phase in the state’s economic reopening out of concern that public noncompliance with safety requirements and guidelines could lead to a resurgence of COVID-19.

“Too many Delawareans and visitors are not following basic public health precautions,” Carney said in a statement.

“We’ve heard and seen concerns especially in our beach communities, in restaurants, in gyms, and at sporting events. Now’s not the time to let up. You’re required to wear a mask in public settings. Keep your distance from those outside your household. These are common sense steps that, frankly, are not that difficult to follow. And they’re a small price to pay for keeping our friends and relatives out of the hospital,” Carney said.

Delaware was set to expand reopening on Monday. Carney said he expects to make a decision next week on a new date.

“In Delaware, we are beating this disease. We have flattened the curve. But that’s because Delawareans stayed home and made significant sacrifices to keep others safe. Make no mistake: COVID-19 has not gone away. We’ve seen what has happened in other states when folks let their guard down. Let’s not be one of those states,” he said

from Job Search Tips https://jobsearchtips.net/philly-to-require-masks-n-j-public-schools-will-reopen-in-the-fall-businesses-reopen-as-southeastern-pa-en/

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dontlookatmeitwashim · 7 years ago

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Bad Luck: Five

One Two Three Four

Ah, the moment you have all been waiting for!! The fifth chapter to Bad Luck! Enjoy! And please give feedback, it always give me some inspiration! Oh and shout out to @re-unknown for making this art for Chat’s Suit!!!

He was dreaming… He knew he was.

He knew he was dreaming because of the warm body he held in his arms; Marinette. They were laying in the grass; the sunshine was hitting Marinette’s hair just right; her eyes staring back at his. She had her hands resting on her chest, their noses lightly touching. Adrien had his arms around her small body, one tight wrapped her waist while the other was across her back; entangled in her hair.

“Marinette…” The blonde curled a dark piece of hair around his finger. “You’re here,”

She smiled, brushing her nose against his so that when she spoke? Their lips touched with every word she whispered to him. “Of course, I am…”

“I’m sorry for everything…” Adrien tightened his hold on the woman he loved, never wanting to let her go. “I wish I could make it all better,”

Marinette hummed and pressed a kissed to the corner of his mouth, sighing. “But you can’t… It’s your fault that I’m the way I am now because you couldn’t keep your mouth shut, Adrien. You’re the reason I was akumatized, you’re the reason I’m going to take everything you love away from you.”

“I know,” Breathing in her scent, the cat turned them over so that Marinette was now laying on her back. Adrien rested on his elbows, staring into her ocean blue eyes; his fingers lightly tracing the outline of her cheek. “I’ll fix everything I swear…”

“Adrien,” She smiled, reaching up and cupping his face; bringing it closer to her own.

“ADRIEN!” Two voices screamed at him, waking him from his dream.

The blonde boy lurched up from the ground, feeling as though he lost all his power to breath. He struggled to breath while he was looking around for the person who was calling his name; only to see the two kwami’s sitting next to him.

Plagg flew up to him, tears in his green eyes. “We thought you were dead! You’ve been like this for hours!”

“Hours?!” Adrien stood up, only to feel woozy and fall to the ground once again. “I have to get to Marinette, I have to get the earring-”

Shaking his head, the black kwami hit his human in the head and glared. “Just stop and take a breather for a second! Your letting your emotions control you, what would Ladybug do?! Huh?”

He looked away, unable to look at Plagg in the eyes. He knew what Ladybug would do; she wouldn’t let her feelings control her, she would let them give her the power, the strength to overcome. But he wasn’t her and he would never will be; he was Adrien.

Adrien, the real Adrien? The one who he became when he puts on that Chat Noir suit? He doesn’t hold his feelings back; he just lets them be.

“I can’t be someone I’m not!” He argued, gathering all his strength and stood up. “But I know she wouldn’t want me to give up because I know if it was me? She would never stop until I was cured.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Tikki laughed. Looking behind him, the blonde saw that she was holding an earring in her tiny arms, grinning up at him. “You make a wonderful distraction, Adrien!”

The blonde felt a wave of relief going through him; it didn’t solve the problem completely but it did mean that Marinette’s condition wouldn’t become any worse than it already is. He laughed at the red kwami, taking the earring from her arms and into his palm while he took out the other from his pocket.

Then he frowned, he didn’t have his ears pierced… “Uh, Tikki?”

“Right, sorry!” She giggled, flying to his hand. Tikki placed a hand on each earring and closed her eyes; trying to focus.

There was a red flash and then there was two ear-cuffs laying in Adrien’s hand. They were still red and still had black spots on them. He only took a moment to admire them before he placed them onto his ears; hoping that he didn’t look ridiculous.

“Now, all you have to say is; ‘spots on’.” Tikki explained, smiling up at the blonde. “I know you can do this, Adrien.”

He nodded and took a deep breath. Looking towards his own kwami and nodded; saying the familiar words he has been saying every time there was a hint of danger, the words that had changed his life. Soon he was dressed in the black suit before he turned to Tikki.

He could feel his heart beating fast, he was nervous. But this wasn’t the time to be nervous, so he swallowed down his fear and steeled his nerves. “Tikki, spots on!”

The kwami flew onto the ear-cuffs, the once black suit changing from the new addition. Adrien could feel a rush of power as the two superhero powers combined into one. He watched as his chest, his thighs and his elbows turned red; his feet, shins, neck and forearms remained black. There were black dots on his chest, shoulders, ribs and stomach; while there were red dots on his feet, shins, hands and forearms.

He still had his bell, tail and ears, but he didn’t know about his mask. But as he looked around for any reflective surface, Chat saw two red ribbons. He touched them lightly, tracing them back to where they were tied on his head. Now he really wanted to see what he looked like.

He ran out of the crumbled ruins that was his home and to a store window. As soon as his eyes saw his reflection? His jaw dropped.

He turned around a few times, trying to get a look of the whole costume. Feeling the grin spreading across his face, the superhero felt like he could do anything in the world. He noticed that he still had his baton, but with the addition of Ladybug’s yoyo.

“I need a name.” He stated. His mind racing through various names, some of which were ridiculous and others just didn’t match the costume… Then he thought about something Ladybug had said to him several weeks ago, something that meant everything to him.

She said that they were partners, that there wasn’t a hero or sidekick; just partners.

“Lady Chat.” Adrien nodded, placing his hands on his hips in confidence. He knew people would laugh at him for giving him such a name, but he found that he really was proud of it. “Okay, now to save the woman I love.”

He turned away from the glass only to gasp. He was so caught up in the euphoria of a new superhero that he hadn’t seen the wreckage of the world around him. Cars were turned over, building in mere piles of bricks and not a single soul on the street. It looked as though a bomb had gone off and left everyone for dead.

This wasn’t the France he grew up knowing… This was something out of a nightmare. He had to stop Marinette and he had to do it now. Using his baton, the blonde followed the trail of the wreckage; hoping that it will lead him to Bad Luck.

The wreckage led the superhero to the Eiffel Tower, where there were hundreds of people being herded and caged by Bad Luck. She wore a sickly grin, watching them suffer. The innocence that was once in her eyes was no gone, it was replaced by the gleam of malice; her lust to have revenge.

Swallowing down his fear, Lady Chat looked around the area; trying to think up a plan to get the akuma away from Marinette. He grabbed the yoyo and turned it over in his hands for a second; praying that it would work for him. Closing his eyes, he threw it into the air, saying the magical words.

He felt something land into his hands, causing him to open his eyes. There in his hands was a black and red ball; an idea popping in his head as he saw it. He hooked the yoyo around his built and gathered his courage, clutching the ball in his hand.

Walking out into the light, the blonde looked up at Bad Luck and grinned. “Hey!”

Marinette turned to him, glaring. She lifted the cane and was about to throw him across Paris when it was knocked out of her hand by the red ball. Adrien thought she would try to go after it, but all she did was glare; her eyes solely on him. Floating back to the ground, she slowly walked towards the blonde. “And what, pray tell, are you?”

“I am… LADY CHAT!” Chat puffed out his chest, grinning. He could hear the prisoners cheer as they saw him, hoping that they were going to be rescued.

“Well, as much as I love the name; you’re in my way.” She slammed her hand into his chest, sending him into the nearest building’s window; her fingertips turning black with the action. Marinette walked over to the broken window, raising an eyebrow. “Even with both miraculous’, you can’t defeat me. I know your tricks, your moves, Chat Noir… And once I get rid of you? I’ll have an intimate talk with Adrien Agreste.”

Groaning, Chat got up from the floor; cuts covering his body. He looked up, his blonde hair dying red from the cut on his forehead. Climbing out of the broken window, the blonde took in slow breaths. “He was only trying to help, he saw how talented you are, Marinette. He was proud of you, he wanted to show his father because he wanted you to win. He believed in you so much, but his rotten bad luck got in the way… His father just… Got the wrong idea.”

Bad Luck studied him. She studied his eyes, they wouldn’t meet hers; they were too ashamed to. Arching an eyebrow at him, Marinette took a small step back. “Why do you have that look in your eye? Why do you feel ashamed? It wasn’t you that did this to me…”

“But it was…” He looked down at his feet, his voice barely over a whisper; making it so only she could hear him. “I should have never expected my father to be reasonable, I should have left you alone and I should have been honest with you.”

She looked completely confused, arching an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean?”

Chat’s first plan didn’t work. He got her cane away, but it was clear that she didn’t need it to use her powers, which was… unfortunate for him. Which meant he had to go to plan B; honesty. Meeting Bad Luck’s eyes, Chat Noir looked pitiful. “Mari, please, I’m sorry… I’m sorry that I thought my father would be reasonable, I’m sorry that I should him your designs, I’m sorry that I hurt you! I didn’t want any of this! All I wanted was to make you happy!”

She was so confused, why would he say something like that to her? He had nothing to do with; then it clicked. Chat had said ‘his father’, meaning that Chat Noir was…

“A-Adrien?” Bad Luck’s eyes were wide from shock, the butterfly mask on her face fading away, revealing Marinette. She took several steps back, tripping on a fallen lamp post and onto some broken glass. She let out a scream as the shards pierced her skin.

“Marinette!” He got up and ran over to her, falling to his knees to help her sit up. Chat tried to place a hand on her back but hissed when his palm was cut open. He pulled her closer, her head resting on his shoulder and gasped; dozens of broken shards were sticking out of her body. “Oh my God…”

Squeezing his hand tightly, Marinette whispered in his ear. “Purify the akuma.”

Nodded, the blonde carefully leaned Marinette against the lamp post and walked over to the forgotten cane. He picked it up and broken it in half, the black butterfly escaping. Chat quickly captured the akuma with the yoyo and purified it, then he went looking for his Lucky Charm. He grabbed it and threw it in the air, saying those two words he heard hundreds of times before.

Immediately white butterflies started to fly throughout Paris; fixing everything to it was before, even his wounds were healed. The prison vanished, setting everyone free; several of them were his classmates and people he knew. But the one he was most interested in? Was his father.

But before he marched over to him, the blonde went back to Marinette; seeing her parents had gotten to her before he did. He watched as her father kneeled down and picked up his daughter, making her scream in pain… her back was still covered in broken shards.

He froze, panic rising within him. He watched as Marinette’s parents called for an ambulance, the designer crying into her father’s chest. This wasn’t supposed to happen, she was supposed to be healed, she was supposed to be fine… but she wasn’t. He couldn’t do anything but watch, he watched as the ambulance came and whisked her away; he was completely useless.

Tears filled his eyes, but he didn’t let them fall. Chat turned around and started to look for Gabriel Agreste.

Finding his father, the blonde walked over to him and crossed his arms; glaring at him the whole time. “Marinette never asked Adrien to show you her designs; he was just trying to do something nice for his friend.”

“Yes, well, that doesn’t change-”

“Yes, it does!” Chat cut him off; the first time he had ever cut his father off. “Adrien was wrong to take matter in his own hands, so punish him, not Marinette! All she ever wanted was to become a designer, please, give her a chance!”

Gabriel arched an eyebrow at the young superhero, contemplating what he had said. He never liked going back on his word, but with one glance at Marinette? He saw how much of her world shattered because of what he had done. He let out a sigh and nodded. “Very well, Ms. Dupain-Cheng can still compete in the contest; but don’t expect me to deliver the news personally.”

“Of course not, why would I think that you actually cared?” Chat growled, shoving his father’s shoulder with his own as he passed. He got to the nearest alleyway and transformed back into Adrien. He caught the two kwamis, they were both exhausted. “You two alright?”

Tikki looked up at Adrien and nodded. “Don’t worry, all we need is to refuel.”

The blonde sighed and leaned against the alley wall, slowing sliding down it until he was sitting. “What should I do? Marinette is being rushed to the hospital. I thought the Miraculous Ladybug was supposed to heal her?”

“It’s different for her.” Plagg sighed, giving his charge an apologetic look; something that Adrien wasn’t used to seeing on him. “Because she is miraculous holder? When she gives in like that? There are some consequences… she was lucky, it could have been a lot worse.”

Cocking his head to the side, Adrien looked even more worried. “What do you mean? How could it have been worse?”

“Adrien, she could have lost her ability to use the miraculous or-” The black kwami was never one for being sensitive and he wasn’t going to start now.

“Plagg!” Tikki hit her fellow kwami over the head, glaring at him. “Don’t scare him! He’s only a boy!”

Rubbing the back of his head, Plagg returned the glare. “We can’t baby them, Tikki! They have to learn sometime!”

“Learn what?” The blonde looked between them.

Tikki looked up at him and sighed, she knew Plagg was right; she just didn’t want him or Marinette to be burdened even more. She looked over at the black kwami and nodded. Adrien needed to know how serious the situation was.

“There are ancient laws that we have to follow. Marinette got off easy because she didn’t use her miraculous while being akumatized and she didn’t kill anyone.” Plagg’s eyes never left Adrien’s. It was the first time the blonde had seen him so serious, it made him a little scared. “But if she did? The miraculous would have killed her.”

Leave a comment please! I love hearing from you guys!

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newstfionline · 3 years ago

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Friday, September 10, 2021

Biden announces sweeping new vaccine rules (AP) In his most forceful pandemic actions and words, President Joe Biden ordered sweeping new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans — private-sector employees as well as health care workers and federal contractors — in an all-out effort to curb the surging COVID-19 delta variant. The expansive rules mandate that all employers with more than 100 workers require them to be vaccinated or test for the virus weekly, affecting about 80 million Americans. And the roughly 17 million workers at health facilities that receive federal Medicare or Medicaid also will have to be fully vaccinated. Biden is also requiring vaccination for employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government — with no option to test out. That covers several million more workers. In addition to the vaccination requirements, Biden moved to double federal fines for airline passengers who refuse to wear masks on flights or to maintain face covering requirements on federal property in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

The CIA’s least covert mission (Politico) In the bowels of its Langley headquarters, a fluorescent-lit, mundane office space houses a team of about a dozen people engaged in what is perhaps the Central Intelligence Agency’s least covert mission: to make American citizens “like” the agency on social media. The United State’s premier intelligence agency has slowly ramped up its social media presence since joining Facebook and Twitter in 2014, creating one of the federal government’s quirkiest, creative, and controversial PR campaigns. The aim: to dispel some of the negative press and conspiracy theories that have dogged the agency over the years by showing the public that CIA staffers are just like us. The team has harnessed social media tropes and hashtags including Girl Boss-y posts touting “Women Crush Wednesday,” #KnowYourValue, pumpkin spice lattes, dog photos, #TuesdayTrivia, and a recurring “Humans of CIA” series modeled on the popular “Humans of New York” photography project that went viral just over a decade ago.

Acapulco earthquake recovery (Washington Post) Mexican workers shoveled rubble from roads and restored electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes Wednesday after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake rocked buildings from the beach city of Acapulco to Mexico City, more than 200 miles away. The quake Tuesday, centered outside Acapulco, killed at least two people, authorities said. Most damage was minor. But the Acapulco airport was closed to commercial flights after problems were detected in the control tower, the city’s mayor said.

El Salvador’s bitcoin adoption day turned into a crash course in crypto volatility (Quartz) El Salvador became the world’s first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender today (Sept. 7). “B-day,” as locals have dubbed it, ushers in a new era in which residents of the country can buy breakfast or pay their taxes in bitcoin: All businesses and banks must now accept bitcoin in addition to the US dollar, the country’s other legal currency. But critics of Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s young president, say he is putting the country’s finances at grave risk. Today’s debut made that crystal clear. Bitcoin’s price dropped by an unexpected 17% in mid-morning, wiping out $400 billion in minutes. Although the price had hovered around and just above US $50,000 over the weekend, it dropped to less than $43,000 at one point before rebounding to about $46,700 by 4 pm.

Britain prepares to force back migrant boats crossing the Channel, spurring war of words with France (Washington Post) Britain is preparing to turn back small migrant boats crossing the English Channel, according to numerous media reports, as an influx of arrivals of undocumented migrants this week sparked another war of words between London and Paris. It was unclear whether the measures included taking migrants back to French shores. Britain would only push boats back in “very certain, narrow circumstances,” an official said. The decision is likely to further strain ties between the two countries. In August, a record 828 migrants crossed the Channel in a single day. This year, 13,500 migrants have crossed the Channel in small boats, more than in the whole of 2020.

Pope Francis sends 15,000 ice-creams to prisoners in Rome (Guardian) Pope Francis sent 15,000 ice-creams to prisoners to help them cool down during what has been one of the hottest summers on record in Italy. The ice-creams were delivered to Rome’s two prisons – Regina Coeli in the centre of the city and Rebibbia on the outskirts – by the Vatican’s almoner, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski. In a statement, the Vatican said the pope’s charities office “did not go on holiday” this summer. Instead, Vatican volunteers spent their time “continuing to devote themselves, among other things to two of the seven works of mercy: visiting prisoners and consoling the afflicted”. The donation was among one of several “small evangelical gestures” made during the summer “to help and give hope to thousands of people in Rome’s prisons”, the statement added.

Xi Jinping’s crackdown on everything is remaking Chinese society (Washington Post) The orders have been sudden, dramatic and often baffling. Last week, “American Idol”-style competitions and shows featuring men deemed too effeminate were banned by Chinese authorities. Over the summer, China’s multibillion-dollar private education industry was decimated overnight by a ban on for-profit tutoring, while new regulations wiped more than $1 trillion from Chinese tech stocks since a peak in February. As China’s tech moguls compete to donate more to President Xi Jinping’s campaign against inequality, “Xi Jinping Thought” is taught in elementary schools, and foreign games and apps like Animal Crossing and Duolingo have been pulled from stores. A dizzying regulatory crackdown unleashed by China’s government has spared almost no sector over the past few months. This sprawling “rectification” campaign—with such disparate targets as ride-hailing services, insurance, education and even the amount of time children can spend playing video games—is redrawing the boundaries of business and society in China as Xi prepares to take on a controversial third term in 2022. The scope and velocity of the society-wide rectification has some worried China may be at the beginning of the kind of cultural and ideological upheaval that has brought the country to a standstill before.

Pro-China social media campaign expands to new countries, blames U.S. for COVID (Reuters) A misinformation campaign on social media in support of Chinese government interests has expanded to new languages and platforms, and it even tried to get people to show up to protests in the United States, researchers said on Wednesday. Experts at security company FireEye and Alphabet’s Google said the operation was identified in 2019 as running hundreds of accounts in English and Chinese aimed at discrediting the Hong Kong democracy movement. The effort has broadened its mission and spread from Twitter, Facebook and Google to thousands of handles on dozens of sites around the world. False information about COVID-19 has been a major focus. For example, accounts on social networking sites vKontakte, LiveJournal and elsewhere in Russian, German, Spanish and other languages have asserted that the novel coronavirus emerged in the United States before China and that it was developed by the U.S. military.

Japan extends virus emergency until end of September (AP) Japan announced Thursday it is extending a coronavirus state of emergency in Tokyo and 18 other areas until the end of September as health care systems remain under severe strain, although new infections have slowed slightly. The current state of emergency, which was to end on Sunday, was issued first in Okinawa in May and gradually expanded. Despite the prolonged emergency, the largely voluntary measures have become less effective as the exhausted public increasingly ignores them.

Scores of Westerners, including Americans, fly out of Kabul (AP) An estimated 200 foreigners, including Americans, left Afghanistan on a commercial flight out of Kabul on Thursday, the first such large-scale departure since U.S. and other forces completed their frantic withdrawal over a week ago. The Qatar Airways flight to Doha marked a breakthrough in the bumpy coordination between the U.S. and Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers. A dayslong standoff over charter planes at another airport has left dozens of passengers stranded. A senior U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk to the media, provided the number of Westerners on the Qatar flight and said two senior Taliban officials helped facilitate the departure—the new foreign minister and deputy prime minister. Americans, U.S. green card holders and other nationalities, including Germans, Hungarians and Canadians, were aboard, the official said. Qatari envoy Mutlaq bin Majed al-Qahtani said another 200 passengers will leave Afghanistan on Friday.

The Taliban is bringing back its feared ministry of ‘vice’ and ‘virtue’ (Washington Post) The last time the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, morality police roamed the streets, implementing the group’s austere interpretation of Islamic law—with harsh restrictions on women, strictly enforced prayer times and even bans on kite-flying and chess. Nearly 20 years later, the Ministry for Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice is back. In Kabul, some people expressed fears that the return of the ministry meant that the Taliban would not seek to change. “People have stopped listening to loud music in public … fearing the past experiences from when the Taliban last ruled,” said Gul, a Kabul resident who only gave his first name due to safety concerns. “I personally didn’t see any forced prayers. But there is fear in everyone’s minds.”

UN: 18,000 Yemeni civilians killed in airstrikes since 2015 (AP) A United Nations panel said Wednesday that at least 18,000 Yemeni civilians have been killed or wounded by airstrikes since the country’s war escalated in 2015. In a report presented to the Human Rights Council, a group of experts named by the U.N. said that Yemen’s people have been subjected to some 10 airstrikes a day, a total of more than 23,000 since March 2015. The report, which cited the Yemen Data Project for the airstrike figures, found both sides in the war to have violated international law. The project, a local data gathering operation, attributes all of the airstrikes to the Saudi-led coalition. Meanwhile the coalition’s rivals, the Houthi rebels, have shelled neighborhoods, camps for the displaced, an airport and markets, leading to the deaths of dozens, according to the U.N. experts.

Nothing had better go wrong (Ars Technica) The James Webb Space Telescope, considered the single most expensive scientific instrument in the history of NASA, finally has a launch date of December 18, 2021. The project’s been delayed over the course of the decade owing to the high stakes surrounding its launch. Unfurling the 20-meter telescope—it’s the size of a tennis court but folds to 10.66 meters by 4.5 meters to fit inside the rocket—and getting it out to the LaGrange Point, a neat little bit of gravitational real estate 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth or four times the distance of the moon, is a complicated operation because there will be no way to service it when it’s all the way out there. The 50 major deployments and 178 major release mechanisms need to work perfectly, otherwise the $10 billion telescope won’t work.

#headlines #news

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lacubanarps-blog · 6 years ago

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i'm very confused about your halcyon muse. can you go into further detail about her so i can understand?

you want to understand… my crazy… born out of wedlock… daughter of a duchess.. sarcastic little fuck… halcyon???????? well, you asked for the details so i hope everything here is what you’re asking for. also i love this bitch so much and i probably went overboard. like there’s more information on here than in her bio tbh. but also shoutout to bryanna for helping me develop this bitch over the last few months with our hal x harley verses and brotps with hal x andi, even dimitri x harley. she’s the mvp for putting up with me and all of my hal/dani headcanons.

main verse (highly developed):

who is she?halcyon is technically two people in one. her full birth name is danielle andree-lucie giselle du quenoy-sault and she is considered as the duchess of auvergne and lady of magenta. now, since halcyon was born out of wedlock between two people who are of noble blood (her mother is the duchess and her father is a lord), they were forced to give her up by her mother’s husband. truthfully, i don’t have her mother’s husband very developed but his overall information is that he’s a very powerful duke with ties to government and even the royal family in england. now because of him, almost all the records of her birth were removed, leaving a very small amount of information about danielle or where her location was after that. danielle was placed in an orphanage and she was in the care of the nuns for two years. in most paperworks that did survive, her name is labeled as andree du sault. which is why in one of her verses, she named her daughter andree because it was believed to be her real birth name.

how did she get adopted?around the time that she turned two, a group of american army men decided to spend time volunteering while stationed in france and spent time at the orphanage that danielle was in. at this time, christopher, soon to be her adoptive father, saw danielle playing on her own in the playroom while the other kids were giving attention to the american strangers. he took an interest in her because danielle showed advance signs of creativity and independence so every day, chris would come back and play with dani and she got very close to him early on. now, this was the make or break. chris wanted to adopt danielle but his wife, ava, was very against it at the start. they couldn’t have their own kids so naturally, chris thought about going about it different ways to have their own family. ava decided to visit the orphanage with chris one day to visit the little girl, danielle, and she fell in love. so, they spoke with the nuns and started filling out the paperwork.

what’s with the name change?ava didn’t think that danielle was a good fit for her the longer that they spent time together. so when it was time to officially adopt her, ava requested for a name change to her paperwork and she was named halcyon elizabeth charles.

after adoption?since hal was young when she got adopted, she doesn’t remember her time in the orphanage. the few memories she does have from that time of her life, she thinks that it was with her parents and she was playing with the neighborhood kids. now the charles family spent eight years in france so chris and ava could finish out their military duties and halcyon can grow up with her culture. halcyon was actually pretty advanced when it came to language and grammar compared to the kids in her school and it was because ava and chris learned french in order to communicate with her. while they learned, they also taught her which is why she’s still fluent in the language as an older adult.

how did she get to america?a little bit after she turned eight, the charles family packed their bags and returned to america!! exciting right? wrong. since ava and chris had high ranking positions within the american army, they were constantly moving from city to city which made halcyon to become the literal definition of an army brat. she’s lived on the bases, played with the other brats and was always packing up her stuff within 6 - 9 months of their move. now, she realized that since they were always moving, she never had to keep friendships or relationships because communicate will die out when you’re always on the move. this, in return, is what started developing her promiscuous nature after she lost her virginity in the 10th grade. she started fucking and leaving them early on. in addition, halcyon did play soccer at every school she went to even if it was just for a little while.

how did she find out about her adoption?in the 11th grade, halcyon had a school project about her family tree. she started digging through old family documents for information and found her adoption paperwork. her parents didn’t want her to know until after high school because, honestly, they didn’t know how to go about it. once hal found out, it did break the relationship she had with them. halcyon still loves them but it doesn’t feel the same when they had lied to her. because of that, she wanted to know more about her birth family. however, since most of her documentation was destroyed, halcyon could only ever find paperwork that said andree du sault and didn’t know about her full name, and titles, until years later. did she ever find her birth parents?in due time, she does find out the literal truth of her birth parents and learns that she’s actually a duchess. her brother, gabriel, is the one who found her during their college years and told her the truth when he felt it was time for her to know. without her current verses, that part isn’t fully developed on its own. how does she behave?so, halcyon actually does behave and act a lot like her birth mother but she has a lot of characteristics of her birth father. the funny thing is that ava is very much like marie, hal’s birth mother, but the major difference between the two is that ava thinks more with logic and marie is a free spirit with a creative personality. they’re both witty and sarcastic, which is why hal behaves in that matter. it is also why hal turned to animation, illustration, photography and film directing, because it was already in her blood. but her father, antoine, is much more guarded and protective of what he cares about. hal behaves like him when she’s in love, causing her to get jealous sometimes and doesn’t allow people to come in easily. and she has his very pigment green eyes (which is a trait that only runs in his family and gabriel have them too).

now, since you have a better understanding of who she is as halcyon, time to introduce the royal duchess, danielle andree-lucie giselle du quenoy-sault!

so i won’t be using questions for this because i am still developing halcyon’s alt. life as a duchess so anything on here is subject to change!overall, it’s still the same story that her parents fell in love and had danielle out of wedlock during an affair. her mother’s husband found out about the affair that his wife had and she begged him not to take danielle away. in response, he agreed to let her stay and only if marie follows whatever he says. without thinking about it, she said yes and everything was pretty good for a couple of years. dani got her primary education of grammar, math, etiquette and so on. basically how to behave and act like a duchess 101. at the age of 5, danielle got placed into ballet and she kept doing it for years. most kids her age would pick on her because they’d say that the teachers only liked her or she only did the lead roles because she’s the duchess but really, danielle was a natural born ballerina and was talented. due to that bullying, it basically pushed her to keep up with training and become the best principle dancer that the paris opera house has had in years. in addition to her ballet training, danielle is very talented with it comes to art (mainly illustration) and modeling (like her mother).now, although dani has a good life as a duchess, with all the luxury and comfort that one could have in the world, she hated the lifestyle. growing up, danielle felt like she was a bird in a golden cage. most of her days were planned months in advance and she couldn’t do as she pleased without requesting it early on. at least, that’s how it was when she stayed with her mother and it was because of her husband, who was grooming danielle to be the perfect duchess to marry her off to somebody and use in a business deal. whenever she stayed with her dad, things were more laid. gabriel and her would play pranked on each other and their dad. they would go on vacation together and actually have fun. you know, she actually got to be a kid and not think about the royal engagements she had to do in a week.as for danielle’s personality, she is still very much like her mother, marie. although she doesn’t do it in public, dani is very sarcastic in private and often fights with her mother’s husband to give her more freedom. she’s pretty naive when it comes to life outside of her duchess bubble (like, normal life for common people), but she’s highly educated in several different subjects and languages. as for her sexual life, she has been active among other nobles around her age but she’s still kinda lost when it comes to pleasing somebody else (and herself). then even tho her parents aren’t together, she can see the love they have for one another whenever they have their secret family reunions and hopes she can find that one day.dani is still developing but she’s a spoiled duchess and i love her stupid royal ass. i also have pinterest boards for halcyon and danielle (and her verses) if you’re very curious, anon!

#Anonymous #↳ halcyon | aesthetic.#↳ danielle - duchess | ( halcyon ) aesthetic.#↪ laughing my ass off | memes - answered.#cant believe somebody wants more info.#i cry.#i spent two hours writing this.

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mikemortgage · 6 years ago

Text

AP FACT CHECK: Prosecutors’ filings do not exonerate Trump

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is in denial when it comes to the Russia investigation and other scandals besieging him.

The president insists he’s been fully vindicated by court filings released Friday that lay out the level of co-operation from two of his former top advisers, whom prosecutors have accused of lying to federal investigators or Congress. In fact, Trump’s Justice Department puts him in even greater legal jeopardy by directly implicating him in an illegal scheme involving hush money payments to a porn actress and a former Playboy model.

In comments over the weekend, Trump cites the filings in the cases involving his former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and onetime campaign chairman Paul Manafort, as proof that no collusion had been found in the special counsel’s investigation. That’s also not true. That probe into contacts between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 election is still ongoing, so the filings do not yet render a judgment on collusion.

The statements capped a week in which Trump also claimed without evidence that Paris protesters were chanting support for him, made questionable assertions about China trade and tariffs and derided U.S. weapons spending as crazy, despite earlier boasts about increasing the military budget.

Meanwhile, Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez skimmed over the facts when she suggested the Pentagon has a hidden pot of $21 trillion that could help pay for “Medicare for All.”

A look at the claims and the reality:

COHEN

TRUMP: “Totally clears the President. Thank you!” — tweet Friday.

THE FACTS: The court filings Friday are the first time that federal prosecutors directly connect Trump to a crime.

The violations stemmed from payments Cohen made to buy the silence of porn actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal during the 2016 presidential campaign. Both women alleged they had extramarital affairs with Trump, which the White House denies.

Prosecutors in New York, where Cohen pleaded guilty in August to campaign finance crimes in connection with those payments, said the lawyer “acted in co-ordination and at the direction” of Trump. Though Cohen had previously implicated Trump in the payments, the Justice Department is now linking Trump to the scheme and backing up Cohen’s allegations.

It’s unclear whether Trump will actually be charged with illegal activity, because Justice Department legal memos from 1973 and 2000 have suggested that a sitting president is immune from indictment and that criminal charges would undermine the commander in chief’s ability to do the job. But it is possible Congress could use prosecutors’ findings to start impeachment proceedings. There also would presumably be no bar against charging a president after he leaves the White House.

Federal law requires that any payments made “for the purposes of influencing” an election must be reported in campaign finance disclosures. Friday’s filings make clear the payments were made to benefit Trump politically.

——

RUSSIA INVESTIGATION

TRUMP: “On the Mueller situation, we’re very happy with what we are reading because there was no collusion whatsoever. There never has been.” — remarks to reporters Saturday.

TRUMP: “NO COLLUSION!” — tweet Saturday.

THE FACTS: Trump’s incorrect to suggest the filings clear him of collusion. Part of an ongoing investigation, they do not yet draw a conclusion and instead lay out evidence of previously undisclosed contacts between Trump associates and Russian intermediaries.

In one of the filings, special counsel Robert Mueller details how Cohen spoke to a Russian in 2015 who “claimed to be a ‘trusted person’ in the Russian Federation who could offer the campaign ‘political synergy’ and ‘synergy on a government level.”‘ The person repeatedly dangled a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying such a meeting could have a “phenomenal” impact “in a business dimension as well.”

That was a reference to a proposed Moscow real estate deal that prosecutors say could have netted Trump’s business hundreds of millions of dollars and would likely require assistance of the Russian government. Cohen admitted this month to lying to Congress by saying discussions about a Trump Tower in Moscow ended in January 2016 when in fact they stretched into that June, well into the presidential campaign.

Cohen said he never followed up on the proposed meeting, because he was working with a “different individual” with connections to the Russian government.

Cohen also told prosecutors he and Trump discussed a potential meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in September 2015, shortly after Trump announced his candidacy for president.

In another filing Friday, prosecutors said Manafort lied about his contacts with Russia and Trump administration officials, including in 2018. Mueller’s team cited Manafort’s interactions with Konstantin Kilimnik, an associate who prosecutors say has ties to Russian intelligence. Mueller’s team said they would be able to offer additional information at a hearing, such as the nature of Manafort’s contacts with the Trump administration in 2018, to prove Manafort was lying.

Trump’s attorneys last month turned over the president’s written answers to Mueller’s questions about his knowledge of any ties between his campaign and Russia. Mueller hasn’t said when he will complete any report of his findings.

——

TRUMP: “The last thing I want is help from Russia on a campaign.” — remarks Saturday.

THE FACTS: Actually, Trump did request Russia’s help during the 2016 campaign.

In a July 27, 2016, speech, then-candidate Trump called on Russian hackers to find emails from Hillary Clinton, his Democratic opponent in the presidential campaign.

“Russia, if you’re listening,” Trump said, “I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.”

Hours later, the Main Intelligence Directorate in Moscow appeared to heed the call — targeting Clinton’s personal office and hitting more than 70 other Clinton campaign accounts. That’s according to a grand jury indictment in July charging 12 Russian military intelligence officers with hacking into the Clinton campaign and the Democratic Party as part of a sweeping conspiracy by the Kremlin to meddle in the 2016 U.S. election.

That indictment by Mueller says July 27 was the first time Clinton’s personal office was targeted.

The attempt to penetrate Clinton’s campaign began March 10, 2016, and hit a significant success on March 19 when the Russian intelligence officers busted open the email account of John Podesta, Clinton’s campaign chairman, an AP investigation last year found.

They “phished” intensively and repetitively. Throughout at least March and April there were repeated efforts to break into about 120 Democratic National Committee, Clinton and left-leaning activists’ accounts across the country.

Then they brought Clinton’s personal office into their scope, the indictment says — the very evening Trump appeared to beckon Russians to do just that.

——

PARIS

TRUMP: “The Paris Agreement isn’t working out so well for Paris. Protests and riots all over France. People do not want to pay large sums of money, much to third world countries (that are questionably run), in order to maybe protect the environment. Chanting ‘We Want Trump! Love France.” — tweet Saturday.

THE FACTS: Neither Associated Press journalists covering protests in the city nor any French television networks have shown evidence that supporters were chanting any slogans in support of Trump. The protests that began as a revolt against a gas tax increase have turned increasingly violent and France imposed exceptional security measures Saturday to prevent a repeat of rioting a week ago.

——

JERUSALEM

TRUMP: “We quickly moved the American embassy to Jerusalem and we got it built.”– remarks Thursday at Hanukkah event.

THE FACTS: Nothing’s been built yet. The Trump administration designated an existing U.S. consular facility in Jerusalem for the U.S. Embassy, retrofitting some offices and holding a big dedication ceremony in May. The U.S. has yet to identify a permanent site for the new embassy, a process that is expected to take years. The State Department has estimated that constructing a new embassy would cost more than $500 million.

——

TARIFFS

TRUMP: “China has agreed to reduce and remove tariffs on cars coming into China from the U.S. Currently the tariff is 40%.” — tweet on Dec. 2.

THE FACTS: A week later, it’s still not clear if this will happen. When asked about the matter, Kudlow would only say that he hoped China would remove its tariffs on U.S. autos. “We don’t yet have a specific agreement on that, but I will just tell you, as an involved participant, we expect those tariffs to go to zero,” he told reporters last Monday. Pressed again Tuesday, Kudlow told “Fox and Friends” that he expected China to move quickly on removing the tariffs “if they’re serious about this.”

“I think it’s coming, OK?” he said. “It hasn’t been signed and sealed and delivered yet.”

The White House’s confusing and conflicting words have left Wall Street skeptical.

“It doesn’t seem like anything was actually agreed to at the dinner and White House officials are contorting themselves into pretzels to reconcile Trump’s tweets (which seem if not completely fabricated then grossly exaggerated) with reality,” JPMorgan told investors in a trading note.

On Thursday, a Chinese official said that China will “immediately implement the consensus reached by the two sides on farm products, cars and energy,” but did not address the auto tariffs specifically or provide any additional details.

Trump has cast doubt on whether a firm agreement had been reached, tweeting that his administration will determine “whether or not a REAL deal with China is actually possible.”

——

TRUMP: “I am a Tariff Man. When people or countries come in to raid the great wealth of our Nation, I want them to pay for the privilege of doing so. It will always be the best way to max out our economic power. We are right now taking in $billions in Tariffs. MAKE AMERICA RICH AGAIN.” — tweet Tuesday.

THE FACTS: Trump seems to be claiming that tariffs are some kind of a membership fee for foreign companies to trade in the U.S. economy.

They’re not. Tariffs are a tax, per Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution.

The costs of this tax are borne by U.S. consumers and businesses, often in the form of higher prices. Foreign companies may end up selling fewer goods and services if the United States imposes high tariffs. So they pay a price, too.

In some cases, the tariffs exist to protect industries that are vital for national security. Or, the tariffs exist to retaliate against the trade practices of other countries. Or, they might protect politically connected companies.

In the past, White House aides have insisted that Trump’s tariffs are a negotiating ploy. Yet the president offered no such qualifications on Tuesday.

Tariffs are not seen as some easy way of generating massive wealth for an economically developed nation. After Trump announced steel and aluminum tariffs earlier this year, the University of Chicago asked leading academic economists in March whether Americans would be better off because of import taxes. Not a single economist surveyed said the country would be wealthier.

Nor do the budget numbers suggest they can come anywhere close to covering the costs of the federal government.

Trump is correct that tariffs did generate $41.3 billion in tax revenues last budget year, according to the Treasury Department. But to put that in perspective, the federal budget exceeds $4.1 trillion.

The taxes collected on imports were equal to about 1 per cent of all federal spending.

——

MEDICARE

OCASIO-CORTEZ: “$21 TRILLION of Pentagon financial transactions ‘could not be traced, documented, or explained.’ $21T in Pentagon accounting errors. Medicare for All costs (tilde)$32T. That means 66% of Medicare for All could have been funded already by the Pentagon. And that’s before our premiums.” — tweet Dec. 2.

THE FACTS: Ocasio-Cortez is generally correct to suggest that one way of paying for the huge cost of “Medicare for All” would be to cut spending elsewhere. But she is wrong to suggest that there’s a pot of misspent defence dollars that could cover the health care expenses. The New York Democrat also misrepresents the findings of an academic study that found the $21 trillion in Pentagon errors to be accounting “adjustments,” not a tally of actual money wasted.

The study by Mark Skidmore, an economist at Michigan State University and Catherine Austin Fitts, a former assistant secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, did find $21 trillion in Pentagon transactions from 1998 to 2015 that could not be verified. Their study is a cited in a Nation article retweeted in part by Ocasio-Cortez, even though that article makes clear that not “all of this $21 trillion was secret or misused funding … the plugs are found on both the positive and the negative sides of the ledger, thus potentially netting each other out.”

Total defence spending from 1998 to 2015 was $9 trillion. That means defunding the military entirely would only cover a small portion of the estimated $32 trillion cost over 10 years for the “Medicare for All” legislation by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Ocasio-Cortez wrongly suggests that fixing Pentagon accounting errors would net 66 per cent of costs.

“What she was referencing was the total number of transactions that happened with DoD — there’s a lot of double and triple counting as money gets moved around in the department,” said Todd Harrison, director of defence budget analysis at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “All of that basically means is that those transactions don’t have a full trail,” akin to an employee who submits an expense report without providing all the receipts.

“Just because you don’t have the proper audit trail for transactions doesn’t mean that those transactions are fraudulent,” Harrison said.

David Norquist, the Pentagon’s comptroller, has attributed the accounting errors to the department’s older bookkeeping “systems that do not automatically pass data from one to the other.” He said in testimony to the House Armed Services Committee in January that the errors do not amount to a pot of lost money. “I wouldn’t want the taxpayer to confuse that with the loss of something like a trillion dollars, it’s not. That wouldn’t be accurate,” Norquist said.

——

MILITARY SPENDING

TRUMP: “I am certain that, at some time in the future, President Xi and I, together with President Putin of Russia, will start talking about a meaningful halt to what has become a major and uncontrollable Arms Race. The U.S. spent 716 Billion Dollars this year. Crazy!” — tweet Dec. 3.

THE FACTS: His criticism of U.S. weapons spending as “crazy” vastly overstates the amount spent on the arms race. It also is a sudden change of tone from his previous boasts about increased military spending.

Trump’s statement appeared to confuse the total Defence Department budget with America’s investment in the missile defence systems and strategic nuclear weapons usually associated with the arms race. The Pentagon’s budget for 2019 totals about $716 billion, but that includes everything from health care and pay for service members to the costs of the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. The arms race is just a fraction of that amount, totalling about $10 billion this year for a wide range of missile defence and nuclear weapons programs.

Until recently, Trump has bragged about his increase in military spending, railing about what he claims is previous administrations’ neglect of America’s armed forces. He said his administration is “rebuilding our military.” He has occasionally complained about specific programs such as Air Force One and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but his criticism was levelled at the defence contractors and focused on demanding savings.

He has been far more supportive of the broader defence increases, and specifically has endorsed hikes for missile defence in line with a U.S. defence strategy that targets China and Russia as key adversaries.

——

IMMIGRATION

TRUMP: “Could somebody please explain to the Democrats (we need their votes) that our Country losses (sic) 250 Billion Dollars a year on illegal immigration, not including the terrible drug flow. Top Border Security, including a Wall, is $25 Billion. Pays for itself in two months. Get it done!” — tweet Tuesday.

THE FACTS: He’s inflating the cost of illegal immigration. Trump’s numbers left even those sympathetic to the president’s position scratching their heads.

“I’m not sure where the president got his numbers,” said Dave Ray, a spokesman for the non-profit group FAIR, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates for lower immigration numbers.

Neither the White House nor the Department of Homeland Security responded to questions about where the $250 billion estimate had come from.

The Heritage Foundation, for instance, estimated in 2013 that households headed by immigrants living in the U.S. illegally impose a net fiscal burden of around $54.5 billion per year.

Even Trump himself has contradicted the figure. During his 2016 campaign, Trump claimed that illegal immigration cost the country more than $113 billion a year — less than half the number he tweeted Tuesday.

That estimate appeared based on a paper by FAIR, which released an updated report in 2017 that claimed taxpayers “shell out approximately $134.9 billion to cover the costs incurred by the presence of more than 12.5 million illegal aliens, and about 4.2 million citizen children of illegal aliens” at the federal, state and local levels, with “a tax burden of approximately $8,075 per illegal alien family member and a total of $115,894,597,664.”

The $116 million figure included services such as health care and education, as well as spending on agencies including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, minus the $19 billon the group concluded those who are living in the country illegally pay in taxes. But it also included costs associated with the children of those immigrants in its tally, even when they are U.S. citizens. The estimate was criticized for making broad generalizations and other major methodological flaws.

——

Associated Press writers Chad Day, Christopher Rugaber, Josh Boak, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Jill Colvin and Lolita Baldor in Washington and Lori Hinnant in Paris contributed to this report.

——

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rickhorrow · 7 years ago

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15 TO WATCH/5 SPORTS TECH/POWER OF SPORTS 5: RICK HORROW’S TOP SPORTS/BIZ/TECH/PHILANTHROPY ISSUES FOR THE WEEK OF JULY 23

with Jamie Swimmer & Jesse Leeds Grant

In a thrilling final round, Francesco Molinari outdueled Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, and Xander Schauffelle to become the first Italian to ever win The Open Championship. But thanks to Tiger, who briefly held a one-shot lead and finished tied for sixth, there were many other winners at Carnoustie and beyond. Take KT Tape, the adhesive that Woods sported on the back of his neck on Thursday and Friday after a bad night’s sleep. Company officials claim they "sold roughly double the amount of product they sell on [an] average day" due to the "fortuitous product placement," according to ESPN. Apex Marketing Group estimated that KT Tape received nearly $4 million in "equivalent advertising from the two logos" visible on Woods' neck. Golf Channel also benefited from Woods’ presence, as total audience delivery for its Open Championship Round One was up 27% from last year and the most-watched opening round at The Open in its three years on the cable network. (And we haven’t even seen what are likely to be record-breaking numbers from NBC’s weekend coverage.) Also getting a boost is next month’s final WGC-Bridgestone Invitational held in Cleveland – Woods’ top-ten finish boosted his World Golf Ranking to 50 so he qualified. (After this year the tournament moves to Memphis.) September’s Ryder Cup in Paris is now more eagerly anticipated after Woods’ showing and the European Molinari’s win – but the biggest winners of all are golf fans, happy to once again see Tiger in the hunt at a Major on Sunday.

The NFL generated record revenue in 2017, estimated to be in the ballpark of around $14 billion, with each team receiving $255.9 million based on the current revenue sharing agreement. According to John WallStreet, the $8.1 billion in split revenue from TV deals, road-game revenue sharing, and other factors represents a new league record and a 4.9% year-over-year increase. The boom in the value of television rights largely fueled the overall growth in revenue, as did Amazon’s new Thursday Night Football deal. As summed up by John WallStreet, “It’s time we put to rest the notion that the NFL is declining in popularity. Player protests. Brain injuries. Criminal Accusations (think: LeSean McCoy). None of it has had any impact on revenue generation.” One red flag for the NFL is the White House. As the anthem kneeling controversy looks to stretch into its third season after the league’s decision to hold off implementing its new anthem policy, Donald Trump again takes to social media to voice his displeasure with the NFL and its “$40 million Commissioner.”

NFL teams return to camp this week. Last week, college football’s media days took center stage. The heavyweight, of course, is the SEC, whose four-day summer media preview has grown to “outlandish proportions,” according to the Los Angeles Times, this year “overtaking the College Football Hall of Fame, drawing more than 1,000 reporters and photographers for four days of largely predictable questions and answers.” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, who kicked off the Atlanta event by noting that “we have more people here than at the [Trump/Putin] press conference in Helsinki,” touted the SEC Network and the ongoing benefits of the conference’s multibillion-dollar deal with ESPN, which reportedly contributed almost $597 million in total revenue for the 2016-2017 fiscal year and saw the league distribute $40.9 million each to its 14 schools. The SEC also ranked first in football attendance last fall out of the Power Five conferences, averaging 75,074 fans per game. By comparison, the Big Ten averaged 66,227, and the Pac-12, 49,601. Whether NFL or college, I’m ready for some well-financed football!

Heading into training camp, the Green Bay Packers had an impressive year from a financial perspective for FY 2017-2018, turning out record revenues and expenses. According to the Green Bay Press-Gazette, the latest fiscal year, which ended on March 31, saw the Packers bring in $454.9 million in revenue, up $13.5 million from last year’s number. Simultaneously, the team’s expenses went up as well, jumping up $44.8 million to $420.9 million largely thanks to “increases in player salaries and travel costs, plus a $5 million allowance for construction.” Revenue benefited from “additional money from shared national television contracts and growth in local income, largely as a result of new sponsorship agreements.” The team ultimately reported net income of $38.6 million this year, $34.2 million less than last year. While these numbers are impressive, the team still missed out on a potentially significant revenue driver – the playoffs. Look for the Packers’ financials to be even stronger if they make the playoffs this season.

The Iron Man is only made stronger by superhero friends. Last week, we shared that the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation would design and construct ten Youth Development Parks in five years in MLB markets across the country. They are able to do so thanks in part to a $5 million gift from Group1001. “We are incredibly honored by the commitment made today by Group1001 which will provide thousands of kids across the country with a safe place to play, learn and grow,” said Hall of Famer and Ripken Foundation Vice Chairman Cal Ripken, Jr. “Together with Group1001 and our friends at Major League Baseball, we look forward to bringing a positive environment and mentoring programs that will help guide our youth both on the field and in the game of life.” Said Dan Towriss, CEO, Group1001, “Like MLB and the Ripken Foundation, we believe in our duty to empower people to chase their dreams and to support the communities in most need of empowerment through education and sports.” Since 2009, the Ripken Foundation has 78 completed parks across the country, impacting over 280,000 kids annually.

A potential lockout after the end of the 2021 season could be in the making for Major League Baseball if players continue to be displeased with the CBA. According to SportsBusiness Journal, labor tensions continue to escalate between MLB and the MLBPA, as MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark stated that last winter’s slower free agent market represented a “direct attack” on players’ rights. "What the players saw last offseason is that their free agency rights are under direct attack, and those rights have been a bedrock of our economic system,” said Clark. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred defended the league, noting that the slower free agency period came down to “club choices on the relative merits of the available players.” “The only purposeful behavior that took place in the labor market last year was that our clubs carefully analyzed the available players and made individual decisions on what those players were worth,” said Manfred. “That's how markets operate.” MLB has enjoyed labor peace for 25 years and counting – look for that mutually-lucrative streak to be held up in the next three years.

With Cristiano Ronaldo officially a member of Juventus, the Italian heavyweights are looking to capitalize on the financial boom that the Portuguese phenom is expected to bring to Turin. According to the London Times, the acquisition is primarily about closing the financial gap between Juve and “seemingly recession-proof clubs” like Real Madrid, Barcelona, ManU, and Bayern Munich. Despite having won the past seven Serie A titles in Italy and reaching two of the past four Champions League finals, Juventus still lags behind the super clubs from a commercial revenue standpoint. Those other clubs all bring in “well over” £250 million in revenue, while Juventus only reported £101 million in revenue during 2016-2017. Despite his age at 33, Ronaldo is “one of a handful of players in the world who can move the commercial needle single-handedly.” Since rumors started swirling of Ronaldo’s potential move to Turin, Juventus stock prices have been soaring upward. That’s not all that’s soaring. According to The Guardian, Juventus sold 520,000 Ronaldo shirts within just 24 hours of the merchandise being released – roughly $60 million worth. That’s compared to a total of 850,000 shirts sold all of last season. While Adidas gets most of that revenue, the Juventus brand gets priceless exposure.

David Beckham’s push to get an MLS team in Miami is still up in the air after its most recent roadblock. According to SportsPro, Beckham and business partner Jorge Mas are still working to secure a property on which to build a $1 billion soccer-specific stadium – which has proven near-impossible at times due to the local government’s opposition. Beckham’s plan to redevelop Melreese Country Club, the city’s only municipal golf course, was expected to be approved at this point, though he and Mas were questioned at a meeting last week “concerning the lack of transparency regarding potential increased traffic in the area, environmental impacts of the project, and assurances to do with revenue sharing between the Beckham group and the living wage of project workers.” The team would not be expected to start play before 2020 so Beckham still has time to build a stadium, but that window is quickly closing. The fate of a no-bid lease will be in the hands of voters come November, after Miami commissioners voted on a referendum last week.

According to Thuuz Sports, IBM, and FOX Sports, Spain, Croatia, and Belgium were the most exciting teams to participate in the 2018 World Cup. Thuuz Sports, an automated short form sports video production company and metadata service, teamed up with the other companies to measure how exciting all the teams and games were during the monthlong tournament. The proprietary algorithm used ranked Spain atop the table with a score of 93.5, followed by runner-up Croatia and third-place Belgium both at 91 points. Despite winning the World Cup, France came in seventh place out of 31. “Game pace, team parity, play novelty, momentum shifts, social buzz and historical context of all matchups” were used to calculate scores. The quarterfinal match between Croatia and host nation Russia was given a perfect score of 100, making it the tournament’s most exciting match.

Continuing its strong support for American tennis, Oracle is adding a Chicago event to the Oracle Challenger Series, to be held September 2-9. The Oracle Challenger Series launched this year with events in Newport Beach and Indian Wells, CA to provide up-and-coming American tennis players opportunities for ranking points and prize money. The Series will also donate $5,000 to the Chicago chapter of the National Junior Tennis and Learning network, which provides free or low-cost tennis and education programming to more than 225,000 under-resourced youth in the U.S. The Chicago tournament will be a joint ATP Challenger Tour/WTA 125K Series event and pay equal prize money ($150,000 per Tour) for a total of $300,000. The event will be free and open to the public. In other tennis news, The USTA is raising U.S. Open prize money to $53 million this year, with the men's and women's singles champion each receiving $3.8 million.

11.DAZN, the world’s largest dedicated live and on-demand sports streaming service, is coming to the U.S. According to JohnWallStreet, DAZN will hold its first fight night on September 22 at Wembley Stadium in London, when WBA, IBF, and WBO heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua will take on Alexander Povetkin. The service will launch in the U.S. two weeks prior, starting at $9.99 per month following a one month trial period. Despite not operating in the States yet, DAZN has been making headlines across sports for the past few months; in April, former ESPN President John Skipper signed on as Executive Chairman, and following that parent company Perform Group agreed to a $1 billion joint venture with Matchroom Boxing, “the largest investment in boxing history.” Just last month the company committed “nine figures to a multi-year global distribution agreement with Bellator MMA.” It won’t be long before Pay-Per-View fights are a thing of the past.

MLB took advantage of last week’s All-Star Game in Washington, D.C., relaxing its strict rules and leveraging the game as an opportunity to help its players connect more intimately with fans. According to Yahoo Sports, MLB worked hand-in-hand with players and the MLBPA prior to the All-Star Game to allow players to use cell phones on the field “in the hopes that it would encourage them to share their points of view and All-Star experiences.” After big play and during seemingly-mundane moments alike, players got together on the field to take selfies throughout the evening before sharing them online. “Fans love seeing the personalities of their favorite players come to life and [during the game] they were treated to just that,” said MLB Senior Vice President/Marketing Barbara McHugh. The league’s cell phone acceptance here shows its intent to better connect with younger fans – something that baseball has struggled with as of late.

Despite having LeBron James as an investor, brand ambassador, and franchise owner, Blaze Pizza prefers to keep its brand separate from sports. But the fast-casual pizza chain used LeBron’s departure to Los Angeles to its advantage, and it paid off. According to SportsBusiness Journal, Blaze Pizza took to social media to promote a free pizza giveaway to celebrate James’ arrival in L.A. In just one week, from July 8-14, Blaze saw its Twitter following “increase ten-fold” compared to a typical week. “Maybe this move to the Lakers can open up the door to do more,” said Blaze Social Media Manager Rahiel Dawit. “We are all Team LeBron regardless of personal opinion or your favorite team. Anything he does, we like to promote.” James initially invested in Blaze in 2012, putting in $1 million and turning that into $35 million now. The chain has grown from merely $6 million in sales in 2013 to $185 million last year with no sign of slowing down.

14.The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are only two years away and organizers are beginning to worry about the intense heat that could strike the country during the Games. According to Reuters, Japan is currently enduring an intense heatwave that has “prompted fears of similar extreme weather when the sporting showpiece takes place in the country.” This summer, temperatures have risen to as much as 104 degrees Fahrenheit for the first time since 2013, resulting in more than a dozen deaths. Tokyo usually averages weather around 77 degrees at this time. Tokyo Olympic organizers and the IOC are treating this problem seriously as they “consider a raft of counter measures to battle the extreme heat.” Both technological and infrastructural solutions are being considered, from increasing the shelter provided to fans to installing Wet Bulb Globe Temperature devices designed to provide constant feedback to assess heat levels. Toyko organizers aren’t alone – this weekend, the Texas Rangers played ball in record-setting 107 and 108 degree sessions.

15.From a European perspective, the 2018 World Cup can be considered a massive success for leading broadcasters. According to SportsBusiness Journal, a total of 44.5 million people watched the BBC’s TV coverage of the month-long tournament, while there were “66.8 million match requests, including live and on demand, on the BBC Sport website and iPlayer.” England’s quarterfinal win over European counterpart Sweden turned out to be the BBC’s most online-viewed program ever, with 3.8 million viewers. In terms of traditional TV numbers, Eurodata TV revealed that viewership was equally as impressive. France’s 2-0 win attracted 163 million viewers in 20 territories across the continent. “This clearly shows once again that even at the age of mobile devices and non-linear viewing, major sports events are the only shows capable of gathering such large audiences in front of a TV set,” commented Eurodata TV Worldwide Sports Director Yassine Berhoun. Sports as appointment TV viewing remains a truly global phenomenon.

Tech Top Five

MLB and Lucid develop blockchain game. Major League Baseball has partnered with game studio Lucid Sight to develop the first blockchain game based on a global sports league. The two parties will collaborate to produce MLB Crypto Baseball, which will comprise officially-licensed digital, limited edition sports collectibles tied to Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum is a blockchain application platform that runs applications without downtime, censorship, fraud, or third-party interference. In MLB Crypto Baseball, Ether – the cryptocurrency used by Ethereum – will be exchanged for blockchain-secured MLB Cryptos such as interactive avatar figures and digital collectibles, featuring official marks from MLB and all 30 franchises. The Ethereum blockchain secures each MLB Crypto as an immutable asset and ensures that it has a single owner, creating the same rarity as any traditional physical collectible. A limited supply of MLB Crypto Collectibles, as created by Lucid Sight, will be made available this summer, with the full game due to launch soon thereafter. The game is similar to the most popular blockchain game, CryptoKitties, which has generated over $25 million worth of Ether.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame installs VR QB simulator. The Pro Football Hall of Fame has added a virtual reality tool for quarterbacks, QB SIM, at its Canton, Ohio site in advance of the Class of 2018 induction. QB SIM incorporates an Occulus virtual-reality headset, an actual football which is outfitted with trackers, and NFL data that simulates on-field action, displayed on a large video screen. Brian DeLong, Sports VTS chief technical officer, said QB SIM was inspired by Ted Sundquist, the company’s CEO and a former general manager of the Denver Broncos. “Ted noticed the second- and third-string quarterbacks weren’t getting enough reps,” DeLong said. “Being a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, he knew they trained their top pilots using simulators. The technology finally has caught up with sports.” Sports VTS also has several former NFL quarterbacks serving as advisers, including Jeff Garcia, a four-time Pro Bowler who once played for the Browns.

Overwatch League comes to ESPN, Disney, and ABC. Overwatch League is coming to the ESPN, Disney, and ABC family of networks, ESPN, Disney, and Blizzard Entertainment announced. The multi-year broadcast deal includes the Overwatch League playoffs, the Season 1 grand finals from the Barclays Center in New York this month, and Overwatch League Season 2 next year. In all, professional Overwatch will be broadcast in some fashion on the flagship ESPN network, ESPN2, Disney XD, ABC, and streaming services for the term of the agreement. This amounts to hundreds of hours of live and highlight programming across four networks, bringing Overwatch League competition for the first time to both linear and digital ESPN and Disney viewers. The agreement does not cancel existing distribution agreements already in place, like Twitch broadcasts. "We are turning the corner here in terms of our interest and engagement in the esports category," ESPN Vice President of Digital Media Programming John Lasker said.

Redwings and Pistons implement mobile ticketing. The Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons, through Ticketmaster's user-friendly mobile ticketing technology, will be using mobile ticketing as their primary method of entry for all home games at Little Caesars Arena, starting this fall. Mobile ticketing allows fans to use their mobile device as a game ticket, providing access to the arena through a barcode that can be scanned from a device's screen. The Ticketmaster technology, adopted in arenas throughout the country, also reduces counterfeit tickets, allows for convenient online transfer and re-sale of tickets, and provides a user-friendly platform for online ticket management. PDF tickets will no longer be accepted as a method of entry for Red Wings or Pistons games. Chris Granger, Group President, Sports & Entertainment, Ilitch Holdings, Inc., and Charlie Metzger, Pistons EVP released a joint statement noting the benefits of mobile ticketing. "Both our organizations have been testing mobile technologies throughout the last year and have received positive feedback from both sports fans and concert goers…We're excited to fully transition to the mobile ticketing process."

Roma becomes first Serie A club to broadcast live game on Twitter. Last week, Roma became the first Serie A club to broadcast a live game over Twitter. Over 100,000 fans tuned into the game via the club’s Italian Twitter account, clocking up a total viewing time of just over one year and 224 days. Said Guido Fienga, Chief Operations Officer at Roma, “When we set up Roma Studio back in 2014, our goal was to be able to control how we delivered the most compelling content to our supporters around the world. We’ve made a great effort in recent years to embrace new technology and platforms with our TV channel, radio station and social media and this season we’ll continue to innovate in a way that brings our fans closer to the club.” Two years ago, Roma became the first European club to stream an entire first team match live on Facebook when they took on Russian Premier League side Terek Grozny, and since then have gone on to pioneer a number of new media and technologies across Instagram, Snapchat, and other social and digital platforms.

Power of Sports Five

Launch of Pac-12 Team Green announced. The Pac-12 and Unifi, Inc. have announced a long-term partnership, with Unifi serving as the Founding Sustainability Partner of Pac-12 Team Green and as a sponsor of the Pac-12 Sustainability Conference. As part of the partnership, Unifi will provide grant funding to all 12 of the Conference’s member institutions to support sustainability initiatives and increase recycling efforts; work with the Pac-12 and Pac-12 Networks on creating custom content and media assets to feature sustainability programs and support efforts to recycle billions of plastic bottles into fiber; and will also serve as an official sponsor for all Pac-12 championship events. Pac-12 Team Green is a first-of-its-kind collegiate athletics conference sustainability platform set to promote all greening efforts taking place on and around Pac-12 campuses. The launch of Pac-12 Team Green further cements the Pac-12’s commitment to an elevated approach to enhancing sustainability efforts within collegiate athletics departments and sharing best practices to transform college sports into a platform for environmental progress.

Obama helps open basketball court in Kenya. Charlotte Hornets center Bismack Biyombo and Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri were on hand in Kenya last week for the opening of the Sauti Kuu Foundation's sports and education facility, which was headlined by former U.S. President Barack Obama. Biyombo, who will play for Team Africa against Team World at the NBA Africa game on August 4, was also joined by NBA vice-president Amadou Gallo Fall, as the facility, founded by Obama's sister, Auma Obama, was opened. Addressing the crowd, President Obama said, "Three years ago, I visited Kenya as the first sitting American President to come from Kenya…Today I am really coming as a brother, as a citizen of the world, as someone who has a connection to Africa, to talk about the importance of what [Auma is] doing…I've had a chance to look around and it's a remarkable space, and I'm also very happy to see that there is a basketball court!" Obama wasted no time testing the new court out, to rapturous applause. For Biyombo, meeting Obama was a special moment, as he wrote on Twitter: "Basketball has taken me places and given me the opportunity to meet people that I never thought I would meet."

Seattle Seahawks player wins $50,000 for charity. Tanner McEvoy, the Seahawks wide receiver and special teams standout, showcased even more of his versatility this week when he took the title of Microsoft Store Pro Athlete Charity Fortnite Tournament champion to earn $50,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The inaugural competition featured McEvoy competing alongside several of his NFL brethren who were playing Fortnite from various Microsoft Store locations around the country, including Seahawks teammates Rashaad Penny, who was in San Diego, and Rasheem Green, who was in Los Angeles. The entire video game event was streamed live online. “I’ve been gaming a long time," McEvoy said. "With Fortnite coming out it's kind of taken over.” The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures for catastrophic pediatric diseases. Consistent with the vision of founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion, or a family's ability to pay.

MLB celebrates 10-year anniversary of Stand Up to Cancer. 2018 marks the 10th anniversary of MLB's relationship with the charity organization Stand Up To Cancer. Each year at the All-Star Game and World Series, MLB puts together a "placard moment" where everyone in the crowd stands up during a moment of silence to raise awareness for the organization. With its efforts, MLB has generated $43 million for cancer research. "To know that the sport of baseball shows a tremendous amount of support of the general fight against cancer is awesome," said Phillies outfielder Rhys Hoskins, who lost his mother to cancer. "I get a little bit emotional inside every time I see the (SU2C) placard moments. It's such a touching moment to see stadiums full of names of those who have been affected. For those few moments, favorite memories of my mom flash through my head just as I imagine people's memories of their loved ones are flashing through theirs.”

Minnesota Twins donate ballpark to community. The Twins are doing what they can to help grow the sport of baseball in Minnesota. In some cases, that means helping out one field at a time. The Twins Community Fund, in partnership with Cenex, reconstructs and rebuilds fields in nearby communities each season as part of the Fields for Kids program. Last week, that movement took hold in Hutchinson, MN, where the program broke ground at Northwoods Park on a project that will provide new backstops, dugouts, fencing, and field improvements. "We at the Twins Community Fund really believe that ballparks are community spaces and places that bring people together," Twins Community Fund manager Stephanie Johnson said. "Whether it's for those youth baseball and softball games or in smaller towns, it's also where there's town festivals, or church services or charity softball games and picnics." Fields for Kids, which will work with five fields in five communities this year, provided $10,000 for the Hutchinson renovation. Created in 1999, Fields for Kids has granted more than $4.3 million in matching grants and helped reconstruct 789 ballparks across the upper Midwest and Southwest Florida.

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cleopatrarps · 7 years ago

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Joe Jackson, patriarch of U.S. musical dynasty, dead at 89

(Reuters) – Joe Jackson, the patriarch of an American musical dynasty who started his son Michael, daughter Janet, and the Jackson 5 on the road to stardom but also verbally and physically abused them, has died at the age of 89, his family said on Wednesday.

Jackson, who recently lived in Las Vegas, had been suffering from cancer, according to media reports.

Despite periods of estrangement from some of his 10 children, family members had been at his bedside in his last few days, his grand daughter Paris said.

“I will always love you!,” his pop star daughter La Toya Jackson tweeted on Wednesday. “You gave us strength, you made us one of the most famous families in the world. I am extremely appreciative of that, I will never forget our moments together and how you told me how much you cared. #RIP Joe Jackson.”

Grandson Randy Jackson Jr. tweeted, “RIP to the king that made everything possible!!! I love you grandpa.”

The Jackson family was often riven by legal battles, jealousies, money disputes, Joe’s philandering and unproven allegations of child molestation against Michael.

Joe was left out of the “Thriller” singer’s will when he died aged 50 in 2009.

John Branca and John McClain, the executors of Michael Jackson’s estate, said in a statement on Wednesday that Joe was “a strong man who acknowledged his own imperfections and heroically delivered his sons and daughters from the steel mills of Gary, Indiana to worldwide pop superstardom.”

Joe Jackson, who was born July 26, 1928, in Fountain Hill, Arkansas, had tried careers as a boxer and a guitarist with little success in the 1950s. He was working as a crane operator at a steel plant in Gary, Indiana, when he took note of the musical and dance talents of his sons.

He called them the Jackson 5 and, with Michael as the precociously talented lead singer, they would become one of the world’s top acts with irresistible pop songs. But it came at a price.

FILE PHOTO: Joe Jackson, father of the late pop star Michael Jackson, poses on the red carpet as he arrives for the screening of the film “Sils Maria” (Clouds of Sils Maria) in competition at the 67th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 23, 2014. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo

As the group’s manager, Jackson put his sons through long, regimented rehearsals. Michael Jackson told Oprah Winfrey in a 1993 interview that he was so afraid of his father he would sometimes vomit when he saw him.

He said Joe presided over rehearsals with a belt.

“If you messed up during rehearsal, you got hit,” Michael was quoted as saying in J. Randy Taraborrelli’s biography. “Once he ripped the wire cord off the refrigerator and whopped me with it … I would fight back and my father would kill me, just tear me up.”

‘GLAD I WAS TOUGH’

“I’m glad I was tough because look what I came out with,” Joe Jackson said in a 2013 CNN interview. “I came out with some kids that everybody loved all over the world. And they treated everybody right.”

The Jackson 5’s big break came in 1967 when they won an amateur competition at New York’s Apollo Theater. Two years later, the father signed his sons to a deal with Motown Records, which put them in the company of acts such as the Supremes, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, the Temptations and Marvin Gaye.

Michael’s singing, dancing and charisma made him the focus of the group, which dominated the 1970s pop charts with No. 1 hits such as “I Want You Back,” “ABC,” “The Love You Save,” “I’ll Be There” and “Never Can Say Goodbye.”

Joe Jackson eventually moved the family from Gary to a mansion in Encino, California.

In 1979, Michael broke from the group – as well as his father’s management – and went to even greater acclaim with the landmark albums “Off the Wall” and “Thriller.” His stylized videos became entertainment trendsetters.

Joe Jackson managed daughter La Toya when she started her career in 1980, and Janet, who Jackson helped launch to stardom in 1982. The children all eventually severed their management ties with their father but Janet paid tribute at the Radio Disney Music Awards last week, saying her “incredible father” had driven her “to be the best I can.”

In 2015, Jackson suffered a stroke, but despite bouts of ill health he continued to make appearances at celebrity events around the world. In March he released a pictorial book of memories called “Precious Moments: 60 Years in Show Business.”

Slideshow (7 Images)

Jackson and wife Katherine married in 1949 and had 10 children – one of whom died shortly after birth – but lived apart in later years. Jackson also had a daughter out of wedlock.

Reporting by Bill Trott in Washington, additional reporting by Peter Szekely in New York and Jill Serjeant in Los Angeles; Editing by Dan Grebler and Tom Brown

The post Joe Jackson, patriarch of U.S. musical dynasty, dead at 89 appeared first on World The News.

from World The News https://ift.tt/2lImmaN via News of World

#Daily World News #Daily Entertainment #Daily Sports #Today News #World The News

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dani-qrt · 7 years ago

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Joe Jackson, patriarch of U.S. musical dynasty, dead at 89

Jackson, who recently lived in Las Vegas, had been suffering from cancer, according to media reports.

Despite periods of estrangement from some of his 10 children, family members had been at his bedside in his last few days, his grand daughter Paris said.

Grandson Randy Jackson Jr. tweeted, “RIP to the king that made everything possible!!! I love you grandpa.”

The Jackson family was often riven by legal battles, jealousies, money disputes, Joe’s philandering and unproven allegations of child molestation against Michael.

Joe was left out of the “Thriller” singer’s will when he died aged 50 in 2009.

He called them the Jackson 5 and, with Michael as the precociously talented lead singer, they would become one of the world’s top acts with irresistible pop songs. But it came at a price.

He said Joe presided over rehearsals with a belt.

‘GLAD I WAS TOUGH’

Joe Jackson eventually moved the family from Gary to a mansion in Encino, California.

Slideshow (7 Images)

Jackson and wife Katherine married in 1949 and had 10 children – one of whom died shortly after birth – but lived apart in later years. Jackson also had a daughter out of wedlock.

Reporting by Bill Trott in Washington, additional reporting by Peter Szekely in New York and Jill Serjeant in Los Angeles; Editing by Dan Grebler and Tom Brown

The post Joe Jackson, patriarch of U.S. musical dynasty, dead at 89 appeared first on World The News.

from World The News https://ift.tt/2lImmaN via Online News

#World News #Today News #Daily News #Breaking News #News Headline #Entertainment News #Sports news #Sci-Tech

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reviverradio · 7 years ago

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The 20 best Dancing Songs Movies of all time

From pioneers like Daft Punk and the Chemical Brothers to modern-day YouTube-breakers like Important Lazer and M.I.A., electronic music boasts lots of visionaries keen to pour a good deal of love (and budget) into bringing their music to life. Here, we have counted down 20 more of the ideal dance movies ever — did your favourite make the cut?

Number20 Big Lazer –‘Pon De Floor’

Back in ’09 Big Lazer constituted of only Diplo and Switch, and Pon De Floor has been the single that introduced them into the world. In these days, Caribbean noises took center stage in the pair’s songs — that was way before Diplo would start calling on pop’s fine for toplines — it made sense that the movie to their breakthrough hit was an ode into Jamaica’s dance style-of-the-moment: daggering.

The following year, within a competitive fondness for its movement left a spate of broken penises in its wake, the Jamaican authorities would crack down on daggering by exposing all movies with “blatantly sexual content” out of television. The Pon De Floor clip stands as a bright, brash and strange reminder of this rather wonderful moment ever. (Interesting fact: it had been led by Eric Warheim of Tim & Eric fame.) [Katie Cunningham]

#19 The xx –‘Islands’

The xx’s self-titled debut album introduced us into some group that has been unshowy in each manner. From the restraint of these songs to the extreme shyness of their early live shows, those Londoners were not going to give us bombastic music movies.

It’s unsurprising, then, that the clip for Islands stands out of this record for its striking simplicity. The xx members feature at center stage, but the focus is squarely on the dancers who move around them in an unbroken loop. The repeating sequence feels perfectly suited to the dreamy depression of the vocals, demonstrating you only need one room and a smart conceit to make a video that is captivating.

There’s an additional bonus here also: watching Jamie xx, who might still be the group’s shyest member despite his impressive solo success, attempting to look invisible at the close of the couch. We view you, Jamie. [Jack Tregoning]

#18 Avalanches –‘Frontier Psychiatrist’

What an unenviable job it must’ve been to try and assemble a visual version of what you hear in an Avalanches song. The Melbourne group — who assembled their iconic debut record on samples, pinched from hundreds of disparate sources — have been already collages in themselves. How can you even start to put that into a music video?

To get Frontier Psychatrist American directors Tom Kuntz and Mike Maguire (who’d go on to do these Old Spice advertisements) approached their job with the same spirit of playfulness that The Avalanches sewed into the tune, assembling a number act stuffed with oddballs and right-fitting misfits that bring each small part of the puzzle to existence. Watch it, recall why you loved it and try not to smile. [Dave Ruby Howe]

Number17 Chemical Brothers –‘Elektrobank’

Spike Jonze — among the masters of ’90s music movie with his wild, cartoonish style — played it straight for once for this improbably moving clip, essentially a short movie starring Sofia Coppola, fellow director (Lost in Translation) and Jonze’s future ex-wife.

Coppola plays a gymnast who copes with personal turmoil at a huge contest. The graceful performance (including a pro gymnast double) is a beautiful contrast to the Compounds’ pulverising beats and squelching sound, including The Prodigy’s Keith Murray. Much like Fatboy Slim’s Weapon of Choice, what gets the clip unforgettable is its sincerity — no understanding satirical winks; it lets the attractiveness of the gymnastics be what they are. And also the melodrama is performed to the hilt; it might be a ’80s afterschool special. [Jim Poe]

Number16 Important Lazer & DJ Snake –‘Lean On’

1,535,399,281: that is just how many YouTube perspectives the movie for Lean On had last time we checked. That’s 1.5 billion eyes on Major Lazer’s handiwork, along with a figure equal to over 20-percent of the planet’s population. Those numbers alone could probably make Lean On a reference in this record, but the viewcount is not all that is important about Diplo’s very prosperous minute thus far.

As well as being a great deal of pleasure, Lean On is significant because it proved that dance fans want to watch their own artists in music movies — would it have been such a runaway success if Diplo, Jillionaire, Walshy Fire, DJ Snake and MØ weren’t at the movie, cutting shapes in their mixture of sportswear and Bollywood finery? Or in a even bigger question, could Lean On have become the undisputed song of the year with this movie? [Katie Cunningham]

#15 Justice –‘Stress’

There couldn’t have been a much better candidate to interpret the frenzied, aggressive intensity of Justice’s Stress to movie than incendiary French director Roman Gavras.

Conceived if the French electro duo were in the peak of their powers in 2008 as “a clip unairable on television for a course unairable on the radio” Gavras’ no-holds-barred depiction of a day in the life span of wayward French youths triggering calls of racial profiling and fetishising violence in the wake of the 2005 Paris riots. Wayward is a barely fitting description though, the themes of Stress stalk the outlying suburbs/banlieues of Paris enacting casual ultra-violence and civil destruction where they move, all backed by the ominous whir of Justice’s creation.

Speaking to Flux on the controversy that the music video generated upon its release, Gavras appeared to relish his status as a provocateur — two decades before the ginger genocide of M.I.A’s Born Free clip. “For a couple of months, I had been among the most despised men in France, but it had been enjoyable. It was amazing free promo…that you can only get that much media if you have sex with children.” [Dave Ruby Howe]

#14 Huge Strike –‘Teardrop’

London filmmaker Walter Stern made his name working with The Prodigy at the 90s, when he helmed their inflammatory movies such as Firestarter and Breathe. Those credentials created Stern a somewhat unexpected choice, subsequently, to take on one of Massive Attack’s most fragile songs.

The Bristol collective recruited Stern to bring his arresting visual design to their 1998 single Teardrop, which Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja called a “period of light relief” on their brooding third record Mezzanine. It was Stern’s thought to coordinate with the tune’s dreamy atmosphere with shots inside a uterus, as a human fetus lip-synchs along to Elizabeth Fraser’s vocals.

The concept sounds unnerving on paper, but the extreme closeups produce a strangely meditative mood that is great for both Teardrop. In addition, it helps that the unborn baby is so clearly an animatronic model made of silicon rather than, you know, the actual thing. The movie won a string of awards, entered a lifetime of permanent Rage rotation and also gave Stern a much-needed reprieve from filming mad Keith Flint. [Jack Tregoning]

#13 The Prodigy –‘Firestarter’

While most of dance music’s biggest stars seem painfully embarrassing on camera, The Prodigy were constructed for songs videos. The theatrical personas of Maxim and Keith Flint are created for electrical onscreen performances, with possibly the most overblown of all happening inside the scummy ‘gator-infested flat of Breathe.

Though other videos inspired more heat for The Prodigy, there is something starkly powerful regarding the Firestarter clip. Director Walter Stern took the shameful action inside a deserted London Underground tunnel, with Keith because the central star. The frontman’s unhinged shtick was at its most persuasive in the mid-90s, and he actually dialed it up here, holding the attention with his hectic charisma. Firestarter is so much the Keith Flint Show, in fact, that the participation of Liam Howlett, Leeroy Thornhill and Maxim is restricted to operating at the shadows and giving quizzical looks.

The movie did manage to stir up controversy in britain for giving kids nightmares, with some TV channels carrying it off day rotation. Without a doubt The Prodigy also discouraged a couple of people from adventuring through abandoned railroad tunnels at night. Nobody would like to meet a dancing Keith Flint in the dark. [Jack Tregoning]

#12 Duck Sauce –‘Big Bad Wolf’

“It’s no Windowlicker,” the director behind Big Bad Wolf defended when Rolling Stone went in on 2011’s most head-turning movie. “That was disturbing.”

Duck Sauce’s most memorable clip might not be Aphex Twin-level bizarre, but it sure does push the envelope. To be able to produce their movie tour de force, collaborators A-Trak and Armand Van Helden spent just two weeks on their hands and knees at green screen jumpsuits, heads at the crotches of other men. A good deal of impressive post-production later and they came away with a traditional boy-meets-girl story, only with some — err —unusual sexual acts.

For the ideal assessment of why Big Bad Wolf wants to go down with the greats, render it Kanye West: “You shot a risk as a artist to piss out of your mouth,” he reportedly told A-Trak on email. [Katie Cunningham]

#11 M.I.A. –‘Bad Girls’

When M.I.A. tied up with director Romain Gavras to make a movie for her 2010 tune Born Free, the collaborators came up with an incendiary short movie. Over nine intense moments, we observe a violent raid of an apartment block, and with the officers targeting only residents with red hair. It turned out to be a provocative political statement, using redheads because of stand-in for oppressed and vilified groups, and the two M.I.A. and Gavras recognized the controversy.

When the singer and filmmaker worked collectively in 2012 on Bad Ladies, they picked a much more celebratory tone. Mesmerised from YouTube movies of “Saudis drifting on two wheels” in the desert, they travelled to Morocco to give it a try. The result is bright, daring and bad-ass. On its release, Bad Girls sparked debate regarding its subversion of Arab stereotypes, while also bringing the visceral thrill of M.I.A. cruising the window out of a vehicle that is nearly airborne. Not a lot of pop movies combine style and substance similar to this one. [Jack Tregoning]

CLICK THROUGH FOR THE TOP 10

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vincentvelour · 8 years ago

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Can Macron Solve France’s Stubborn Employment Problems?

5/17/2017

By Gareth Jarman, Director, HR Advisory, Radius

For the first time since the founding of the Fifth Republic in 1958, France has elected a president with ties to neither of the country’s two main political parties.

How will 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron, who has never held elective office, tackle France’s pressing economic problems, particularly its 10 percent unemployment rate and its calcified 3,300-page labor code? Will he have the political clout to succeed?

Here’s a brief look at the economic conditions the new president faces and his employment agenda as he has laid it out so far.

Employment

Described in the press as a centrist, Macron plans both big spending and big cuts. An open question is whether they will get through. He has been scorned for his ideas not only by Le Pen’s right-wing party, but by the left as well. Economist Thomas Piketty, who supported the socialist candidate, said Macron’s budget-slashing represents "the Europe of yesterday."

Macron wants to eliminate 120,000 civil service jobs and cut public spending by 60 billion Euros, but he also wants to spend 50 billion on green energy, training to reduce youth unemployment, and other public services.

He wants to exempt low-wage earners from a social welfare tax and eliminate a property tax — but he also wants to add 10,000 police officers to the country’s force in an attempt to contain terrorism.

Above all, he wants to reduce the country’s 10 percent unemployment rate to seven percent by 2022.

Unemployment is a sore spot in France, running higher than the EU average of eight percent and far above Germany’s three percent. Labor restrictions make hiring tough, and 16.7 percent of French workers are temporary contract laborers, according to 2015 OECD data.

Even more discouraging, 44 percent of job seekers have been out of work for a year or more, and 22 percent have been pounding the pavements for over two years. Over one in six young people is neither employed nor enrolled in school.

These figures raise the specter of structural unemployment, and France needs structural reforms to get back on track, the OECD says.

Labor Reform

France has the most centrally-controlled economy in the OECD, with government spending accounting for 57 percent of GDP in 2015 and a convoluted labor code that makes hiring and firing difficult.

Macron is determined to make the French labor system more flexible.Tweet this

Macron is determined to make the system more flexible, increasing employment and giving companies freedom to set their own hours and pay. Perhaps to appease the left, he has also proposed universal employment insurance that would extend to the self-employed.

He has vowed to use executive orders to force changes if necessary, which would likely result in street-jamming protests like those of last year, when the country passed the controversial El Khomri law, allowing the 35-hour work week to be extended to up to 60 hours — though only temporarily and under certain circumstances. Macron wants to extend its provisions.

He also wants to lower the corporate tax rate from 33.5 percent to 25 percent and limit the budget deficit to 3 percent. He would like to combine 37 pension schemes into a single system for public and private sector workers, a plan he says will take 10 years to execute. Conveniently, retirement ages and pension levels would not change during his five-year term.

Retaining Talent

France’s restrictive labor laws not only make it tough for workers to find jobs, they impede business formation, a World Economic Forum report says. The country ranks 21st in competitiveness — below Qatar, the UAR, and New Zealand — and 86th in talent retention.

Some of the best and brightest have already bid their country au revoir for greener pastures in New York, Silicon Valley and especially London. French workers numbering 180,000 now live in the UK, where many serve as hedge fund traders and investment bankers. Some have started companies of their own.

Macron wants them back — along with their employers. In a move some in the UK press have interpreted as "stealing British jobs," he has already visited London in an attempt to lure banks to Paris during a period of weakness as the country prepares for Brexit.

European Union Reform

In addition to pursuing his ambitious domestic agenda, Macron wants to reform the EU, creating a common treasury and a single finance minister to facilitate fiscal transfers from stronger countries to weaker ones, believing the measure would tamp down extremism. However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she will not consider changes in eurozone fiscal rules.

Can He Do It?

Though Macron captured 66 percent of the vote, with just two northern departments going to Le Pen, turnout was low. Moreover, he takes over a country many have described as divided, with a vocal minority of right-wingers in rural areas who oppose him and leftists in urban centers worried about losing social protections. It has been suggested that many people voted not so much for Macron as against Le Pen.

Macron started his political party, En Marche, just a year ago. And though it may be “on the move,” so far it has no representatives in the National Assembly, though a slate of candidates, many of them neophytes, will be running in the country’s elections in June.

Gaining a majority to support Macron’s agenda will be difficult. But his election shows that people recognize the country has stubborn problems demanding a new approach to lift it out of its economic quagmire. France surprised the world by bringing an outsider to power. It may surprise again by handing him the tools to fulfill his promises.

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studentofrhetoric-blog · 8 years ago

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Part 2, Tuesday, April 18th, 2017

International News:

--- "Australia will abolish a temporary work visa popular with foreigners and replace it with a new programme requiring better English-language and job skills, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Tuesday. Turnbull, struggling with poor voter approval ratings, rejected suggestions the visa policy change was in response to far-right wing political parties, such as One Nation, demanding more nationalistic policies. But in a Facebook announcement Turnbull said: "Our reforms will have a simple focus: Australian jobs and Australian values."...Turnbull said the visa change would attract better skilled workers and see Australians employed over cheap foreign workers brought in under the old 457 visa programme...The 457 visa was introduced in the 1990s to expedite the entry of business professionals and highly skilled migrants but over time it was opened up to include a broad suite of workers. The programme has become mired in controversy with allegations the visa was being misused by employers to import workers on the cheap, not to fill genuine skill shortages...The 457 visa, now used by about 95,000 foreign workers, will be replaced by a new temporary visa and the list of occupations that qualify for a visa will be reduced from more than 200."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-immigration-idUSKBN17K0DC?il=0

--- "New Zealand said on Wednesday it will tighten access to its skilled work visas, just a day after the United States and neighboring Australia announced similar restrictions on immigration. New Zealand's immigration minister said he was taking a "Kiwis-first approach to immigration", echoing Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and U.S. President Donald Trump in announcing policies to ensure jobs for Australians and Americans. Migration has become a hot topic in the lead up to New Zealand's Sept. 23 general election. "These changes are designed to strike the right balance ... and encourage employers to take on more Kiwis and invest in the training to upskill them," immigration minister Michael Woodhouse said in a statement, using the colloquial term for New Zealand citizens. The changes to be introduced later this year include introducing a minimum income requirement, making it more difficult for family members to join visa holders and limiting the amount of time seasonal workers are allowed to stay in New Zealand. A boom in new arrivals has helped the New Zealand economy race along with some of the strongest gross domestic product growth in the developed world. But opposition parties and the central bank have called for a review of current policies, citing low wages growth and soaring house prices spurred by the influx."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-newzealand-immigration-idUSKBN17L03R?il=0

--- "A political solution through U.N.-brokered negotiations is needed to resolve the conflict in Yemen, U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said on Tuesday as he made his first trip in the role to Saudi Arabia. At the same time, officials have said the United States is considering deepening its role in the Yemen conflict by more directly aiding its Gulf allies, who are fighting Iranian-supported Houthi rebels. At least 10,000 people have been killed and more than 3 million displaced in the war, now in its third year. Millions of people are also struggling to feed themselves..."It has gone on for a long time, we see Iranian supplied missiles being fired by the Houthis into Saudi Arabia and this is something, with the number of innocent people dying inside Yemen, it has simply got to be brought to an end," Mattis told reporters on his way to Riyadh. Seven ceasefires brokered between government and rebel forces by the United Nations have failed while U.N.-backed peace talks have repeatedly broken down. "We will work with our allies, with our partners to try to get it to the U.N.-brokered negotiating table," Mattis said. He gave no details on what additional support, if any, the United States would provide to the Saudi-led coalition. But he said he was looking to deepen and broaden the relationship between the two countries on the trip."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-mideast-mattis-idUSKBN17J1RA?il=0

--- "Two men arrested in Marseille on Tuesday planned an "imminent and violent attack" ahead of the first round of France's presidential election on Sunday, authorities said. "These two radicalized men ... intended to commit in the very short-term - by that I mean in the coming days - an attack on French soil," Interior Minister Matthias Fekl told a news conference. Paris Prosecutor Francois Molins said in a news conference that weapons, explosives, videos and jidhadist propaganda materials had been found in the flat rented by French nationals Clement Baur, 23, and Mahiedine Merabet, 30, since April 1. "A video intercepted on April 12 showed a machinegun placed on a table, with a daily newspaper from 13 March which had on its front page one of the presidential candidates. "This morning the investigators managed to locate the apartment," Molins said, without naming the candidate. France's internal intelligence agency had warned the main candidates of a threat, campaign officials said. Comments by officials indicated that former prime minister Francois Fillon, centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen were among those alerted to the risk."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-attacks-france-election-idUSKBN17K12L?il=0

--- "EU patrol vessels in the Mediterranean are putting lives at risk by operating too far from the Libyan coast where migrants are embarking on the perilous voyage to Europe, the head of a rescue charity said on Tuesday. Growing numbers of migrants are attempting the crossing in flimsy, overcrowded boats as the spring weather improves. Nearly 9,000, mostly Africans, were rescued over the long Easter weekend, U.N. aid agencies said. "Europe needs to rescue people because it cannot allow them to die at its own back door," said Chris Catrambone, an American businessman who co-founded the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), with his Italian wife Regina in 2014. He was speaking by telephone from the MOAS rescue vessel Phoenix, which after a frantic weekend's activity was heading slowly toward Sicily with 463 migrants on board, including 170 women and children, and seven dead bodies recovered from the sea."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-ngo-idUSKBN17K22R?il=0

--- "Polls closed after a mostly smooth vote on Wednesday in Jakarta's divisive election between a Muslim and a Christian candidate that stoked religious tensions in the capital of the world's third-largest democracy. Police said 15 people were detained following reports of disturbances at several polling stations in the city of 10 million people, after what the Jakarta Post this week dubbed "the dirtiest, most polarizing and most divisive" election campaign the nation had ever seen. "Political differences should not break our unity," President Joko Widodo said in a statement after casting his ballot at a central Jakarta polling station. "We are all brothers and sisters. Whoever is elected, we must accept." Opinion polls in the run-up to the election pointed to a dead-heat between the incumbent governor, Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama – the city's first Christian and ethnic-Chinese leader – and a former education minister, Anies Baswedan, who like 85 percent of Jakarta's residents, is Muslim. Given Jakarta's outsized importance as both the nation's capital and commercial center, the election could be a barometer for the 2019 presidential election."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-election-idUSKBN17K2HU?il=0

--- "A hundred unarmed South Sudanese refugees in east Congo took 13 United Nations mission staff hostage on Tuesday, demanding to be moved to a third country before later releasing them unharmed. They were among 530 people who have been living in the Munigi base, outside Goma, since fleeing South Sudan last August, U.N. Goma bureau head Daniel Ruiz told Reuters. Most are former fighters loyal to former vice president Riek Machar, who have clashed with President Salva Kiir's forces since July 2016. "The camp is quiet and under full control of MONUSCO (the peacekeeping mission)," U.N. peacekeeping spokeswoman Ismini Palla said at the United Nations. "All staff have returned safely to their homes. No casualties have been reported. The mission is investigating the incident.""

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-south-sudan-un-hostage-idUSKBN17K262?il=0

--- "Islamic State was responsible for an attack on a police checkpoint just outside Egypt's St. Catherine's Monastery in southern Sinai, the group's Amaq news agency said on Tuesday. The attack, which killed one police officer and injured four others, came just over a week after two deadly church bombings that killed 45 and were also claimed by Islamic State."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-violence-islamic-state-idUSKBN17K2M3?il=0

--- "Air strikes, thought to be by planes from a U.S.-led military coalition, killed at least 30 people in the eastern Syrian province of Deir al-Zor on Monday, including women and children, residents and activists said. Coalition spokesman U.S. Air Force Colonel John Dorrian confirmed that the U.S.-led coalition had conducted strikes in the vicinity of the town of al-Bukamal, but said he could not "confirm the veracity of allegations of civilian casualties". He told Reuters the coalition tried to avoid civilian deaths in its bombing campaign against Islamic State militants in Syria and neighboring Iraq. The border town has been a haven in recent years for thousands of displaced Syrians from Aleppo and from other areas, including Iraq, where its residents have strong tribal ties across the border."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-strikes-idUSKBN17K0T0?il=0

--- "A Venezuelan court has ordered the continued detention of two young opposition activists who say they were tortured until they incriminated opposition leaders in a plot to destabilize the government of President Nicolas Maduro. Twin brothers Francisco Jose Sanchez and Francisco Alejandro Sanchez, age 22, were detained on Thursday by Venezuela's intelligence services amid a wave of anti-government unrest. During a broadcast on state television last week, Maduro showed pixelated videos of one of the brothers suggesting that the two young men were ordered by four opposition lawmakers from the Justice First party to wreak havoc across the city. The men's lawyers confirmed that they were in fact the people in the videos but said the confessions were obtained by coercion. "Francisco Alejandro spent three days handcuffed to a pipe," lawyer Joel Garcia told Reuters, adding that he was made to stand for three days. "He received psychological torture. They put his arms on his head, said that they would kill him, his family, that they would rape his girlfriend, kill his brother." The pair are accused of inciting violence, allegedly having been caught throwing rocks at the intelligence officials, though their defense and family say they were not protesting when arrested. They also note that prosecutors did not use the video evidence against them, insisting their detention is a political witch hunt."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-idUSKBN17K2EI?il=0

--- "British Prime Minister Theresa May called U.S. President Donald Trump, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other European leaders after she asked parliament to agree to an early election on June 8, a spokesman said on Tuesday. "The PM made separate calls to President Trump, Chancellor (Angela) Merkel, President (Donald) Tusk of the European Council, President (Jean-Claude) Juncker of the European Commission and Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Enda Kenny," the spokesman said in a statement."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-may-calls-idUSKBN17K2B8?il=0

--- "The number of people applying for asylum in Mexico has soared by more than 150 percent since Donald Trump was elected U.S. president, according to Mexican data, as more Central American migrants seek to stay rather than take their chances in the United States. Between November 2016 and March, Mexico's refugee agency, COMAR, received 5,421 asylum applications, up from 2,148 over the same period in 2015 and 2016. The number of detentions along the southwestern U.S. border has fallen about 4 percent over the same five-month period, as Trump's tough immigration proposals sent a chill through migrant communities. Just like the vast majority of Mexico's asylum applicants, many of those detained on the U.S. border come from the violent countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-mexico-exclusive-idUSKBN17K2CE?il=0

Domestic & International News:

--- "U.S. Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday put Japan on notice that Washington wants results "in the near future" from talks it hopes will open markets to U.S. goods, adding that the dialogue could lead to negotiations on a two-way trade deal..."Today we are beginning a process of economic dialogue, the end of which may result in bilateral trade negotiations in the future," Pence told a news conference with Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso, his counterpart at Tuesday's talks...The comments dash the hopes of Japanese policymakers, who have said they want to avoid use of the economic dialogue as a forum to discuss a bilateral FTA that may put them under U.S. pressure to open up highly-protected areas like agriculture. They also echo those of U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who told reporters that Washington was eager to increase trade ties with Tokyo through a two-way pact...Aso in turn said U.S.-Japan trade friction, which soured ties in the 1980s and 1990s, was in the distant past and the allies were now entering an era of cooperation. "In the past, U.S.-Japan economic relations have started from friction, but we're entering a new area where we start from cooperation," he told the news conference. "Instead of one side telling the other what to do, I want to start debate on a relationship that is mutual and strategic." In a statement after the talks, the two sides said they had agreed the dialogue should produce "concrete results in the near term." They agreed to hold a second round of talks before the end of the year...Japan had a $69-billion trade surplus with the United States last year, the U.S. Treasury Department has said, expressing concern over what it called the "persistence" of the imbalance. Japanese officials counter that Tokyo accounts for a much smaller chunk of America's deficit than in the past, while China's imbalance is much bigger. Trump has complained Japan keeps its currency artificially low, although a Treasury Department report last week did not label Japan a currency manipulator. However, currencies did not figure in Tuesday's talks, a Japanese government official said."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pence-asia-japan-idUSKBN17J1GI?il=0

--- "U.S. Vice President Mike Pence reassured Japan of American commitment to reining in North Korea's nuclear and missile ambitions on Tuesday, after warning that U.S. strikes in Syria and Afghanistan showed the strength of its resolve. Pence arrived in Tokyo from South Korea, where he assured leaders of an "iron-clad" alliance with the United States in the face of the reclusive North, which has conducted a series of missile and nuclear tests in defiance of U.N. sanctions. "The era of strategic patience is over and while all options are on the table, President (Donald) Trump is determined to work closely with Japan, with South Korea, with all our allies in the region and with China to achieve a peaceable resolution and the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," Pence said in Tokyo before lunch with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Pence and Abe agreed that they needed to persuade China to play a larger role in dealing with North Korea, a Japanese government spokesman said."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-usa-idUSKBN17K07A?il=0

--- "U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said on Wednesday that Washington would work with its allies and China to put economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea but added that America would defeat any attack with an "overwhelming response". Pence arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday from South Korea and reassured Japan of U.S. commitment to reining in North Korea's nuclear and missile ambitions in a series of meetings with Japanese leaders, including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Speaking aboard the USS Ronald Reagan, a Nimitz class aircraft carrier currently undergoing scheduled maintenance at its home port of Yokosuka, Pence said U.S. intentions remained unwavering in the face of the threat posed by the reclusive North, which has conducted a series of missile and nuclear tests in defiance of U.N. sanctions, most recently with a failed missile launch on Sunday."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pence-asia-japan-idUSKBN17L066?il=0

--- "The Trump administration said on Tuesday it was launching an inter-agency review of whether the lifting of sanctions against Iran was in the United States' national security interests, while acknowledging that Tehran was complying with a deal to rein in its nuclear program. In a letter to U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan, the top Republican in Congress, on Tuesday U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Iran remained compliant with the 2015 deal, but said there were concerns about its role as a state sponsor of terrorism. Under the deal, the State Department must notify Congress every 90 days on Iran's compliance under the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). It is the first such notification under U.S. President Donald Trump."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-nuclear-usa-tillerson-idUSKBN17L08I?il=0

--- "The United States on Tuesday held what it dubbed a historic U.N. Security Council meeting on the link between rights abuses and conflict, but dropped a push for the broad issue to become a council fixture after at least six members opposed it. Diplomats said Russia, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan and Bolivia were against the move and that the United States, council president for April, did not risk the measure being put to a rare procedural vote as Senegal's support was uncertain. Such a vote requires nine in favor, and vetoes by the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China cannot be used. The opposing council members say rights discussion should be confined to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council - which Washington accuses of being anti-Israel and has threatened to quit - and the 193-member U.N. General Assembly third committee. Egypt also voiced concern that some countries used human rights as a "back door" to undermine state sovereignty, citing Iraq and Libya as examples. Security Council discussions of human rights situations in specific countries, such as Syria, North Korea and Myanmar, are not new and most of the 16 U.N. peacekeeping missions include human rights mandates approved by the council."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-un-rights-idUSKBN17K2NG?il=0

Domestic News:

--- "The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared skeptical of widening the scope of who can be subject to a federal law targeting debt collectors' abusive practices by including those who buy debt, sometimes for pennies on the dollar. The justices heard oral arguments in a proposed consumer class action lawsuit against Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc over allegations it violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. A lower court had dismissed the case brought by four Maryland residents who had defaulted on car loans. That law typically applies to entities whose primary purpose is debt collection for others, not to lenders who give out and collect their own loans, such as banks or full-service finance companies. The justices, both liberal and conservative, appeared concerned that players in the debt collection industry could evade the law merely by buying the debt, but suggested that the statute is not as elastic as the plaintiffs in the case view it."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-debtcollection-idUSKBN17K23X?il=0

--- "Alabama Governor Kay Ivey on Tuesday moved up to December the election to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Jeff Sessions after he was named attorney general, saying that the original plan to hold the election in late 2018 was not soon enough to meet state law. Ivey last week replaced fellow Republican Robert Bentley as governor after he resigned amid impeachment proceedings in the legislature. Bentley had appointed Republican Luther Strange in February to fill the seat Sessions held before joining President Donald Trump's cabinet. Citing concerns about the cost of a special election, Bentley opted to wait until the 2018 general election for voters to elect Sessions' replacement. The state's new governor said Alabama law required a speedier timetable. The primary election will now be held on Aug. 15 and the general vote will be on Dec. 12, Ivey's office said. “I promised to steady our ship of state. This means following the law, which clearly states the people should vote for a replacement U.S. senator as soon as possible,” Ivey said in an emailed statement."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-alabama-politics-idUSKBN17K2A7?il=0

--- "A White House meeting that was to help determine whether the United States should withdraw from the Paris climate accord has been postponed, an administration official said on Tuesday. Some of President Donald Trump's top advisers, including Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt, were scheduled to meet on Tuesday to discuss how Trump should handle the 2015 climate deal. The meeting was canceled because "some of the principals are traveling today," the White House official said. The meeting will be rescheduled, but no date has been set, the official said. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters on Air Force One as Trump was returning from a visit to Wisconsin that the meeting "could be as soon as tomorrow, but I know that they're working on trying to find a time that works for everybody.""

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-climatechange-idUSKBN17K22L?il=0

--- "The U.S. Supreme Court, in a case with wide consequences for the policing of Wall Street, indicated on Tuesday it may diminish the Securities and Exchange Commission's ability to get back ill-gotten profits reaped through defendants' misconduct. In a case involving New Mexico-based investment adviser Charles Kokesh, the justices raised concerns about whether the SEC should be able to order defendants to fork over illegal profits that date back more than five years, as the agency argued it should be able to do. The court's conservative wing peppered the government during a one-hour argument with questions about the SEC's recovery remedy known as "disgorgement," how it is applied and whether it is actually a type of punishment that should be time-barred. Some of the liberal justices also questioned whether the SEC has the legal authority to force disgorgement of profits dating back more than five years. U.S. law applies a five-year statute of limitations to penalties, forfeitures and other punitive remedies sought in civil enforcement matters, a time bar that the Supreme Court upheld unanimously in its 2013 ruling in a case called Gabelli v. SEC. But the SEC argued that the statute of limitations did not apply to disgorgement."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-sec-idUSKBN17K0C9?il=0

--- "A Republican senator said on Tuesday he had written to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) raising questions about reports of "troubling conduct" by psychiatric hospital operator Universal Health Services Inc. The inquiry, by Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, raises concerns about reports by BuzzFeed News of low nurse staffing, medication errors and sexual misconduct at UHS' Shadow Mountain facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Grassley said in his letter the reports showed a pattern of conduct by the hospital operator that "casts a dark cloud over UHS' ability to properly care for its patients and whether it is properly billing federal programs." Founded in 1979, Pennsylvania-based UHS operates more than 240 acute care hospitals, behavioral health facilities and ambulatory centers. Grassley has also sought a response from The Joint Commission, an accrediting organization, that reportedly designated the Shadow Mountain facility as a "Top Performer in Key Quality Measures" for the 2011-2015 period."

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-universal-health-idUSKBN17K2BF?il=0

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