Disability as power: Zoom panel discussion

Jhe first night Stephanie Silva spent in her new Brooklyn apartment was exceptionally quiet. It was the same the next morning and the next day. The 32-year-old New Yorker had forgotten the last time she managed to mute the city of 8.2 million.

“It’s like a sanctuary,” Silva says, but as soon as she opens the windows facing the street, bustling outside noise fills her living room. Once she closed the windows, the difference was immediately noticeable. “Since moving here, my anxiety has gone away,” Silva says, referring to the affordable 10-story apartment in Ocean Hill, part of Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. But what sets this 67-unit building apart from the rest of the city’s housing is its “passive” element.

A passive building is designed to consume a minimum of energy. To be efficient in heating and cooling, the space is sealed with airtight insulation – like a vacuum bottle – so that it can retain heat during the winter while keeping it out during the summer. . Homes, schools, offices, and other buildings built to Passive House standards typically use thicker, higher-performance windows, such as triple-glazed models, which have three layers of glass. Another key step is to use the energy recovery process in the building’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. Known as the ERV, the ventilator, by means of two fans, acts as the lungs of the building, drawing in clean, fresh, filtered air and expelling stale air.

Resident Manager Rich Morris opens a window in the Harry T Nance Apartments laundry room. The windows meet passive house standards.

In New York and other cities, passive design is becoming a popular option for new apartment buildings and homes, and it’s easy to see why: people love living there.

“I didn’t suffer an allergy attack like I usually would,” said Silva, who suffers from dust and seasons allergies. “The building clears the air and I can sleep through the night.”

Continuous air exchange, coupled with super-insulated construction, means no more smell of what the downstairs neighbors are cooking, no more traffic noise in the living room, and no more click-clack from old radiators. Each room in Silva’s three-bedroom apartment has its own heating and cooling unit, allowing his family to heat one room at a time instead of the entire house. “My daughter hates the heat, while I like my bedroom to be nice and warm,” Silva says. “I love that each room has its own separate temperature.”

Solar panels are embedded in the roofs of many passive buildings, including two in the Bronx developed by Bronx Pro Group, which specializes in affordable housing.

“When you walk into a passive house, the average person probably doesn’t notice a difference,” said Justin Stein, senior vice president of the Bronx Pro Group.

“Other than being quieter, it looks like any other apartment,” Stein said.

Large blue-gray ventilation systems are installed on a roof, with the city skyline in the background. — Energy-efficient heating, cooling and ventilation systems benefit residents’ well-being, but also their wallets, say passive building advocates.

The invisible health effects of cleaner air will help tenants in the long run, but the benefit of lower electric bills will be felt immediately. The annual energy demand of passive houses is estimated to be more than 70% lower than that of traditionally insulated buildings with the same parameters. Silva, who lives with her three-year-old son and her fiancé, paid her first utility bill in December, which came to $57. In his old two-bedroom apartment, charges averaged $135 a month: $60 for gas and $75 for electricity.

“I’m not that grumpy,” Silva says as she reflects on the impact lower housing costs have had on her personality. “I was living paycheck to paycheck in my last apartment and now I can buy something nice because I can afford it. Before, all the money I had left had to be used for expenses for the following month.

It took eight months from the day Silva applied for the city’s affordable housing lottery to the day she was able to move into her new home developed by RiseBoro, a Brooklyn-based nonprofit. In 2014, RiseBoro developed New York State’s first-ever affordable multi-family apartment building certified to Passive House standards. Today there are more than 30 affordable apartment buildings in New York City built to passive standards, including this first RiseBoro project in Bushwick, Brooklyn.

A trio of images shows a blue vertical pipe, a close-up image of an air vent grille, and a copper-colored air vent cap. — Passive building air ventilation systems are designed to efficiently supply fresh air while exhausting stale air.

“When you move from an older affordable home to a more efficient one, there’s a huge shift in attitude,” said Satpal Kaur, an architect who has been designing efficient buildings for more than 15 years. Kaur helped deliver the Bushwick Building while in the office of Chris Benedict, one of the leading architects in the field of sustainable design. From keeping your feet cold while working from home, to sitting by a window and not feeling the cold peeking through the glass, to reducing noise pollution and energy costs – for Kaur, the benefits of living in an affordable Passive House are conveniences that every person deserves.

“If we made it standard practice, comfort would be for everyone,” Kaur says.

Dozens of affordable passive developments are currently under construction in the five boroughs. Building a passive house usually costs about 5-10% more than a conventional house. The construction of a multi-family passive building can be approximately 3% more than a comparable non-passive building. Renovating an older building to passive standards is one of the most effective ways to reduce heat concentration and emissions from the existing housing stock.

These renovations and new construction projects can contribute to the city’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from buildings by 40% by 2030. Energy-efficient design decisions – such as moving away from gas for electricity – will also help reduce residents’ bills, Kaur said. When developers adopt passive design standards, “not only are you changing the life of the building,” Kaur said, “you’re changing the lives of the people in it.”

Close-up image of a white multi-story building facade with angular rectangular panels around its windows. — Knickerbocker Commons in Bushwick, Brooklyn is the first all-affordable-unit apartment building to be built and certified to Passive House standards in New York State. The building’s facade optimizes light and shade, contributing to energy costs that are only 20% of the average size of a New York building.

In New York, as in many places across the country, summer temperatures are highest in densely built-up areas. Adequate and efficient cooling is a priority.

New York City buildings are good at providing – and retaining – heat to keep residents warm during the winter. The challenge for homeowners is how to keep residents cool when temperatures rise and buildings heat up, says Ryan Cassidy, director of sustainability and construction at RiseBoro. He thinks that like tenants’ current right to heat, in the next 5 to 10 years New York City will likely develop a cooling policy for buildings.

Currently, the city’s building stock is responsible for 71% of New York’s greenhouse carbon emissions. The recent decision to ban gas heaters, cookers and water heaters in all new buildings may push traditional developers to follow Passive House standards.

Aramis Rosa, a slender dark-haired, bespectacled man in light gray jeans and a long-sleeved black t-shirt, sits for a portrait in his renovated attic, with three narrow windows behind him. — Aramis Rosa poses for a portrait in the attic master bedroom. An air circulation tube is visible on the wall below the windows. Photographed January 8. 2022, Staten Island, NY.

Aramis Rosa is one of the owners who does just that. In March 2020, he purchased a five-bedroom, two-story home in Staten Island with an attic and basement. An electrician, he was fixing sockets at Kaur when they started talking about architecture and how Kaur designs buildings.

“I remember he said, ‘Hey, would you mind sending me the cut sheets?'” Kaur recalled. She emailed the information and a few months later, when he returned to fix her doorbell: “He told me he had done everything, and I was completely blown away.”

Rosa applied what Kaur taught her to remodel her new family home. The boiler, the first to leave, was replaced by an ERV. Then he installed energy efficient windows, separate units in each room and solar panels on the roof, who was eligible for state tax refunds.

When it comes to insulation, working with spray foam was a turning point for Rosa. “That has got to be the best thing I’ve done, to go with spray foam insulation,” Rosa said. “Because of the amount of heat it is able to retain, now in winter, you can feel the difference as soon as you walk into the house.”

A triptych image shows Aramis Rose's two-story house, a detailed close-up of the white foam insulation sprayed into the walls, and a close-up image of Rosa's hands. — Left: Aramis Rosa used passive design elements to renovate his family’s new home. In the middle: spray foam insulation in the walls of the house reduces heating and cooling costs. Right: Rosa did most of the renovations herself.

A chemical compound that expands in seconds when applied, spray foam leaves virtually no air gaps, unlike traditional fiberglass insulation. Rosa is the fifth owner of the 1938 house and the first to do such a spectacular renovation on his own.

“I feel like when you hire someone, they’re there to do the job and then go home. They might not consider the person living there long-term,” Rosa said. “Even though it took us a little longer to be home, the fact that I’m doing it for my family means I’m not skipping any corners because I’ll be the one living here.”

In a city known for its sensory overload — whether it’s the roar of new construction, the funk of curbside trash, or the howls of the century-old subway system — being able to tune out can be a luxury. But the promise of passive architecture is that it doesn’t have to be – it can be as easy as coming home.

History organization

California State Parks will vote to rename part of Lake Folsom in an effort to inclusively acknowledge Black Gold Rush history

by Rodney N. on February 24, 2022

California State Parks is considering a new name for part of the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area called Negro Bar, after some residents said it had harmed them for decades. The potential change has sparked debate about how black history is preserved in California, even acknowledging that history isn’t always easy.

Many people have argued that while the word is a racial slur today, it didn’t always have that meaning. Michael Harris, a local black historian, said he strongly believes the discussion around the name change distracts from the larger conversation about how to remember and honor the contributions of black miners to the region.

“If we’re going to say the n-word and put a 21st-century context to it, it’s disrespectful, nobody’s going to call us Negro today, but historically that’s what we were,” said Harris, who was a strong supporter of keeping the name.

“Given the contextual nature of the period in question, 1840-1875, that’s what it is,” Harris said.

He is wary of changing the name to make some people more comfortable with the story.

“The idea of focusing on the name is intentionally disrespectful, it presupposes derogatory treatment, and it certainly denies one of the contributions of people of African descent in the era of the gold rush.”

This part of Lake Folsom lies along a bend in the American River. It’s a popular launch site for paddleboarders and kayakers, and visitors can see the site where African-American miners first found gold as they made their way to the river’s edge. According to State Parks, the term Negro Bar was first documented in an 1850 newspaper article which noted that black miners had discovered gold at this site.

But in recent years, the name has become controversial. In 2018, a black woman, Phaedra Jones, was driving to deliver food to The Cliff House of Folsom when she passed the sign for Negro Bar. She was immediately disturbed and eventually created a petition to demand that state parks be renamed.

Since then, the scrutiny around the name of the entry has increased. In 2020, a coalition of Folsom residents came together to lobby for the name change.

Jenn Johnson is black and lives in town. She grew up in Folsom and is part of the C3 coalition which is pushing for change. She said that while living in the predominantly white town, she always felt uncomfortable with the name Negro Bar and therefore avoids going there.

“I’m not going to show up and go to a place called Negro Bar where all the other people are white-skinned using that term,” Johnson said. “That’s not an acceptable term to use, so why are we using it as a state park name?”

Some, like Sacramento NAACP President Betty Williams, have noted that the word “nigger” had a different meaning when it was originally given to mark this historic spot to remember the contributions of black miners.

“During that time, the word Negro was seen as a professional and a word that described professional and hard-working African Americans, Black African Americans,” Williams said.

But Williams also acknowledged that the words change meaning over time. She added that her organization had debated for years whether to push State Parks to change its name and was divided in its opinions. In the end, she says, they decided to leave it to the community.

“Now here we are in 2022, and you have a different generation, so you go from black to black to African American, and some people have gone back to black,” Williams said. “So the debate is whether we are basing it on what they felt at the time, or are we conforming to today’s times where the use of the word nigger to identify a historical area n not seen as something positive?

Now State Parks has said it will consider a name change. The California State Park Commission will address the issue in a vote in June.

Alexandra Stehl, assistant director of strategic planning and recreation services for state parks, said the discussion to rename the area is part of a larger effort to reconsider the history of state parks. .

“We build on efforts to support equity and inclusion, and this area has been requested in the past to be renamed,” Stehl said. “State Parks has agreed that renaming this area is a priority.”

Stehl said some options for a new name include Black Miners Bar, Black Freedom Bar, African American Bar and Historic Negro Bar, among others.

She adds that apart from a name change, the department will also embark on an educational campaign to help visitors fully understand the history of the park and its importance to the California Gold Rush.

“We try to keep this historic value very high, but at the same time we want to make sure we’re looking for a name that’s inclusive and doesn’t create barriers for people who want to enjoy the park,” Stehl said.

Folsom resident Jenn Johnson said she hoped a new name would be considered.

“If we try to move forward and educate ourselves and be better, we want to love our future generations, and if people like me, young people in their twenties, say and shout from the top of their hills, ‘That word has been used in this community to hurt me,’ the least we can do is bow to that and make them feel more welcome,” Johnson said. “And hopefully I can going to the park in the future without feeling completely sick because of that name.”

State Parks said renaming a park — the name of which might be considered offensive in modern times — is nothing new. They mentioned Su-meg State Park as a recent example. The park was renamed to honor the indigenous people who lived there, replacing one that honored a man who colonized the area.

Canadian army

Creative goaltender Emile Francis introduced the trapper glove to the NHL

by Rodney N. on February 23, 2022

New York Rangers coach Emile Francis shouts after the Rangers score against the Philadelphia Flyers in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Philadelphia in April 1974.Brian Horton/Associated Press

Championships are wonderful but they are not everything.

Emile Francis never won the Stanley Cup in his professional hockey life as a player, coach and manager, but the short man who introduced the goaltender’s trapper glove remains a giant for his accomplishments and his personality. Mr Francis died on Saturday at the age of 95.

The high point of his five-decade hockey career came as the National Hockey League grew from a modest group of six teams to a business enterprise three times the size of the mid-1960s through the mid-1960s. 1970. Taking over the New York Rangers operation that had languished in the depths of the standings for two decades, Mr. Francis built a formidable team that couldn’t quite overcome more powerful teams in Montreal, Boston and Chicago.

Nicknamed “The Cat” for his speed at playing junior hockey, Mr. Francis was a goaltender who, at 5-foot-7 and no more than 155 pounds, was undersized even by the standards of the time. Even as a boy growing up in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, he made up for that with a sharp, creative mind.

“I was always a little guy, so I had to rely on my wits – and no one was going to cheat me on anything,” Mr. Francis recalled in an interview with this reporter in 2003. “Sister Mary Berchmans taught me that at École du Couvent de l’Enfant-Jésus primary school in North Battleford, I was in front of goal in an hour-long game against Connaught School for the Championship of elementary schools. Whenever I had the chance, I would throw the puck over the boards in the snow, which was okay by the rules at the time.

“We won 1-0 but Connaught didn’t want to give us the trophy because of my tactics. When we told Sister Mary about it, she took me to Connaught School in a taxi, stormed into the principal, who was also their hockey coach, and demanded the trophy. We took it back and Sister Mary declared school holidays.

Emile Francis was born September 13, 1926 in North Battleford. His teenage years were heavily affected by World War II, but the quirks of his age, the war’s effect on the NHL, and his eligibility to serve kept him away from the battlefields.

“American hockey teams needed players so badly during World War II that they recruited teenagers,” Francis said. “I was barely past my 17th birthday and I was playing one goal for the Philadelphia Falcons, then the Washington Lions, of the Amateur Hockey League East.”

Nicknamed “The Cat” for his speed at playing junior hockey, Mr. Francis was a goaltender who, at 5-foot-7 and no more than 155 pounds, was undersized even by the standards of the time.Harry Harris/Associated Press

He joined the Canadian army when he was old enough, but the war ended before he could go overseas and he was discharged in 1945. year of junior hockey eligibility, so I joined the Moose Jaw Canucks.

Moose Jaw went undefeated in the 1945-46 Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League campaign before being eliminated in the Memorial Cup playoffs. Mr. Francis was so impressive that he split the following season between the senior Regina Capitals and the NHL’s Chicago Black Hawks, where he resisted authority to make a goaltending innovation that was as important than the introduction of facial protection by Jacques Plante a decade later.

“I created the first trapper,” he said. “Until then, the two goalkeeper gloves were basically identical, blockers with just a little strap between the thumb and fingers. If you actually tried to catch the puck in your palm, it would knock hell out of your hand. So I took a George McQuinn style baseball mitt – he was a first baseman for the St. Louis Browns – and sewed it onto a regular hockey glove. No one said anything about it until my first NHL game with the Chicago Black Hawks. We are about to begin when King Clancy, who referees the game, is called to the bench by Jack Adams, the Detroit coach. Adams says something, points at me and Clancy skates towards my net.

“’Let me see this glove,’ Clancy said. He looks at my trapper and says, “It’s illegal. You cannot use it.

“’Well,’ I said, ‘you don’t have a game because it’s the only glove I have!’ I had it there. The teams have only dressed one goalkeeper and it would be foolish to bring the emergency goalkeeper down from the stands while the starter is fully healthy. Clancy lets me use the glove, but orders me to bring it to league president Clarence Campbell this weekend when we’re in Montreal so he can rule on it. Campbell endorsed it, and trappers soon became standard equipment.

In the end, Mr. Francis was unable to measure up to NHL standards over the long term. With only six teams in the league with a goaltender each, there wasn’t much of a major league future for someone who was only a Top 10. After a few seasons with the Black Hawks, he was distributed to the New York Rangers, for whom he appeared only sparingly.

“You look at my NHL career line and it’s not much: 95 games, 31-52-11 and a 3.75 goals-against-average,” Francis said. “But every year I’ve played 50 to 70 games, plus playoffs, for American Hockey League teams in New Haven, Cincinnati and Cleveland, and around the old Western Pro Hockey League. for Vancouver, Saskatoon, Seattle, Victoria and Spokane.”

Mr. Francis, however, accumulated a wealth of knowledge about coaching and team management, augmenting his hockey experience with summers as player-manager of the North Battleford semi-pro baseball team. The sport was immensely popular in his home province in the 1950s.

“Every summer I played baseball in Saskatchewan,” Francis said. “For a time the Bentley family got me to join them at Delisle, but the people of North Battleford thought my military background made me a good leader and organizer, so I became player-manager of the North Battleford Beavers . It was good baseball! Some of the best ballplayers around were NHL players like Max and Doug Bentley, Bert Olmstead at Scepter and Gordie Howe at Saskatoon.

“Our rosters were full of great black baseball players because the black leagues had disbanded and organized baseball was slow to integrate. Championship matches were great, but the really serious competition was in tournaments because finishing in the money was what kept your team from going bust.

After retiring from hockey in 1960, Mr. Francis was hired by the Rangers to coach their junior team in Guelph, Ontario. Two years later he was appointed assistant general manager in New York and in 1964 he was promoted to general manager. Early in his tenure on Nov. 22, 1964, he was the center of attention in one of the most bizarre incidents in the NHL. During a home game at the old Madison Square Garden against Detroit, Mr. Francis accosted the goal judge who signaled a Red Wings count and found himself surrounded by hostile fans.

“We end up in a fight,” Mr. Francis recalled. “I’m outnumbered three-to-one and these guys are hammering me good, tearing my face open, when Vic Hadfield sees what’s going on from the ice. He jumps onto the boards, steps over the Plexiglas, and half the team follows him. They save me and give these guys a lick. The league fined us all, but what really freaked me out was that the three guys sued me for a million dollars, and after the case dragged through the courts, they got $80,000.

Mr Francis took over the coaching reins at Rangers in 1966, resigning twice but returning behind the bench after Bernie Geoffrion and Larry Popein were unable to last more than half a season. As Rangers coach, Mr. Francis posted an impressive record of 342-209-103.

“Rangers were also lost players when I joined them, but we produced good young players like Rod Gilbert, Jean Ratelle and Brad Park, acquired goalkeeper Ed Giacomin from the minors, made good trades and became strong contenders. . We never won the Stanley Cup but we came close, especially in 1972 when everything was in place until Ratelle broke his ankle. We led the Bruins to six games in the final; I know we would have beaten them with Ratelle in there.

“Managing and coaching Rangers was aggravating because the Madison Square Garden corporation owned the team and treated it like an afterthought,” he once said, recalling they had to play playoff games on the road because the circus had priority for the April dates. The ice cream in the garden was also terrible.

“I blew my peak in 1975 when one of our best defensemen, Dale Rolfe, skated on a spot where the ice had worn out and suffered a terrible broken leg, ended his his career immediately. “I’ve seen better ice on the highways in Saskatchewan,” I told reporters, and I meant it. Bill Jennings, the Rangers chairman, didn’t like it when I said what I thought, which might have something to do with my dismissal in 1976.”

Mr. Francis was soon hired to be general manager of the St. Louis Blues, where his seven-year tenure included a struggle to keep the team financially solvent. He moved on to a six-year run as chairman and general manager of the Hartford Whalers before retiring in 1989. Neither the Blues nor the Whalers could match the winning consistency of the Rangers, and Mr Francis is denied the glory of a Stanley Cup title. .

“Of course I had my disappointments,” Mr. Francis said, “like playing all those years in the minors and never winning the Stanley Cup, but all the while I had the best time of my life. life.”

He was enshrined as a builder in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982. For his contributions to hockey in the United States, he was awarded the Lester Patrick Trophy and the International Wayne Gretzky Award. He was a longtime member of the Hockey Hall of Fame Veterans Committee and became an exceptional storyteller and ambassador for the game.

He and his wife, Emma, who died in 2020 after 68 years of marriage, had two sons: Bob, who had a brief playing and coaching career in the NHL, and Rick. He leaves his two sons.

International headquarters

ASOFARMA CENTRAL AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN, THROUGH ITS ADIUM HEADQUARTERS, SIGNS AN IMPORTANT AGREEMENT WITH MODERNA INC. TO COLLABORATE IN THE DISTRIBUTION AND MARKETING OF VACCINES AGAINST COVID 19 IN THE REGION

by Rodney N. on February 23, 2022

Within the framework of the agreement concluded, ASOFARMA will collaborate with Moderna in the management of supply contracts already in force, as well as in the processes of registration of vaccines, support for pharmacovigilance activities, continuing medical education, business governmental, marketing and generation of new agreements that facilitate the availability of SPIKEVAX in the region.

“We are thrilled to partner with Moderna to help patients, physicians and governments in this effort against COVID-19. Moderna is a leading company in the fight against the pandemic, and we are proud to have been chosen as partners for this task, providing all our experience and regional presence,” said Bernardo GiralaGeneral Manager of ASOFARMA Central America and Caribbean.

“This alliance confirms our goal to provide people with innovative treatments that help improve their quality of life and expand vaccination rates in the region,” Girala said.

Moderna Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering the development of messenger RNA (mRNA) therapies and vaccines, has relied on ASOFARMA to enable the arrival in the region of its COVID 19 vaccine, Spikevax .

Moderna’s mRNA platform is based on continuous advancements in basic and applied mRNA science, delivery and manufacturing technology; which has enabled the development of therapies and vaccines for infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, rare diseases, cardiovascular diseases and autoimmune diseases.

With this new agreement concluded by ASOFARMA, Moderna Inc. joins a list of international pharmaceutical and biotechnology research and development companies that ASOFARMA has represented in the region for more than twenty years.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1752293/ASOFARMA.jpg

SOURCE ASOFARMA CENTROAMERICA AND CARIBE

Non profit living

Italian town raises funds to pay pensioners’ rising energy bills

by Rodney N. on February 23, 2022

FLORENCE, Italy (AP) — Florence is famous for its contributions to Italian art, architecture and cuisine. But these days, local leaders in the city considered the birthplace of the Renaissance are preoccupied with more mundane matters: paying the bills.

Amid soaring energy costs across Europe, officials at Palazzo Vecchio – the building that serves as both city hall and museum in Florence – have teamed up with a nonprofit local charity to help fixed-income retirees retain their power through an “Adopt-a-Bill” fundraising campaign.

“Florence is a city where you live well, and for this reason too, people live very long,” said Mayor Dario Nardella.

However, a significant number of retirees in Florence live on less than 9,000 euros ($10,205) a year and cannot afford to make ends meet with an expected 55% increase in home electricity costs and a 42% rise in residential gas bills, he mentioned.

The widower Luigi Boni, 96, confirms this. He says that by the end of February he will have emptied his bank account and spent his monthly pension check of less than 600 euros ($680) before covering the charges.

“Either I eat or I pay the rent,” Boni said as he sat on his sofa, a daily newspaper in his hand.

To help him and others of Florence’s approximately 30,000 residents over the age of 65 who live alone, the city administration launched the fundraising campaign with the non-profit Montedomini Foundation, which runs projects aimed at helping the city’s retirees.

The campaign raised 33,000 euros (over $37,000) in its first days. Private citizens, including Florentines living abroad, made more than 200 donations, according to city social councilor Sara Funaro.

“Our goal is to raise funds to ensure that every elderly person who comes to us for help can receive help to cover the increase in bills due to the increase (in energy costs),” Funaro said.

Soaring energy prices are pushing up utility bills – and driving inflation to a record high – from Poland to the UK. In response, governments across Europe are rushing to provide aid to residents and businesses as utility companies pass the costs on to consumers.

In Turkey, where economic pressure is extreme and has fueled protests, Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir are among opposition-run municipalities with similar Pass a Bill initiatives. The Istanbul municipal website says nearly 49 million Turkish liras (around $3.6 million) have been donated since 2020, covering 320,000 utility bills.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s government has passed measures valued at more than 8 billion euros ($9 billion) to help mitigate the impact of soaring energy prices for businesses and individuals.

The latest government decree, published on Friday, also had a forward-looking component: it aimed to accelerate Italy’s transition to more renewable energy sources, particularly solar power, to make the country less dependent on imported supplies. .

Italy currently imports 90% of its gas, much of it from Russia, and Draghi insisted that any European Union sanctions aimed at punishing Russia for recognizing two separatist-held areas in the east of Ukraine must exempt the energy sector.

The association of Italian mayors has said the government’s response has so far been insufficient to help cities cope with hundreds of millions of euros in additional energy costs, forcing them to choose between balancing budgets or cutting costs. services.

Florence, Rome and other cities kept their civic monuments and local government buildings dark on February 10 to draw attention to the situation.

Florence’s Adopt-a-Bill campaign has popular support. As well as being a top tourist destination, the capital of the Italian region of Tuscany has a long history of success in providing social services to poor and vulnerable residents.

“It’s a great initiative because you can help people who can’t come to pay a bill that has shamelessly reached unsustainable costs,” said Luca Menoni, owner of a butcher shop in the food market. covered with Sant’Ambrogio in Florence.

“I’m paying a (electricity) bill myself that’s double what I used to pay,” Menoni said.

Boni may be getting help with her energy bills to get her through the winter and avoid a planned move to a retirement home. But he’s still on a tight budget that doesn’t allow for a lot of luxury.

“Steaks? Me at? Let’s not even talk about it. I eat (cheap) packaged food,” he said. After the death of his wife, he said: “I became an expert in economical cooking.

___

Nicole Winfield in Rome and Zeynep Bilginsoy in Istanbul contributed to this report.

Canadian army

Harrogate’s Stonefall Cemetery will host special guided tours for International Women’s Day and Commonwealth Day

by Rodney N. on February 22, 2022

If York had not suffered a terrible bombardment in April 1942, Private Dorothy Thompson would have expected to be married in May.

The Harrogate wife had joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) around 1940 and by 1942 she was stationed at York.

However, in the early hours of April 29, 1942, the town came under attack, with bombs falling from 40 German aircraft for nearly two hours.

Sea Cadet Lucia Leeming-Sheppard places candles at Canadian Air Force graves during a Candlelight Remembrance Christmas at the Commonwealth War Graves at Stonefall Cemetery, Harrogate in December. Photo: Tony Johnson.

One of the bombs fell on a pair of semi-detached houses on Nunthorpe Grove, numbers 23 and 25. They were destroyed alongside the neighboring pair, numbers 19 and 21.

Pte Thompson lived at number 21 and was discovered several days later at the bottom of a bomb crater. Aged just 24, she was the first member of the Northern Command ATS to be killed by enemy action.

She is one of six female victims commemorated at Stonefall Cemetery in Harrogate and visitors will have a rare chance to learn more about her story and that of the other five.

To jointly mark International Women’s Day and Commonwealth Day, when the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) offers free themed guided tours of the cemetery in March.

Private Dorothy Thompson.

Guided tours for International Women’s Day (March 5 and 6, and the day itself on March 8) will highlight the six women, who also include those who served in the Territorial Army Nursing Service and sister Florrie Perst, of Bilton, who was in Dunkirk, in Africa and also on hospital ships in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.

During Commonwealth Day tours (March 12-14, the latter being the actual day of remembrance), the public can learn about the victims from across the Commonwealth who are buried at Stonefall.

These include the Hannah brothers, who served in the Royal Canadian Air Force but died within months of each other, and Sergeant Isikeli Doviverata Komaisavai – known as “Ratu Dovi” – a descendant of the last king of Fiji, who fought for Britain. but died after being diagnosed with lung disease and was buried in Stonefall.

The tours are part of the CWGC’s “Ordinary People Extraordinary Times Around The World” campaign.

Elizabeth Smith, public engagement co-ordinator for the North East of England, said: ‘The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is looking after 170,000 war graves from both world wars at over 12,500 locations across the UK. United.

“The Air Force ground at Stonefall Cemetery is unique in the north of England due to its size and its resemblance to our sites overseas. The themed guided tours at Stonefall Cemetery will give locals the opportunity to reconnect with their history, learn more about the work of the CWGC, and discover the remarkable stories of the men and women who are buried in their community.

The Commission aims to honor the men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died in the First and Second World Wars, ensuring that they are never forgotten. Funded by six member governments, its work began with building and now maintaining cemeteries in 23,000 locations around the world.

During World War II, nearly 1,000 servicemen were buried at Stonefall Cemetery. Many of them came from across the Commonwealth and they include more than 600 Canadian and nearly 100 Australian servicemen, as well as casualties from East Africa, the Caribbean, New Zealand and Fiji.

The free thematic guided tours will take place between Saturday March 5 and Monday March 14.

Reservations can be made at www.cwgc.org/our-war-graves-your-history/what-s-happening-near-you/

International headquarters

Chinese Cryptocurrency Exchange Huobi Plans US Back-to-School

by Rodney N. on February 22, 2022

Chinese cryptocurrency exchange Huobi plans to re-enter the U.S. market more than two years after ceasing operations to comply with regulations, one of the company’s co-founders told CNBC.

But the company may not launch an exchange and may instead focus on other areas such as asset management, after missteps last time around, according to Du Jun.

“In 2018 we tried to enter the US market but quickly pulled out because we didn’t have a strong market commitment at that time and we didn’t have a good management team in the States. States,” Du said according to a CNBC translation of his Mandarin comments.

“I expect asset management to be a bigger business than trading, which also echoes the traditional financial market,” he told CNBC, adding, “I don’t think that the exchange is a necessary element of entering the United States”.

Du did not confirm which Huobi company will launch first when it returns to the United States. A return to the US market could put Huobi in competition with companies like Coinbase. Huobi is one of the top 10 cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume in the world, according to CoinGecko.

Huobi first launched a cryptocurrency exchange business in the United States in 2018. The following year, the company announced that it would freeze US user accounts and added that it would return to the market in a “more integrated and impactful fashion”.

Huobi Group owns an exchange business and an asset management business called Huobi Tech, which is listed in Hong Kong.

The US push is part of a larger international expansion plan after several years of tighter crypto regulations in China, the market where Huobi was founded. Last year, Beijing sought to completely eliminate cryptocurrency mining in China and crack down on loopholes that allowed Chinese citizens to trade.

At the end of 2021, Huobi retired existing mainland Chinese user accounts and chose Singapore as its headquarters in Asia.

Du said Huobi lost around 30% of its revenue due to the shutdown of users in China. But it gave the company new impetus for international expansion. It plans to set up a headquarters in Europe, in addition to its US push.

Learn more about cryptocurrencies from CNBC Pro

“Regarding the number of resources or personnel that we will deploy for the international market, we have no choice but to use all our strength to move forward in our global strategy,” said From. “In the past, we explored a new market and we could always walk out if it didn’t work out. Now Huobi has no choice but to go global.”

Chinese regulations

Du praised China’s strict cryptocurrency regulations as they tackled gambling and money laundering cases. The Huobi co-founder said the regulations protect small investors. He said, however, that other countries should not follow China’s approach as investors may be more mature in other markets.

“In China, when people lose in their investment, sometimes extreme people jump from the regulator building and investors are less mature. The government took a similar approach to Covid restriction. It sensed danger and took measures. measures to protect people’s safety,” Du said.

“In other regions, we can say that investors are more mature. They have more experience and they take responsibility for their investment decisions and therefore the governments of these markets do not need to take strict measures.”

Global regulators are considering rules for cryptocurrency, from trading to how it should be taxed. This month, India has proposed a 30% tax on any income from the transfer of digital assets. Meanwhile, the United States is still considering how to regulate cryptocurrencies.

Non profit living

Prosecutor says racism drove men to hunt and kill Ahmaud Arbery: live updates

by Rodney N. on February 21, 2022

Credit…Nicole Craine for The New York Times

Three white men were convicted in November of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, after suspecting him of carrying out a series of break-ins in their South Georgia neighborhood. The men were sentenced to life in prison in January and now face federal hate crime charges.

Here’s what we know about the circumstances of Mr. Arbery’s death.

Ahmaud Arbery, a former high school football player, lived with his mother outside of the small town of Brunswick, Georgia. He had spent some time in college but seemed to be on a drift in his twenties, testing various careers, working on his rapping skills and living with his mother. He also suffered from a mental illness that caused him auditory hallucinations.

On Sunday, February 23, 2020, shortly before 1 p.m., Mr. Arbery was running in a suburban neighborhood called Satilla Shores, when a man standing in his front yard saw him pass, according to a police report. The man, Gregory McMichael, said he thought Mr Arbery looked like a man suspected of several burglaries in the area and called Travis McMichael, his son.

According to the police report, the men grabbed a .357 Magnum handgun and a shotgun, got into a pickup truck and chased Mr. Arbery, trying unsuccessfully to cut him. A third man, William Bryan, also joined the chase in a second truck, according to the report and other documents.

In a recording of a 911 call, which appears to have been made moments before the chase began, a neighbor told a dispatcher that a black man was inside a house under construction on the block of the McMichaels.

During the chase, the McMichaels shouted, “Stop, stop, we want to talk to you,” according to Gregory McMichael’s account in the police report. They then pulled up to Mr. Arbery and Travis McMichael got out of the truck with the shotgun.

Gregory McMichael “said the unidentified man began violently attacking Travis and the two men then began fighting over the shotgun, at which point Travis fired a shot, then a second later , there was a second shot,” the report said.

Mr. Arbery was unarmed.

Shortly after the shooting, Brunswick Circuit Court Attorney Jackie Johnson recused herself because Gregory McMichael had worked in her office.

The case was sent to George E. Barnhill, the district attorney for Waycross, Georgia, who later recused himself after Mr Arbery’s mother argued he had a conflict because her son was working also for the District Attorney of Brunswick.

But before dropping the case, Mr Barnhill wrote a letter to the Glynn County Police Department. In the letter, he argued there was not sufficient probable cause to arrest Mr Arbery’s pursuers.

Mr. Barnhill noted that the McMichaels were legally carrying their firearms under Georgia’s open carry law. He said they were within their rights to pursue what he called “a burglary suspect” and cited a state law that says, “A private person may arrest a violator if the offense is committed in his presence or to his immediate knowledge”. This so-called Citizens’ Arrest Act was largely dismantled in response to the Arbery case.

Mr Barnhill also argued that if Mr Arbery attacked Travis McMichael, Mr McMichael was “authorized to use deadly force to protect himself” under Georgia law.

Anger over the murder and the lack of consequences for the McMichaels grew when a graphic video surfaced showing the shooting on a suburban road.

The cellphone video, shot by Mr Bryan, is about half a minute long. It shows Mr. Arbery running along a shaded two-lane residential road when he comes across a white truck, with Travis McMichael standing next to the open driver’s side door with a shotgun. Gregory McMichael is in the bed of the pickup with a handgun.

Mr. Arbery runs around the truck and briefly disappears from view. Muffled screams can be heard before Mr. Arbery emerges, fighting with Travis McMichael outside the truck as three shotgun blasts ring out.

Mr. Arbery tries to run but staggers and falls to the sidewalk after a few steps.

History organization

Science education teacher named Fellow of Linnean Society of London

by Rodney N. on February 21, 2022

Photo submitted

Professor William McComas stands next to the statue of Charles Darwin, a member of the Linnean Society, at the Natural History Museum in London.

William F. McComas, Emeritus Parks Family Professor of Science Education at the College of Education and Health Professions, was elected a Fellow at the 2021 Autumn Meeting of the Linnean Society of London. He joins a host of other scientists and scholars who have been members and fellows over the organization’s more than 230-year history.

The Linnean Society, the world’s oldest active biological society, was founded in 1788 and named for Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus, who established the system used to name and classify the biological world. The Linnaean system allows scientists “to identify baselines and track the impact of human activity on the environment around us, including the food supply, as we face the combined challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change,” according to the website.

Membership in the organization is open to professional scientists and amateurs who share an interest in natural history. “The Fellowship is international and includes world leaders in every branch of biology who use the Society’s facilities and publications to communicate new advances in their fields,” McComas said. Many notable scientists have been members, including Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, the co-discoverers of natural selection, a key mechanism of evolution.

McComas was recommended as a Fellow because of his work in evolutionary education, Darwin studies and his writing of The American biology professorthe journal of the National Association of Biology Teachers.

The Linnean Society is headquartered in New Burlington House, a neo-Palladian mansion in the Mayfair district of London. It shares the building with four other learned societies, the Geological Society, the Royal Astronomical Society, the Society of Antiquaries and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Since 1829, the society has safeguarded Linnaeus’s personal books, as well as his collection of flora and fauna. Additionally, it maintains an extensive library focusing on natural history, biodiversity, environment, conservation, and related topics. The society supports grassroots scholarship, public education, and informed policymaking.

Canadian army

Russia extends military exercises in Belarus, raising fears of Ukraine invasion

by Rodney N. on February 20, 2022

Tanks move during the Union Courage-2022 Russia-Belarus military exercises at the Obuz-Lesnovsky training ground in Belarus on February 19.Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr/Associated Press

Russian troops in Belarus did not return to their home bases as planned on Sunday, instead continuing military exercises near the Ukrainian border and raising fears that Russia could soon launch a three-pronged attack on Ukraine.

The 10-day drills involving some 30,000 Russian troops, along with Belarusian forces, began Feb. 10, and their expected conclusion was one of the most watched signals of whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would choose to step up or to ease the months- old crisis around Ukraine. No end date was given for the extended exercises.

The continued presence of Russian troops in Belarus leaves open the worst case scenario of Russia attacking Ukraine from three directions, with troops in Belarus capable of pushing towards the capital of Kiev from the north. US officials have estimated that Russia now has between 170,000 and 190,000 troops in position around Ukraine. Most are massed along Ukraine’s eastern border, while large numbers are also concentrated in the south on the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula.

Freeland deviates from G20 economic scenario to warn Russia over Ukraine, sources say

If Ukraine is invaded, the US and UK will block Russia’s access to dollars and pounds, UK PM warns

Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said Mr Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had decided to continue the joint exercises due to “increasing military activity on the external borders” of Russia and Belarus, as well as “the aggravation of the situation in Donbass”, a region in the south-east of Ukraine.

“There is a conclusion – that it smells strongly of gunpowder in Europe,” Khrenin said.

On Saturday, the Russian and Belarusian leaders jointly oversaw the start of exercises to test the readiness of Russia’s nuclear arsenal, which is the largest in the world.

Russia says it has no intention of attacking Ukraine. But the Kremlin demanded guarantees that its neighbor will never be allowed to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization – guarantees that the United States and the alliance of 30 NATO countries have said they would not give.

French President Emmanuel Macron called Mr Putin on Sunday in what the Elysee Palace described as “a last-ditch effort to avoid a Russian invasion of Ukraine”. Afterwards, the Kremlin said Mr Putin had told the French leader that the United States and NATO must respond to Russia’s demands “in a concrete and substantial way”. Moscow says NATO’s eastward expansion in the three decades since the end of the Cold War is a threat to its security.

Mr Putin believes Ukraine has been under de facto Western control since a 2014 revolution that toppled a pro-Moscow president. Mr Putin said last week he believed Ukraine’s military was committing “genocide” in the predominantly Russian-speaking region of Donbass, which is part of Ukraine but is under the control of a militia backed by Moscow for eight years. .

Fighting between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian militants in Donbass has killed more than 14,000 people since 2014. The United Nations monitoring mission for Ukraine says that while both sides have committed human rights abuses Man, there is no evidence to support Mr. Putin’s claim. of genocide.

Since Mr Putin’s remarks, however, there have been a series of explosions and other alleged attacks in separatist-held areas, raising fears the Kremlin is manufacturing a provocation to use as justification for an invasion. pre-planned from Ukraine. US President Joe Biden said on Friday he believed Mr Putin had already made up his mind to attack.

After a visit to the Donbass frontline on Saturday, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe mission that monitors ceasefire violations had been weakened after Canada, the United States and Britain ordered their nationals to leave early. this month as concerns mounted over a possible Russian invasion.

Ms Vereshchuk said impartial reporting on what was happening in eastern Ukraine was now more important than ever and called on Ottawa, Washington and London to “review” their decision to withdraw from the mission. OSCE.

“We need to have a clear record of these situations. We have to make sure every incident is properly documented,” she told The Globe and Mail after visiting a kindergarten in the frontline town of Stanytsia Luhanska which was hit by a shell last week. injuring three staff members.

Canada and several other Western governments have also temporarily closed their embassies in Kyiv and moved staff to the city of Lviv, near the Ukraine-Poland border. Canada also withdrew the 260-soldier Operation Unifier that had been training the Ukrainian military for seven years, and Ottawa advised all Canadian citizens to leave Ukraine “now”.

Russia and Belarus, which are close military allies, say the tension in Eastern Europe has been caused by NATO, which has deployed additional troops to alliance member countries Poland, Romania and the Baltic States in response to Russian military build-up.

Andrei Sannikov, a Belarusian dissident who in 2010 ran for president against Mr Lukashenko in an election widely seen as rigged, said joint military exercises in Belarus posed a threat not only to Ukraine, but also for the sovereignty of his country.

Their extension almost certainly means that Russian troops will be in Belarus during the February 27 referendum on constitutional changes that would allow Mr Lukashenko, who came to power in 1994, to remain president until 2035.

“The referendum will be held under the presence of foreign troops, under the threat that foreign troops will be used against the civilian population,” Sannikov said.

“Russia now completely controls Belarus. You can see how Belarus is being used as a springboard… which not only threatens Ukraine, but also Europe.

Ukraine says Russian-backed separatists are to blame after a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska was bombed and videos of fleeing civilians made in separatist-controlled areas of Donetsk are fabricated.

The Globe and Mail

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International headquarters

Russian and Belarusian troops will continue readiness checks, says Belarusian defense minister

by Rodney N. on February 20, 2022

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. (Matt Dunham/Pool/AFP/Getty Images)

Russia is planning ‘the biggest war in Europe since 1945’, says British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the BBC during an interview broadcast on Sunday.

“I’m afraid to say the plan we see is for something that could really be the biggest war in Europe since 1945,” he said.

He added that “people need to understand the cost in human lives that this could entail not only for Ukrainians, but also for Russians and young Russians.”

On the issue of sanctions, Johnson said the goal was to impact not just “Vladimir Putin’s associates but also all companies, organizations of strategic importance to Russia.”

“We are going to prevent Russian companies from raising funds in the UK markets and we are going, even with our American friends, to prevent them from trading in pounds and dollars, which will be very difficult,” he said.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Saturday, Johnson said that in preparing to invade Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin “made a serious miscalculation”, adding that Moscow would not have “absolutely nothing to gain from this catastrophic enterprise and everything to lose”.

Johnson urged Moscow to defuse tensions before it was too late.

I fear that a blitzkrieg will be followed by a long and hideous period of retaliation, revenge and insurrection, and that Russian parents will mourn the loss of young Russian soldiers, who in their own way are just as innocent as the Ukrainians who are now preparing to attack,” he said.

Johnson said: “We don’t know exactly what President Putin has in mind,” adding that “the omens are bleak and that’s why we need to stay strong together.”

Johnson’s remarks come a day after US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Russia was “putting itself in the right positions to carry out an attack”.

“They’re unfolding and now ready to strike,” Austin said, speaking Saturday from Vilnius, Lithuania.

“If you look at the position he’s in today, it’s obvious [Putin] made a decision and they are moving into the right positions to carry out an attack.

Echoing US President Joe Biden’s assertion that Putin had decided to invade, Austin added that the United States would pursue a diplomatic solution “until the very last minute, until it’s not possible”.

However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has denied increased claims by Western leaders that a Russian invasion is imminent.

Asked about the aggressive use of US intelligence to dissuade Putin from invading Ukraine, Zelensky said he was “grateful for the work that our two intelligence services have done. But the intelligence I trust is my information.

“I trust the Ukrainian intelligence services who … understand what is happening along our borders, who have different sources of intelligence and understand different risks depending on the data intercepted … this information must be used,” Zelensky told Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s chief international anchor. personal interview at the security conference on Saturday.

He continued: “We’re not really living in illusion. We understand what can happen tomorrow…just putting ourselves in coffins and waiting for foreign soldiers to come in is not something we’re prepared to do.”

Zelensky then called on international partners to support Ukraine by investing in the country. “Strengthen our arms… our economy. Invest in our country. Bring your business.

“We are not panicking, we want to live our lives,” he added.

CNN’s Ross Levitt, Karen Smith, Maegan Vazquez, Kevin Liptak, Betsy Klein, Sam Fossum, Emmet Lyons and Lauren Said-Moorhouse contributed to this post.

This post has been updated.

Non profit living

The next affordable city is already too expensive

by Rodney N. on February 20, 2022

Mr. Silbar, the real estate agent, has sold it twice in the past three years. The first time, in November 2019, he represented a buyer who offered $168,000 and got it with no drama. This year it came back on the market and Mr. Silbar listed it for $250,000. Fourteen bids and a bidding war later, it closed at $300,000.

When Mr. Silbar got into the business, he said, his clients were “nurses and teachers,” and now they are business managers, engineers and other professionals. “What you can afford in Spokane has completely changed,” he said.

The typical Spokane-area home is worth $411,000, according to Zillow. That’s still significantly cheaper than markets like the San Francisco Bay Area ($1.4 million), Los Angeles ($878,000), Seattle ($734,000), and Portland ($550,000). But it’s dizzying (and infuriating) for longtime residents.

Five years ago, just over half of Spokane-area homes sold for less than $200,000 and about 70% of its working population could afford to buy a home, according to a recent report commissioned by the Spokane Association of Realtors. Today, less than 5% of homes – a few dozen a month – sell for less than $200,000, and less than 15% of the area’s working population can afford a home. A recent survey by Redfin, the real estate brokerage firm, showed that homebuyers moving to Spokane in 2021 had a 23% higher budget than residents.

One of Mr. Silbar’s clients, Lindsey Simler, a 38-year-old nurse who grew up in Spokane, wants to buy a house for around $300,000 but keeps losing because she doesn’t have enough money to compete. Spokane isn’t so competitive that it’s flooded with all-cash offers, like some higher-priced markets are. But prices have risen so quickly that many homes are being priced below their selling price, forcing buyers to pay higher down payments to cover the difference.

A dozen failed deals later, Ms Simler has decided to sit out the market for a while as the constant loss is so demoralizing. If the prices don’t calm down, she says, she’s considering becoming a travel nurse. With the healthcare workforce so depleted by Covid-19, traveling nursing pays much better and will hopefully save more for a down payment.

“I’m not at the point where I want to give up living in Spokane because I have family here and it feels like home,” she said. “But traveling nursing will be my next step if I haven’t been able to find a home.”

History organization

Fernando Valenzuela becomes the first player to earn $1 million through arbitration

by Rodney N. on February 20, 2022

On February 19, 1983, Fernando Valenzuela became the first player to receive a $1 million salary through the arbitration process with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Salary arbitration at the time was still fairly new to the league. It was first agreed to be added to the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in 1972 after the players went on strike. The following season, the owners locked players out for this issue.

They eventually agreed that arbitration would begin after a player was in the league for two consecutive seasons.

Valenzuela pitched his first two full seasons from 1981 to 1982, so he became eligible for arbitration ahead of the 1983 campaign.

The southpaw had already established himself as one of the best pitchers in MLB, posting ERAs of 2.48 and 2.87 with nearly 500 innings pitched over the two seasons and starting what became known as the of “Fernandomania”.

Valenzuela was also named the winner of the National League’s Cy Young Award in 1981, along with the NL Rookie of the Year, so he was set to get a significant raise.

The million dollars received by Valenzuela was almost double the average player salary of $520,839 in the 1983 season and more than 28 times the minimum salary of $35,000.

In the 1983 season, Valenzuela ended up stepping back from his previous two years by pitching to a 3.75 ERA, but he still managed to pitch 257 innings in 35 starts. Valenzuela also won the Silver Slugger Award and made the All-Star Game for a third straight season.

He pitched for the Dodgers for seven more seasons after 1983, before bouncing around the league for his final six years before retiring.

Dodgers mourn the death of Don Newcombe

Also on this day in 2019, the Dodgers announced that Don Newcombe died after a long illness at the age of 92.

“Don Newcombe’s presence and life have established him as a role model for major leaguers across the country,” Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten said in a statement at the time.

“He was a constant presence at Dodger Stadium and players always gravitated to him for his endless guidance and leadership. The Dodgers meant everything to him and we’re all lucky he was a part of our lives.

Newcombe was one of the organization’s last ties to Brooklyn, playing with Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella among the first African-American players in MLB history.

In seven and a half total seasons with the Dodgers organization, Newcombe won Rookie of the Year in 1949, Cy Young and MVP in 1956, and appeared in four All-Star Games.

Are you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date with all the Dodgers news and rumors!

Canadian army

What could be more surprising than the news of the war in 1944? Women allowed to drive taxis in Guelph

by Rodney N. on February 19, 2022

Someone came to the conclusion that if Rosie the Riveter could build ships and tanks, her sisters could drive taxis

On January 15, 1944, while Canada was embroiled in battle against the Axis powers, the Guelph Mercury published an article that was startling even among war reports. Magistrate Frederick Watt, chairman of the police commission, announced at its inaugural meeting that women would be allowed to drive taxis in Guelph.

Of course, there were already female drivers on Canadian roads, but they were the exception, and the notion that women were bad drivers had long been well established. Apparently, women were terrible drivers because they weren’t cut out to drive cars, being: too emotional to handle the stress of driving, too likely to pass out or pass out in a critical situation, too easily distracted, not smart enough for something as complicated as driving and knowing all the rules of the road, and not physically strong enough to comfortably operate a motor vehicle (there was no power steering or power brakes at the time).

When it came to winter driving, women were supposed to be unable to cope with the difficulties of snow and ice. Drowsy female driver jokes were commonplace for comedians. A classic George Burns and Gracie Allen comedy routine had ditzy Gracie asking for a driver’s license.

Driving a car was generally considered a man’s job. In most families, even if the wife knew how to drive, whenever she and her husband were both in the car, the driver’s seat was naturally hers. A real man wouldn’t let the little woman drive unless it was really necessary.

There were even more reasons why sitting behind the wheel of a taxi was not considered a place for a woman. Besides traffic hassles, taxi drivers also had to deal with passengers who could be impatient, angry, rude and generally uncivil. There were men who were visitors to town who expected taxi drivers to know where to take them if they were looking for a bit of “action”.

It wasn’t just that nice ladies weren’t supposed to know such places existed, let alone where to find them; there were also fears that female taxi drivers were targeted by men on the prowl.

The demands of World War II changed that. There were so many men in the armed forces that there was a shortage of manpower for jobs generally considered exclusively male. Women now did “men’s work” in factories, on construction sites and in primary industries.

Someone came to the conclusion that while Rosie the Riveter could build ships and tanks, her sisters could drive taxis. In addition, women drove trucks and jeeps for the Canadian army and ferried planes for the Royal Canadian Air Force. (A year from now, young Princess Elizabeth would be serving in the British Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service as a driver and mechanic.)

The Mercury report said:

“Responding to a call from two local taxi companies, requesting permission to employ women as drivers due to the shortage of men, the commission agreed to accede to the request, as a temporary measure, under specific conditions.”

One of the requirements was that each applicant for a taxi driver’s license had to be approved by Guelph Police Chief Harold Nash, but this was common in all communities in Ontario. The rule was intended not only to ensure that drivers could operate a motor vehicle safely and competently, but also to protect the public from “undesirables”. Men with criminal records would generally be denied a taxi driver’s license.

Another requirement stated that female taxi drivers in Guelph would be “restricted to the daytime period of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.” visitors to the city looking for “a bit of action”.

Of course, once women entered the driving profession, they were here to stay, in Guelph and everywhere else; not only in taxis, but also in trucks, buses and any other type of vehicle on wheels. Female passengers often specifically requested a female driver when phoning for a taxi, and there were examples of taxi companies employing only female drivers.

Statistics compiled by police departments and car insurance companies have shown that, far from being the giddy female drivers of old jokes, female drivers in general get fewer traffic violations than male drivers, are less more likely to be involved in traffic accidents than men and are less likely to drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Not at all the stereotypical caricature of the 1940s.

International headquarters

Ukraine and US say vehicle explosion in separatist-controlled town was staged

by Rodney N. on February 19, 2022

French President Emmanuel Macron called on Friday for a end of military activities in the Ukrainian region of Donbassafter Ukrainian Armed Forces and separatists controlling parts of eastern Ukraine spoke of new shelling.

“In a context where Russian military pressure does not weaken, where destabilization increases, where bombardments in the contact zone have resumed, we first call for the cessation of these military actions, and for a rapid de-escalation”, Macron said at the European Union-African Union summit in Brussels. “Very clearly, there is [military] actions that have multiplied. These actions, in our view, must stop because they contravene the agreements that have been reached, the ceasefires that have been respected so far, and for which all parties concerned had recently reiterated their support.”

Macron said Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) teams should clarify the events of the past few hours and days.

In an earlier statement, the OSCE said the organization is “aware that Russia intends to create a pretext to justify an invasion” in Ukraine, and has received reports that detail “Russia’s efforts to fabricating supposed “Ukrainian provocations” and shaping a public narrative”. that would justify a Russian invasion.

“Several weeks ago we learned that the Russian government was planning to stage a fabricated attack by the Ukrainian military or security forces against Russian sovereign territory, or against Russian speakers in separatist-controlled territory, to justify military action against Ukraine,” the OSCE statement said.

“We must resolutely refute the false narrative of a Ukrainian ‘escalation’ which finds no evidence in the reports of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission,” the statement added.

Macron echoed remarks from other NATO allies, noting that he had seen “no evidence of Russian military disengagement at this stage.”

“I welcome the statements of President (Vladimir) Putin, but I believe that if we want to be a reliable partner, it is always good that the actions are in line with the statements, and therefore we want to be able to have concrete elements that follow them, ” , he told reporters.

“We call for the reopening of constructive negotiations, as we continue to believe that this situation can be resolved through dialogue,” Macron said.

He also noted that the “next hours” would see “close coordination between European and American allies”, who will aim to provide an “appropriate response” by the end of the day.

“I heard the words of the Russian president. Now we have to take action, and we have to work with great precision and commitment to stabilize and then de-escalate the situation in collaboration with Russia,” Macron said. “It’s essential.”

Non profit living

Hometown Alaska: Teens talk coping with COVID

by Rodney N. on February 18, 2022

Young people trying to stay connected during the Covid pandemic. Wikimedia Commons image by SGerbic,

In this week’s Hometown Alaska, teenagers in Anchorage describe how they suffered, endured and even grew while living under the Covid pandemic. We’ll hear from teens from Alaska Teen Media Institute (ATMI), Covenant House, and MHATS, which stands for Mental Health Advocacy Through Storytelling, a nonprofit organization founded and run by students in Anchorage.

ATMI students have started creating a series called “Podcast in Place, Youth Stories from Quarantine” recorded at home due to COVID constraints. Topics include individual student reactions to school closures and uncertainty, interviews with Alaska’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Anne Zink, and a multi-generational family interview (grandparents, their daughter and their grandchildren) on immunization information and engagement management.

Two Covenant House students talk about the emotional impact of isolation and job loss due to restaurant closures during the pandemic.

The MHATS teens describe their commitment to better mental health education for young people in school, and their own ups and downs throughout the pandemic.

Either way, these students were changed by the experience of living through Covid. They also represent an age group, according to the CDC, that has the lowest rate of vaccination and booster compliance.

This program has been pre-recorded for scheduling purposes, so hosts will not take your calls during the program. However, we still want to hear from you. Please call our 24/7 registered line (550-8480) and tell us about your own experience. Have you hesitated to get vaccinated or to be vaccinated? What helped you overcome this hesitation?

This program is part of Alaska Public Media’s “Talk to Your Neighbor” project, providing trusted voices and accurate information to listeners about Covid vaccination. APM has partnered with 20 community groups to help overcome vaccine hesitancy.

HOSTS: Kathleen McCoy and ATMI’s Daisy Carter

GUESTS:

Caelan Vossa.k.a PeanutAlliance House
Grace MargesonAlliance House
Abby LauferMHATS
Marshall ivyMHATS
Tara SkidmoreMHATS
daisy carterATMI and Alaska Public Media, co-host and guest

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History organization

Historic Sites Commemorating Black History in Every State | News

by Rodney N. on February 18, 2022

America is making further progress in celebrating black history and triumphs. In 2021, Tishaura Jones became the first black woman elected mayor of St. Louis, just as Kamala Harris was declared the first female vice president of the United States — and the first of black and Asian descent to hold that rank. That same year, Juneteenth (June 17), which signifies the end of slavery in the United States, became a federal holiday through legislation signed by President Joe Biden.

The legacy of influential black Americans has not always been recognized, so it is not uncommon for modern residents to overlook the historic sites of their own cities. While some historical black figures are more renowned than others, there are entire generations of historical black figures – dating back to the days of Jim Crow slavery through the civil rights era – who have left traces of their vision across the country. Whether it be personalities such as Robert Abbott, who founded The Chicago Defender, one of the largest African-American newspapers in the country, or more discreet initiators such as Obrey Wendell Hamlet, who, thanks to its entrepreneurial touch, has cultivated a unique vacation. experiences in the Rocky Mountains – one thing is certain: there are still many more unexplored histories of black people than we know.

In the United States, 232 sites are considered nationally significant to Black history. Using the National Register of Historic Places, Stacker identified historic sites commemorating black history in 47 states. North Dakota, Vermont, Hawaii and Wyoming had no black historic sites on the register. While some states, particularly in the South, are home to many central sites of the civil rights movement, Stacker listed the total number of sites in each state and the names of three historical sites, if any. You can visit the comprehensive Register of Historic Places and explore the Civil Rights Trail to learn about other historic sites across the United States.

Read on to explore and learn about historic sites celebrating Black history nationwide.

You might also like: 50 Black Writers Whose Impact Went Beyond the Page

International headquarters

“I am not here today to start a war, but to prevent one”

by Rodney N. on February 17, 2022

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield at the UN in New York on February 17. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he was speaking to the United Nations about Russia and Ukraine “not to start a war, but to prevent it”.

“I am not here today to start a war, but to prevent it. The information I have presented here is validated by what we have seen unfold before our eyes for months. Alarms like melodrama and nonsense, they have regularly amassed over 150,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders as well as the capabilities to carry out a massive military assault. We are not the only ones to see this. Allies and partners see the same Blinken mentioned.

He urged Russia to use diplomacy as a solution to the crisis.

“And Russia doesn’t just hear about us. The international chorus has grown stronger and stronger,” the US official said. “If Russia does not invade Ukraine, then we will be relieved that Russia has changed course and proven our predictions wrong. It would be a much better outcome than the course we are currently on, and we will gladly accept any criticism than anyone who comes to us.”

Blinken said he sent a letter to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov proposing they meet next week in Europe. It also offers meetings of the NATO-Russia Council and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

“These meetings can pave the way for a summit of key leaders in the context of de-escalation to reach agreement on our mutual security concerns. As top diplomats for our nations, we have a responsibility to do everything we can to make diplomacy succeed, not to turn the diplomatic stone unturned,” he said.

He said Russia will likely respond with layoffs that the United States is “fueling hysteria.”

“The Russian government can announce today without reservation, equivocation or misdirection that Russia will not invade Ukraine, make it clear, make it clear to the world – and then demonstrate it by returning your troops, your tanks, your planes, to hangars and sending diplomats to the negotiating table. In the days to come, the world will remember that commitment. Or the refusal to do so,” he concluded.

Canadian army

Soldier On Army Course Caught With 81 Packets Of Dried Cannabis Leaves

by Rodney N. on February 17, 2022

Importing or exporting so-called Indian hemp could result in a prison sentence of at least 21 years if convicted.

Highway patrol officers were carrying out routine stops and searches when the Toyota Highlander vehicle was ordered to stop. / Photo by Gleti/iStock/Getty Images Plus

A man linked to the Nigerian army who was on a development course was attending school when he was stopped by a highway patrolman who found 81 packets of dried cannabis leaves.

the from the country Indian Hemp Act Remarks it is illegal to plant, cultivate, import, export, sell, possess, use or have any related accessories.

Cultivating the plant illegally, for example, could result in death or life in prison. Importing or exporting weed is punishable by at least 21 years in prison.

Beyond the cannabis, the National Police report that the soldier’s vehicle contained an army uniform, two Michelin tires, an army helmet, a bag of clothes and some charms, all of which were confiscated.

The driver was to be handed over to Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.

According to Punch, the man marched alongside others at police command headquarters earlier this week.

History organization

Local organization sheds light on minority history in aquaculture

by Rodney N. on February 17, 2022

DELMARVA — In light of Black History Month, a local organization is seeking to expose those unfamiliar with the contributions African Americans have made on the water.

Minorities in Aquaculture hosts it virtually Chesapeake Excellence: Black History Edition Event.

Founder Imani Black says African Americans were instrumental in the evolution of commercial fishing in the Chesapeake Bay, but much remained undocumented.

She adds that since minorities are not represented in the industry, she hopes the event will help raise awareness and inspire other future water lovers to come. “I just realized that it was super important to bring that story to the forefront just with our engagement with minorities so that people can really feel safe enough to enter the industry,” Black said.

“So it really shows that this is not a new industry we are entering. Minorities in Aquaculture actually brings people home to an industry that was really part of our livelihood.

This event is Thursday, February 17 at 7 p.m.

If you want to participate in the event, click here

If you want to know more about the organization and upcoming events, click here

Canadian army

What the Canadian Rangers are doing in the field during COVID-19

by Rodney N. on February 16, 2022

The Canadian Rangers have remained busy in northern Ontario since a spike in COVID-19 cases on the James Bay coast last month. “This may just be another resurgence, but we are ready to provide support where possible,” said Lt. Col. Shane McArthur.

McArthur is the commander of the 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group, which oversees the Canadian Rangers in northern Ontario. When remote communities locked down to limit the spread of COVID-19, the rangers – who are part-time Canadian Armed Forces reservists – were there to help. Since January 2020, rangers have conducted 48 ground search and rescue and requests for assistance in the region. And during Omicron, McArthur says, they had to answer multiple calls at once.

As of February 15, the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority, a health care network covering the James Bay and Hudson Bay coasts, was reporting 259 active cases. The hardest hit communities during this pandemic wave have been Kashechewan and Moose Factory, which peaked earlier this month at 72 and 81 active cases, respectively. While cases in both communities have since declined, in Fort Albany, just south of Kashechewan, they are increasing, with 50 cases reported active Tuesday.

Our journalism depends on you.

You can count on TVO to cover the stories others don’t, to fill the gaps in the ever-changing media landscape. But we can’t do this without you.

TVO.org interviews McArthur about the role of rangers during COVID-19 and how they respond when communities need help.

TVO.org: For those who don’t know, who are the Canadian Rangers?

Shane McArthur: The Canadian Rangers are a subcomponent of the Army Reserve. They are part-time people who volunteer. They support their people, their communities, where they live.

We often use them for ground search and rescue operations in the North and their communities, as well as to assist other agencies and organizations, especially the military, with their cold weather training exercises. However, we have entered into more social aspects of our tasks, which include supporting communities during certain health crises, floods, fires, etc.

My rangers are good at navigation, coordination and command post operations. They know the language, they know the people, the communities, the terrain. That’s what they bring to an answer — those things that you can’t get from the South or from other ministries.

TVO.org: Can you give us an overview of how the rangers are currently responding to requests for assistance from the community?

McArthur: There are about 70 rangers—it goes up and down—and members of the headquarters of the 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group who are currently active in operations in northern Ontario. We currently have five requests for assistance in five different communities, and we are also supporting Operation Remote Immunity, the rollout of the vaccine, this time for anyone who wants the boosters and for children ages 5-11 in all communities.

We are currently in Attawapiskat, Peawanuck, Kashechewan, Mishkeegogamang and Fort Hope [Eabametoong]. Three of them are on the James Bay coast. We are monitoring Fort Albany, but there are no requests or concerns at this time.

We got up [activated] sentinels in Pikangikum and Lac Seul because they are worried. We call them sentinels, but they are local rangers within the community who help get information to make sure we get the right information about what’s going on in the community so we can support them.

TVO.org: What does a Canadian Rangers response to COVID-19 look like?

McArthur: They transport essential goods and supplies. For seniors, they do checks, make sure people get daily necessities. When the community goes into lockdown, sometimes it shuts down the northern store down. Some of the most vulnerable people in the community cannot leave, so they provide these services to ensure that their community members are well taken care of with food, water and medical appointments, go to the clinic. They can also set up a command post as needed or be ready to advise Chief and Council as needed.

We also cut wood to bring to people, especially homes that are in confinement. Lots of general duties, as we call it. Snow removal is a good citizen.

TVO.org: How are rangers called for help?

McArthur: We are not the leader, and I am not the authority — it goes through the Province of Ontario and Public Safety. Emergency Management Ontario and federal agencies make all decisions and request CAF assistance. Depending on where it is and what the problem is, the CAF says, “Okay, Canadian Ranger Patrol Group, can you support that? We’ve already done some homework, and the staff checks and says, “Yes, we can.”

We raise the sentries to make sure we have at least three days in advance [of a request]. We try to make sure we can cut [preparation time] as possible while these approval processes are ongoing. We are not always able to fly into these communities in a timely manner due to requirements and restrictions.

TVO.org: So it’s the communities that go into the province through Emergency Management Ontario, that go to the CAF, that then contact you?

McArthur: Yes. Email traffic happens very, very quickly – almost a few minutes – but it sounds very complicated.

TVO.org: You mentioned restrictions making it difficult to respond quickly. Can you elaborate?

McArthur: We comply with all provincial and federal health protection measures. Then there are the needs of the Canadian Armed Forces, which are growing, and we will always strive to meet them. For some communities, we may need to be tested before entering – and then be tested when we enter. We are the visitors there and we do not want to be seen as the vector of contamination. We’re doing everything in our power to make sure it’s not us.

Sometimes these things take 24 hours, sometimes 48 hours, because of the type of tests used. It doesn’t always work out in our favor, which means [requests] sometimes catches us off guard, and there are delays. But we try to do everything in our power not to have these delays.

TVO.org: A particularly difficult situation in the Far North was Bearskin Lake First Nation, where more than half the community tested positive, leading to the declaration of a state of emergency on December 29. the number of rangers and the respect of deadlines of their response. Has this changed how rangers respond to COVID-related requests for assistance?

McArthur: We practice Bearskin exactly as we practice [other communities]. There are a few things that have happened that have been a disconnect in communications. It hasn’t changed our practices, because we’ve done everything in accordance with what we’ve done for the past two years. There was a misunderstanding about which resources were going to stay in the community, and when we arrived they weren’t there. It took us some time to seek approval to commit new forces. When we did that, we put those strengths out there and supported the community like we always have.

Unfortunately we were taken a bit poor so we had to rearrange. I had to go back to look for authorities, and this process took time. It also takes us time to rid people of COVID. Meanwhile, the impression was perceived differently. And, again, we regret that this happens. But the processes we’ve been using have proven themselves to us over the past two years, and we’ve done a damn good job overall.

TVO.org: Are there any individuals or groups that you have seen go above and beyond in their response?

McArthur: If you start naming a name, you will always miss someone. They do a great job in difficult circumstances. They help their communities while living in these conditions themselves. That’s no small feat, and the accolades go to all of them. I received compliments for my rangers from many community leaders. And, in particular, the NAN [Nishnawbe Aski Nation] great leader [Derek Fox]. The support we have received from the communities, from the chiefs, has been incredible, so I give them my congratulations.

This interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.

This is part of a series of stories about issues affecting Northeastern Ontario. It is brought to you with the assistance of Laurentian University.

Ontario Hubs are made possible by the Barry and Laurie Green Family Charitable Trust and Goldie Feldman.

International headquarters

Doubting Russia’s exit, NATO seeks to strengthen its defenses

by Rodney N. on February 16, 2022

BRUSSELS (AP) – NATO member nations on Wednesday discussed new ways to bolster the defenses of nations on the organization’s eastern flank as Russia’s military buildup around Ukraine fuels one of the biggest security crises in Europe for decades.

For two days at NATO headquarters in Brussels, defense ministers were due to discuss how and when to quickly send troops and equipment to the countries closest to Russia and the sea region. Black if Moscow ordered an invasion of Ukraine.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his counterparts also plan to assess the possibility of stationing longer-term troops in southeastern Europe, possibly starting later this year. The troops would reflect the presence of some 5,000 military personnel who have been stationed in allied nations Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland on a rotational basis in recent years.

The United States has begun deploying 5,000 troops to Poland and Romania. Britain sends hundreds of soldiers to Poland and offers more warships and planes. Germany, the Netherlands and Norway send additional troops to Lithuania. Denmark and Spain provide jets for air policing.

“The fact that we have deployed more NATO troops on the ground, more naval assets, more aircraft, all of this sends a very clear message,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. “I think there is no room for miscalculation in Moscow about our commitment to defending our allies.”

This deployment responds to a formidable challenge.

Over the past four months, Russia is estimated to have amassed around 60% of its entire ground forces and a significant part of its air forces in northern and eastern Ukraine, as well as in Belarus. neighbor. Moscow looks set to repeat its 2014 invasion of Ukraine, but on a larger scale.

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants NATO, the world’s largest security organization, to stop expanding. It demands that the US-led alliance withdraw its troops and equipment from countries that joined after 1997 – almost half of NATO’s 30 ranks.

NATO cannot agree to his terms. Its founding treaty commits to an ‘open door’ policy for European countries wishing to join, and a mutual defense clause ensures that all members will come to the defense of a threatened ally.

Ukraine, however, is not a member and NATO as an organization is unwilling to defend it.

“We have to understand that Ukraine is a partner. We support Ukraine. But for all NATO allies, we provide 100% security guarantees,” Stoltenberg told reporters ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.

That said, some member countries help Ukraine more directly, such as the United States, Britain and Canada.

“We will provide lethal and non-lethal aid to Ukraine. This is a very important issue for all of us,” said Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand.

But the “massive costs” promised to Putin if he ordered an invasion would be economic and political, mainly in the form of sanctions, which are not part of NATO’s remit. The alliance offered Russia a series of talks on security, including arms control.

Over the past two days, Russia has said it was returning troops and weapons to bases, but Stoltenberg said the allies had seen no concrete signs of a withdrawal and fears that Russia would not invading Ukraine persists.

“They’ve always moved forces back and forth, so just that we’re seeing movement of forces, it doesn’t confirm a true pullback,” Stoltenberg said. “The trend in recent weeks and months has been a steady increase in Russian capabilities near Ukraine’s borders.”

Russia poses no direct threat to the security of any NATO country, but the alliance is concerned about the fallout from any conflict in Ukraine, such as a wave of people fleeing the fighting across European borders, or d possible cyberattacks and disinformation attacks.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of the Russia-Ukraine tension at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Non profit living

‘Worthy to take up space’: Jennifer Lee ’23 founds nonprofit to support disabled Asian Americans

by Rodney N. on February 16, 2022

In June 2020, after months of doctor’s appointments and medical tests, Jennifer Lee ’23 was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. Although she had many typical symptoms of the disease, Lee said her doctors were initially hesitant to consider Crohn’s disease because of its rarity in Asian Americans.

“From the beginning of my journey with a chronic illness,” said Lee, “I began to see how my Asian American identity influenced not only the way I perceived my illness and my body, but also the way which even medical professionals perceived the disability and diagnostic processes. ”

After his diagnosis, Lee sought out communities like the Crohn’s and Colitis Young Adults Network and the National Council of College Leaders of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. But even in groups with other young adults with disabilities, Lee felt her Asian American identity set her apart from her peers.

“I soon discovered that I didn’t see people who looked like me, and so for a very long time I thought that I was the only person who felt that way, that I had no one else to talk to. of the specificity of the cultural stigmas around disability, what it was like to be of two marginalized identities — to be both Asian American and disabled,” she said.

Although Lee may have felt lonely, she is one of more than 1.3 million Americans who identify as both Asian American and disabled. After meeting others who shared his identity during the American Association of Persons with Disabilities (AAPD) internship program in the summer of 2021, Lee decided to form a group dedicated to this intersection.

In July 2021, along with a coalition of Asian Americans with disabilities and non-disabled allies from across the country, Lee founded the Asian Americans with Disabilities Initiative (AADI), a nonprofit organization run by and for people like her who identify as both Asian American and disabled. Lee is now Executive Director of AADI and manages a leadership team of approximately 20-25 people at any one time.

“AADI’s overriding mission is to amplify the voices of Asian Americans with disabilities and provide the next generation of Asian Americans with disabilities with the tools, resources, and infrastructure necessary to thrive in a world which hasn’t always welcomed them,” Lee said.

In its short existence, AADI has already made great strides toward fulfilling its mission to increase the visibility of the disabled and Asian American community and provide resources on how to live in a world that is not not built to accommodate either group.

AADI started with what Lee calls a “three-pronged vision.” She hoped to publish a resource guide for Asian Americans with disabilities, host speaker panels and events with people involved in Asian American and disability advocacy, and build a community of peers. disabled and Asian Americans.

On all three fronts, AADI has made tangible progress.

On January 10, after months of preparation, AADI launched its Resource Guide, an 80-page document described on AADI’s website as a guide “to combat ableism within the Asian American community. disability through first-person accounts, extensive peer-reviewed research, and AADI event summaries.

The AADI Research Committee has compiled collections of academic research, alliance lessons, and profiles of Asian American and disabled activists for inclusion in the guide. AADI received support from the TigerWell Initiative and Service Focus in developing the guide.

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“We had recognized that in the academic field there is very little research that has been done on the intersection of disability and Asian American identity, and the reason it is so important is that this type of research directly informs and feeds into what policy looks like,” Lee said of the importance of the academic research section.

The audience for the research guide, and AADI as a whole, encompasses a wide range of stakeholders, according to Megan Liang, program manager at San Diego State University and AADI’s director of external relations. As an Asian American amputee, Liang got involved with AADI after seeing them highlighted on social media.

“Whether you are an Asian American with a disability, an ally, a social worker, or only identify as disabled or identify only as an Asian American, you can take away a fresh perspective on how this community is dealing with things and issues that they might face,” Liang said. “And even though it’s a small impact of change, I’m just glad we’re able to do that.”

AADI has held two speaker events so far. The first panel of speakers took place on August 13, 2021, featuring Lydia XZ Brown, Miso Kwak and Mia Ives-Rublee, three Asian American activists with disabilities. The event was virtual and included American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters and captioning services. More than 50 people attended the event, according to Lee.

“That panel kind of served as a starting point,” Lee said. “[The panelists talked] about the intersection of these two identities themselves, the difficulties our speakers might have encountered while navigating through space, as well as any advice they had for other younger Asian Americans and disabled watching.

Most recently, on January 29, AADI hosted another virtual panel focusing on the intersection of art, disability, and being Asian American. Comedian Steve Lee, poet Topaz Winters ’23 and dancer Marisa Hamamoto spoke at the event.

“I was on the panel with several other Asian American and disabled artists, so we talked a lot about how our Asian American identities fit into our disability rights work, as well as ‘to our artistic work,” Winters said.

“The three streams of my identity – being an artist, being disabled, and being Asian – aren’t really streams that intersect very often in my advocacy work or in my artistic work,” they added. “It was really special for me to be among a group of people who understood very well what it was and the unique challenges, but also the unique joys of existing in these three beautiful spaces, and simply expanding the definitions of what these spaces can be.”

The ultimate goal of forming a community of disabled Asian American peers has been achieved, so far, in a largely virtual setting. Most people involved with AADI have never met in person.

“It’s just about showcasing the community, and for me, part of what AADI does is show that Asian Americans with disabilities and our experiences deserve to take up space,” Lee said.

“I knew the second I found AADI, I had found a specific kind of community that I wouldn’t have been able to find if I hadn’t looked for it otherwise,” Liang said. “I hope we can do more community events in the future, because I understand how empowering it is to be among people who have shared life experiences.”

In the coming months, AADI plans to continue its outreach efforts and spread its mission of accessibility and inclusion for the Asian American and disabled community.

Jiyoun Roh ’24 is AADI’s Director of Outreach and is responsible for managing the organization’s social media. Roh’s brother has cerebral palsy and she became interested in disability justice after noticing how her disability had led to a lack of inclusion in the Asian American community.

“We want accessibility to be more than just a disability community,” Roh said. “We want it in other AAPI organizations.”

“We get a lot of collaborations with many other organizations and together with them, we want to build our own community because a community is made better by the people in it,” she continued.

Lee hopes the conversations started during the COVID-19 pandemic about racial justice and chronic disease will continue in the future.

“I think in this era of the COVID-19 pandemic, we face an extraordinary opportunity to redefine how we understand the experience of people with disabilities and how we understand the Asian American experience,” Lee said.

She looks forward to expanding the advocacy work AADI has done in the six months since its inception.

“The more we work in the disability, Asian American, and nonprofit space, the more our team realizes that there are many definitions of success in terms of what our mission can accomplish,” Lee said.

Naomi Hess is an emeritus editor who focuses on university politics and alumni affairs. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @NaomiHess17.

History organization

A “unique and essential” place in the history of the Legion

by Rodney N. on February 15, 2022

American Legion Post 1 in Paris will celebrate its 103rd anniversary on December 13, 2022. It has maintained a strong presence in the city where the organization was born in 1919. Post Commander Bryan Schell and First Vice Commander Valerie Prehoda spoke with the American Legion about how the Post is building its future by drawing on its past.

What activities do you plan specifically around the history of the post?
Our research revealed the origin story of Paris Post 1 and our founding of Pershing Hall. Therefore, the most important activity will be the effective launch of our new Paris Post 1 Research Center, which will encompass our work and research, and provide opportunities for non-American Legion professionals as well as Legion members. to collaborate with us. We will also step up our efforts to save Pershing Hall from the current effort to de-memorize it, as well as focus our efforts on the Pershing Hall collection, much of which has been in storage for several decades. The Research Center will help focus the collection’s diaspora, identifying the disparate locations of artifacts and ensuring they are properly returned and preserved. As well as creating a public database regarding our Post 1 history and that of Pershing Hall across the centre, we will also work with our Post 1 families to better preserve and research the history of their loved ones who have come to France, such as the past Post Commander George Aubrey, who was killed in action in World War II after serving in World War I.

What impact has the ongoing pandemic had on your planning? Will there be virtual options for events?
The pandemic has encouraged us to do more social media sharing and video recording of our ceremonies and activities. We have also motivated our legionary and auxiliary members to write about our activities, take pictures and prepare articles so that we can share our excellent work more effectively through our newsletters. We are happy to have made Paris Post 1 almost 100% online over the past two years, and we plan to develop more in the future.

What is the current status of your position, in terms of membership and family?
For the most part we are all fine, but it has been difficult with the COVID lockdowns we have endured in France. Through careful planning and diligent effort throughout the process, we were able to hold a safe opening last November for approximately 50 Tomb Guards, their families and the leaders of the National Gold Star and Daughters of the American Revolution to make the trip to France for the centenary of the unknown soldier. pilgrimage. We were grateful to experience a smooth pilgrimage with everyone.

Thanks to our wonderful team at Paris Post 1, we were able to maintain a fairly stable number of members throughout this difficult period and were honored to receive the award for the great post office of the year for the department of France l ‘last year. We continue to work with our friends and family to attract more members for 2022 and we are enjoying success in this critical mission.

Does the City of Paris help?
The City of Paris has been a major supporter of the American Legion in Paris for many decades. During the pandemic, France has certainly offered its help to its citizens, businesses and associations. We were able to plan our ceremonies throughout the year, and we didn’t miss any! We are grateful to have the support not only of the City, but also of local mayors, especially in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, where America has many monuments and memorials located. The 16th Arrondissement and the National Office for Veterans and War Victims (ONACVG) support us for our annual ceremonies, including this year’s revive (reignition) at the Arc de Triomphe for the centenary of the Unknown Soldier.

What do you want people to know about how Poste 1 contributed to the history of the Legion as a whole?
Paris Post 1 has an extraordinary history, unique and essential to the founding of the American Legion. It is our honor to continue the duties of the legionnaires who began our post over 100 years ago and indeed the duty and service in France which covers the entire French nation. We carry forward a deep legacy of the American Legion that grew out of World War I and was solidified again in blood during World War II. We are the only Legion post in France, and we work hard to engage and connect with our American veterans and our community across the country. During the holidays, our Auxiliary traveled to Landstuhl, Germany, to bring gifts and donations, and to spend time with our wounded soldiers and their hospital staff who work endless hours. This summer, we will continue our DPAA MIA recovery mission from August 2021 in a remote area in the Calais region. And in June 2022, we will also co-host, with the American group Irreverent Warriors, a veteran suicide awareness hike from Utah Beach to Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. We are always happy when we hear from others who want to visit France or collaborate on an event with us. We welcome more opportunities in the future and are excited to share what we are doing with our new Paris Post 1 Research Center.

Canadian army

Canada’s Trudeau triggers Emergency Act to break lockdowns – AZERTAC

by Rodney N. on February 15, 2022

Baku, February 15, AZERTAC

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday invoked the Emergencies Act as part of a move to lift a blockade in the capital Ottawa and other areas in connection with protests by truckers against the government’s health rules. COVID-19, according to Anadolu Agency.

It also aims to prevent a repeat blockade of the Ambassador Bridge, the main commercial artery between Canada and the United States. The law is time-limited, although the duration of its effect is unclear. It is also targeted at specific areas like the blockade of Ottawa.

“This is about keeping Canadians safe,” Trudeau told a nationally broadcast press conference, adding “we cannot and will not allow dangerous activities to continue.”

The law has never been used before, but an earlier version — in 1988, it replaced the War Measures Act — was invoked in 1970 by the late Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Justin Trudeau’s father , who used it to repress a Quebec separatist. organization that kidnapped British Trade Commissioner and Quebec Cabinet Minister Pierre Laporte. He was later found dead.

On Monday, Trudeau declared the Emergencies Act to deal with blockades by truckers and others who demanded the repeal of all government COVID-19 health measures. Border points were disrupted in several provinces, including Ontario, Alberta and Manitoba.

But when his father called in the army to deal with the Quebec threat and there were soldiers everywhere and tanks roamed the streets, Justin did not call the Canadian Armed Forces, which he had said at the end of last week was a last resort.

“We don’t use the Emergencies Act to call in the military,” Trudeau said. “We are not suspending fundamental rights or nullifying the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“We don’t limit people’s freedom of expression. We don’t limit freedom of peaceful assembly. We don’t prevent people from exercising their right to lawfully protest.”

While protesters on the Ambassador Bridge were evacuated and the bridge reopened on Sunday, the city of Ottawa, which has a population of one million, remains paralyzed by protesters and hundreds of large transport trucks. The “siege,” as Ontario Premier Doug Ford called it, is in its third week. Ford declared a provincial state of emergency, but this had no effect on the situation in Ottawa.

The law is defined as a tool to deal with an “urgent and critical situation” that “seriously endangers the life, health or safety of Canadians”.

It gives the government the right to enact “temporary special measures which might not be appropriate in normal times”.

For example, under the law, the federal government can order Ottawa tow trucks to remove parked trucks that have created havoc downtown. The towing companies had refused to do so, fearing reprisals. Trudeau made the decision after consulting with provincial premiers and his caucus (elected Liberal MPs).

Meanwhile, at the Coutts Dam in Alberta, between the United States and Canada, police said on Monday they arrested 11 militant protesters and seized a number of weapons, including long guns, handguns fist, ammunition and bulletproof vests.

International headquarters

Cambodia: Covid-19 used to justify crackdown on union

by Rodney N. on February 15, 2022

(Bangkok) – Cambodian authorities should immediately stop misusing public health measures to suppress workers’ right to strike and other basic rights, Human Rights Watch said today.

Since the labor rights-backed NagaWorld Khmer Employees Union (LRSU) went on strike in December 2021 to demand the reinstatement of workers fired earlier in the year, Cambodian authorities have arbitrarily arrested, detained and prosecuted union activists. More recently, authorities have sought to justify these criminal charges as measures related to Covid-19. On February 5, 2022, the police stopped six union members at the NagaWorld casino in Phnom Penh as they left a Covid-19 testing site and baselessly accused three of them of obstructing government efforts against Covid-19.

“Cambodian authorities are stooping to new levels by filing criminal charges under the guise of public health measures to end a strike,” said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The government’s persecution of labor activists appears to be aimed at blunting the growing unity and strength of the Cambodian labor movement and its support for the NagaWorld strikers.

On February 4, the Cambodian Ministry of Health order Several hundred workers went on strike outside the NagaWorld casino to take a Covid-19 test, after a member of the striking union (which last participated in the strike on January 15) tested positive. Authorities said anyone who tested negative would have to self-isolate for seven days and if they tested positive they would be sent to a Covid-19 treatment centre. Between February 5 and 6, more than 400 protesting workers appeared as ordered at the designated testing site on the Diamond Island of Phnom Penh (Koh Pich). Since the strike began, protesters have been protecting themselves and others by wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.

The six people arrested on February 5 were Seng Vannarith, Choub Channath, Sao Sambath, Ouk Sophorn, Touch Danet and Em Kunthea. Police released Sophorn, Danet and Kunthea later that night, but detained Vannarith, Channath and Sambath at Phnom Penh police headquarters. On February 9, the Phnom Penh court charged the latter three with “obstruction of Covid-19 measures” (article 11 of the Cambodian Covid-19 law), punishable by up to five years in prison. . The court ordered their pre-trial detention at the Judicial Police Prison in Phnom Penh, which in November 2020 was at around 170% capacity.

On February 5, the authorities Posted four other workers summoned for questioning over alleged obstruction of Covid-19 measures. The four had followed government orders in getting tested for Covid-19 and self-isolating after testing negative. One of four Recount VOD News that she was “shocked” to receive a summons because she said she was “not inciting people to block the tests”. Another feared she would be found in breach of Covid-19 measures if she came out of solitary confinement to appear in court.

“Throwing workers into overcrowded prisons that are hotbeds for Covid-19 as they await a criminal trial shows that the government’s concern is not public health but the end of one of the longest industrial actions in the world. Cambodia for years,” Robertson said.

On December 18, LRSU went on strike in accordance with international labor law, calling for the reinstatement of 365 previously dismissed employees in connection with the mass dismissal of 1,329 workers by Phnom Penh’s NagaWorld casino in April 2021. Among those laid off were trade union leaders. Authorities called the “illegal” strike on the basis of a court decision handed down on December 16 which violated the right to strike protected by international law. Authorities ordered protesters back to work, saying that if they failed to do so, NagaWorld would be allowed to fire them. The government failed to find a fair solution to the labor disputes between NagaWorld and the union.

Since December 31, authorities have arrested dozens of LRSU members who took part in the strike, and have already imprisoned eight, including union president Chhim Sithar, for “incitement”. They are being held in Correctional Centers 1 and 2 in Phnom Penh.

The Cambodian government passed the Law on Measures to Prevent the Spread of Covid-19 and Other Serious, Dangerous, and Contagious Diseases in March 2020. Human Rights Watch has repeatedly highlighted the threat the law poses to human rights in Cambodia, as the authorities can easily abuse them. its overly broad and vague provisions. The law also lacks independent oversight and procedural safeguards, and provides for disproportionate fines and penalties of up to 20 years in prison for alleged breaches of Covid-19 related measures.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Cambodia has indicated that, between March and October 2021, police have arrested more than 700 people on allegations of breaching Covid-19 measures. Some of the alleged breaches of the Covid-19 law involved people making critical comments on social media about the government’s handling of the pandemic.

Cambodia is bound by the International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention No. 87 and the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which protects the right to strike. The ILO Tripartite Committee on Freedom of Association tenuous that strike bans during a national emergency, such as the Covid-19 public health crisis, must be time-limited, strictly necessary and proportionate. The committee also said that “the responsibility for suspending a strike for public health reasons should not lie with the government, but with an independent body which has the confidence of all parties concerned”.

Precautionary health measures taken by LRSU protesters rendered the strike refusal and subsequent arrests unnecessary, excessive, and disproportionate, violating their internationally protected right to strike, Human Rights Watch said.

“Using public health measures to suppress workers undermines public confidence in government actions against Covid-19,” Robertson said. “UN agencies in Cambodia, the ILO and foreign embassies should pressure the government to immediately and unconditionally release detained union activists and stop abusing health measures for political purposes. .

History organization

Nasdaq Announces Retirement of Executive Vice President of Market Technology Lars Ottersgård; appoints new leadership for financial crime technology and market infrastructure companies

by Rodney N. on February 14, 2022

Nasdaq, Inc.

Consolidates legal and regulatory functions and group risk management responsibilities

Nasdaq Announces Technology Market Leadership Updates

Nasdaq, Inc. announced the retirement of Lars Ottersgørd, executive vice president of Market Technology, after 16 years at the helm of the organization. As a result, the company is appointing two senior executives – Jamie King and Roland Chai – to advance its Financial Crime Enforcement and Market Infrastructure Technology businesses, respectively. — Nasdaq, Inc. announced the retirement of Lars Ottersgård, executive vice president of Market Technology, after 16 years at the helm of the organization. As a result, the company is appointing two senior executives – Jamie King and Roland Chai – to advance its Financial Crime Enforcement and Market Infrastructure Technology businesses, respectively.

NEW YORK, Feb. 14 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ), today announced the retirement of Lars Ottersgård, executive vice president of Market Technology, after 16 years leading the organization. Ottersgård will transition to an advisory role on April 30, 2022, until his official retirement on August 31. As a result, the company is appointing two top executives – Jamie King and Roland Chai – to drive its anti-financial and market crime infrastructure forward. The technology companies, respectively, and both will report directly to Nasdaq President and CEO Adena Friedman.

The announced changes are not expected to impact the Company’s public financial reporting structure for the Market Technology segment, comprised of the Anti-Financial Crime and Market Infrastructure Technology businesses. Additionally, the Nasdaq continues to maintain its financial and operational performance targets for the Market Technology segment.

During a 16-year career at Nasdaq, Ottersgård presided over a near tripling of the company’s market technology franchise and was instrumental in growing the company into one of the biggest global solution providers for exchanges, clearing houses, central securities depositories, regulators, banks, and brokers. After a 20-year career at IBM, Ottersgård joined OMX AB in 2006 to lead global sales for the Nordic-based exchange company’s trading technology business and was appointed to lead the market technology business. combined following Nasdaq’s landmark merger with OMX in 2008. His vision and leadership has resulted in the provision of Nasdaq’s technology capabilities to more than 130 market infrastructure operators in 50 countries, including one of largest market infrastructure agreements in the history of the industry. Following the launch of the Nasdaq Financial Framework, Ottersgård led the company into new areas beyond traditional capital markets, including building and scaling the company’s anti-financial crime solutions for banks and brokers around the world, and played a key role in advancing the Nasdaq cloud journey.

“Lars has been an exceptional leader and colleague, having led our Market Technology segment through some of the most significant milestones in industry history,” said Adena Friedman, President and CEO of Nasdaq. “After bringing OMX to Nasdaq in 2008, his keen eye for emerging technologies led Nasdaq to acquire SMARTS Surveillance and Cinnober, cementing our leadership position in providing essential technology to over a hundred exchanges and of market infrastructure operators around the world.His recent efforts to expand our solutions and marketplaces in the cloud, as well as to serve new markets, including cryptocurrencies, puts us in a privileged position for us partner with customers across the marketplace ecosystem as we move toward an interconnected future.”

The following management changes will take effect on April 4, 2022:

Jamie King will be elevated to Executive Vice President, Nasdaq, and assume leadership of Nasdaq Anti-financial crime (AFC). AFC’s business includes solutions used by thousands of banks, stock exchange operators and other financial institutions to detect and combat financial crime through trade and market monitoring, as well as fraud detection solutions and Verafin’s anti-money laundering program. King is currently president and CEO of Verafin, which he co-founded in 2003.
Roland Chai, currently Global Chief Risk Officer of Nasdaq, will be elevated to Executive Vice President and will lead the Nasdaq Market Infrastructure Technology company, which includes products specifically designed to meet the technology needs of market infrastructure customers. Prior to joining Nasdaq in 2020, Chai served as Head of Post-Trading and Head of Group Risk at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. He previously held the position of Equity Manager at LCH Ltd after starting his career in software development.
Following these changes, John ZeccaNasdaq’s Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer, will assume leadership of Roland Chai’s Nasdaq Group Risk Management team and become Legal, Risk and Regulatory Director.

“The organizational and leadership changes announced today will accelerate Nasdaq’s ability to realize its potential as a global leader in anti-financial crime solutions and as a leading, innovative technology partner to exchanges and markets around the world,” said Friedman. “Jamie and Roland are both respected leaders in their fields with deep industry expertise, proven track records of success, and a shared focus on deepening client relationships. I look forward to continued success as we are driving the next phase of growth in our anti-financial and market crime solutions.”

CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

The information in this communication contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The Nasdaq cautions readers that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and that actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, projections regarding our future financial results, products and services and achievement of objectives, and other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond Nasdaq’s control. These factors include, but are not limited to, Nasdaq’s ability to implement its strategic initiatives, economic, political and market conditions and fluctuations, government and industry regulation, interest rate risk, competitive U.S. and worldwide, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business operations, results of operations, financial condition, workforce, or the operations or decisions of our customers, suppliers, or business partners, and other factors detailed in Nasdaq’s filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q which are available on the Investor Relations website. Nasdaq Investors at http://ir.nasdaq.com and on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The Nasdaq undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About the Nasdaq

Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a global technology company serving capital markets and other industries. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software and services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence. To learn more about the company, technology solutions and career opportunities, visit us on LinkedIn, Twitter @Nasdaq or www.nasdaq.com.

Contacts for Media Relations:

Will Briganti
+1 (646) 964-8169
[email protected]

Yan-yan Tong
+1 (240) 721-8066
[email protected]

Contact with Investor Relations:

Ed Ditmire, CFA
+1 (212) 401-8737
[email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/56fb1997-149e-4e2f-9aeb-4871b7a2fcf7

-NDAQF-

Canadian army

US says more than 130,000 Russian troops are stationed outside Ukraine

by Rodney N. on February 14, 2022

Some airlines have canceled or diverted flights to Ukraine amid heightened fears that an invasion by Russia is imminent despite intensive weekend talks between the Kremlin and the West.

In an hour-long call Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Joe Biden said invading Ukraine would cause widespread human suffering and that the West was committed to diplomacy to end the crisis but also prepared for other scenarios, the White House said. He offered no suggestion that the call diminished the threat of imminent war in Europe.

The two presidents spoke a day after Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan warned that US intelligence shows a Russian invasion could begin within days.

Russia denies plans to invade, but has massed more than 100,000 troops near the Ukrainian border and sent troops to drills in neighboring Belarus. US officials say Russia’s firepower buildup has reached the point where it could invade on short notice.

Dutch airline KLM has canceled flights to Ukraine until further notice, the company announced on Saturday.

Dutch sensitivity to potential danger in Ukrainian airspace is high following the 2014 downing of a Malaysian airliner over an area of eastern Ukraine held by rebel-backed by Russia. All 298 people on board died, including 198 Dutch citizens.

Ukrainian charter airline SkyUp said on Sunday its flight from Madeira, Portugal to Kiev had been diverted to the Moldovan capital Chisinau after the plane’s Irish lessor said it was banning flights in the country. Ukrainian airspace.

Ukrainian presidential spokesman Serhii Nykyforov told The Associated Press that Ukraine has not closed its airspace. A Ministry of Infrastructure statement said: Some carriers are experiencing difficulties related to fluctuations in insurance markets.

The Putin-Biden call, following a call between Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron earlier in the day, came at a critical time in what has become the biggest security crisis between Russia and the West since the cold War. US officials believe they have only days to prevent an invasion and massive bloodshed in Ukraine.

While the United States and its NATO allies have no plans to send troops to Ukraine to fight Russia, an invasion and the resulting punitive sanctions could reverberate far beyond the United States. former Soviet republic, affecting energy supplies, world markets and the balance of power in Europe.

President Biden has been clear with President Putin that while the United States remains ready to engage in diplomacy, in full coordination with our allies and partners, we are also ready for other scenarios, the President said. White House statement.

Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s top foreign policy aide, said while tensions had been escalating for months, in recent days the situation had simply reached the point of absurdity.

He said Biden had discussed possible sanctions that could be imposed on Russia, but that issue was not the focus of a long enough conversation with the Russian leader.

In a sign that US officials are preparing for the worst-case scenario, the United States announced its intention to evacuate most of its embassy staff in the Ukrainian capital and urged all US citizens in Ukraine to leave the country immediately . Britain has joined other European nations in telling its citizens to leave Ukraine.

Canada has closed its embassy in Kiev and moved its diplomatic staff to a temporary office in Lviv, located in the west of the country, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said on Saturday. Lviv is home to a Ukrainian military base that served as the hub for Canada’s 200-soldier training mission in the former Soviet country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy played down concerns about an invasion, urging the country to remain calm.

I believe that today in the information space there is a lot of information, he said on Saturday.

The timing of possible Russian military action remains a key question.

The United States has collected intelligence that Russia is considering on Wednesday as a target date, according to a U.S. official familiar with the findings. The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and only did so on condition of anonymity, did not say how definitive the information was.

New US-Russian tensions surfaced on Saturday when the Defense Ministry summoned the US Embassy’s military attache after he said the Navy had detected a US submarine in Russian waters near the Kuril Islands in the Pacific. . The submarine refused the order to leave, but left after the navy used unspecified appropriate means, the ministry said.

Adding to the sense of crisis, the Pentagon ordered the dispatch of 3,000 additional American troops to Poland to reassure the allies.

In addition to the more than 100,000 ground troops that US officials say Russia has mustered along Ukraine’s eastern and southern borders, the Russians have deployed missile, air, naval and special operations forces, as well as supplies to support a war.

This week, Russia moved six amphibious assault ships into the Black Sea, increasing its ability to land marines on the coast.

Biden has bolstered the US military presence in Europe to reassure allies on NATO’s eastern flank. The 3,000 additional soldiers ordered in Poland come on top of the 1,700 who are on the way. The US military is also transferring 1,000 troops from Germany to Romania, which, like Poland, shares a border with Ukraine.

Russia demands that the West keep former Soviet countries out of NATO. He also wants NATO to refrain from deploying weapons near its border and roll back alliance forces from Eastern Europe, demands the West flatly rejects.

Russia and Ukraine have been locked in bitter conflict since 2014, when Ukraine’s pro-Kremlin leader was ousted from office by a popular uprising. Moscow responded by annexing the Crimean peninsula and then backing a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine, where fighting has killed more than 14,000 people.

A 2015 peace deal brokered by France and Germany stopped large-scale battles, but regular skirmishes have continued and efforts to reach a political settlement have stalled.

(ANI)

International headquarters

Switzerland approves tobacco ad ban

by Rodney N. on February 13, 2022

ZURICH — Glamorous cigarette ads will soon be a thing of the past in Switzerland, after voters overwhelmingly approved legislation on Sunday banning tobacco companies from displaying them in public spaces.

Health advocates said the legislation, which was approved in a referendum, was an important step towards tightening the country’s regulations on loose tobacco.

“Many organizations have mobilized and advocated for a solution that prioritizes the protection of young people,” said Flavia Wasserfallen, member of the Swiss National Council and supporter of the initiative.

In much of the West, tobacco adverts have long fallen out of favor, but they have survived in this Alpine nation, with displays of cigarettes and e-cigarettes appearing on billboards, in cinemas and at events like music festivals.

But voters made it clear on Sunday that they were no longer interested in seeing them, and despite strong opposition from the tobacco industry and government, the tougher regulations were approved by 56.6% of voters and won received strong support from the French and Italians in the country. -languages, despite having the highest smoking rates in the country.

Steps have been taken in recent years to try to introduce stricter regulations on tobacco-related products in Switzerland. In 2015, the Federal Council, the country’s executive branch, proposed a Tobacco Products Act that would ban the sale of tobacco and related products to minors and restrict advertising.

Parliament eventually approved a watered down version of the bill, which banned the sale of tobacco to those under 18 but allowed advertising to continue almost unhindered.

The most recent initiative was launched by a group of more than 40 health organizations that formed in response to weakening tobacco laws. The new Tobacco Products Act, which includes the advertising provisions that voters approved on Sunday, is expected to come into force in 2023.

“The majority of our country has decided to correct Parliament’s decision on the Tobacco Products Act,” said Hans Stöckli, chairman of the committee behind the initiative, on Sunday. Mr Stöckli described the result as “a historic step” and a “necessary step” towards better tobacco regulation.

Opponents of the measure called the tighter restrictions extreme. And while they agreed tobacco should be age-restricted, they said the new rules amounted to a de facto ban on a legal product because children could potentially be exposed to n anywhere.

Switzerland has a long-standing close relationship with the tobacco industry. Philip Morris and Japan Tobacco International have their international headquarters in the country, and British American Tobacco also has a strong presence.

The industry employs approximately 4,500 people in Switzerland, according to the government, including in the production of high-tar cigarettes which are illegal to produce or sell in the European Union. Cigarettes rank with chocolate and cheese among the main exports.

Even after the new rules come into effect, Switzerland will continue to have more liberal tobacco regulations than many other countries. Moreover, it will still not meet all the conditions required to ratify the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, an international response to the fight against tobacco. tobacco epidemicdespite signing in 2004. The United States has not ratified the convention either.

Alain Berset, Swiss vice-president, who is also the country’s health minister, had opposed the initiative before the vote. But at a press conference on Sunday, he acknowledged that Swiss voters had spoken and said the government would move forward with the new regulations.

“The Federal Council will now tackle the implementation of the initiative,” Berset said.

The Tobacco Products Act was not the only issue of the ballot on Sunday. In a move people feared had cut Switzerland off from global medical progress, voters rejected a proposal to ban all human and animal experiments in the country.

Voters also decided against giving Swiss media more financial support, rejecting a government proposal to extend subsidies to online media as well as regional radio and TV stations.

A government-approved amendment to the federal stamp duty law that would have made it cheaper for businesses to raise new capital was also rejected, with opponents saying it would have mainly benefited big business.

Non profit living

Covid updates: Supreme Court rejects teachers’ proposal to block New York City’s vaccination mandate

by Rodney N. on February 13, 2022

Credit…Afolabi Sotunde/Reuters

A new study on underreported coronavirus variants is a reminder that early detection and frequent genomic sequencing are among the most effective arrows in the quiver of public health officials.

But that is precisely what is not happening in many countries, putting their own populations – as well as the rest of the world – at risk.

Researchers in the United States and Nigeria examined a variant of interest, Eta, which circulated in Nigeria in early 2021, as well as a regionally rare Delta sublineage that was different from the Delta variant that circulated around the world.

Eta might have warranted the “variant of concern” designation if its growth potential had been recognized earlier, the researchers from the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University and the University of Ibadan in Nigeria wrote. Their research was published this month in Nature Communications.

“We were just lucky that this variant didn’t spread globally,” said Dr Oyewale Tomori, a virologist who heads a Nigerian government committee on Covid-19.

Judd Hultquist, co-author of the report and associate director of Northwestern’s Center for Pathogen Genomics and Microbial Evolution, said variant tracking was “incredibly uneven” across the world.

“Less than 1% of footage is from the African continent and less than 3% is from South America,” he said in an interview.

On Thursday, the World Health Organization’s Africa director, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, urged wider use of genomic sequencing technology in Africa to help speed up the detection of new variants. The technology is only available in a few middle-income countries in the region, such as South Africa and Botswana.

Researchers around the world use GISAID, the global online repository of coronavirus sequences, to share new genomes and search for mutations in its hundreds of thousands of viral genetic sequences.

Nigeria, with a population of 220 million, is the seventh most populous country in the world and the largest majority black country. It is also one of the least vaccinated: less than 3% of its population is fully inoculated, according to the Our World in Data project at the University of Oxford.

The World Health Organization has labeled Eta a variant of concern, which means it was worth studying but not as dangerous as a variant of concern. But after Eta moved the Alpha variant to Nigeria and the surrounding region early last year, researchers found it went largely unnoticed while Alpha remained at the center of much of the world. .

“Eta had all the hallmarks of a variant of concern and was able to outmatch the Alpha variant in the region before Delta arrived,” Dr Hultquist said.

And after the rise and fall of Eta, a rare Delta sub-lineage (AY.36) appeared in the region that was different from the Delta variant that circulated most of the world.

The study underscores the critical need for improved surveillance and tracking of coronavirus infections to ensure early detection of new variants in Nigeria and the West African region, said Dr Moses Adewumi of the ‘University of Ibadan, one of the collaborators.

Even now, the researchers said, there are just over 1,400 Nigerian coronavirus sequences available in public repositories. The United States, by comparison, sequences tens of thousands of specimens each week.

The variants that have been examined by researchers are no longer a threat. But at the time, the Alpha and Eta variants produced the highest spike in new infections; and the rare Delta lineage caused the second spike, according to Northwestern’s Dr. Ramon Lorenzo-Redondo, one of the study’s authors. The spikes resulted in the highest death rates of the pandemic, he said.

Africa is not fully utilizing available laboratory resources, Dr Tomori said. He said mainland labs had sequenced 70,000 viral genomes by the end of 2021.

“Sequencing is inadequate in Africa because many African governments have not appreciated the usefulness of such facilities to provide data for better epidemic control,” he said. “Furthermore, there is a lack of collaboration among African scholars, some of whom prefer to work with their former ‘colonial’ colleagues.”

One lesson is clear: it’s never too early to try to say what the impact of a variation might be. Researchers are already keeping a close eye on a new Omicron sub-variant, BA.2.

Alex Sigal, a virologist at the Africa Health Research Institute in Durban, South Africa, who helped identify Beta and Omicron variants, said: “The most important message here is that we don’t see everything, and that some of these places may not have Covid-19 control.

History organization

Opinion: Florida’s ‘don’t say gay’ bill is cruel and dangerous

by Rodney N. on February 13, 2022

As leaders of two LGBTQ organizations, we have been amazed at the progress we have made over the past decade. But it’s also clear that the increased visibility of our community has caused a backlash. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, more than 100 anti-LGBTQ bills, the majority of which target transgender and non-binary youth, are currently pending in state legislatures across the country.

One of the most extreme examples is a bill in Florida known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. It states that school districts “may not encourage discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in the elementary grades or in a manner that is not appropriate for the age or development of students.” The language, which is vague and could apply to K-12 classrooms across Florida, could be used to prohibit open discussions about LGBTQ people and issues.

If passed, it would effectively erase entire chapters of history, literature and critical health information from schools – and silence LGBTQ students and those with LGBTQ parents or family members. . It’s just one of many divisive and dehumanizing bills in Florida that use LGBTQ youth as political pawns to limit conversations about gender and sexual identity.

Let’s be clear: the Don’t Say Gay Bill will do real and lasting harm. All students should learn about the significant contributions of the LGBTQ community to United States history and culture. Landmark events, ranging from the Stonewall riots to Supreme Court rulings in cases such as Obergefell v. Hodges and Bostock v. Clayton County, should be included in any comprehensive lesson plan on modern history and the civil rights movements.

LGBTQ students deserve to see their own history and experiences reflected in their education, just like their peers. Learning about LGBTQ civil rights heroes like Marsha P. Johnson, Harvey Milk, and Bayard Rustin can inspire LGBTQ students, make them proud of who they are, and help them envision a better future.

Research from the Trevor Project found that LGBTQ students who learned about LGBTQ issues or people in the classroom at school were 23% less likely to attempt suicide in the past year. Conversely, when LGBTQ topics are taboo, this stigma is often internalized and can negatively impact a student’s mental health and self-esteem.

Learning about the LGBTQ community can also foster peer acceptance and contribute to a positive school climate, which is still much needed. Tragically, a majority of LGBTQ youth in middle school and high school said they had been bullied in person or electronically in the past year — and those who did were three times more likely to attempt to commit suicide.

And given that only 1 in 3 young LGBTQ people find their home to be LGBTQ, it is all the more important to ensure that schools – the place where young people spend a significant part of their waking hours – are as welcoming as possible.

At a time when 42% of LGBTQ youth, including more than half of transgender and non-binary youth, have seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, according to a national survey conducted by The Trevor Project, fostering an environment Affirmative schooling is more critical than ever. That’s why lawmakers should expand support systems for LGBTQ students and encourage teachers to create safe and inclusive learning environments, without fueling stigma and shame.

Scaring LGBTQ students from discussing their identity, community or family at school is as cruel as it is dangerous.

If you or someone you know needs help or support, The Trevor Project’s trained crisis counselors are available 24/7 at 1-866-488-7386, via chat at TheTrevorProject.org/Get-Helpor by texting START to 678678.

Canadian army

In a Ukrainian border town, children practice drills and stockpile supplies in case of a Russian attack

by Rodney N. on February 12, 2022

Residents of the Ukrainian town of Ovruch, just 15 kilometers from the border with Belarus, know that if the current crisis with Russia metastasized into a full military conflict, their community could be the first the invaders would come to.

“Teachers remind us that if there is [is] an offensive by the Russian Federation or Belarus, we shouldn’t panic,” Ivan Trostenyuk, a 14-year-old eighth grader at local school number three, said in a recent interview with CBC News as he was going home.

“Our [Ukrainian] the soldiers will help us.”

While Ovruch has a population of just 15,000, it is 200 km – or about two and a half hours’ drive – north of the capital, Kiev. The newly renovated highway south of Ovruch is one of the fastest routes to reach the political and economic center of Ukraine.

For weeks, Russia has sent troops and advanced weapons to Belarus, with some of the staging areas within 30 km of Ukraine. Military experts estimate there could now be more than 30,000 Russian troops in Belarus, and on Thursday they began moving in formation and conducting live-fire drills in exercises called Allied Resolve.

In this still image from a video released on February 11, military vehicles are seen conducting a joint military exercise between the armed forces of Russia and Belarus at the Brestsky training ground in the region of Brest, Belarus. (Russian Ministry of Defense document)

More than 130,000 Russians in total have gathered in places near Ukraine’s land border, in addition to a large naval deployment in the Black Sea.

Putin ‘just can’t back down’

Some Western analysts say the Russian deployment to Belarus represents the largest Russian troop movement there since well before the end of the Cold War. It also gives President Vladimir Putin and his generals additional options to attack Ukraine, should they choose to do so.

“When you have this amount of troops amassed at the borders, with the amount of naval power [Putin] moved into the Black Sea, with the amount of air power he has, he has to do something. He just can’t back down,” said Canadian Mychailo Wynnyckyj, associate professor of sociology and director of the doctoral program at Kyiv-Mohyla Business School.

Putin demanded that the United States and NATO rewrite existing security agreements in Europe, refuse to admit Ukraine to NATO and withdraw all foreign troops from former Soviet republics or former members of the Warsaw Pact. , such as Poland and Romania.

Canadian-Ukrainian Mychailo Wynnyckyj teaches in Kiev. He thinks Putin is unlikely to back down from a military buildup on the Ukrainian border. (Carly Thomas/CBC)

Wynnyckyj says Putin knows such demands cannot be met, and so he and many Ukrainians are preparing for the worst. “I think he’s going to move in.”

At the school in Ovruch, and others across Ukraine, teachers trained children in emergency drills in case the conflict escalated.

“The action plan for the children depends on the signal we receive,” said headmistress Ludmyla Zalizko of school number three in Ovruch.

“If bombings or other scenarios [happen]we could move to the basement, or outside.”

Several students told CBC News that psychologists came to their classes to try to reassure them but also to prepare them in case their city was attacked.

“We are not as worried as [the grown-ups] said Ivan Trostenyuk. “I think everything will be fine.

Heed the instructions

Other students said their parents trained them on home emergency plans.

“I live in a house and we have our own basement, where we already have a stock of food and other things, and we can go down there in 30 seconds,” 13-year-old Vania Zubiychuk said.

The Transfiguration Church is the dominant monument in Ovruch, Ukraine. (Chris Brown/CBC)

“If I’m in school [when an attack comes]I have to listen to the instructions of a teacher or adults around, and if at home … [I] listen and do whatever the parents ask you to do.”

Volodymyr Kublynsky, also 13, said his parents told him the less he told people about the political situation, the better. They say, “we shouldn’t be provocative, nobody should blow this up.”

The CBC News team spent several hours one day this week driving through Ukraine’s border areas north of Kiev and saw no evidence of the country’s military or mobilization efforts to protect the capital or the border region.

Nor, apparently, many people who live in Ovruch.

Petro Levkivsky, a municipal politician, says he understands his government wants to avoid panicking people, but a show of force would make people feel better.

“I’d rather see something happen,” he said. “I would rather there was a huge fence [at the border] and there were many troops to protect us.”

Petro Levkivsky, a municipal politician from Ovruch, said citizens might feel more reassured if they saw the Ukrainian army doing its own military exercises. (Carly Thomas/CBC)

Levkivsky said the Ukrainian military has improved significantly with the help of foreign countries, such as Canada, and this gives him hope that if hostilities break out, Ukraine will have a strong defense.

“It gives me confidence that we have an experienced army,” he said. “We are truly grateful that our foreign partners are providing military assistance, and we hope this will deter the aggressor and there will be virtually no war in central Europe.”

Ongoing conflict

Ukraine’s government has released a video of its own tanks and soldiers carrying out exercises east of the capital, near the cities of Kharkiv and Kherson, and says its preparations will reflect Russia’s schedule for its exercises until 20 February.

An old Soviet T-34 tank and an artillery piece serve as monuments to Ovruch’s military history in a park near the town’s entrance. (Adrian DiVirgilio/CBC)

In addition, there have recently been almost daily flights from the United States bringing new weapons to the Ukrainian military, including Javelin anti-tank missiles and other small arms ammunition.

Most Ukrainians see the current crisis with Russia as a continuation of a conflict that began in 2014, when Putin ordered his troops to seize the Crimean peninsula.

Shortly after, separatists in eastern Ukraine – which are supplied, financed and armed by Russia – launched an offensive against the Ukrainian army, in a conflict that has left more than 13,000 people dead. combatants and civilians.

Warnings from the US, Britain and others that a Russian attack could be ‘imminent’ come as no surprise to a war-weary nation that has spent years expecting an escalation from Russia at some point.

A kiosk near a bus stop in Ovruch. (Adrian DiVirgilio/CBC)

Wynnyckyj says like others in the country, he is preparing but also determined to carry on with his life as usual.

“We have 60 liters of water, just in case. We have lots of dried food and tinned food, just in case the electricity goes out for a few weeks, which might happen.”

But, he insisted, “it’s not panic. And we don’t have panic in the streets.”

In the border town of Ovruch, there is a sense of resignation that if an invasion did occur, it might not be possible to flee.

“If the incursion happens, it would happen suddenly, so we won’t have time to leave,” said Levkivsky, the local politician. “I have three children and no car. We won’t have time to escape.”

In this case, he says the plan would simply be for him and his family to stay put and do the best they can, as other Ukrainians did when their territory was invaded.

“Our compatriots in eastern Ukraine have experienced this, the Crimeans have experienced it too, we too, we will experience it too.”

Non profit living

Nonprofit Riverside helps those who were homeless or incarcerated regain their independence – Press Enterprise

by Rodney N. on February 12, 2022

Starting Over Inc. provides transition and reintegration services to people who have come into contact with the criminal justice system. The organization provides housing, employment, family reunification, recovery and mental health services.

Start Over housing services are available for those in need, including clients who are homeless, recently released from prison, or struggling with substance abuse. The organization has eight halfway houses in Los Angeles and Riverside counties. Transition houses provide sober living and harm reduction options. David’s House, located in Eastvale, is available for single women with children.

“We tap into the potential of people who may not have had the opportunity to succeed or give back,” said co-founder and executive director Vonya Quarles. “We offer people opportunities to give themselves, to learn and to grow.”

The organization believes that everyone is of equal value and helps clients who need help dealing with the immediate effects and root causes of homelessness. Case management specialists who have direct experience on the journey provide referrals and support to those in need. This includes immediate basic needs, obtaining health benefits, essential documents, employment, advocacy and family reunification.

By investing in prevention and addressing trauma, Starting Over believes the community will not need to invest in eliminating re-entry into the criminal justice system. Clients of the organization’s programs have gone on to form their own organizations, become advocates, work in health, and are present in the lives of their children.

Bobbie Butts, Associate Director of Family Reunification of Starting Over Inc, speaks at the Family Reunification, Equity and Empowerment (FREE) program rally in the state capitol to transform protective services in childhood. (Courtesy of Start Over, Inc.)

Community organizing and civic engagement are also a big part of Starting Over’s work. The organization has worked to elevate the voices of leaders affected by the system and build the pipeline of leaders who organize and build grassroots in the community. The organization’s Family Reunification, Equity and Empowerment (FREE) program supports families who are dealing with dependent child courts and the child welfare system. The program offers legal support, strategies for advocating for family reunification, and free resources.

On January 18, 2022, FREE held a rally in Sacramento at the State Capitol to Transform Child Protective Services. Working with CPS and other partners, Start Over helped pass SB 354 and is working to publicize the revisions it puts in place. The bill relaxes restrictions on placing children with relatives. There are 60,000 children languishing in foster care because parents are deemed ineligible for placement, Quarles said.

“I’ve met many parents who weren’t able to have the kids because of old, unrelated convictions,” Quarles said. “SB 354 opens the door to an individualized assessment to make a decision. Data shows that children placed with family members are much better off.

Recently, Starting Over received a grant from the IE Black Equity Fund through the Inland Empire Community Foundation. Start Over has grown from an all-volunteer organization to 21 staff members and welcomes contributions to support its work.

Currently, the organization relies on the help of 40 volunteers and is always looking for more. Those interested in volunteering can contact Ashley Williams, internship program manager and housing program manager for the organization.

Start Over tries to match volunteers with work that builds on their strengths. Opportunities include policy and advocacy work, writing grant applications and working with housing guests. There is also a need for fresh grocery donations for the bi-monthly Starting Over food drives. Donations of gently used clothing and accessories are also welcome and provided free of charge to accommodation hosts and the community.

“Opportunity is what we offer,” Quarles said. “Yes, we help provide direct services, but more broadly, we give people the time and space to reset and rethink their future.”

More information: https://www.startingoverinc.org or 951-898-0862

Inland Empire Community Foundation strives to strengthen the Southern California interior through philanthropy.

International headquarters

The program for the 37th Santa Barbara International Film Festival announced

by Rodney N. on February 12, 2022

The 37th Santa Barbara International Film Festival, which runs from March 2-12, 2022, announced its schedule and unveiled its poster on Thursday, February 10 at the Sullivan Goss Gallery in Santa Barbara.

The festival provides a key platform for artists on the Oscars campaign trail, and 2022 is no exception. All of the actors receiving SBIFF Awards as part of one-night celebrity tribute programs have been nominated for Oscars this year. The list includes Kristen Stewart (American Riviera Award on Friday, March 4), Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis (Outstanding Performers of the Year Award, Sunday, March 6), Benedict Cumberbatch (Cinema Vanguard Award, Wednesday, March 9), and Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem (Maltin Modern Masters Award, Thursday March 10). SBIFF Director Roger Durling will announce the final individual tribute honored for the Montecito Award in the coming weeks.

This year’s opening night movie, The Phantom of the Open, is a British comedy that stars Mark Rylance as Maurice Flitcroft. Flitcroft became famous for playing major golf tournaments such as the British Open, despite being a terrible novice golfer. The film, which received a warm reception when it premiered at the London BFI Film Festival, seems like the kind of feel-good comedy we could all use right now. Sally Hawkins, who delivered a memorable performance in spencer as Lady Diana’s favorite maid, Maggie, plays Jean, Flitcroft’s patient wife.

The closing film of the festival, Dionne Warwick: Don’t do me again, tells the story of the great New Jersey gospel choir singer’s rise to international stardom as the definitive interpreter of the songs of Burt Bacharach. Warwick, a social media sensation thanks to his dry wit on Twitter, will be on hand for the screening.

Sign up for Pano, Charles Donelan’s weekly newsletter that captures the full range of arts and entertainment available in our region in one panoramic weekly plan, scanning our cultural horizon for the best in theatre, visual arts, film, dance, music, and more.

Other major festival news include the appointment of eminent film critic Claudia Puig as director of programming. There will be a 10th anniversary screening of Silver Linings Playbook with a discussion with director David O. Russell and a retrospective of films by Gregory Nava, the groundbreaking author who wrote and directed The North (1983), Selena (1997) and the TV series American family (2002-2004). American family star Edward James Olmos will be on hand to pay tribute to Nava.

In his remarks, Durling took the opportunity to highlight the passing of several people who had an impact on the festival. The 10th anniversary of the tragic death of oceanographer and documentary filmmaker Mike deGruy was February 4. Russ Spencer, a Santa Barbara filmmaker and former Independent staff member who died in 2019, is remembered as the person who successfully advocated for the inclusion of local filmmakers in the festival. Most recently, Nadine Turner, the host of the longtime festival headquarters at the Santa Barbara Hotel, died in 2021, as did Barbara Boris, the artist responsible for many years of SBIFF’s posters.

The poster design unveiled for this year’s festival features a blue-saturated beachscape by Hank Pitcher, who was there to witness the unveiling and offer some insight into his perception of what makes SBIFF special. Pitcher compared the experience of walking on the beach and looking at the ocean to the moments immediately after the lights go down in a movie theater. These two public acts “reveal us as we live our dreams and our desires,” Pitcher said.

Despite the county’s decision to lift its indoor mask mandate on Feb. 16, Durling said the festival would continue to require attendees to remain fully masked at all tributes, panels and screenings. For more information and to order tickets, visit sbiff.org.

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History organization

WKU archaeologist partners with the Max Planck Institute

by Rodney N. on February 11, 2022

Dr. Jean-Luc Houle, an associate professor of anthropology in the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology at WKU, is teaming up with researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany to study early domestic livestock dispersals across Central and Inner Asia from around 5,000 years ago. Other collaborators are affiliated with the National Museum of Mongolia.

(pictured) A shepherd leads horses near ancient stone burial mounds in the Mongolian steppe.

Sheep, goats and domestic cattle were essential to the economy of the mobile herding communities that lived on the vast Asian steppe as early as the Bronze Age. Not only were meat and milk key components of the diet, but hides, wool, and bones were used for tools, shelter, and other purposes. Today, nomadic pastoralism continues to be the predominant way of life in this region.

The multi-year collaborative research projects involve radiocarbon dating and analysis of genetic material from the bones and teeth of sheep, goats and domestic cattle from archaeological sites in Mongolia and neighboring countries where Dr Houle and other archaeologists worked for several decades. These data can indicate when and where animal species were domesticated, and when and where domesticated livestock spread to other regions. Researchers are also interested in how the genetic makeup of livestock populations has changed over time and the evolutionary processes involved, as well as the genomics of pathogens associated with domestic animals.

The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History (MPI-SHH) in Jena, Germany, was founded in 2014 to target fundamental questions of human history and evolution over the last millions of years. years. It currently consists of three interdisciplinary research departments that integrate research methods and questions from the natural sciences and the humanities: the Department of Archaeology, the Department of Archaeogenetics, and the Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution. MPI-SHH affiliates explore major questions of the human past, such as the history of global human migrations, human modifications of ecosystems, and the impacts of environmental change on humans. MPI-SHH is one of 86 institutes of the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science, an independent, non-profit research organization founded in 1948 as a successor to the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, established in 1911.

The National Museum of Mongolia (NMM) preserves and promotes the rich cultural heritage of a nomadic way of life as it was lived for millennia by the ancestors of Mongolia, who left an indelible mark on Mongolia and on the history of the world. Through collections displayed in nine permanent exhibition halls and virtual tours and experiences, the museum connects past and present to provide a memorable, informative and inspiring journey through Mongolia.

To learn more about Dr. Houle’s research, visit https://westernmongoliaarchaeology.weebly.com.

Canadian army

Should the military put an end to the “freedom” protests?

by Rodney N. on February 11, 2022

It’s funny how the so-called Conservative Party of Canada and our two local Conservative MPs seem unable to tell these ‘freedom convoy’ protesters that their voices have been heard and now is the time to let others Canadians enjoy their freedoms, such as going to work and crossing the border.

No other previous prime minister, regardless of political stripe, would have endured two weeks of traffic jams in downtown Ottawa, followed by mounting protests at border crossings. Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chrétien, up to Brian Mulroney and Stephen Harper, would have put an end to this nonsense a few days ago.

They allegedly let the protests continue for a few days, then firmly told the protesters to go home and if they did not leave, they would be evicted by members of the Canadian Armed Forces.

And naturally, these protesters in Ottawa, at the border crossings and elsewhere will cry out for the violation of their civil liberties and their rights to freedom of assembly. Here’s what Trudeau the Elder had to say about it in October 1970.

“There are a lot of bleeding hearts around who just don’t like to see people with helmets and guns. All I can say is, carry on and bleed, but maintaining law and order in this society is more important than worrying about weak-kneed people who don’t like the looks of a soldier’s helmet.

“At all costs? How far would you go with this? How far would you stretch this?” the reporter asked.

“Well, look at me,” Trudeau replied.

The Conservatives have great points to argue about the validity of federal and provincial vaccine mandates and they should vigorously present them in the House of Commons. Many mandates are – in whole or in part – no longer supported by scientific developments. But Tories should also agree with fellow parliamentarians that these protests are now causing significant economic damage and must end, voluntarily or not.

From a politically cynical standpoint, which has been Trudeau’s playbook since day one, threatening to call in the military (and following through if necessary) would now be warmly welcomed by most urban voters and suburbs, with all parties serious about government formation. Needs.

Pierre said he had no choice when he called in the army and was only responding to the clear and present danger to democracy. Justin can also use this line.

There are many wrongs in the current mandates and everyone is tired of living with them, regardless of individual opinions on vaccine safety. These demonstrators, however, crossed the line between protest and anarchy. Their continued actions are statements that their love for freedom does not include the freedom of anyone who disagrees with them.

If it takes soldiers patrolling downtown Ottawa and border crossings to restore democratic law and order, this Prime Minister — or any other Prime Minister — should do it without hesitation.

International headquarters

Job: Development and supply chain project manager – Castelli Cycling USA

by Rodney N. on February 11, 2022

Job title

Development & Supply Chain Project Manager

Company / Organization

Castelli Cycling United States

job description

Job Description
Date: February 2022
Job Title: Development and Supply Chain Project Manager
Reports to: Product Development Manager

Position Summary:
The Development and Supply Chain Project Manager will play a critical role in the development, production and shipment of premium cycling products within a global organization. The position will work with teams in the United States and Italy, as well as factories in Europe, Asia and Central America, to ensure products are delivered on time, on cost and on quality. The Development and Supply Chain Project Manager will create and implement new project management and communication tools, plan and manage development meetings.
Duties and Responsibilities:
• Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to; Creating a global schedule, implementing communication channels between global teams, responding to customer delivery needs.
• Gather information from all departments needed to move a project forward
• Map and define all assigned projects and milestones needed to complete and reach the end goal
• Create and maintain project tracking and implementation records
• Identify and resolve problems and conflicts within the project team
• Support ongoing online (retail) and custom product programs with existing global factories, as well as the development and launch of new factories
• Works closely with Product Development Manager, Senior Product Developer, Supply Chain Manager, Logistics Manager, Sales Manager and General Manager
• Organize and manage kick-off meetings with relevant stakeholders
• Historical and forecast analysis to determine product needs
• Actively participate in achieving the company’s business objectives
• Serve as a liaison between cross-functional teams to drive strategy deployment
• Develop best practices and tools for project execution and management
• Work in partnership with department heads to identify opportunities for improvement, develop business cases and drive the prioritization and delivery of eligible projects
• Ensure alignment of global internal processes to reduce complexity, increase transparency and establish clear accountability for achieving the most effective results.
• Keep all departments on track to meet the project schedule
• Identify and mitigate potential risks
• Other duties required by the position

Personal Qualifications:
• Demonstrated initiative with excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to connect with internal and external team members at multiple levels, building confidence in your abilities to get the job done effectively
• Strong time management with accountability to ensure initiatives are completed and delivered on time and within budget
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with different international cultures
• Demonstrated success in managing multiple priorities in changing environments
• As a project manager, you will work in close coordination with operations and logistics
• Experience managing budgets and delivering initiatives
• A seasoned and strong ability to solve problems throughout the development process
• Embodies the temperament of a leader: adaptable, resilient, empathetic and assertive
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications including Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Experience in Centric is a plus

Preferred Education and Work Experience Qualifications:
• Licence
• 2+ years of experience as a project manager
• Experience and/or training in the apparel industry with exposure to print production and/or custom product manufacturing as well as supply chain operations.

Please note that this job description is not designed to cover or contain a complete list of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable people with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.

About Castelli/Sportful:
VC Group is a family business operated for over 75 years with a commitment to our customers and our team members. We are a premium cycling apparel manufacturer with global headquarters in Italy and US headquarters in Portland, Oregon. We operate two clothing brands: Castelli and Sportful. Our company has a history of product innovation and performance. Our products have been used by Tour de France winners, world champions and Olympic gold medalists.

Our office and warehouse are in the Hollywood/Laurelhurst area of NE Portland and close to MAX and bike paths.

Full-time positions offer competitive pay, health care, 401k, paid time off, and generous product compensation.

The Castelli/Sportful team strives to create an inclusive workplace that promotes and values diversity. Companies that are diverse in terms of age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity, and outlook have proven to be better companies. More importantly, creating an environment where everyone, from any background, can do their best is the right thing to do. We welcome all applicants.

How to register

Please send a CV to [email protected]

Jobs

Non profit living

Recognizing Local Charities for Nonprofit Appreciation Week | bloginfo(‘name’); ?>

by Rodney N. on February 10, 2022

February 10, 2022 0 comments

By Paula Brown, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

A small group of Dufferin County organizations will recognize the work of local nonprofits next week as part of a campaign for the first-ever Nonprofit Appreciation Week (February 14-February 20) .

In December 2021, the province passed Bill 9 to create Nonprofit Appreciation Week, a motion that received unanimous support from all parties. Beginning February 14 and continuing through February 20, the week is focused on recognizing those in the nonprofit sector whose work changes the lives of individuals, families, and communities.

Michele Fisher, executive director of the Dufferin Community Foundation, said the week of appreciation had been “a long time coming.”

“Most of the other helping professions are recognized for their impact. During the pandemic, for example, healthcare workers have been rightly praised for their efforts. But frontline workers in the nonprofit sector — many of whom were also deemed essential — have flown under the radar. That’s why we like to call them ‘invisible champions’,” Fisher said. “Nonprofit Appreciation Week is an opportunity for us as a community to say ‘Thank You.’ It makes visible all they do to help some of our most vulnerable and to strengthen our communities. I hope this will allow our nonprofit professionals to feel truly recognized for all that they do. »

In Dufferin County alone, there are over 150 non-profit organizations working within the community, ranging from social services, environmental/conservation organizations, arts and culture, recreation, health, mental health, community development, housing and homelessness, food security and much more. .

The Citizen spoke with some of the local nonprofits in Dufferin County ahead of Nonprofit Appreciation Week.

Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County

For people with dementia, a consistent routine can help them thrive. As a non-profit organization focused on support, programming and education, the Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County has taken on the challenge of maintaining this routine for more than two years.

“Over the past two years we have seen a significant drop in the availability of things like day programs, community support, personal support worker support. Basically anything that would allow a person with dementia and their family to maintain a consistent routine,” said Lindsay Gregory, Outreach and Education Coordinator. “Without this structure, we are seeing an increase in complex cases, an increase in behaviors and the burnout of caregivers.

To help address the lack of structure for clients brought about by the pandemic, the Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County has begun offering online training and education sessions as well as social programs, activities and social sessions. exercises.

One program, which Gregory points to as a proud moment in the face of the pandemic, is their Bring Back Box program.

The Bring Back Box program is a Montessori approach to dementia care where clients receive personalized activity kits based on their hobbies, interests, and memories that provide meaningful stimulation and engagement.

“We see a lot of people with dementia who are bored,” Gregory said. “It’s a really nice way to connect with people in an otherwise virtual world.”

The Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County has approximately 400 people on their active caseload and while their caseload has not increased since the pandemic, they have seen more admissions seeking access to education and support .

“We talk more often with people who are now at home with loved ones and who may be noticing this cognitive decline that they wouldn’t otherwise notice,” Gregory said.

Coming out of the pandemic, Gregory said after seeing how people have connected with them, the Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County will likely continue to use their virtual opportunities in a “hybrid model.”

Community Living Dufferin for over 60 years has been providing support to adults in Dufferin County who have developmental disabilities and when COVID-19 hit, rather than accepting a hiatus from all programs, Community Living Dufferin staff shows creativity.

“It could have been very easy for us to say ‘sorry, the building is closed and the programs are over, we’re just going to get by,’ but our staff didn’t,” Karen Murphy-Fitz explained, executive assistant. . “We changed our programs from those we operated in the main building to programs we offered in each of our homes.”

One of the ways they transformed, Murphy-Fitz added, was by distributing craft boxes in their homes, which contained games, science projects and art supplies.

“Residents had something different to fill their days,” Murphy-Fitz said.

Operating 14 homes that provide housing for more than 60 adults supported by the nonprofit, Community Living Dufferin was challenged early on by isolation as family visits were cut short.

Community Living Dufferin applied for and became the recipient of a number of grants allowing them to purchase smart TVs, iPads and Google Home units so they can continue to connect with families.

“It was huge for helping the people we support stay connected with their families, giving them the opportunity to see each other face to face,” Murphy-Fitz said.

Although Community Living Dufferin has learned, like many organizations, to balance the setbacks caused by the pandemic, it is the emotional impacts that continue to be felt.

While speaking with the Citizen, Murphy-Fitz held back tears as she spoke about their adaptation as hallways and rooms remain empty.

“It’s been hard not seeing people, and it’s going to be nice to have everyone together again.”

As the saying goes, the show must go on.

As a relatively young organization that began with seasonal programming, Streams Community Hub faced the challenge of bringing the arts, a naturally collaborative and in-person discipline, into the virtual space.

“We really spent several months, like anyone working in a space that deals with a lot of in-person programming, trying to figure out what to do,” explained Juli-Anne James, co-founder of Streams Hub. “It’s hard to put on a play without a stage.”

Although not fully equipped with the technology and staff to deliver virtual programs, Juli-Anne and Andrew James have found a way to bring the arts into children’s homes – through a stand-up competition.

The Word of Mouth Monologue competition launched in March 2021 and saw local young people aged 8-17 submit online performances of various monologues and compete in a live final.

“The monologue competition was a really great opportunity that we did after it turned out to be really awesome,” Andrew said. “It made us realize it’s a good outlet and now we need to keep doing it even when things get back to ‘normal’. We recognized the importance of helping young people have another way to express themselves .

Although restricted for a year to offering arts programs to young people, the James duo note that internal work was underway to deepen their roots in the community.

“We were able to see some of the needs in our community and see how we could better meet those needs,” Andrew said.

Streams Community Hub is preparing to open its first permanent location, tentatively scheduled for early March.

“We know the importance of connection, of being together in a space and that we can never escape that need or that want,” Andrew said. “Our show must go on, to move forward creating a bigger space not only for young people, but for the artist who also needs a place to express themselves in their art, while earning a living and teaching the next generation.”

Organizations that have worked to develop local activities in recognition of Nonprofit Appreciation Week include the Dufferin Community Foundation, United Way Guelph Wellington Dufferin, Headwaters Communities in Action, DC MOVES, the Chamber of commerce of Dufferin and Dufferin County.

History organization

The end of the pandemic will not come from biology or medicine — it will come from us

by Rodney N. on February 10, 2022

Almost two years later, as the omicron variant surged over the winter holidays, it dashed optimism among many that the end of the pandemic was near. This all-news of the new variants produced widely varying responses, with some suggesting it heralds the endgame of the pandemic and others doubling down on containment measures.

So when will the pandemic really end?

According to Fauci’s logic, the answer is only when the number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths come down and stay low. But as seductive as this notion is in its sheer clarity, it clashes with history: Over the past century, the end of respiratory pandemics has never been clear cut.

Instead, in four cases – the flu pandemics of 1918, 1957, 1968 and 2009 – hospitalizations and deaths attributed to the pandemic pathogen continued for years after the sense of urgency subsided. This reality reveals that the “end” of a pandemic cannot be determined by some kind of epidemiological milestone or by the acquisition of a miracle treatment that eliminates all risk associated with the virus. On the contrary, historically, the resumption of normal life – if it was even interrupted in the first place – guides the end of a pandemic.

Most experts agree that the 1918 influenza pandemic, caused by an H1N1 virus, had three waves, ending in the winter of 1919. Some, however, include a fourth wave and date it to the end of 1920 This cloudiness comes because the deaths have continued over the years. after the declared end of the pandemic; as recently as the winter of 1928-29, for example, H1N1-related deaths in the United States topped 100,000.

Yet while the 1918 pandemic may have lasted for years on paper – killing three times as many people as covid-19 after adjusting for population – in real life countermeasures have rarely been maintained for more than six weeks. Cities varied widely in how they dealt with the virus. For example, while many major cities closed schools for an average of four weeks in 1918, New York and Chicago — then the nation’s two largest cities — kept schools open throughout the pandemic. And as historian John Barry notes, many places experienced “several months of relative normality between the waves.”

While the story of the 1918 pandemic has become more familiar since the start of the last pandemic, those of 1957 and 1968 have received less attention.

During nine months in 1957-1958, about 66,000 additional influenza-associated deaths occurred in the United States and about “80 million Americans were bedridden with respiratory illness,” according to one report.

Even so, there have been no nationwide shutdowns or stay-at-home measures, and school closures have only lasted for weeks, if at all. People got sick but society kept spinning. This happened even though 60% of schoolchildren were sick, with schools showing average absenteeism rates between 20 and 30%, and teachers and health workers recording unusually high absenteeism rates. But even in New York, where 40% of students were absent at some schools, administrators said there was “no cause for alarm.” On the advice of the health department, they also did not reduce any activity.

Public health officials have made a conscious decision, in fact, not to cancel large gatherings and gatherings in an effort to stop or slow viral transmission. They considered that the epidemic was spreading too quickly for such measures to be effective. Instead, officials focused on providing medical care to those afflicted, not “preventing” the virus.

The 1957 pandemic came and went, but like the 1918 flu, the epidemiological impact of the virus continued long after normalcy had returned. As Newsweek reported in 1960, two years after the “end” of the 1957 pandemic, the same virus was “quietly wiping out nearly everyone it missed the first time.” One estimate put the number of additional deaths this season at 12,000.

By the late 1960s, a new pandemic virus had arrived: the H3N2 flu, which authorities say claimed 1 million lives worldwide over several seasons. Again, however, authorities put in place few countermeasures and disruptions to social life fluctuated between minimal and non-existent – reflecting a society largely unaware of the deadly pandemic. While in December 1968, The New York Times called the epidemic “one of the worst in the nation’s history”, according to historian Mark Honigsbaum, “there were few school closings and businesses, for the most part, continued to operate normally”.

Why the 1968 pandemic was largely imperceptible to most people is unclear, but it may have to do with how mild it was. The season did not rank as particularly deadly compared to previous years, and much of society was preoccupied with the Vietnam War and other social issues. The pandemic was a major event for virologists and some epidemiologists, but for most of society it was not an event.

Yet as the epidemic wave of the 1968 pandemic receded, the H3N2 virus never disappeared. An analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that strains of the virus were associated with, on average, tens of thousands of deaths per year for three decades after the pandemic.

Something similar happened with the “swine flu” in 2009. While the media devoted considerable airtime to the epidemic, the disruptions to life were fleeting and the epidemic largely spread. removed from public conversation within months. When the World Health Organization officially announced the shift to a “post-pandemic period” in August 2010, few people noticed, as social life had long since returned to normal. Yet, as in previous pandemics, the virus continued to circulate. According to CDC estimates, most post-pandemic seasons have seen the number of flu-related deaths exceed that of the pandemic itself.

Yet, although life has not been interrupted or returned to normal quickly during these four pandemics, we have dealt with covid-19 very differently. Although medicine has advanced over time, the hope of a vaccine or miracle therapy does not fully explain our different response. Indeed, a vaccine was produced in record time in 1968, with a total of 22 million doses distributed in the United States at the end of January 1969. But social life never stopped waiting for this vaccine.

Instead, our unprecedented focus on data may help explain why people have handled covid-19 so differently. Since the first phase of the pandemic, news sites and TV networks have consistently presented dashboards with data fueling perceptions of an ongoing state of emergency, prompting interventions and preventing our lives from resuming. social. The constant saturation of data has fueled the perception that only specific epidemiological measures will allow the resumption of normal life.

But despite our unprecedented ability to monitor the spread of SARS-CoV-2, history tells us that there will not come a time when the data signals the end of the pandemic. If history is any indication, covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths will be there for decades to come.

And for those adopting more stringent mitigation methods, it is crucial to understand that there will be no clearly definable biological endpoint to the pandemic. Only when they integrate the risk of covid into their lives and resume normal social interactions will the pandemic end. While they hope for a clean and neat endpoint, history indicates that such a thing does not exist.

In the end, it’s not the virus that makes the timeline – it’s us. The pandemic will be over when we say it’s over.

Canadian army

Fired Georgian College instructor becomes face of Ottawa protest convoy

by Rodney N. on February 10, 2022

Tom Marazzo says he was fired by the college after sending an email to faculty members that questioned the school’s vaccination policy

A new face of the truckers’ protest and the Ottawa occupation is a former Georgian College instructor who is now demanding that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meet with him and his team of “world-class scientists.”

On Monday night, video was filmed by organizers of the protest in the nation’s capital, which has now been going on for nearly two weeks. The video’s keynote speaker is Tom Marazzo, who taught at Georgian for two years.

A reporter contacted Marazzo on Tuesday. He responded to clarify his ties to the Barrie area. On Wednesday, he replied to confirm his work at Georgian College. However, Marazzo was unavailable for an interview.

“I can tell you that I was fired by Georgian College for sending an internal email to over 250 faculty, the president, the vice president of human resources and several deans, questioning the legality of the mandate vax. I put my name in it,” Marazzo wrote in his response.

“Within days I was fired for sending the email,” he added. “The overwhelming majority of teachers have turned on me in a show of unity in support of the mandates. OPSEU has been totally useless. I have a lawyer.

When asked if he still lives in Barrie, Marazzo said he sold his house and “moved away from Barrie.”

Marazzo’s LinkedIn page says he was hired full-time at the college from September 2019 to September 2021 as a computer software instructor.

A Georgian College spokesperson confirmed that Marazzo was on staff until September 2021, but would not comment further on his departure as it was a confidential personal matter.

On August 13, 2021, Georgian College announced that it will require vaccinations for all students and employees entering any campus or university location beginning September 7.

On his LinkedIn page, Marazzo says “if your company does not respect the Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, you are not a good choice for me”.

In the YouTube video posted earlier this week, Marazzo talks at length about what he calls “preventive SOS.”

Two of the main points raised in the video were that Trudeau was meeting face-to-face with Marazzo and the group, which includes Tamara Lich (secretary of a Western separatist group called the Maverick Party of Canada), Paul Alexander (former President Donald Trump civil servant administration and health researcher), and some people identified as “road captains”.

At one point, Marazzo said he would like all police officers who are on the fence about COVID to sit down with their “world-class scientists” and wave to the group behind him.

For a moment when everyone present identified themselves, a man calling himself Dr. Roger Hodkinson, a self-styled pathologist from Edmonton, was the only person claiming to be a doctor.

The video also calls for other protesters to come to Ottawa, as the group feared more police were heading to the nation’s capital.

“If you want to support us, if you really want to help us, what I would like you to do is start thinking about coming to Ottawa,” Marazzo said in the video.

Marazzo said he wasn’t asking people to get in their vehicles or pack their bags immediately, but that they wanted “to start preparing your families or start talking to your employers and saying, ‘Look, I feel really my place is in Ottawa this week’.”

Marazzo’s LinkedIn profile also indicates that he was a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) military officer.

A The CAF spokesperson confirmed by email that “a person with the name Thomas Marazzo is a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF)”.

“He was released seven years ago in September 2016, after 18 years of service. Thomas Marazzo joined the CAF in September 1998 in Hamilton, Ontario. He was a captain in the Canadian Army and served as a construction engineering officer. He was released from the regular force in 2015 to join the supplemental reserves. Thomas Marazzo (was) fully released from the CAF in September 2016. His service does not include any international deployment.

CAF said any additional information is protected by privacy legislation and was unable to comment further.

We still do not know what the next moves of the Ottawa group will be.

International headquarters

Partnership reports 26 economic development gains in 21

by Rodney N. on February 9, 2022

Despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, the Houston area continued to see domestic and international business expansions and relocation activity in 2021. The Partnership and its regional allies assisted with 26 economic development projects, representing more than $922 million dollars in capital expenditures and more than 2,900 new jobs in the region.

These include:

eagle managementan American manufacturer of high-quality PPE and a health technology company, has announced that it will open a manufacturing plant in Brookshire.
Archaea Energyone of the largest producers of renewable natural gas in the United States, is moving its headquarters to 40,000 square foot office space in Houston.
Capsule, a leading New York-based digital pharmacy, will expand to Houston with a hub for its pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and delivery drivers. The company plans to grow its local team to more than 100 employees over the next year.
Chewy.coman online retailer of pet supplies, expands its distribution network with a 700,000 square foot facility in Houston.
Dayton Street Partners, a Chicago-based real estate investment firm, has acquired a 500,000 square foot logistics center in northeast Houston. The company plans a multimillion-dollar renovation of the terminal and the development of an additional 25 acres.
First Bank of Taiwan, one of the world’s leading banks, opened its first branch in Houston. It is the first Taiwanese bank to establish itself in Texas. The Houston branch will provide a full range of financial services to meet the operational needs of Taiwanese companies overseas.
Fluidity analysisa company-backed startup that provides patented process analytics and control solutions to polymer and biopharmaceutical manufacturers, announced the move of its headquarters from New Orleans to Stafford, Texas, with more than 5,600 square feet of office, manufacturing and laboratory space.
Haldor Topsoea world leader in catalysis and process technology based in Denmark, will build a 15,000 ton per year hydrotreating catalyst plant at Bayport’s existing production site in Pasadena, Texas.
Han lasera Chinese national supplier of laser equipment, has opened an office in Houston that will support its marketing, R&D, assembly plant and more.
Pipe Hobas United Statesan Austria-based global piping systems manufacturer, is expanding to the Houston area with a facility that will support three new product lines.
Honeywell International Inc. moved its Performance Materials and Technologies business division to Houston, bringing the company’s workforce in Houston to more than 850 employees. Honeywell also plans to open a new Customer Center of Excellence on the CityWestPlace campus to showcase its technologies aimed at improving efficiency and profitability for industrial customers.
JPMorgan Chase, returned to its namesake building and downtown Houston’s tallest tower, with a 250,000 square foot lease. The bank is planning a major renovation of the building’s lobby, outdoor plaza and amenities. As part of the move, JPMorgan Chase will relocate its Houston Technology Center, which employs more than 1,500 people.
Neurogenica biotechnology company focused on genetic drugs for patients with rare neurological diseases, announced plans to convert a 19,000 square foot building into a manufacturing facility to support research and development efforts.
The Financial Times and Nikkei open the first joint office of their international editorial network in Houston to strengthen coverage of the energy industry.
NRG Energya Fortune 500 energy company with 3,000 local employees, announced it had designated Houston as its sole headquarters with plans for continued expansion.
ProDevice Corp.a leader in modern storage media data destruction technologies, announced an expansion to Houston with an office that will manage the company’s North and South American operations.
Puro Bioplasticsa New York-based sustainable bioplastics solutions provider, is setting up manufacturing operations at a 20,000 square foot facility in Houston.
Quantum Servicesa Houston-based company, a leader in specialized contracting services for the energy industry and others, will expand its headquarters.
Sourcepoint Mortgagea leader in mortgage business process management services, expands to Houston with a 35,000 square foot office.
Flow Floa Canadian manufacturer that supports the oil and gas industry, said it will expand to Houston to support manufacturing of a new line of products.
Super Cementa company based in the United Arab Emirates, is going to build a green cement factory in Houston intended to reduce the greenhouse effect.
Talaris Therapeutica Kentucky-based biopharmaceutical company, opened a research center in Houston to focus on process and assay development.
Texas MedPlastan Argentinian manufacturer of PPE products, opened a manufacturing plant in Houston.
Transoceana leading international provider of offshore contract drilling services, develops and updates technology and software platforms used with offshore rigs and mobile fleets on the Houston Gulf Coast.
UPSa global leader in distribution and logistics, will replace its existing Houston facility with a state-of-the-art 660,000 square foot packing and sorting facility.
Recycled products of the worlda California-based company that has developed proprietary technology to utilize recycled products, recently opened a 34,000 square foot facility in Waller.

The Houston area further cemented its position as America’s top metropolis for business relocations and expansions, with a total of more than 231 projects announced. Of those projects, 24% disclosed jobs related to the announcement, or more than 10,520 jobs, and 15% disclosed capital expenditures totaling $3.4 billion.

Learn more about the Partnership’s work in economic development and other areas of interest in the Annual report 2021.

History organization

5 landmarks to know, to see 2022

by Rodney N. on February 9, 2022

February is Black History Month, when crowds flock to the National Civil Rights Museum and the Stax Museum of American Soul Music. But other lesser-known places are also worth a visit, for those who wish to contemplate the city’s invaluable contributions to politics and culture. Here are five such locations:

mason temple

With nearly 8,000 seats, the Church of God in Christ’s “world headquarters” building opened in 1945 as “the largest gathering place in Memphis as well as the largest church owned and operated by of African Americans in the United States,” according to the Tennessee Encyclopedia.

Named for COGIC’s founding bishop, Charles H. Mason, the brick-and-stone monument to black religious freedom and Pentecostal expression at 930 Mason St. has become an indelible part of one of the most dramatic civil rights stories of the century when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.. gave his “I’ve been to the top of the mountain” speech there on April 3, 1968 – the day before he was assassinated on a balcony of the Lorraine Motel .

Protesters sing Amazing Grace at the Mason Temple in South Memphis

Hundreds of protesters gather to sing Amazing Grace at Mason Temple in South Memphis, the site of MLK’s final speech

Memphis Trade Call

BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN MEMPHIS: Stax Museum seeks to pass on record label’s legacy with Black History Month programming

Ida B. Wells Square

Dedicated amid the pandemic on July 16, 2021, the Ida B. Wells statue was an overdue addition to a Memphis statue landscape that already included WC Handy, EH Crump, Johnny Cash and Elvis (to name a few). to name a few).

Sculpted by Andrea Lugar of Eads, the statue stands on the corner of Beale and Fourth streets near the historic Beale Street Baptist Church, a congregation of freed slaves that housed the office of the Memphis Free Speech and Headlight, the newspaper who published some of Wells’ crusading anti-lynching investigations, including a famous 1892 op-ed that a white mob used as an excuse to trash the newspaper’s office six days later.

MEMPHIS HISTORY: Ida B. Wells statue unveiled in downtown Memphis

“Some people don’t want our stories, our realities, our perspectives told, heard, or acknowledged,” said Michelle Duster, president of the Ida B. Wells Foundation of Chicago and Wells’ great-granddaughter. “But between all of us present today, in the spirit of Ida B. Wells, we will not be silenced.”

WDIA

Located at 1070 on the AM dial and still a powerful voice in Memphis, WDIA in 1949 became the first radio station in the United States aimed entirely at black audiences.

Employing influential and famous disc jockeys such as BB King, Rufus Thomas, Jean “The Queen” Steinberg and Nat D. Williams over the years, WDIA (now based at a resort in Southeast Memphis and owned by iHeart Media ) originally aired from offices on Union Avenue.

USA CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL IN MEMPHIS: Beale Street Historic District, WDIA radio station building added to US Civil Rights Trail

A historical marker on Union about half a block east of Main Street commemorates the longtime downtown home of the so-called “Goodwill Station”.

Sion Christian Cemetery

Apparently founded in the 1870s by United Sons of Zion, a fraternal or “benevolent” organization, this 15-acre site in the 1400 block of South Parkway East is the oldest cemetery in Memphis dedicated to African Americans in the area. and is said to have contained nearly 30,000 graves, including those of yellow fever victims; important merchants, doctors and politicians; and some of the lynching victims Ida B. Wells spoke about – see #2 above.

Although listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990, the cemetery was neglected and overgrown until 2005, when the nonprofit Zion Community Project was established to help restore and to maintain the site.

Statuette of Larry Finch

This life-size bronze tribute to shooting guard-turned-coach Tiger, who remains perhaps the most beloved figure in University of Memphis basketball history, was unveiled just three months after the statue was Ida B. Wells.

Located outside the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on the school’s South Campus, the statue captures No. 21 in his Memphis Statue University uniform, halfway through, en route to (presumably) two of his 1,869 career points as a Tiger.

BY MARK GIANNOTTO: At Larry Finch Plaza, Memphis basketball’s past glory embraces the potential of the present

The leader of the Tiger team that coach Gene Bartow took to the NCAA championship game against UCLA in 1973, Finch was a proud product of the Orange Mound neighborhood and Melrose High School. He was embraced in his prime by seemingly the entire Memphis community, but that wasn’t enough to protect him during his controversial final years as a coach, which ended in his forced resignation in 1997.

Canadian army

Some critics call on Trudeau to channel his father on the protests

by Rodney N. on February 8, 2022

His three-word response to a violent uprising became one of the most famous ever uttered in the history of Canadian law enforcement: “Just look at me.”

It was October 1970 when Pierre Elliot Trudeau — Justin Trudeau’s father — took this position. When asked outside Parliament how far he would go to stop the Front de libération du Québec, an extremist group that campaigns for Quebec’s independence from Canada, he was provocative. The group had kidnapped a Quebec cabinet minister, Pierre Laporte, who was later assassinated. There had been a reign of terror of hundreds of bombs and robberies in Montreal. A British trade commissioner had also been kidnapped.

Mr. Trudeau succeeded in crushing extremists by invoking the War Measures Act — the only time in Canadian history that it has been applied in peacetime. He sent thousands of soldiers to Montreal and abrogated certain civil liberties. Uniformed soldiers raided houses in search of terrorists. Some 400 people were arrested and detained without charge.

Now some in Canada are asking Justin Trudeau to have his “Just watch me” moment.

“‘Just watch me’ is etched in the memory of all of us who were alive to hear Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau say it, all those years ago,” read a letter published Monday in the Toronto Star, Canada’s largest-circulation newspaper. “It is time for his son, Justin, to do the same with the protesters in Ottawa.

“Justin Trudeau needs his own ‘look at me’ moment,” added an opinion piece in the National Observer, an online publication. “Canada is under attack,” he said. “It is time for Trudeau to step back.

As anti-vaccine protests in Ottawa persist for a second week, Trudeau has at times appeared to channel his late father’s resolute voice, stubbornly refusing to negotiate with protesters. But he was also adamant that he would not call in the army. As Ottawa residents complain that unruly protesters are terrorizing their daily lives, he has turned to words rather than soldiers in an attempt to tame the protesters, some of whom have mocked him by calling him a ” chicken “.

The protesters are “trying to block the economy, our democracy and the daily lives of our people”, he told the House of Commons on Monday evening. “It has to stop.” “This pandemic has sucked for all Canadians,” he added.

Earlier, he denounced protesters for desecrating war memorials, criticized them for displaying “racist flags”, spreading misinformation and even robbing homeless people.

Defenders of Mr Trudeau say calls for him to send in the military are misguided in a country that values freedom of speech while noting that comparing the events of the 1970s – known as the October Crisis – at trucker convoy protest wrongly equates to angry anti -vaxxers with terrorists.

During the crisis, Mr. Trudeau kept a relatively low profile. He was moved to his official country residence, along with his family, to help ensure his safety. He has also self-isolated after testing positive for Covid-19 last week.

Mr. Trudeau, who has long established himself as a champion of human rights, is likely aware of the lessons of the October crisis. As the military suppressed the FLQ, critics at the time accused her father of trampling on civil liberties by allowing law enforcement to arrest people without charge.

Then-New Democratic Party leader Tommy Douglas compared Pierre Elliot Trudeau’s actions to wielding “a hammer to crack a peanut.” Nevertheless, a majority of Canadians supported the Prime Minister’s father in restoring law and order.

The elder Mr. Trudeau, for his part, was unrepentant after sending soldiers to Ottawa to protect public servants. “There are a lot of bleeding hearts around who just don’t like to see people with helmets and guns,” he said. “All I can say is, go on and bleed.”

International headquarters

US and Russia clash over use and impact of UN sanctions

by Rodney N. on February 8, 2022

UNITED NATIONS (AP) – The United States and its allies clashed Monday at the UN Security Council with Russia and China over the usefulness and impact of the UN sanctions, which are currently being imposed to countries ranging from North Korea to Yemen and Congo as well as al-Qaeda and Islamic State extremist groups and their affiliates and supporters.

Russia, which holds the presidency of the Council at this meeting and chose the subject – preventing the humanitarian and unintended consequences of sanctions – also denounced the unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and other countries and groups.

UN political chief Rosemary DiCarlo told the council that there are 14 UN sanctions regimes: for example, in Libya, Mali, South Sudan and Yemen, they support the resolution of the Conflicts ; in Guinea-Bissau, they aim to deter unconstitutional changes of government; in the Central African Republic, Congo and Somalia, they curb the illicit exploitation of natural resources that finance armed groups; in North Korea, they target proliferation activities; and they limit terrorist threats from the Islamic State and al-Qaeda.

DiCarlo said UN sanctions are no longer “the blunt instrument they once were”. Since the 1990s, they have undergone changes to minimize possible adverse consequences on civilians and third countries, and the Security Council has included and provided for humanitarian exemptions in most sanctions regimes, she said. .

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador Dmitry Polyansky, who chaired the meeting, said many sanctions regimes interfere with state-building and economic development plans, pointing the finger at the Central African Republic and Sudan and calling the measures against Guinea-Bissau “anachronistic”.

The Security Council must “pay more attention to what the authorities of states under sanctions think” and be more realistic in setting benchmarks for lifting them to ensure that they do not turn into “mission impossible”, did he declare.

US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield countered that sanctions are “a powerful tool” that “make it harder for terrorists to raise funds through international financial systems” and have slowed the development of “certain capacities” in programs North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile weapons. Sanctions also “constrain the resources of those who would spoil peace processes, threaten UN peacekeepers, commit atrocities and obstruct humanitarian aid,” she said.

Britain’s deputy ambassador, James Kariyuki, said the value of UN sanctions had been proven in Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia and Sierra Leone where “they helped end the conflicts and to support the transition to peace and democracy” and were subsequently lifted.

“In the Central African Republic, they improved the practices of a mining company,” he said. “In Somalia, the arms embargo has resulted in the seizure of thousands of cartridges, anti-tank guided missiles and sniper rifles believed to have been destined for al-Shabab”, the extremist group linked to al-Qaeda.

Russia’s Polyansky took particular aim at sanctions imposed outside the UN by countries or groups, which he said ‘remain a serious obstacle to the full functioning of humanitarian exemptions’, citing problems with contractors , carriers, freight insurance and banking.

He also said that Russia operates on the principle that only UN sanctions “are legitimate” and that a wider use of unilateral sanctions “undermines the norms and institutes of international law”.

Polyansky claimed that “secondary sanctions from major Western powers are creating a ‘toxic vibe’ around Pyongyang” that discourages cooperation even in areas not affected by international restrictions. He also cited what he called the “sanctions war” against Russia’s ally Syria, which has very negatively affected its economy, as well as US sanctions against Cuba and Venezuela.

Chinese Ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun called the unilateral sanctions “extremely harmful” and expressed concern that a few countries “threw them left, right and center, with a such a frenzy that they seem to be addicted to it”. He said that these measures “have put a brake on the economic and social development works and the scientific and technological progress of the targeted countries”.

Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador, countered that the US much prefers sanctions to be imposed multilaterally, including in the Security Council.

But when some Council members block “critical designations of peace process saboteurs, high-level terrorists, human rights abusers and sanctions evaders”, the United States and many other countries are ready to act – and to use their national monetary regulations and financial systems “as economic leverage to address pressing global challenges such as nuclear proliferation, human rights abuses and violations, and corruption,” he said. she stated.

To Russia’s assertion that sanctions imposed by individual countries may be illegal, Thomas-Greenfield countered, “the United States categorically rejects that position.”

The United States fully supports its partners, regional organizations including the European Union, African Union, and the West African regional group ECOWAS “which are imposing their own sanctions in response to threats,” she said. .

France’s deputy ambassador to the UN, Nathalie Broadhurst, said the EU sanctions were ”in line with international law” and ”do not hinder humanitarian action”.

Non profit living

Vancouver awards contract for 2nd Safe Stay Community to Living Hope Church

by Rodney N. on February 8, 2022

Vancouver City Council voted unanimously on Monday to contract with Living Hope Church to operate the city’s second Safe Stay community.

Brian Norris, associate pastor of Living Hope, said the organization has built relationships with the homeless population which will be an asset to the church while running the Safe Stay Community.

“They know where we come from; we know where they are (and) what their struggles are,” he said. “We want to see the best in people and we want them to see the best in themselves.”

The additional initiative from city staff came shortly after setting up its first site at 11400 NE 51st Circle, which operated for more than a month. Residents of the cul-de-sac in Vancouver’s North Image neighborhood have achieved many goals, said Jamie Spinelli, Vancouver Homeless Intervention Coordinator.

Three residents got jobs while others decided to seek treatment. A person has found his family; several residents have obtained their driver’s license; and some received essential medical care.

Outsiders Inn, a Vancouver-based nonprofit, operates the city’s first Safe Stay community. Adam Kravitz, executive director of Outsiders Inn, said community residents have already achieved milestones after more than a month of operation.

“Most of the time, success comes from people stabilizing,” he said.

Outsiders Inn is working on some issues, such as maintaining a continuous flow of essential supplies, including paper products, garbage bags and cooking utensils, Kravitz said. Some challenges require patience as the pieces fall into place, such as waiting for WiFi to be installed, he added. The organization’s staff shares their acquired knowledge and other general advice with Living Hope Church to ease their transition.

“We’re working very closely with them (to) help them get off the ground as smooth and easy as possible,” Kravitz said.

Spinelli said the added location will operate around the clock, connect residents to outside resources and provide peer support, just like the first site.

Living Hope Church operated a relief site early in the COVID-19 pandemic and operates the county’s only walk-in severe weather shelter. Volunteers also provide meals, a food and clothing bank, mobile sanitation facilities and other outreach services on a weekly basis.

Mayor Pro Tem Ty Stober said the community may question the role of a religious organization in running a municipal program and stressed that the church will abide by the Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunity Act. employment opportunities, which is described in the contract.

The city will pay Living Hope Church $552,212 per year to operate the site. Location and shelter options have not been determined.

Vancouver’s first Safe Stay community was included in its 2021-2022 budget, and additional communities will be funded with the first supplementary budget in 2022. The proposed second site and additional support sites may be funded through the Fund for the affordable housing, a sales tax on affordable housing. , and community development grants.

In the same motion, council members approved an updated administrative plan for the Affordable Housing Fund. The proposed changes allocate funds to meet changing community needs, such as the growing demand for temporary shelters during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Affordable Housing Fund initially allocated $300,000 per year for temporary shelters. The proposed update increased the amount to $1.66 million per year, which would support Safe Stay Community operations and the creation of additional sites.

The increase comes as the $3.96 million allocation for housing production and preservation has been reduced to $2.6 million, said Samantha Whitley, community development manager. City staff found that their goals had been met and that more investment was needed to help people in need find shelter.

“We’re nimble in responding (and) to the needs of our community, and this is a great way to do that,” Councilor Bart Hansen said.

History organization

Professor named president of national humanities organization

by Rodney N. on February 7, 2022

Timothy Murray, a professor of Comparative Literature and Literatures in English, has been elected Chairman of the Board of Humanities New York (HNY), a nonprofit humanities council founded in 1975 that supports and advocates for public humanities. throughout the state.

Humanities New York is the only statewide partner and is supported by funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities. During the pandemic, it received federal funding to re-subsidize the field through the CARES and ARP Acts.

“I look forward to leading HNY’s engagement through the humanities with diverse communities across the state, expanding HNY’s grant program to local communities, and supporting HNY’s state and national initiatives in the sciences. humanities and the environment, incarceration and the humanities and democratic history and principles,” Murray said.

In addition to his professorship, Murray is director of the Cornell Council for the Arts and curator of the Rose Goldsen Archive of New Media Art, Cornell Library. A specialist in modern and contemporary culture, film studies, contemporary art and philosophy, he is the author of some thirty books, collections and exhibition catalogs in several languages.

Sara Ogger, executive director of Humanities New York, says Murray brings “exciting leadership experience not just in the humanities, but also in public programs, advocacy, and nonprofit governance” that will be important to the organization as it navigates the next phases of the pandemic.

Murray serves on the board of directors of the Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory (HASTAC), is a member of the Carolina City Council, previously served as chair of HNY’s Nominating and Governance Committee, and served on the Boards of the National Humanities Alliance and the International Consortium of Centers and Institutes for the Humanities.

He is the recipient of grants and fellowships from the Rockefeller Foundation, Fulbright Association, National Endowment for the Humanities, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Society for the Humanities, National Research Foundation of Korea, and Dalian University of Technology (China).

International headquarters

John Vinocur, foreign correspondent and editor, dies at 81

by Rodney N. on February 7, 2022

Mr. Vinocur may have seemed unstable, but few contemporaries questioned the depth of his reporting, his access to the most reliable sources and his insight. His magazine article which won the prestigious Polk Award began as follows:

“Paraguay works like this: a man parks his car and to prevent it from being stolen, he ties it to a rope tied around his waist. The man is arrested walking the streets and charged with public ridicule. He insulted the national dignity, which, officially, has been restored and exalted over the last 30 years by El Excelentisimo, the President of the Republic, Don Alfredo Stroessner, General of the Army, First Magistrate of the country. Beaten, robbed, belittled, the man ends up bribing his release from prison. He finds his automobile on a used car lot and informs the dealer. “It’s a break for you,” says the dealer. “You know the real mileage.”

John Eli Vinocur was born May 17, 1940 in Queens, the son of Harry Vinocur, a journalist and historian who wrote under the pen name John Stuart, and Helen (Segal) Vinocur, who ran the heiress’ family philanthropy office. Rosenwald. Ascoli, who mainly dealt with child protection.

After graduating from Forest Hills High School, he earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Oberlin College in Ohio in 1961, where an English teacher encouraged him to pursue a career in journalism.

He worked for The Port Chester (NY) Item and The Long Island Star-Journal and Agence France-Presse in Paris before joining the Associated Press.

His marriages with Martine Weill in 1960 and Elisabeth Schmidt in 1966 ended in divorce. He married Harriet Berglund in 1985.

She survives him, as do his sons, James and Nicholas, from his marriage to Mrs. Berglund; two daughters, Alexandra and Danielle, from his marriage to Mrs. Schmidt; Mrs. Schaap; and seven grandchildren.

Alex Traub contributed reporting.

Canadian army

Lanka highlights flaws in Geneva process and challenges Canada’s genocide claim – The Island

by Rodney N. on February 6, 2022

HC Navaratne Responds to Ontario Politician’s Allegation of 140,000 Vanni War Dead

Sri Lanka has pointed to flaws in the process adopted by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council (HRC) to pursue unsubstantiated war crimes charges, which paved the way for the 2015 resolution on responsibility. Despite the serious concerns expressed by the then opposition and the armed forces, the yahapalana government co-sponsored the controversial resolution against Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to Ottawa, Harsha Kumara Navaratne, has pointed to glaring flaws in the Geneva process being exploited by interested parties, including those from Canada, to accuse Sri Lanka of causing genocide in the endgame of the conflict.

There has not been a single instance of Sri Lanka directly challenging the Geneva process since the adoption of the 2015 Accountability Resolution. The much-anticipated position was taken ahead of upcoming Geneva sessions due to begin later this month.

Here is the text of the declaration entitled ‘Refuting the ‘Tamil genocide’ allegation in the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka issued by the Sri Lankan Mission in Ottawa asking those interested in genuine post-war national reconciliation to engage in dialogue with HC Navaratne: The term genocide is used to describe one of the most serious crimes against humanity, comprising specific acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group. Therefore, the Sri Lankan High Commission in Canada notes with grave concern the attempts by some parties in Canada to present the final phase of the conflict in Sri Lanka which ended in 2009 as a “genocide” against the Tamil people. from Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan community in Canada is multi-ethnic and multi-religious. In this context, the private member’s Bill 104 on the “Tamil Genocide Education Week” passed in the Canadian province of Ontario has caused tensions in intercommunal relations within the Sri Lankan community. lanka by describing a false narrative against a community.

Additionally, while appreciating the various Canadian government focused programs for Sri Lankan Tamil Canadians, we are disappointed to note that on January 31, 2022, during an event announcing funding for Tamil students with programs and resources focused on mental health and well-being, Mr. Stephen Lecce, Ontario’s Minister of Education, made comments such as “we are very deliberate in our choice of words that we recognize a genocide that transpired against the innocent Tamil people” and “in a genocide that left over 140,000 innocent people perishing at the hands of the regime in Colombe”. reference to the “Tamil genocide” in his remarks.

We appreciate that the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, in a

The diplomatic note dated April 7, 2021 responding to a clarification stated “that the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development clarifies Canada’s official position regarding the allegations of genocide in Sri Lanka, the department can officially confirm that the Government of Canada has not made a finding that there was a genocide in Sri Lanka”. Additionally, the Government of Canada has outlawed the Liberation Tamil Tigers Eelam Organization (LTTE) as a terrorist organization.

In this context, the repeated use of the word “Tamil genocide” only generates dissension and prejudice among children and the community of Sri Lankan Canadians living in Ontario. Therefore, such allegations must be refuted in the interests of social harmony and to prevent the spread of misconceptions about Sri Lanka within the international community.

During the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka, government forces clashed with the internationally outlawed terrorist group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), one of the most brutal terrorist groups the world has seen. The LTTE’s objective was to divide Sri Lanka along ethnic lines and create a separate state. With this objective, they have waged a three-decade-long terrorist campaign that has brought great suffering and destruction to all communities.

During the final stages of the military conflict in 2009, as the LTTE faced inevitable defeat, it resorted to taking Tamil civilians hostage as a human shield and refused any effort to remove civilians from areas of conflict. The allegation of civilian casualties and the exaggeration of figures were the means by which the LTTE sought to force foreign intervention to halt the government’s advance.

Nevertheless, government forces succeeded in rescuing an estimated 290,000 Tamil civilians from the clutches of the LTTE, treating them and resettling them. Moreover, more than 12,000 armed cadres of the LTTE were rehabilitated and released, thus proving that the Sri Lankan government had avoided causing unnecessary deaths even among enemy combatants, let alone non-combatant civilians.

Therefore, there is absolutely no evidence to suggest any act and/or intent of the false allegations of “genocide” during military engagement with the LTTE. Nor was there a pattern of events that even suggested “genocide”. Military experts noted that the tactical options were justifiable and proportionate given the situation in the final phase of the military conflict.

Some parties, including remnant groups and LTTE sympathizers, have seized on the hypothetical civilian casualty figures contained in some seriously flawed UN-commissioned reports, to argue the genocide of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka during the final phase of the military conflict. However, even the highly contested report of the UN Secretary-General’s Panel of Experts does not charge the government of Sri Lanka with “genocide”. The main findings of the OHCHR’s 2015 Inquiry into Sri Lanka (OISL) into alleged “war crimes” in Sri Lanka do not even suggest “genocide”.

Groups espousing the genocide allegation seized on the claim, made without any evidence, in the PoE report “that there could have been as many as 40,000 civilian deaths” in the last months of the conflict. The PoE report came up with the hypothetical figure of 40,000 civilians killed discarding the actual number of people eventually rescued by the Sri Lankan army which was around 290,000 against the hypothetical figure of 330,000 which they considered the number civilians who had been in the region (Vanni) before the start of military operations in this region. This hypothetical number of 330,000 civilians used by the PoE is a purely arbitrary construct. No one, in Sri Lanka or abroad, knew exactly how many civilians the LTTE held captive during those months of 2009.

In addition, the PoE report mentions a lower figure of 7,721 deaths (up to 13 May 2009) reported by the United Nations country team in Sri Lanka. However, this figure is then disputed by the PoE report without explaining how it is that more than 30,000 people could have been killed in the last days until May 18, 2009, when the conflict ended, if the figure of 40,000 must ever be correct and precise. .

It should be noted that in July 2011, data collected by the Department of Census and Statistics of Sri Lanka in the Northern Province revealed that in 2008 and 2009 when the final battles raged in the Northern Province , the total number of people who died from causes other than natural causes, was 9,283. The field data collection required for the project, the first such count in this part of the country since the 1981 census, has was carried out by the predominantly ethnic Tamil government employees stationed in the Northern Province. The death toll suffered by the Sri Lankan army in the final war against the LTTE between July 2006 and May 2009 was 5,876. It would be logical to assume that the LTTE would have suffered a greater number of deaths than the forces Sri Lankan armed forces, and that of the reported persons (9,283) who died in the Northern Province of non-natural causes in 2008 and 2009, the vast majority would have been LTTE cadres or persons directly involved in the hostilities.

Legal experts have identified that the use of the disputed figure, which is the main weakness of the PoE report, is exacerbated by the standard of proof it purports to adopt. A non-legal analysis (“I was sure”, I was reasonably confident”, I was absolutely convinced”, “I had suspicions”, etc.) is used in a document dealing with alleged crimes on a large scale – who name those who may be responsible and who deserve further legal and other proceedings. They note that international courts and tribunals have not relied on reports of this nature as probative evidence to prove allegations in trials for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Since the end of the conflict in 2009, Sri Lanka has pursued a policy of restoration, reparation, reintegration, rehabilitation and reconciliation within the overall concept of restorative justice. At a time when Sri Lanka is moving forward in these processes, some groups, including remnants of the international LTTE network, have attempted to discredit and destabilize the efforts undertaken by Sri Lanka by pushing agendas such as the “Tamil genocide”.

As shown by the words of Mr. Stephen Lecce, who cited the figure of 140,000 dead, the content of unverified reports succeeded in misleading the international community and influencing opinion makers and decision makers. If, over time, the dubious nature of the evidence on which the UN reports are based is forgotten, their accusations, which are in fact unproven, could become powerful with repeated repetition.

Genocide allegations are impacting Sri Lanka’s relations with the international community, at a time when Sri Lanka is engaged in long-standing cooperation with United Nations human rights mechanisms and the Human Rights Council. rights of the United Nations and upholds its commitment to accountability and reconciliation through national processes and institutions.

Therefore, the Sri Lankan High Commissioner openly invites all who are committed to the Sri Lankan peace and reconciliation process to visit, meet and dialogue with him on this matter.

Non profit living

Why is the demolition of a Marcel Breuer house important?

by Rodney N. on February 6, 2022

LAWRENCE, NY – “Are people going to care about a tiny house?” asked Elizabeth Waytkus, who had been alerted a few weeks ago to the possibility of a once-famous house by architect Marcel Breuer being demolished. She is the executive director of Docomomo US, a nonprofit organization that promotes the preservation of modern structures.

People cared, it turns out. She received an outpouring of dismay and grief upon learning that the 1945 Bertram and Phyllis Geller home in Lawrence, on the southwest edge of Nassau County, had been torn down without warning on January 26 by current owners, Shimon and Judy Eckstein, who Waytkus said had assured him just three weeks earlier that they had admired him and had no plans to take him down.

It was a beautiful composition of three single-storey, cedar-framed wings, which zigzagged among the trees and shrubs of a spacious site, each wing topped by a low-pitched roof which gave the house an undulating silhouette. . The house had been significantly, but not irreversibly, altered, according to images on a real estate website.

His question, however, raises a larger point. The Geller house was rapturously covered by the press in its early days because it appealed to an America obsessed with a better life after enduring the sacrifices of World War II and the gloom of the Great Depression. It was “one of the most famous houses of the time,” said Barry Bergdoll, an expert on Breuer, who teaches architectural history at Columbia University and was the chief curator of architecture at the Museum of Modern Art. However, he had fallen into a kind of obscurity, well known especially to aficionados.

Preserving single-family homes is difficult and expensive, Waytkus explains, primarily because they are private. Docomomo’s modest resources are primarily focused on preserving commercial, cultural, and civic buildings as they are generally accessible to the public. In large-lot suburbs like Lawrence, the loss of a single home is less shocking because it isn’t seen as part of a whole, as a row of Manhattan mansions or towering brownstones might be. .

Suburbs often resist local preservation ordinances, especially those aimed at mid-century modern or later buildings. The taste for modernism is not universal, and suburban officials often shy away from enacting historic ordinances that compel property owners to become unwitting stewards of an important cultural resource.

“There aren’t a lot of tools to help preserve these houses,” Waytkus explained. The best activists can do, she says, is promote the value of post-war architecture to the community, as well as vendors. Then try to find buyers willing to keep them.

The Geller House received a lot of attention during its construction because it confidently embodied the new values of the suburbs: technological progress and an informal and discreet way of life around children, with easy access to games. and relaxation in the open air. It’s the emblem of an era that has completely disappeared: when post-war suburbs, at their best, were places of possibility, innovation and new ideas. The architecture of single-family homes expresses these aspirations and embodies this emerging way of life.

The Geller House has been described as binuclear, a rather significant way of emphasizing the primacy of childrearing which inspired the design. The visitor entered a closed covered passage which separated the wings reserved for family activities from a bedroom wing. Two of the children’s bedrooms faced a playroom that ran the full width of this wing, which opened directly onto a lawn for outdoor recreation.

On the other side of the breezeway, the kitchen, dining room and living areas came together in a relaxed way – emblematic of the greater informality sought by families. The owners didn’t treat the house like a showpiece. Joe Geller, one of the Gellers’ four boys, told Caroline Rob Zaleski, author of “Long Island Modernism: 1930-1980,” that his mother “didn’t bother us as young kids running inside out, and from room to room”. with all our

friends.”

The upward-sloping roofs in both wings lent a generosity to the modest dimensions of the rooms, as did the vast floor-to-ceiling glazed walls that projected sunlight onto the flagstone floors and opened onto the greenery outside. outside.

Marcel Breuer, born in 1902, left Hungary to study in Vienna, then entered the Bauhaus school in Dessau, Germany, where he would later lead the furniture workshop. He designed two famous chairs, the Cesca and the Wassily, both framed in chromed tubular steel and succinctly capturing the Bauhaus synthesis of abstract geometries and industrial techniques.

With the rise of the Nazis, Breuer, who was Jewish, moved several times, finally settling in Cambridge, Mass., in 1937, where he practiced and taught with Bauhaus colleague Walter Gropius at Harvard. Gregarious and charming, “Lajko” befriended many clients, including the Gellers, who hired him to design another house in Lawrence, in 1967. (That’s why the original Geller house is now known to curators as Geller I.) The house has been extended but remains largely as it was built.

In a series of houses with Gropius, Breuer would soften the sharp cubic forms, white plaster or metallic surfaces, and dramatic overhangs of his Bauhaus work. Geller was conceived as Breuer separated from Gropius and moved to New York.

In this house, Breuer merged his stylistic tendencies more completely with American building techniques. Conventional wood construction was clad in vertical cedar sheathing that gave a flat, sleek feel. Inside, he used thin panels of varnished plywood and contrasted them with expanses of saturated paint colors in the fashion of modern artists. Jackson Pollock made one of his first drip paintings – sold a long time ago – for the home.

Breuer anchored this light architecture to the earth with a living room wall and a massive fieldstone fireplace. Stone walls projected into the landscape to delimit play and relaxation areas. You could say the old-fashioned brickwork is reminiscent of the traditions Americans cling to – or the stone is simply a sultry counterpoint to the sleek planes of the rest of the design.

Many of the ideas Breuer had honed at Geller would appear in a house he had designed that was built in the garden of MoMA in 1949, spreading his ideas to an international audience. “The Geller and MoMA houses were meant to be replicable,” Bergdoll said, “a house that a local contractor could build.”

While many other architects, including émigrés like Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Richard Neutra, as well as the architects of the California Case Study Houses, brought new ideas to the rapidly expanding suburbs at this time, certain aspects of Breuer’s—and, by extension, Geller’s—MoMA design appeared nationwide, massaged to suit local conditions by talented so-called regionalists, in the Carolinas and Texas, California, and the North -western Pacific. A clean break from the past, homes celebrated the modesty and thrift people took away from the Depression.

I would argue that Geller House is more important today than it was when it was built, precisely because the qualities that made the era unique have largely disappeared. As the government endorsed suburban highways, towns emptied out, some returning later, largely by luring people to underappreciated neighborhoods, held together by those who didn’t leave, with stunning architecture but neglected. Ideas and optimism have started to come from the cities again.

The suburbs are now struggling to control traffic. Some have become impoverished. Thrift and modesty now seem antiquated. Land in desirable locations has become unaffordable and demolitions epidemic – in what were once middle-class suburbs as well as enclaves of innovative homes commissioned by adventurous clients – as the home as an investment vehicle triumph of the house as shelter. (In Lawrence, homes that appear to be three to four times larger than the longstanding mix of modest ranch homes and substantial summer “cottages” of the early 1900s rise along the coastal salt marshes and fairways of golf courses.) Zaleski, the author, estimates that more than two-thirds of the homes she showed in her 2012 book have been demolished or drastically altered.

As working from home frees people from commuting, the indoor-outdoor orientation and innate flexibility of House Geller and its ilk seem ideal, a reprieve for people glued to screens in dark rooms all day. Unfortunately, the lessons these houses teach are being lost as they become fewer and fewer.

History organization

Hiring Patriots offensive coordinator a big move for Bill Belichick – Reuters

by Rodney N. on February 6, 2022

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Thoughts and quick notes on the New England Patriots and the NFL:

1. Fill the OC void: A Bill Belichick story from 30 years ago applies today as it relates to the important question of who the New England coach plans to hire as offensive coordinator to succeed Josh McDaniels.

Belichick was being interviewed for the Cleveland Browns head coaching job and shared his philosophy with owner Art Modell, then repeated something similar 10 years later to Patriots owner Robert Kraft.

“We will teach coaches our system and develop them from within so that we don’t have to change our philosophy when coaches change. I have my [X’s and O’s] philosophy, that’s what we’re going to do, obviously with modifications. But we weren’t going to change the offensive, defensive and special teams philosophies of the personnel every time we made a coaching change. I tried to make a living out of it my whole career as a head coach.”

That’s how Belichick himself, at the NFL’s annual meeting in 2016, described one of his core principles.

As for what that means for the 2022 Patriots and the offensive coordinator position, here’s a look at the most notable points:

The system does not change. That’s key for second-year quarterback Mac Jones. He won’t have to learn a new system so much as hear a different voice in his headset.
Possibility to modify. A smart wit from the football staff relayed this as an easy-to-ignore layer. Losing McDaniels isn’t ideal, but it also creates an opportunity for Belichick to potentially streamline an offense that has grown deep, and possibly turn it into a more player-friendly scheme.
Playcalling functions. Would Belichick trust someone who has never done so before? Those familiar with his thinking have their doubts, which might explain why part of the buzz at the Senior Bowl last week was that the Patriots would target someone outside the organization with playcalling experience.

Few really know what Belichick is thinking, with media speculation centering on possibilities such as Bill O’Brien, Adam Gase, Joe Judge, Mick Lombardi and Nick Caley, among others.

The only data: whoever it is will be running Belichick’s system, and Belichick doesn’t seem to be in a rush to move on as he was enjoying some personal time out of the office last week.

2. Supply pipeline: One of the benefits of Belichick being able to come out of the organization for a seasoned playcaller is the ability to expand his network of coaches and open up a new pipeline of coaches to develop. For example, when Greg Schiano briefly joined the team in 2019, he brought in Bob Fraser. Or when Matt Patricia returned in 2021, he did so with research/analytics specialist Evan Rothstein. Someone like O’Brien or Gase would probably come with a few of their own assistants, and that could be ideal for filling in some holes.

3. Billy O’s haircut: O’Brien has proven himself as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator based on his past experience with New England, but aside from his roots in Massachusetts, I wondered why he would want to come back for a second stint. It’s a top job at Alabama, where he’s the offensive coordinator, and if he has another productive season in 2022, he’ll continue to be on the NFL head coaching interview circuit as he does. was this year with Jacksonville. Likewise, as new Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler noted of Belichick’s forward-thinking approachsurely the Patriots coach considered bringing O’Brien back in 2022 might just be a short-term solution and could leave him looking for another OC in 2023.

4. Slate’s plan: If Belichick decides it would be beneficial for the 2022 Patriots to have longtime special teams captain Matthew Slater, I feel like it wouldn’t take much pressure for the respected veteran to reconnect for another season. Some people close to Slater don’t believe he’s ready to retire.

5. Discussion in the room: Bills special teams great Steve Tasker (1986-97) was a nine-time Pro Football Hall of Fame semi-finalist, with Slater calling him a “godfather” for those whose careers have been defined by contributions to the kicking game of foot. There has been a prolonged debate over Tasker’s chances of being enshrined. Tasker sees an easier path for Slater — whose 10 Pro Bowl appearances broke his record seven special teams — going forward. On the ‘Great Dane Nation’ podcast with Morten Andersen, he said: “I don’t think there’s a single question he’s going to ask when the time comes. He may not be a Hall of Famer at the first round, but he’s going to be a guy they have to go to.”

6. Sony in LA: Former Patriots running back Sony Michel is gearing up for his second Super Bowl, this time as a member of the Rams. The Patriots traded Michel to the Rams in September in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2023 and a sixth-round pick in 2022. Even in hindsight, it’s a trade the Patriots would make again, as the position was one of the strengths of the team in 2021. As for the Rams, who needed depth after Cam Akers fell, I asked ESPN Rams reporter Lindsey Thiry for her perspective and she says the Rams would too. “He really helped redefine their offense after a three-game losing streak in November, when [coach] Sean McVay had to commit to more running and a more physical brand of football,” she said.

7. Mac at the Pro Bowl: Jones looked like he was having fun at the Pro Bowl Skills Showdown this week, teaming up with Browns cornerback Denzel Ward and Chargers safety Derwin James to help the AFC win the “Thread the Needle” competition. Jones didn’t do as well in the “Precision Passing” event, getting rolled by Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, then delivering passes in the “Best Catch” competition for his AFC teammates. His attempt to catch a ball led to his elimination at Dodgeball as the NFC won the overall competition. Next up: The game itself, which airs on ABC/ESPN on Sunday (3 p.m. ET), and Jones (as a backup) joins Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert at quarterback.

8. From the CFL to the NFL: Canadian Football League guard/center Drew Desjarlais (Winnipeg) had no lack of interest in the NFL before signing a contract with the Patriots for 2022. New England was one of seven teams for which he has worked, and it would have been more if Desjarlais hadn’t decided to cut it at that time. What appealed to the Patriots? Among other things, it’s Desjarlais’ physical and wicked style of play. Now the question is whether he can add his name to the CFL-NFL pipeline that includes Cameron Wake, Jeff Garcia, Brandon Browner and Warren Moon, among others.

9. Long Ahead: If the Bengals win Super Bowl LVI, they will propel the Patriots to third place on the all-time “longest wait for a championship” list. The Bengals, seeking their first-ever championship, are in their 54th season in existence. The Saints’ 43-year wait (2009) for a championship is No. 1, followed by the Patriots’ 42-year wait (2001).

10. Did you know? According to Elias, the Bengals are the second team in NFL history with multiple wins in a single postseason, joining the Patriots in 2001.

Canadian army

Benjamin DOLISZNEY Obituary (2022) – St. Catharines, ON

by Rodney N. on February 6, 2022

BENJAMIN WALTER DOLISZNY QC Benjamin Walter Doliszny died peacefully at his home in St. Catharines, Ontario on January 30, 2022, in his 99th year. Although loved and will be missed, Ben lived a full life and we want to share and celebrate his remarkable story. At the age of 6, Ben crossed the Atlantic from his native Ukraine as an unaccompanied minor to become a resident of one of Toronto’s immigrant neighborhoods. He held summer jobs that shaped his sense of self, including: serving as a kitchen boy at the Bigwin Inn; milking cows as a farm laborer on a dairy farm outside of Toronto; and, bagging groceries. He was an avid football player (and former student) at several Canadian universities. Despite a few false starts, he eventually became an excellent lawyer known for his honesty and wise advice. Throughout his adventures, Ben has focused on his family and his beloved Ukrainian community. He was a generous, fun-loving storyteller with an encyclopedic memory of interesting events that marked his life, especially his early years in Ukraine and Toronto. Ben was born on April 3, 1923 in Yabloniv, then part of Poland, now Ukraine. After immigrating to Canada, her family settled in the Junction Triangle neighborhood of Toronto. Here he attended Perth Avenue Elementary School and Bloor Collegiate Institute. He quickly developed his love and affinity for the Ukrainian Catholic Church and embraced its Ukrainian heritage. Ben loved his new life as a Canadian and took advantage of everything it had to offer, remaining a proud Ukrainian Canadian all his life! During his youth, Ben attended the Ukrainian school “Prosvita” and engaged in Ukrainian dance, youth choirs and theater groups. Gentle Ben, as he was known, was a 6’4′ mighty man with a soft heart (unless you pitted him on the grill). He was a natural athlete, playing baseball, basketball, hockey and football on numerous high school, community (1942 Toronto Oakwood Indians) and college teams (1947-1948 University of Toronto Varsity Blues’ Football team, 1949 -1952 Queen’s University Golden Gaels Football). He played competitive squash and handball and was a keen golfer. Ben was a longtime member of the St. Catharines Golf and Country Club. After his playing days were over, he enjoyed watching all the televised sporting events, especially CFL football. Ben loved to dance and, as a young man, frequented Toronto’s many dance pavilions, including the Palais Royale, Palace Pier and Sunnyside Pavilion. When he regaled us with big band stories, seeing Duke Ellington, you could almost hear the band playing. Ben loved to read and began each day by scanning the sports and obituaries sections of the Globe and Mail and the St. Catharines Standard. Even late in life, he remained curious and interested in the wider world. Upon his discharge from the Royal Canadian Army in 1946, Ben enrolled in law at the University of Toronto, where his interest in academics took precedence over his love of football. It was also that year, at a conference of young Ukrainian Catholics in Winnipeg, that Ben’s life changed when he met Mary Wityk, a nurse in training who was to become his wife. With Mary as his partner, motivation and guide, he enrolled at Queen’s University and then Dalhousie University where he successfully completed his law degree. After being called to the bar of Nova Scotia and Ontario in 1955, he and Mary moved to St. Catharines, Ontario, where he practiced law for 36 years. He became a Queen’s Counsel in 1973 and later sat in Small Claims Court. Between 1956 and 1959, Ben and Mary welcomed 3 children – Bonnie, Kathie and Gregory, who would become the center of their lives. Through Ukrainian pursuits such as Saturday School (Ridna Shkola), Plast dance and scouting, music lessons, sports, and road trips to Florida, their family thrived in St. Catharines. In 1979, Mary opened a boutique, Ukrainian Treasures, and Ben became an honorary salesperson and ambassador of Ukrainian culture. He took every opportunity to educate shop visitors about Ukrainian culture, history, religion and politics. Ben was a loving and supportive husband and father, a devoted dido to his grandchildren, and a respected and admired uncle, friend and colleague. His wisdom, advice and counsel were sought by many. Ben has worked tirelessly for the Ukrainian community. He has held various positions at the international, national, provincial and local levels. He was a member of the Executive Council of the Ukrainian World Congress, national president of the Ukrainian Catholic Council of Canada (1968-1971), long-term president of the St. Catharines branch of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, active member and legal adviser for Sts. Cyril and Methodius of the Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. Catharines, president of the Ukrainian Catholic Fellowship of St. Catharines, as well as a member of the organization’s national executive. Ben was President of the Ukrainian Professionals and Businessmen’s Club (Niagara Region) and a member of the Ukrainian seniors’ organization, Myrhorod. He was the secretary of Branch 427 of the Ukrainian National Association for many years. He was a founding member of the St. Catharines Folk Art’s Council and served on the board for over 10 years. For these many contributions, Ben was awarded the Shevchenko Medal which is the highest form of recognition bestowed by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. Ben was not only a committed advocate for all things Ukrainian, he was also very involved in local, municipal and provincial community organizations, as well as various charities and service organizations and clubs in the area of St. Catharines and Niagara. He was a longtime member of the Knights of Columbus. In recognition of his contributions to the community, Ben was awarded the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship in 1979 and the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2003. Ben was predeceased by his beloved wife of 57 years, Mary ( Wityk) in 2007. He is fondly remembered by his beloved children, Bonnie, Kathie (Stephen Archer) and Greg (Julie) and; adoring grandchildren, Melana (Erik Reiersen) and Thomas Tysowsky, Elizabeth, Benjamin and Anya Archer and Matthew (Marianne Holovach) and Luke (Gabrielle) Doliszny; sisters-in-law Ludmilla Wityk and Judy Farrell; nieces and nephews, Michael (Kim) Kuchar, Jeanne (Philip Sissons, deceased) Kuchar, Laryssa (Yuri) Tarnowecky, Michael (Christine) Wityk, Sean (Kelli Adams) Wityk, Tim Wityk, David Wityk; and grandnieces and nephews. Ben was also predeceased by his parents, his sister Patricia Kuchar, his brothers-in-law John and Peter Wityk and his nephew, Peter Kuchar. The family would like to sincerely thank Ben’s caregiver, Joan Longos, the Linhaven Adult Day Program staff and the many personal support workers for their care and compassion. Visitation will be Thursday, March 24, 2022 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. with Panachyda at 7:00 p.m. in Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church. A Memorial Mass with ashes present will be held at Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church on Friday, March 25, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. Interment will follow at Victoria Lawn Cemetery. All guests must present proof of dual Covid-19 vaccinations to attend the tour, including photo ID as per current Ontario mandates. If desired, memorial donations can be made to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress or a charity of your choice. Ben’s online memories and stories can be shared at CCBSCares.ca

Published by The Globe and Mail from February 5 to 9, 2022.

International headquarters

ExxonMobil’s spring campus will become the company’s headquarters; International Comfort Food Restaurant Opening in Tomball and Other Houston-area News

by Rodney N. on February 5, 2022

According to a Jan. 31 press release, ExxonMobil plans to move its headquarters from Irving to its existing 385-acre campus at City Place, formerly known as Springwoods Village. (Courtesy of ExxonMobil)

Read the most popular Houston-area news stories from the past week.

Spring-Klein

ExxonMobil announces the move of its headquarters to City Place in the spring

The Spring and Klein community will soon house ExxonMobil’s headquarters, according to a company announcement Jan. 31.

Tomball Magnolia

Graze restaurant celebrates its opening in Tomball

Graze, a restaurant offering international comfort food, celebrated its grand opening on January 26 in Tomball.

18 restaurants in Tomball, Magnolia open in 2021 or coming in 2022

Several restaurants have opened in the Tomball and Magnolia community in 2021, while a number more are expected to open this year.

Pearland Friendswood

Work on downtown Manvel, HEB anchor continues

Grocery chain HEB will open a new location in 2023 in Manvel as part of Downtown Manvel, an ongoing development.

Lake Houston-Humble-Kingwood

The opening of the Amazon delivery station in Porter delayed

The opening of an Amazon delivery station slated to debut in Porter in 2021 has been delayed until further notice, Amazon officials confirmed on Feb. 1.

Hannah Zedaker, Maegan Kirby, Chandler France, Sierra Rozen and Wesley Gardner contributed to this report.

Non profit living

Letter to the Editor: Residents Avoid Using Manning Avenue Bridge Due to Possible Collapse

by Rodney N. on February 5, 2022

Dear Mr. Merchant, Mr. Mixon, Ms. Dennis and Members of Sumter City Council and Sumter County Council:

The decrepit and deteriorating condition of the Manning Avenue Bridge in Sumter, South Carolina presents a significant disadvantage to many voters who reside in South Sumter, South Carolina and want to vote by mail early and in person. The primary site for conducting this type of voting is the Sumter County Voter Registration and Elections Office, located at 141 N. Main St., Sumter, SC.

A number of residents of South Sumter, South Carolina avoid crossing the Manning Avenue Bridge due to the hazardous conditions that exist there and the risk of danger and loss of life that can occur at this site in the event of an accident. collapse of said bridge.

Residents of South Sumter, South Carolina are predominantly African American and have low to moderate incomes. These people suffer disproportionately from diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, chronic lung disease, prostate cancer, high maternal morbidity and mortality, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Residents of South Sumter, South Carolina are, in effect, economically and racially separated from the more affluent and economically secure segments of the City of Sumter and Sumter County, South Carolina, by the presence of the railroad system CSX which divides these entities demographically into two. and by the presence of a faulty, decaying and deteriorating Manning Avenue Bridge which, due to its unsafe condition, forces residents of South Sumter to use detour routes around this bridge for safety reasons and for fear of an imminent bridge collapse and the resulting devastation. results.

In fact, inequality powerfully depresses the vote of low-income people.

Even without the impact of the global pandemic, economic deprivation is a case of double jeopardy when it comes to voting: if you’re poor, you’re more likely to have poor health – and if you’re unhealthy , you are less likely to vote.

The Family Unit Inc. is continually consulted by low-to-moderate income residents of South Sumter, South Carolina on issues regarding their health, homelessness, substandard living conditions and their right to vote .

Voting rights are often the last item on the agenda for low-to-moderate income residents of South Sumter, South Carolina, due to their focus on survival and basic sustenance. However, surprisingly and incredibly, despite their countless hardships in daily life, the right to vote is sought and revered by some of the poorest people The Family Unit Inc. has come into contact with and advocates for.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohibits any obstruction or restriction, caused by a state government, that adversely affects a voter’s right to have unrestricted and easy access to the ballot box.

The Sumter Urban Area Transportation Study (SUATS), which is a metropolitan planning organization (www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/transportation-planning/metropolitan-planning-organization-mpo) consisting of Members of the City of Sumter Government, Sumter County Government, South Carolina Department of Transportation, Sumter County Legislative Delegation, City of Sumter Planning Commission, and County Development Board of Sumter, made the decision as a group to place the replacement for the Manning Avenue Bridge. following the implementation of other “connectivity” projects that have been undertaken over the past decade in Sumter County, South Carolina.

The Family Unit Inc. argues that the decision to delay the replacement of the Manning Avenue Bridge while ignoring and ignoring the unsafe, dilapidated and deteriorated condition of this structure impedes and violates the voting rights of South Sumter residents, South Carolina, many of whom are members of our 501(c)(3), nonprofit charitable organization, and are beneficiaries of services provided by our organization that relate to the health, housing, and education of voters, voter registration and promoting voter engagement in the electoral process.

The Family Unit, Inc. recommends that the South Carolina Department of Transportation perform a full and thorough assessment and inspection of the Manning Avenue Bridge as soon as possible and, simultaneously, close access to this decaying bridge and deteriorating, setting up alternative routes for motorists and pedestrians who would normally cross this bridge. It is recommended that SCDOT configure alternate detour routes for motorists as well as pedestrians traveling over the Manning Avenue Bridge.

Further, The Family Unit, Inc. recommends that the South Carolina Department of Transportation and SUATS communicate with the CSX Railroad Corporation regarding the relationship between the Manning Avenue Bridge and the CSX rail system which is an integral part of the city of Sumter and the county of Sumter. , Caroline from the south.

Importantly, the CSX Railroad Corporation has already begun to improve transportation in the City of Sumter and Sumter County, South Carolina, by extensively replacing the old, deteriorated railroad tracks and surrounding equipment with new materials. and safe, secure and durable equipment.

A joint effort between SUATS and the CSX Railroad Corporation would benefit residents of the City of Sumter and Sumter County, South Carolina, especially low to moderate income people who live, own and operate businesses and love in South Sumter, South Carolina.

In addition to this, proactive actions in reference to the replacement of the Manning Avenue Bridge will help protect and preserve the voting rights of low-to-moderate income residents of South Sumter, South Carolina, by helping to ensure these voters unlimited and unhindered access. access to the Sumter County Voter and Election Registration Office, located at 141 North Main Street, Sumter, SC…the site where the majority of in-person mail-in voting takes place.

A significant number of low to moderate income residents who live in South Sumter, SC live within one (1) mile of the Sumter County Registration and Elections Office and use the Manning Avenue Bridge to reach this destination.

A collapse or failure of the Manning Avenue Bridge would result in these aforementioned voters incurring significant charges to access the Sumter County Voter Registration and Elections Office, the location where they routinely voted using by-pass voting. correspondence in person.

Immediate strategic planning by the South Carolina Department of Transportation for the implementation of alternate routes around the Manning Avenue Bridge would indicate that voters would prepare and inform voters of the altered route to the registration office and Sumter County Elections where they could cast their Mail-In Votes in person.

The Family Unit, Inc. routinely and regularly engages with low to moderate income individuals who are registered voters in the State of South Carolina and who are potential voters. It is common for many of these voters to be carried by me, representing my non-profit charity. Preparing to vote is fundamental and essential to participation in the electoral process. Having advance notice of transportation routes before the election overall helps get voters to and from the Sumter County Voter and Elections Registration Office and to and from the various polling places.

BRENDA C. WILLIAMS, MD

The Family Unit Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization

Summer

History organization

UC Riverside professor is one of the few black archaeologists searching for sunken slave ships and hidden history – Press Enterprise

by Rodney N. on February 5, 2022

When you find doll fragments on a former plantation in Florida where slaves lived and worked in the 1800s, it’s impossible not to be amazed.

Who owned the doll? How did children live on a plantation? What was recreation for the children of slaves like?

That feeling of being able to hold a piece of the past before it was placed on a shelf or under a spotlight in a museum – that’s what got Ayana Omilade Flewellen hooked on archaeology.

Ayana Omilade Flewellen, assistant professor of anthropology at UC Riverside, stands in the hallway of Watkins Hall on the Riverside campus Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022. Flewellen is a co-founder of the Society of Black Archaeologists and serves on the board of directors to dive with a purpose. (Photo by Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Make history tangible

An assistant professor of anthropology at UC Riverside, Flewellen belongs to a small group (less than 1%) within the archaeological community – black archaeologists – and is one of a handful of black-born maritime archaeologists who dive offshore. the coast of St. Croix in the Caribbean and Michigan’s Great Lakes, searching for wreckage of ships that transported slaves and the fuselage of planes that once carried Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American military aviators of the US armed forces.

At 31, Flewellen, co-founder of the International Society of Black Archaeologists, is carving out a niche for herself as a researcher and archaeologist who works on land and under water, exploring ideas of race, gender, equity and of social justice while linking the truths of the past to the present in each project.

Archaeology, says Flewellen, is a way of showing history rather than telling it.

“Archaeology really makes our history tangible in ways that can’t be denied. It’s important in our country right now in an environment that thrives on misinformation,” said Flewellen, who identifies as no binary (neither male nor female) and prefers the pronoun “they”.

Flewellen’s own history is rooted in Texas. They were able to trace their family members back to the 1850s in Falls County, central Texas. But Flewellen was born in Atlanta and raised in different places – Maryland, New Mexico and Florida. Their time in the Washington, DC area, visiting museums and swimming at Miami beaches influenced their interest in history and, later, maritime archaeology.

“Growing up with a single mother and limited disposable income, we always looked for what we could do for free,” they said. “And that meant visiting many museums and beaches.”

As an undergraduate at the University of Florida, Flewellen was an undeclared major for two years. They found their calling in 2010 during field study at the Kingsley Plantation in Jacksonville, owned in 1814 by Zephaniah Kingsley and run by his wife, Anna Madgigine Jai, a Senegalese whom Kingsley had purchased as a slave. Flewellen was fascinated by how a black woman had actively participated in the management of the plantations, acquiring her own land and slaves after being freed by Kingsley in 1811.

“This project got me hooked on archaeology,” they said.

Ayana Omilade Flewellen, assistant professor of anthropology at UC Riverside, is a co-founder of the Society of Black Archaeologists and serves on the board of directors of Diving With A Purpose, on the Riverside campus, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022. (Photo by Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Posts from the past

Much of the work Flewellen does on the land focuses on how African American women in the post-emancipation era dressed their bodies to negotiate the racism, sexism, and classism that shaped their lives.

“I found dress is so important because when we think about the rise of white vigilante movements, they targeted black bodies and property,” Flewellen said. “How people see you as a black person could have a huge impact on your life. We saw it in the Trayvon Martin case.

Martin was a 17-year-old black teenager who was fatally shot by a neighborhood watch coordinator in a gated community in Sanford, Florida on February 26, 2012. He was wearing a hoodie at the time, a everyday who has found himself at the center of the national debate on racial profiling and social justice.

As an artist who makes jewelry, Flewellen said they were always interested in seeing how slaves adorned their bodies.

“I met glasses,” they said. “Buttons made of wood, bone, metal or ceramic. Beautiful hand cut stone beads. When you find these things, you think of the craftsmanship that goes into them. When you look at bone objects, you think about what people ate, what they had access to, and what they created with what little they had.

Flewellen also found fragments of dolls at Kingsley Plantation and a marble at an archaeological site in St. Croix – items that resonated with them the most – they said.

“It made us think about how children lived in those days,” Flewellen said. “It’s not something we talk about often. These objects and remnants of the past help us think more broadly about the human experience.

story under water

Flewellen said maritime archaeology, or the search for historical artifacts underwater, was something that never occurred to them — at least until they were graduate students at the University of Texas at Austin.

“That area was pretty much white male dominated and never presented to me as a possibility,” Flewellen said. “The very cost was staggering to me. Learning to dive can be very expensive.

Connecting with Diving with a Purpose, a Florida-based volunteer underwater archeology program, changed Flewellen’s trajectory. They trained with the group for free at the Dallas YMCA. At first it was terrifying, Flewellen said.

“It took me a while to learn how to float underwater and better control my breathing,” they said. “But most importantly, I had to train my mind to know that everything would be okay. I had to remember to breathe deeply, which also feels like a meditative practice.

Flewellen’s first scuba diving experience was off St. Croix, where they co-administered an archaeological project at the Estate Little Princess Plantation site, teaching students modern archaeological method and theory in the field. and including local community members in data collection. process, giving them the means to appropriate their heritage.

At Sainte-Croix, Flewellen collaborates with her research partner, Justin Dunnavant, assistant professor of anthropology and archeology at UCLA. The project is housed on property owned by The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental organization, and is a collaboration with the Smithsonian’s Slave Wrecks Project, local historic preservation groups, the University of the Virgin Islands, and several universities across the continental United States. The Slave Wrecks Project researches slave ships one voyage at a time and examines the sites, stories and legacies associated with these voyages.

Recently, as part of the project on the island of St. John, the Flewellen team came across a mid-18th century ship, which was not a large enough vessel to have transported enslaved Africans, but existed at a time when there were social problems. processing on the island.

“It helps us think about the maritime connection that black people had during this time,” they said. “The docks themselves were also places where black people congregated.”

Flewellen said the dives off St. Croix, on the edge of the continental shelf, were particularly “incredible and beautiful”.

“You go from 150 feet to 3,000 feet underwater where it’s so dark,” they said. “It’s terrifying and exciting at the same time. The depth of the ocean is a perfect metaphor for the unknown. There is so much history in our waters that we cannot see.

Move and push the limits

Flewellen’s groundbreaking work is helping to transform the field of archaeology, said Maria Franklin, a professor of anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin, where Flewellen earned her master’s and doctorate degrees.

“The work that Ayana and others are doing is aimed at developing ourselves and training others, as well as achieving more collaborations with communities and organizations so that we can take archeology out of the ivory tower and bring it to the world,” Franklin said. “Whether it’s theorizing the human social condition, doing fieldwork, or picking up a collection and thinking about it, social justice is the mandate. That should be the goal. We need to see more people in this field who look like us.

Franklin says she sees her former student not just as a role model for black students, but for students of all races and genders.

Dunnavant, Flewellen’s collaborator and research partner, said he viewed Flewellen as someone who never felt intimidated by challenges or obstacles.

“It’s extremely important for (Flewellen) to be upfront because it’s important for other women to see their work,” he said.

Dunnavant says his goal is to “become irrelevant” by training future archaeologists.

“We have histories and legacies that we don’t know about,” he said. “We may never learn them in our lifetime. Thus, each of our projects includes a training component. »

Their work, along with that of other black archaeologists probing the depths for slave shipwrecks and experiencing the power of finding their own story, will be featured in National Geographic magazine to be published on Monday, February 7. Flewellen’s work was also featured. in the magazine’s “Into the Depths” podcast series.

Flewellen believes that the future of archeology depends on the ability of current practitioners to show the connections between past and present.

“A lot of people see it as a ground for old white people,” they said. “In the future, I see, it’s a practice that roots the way humanity existed in the past and connects it to what we experience today. I like to see a future where projects are driven by the community members and what people want to know about the past – our collective past.

Canadian army

Global Future Soldier Programs Featured at Future Soldier Technology Conference 2022

by Rodney N. on February 4, 2022

SMi Group Reports: The Future Soldier Technology Conference, taking place in London next month, features nine different nations presenting updates on their Future Soldier programs.

There is just one month left until the 8th Annual Future Soldier Technology Conference and Exhibition returns to London on March 8-10, 2022, alongside a Dismounted Soldier Situational Awareness Day on March 7, 2022.

As the world’s leading meeting dedicated to improving dismounted soldier technology, Future Soldier Technology 2022 will provide an engaging networking space to foster new working relationships and discuss current equipment modernization requirements and experiences.

This event usually sells out early – for those wishing to attend the conference, it is advisable to register early to avoid disappointment. Register at http://www.futuresoldiertechnology.com/pr2.

Delegates will have the opportunity to hear key updates on future soldier programs from these countries: the United Kingdom, France, Portugal, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, the United States, etc.

Featured presentations include:

• Brigadier Matthew Cansdale, Head of Future Force Development, British Army, presenting: “Future Soldier”: Transforming the British Army

• Lieutenant-Colonel Sébastien Gasnier, Field Deputy, Department of Infantry Doctrine and Advanced Studies, French Armed Forces Infantry School, presenting: Maximizing the lethality and situational awareness of dismounted soldiers through improved weapon optics

• Major Pedro Miguel Martins Grifo, Staff Officer (Area Coordinator – C4I, ISTAR and EW) Capabilities Branch, Portuguese Army*, presenting: Development of Portuguese dismounted soldier systems to improve knowledge of the situation

• Major Philippe Rhéaume, Soldier System Project Director, Directorate of Land Requirements, Canadian Armed Forces, presenting: Optimizing Soldier Maneuverability with the Canadian ISSP

• Colonel Michael Bassingthwaighte, Army Advisor, London, Australian Defense Staff, presenting: Improving situational awareness for the dismounted Australian soldier

• Colonel Jan H. Vonk, STRONG Program Manager, Defense Material Organisation, Dutch MOD and Ms. Ilse Kroesen, System Integration Manager Individual Soldier, Defense Materiel Organisation, Netherlands Armed Forces, presenting: STRONG Programme: Improving the Capabilities of Dutch Dismounted Soldiers

• Major Magnus Hallberg, LCD DSS Chairman, NATO/Swedish Armed Forces, presenting: Developing the NATO Future Soldier System

• Mr. Geert Vanlinthout, Program Manager, Night Vision Capability Programme, OCCAR-EA, presenting: OCCAR: Improving Night Vision Capability for Participating Nations

• Lt. Col. Denny Dresch, PdM PEO Ground Soldier Systems, PEO Soldier, US Army, presenting: Transforming Soldier Situational Awareness with the Nett Warrior IVAS Program
*subject to final confirmation

The full agenda and list of speakers is available at http://www.futuresoldiertechnology.com/pr2.

Future Soldier Technology Conference
Conference: March 8-9, 2022
Pre-conference Focus Day: March 7, 2022
Main Sponsor: Glenair | Gold Sponsor: Thales | Sponsors and exhibitors: 3M, Bren-Tronics, Domo Tactical Communications, Excelitas Qioptiq, FalCom, Instro Precision, L3Harris, Marlborough Communications, Silvus Technologies, Steatite, Teleplan Globe and Ultra Electronics

For sponsorship and exhibition enquiries, contact Sadia Malick Sadia Malick, Director on: +44 (0) 20 7827 6748 or email [email protected]

For delegate enquiries, contact James Hitchen on: +44 (0) 20 7827 6054 or email [email protected]

— ENDS –

About the SMi Group:
Established since 1993, SMi Group is a global event production company specializing in B2B conferences, workshops, masterclasses and online communities. We create and organize events in the defense, security, energy, utilities, finance and pharmaceutical sectors. We pride ourselves on having access to the world’s most forward-thinking thought leaders and visionaries, enabling us to bring our communities together to learn, engage, share and network. More information can be found at http://www.smi-online.co.uk

Non profit living

US evacuated 10 civilians in raid, Pentagon says

by Rodney N. on February 3, 2022

Video

transcription

Islamic State leader kills himself with bomb in US raid in Syria

President Biden says the Islamic State leader died in a raid by US special operations forces. All US troops returned safely from the operation, he said.

: Knowing that this terrorist had chosen to surround himself with families, including children, we made the choice to pursue a special forces raid at a much greater risk than for our own people, rather than targeting him with a air strike. We made this choice to minimize civilian casualties. This operation is a testament to the reach and ability of the United States to eliminate terrorist threats no matter where they try to hide anywhere in the world.

President Biden says the Islamic State leader died in a raid by US special operations forces. All US troops returned safely from the operation, he said.CreditCredit…Yahya Nemah/EPA, via Shutterstock

President Biden said on Thursday that the Islamic State leader died in a raid by US special operations commandos in a risky pre-dawn attack in northwestern Syria. Rescue workers said women and children were among at least 13 people killed in the raid.

In brief remarks at the White House, Biden said the choice to use special forces to target ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi was made to minimize civilian casualties , despite the greater risk to US troops.

Speaking in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Mr Biden was understated when he described the story of the Islamic State leader, saying he ordered a series of atrocities, including against the Yazidi people. “Thanks to the bravery of our troops, this horrible terrorist leader is no more,” he said.

Mr Biden said Mr al-Qurayshi died when he detonated a bomb, killing himself and members of his family.

Mr Biden said the raid served as a warning to terror groups.

“This operation is a testament to America’s reach and ability to eliminate terrorist threats no matter where they try to hide anywhere in the world,” he said.

Ahead of his White House remarks, Mr Biden said in a statement: “All Americans returned safely from the operation.”

John F. Kirby, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, addressed victims associated with the raid at a press conference Thursday afternoon. “To the extent that there is loss of innocent life, it is caused by Abdullah and his lieutenants,” he said, using a nickname for Mr al-Quaryshi. He said US forces were able to evacuate 10 civilians from the building, including several children.

Asked about the timing of the raid, which officials said had gone months into the planning, Mr Kirby said several factors played a role: intelligence levels, certainty about the location of the leader of the ‘EI, weather and operational conditions (it was a nearly moonless night, ideal for night operations).

“A lot of factors had to line up to be perfect,” Kirby said. “It was the best window to execute the mission.”

The helicopter assault was carried out by about two dozen American commandos, supported by helicopter gunships, armed Reaper drones and attack aircraft. The operation resembled the October 2019 raid in which Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the former Islamic State leader, died when he detonated a suicide vest as US forces raided a hiding place not far from where Thursday’s operation took place.

The operation came days after the end of the biggest US fight against the Islamic State since the end of the jihadists’ so-called caliphate three years ago. US forces backed a Kurdish-led militia in northeast Syria as it fought for more than a week to drive Islamic State fighters out of a prison they had occupied in the city of Hasaka.

Little is known about Mr. al-Qurayshi, who succeeded Mr. al-Baghdadi, or the top command structure of ISIS. But analysts said the death of the Islamic State leader was a blow to the terror group.

US helicopters ferried the commandos into position after midnight, surrounding a house in Atmeh, a town near the border with Turkey in the rebel-held province of Idlib, according to eyewitnesses, social media and the Observatory Syrian Human Rights, a Britain-based conflict monitor.

A tense standoff ensued, with loudspeakers blaring warnings in Arabic for everyone in the house to turn themselves in, neighbors said. Then an explosion shook the building. After that, some of the occupants of the house had not come out and a major battle broke out, with heavy machine gun fire and, apparently, missile strikes.

During the operation, one of the American helicopters suffered a mechanical problem, was forced to land and was later destroyed by American attack aircraft. After about three hours, the American commandos and their remaining helicopters took off, witnesses said.

Given the fluid nature of early reports of a complex raid like Thursday’s operation, the Army’s initial version may be incomplete. Accounts of other events have sometimes turned out to be contradictory or sometimes completely wrong.

The report was provided by Falih HassanMuhammad Najdat Hij Kadour, Asmaa al-Omar, Hwaida Saad and Evan Hill. Jean Ismay

— Eric Schmitt and Ben Hubbard

International headquarters

The International Space Station will rush to Earth in 2031 but won’t hit you

by Rodney N. on February 3, 2022

What happened above must come below.

After more than 30 years as the world’s cosmic crash pad, NASA said the International Space Station would “de-orbit” and hurtle the 227 miles to Earth’s surface at a speed of 17,000 miles per hour in January 2031.

The 356-foot-wide galactic ship will likely fall into a fiery fire as it passes through Earth’s atmosphere.

But don’t worry: it certainly won’t fall on anyone. Rather, it will meet its aquatic demise in the South Pacific.

The space agency’s recent budget estimates report showed plans to shut down the ISS by 2030 before it crashes at Point Nemo, about 1,677 miles (2,700 kilometers) from the earth on all sides.

Sometimes referred to as the “ocean pole of inaccessibility” or “uninhabited area of the South Pacific”, the marine area has for decades used as a cemetery for old space equipment, such as satellites and rocket debris.

NASA has called the waters off Point Nemo “about the farthest place from any human civilization you can find.”

As for a replacement down the road, there won’t be a new and improved ISS; rather NASA intends to work with commercial spaceflight companies to embark their astronauts for long-haul stays in orbit – while save about $1.3 billion in just the first year after leaving the ISS.

Robyn Gatens, director of the International Space Station at NASA Headquarters, said the organization’s goal was to “lay the foundation for a commercial future in low Earth orbit”.

Phil McAlister, Director of Commercial Space at NASA Headquarters, also added in a statement, “We look forward to sharing our lessons learned and operations experience with the private sector to help them develop safe, reliable destinations. and profitable in space”.

The agency added that money saved on space station maintenance could “be applied to NASA’s deep space exploration initiatives, allowing the agency to explore farther and faster in the world.” ‘deep space’.

Last year, a Russian space official warned of small cracks in the structure of the ISS that engineers fear could become too large – and expensive – to repair to maintain the structure in the future. The ISS was “reviewing recent technical issues aboard the Russian segment,” NASA said in its report.

The football field-sized space station has housed astronauts continuously since the year 2000, although it was originally slated to operate for just 15 years.

History organization

Bill Belichick calls Tom Brady ‘greatest player in NFL history’ in retirement memo

by Rodney N. on February 3, 2022

Tom Brady may have barely acknowledged the Patriots organization when he announced his retirement on Tuesday, but team executives weren’t shy about acknowledging the greatest QB of all time, including the notoriously stoic Bill Belichick.

Belichick, who coached Brady throughout his 20-year tenure with the Patriots, released a statement Wednesday praising his former quarterback as the “greatest player in NFL history.”

“I am privileged to have drafted and coached Tom Brady, the ultimate competitor and winner. Tom’s humble beginnings in professional football ultimately resulted in him becoming the greatest player in NFL history. “, We read in the press release posted on the Patriots Twitter account.

“Tom consistently performed at the highest level against competitions which always made him the number one player to stop. His pursuit of excellence was inspirational. Tom was professional on and off the pitch and conducted himself with class, integrity and kindness I thank Tom for his relentless pursuit of excellence and his positive impact on me and the New England Patriots for 20 years.

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick celebrate winning the 2019 AFC Championship

Sportswire icon via Getty Images

In response, Brady captured the statement and posted it to his Instagram Story, adding his own note to the legendary trainer.

“Thank you Coach Belichick, I appreciate being coached by you, the greatest coach in NFL history,” Brady wrote.

In Brady’s retirement message, posted to his Instagram on Tuesday, the 44-year-old thanked just about everyone in the Buccaneers organization – including his teammates, coach Bruce Arians, general manager Jason Licht and the Glazer family, who own the team. However, he oddly omitted any member of the Patriots organization from the memo. Brady played for the Buccaneers for two years, winning a Super Bowl.

Brady eventually posted to his Instagram to thank “Patriots Nation,” but New England fans noticed the snub. Former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak called Brady “cold” and “calculated” for his oversight.

International headquarters

“Ignite” to boost digital content creation and media production in Saudi Arabia with US$1.1 billion investment

by Rodney N. on February 2, 2022

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, February 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Saudi Arabia today announced Ignite, a new program for digital content creation and production, new investments and support for next-generation connectivity and communications infrastructure; and a partnership that will see Trend Micro open its regional headquarters to Riyadh. The announcements were made during LEAP22, the global technology platform taking place at Riyadh.

The new program and investments are all part of Saudi Arabia plans to accelerate its digital ecosystem and leverage its position in the MENA region to become a leading international digital economy.

IGNITE

The Digital Content Council has announced Ignite, a new program that will transform Saudi Arabia in a leading digital entertainment and multimedia production center. The program aims to create a comprehensive ecosystem that will attract digital content companies and grow the local media and content creation sector.

Ignite aims to triple Saudi Arabia digital content market size in games, audio, video and advertising. The program is supported by a US$1.1 billion investment, with incentives including financial support for local, regional and international companies and start-ups; infrastructure development; talent development programs and improved policies and regulations.

The program includes funds to support local film and game industries. Saudi Arabia will also strengthen intellectual property protections and provide a one-stop shop to streamline processes for investors.

LAUNCH OF CITC WiFi 6E AND LEO SATELLITE TECHNOLOGY

The Kingdom has announced the launch of WiFi 6E, backed by the largest amount of spectrum available for WiFi of any country in the world. The combination of state-of-the-art technology and a record amount of spectrum will allow Saudi Arabia to benefit from the fastest Wi-Fi speeds in the world (2.4 Gbit/s). Enabling this advanced connectivity is expected to quadruple Wi-Fi’s overall contribution to Saudi Arabia GDP rising from US$4.7 billion in 2021 to more than 18 billion US dollars by 2030.

The Kingdom’s WiFi upgrade is supported by other initiatives, including the first regional trial of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology to extend reliable coverage to remote areas of the Kingdom. The CITC will also hold a spectrum auction in the first half of this year, a development that is expected to put Saudi Arabia first in the world for available spectrum for 5G networks.

TREND MICRO ANNOUNCES LOCAL DATA LAKE AND OPENS ITS Riyadh HQ

Trend Micro has announced the opening of its Middle East & Africa (MEA) headquartered in Riyadha security data lake, a cybersecurity center of excellence and other investments in Saudi Arabia totaling more $50 million. The investments are intended to amplify Trend Micro’s ongoing commitment to protecting public and private organizations in the Kingdom and across the region.

LEAP is poised to become the world’s largest technology platform, shining a light on the global innovation ecosystem, connecting pioneers and disruptors with business and government leaders, entrepreneurs and investors to discover and learn more about the technologies of the future.

SOURCE JUMP22

Canadian army

The Pentagon announces the dispatch of 3,000 troops to Eastern European countries

by Rodney N. on February 2, 2022

Direct Crisis in Ukraine
Crisis Blinken urges Russia to ‘immediately’ withdraw army from border with Ukraine

The United States decided to send 3,000 soldiers in Poland, Romania and Germany, in response to the 126,000 troops that Russia has placed on the border with Ukraine. Additionally, an additional 8,500 troops have been on standby in the United States for more than a week in case they need to be sent to the region. The measure is a new escalation of tension on Ukraine triggered after the dispatch of 126,000 Russian soldiers on the border by Vladimir Putin and the threat of Russia to undertake “military-technical actions” against this country if NATO does not agree to withdraw to the positions it occupied 25 years ago. France has also placed several hundred soldiers on alert in case it decides to send them to Romania.

The decision not only raises the tone of the dispute between the United States and Russia. It also exposes the split within NATO, where Germany has adopted an appeasement tone towards Russia. In fact, the sending of the 3,000 soldiers did not have the “green light” from the Atlantic Alliance, but was rather negotiated bilaterally between Washington and the countries concerned. Pentagon spokesman, retired admiral John Kirbystated in this sense that “NATO, as an organization, has no right of veto” over the movements of the American armed forces and their allies, and stressed that “Nothing prevents the United States from making its own decisions”. It is a clear warning to Germany and other NATO countries that do not support the US position, that he makes it clear that Washington will go it alone, with the support of willing allies.

Kirby also took the French deployment to Romania for granted, explaining that the deployment in Romania “takes place at the express invitation of the government” of this country, but did not clarify the position of Poland and Germany. In any case, he insisted on the fact that this type of action “implies consultations” with the host countries. The soldiers will not fight in Ukraine, but they have “a wide range of missions”. Its deployment seems to confirm the idea that some Eastern European countries do not fear a Russian invasion of Ukraine, but of their own territory, and that the United States accredits these fears.

Washington – and neither its allies – did not specify why it made this decision at this time. Russia has maintained its deployment for more than a month, and although it has sent medical units to the border with Ukraine and continues to increase its forces in Belarus – a former Soviet republic that is in practice a Moscow satellite – no one has indicated that the invasion will be imminent. The US Department of Defense said the deployment was temporary.but everything will depend on the development of the situation on the ground.

The units to be moved are in the front line. Of the 3,000 soldiers, 2000 belong to the 82nd Airborne Division and the 18th Airborne Corpsbased in Fort Bragg (North Carolina), specialized in air assault actions (paratroopers).

The 82nd Airborne has a long history, dating back to Normandy and the Ardennes during World War II and continuing through to the war with the Islamic State in Iraq. The 18th Airborne Corps is a unit that is created according to circumstances, with troops and equipment from other groups. Their motto is “US Contingency Forces”and played a leading role in the American wars in Iraq.

Most of the soldiers from these two units will be deployed in Poland, with a small contingent in Germany. The other 1,000 soldiers belong to a Stryker squadron based in Germany. The Stryker Squadrons take their name from this armored vehicle, released in Iraq, which gives ground forces great mobility. The squadron will barely need a day or two to cover the distance from Germany to Romania. A Stryker force is halfway between an infantry unit and an armored unit.

Biden’s decision to send this contingent took observers by surprise, especially since the US government itself said yesterday that there was no indication that Vladimir Putin had made the decision to attack Ukraine again. . In 2014, when this country left the orbit of Russian influence. Moscow annexes the Crimean peninsula and creates a guerrilla force that occupies 7% of Ukrainian territory, in the industrial region of Donbs, on the border with Russia. The Russian government again accused the United States of “provocation” for sending troops to the region. Till date, the largest troop movement in NATO countries had been the sending of two F-35 fighters by the Netherlands and seven Eurofighters by Spain to Bulgariawhere they will conduct aerial patrol missions, in addition to resupplying Canadian Army Special Forces in Ukraine.

Britain also has a small contingent of soldiers training Ukraine’s armed forces in the use of the 2,000 anti-tank missiles the country has sent to deal with a possible Russian invasion. A sign of NATO’s division, the planes that transported these weapons from the United Kingdom to Ukraine did not fly over Germany because Berlin was delaying the “green light” for the passage of planes in its airspace.

Non profit living

Alice Cooper doesn’t think politics and rock ‘n’ roll go together

by Rodney N. on February 2, 2022

Alice Cooper doesn’t ask for much, but when it comes to politics, he wants to be left alone. The legendary shock rocker doesn’t think politics and rock ‘n’ roll go hand in hand – more specifically, that they “don’t belong in the same bed together”.

Though he’s spoken about his dismay for political topics in the past, the topic came up in a new interview with Tampa Bay’s Creative Loafing, where the icon was asked about his relationship with outspoken Ted Nugent at the light of all the political and social unrest that has occurred in recent years.

“Ted and I grew up together in Detroit, and he’s always been the mouth that roared. When he gets into it, no one can stick with him. I sort of consider him his own entity. I never talk of politics…I hate politics,” Cooper said.

“I don’t think rock and roll and politics are in the same bed, but a lot of people think they are – because we have a voice and we should use our voice. But again, rock and roll should be anti-politics, I think. When my parents started talking about politics, I was turning on the [Rolling] Stones as hard as possible. I don’t want to hear politics, and I still feel that.”

Cooper ultimately wants his music and live performances to be a “vacation from CNN.” And while he’s not trying to insult anyone who uses his platform to share his own opinions, he said he would never take the stage and tell his fans who to vote for in an election.

“If I did something like ‘Elected,’ which we always would do in elections, and I brought Trump and Hillary in to fight, and they’d both be wiped out! That’s what who was funny about it. If you’re into political theater, you better be able to take a joke.”

Although the rocker is not into politics, he is still a humanitarian. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, he set aside money for his team so they wouldn’t struggle financially during the tour stoppage. In early 2021, he wrote a song just for Harry Nilsson’s son, Zak, who was battling terminal colon cancer. Last December, a photo went viral of the musician serving food to children at some sort of food bank event – and these are just examples of his selflessness that has happened over the past two years .

The “School’s Out” singer is currently embarking on a winter tour of North America, which will wrap up Feb. 14 after the 2022 Monsters of Rock cruise. He’ll be heading back in March, though, with Buckcherry. See all dates here.

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History organization

League kicks off Black History Month celebration at Goldstein Auditorium

by Rodney N. on February 2, 2022

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Syracuse University kicked off Black History Month with an opening celebration full of live performances, jokes, and high-energy music on February 1. The event was held at Goldstein Auditorium and hosted by Emmanuel Hudson, an actor and comedian known for his recurring role. on MTV’s “Wild ‘N Out”. For two hours, Hudson worked with the crowd to keep the energy and enthusiasm high for the variety of student performers who filled the duration of the show.

Sophomore Meghan Ford-Titus kicked off the night’s festivities with an a capella performance of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’, which led to a video presentation that ended the statement ‘Black is…’ as a way to celebrate students blacks and faculty members for Black History Month.

Hudson was invited onstage after the presentation, beginning his show with a prayer and an acknowledgment of his gratitude for being there. He spoke briefly to the audience, entering the crowd and speaking directly to them before passing the microphone to Cedric Bolton, the student engagement coordinator at the Office of Multicultural Affairs.

Bolton introduced Senator John Mannion via Zoom, who presented a confirmation of Black History Month and acknowledged the historical significance of the month’s celebration. Mannion also said New York Governor Kathy Hochul shared the sentiments he presented at the event.

“Today, we honor countless good-hearted citizens, from the Revolutionary War to the abolitionist movement, along the Underground Railroad to the marches from Selma to Montgomery, the civil rights movement, the black arts, the Black Power movement, the Black Lives Matter movement, and all across our country, who have stood and sat down to help right past wrongs and extend America’s promise to all of our people said Mannion.

Immediately following Mannion, a tribute to fallen angels was projected onto the screen, acknowledging the black lives lost over the past two years. This tribute was followed by the spoken word performance of SU senior Laurie Fernandez, who paid tribute to George Floyd and other black people who have been killed over the past decade and served as a celebration of the Nu Rho Poetic Society, of which Fernandez is a member.

After a brief musical interlude, Hudson returned to the stage and invited audience members to show off a talent on stage for a chance to win prizes. Three students – sophomore Sofia Rodriguez, freshman Ryan Nkongnyu and freshman Jonah Powell – performed on stage through poetry, rap and an impromptu motivational speech, respectively.

After offering contestants their promised prizes, the show shifted to a style similar to a variety show, ushering in back-to-back vocal and dance performances, including a dance by Creations Dance Company.

“It was fun. You know, seeing a lot of the black community come out just for Black History Month was very empowering and encouraging,” Creations Dance Company rookie Jaya Goodrich said. , you don’t see a lot of people, so it was good to see everyone.”

The Feb. 1 event is one of 22 SU-sponsored events to commemorate Black History Month in February. Max Mimaroglu | Asst. photo editor

Second year Shakira Santos, also known by her stage name Shakira, also performed at the celebration. Santos chose to sing Silk Sonic’s “Leave The Door Open” as a way to connect with the crowd.

“I love the energy of the piece. And I, above all else, really enjoyed being able to embrace my black culture with the rest of the students on campus,” Santos said.

Malique and Meghan – a singing duo consisting of Ford-Titus and fellow sophomore Malique Lewis – dance troupe Raíces and others had all performed their respective acts during the show. Additionally, part of the celebration was dedicated to the National Panhellenic Council, which invited six fraternities and sororities to walk the stage.

Lael Pierce, the League’s Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Program Coordinator, was able to represent Zeta Phi Theta, Inc. during the ambulatory component of the NPHC show.

“Representing a sorority is always wonderful, beautiful. I love representing my organization, and it was especially special because it’s been over a decade since I’ve been on stage to play anything. Pierce said. “It felt really good to dust off my joints and have fun at the same time.”

At the end of the evening, James Duah-Agyeman, Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, delivered closing remarks to the crowd. He thanked the seven-member Black History Month planning committee and wished the audience well.

Alonzo Turner, a graduate assistant in the Office of Multicultural Affairs involved in the logistics of the opening event, expressed his gratitude at the end of the evening.

“It was an amazing time, an amazing event, and it’s a great way to kick off Black History Month, especially with the community buy-in we were getting (from the alumni), the governor, the senator and from several other people who truly believe in what we do here at Syracuse University, and how we continue to center the most marginalized identities on our campus.

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Published on February 2, 2022 at 1:38 am

International headquarters

SecZetta Expands International Presence with Opening of EMEA Headquarters

by Rodney N. on February 1, 2022

EMEA Market Entry Demonstrates Growing Demand for SecZetta

Third-Party Identity Risk Solution

Autumn River, Mass. – February 1, 2022 – SecZetta, a leading provider of third-party identity risk management solutions, announced the opening of its Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) headquarters in London, UK . The expansion demonstrates the company’s continued momentum as it seeks to meet growing demand for its solution in the EMEA market and globally.

Phil Allen, an industry veteran with over 20 years of experience in identity management, has been appointed Managing Director, EMEA. Mr. Allen began his career in the public key infrastructure space in the late 1990s and has developed deep expertise in helping organizations get the most out of their identity management programs. He most recently served as Vice President and General Manager, EMEA at Ping Identity, where he supported many of the world’s largest companies with their strategic initiatives such as Open Banking, Post-GDPR Identity, accelerating cloud adoption and their Zero Trust strategies.

In addition to the increased awareness of the need for least-privilege or zero-trust based access methodologies for non-employee third parties, the extent to which many organizations use third parties as part of their usual business practices put additional pressure on existing processes and increased their exposure to risk. Additionally, as global organizations continue to use cloud computing, DevOps, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and other “stuff” to advance their digital transformation initiatives, the use of non-humans continues to grow and with it the need to provide them with access.

“A key driver of our expansion into EMEA is the growing movement we have seen towards automation and the use of identity authority as a critical component to managing the diversity, complexity and the volume of access of non-salaried third-party labor. SecZetta uniquely offers this capability,” said David Pignolet, Founder and CEO of SecZetta. “We are very happy to welcome Phil to SecZetta; his deep industry knowledge, leadership experience and regional expertise positions him well to lead our growth strategy in the EMEA region,”

“Having spent the last 20 years helping organizations with their identity management programs, the focus has always been on employee or customer identities, regardless of the myriad of non-employee and non-employee identities. that are part of most organizations,” said Phil Allen, GM EMEA, SecZetta. “SecZetta solutions uniquely help automate risk-based identity lifecycle management processes for third-party users and non-human users, which not only improves overall operational efficiency around managing access for these users, but significantly reduces the risk associated with granting internal access to external, non-human users. – salaried users. I look forward to growing the EMEA organization and working with our channel partners to help customers manage all other identities as part of their identity management programs. »

The EMEA organization will enter the market with a channel-driven sales strategy designed to utilize existing partnerships and promote channel growth to support sales momentum.

Non profit living

We are evolving so you can thrive at Oak Hills Living Center | News, Sports, Jobs

by Rodney N. on February 1, 2022

Oak Hills Living Center exists to support our family, friends and neighbors who can no longer take care of themselves. The community established Highland Manor in 1958 when long term care was needed in New Ulm. In 1995 the community saw that the building needed major repairs and came together to rename and build our current home and in 2003 when the community needed income based housing you again supported this mission .

More than 20 years have passed since our last request for a major community contribution. Our community of seniors is growing and it is our duty to meet the increased demand. For some of you, you may not know that Oak Hills Living Center is a community-owned, not-for-profit, independent, long-term care and assisted living facility. Oak Hills is ownerless, community owned, and governed by a board of directors made up of community members. Our current Board of Directors includes Chris Jensen, Jay Vancura, Dr. Joan Krikava, Barb Dietz, Betsy Pieser, Danielle Marti, Michelle Markgraf, Judi Nelson and James Unke.

For the past six years, Oak Hills Assisted Living has tracked referrals, admissions, and discharges. We had noticed that the studios were no longer desirable for the community. Shortly before 2015 our apartments were always full with a waiting list. The needs of the community were changing and we had more and more requests for larger living spaces and memory care. Unfortunately, our paid private apartments were all studio apartments and we did not have a secure area to care for residents with memory loss. A market study confirmed our observations; however, we did not anticipate how much the need for care would increase. By 2050, people aged 80 to 84 in Brown County would increase by 48% and people aged 85 and over by 34%.

In 2019, the state informed our industry of upcoming assisted living licensing changes that will take effect August 1, 2021. Strategic planning was in the process of developing a plan for how we would respond to the needs of our growing senior population, as well as planning and preparing to meet the new licensing change for assisted living. Then came the pandemic and we were forced to redirect our efforts. We were hoping that the state would push back the deadline because of the pandemic; however, the state has held firm to licensing changes which have required us to continue to explore options to renovate and/or expand our assisted living facility. We have planned different scenarios, renovate, expand or do nothing. Doing nothing meant the future of Oak Hills Living Center was not guaranteed. Where would our friends and neighbors go when they could no longer care for themselves if Oak Hills Living Center ceased to exist?

We need to renovate our existing assisted living facility so people in our community have more options than a 425 square foot apartment. We need to offer additional services with these larger spaces so that we can reserve our qualified nursing home beds for those who need them most. Residents requiring memory care should be in a safe and secure environment where they are free to roam.

Concerns about staffing are valid. There isn’t an organization that isn’t looking for employees. When fully staffed, we have approximately 275 employees in Oak Hills. Currently we have a handful of positions open, however, we do not have temporary contract staff working in our building. How did we do this? Our Board and management have developed a plan to increase the salaries of our direct care staff in October.

The expansion will require 20 to 25 additional employees. We understand this is worrying given the number of vacancies in so many places. We are confident that by investing in our organization and our community, we will be able to fill these additional positions. Generating interest in healthcare and supporting those who want to enter the field is a priority for Oak Hills. Our scholarship program pays tuition fees for individuals pursuing a variety of healthcare careers. The person brings us the tuition statement and we pay it directly to the college or university. We also have a program, OnTrack, which trains practical nurses and many may not be aware that care homes are required to pay tuition for those being trained for their first CNA role. We are committed to developing and supporting our people.

At Oak Hills, we care about people and believe that every life has value. The expansion will cost $13 million and we need to raise at least $2.5 million from the community. While staff and board members may change, the one constant is you. You will always own Oak Hills, it is the home of the community. We need your support.

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