tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90431759313489423292024-03-05T17:35:26.972-08:00Stream DiomasShafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.comBlogger1311125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-2422702716138680492021-11-15T07:39:00.001-08:002021-11-15T07:39:23.024-08:00Ready to impose complete lockdown in Delhi to control air pollution AAP govt to SC<img src="https://s3.ap-southeast-1.amazonaws.com/images.asianage.com/images/aa-Cover-ovurgs9coilkbrb8qtot3j0fc7-20211115115324.jpeg" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p>The court had said the situation of pollution is so bad that people are wearing masks inside their houses</p> <p>New Delhi: Ahead of the hearing on air pollution in Delhi-NCR, the AAP government has told the Supreme Court that it was ready to take steps like complete lockdown to control air pollution.</p> <p>The Delhi government has told the top court that such a step, however, would be meaningful if it is implemented across the NCR areas in neighbouring states.</p> <p>"GNCTD (Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi) is ready to take steps like complete lockdown to control the local emissions. However, such a step would be meaningful if it is implemented across the NCR areas in neighbouring states. Given Delhi's compact size, a lockdown would have limited impact on the air quality regime.</p> <p>"This issue would need to be addressed at the level of airshed involving NCR areas. In view of the above, we are ready to consider this step if the same is mandated for the entire NCR areas by the government of India or by the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and adjoining areas," an affidavit filed by the Delhi government said.</p> <p>The affidavit was submitted in response to a plea filed by environmental activist Aditya Dubey and law student Aman Banka, who sought directions to provide stubble-removing machines to small and marginal farmers for free.</p> <p>Terming the rise in air pollution in Delhi-NCR an "emergency" situation, the apex court on Saturday suggested clamping a lockdown in the national capital as it asked the Centre and the Delhi government to take immediate measures to improve the air quality.</p> <p>The court had said the situation of pollution is so bad that people are wearing masks inside their houses.</p> <p>It had said there are other reasons for pollution such as vehicular emissions, firecrackers and dust, and singling out stubble burning is not the solution.</p> <p>The apex court had also expressed concern that schools in the city have opened and children are being exposed to severe pollution conditions.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-48314414034960606182021-11-15T05:12:00.001-08:002021-11-15T05:12:02.381-08:00US School Buses May Never Be The Same Thanks to Bidens Infrastructure Plan <p>Assembly line workers at the Thomas Built school bus factory in High Point, North Carolina are over the moon about the new infrastructure billâ"specifically Title XI, Section 71101. Buried deep in the 2,702-page document approved by the House last week, that line item allocates federal funds to help localities purchase brand-new battery-powered school buses. Thatâs good news for Thomas Built, a subsidiary of German auto giant Daimler that controls nearly 40% of the North American school bus market. And for Chris Pratt, president of the local United Auto Workers chapter and a 22-year veteran welder at the Thomas Built plant, the legislation means one thing: more jobs. âWeâre all excited,â Pratt says. âThis is something huge for us.â</p> <p>The school bus provision accounts for a comparatively tiny $5 billion within the $1.2 trillion bill now awaiting the Presidentâs signature. But for workers like those in High Point, and campaigners advocating to get rid of diesel fumes on childrensâ commutes, this new federal funding represents a turning point in a surprisingly significant industry that will affect communities across the country.</p> <p>The U.S.âs approximately 500,000 school buses comprise the countryâs largest public transportation network, moving 26 million children between school and home every day. Thatâs more than four times the New York City subwayâs daily ridership ,all picked up and dropped off at farm houses, suburban developments, and city apartment blocks from Idaho to Alaska. About 95% of those buses run on diesel, accounting for more than 5 million tons of yearly greenhouse gas emissions, and exposure to their exhaust fumes have been linked to lower test scores and worse respiratory health for children, whose developing lungs are more susceptible to irritation caused by the fine particulates bus engines generate. Inside those buses, especially idling in traffic or in pickup lots, children often breathe the most polluted air they experience all day.</p> <p>The burden of those health problems falls heaviest on low-income communities of color, says Johana Vicente, national senior director at Chispa, the Latinx-oriented branch of the League of Conservation Voters based in Washington D.C. Spurred by asthma and other health effects they saw among children, Chispa began that year to campaign to electrify the nationâs buses. âSchool buses were not necessarily part of the conversation at all,â says Vicente. âIt was a very new topic that we were talking about.â</p> <p>Membership on the electric-school-bus bandwagon soon swelled to include groups like progressive policy nonprofit Jobs Move America and the Sierra Club, united by a pretty much inarguable case. Itâs hard to produce electric versions of heavy vehicles, like long-haul trucks, due to their need for huge batteries, which weigh a lot and require long charging times. But as far as big, gas-guzzling vehicles go, electrifying school buses would be relatively easy, since they only need limited range, and have plenty of time to charge up during the school day or at night. Doing so would not only help the environment, but also directly impact childrenâs healthâ"not to mention that the major U.S. school bus manufacturers were all already eyeing electric versions of their tried-and-true staples.</p> <p>Electric buses are pricey though (two to three times more expensive to produce than diesel versions) and many of the low-income districts whose children most need cleaner commutes are also the ones least able to afford to upgrade their fleets. Some states, like California and Maryland, have passed measures to help schools buy electric buses but the federal money from Bidenâs infrastructure plan will make a huge difference nationwide. Battery-powered school buses account for less than 1% of vehicles in the U.S.âs half-million strong school-bus fleet, with just 1,164 electric versions either in operation or planned to be delivered, according to the World Resources Institute. The $5 billion infusion from the Biden Plan, researchers estimate, could bump up that number to about 10,000 within five years, though the Presidentâs original March infrastructure proposal aimed to electrify almost 10 times that number of school buses, and the current funding would still leave bus makers cranking out many more diesel buses than electric ones every year (annually, U.S. bus-makers produce about 30,000 school buses per year, which are either directly commissioned by school districts or busing contractors, or sold through dealerships). But the federal funding could still be enough to start to bring down electric bus costs as more and more of the vehicles come off the line, and bus makers start to get economies of scale on crucial electric components, like batteries.</p> <p>Still, the new measures are far from adequate, advocates say. To start, that $5 billion number in the current infrastructure bill isnât exactly as good as it sounds. Only $2.5 billion is allocated specifically for electric buses. The $2.5 billion remaining is for so-called âclean school buses,â a broader category that includes buses that run on propane and natural gasâ"a head-scratcher for the climate conscious. In addition, campaigners who want the money to be distributed in a way that prioritizes low-income school districts feel the matter still needs to be ironed out.</p> <p>And though the federal funding may jump-start a nascent industry, it still barely makes a dent in the nationâs massive fossil-fuel-powered school bus fleet. Another bill, the Clean Commute For Kids Act of 2021, would have a more sizable impact, if it ever gets through Congress. Introduced by Alex Padilla, the junior Senator for California, in April, that legislation would allocate $25 billion for zero-emission school busesâ"enough to replace half of the U.S. fleet. But so far, the bill is still stuck in committee.</p> <p>In High Point, workers say building buses is one of the best jobs you can get these days. There used to be other good work at the hosiery or furniture factories, before those businesses packed up and shipped their jobs overseas in recent decades. There are still jobs at the textile businesses, but workers there canât expect to make more than $10 an hour. At the unionized school-bus factory, pay starts at about $17 an hour and tops out at $27, plus benefits. âItâs the best thing going,â says Pratt, the union president. âPeople come from hours away for these jobs.â</p> <p>Those jobs attract more than workersâ"school bus assembly lines make good photo ops for politicians as well. Blue Birdâs school bus plant in rural Fort Valley, Georgia. has hosted visits from its local congressman Sanford Bishop and newly elected Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock in recent months, while Vice President Kamala Harris visited Thomas Builtâs High Point plant in April. (The two companies, along with IC Bus, a subsidiary of Wolfsburg, Germany-based auto Goliath Volkswagen, control the lionshare of the $1.5 billion U.S. school bus market). The combination of healthy kids and blue-collar jobs are a no-brainer for politicians. âIt doesnât matter somebodyâs political background,â says Brian Alexander, public relations director for Lion Electric, a Canadian electric bus startup. âItâs just one of those universally-liked ideas.â</p> <p>And the promised jobs may be on their way. Kevin Bangston, CEO of Thomas Built, says the company will be bringing on a âpretty significantâ number of new hires in the weeks ahead, thanks in part to new demand spurred by the infrastructure bill. Executives at IC Buses say they may ramp up production at their Tulsa, Oklahoma plant. Congressman Bishop, who represents a central Georgia district that includes Fort Valley, home to the 100-year-old Blue Bird bus factory, also expects the bill to bring more bus-building jobs for his constituents. âIt makes good environmental sense, and thereâs going to be good economic investment,â he says.</p> <p>Perhaps the most significant of those investments is in Joliet, Illinois, where hotshot industry newcomer Lion Electric will be plowing about $70 million into a new school bus factory, planned to open around the second half of 2022. Eventually, that facility will employ around 1,400 local workers. âThatâll basically increase our production capacity nine-fold,â says Alexander. âSo weâll definitely be ready to respond once the [federal] programâs in place.â</p> <p>Globalization hasnât been easy on Joliet. Located about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, the city was once home to the second-largest steel mill in the U.S. before the facility closed down in the 1980s. A local Caterpillar plant that once employed about 7,000 people closed for good in 2019, and the city has long suffered higher unemployment than the surrounding Will County region. Doug Pryor, vice president of economic development at the Will County Center for Economic Development, says itâs easy to be disheartened by those losses, but that the new Lion Electric factory may be a game-changer. âLion is a project that really represents that this region, and frankly the state of Illinois, can still compete in modern manufacturing,â Pryor says. âItâs a very big flag in the ground.â</p> <p>At High Pointâs Thomas Built factory, Pratt, the union president, says new positions canât come soon enoughâ"job demand has skyrocketed since a recent pay raise announcement, scheduled to take effect this month. âThey pitched up the starting pay from $14.13 an hour to $17.21,â Pratt says. âAnd weâve been flooded with applications.â</p> More Must-Read Stories From TIME <li>Inside the Last Abortion Clinic in Mississippiâ"and the Biggest Fight for Abortion Rights in a Generation</li> <li>'Generation Now.' The Story of How Young Climate Activists Tired of Waiting for Change Took Action</li> <li>Inside the New Basketball League Paying High Schoolers Six-Figure Salaries</li> <li>Doug Emhoff Is Still New at This</li> <li>U.S. Taxpayers Bankrolled General Electric. Then It Moved Its Workforce Overseas</li> <li>Ahmaud Arbery and America's White Juror Problem</li> <li>The True Story Behind Spencerâ"And What It Can Tell Us About Princess Diana</li> <img src="https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/TIM211122_Abortion.Cover_.FINAL_.jpg?quality=85&w=1024"> Subscribe to TIME <img class="arrow" src="https://time.com/img/red-arrow.png"> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-78160317000897855342021-11-15T02:51:00.001-08:002021-11-15T02:51:36.962-08:00Three remain in custody over Liverpool Womens hospital blast<p class="dcr-o5gy41">Three people remain in custody as counter-terrorism police and MI5 continue to investigate a car explosion at a hospital in Liverpool that killed one person and injured another.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">A taxi exploded in flames outside the Liverpool Womenâs hospital at 10.59am on Remembrance Sunday. Police later confirmed that a male passenger was declared dead at the scene.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">The cab driver, who has been widely named in reports as David Perry, from Kirkdale, managed to escape before the flames spread, and is in hospital in a stable condition.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">He has not been arrested and unverified reports have suggested he locked an attacker in the car after spotting suspicious activity.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">The mayor of Liverpool, Joanne Anderson, has praised the driver, telling BBC Radio 4âs Today programme: âThe taxi driver, in his heroic efforts, has managed to divert what could have been an absolutely awful disaster at the hospital.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">She added: âWell, we knew that the taxi driver had stood out and locked the doors, we knew that early on.â However, she added it was important not to get drawn into speculation about the incident.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Oliver Dowden, the Conservative party chair, told Sky News: âIsnât that the case, the contrast between the cowardice of terrorism attack and the bravery of ordinary Britons up and down the country who put other peopleâs lives before their own.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">âClearly weâll have to see exactly what happened but if that is the case it is another example of true bravery and courage.â</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Carl Bessant, whose partner had just had a baby, was inside the hospital at the time of the blast. He told the BBC: âWe were so close and she was feeding the baby when it happened. We heard a loud bang and looked out of the window. We saw the car on fire and someone jump out ⦠screaming, and there was someone inside the car.â</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">The police counter terrorism unit for the north-west said three men aged 29, 26, and 21, were detained in the Kensington area of Liverpool and arrested under the Terrorism Act in connection with the incident and continued to be questioned on Monday. The security service MI5 is also assisting.</p><img alt="An armed police officer in Rutland Avenue. Liverpool" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/0248c61eaf645e25d3e6a979fdb93c5905d1ccfe/0_69_3000_1800/master/3000.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=36ced06c5fd56c16cfb6e423ad78d01a" height="1800" width="3000" loading="lazy" class="dcr-1989ovb"><p class="dcr-o5gy41">The three arrests took place in Sutcliffe Street, where witnesses reported seeing armed officers swoop on a terraced house on Sunday afternoon.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Sections of Sutcliffe Street and Boaler Street remain cordoned off, with a heavy police presence at the scene as inquiries continue. There was a similar scene at Rutland Avenue in Sefton Park, with counter-terrorism officers sighted in the neighbourhood.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Greater Manchester police, providing updates from the north-west counter terrorism unit, said: âA large cordon is in place on Rutland Avenue in Liverpool and a small number of addresses have been evacuated as a precaution.â</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Officers wearing vests marked âNegotiatorâ entered the cordon earlier on Sunday afternoon.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Locals said police arrived from about 1pm. Officers were guarding a terraced property as the immediate surrounding area was cordoned off.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">A number of residents in Rutland Avenue were evacuated from their homes. A police operation continued past midnight with armed officers within the cordon.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Earlier, images of a vehicle on fire, and later burnt-out, outside the hospital were shared online.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">A spokesperson for Merseyside police said: âSo far we understand that the car involved was a taxi which pulled up at the hospital shortly before the explosion occurred.â</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Boris Johnson said on Twitter: âMy thoughts are with all those affected by the awful incident in Liverpool today. I want to thank the emergency services for their quick response and professionalism, and the police for their ongoing work on the investigation.â</p><img alt="Armed police near the scene of the blast in Liverpool" src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2e29aff0992799f86e8df48706c3a41190a794b9/0_100_3000_1800/master/3000.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8e8e03a7a9b129a36648c984f86371d4" height="1800" width="3000" loading="lazy" class="dcr-1989ovb"><p class="dcr-o5gy41">The chief constable of Merseyside police, Serena Kennedy, offered her reassurance over the incident. âWhile I understand that todayâs incident may cause concern in our communities, it should be pointed out that events of this nature are very rare,â she said.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">âMerseyside police will continue to liaise with community groups, community leaders, partner agencies and individuals in the coming days and weeks to make sure any concerns are addressed and ensuring that we provide the best possible service to local people.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">âThere will also be an increased and visible police presence on the streets of Merseyside and I would encourage people to engage with my officers and raise any concerns they may have.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Liverpool Womenâs hospital said visiting access had been restricted until further notice. Patients were diverted to other hospitals where possible during most of Sunday.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">In a statement, the hospital said: âAnyone with appointments at the hospital will notice an increased security and police presence on site.â</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">Phil Garrigan, the chief fire officer of Merseyside fire and rescue Service, said the car fire at Liverpool Womenâs hospital was âfully developedâ when two appliances arrived shortly after 11am.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">He told reporters at the scene: âThe operational crews extinguished the fire rapidly but as has been reiterated by the police chief constable, there was one fatality.</p><p class="dcr-o5gy41">âAnother individual had left the vehicle prior to the fire developing to the extent that it did.â</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-19891411266539777952021-11-15T00:26:00.001-08:002021-11-15T00:26:50.616-08:00Bolton Cardiac Support Group restarts face-to-face meetings<img src="https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/resources/images/13200276/" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p> A SUPPORT group in Bolton for people with heart problems is set to resume campaigning after the pandemic. </p><p> The Bolton Cardiac Support Group took the decision, like many organisations across the borough, to postpone face-to-face meetings during the coronavirus crisis. </p> <p> And now leaders have announced their first post-pandemic get-together will take place on Wednesday from 2pm. </p> <p> The group's new temporary meeting place is Egerton United Reformed Church, Blackburn Road, </p> <p> An official said: "This is a welcome back meeting for old and new members alike, where we can discuss what has gone for the last 20 months." </p> <p> Light refreshments will be available. For further details call the organisers on 01204 300661. </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-15991763410399102442021-11-14T22:05:00.001-08:002021-11-14T22:05:23.697-08:00There was hesitancy Where your AFLW club sits in the vaccination race<p>Melbourne superstar Christian Petracca has revealed there was âhesitancyâ among his teammates over taking a COVID-19 vaccine but the Demons are confident all players will be double jabbed and meet the AFLâs deadline.</p><p>The day after Carltonâs Liam Jones announced his retirement, having opted not to be vaccinated, The Age has contacted all clubs about the vaccination status of their players.</p><img alt="Liam Jones has retired from AFL after expressing hesitancy over taking the COVID-19 vaccine." src="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.372%2C$multiply_0.4431%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_20/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/2a7cb94050823a99e7bd28d8c59cb725fff30b98" height="224" width="335" srcset="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.372%2C$multiply_0.4431%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_20/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/2a7cb94050823a99e7bd28d8c59cb725fff30b98, https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.372%2C$multiply_0.8862%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_20/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/2a7cb94050823a99e7bd28d8c59cb725fff30b98 2x"><p>Liam Jones has retired from AFL after expressing hesitancy over taking the COVID-19 vaccine.Credit:Getty Images</p><p>Under the AFLâs vaccination policy in Victoria, all players and football department staff must have had their first dose by October 22 and be fully vaccinated by November 26, with official menâs pre-season training for first- to fourth-year players beginning at several clubs next week.</p><p>The majority of AFL clubs say their male and female players are on track to meet state and AFL deadlines to be fully vaccinated.</p><p>However, Petracca, the Norm Smith medallist, said on Monday the Demons had initially been uncertain about receiving their dose.</p><p>âYeah, there was a bit of concern. Everyone was a bit hesitant because it was just so new, so I think there was a little bit of hesitation,â he said on KIIS101.1.</p><p>Petracca said he respected the manner in which Jones, a key part of new coach Michael Vossâ plans, had conducted himself.</p><p>âI respect his decision. Heâs someone that had his view on it and if he wants to do that I think thatâs fair enough and I respect the way heâs gone about it in terms of his family values,â he said.</p><p>Teammate Tom McDonald, while confirming he had been vaccinated, recently complained about the vaccine mandate.</p><p>âIâm vaccinated and most players wouldâve been [by now], but to be honest I think itâs ethically wrong to force people into a medical procedure,â McDonald said.</p><p>A Demons spokesman said on Monday that the club expected all AFLW and male players to be fully vaccinated. The menâs squad does not start pre-season training until December 6.</p><p>It has emerged North Melbourne have two players interstate whose vaccination status is unclear, but they will not return to the club until after Christmas. A fear of not being able to head home for the holiday because of border restrictions meant it was best they complete their pre-season training program at home. The club is confident the pair will be vaccinated in time to return to Victoria in January.</p><p>The Kangaroos say all of their first- to fourth-year Victorian-based male players and all AFLW players are double vaccinated. Senior male players are due back on December 6.</p><p>Essendon and Collingwood have declared their players are vaccinated, while Hawthorn said all of their players would be double jabbed within a week.</p><p>âAs per the AFL COVID-19 vaccination policy and the Victorian state government mandatory vaccination (workers) directions, all Hawthorn Football Club players will have fully vaccinated prior to the return of pre-season training on November 22,â a Hawks spokesman said.</p><p>Richmond said all male and female players have had at least one jab, with all to be double vaccinated by December 6, the Western Bulldogs are âon trackâ to meet the AFL deadline but St Kilda have opted to not disclose the status of their players.</p><p>This has been the clubâs policy since it revealed two-time best and fairest Georgia Patrikios had taken a leave of absence from the club. The Saints have not confirmed if her absence was due to the AFLâs vaccination policy.</p><p>âWe wonât be disclosing the individual vaccination status of our people to respect confidentiality around their health record, however we encourage everyone in the community who is eligible to get vaccinated and speak with trusted medical professional about their options,â the Saints said in a statement.</p><p>Geelong said they did not foresee any issues regarding player vaccinations.</p><p>In NSW, all male and female players must be given their first dose by November 19 and be fully vaccinated by December 17. These dates also apply to all interstate AFLW teams, with the home-and-away season set to start in the first week of January.</p><p>Greater Western Sydney have a club policy that forbids any player or staff member from entering the club unless that person is double vaccinated. The Giants have confirmed all male and female players are double vaccinated.</p><p>Giants chairman Tony Shepherd made his feelings clear in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald last month.</p><p>âThe Giants are vaccinating all staff, all board, everybody. Players have to be double vaccinated,â Shepherd said.</p><p>âI donât care whether thatâs AFL policy or not, thatâs our policy. We are doing it for the protection of everybody. If people choose not to be vaccinated thatâs fine, but we canât take the chance of mixing the vaccinated with the unvaccinated.â</p><p>The Swans, having spent several months on the road this year because of Sydneyâs lockdown, have confirmed all players are double vaccinated.</p><p>In South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland, all male players must receive their first dose by January 21 and be fully vaccinated by February 18.</p><p>The Eagles said the âvast majorityâ of players have had at least one jab, âwith many already fully vaccinatedâ.</p><p>âOur players, who are currently on leave from the club, understand the AFLâs mandate and we are confident they will all be vaccinated by the required deadline so they can continue to train and play,â a spokesman said.</p><p>The Brisbane Lions said the male players were tracking âpretty wellâ with first doses before they went on annual leave, but the club expects all players to be fully vaccinated by late January.</p><p>The Crows this month placed AFLW premiership player Deni Varnhagen on the inactive list, for Varnhagen also chose not to be vaccinated and did not have a medical exemption.</p><p>While Jones retired, there is the option of a player being transferred to the inactive list. An AFLW player who does this can be paid 25 per cent of her contracted salary, while a male player can be paid 25 per cent of the CBA minimum base salary.</p><p>The AFL Players Association has recognised the importance of vaccinations to help deliver a safe workplace and avoid further lockdowns.</p><p>CEO Paul Marsh said: âthe agreed COVID-19 vaccination policy between the AFL and AFLPA was developed in accordance with a number of key principles, including the understanding that some AFL and AFLW players may elect not to be vaccinated.</p><p>âWith current Victorian state government directions for workers and various state border rules making it impossible for unvaccinated players to fulfil their contractual obligations, the policy ensures that unvaccinated players exiting the game have financial protections that they would not otherwise be legally entitled to.â</p>The AFLâs vaccination deadline policy:<p>âThe first stage is already in effect in Victoria by virtue of the governmentâs authorised worker vaccination mandate and requires players and football program staff of Victorian clubs to be vaccinated (first dose 22 October 2021 and fully vaccinated 26 November 2021) prior to being able to attend their clubs to start or continue their pre-seasons.</p><p>The second stage applies to all remaining AFLW players and AFL football program staff, and additionally the AFL players and AFL football program staff of the NSW clubs, namely the Sydney Swans and Greater Western Sydney. This stage requires first vaccination dose by 19 November 2021 and to be fully vaccinated by 17 December 2021, in advance of likely scheduled practice matches and the AFLW season commencing in January 2022.</p><p>The third stage requires all remaining AFL players and AFL football program staff (i.e. of clubs in WA, SA and QLD) to receive a first dose by 21 January 2022 and to be fully vaccinated by 18 February 2022, in advance of likely scheduled practice matches in late February 2022 and commencement of the season in March 2022.â</p><p>Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.</p>Jon Pierik is a sports journalist at The Age. He covers AFL and has won awards for his cricket and basketball writing.Connect via Twitter or email. Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-27499591756406612932021-11-14T17:15:00.001-08:002021-11-14T17:15:14.890-08:00Government policy can limit climate change but so can changing your shopping habits say experts<p>Our planet is changing. So is our journalism. This story is part of a CBC News initiative entitled Our Changing Planet to show and explain the effects of climate change and what is being done about it.</p> <p>While advocates call on governments to make stronger commitments to fight climate change, living a low-carbon lifestyle can help reduce individual impact on the planet, according to experts. </p> <p>It's often said that personal choices have little effect on reducing carbon emissions because emissions from global corporations, such fossil fuel producers, make up the majority of CO2 output. Lloyd Alter calls that thinking a "fantasy."</p> <p>"What are the fossil fuel companies doing? They're making stuff that we buy to put in our cars. We're buying what they're selling," said Alter, a professor of sustainable design at Ryerson University and author of Living the 1.5 Degree Lifestyle.</p> <p>"I believe that in all kinds of these exercises that it really comes down to our personal choices."</p> <p>Almost 200 countries accepted a proposed climate agreement at COP26 on Saturday, despite concerns over last-minute amendments by India on coal emissions that some say will make it harder to reach goals set out in the Paris Agreement in 2015. </p> <img loading="lazy" alt srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_300/climate-un.JPG 300w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_460/climate-un.JPG 460w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_620/climate-un.JPG 620w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_780/climate-un.JPG 780w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_1180/climate-un.JPG 1180w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 300px,(max-width: 460px) 460px,(max-width: 620px) 620px,(max-width: 780px) 780px,(max-width: 1180px) 1180px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6248211.1636830506!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_780/climate-un.JPG">Delegates are shown talking during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, on Nov. 13. (Yves Herman/Reuters) <p>Many have argued that the scale of climate change requires systemic change, rather than simply a focus on individual decisions.</p> <p>Alter argues that while governments play a role in certain policies, such as transit and urban planning, consumers can shop their way out of a warming climate.</p> <p>"You can buy a low-carbon diet, you can buy a low-carbon house and you can buy low-carbon transportation â" and it's absolutely, fundamentally, a matter of the choices that we make," Alter said.</p> Hard to reduce emissions without reducing consumption <p>J.B. MacKinnon, a journalist and author of the book The Day the World Stops Shopping, says there's an urgent need to not only "green consumption", but reduce it.</p> <p>"The planet really clearly needs us to stop consuming so much, and yet the economy seems to need us to consume more and more," he said. </p> <p>Producing goods leaves a significant footprint. According to figures from Apple, 84 per cent of total carbon emissions for an iPhone 13 Pro occur in its production. Over its lifetime, using that same iPhone accounts for 12 per cent of overall emissions.</p> <p>"Climate change is really a clear example, historically, of how effective it can be to reduce consumption and how difficult it has proven to be to reduce emissions without reducing consumption," McKinnon said.</p> <img loading="lazy" alt srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_300/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg 300w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_460/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg 460w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg 620w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg 780w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_1180/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg 1180w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 300px,(max-width: 460px) 460px,(max-width: 620px) 620px,(max-width: 780px) 780px,(max-width: 1180px) 1180px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6239627.1636586448!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/covid-ontario-20200415.jpg">Adria Vasil, managing editor of Corporate Knights magazine, says government subsidies can help those who rely on cars switch to more sustainable vehicles. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press) <p>Since the Second World War, global carbon emissions have only dropped during periods of reduced consumption, such as during economic recessions and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, he said.</p> <p>Amid a sharp drop in economic activity and travel due to the global health crisis, carbon dioxide emissions dropped by more than six per cent in 2020. </p> <p>While the idea of consumers making more environmentally-friendly choices is welcome, Adria Vasil, managing editor of the sustainable economy magazine Corporate Knights, says government intervention is also needed.</p> <p>"I have shifted my own attention to putting pressure on corporations and the largest emitters and governments to go greener and commit to more aggressive climate action," she said.</p> <p>"We obviously can make a difference with the choices we make, but I don't want people to feel like the blame is on them."</p> WATCH | How cities can confront climate change: <img srcset="https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=1130px:* 1130w, https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=880px:* 880w, https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=630px:* 630w, https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=510px:* 510w, https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=260px:* 260w" sizes="(max-width: 260px) 4vw, (max-width: 510px) 50vw, (max-width: 630px) 66vw, (max-width: 880px) 88vw" src="https://thumbnails.cbc.ca/maven_legacy/thumbnails/616/194/Chang_Ubran_Climate_MPX.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=510px:* 510w"" alt class="thumbnail" loading="lazy">How cities can confront climate change4 days agoThe Nationalâs Andrew Chang talks to three experts working to help cities curb their climate impact and grow more resilient to a changing planet. 8:14 Decarbonize all industries <p>Vasil, who says she doesn't eat red meat and limits her consumption of other meats and dairy, says in a country such as Canada, which is geographically vast, personal vehicles and flying can be necessary given the great distances and lack of alternatives, such as high-speed rail networks</p> <p>"We have to look at systemic pollution and how do we get the airlines to green their aviation fleet fuel? How do we get all of our industries to decarbonize rapidly?" she said.</p> <p>Similarly, people who rely on cars, especially people who live outside major cities, need access to subsidies that make alternatives to fossil fuel-powered cars affordable.</p> <img loading="lazy" alt srcset="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_300/cluster-of-bikes.jpg 300w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_460/cluster-of-bikes.jpg 460w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/cluster-of-bikes.jpg 620w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/cluster-of-bikes.jpg 780w, https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_1180/cluster-of-bikes.jpg 1180w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 300px,(max-width: 460px) 460px,(max-width: 620px) 620px,(max-width: 780px) 780px,(max-width: 1180px) 1180px" src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.6236020.1635969857!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_780/cluster-of-bikes.jpg">Lloyd Alter, a professor of sustainable design at Ryerson University, says making cycling infrastructure a priority in cities can help reduce the need for personal vehicles. (Maggie MacPherson/CBC) <p>But Alter says a sustainable lifestyle is one that keeps everything close to home â" and meets global warming targets set in the Paris Agreement for the end of the decade.</p> <p>"If you live in an apartment in downtown Toronto and you don't have a car and you shop at the local grocery store ... you're probably pretty close to living the kind of lifestyle that we have to do in 2030," he said.</p> <p>That would mean reducing suburban living that requires starting up the car to pick up milk or take children to school, and prioritizing mobility via bike and public transit.</p> <p>And when it comes to consumption, Alter says now is the time to reconsider our buying habits.</p> <p>"Just make everything last longer and buy less."</p> <p>Written by Jason Vermes with files from Ashley Fraser and Steve Howard.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-19450500805799294552021-11-14T14:51:00.001-08:002021-11-14T14:51:21.306-08:00Legends descend on Unibol for Gethin Jones mum MND fundraiser<img src="https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/resources/images/13202258/" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p> WANDERERS legends turned out in force at the Unibol as part of Gethin Jones' fundraiser for motor neurone disease. </p><p> The fundraiser was organised by Gareth Jones, dad of Whites player Gethin, whose wife Karen was diagnosed with motor neurone disease last July. It aims to raise £250,000. </p> <p> Players who gave fans of the club some of their happiest moments on the pitch stepped out in front of a crowd of 13,187. </p> <p> The legends, managed by Sam Allardyce, took on the current team but were defeated by 7-4. </p> <p> There was a loud cheer as Ivan Campo came off the pitch and another iconic substitution involved Lucas Davies coming on for his dad Kevin, who played for the club 351 times in a 10-year spell. </p> <p> Hero keeper Jussi Jääskeläinen also made a return between the posts and saw plenty of action. </p> <p> Fans were given the chance show their appreciation for the legends of the game as they did a lap of honour at full-time. </p> <p> The Jones' effort can be donated to be visiting www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Karen-JonesMND online. </p> <p> The match came as the government announced a £50m boost for research into the causes of MND, seeking to find a cure for a condition which affects around 5,000 people in the UK. </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-6881870788422514402021-11-14T12:27:00.001-08:002021-11-14T12:27:39.312-08:00Massive crowds of protesters demand end to absolute monarchy VIDEOS<img src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2021.11/article/61914da2203027203b50accc.JPG" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p> At least three people have been injured as demonstrators marched through the Thai capital, Bangkok, on Sunday to protest a recent Constitutional Court ruling branding calls to reform the monarchy unconstitutional. </p><p>Protesters flooded the streets in the city center carrying banners and placards that read: âNo absolute monarchyâ and âReform is not abolitionâ. People took part in the massive march to protest what they described as a return to absolute monarchy under King Maha Vajiralongkorn. </p><p>Some activists were seen spray-painting graffiti on the roads they were marching through. âThis country belongs to the people,â one message read. The protest was sparked by the Thai Constitutional Courtâs Wednesday decision de facto outlawing all calls to reform the institution of the monarchy. </p><p>It stated that calls for reform issued by three protest leaders in August 2020 were unconstitutional and tantamount to an attempt to overthrow the monarchy altogether. âWe are not overthrowing this country. </p><p>The reform is to make it better,â one of the protest leaders, Thatchapong Kaedam, said on Sunday. âThe Constitutional Court is seizing power from the people.â </p><p>Protesters also burned nine effigies of the Constitutional Court judges to express their dissatisfaction with the ruling. </p><p>The crowds initially planned to march towards the Democracy Monument in the city center but were blocked by the police. They then moved to the German Embassy where they read a statement drawing attention to the kingâs frequent stays in the European country.</p><p>It said the kingâs âincreased powers⦠are pulling Thailand away from democracy and back to absolute monarchy,â and that the demonstrators want to see the nation âruled by a system in which everyone is equal.â </p><p>Police have been deployed to the city en masse in response to the protest. There have been several brief standoffs between law enforcement and the rally participants. At one point, the crowd broke through a police cordon. Another particularly tense moment saw a small, tightly packed police formation retreating from the crowd with several officers allegedly shooting rubber bullets point-blank at the crowd. </p><p>A photo shared on social media showed at least one person with what appeared to be an abdomen injury inflicted by a rubber bullet. Police confirmed that at least three people were injured on Sunday, adding that the causes of the injuries were unclear. The officials also said explosions were heard as the crowd was heading towards the German Embassy. </p><p>The demand to reform the monarchy is considered radical and controversial in Thailand, as the institution is considered sacrosanct. The nation also has lese-majeste law, in which anyone found guilty of defaming the monarchy could face up to 15 years in jail. At least 157 people have been charged under this law since last year, when Thailand also saw massive protests, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights group.</p><p>Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-13525292579024266262021-11-14T10:08:00.001-08:002021-11-14T10:08:36.590-08:00Australia beat New Zealand to win 2021 T20 World Cup final<img src="https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/2021-11-14T172600Z_3612964_UP1EHBE1CF9QU_RTRMADP_3_CRICKET-T20WORLDCUP-NZL-AUS.jpg?resize=1200%2C630" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p class="article__subhead css-1wt8oh6">New Zealand lose yet another final after Australiaâs power-packed batting lineup chase down 172.</p><p>Dubai, United Arab Emirates â" David Warner fired another shot at his critics and Mitchell Marsh scored a quickfire half-century as Australia cruised to its maiden T20 World Cup triumph, beating New Zealand by eight wickets.</p> <p>Needing 173 after opting to field, Australia, five-time 50-overs World Champions, lost captain Aaron Finch early once again but Warner and Marsh came together for a 92-run second-wicket partnership to take their side close to glory in Dubai on Sunday.</p> <p>Warner was dismissed by a returning Trent Boult but Marsh combined with Glenn Maxwell to take Australia past the finish line and for Finch to win the only global cricket title that had eluded Australia.</p> <p>Earlier, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson scored a 48-ball 85 to take his side to 172 which ended up not being enough for Australiaâs power-packed batting lineup that made it six out of six while chasing in this yearâs tournament.</p> <p>âItâs hugeâ, said Australia wicketkeeper Matthew Wade, who smashed Pakistanâs Shaheen Afridi for three sixes in a row to seal Australiaâs spot in the final.</p> <p>âIt felt like a lot of people wrote us off but we spoke about being the first team to do this for Australia and it feels really special.â</p> <p>âWe love each other, Iâm so proud of this team,â said Marcus Stoinis. âYou wonât find bigger supporters of Mitch Marsh than us and his family.â</p> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Australia Winning 1st T20 World Cup ð #T20WorldCupFinal pic.twitter.com/k6wxcgAY5y</p> <p>â" M.Shoaib ðµð¸ (@KakaGameloop) November 14, 2021</p> <p>A healthy crowd â" comprising a number of Indian and Pakistan supporters who had bought tickets hoping their teams would be in the final â" was treated to an array of boundaries in both innings as the bat dominated proceedings once again.</p> <p>Williamson, dropped on 21, hit 10 fours and three sixes, but did not find enough support from the other end to take New Zealand to a competitive total.</p> <p>In reply, Finchâs early loss failed to stop Australiaâs aggression, with Warner and Marsh hitting a combined 10 fours and seven sixes.</p> <p>Maxwell, who made 28, joined Marsh and put on 66 runs and hit the winning boundary as the Australian team came charging in to celebrate the triumph.</p> Previous winners <p>2007 â" India</p> <p>2009 â" Pakistan</p> <p>2010 â" England</p> <p>2012 West Indies</p> <p>2014 Sri Lanka</p> <p>2016 West Indies</p> <p>2021 Australia</p> <p>More to follow</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-78117671313531394582021-11-14T07:39:00.001-08:002021-11-14T07:39:24.175-08:00At Tennessees Body Farm Mexican investigators learn how to dig up gravesKNOXVILLE, Tenn. â" <p>On a chilly fall morning here in western Tennessee, Raul Robles crouched alongside an open grave, surveying the bones his team had just unearthed.</p><p>He was unusually relaxed, bobbing his head to salsa music playing from his cellphone as he helped measure and map the assemblage of dirt-stained ribs and vertebrae. </p><p>Robles, 41, is used to much more harrowing conditions. Back in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, where he has excavated at least 500 clandestine graves during his 15 years as a crime scene investigator, he sometimes digs under surveillance from a drug cartel. </p><p>âThe lookouts come on their motorcycles with no plates, with their lights turned off, and say, âYou have two more hours to finish, or else,ââ he said. </p> <p>When that happens, he has little choice but to scoop the contents of the gravesite onto a tarp, throw it in his truck and finish his work back at the laboratory.</p><p>More than 93,000 people across Mexico are officially classified as missing â" a staggering total that points to a crisis of not only violence but also forensics.</p> <img class="image" alt="Crosses mark a mass grave in Tijuana." width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7ac9063/2147483647/strip/true/crop/840x560+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F56%2F5a05c7dd4de397ebf3a45d54727b%2Ftijuana-hp.jpg" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d535c5a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/840x560+0+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F56%2F5a05c7dd4de397ebf3a45d54727b%2Ftijuana-hp.jpg 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3dd7f45/2147483647/strip/true/crop/840x560+0+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F56%2F5a05c7dd4de397ebf3a45d54727b%2Ftijuana-hp.jpg 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/019473d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/840x560+0+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F56%2F5a05c7dd4de397ebf3a45d54727b%2Ftijuana-hp.jpg 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7ac9063/2147483647/strip/true/crop/840x560+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F56%2F5a05c7dd4de397ebf3a45d54727b%2Ftijuana-hp.jpg 840w"> Unidentified bodies are buried in a mass grave in Tijuana in 2018.(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) <p>In recent years there has been a growing recognition that many of the missing may be in government custody â" their bodies scattered among the tens of thousands of corpses that have passed through morgues without being identified and then buried in common graves. Mexican authorities have vowed to put names to the human remains in their care.</p> <p>That is why Robles and 23 other Mexican crime scene investigators, forensic archaeologists and morgue workers spent five days last month at the University of Tennesseeâs Forensic Anthropology Center, a world-famous research center better known as the Body Farm.</p><p>For more than four decades, researchers at the farm have been setting donated bodies on fire, immersing them in water, breaking their bones, rolling them up in carpets and leaving them in car trunks â" all to learn more about how corpses decay in different conditions.</p> <img class="image" alt="Nursing student Arturo Figueroa Bonastre was 20 when he disappeared in 2010 with six other men after a police roundup in Cardel, Mexico." width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d532ba9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a8ca741/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/110x73!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 110w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0bac40f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/180x120!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 180w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6e6a61c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/77d1f67/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c02b738/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d532ba9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/989x659+92+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fec%2F9d%2Fd625c96cc2d238f124a24e392b34%2Fla-1475104134-snap-photo 840w"> <p class="promo-category">World & Nation</p><p class="promo-title"> He said, âIâm on my way, Mama.â Then, like thousands of others in Mexico, he vanished </p><p class="promo-description">In the photograph, Arturo Figueroa Bonastre, decked out in hospital scrubs, smiles broadly. </p><p class="promo-timestamp" data-date="Oct. 1, 2016" data-shouldshowdate="true" data-shouldshowtime="true" data-timestamp="1475358325000"></p> <p>Typically when they host visitors at the farm â" a sloping 3-acre section of forest strewn with about 100 bodies in various states of decomposition â" the researchers offer words of caution.</p><p>Take deep breaths, director Dawnie Wolfe Steadman tells them. And if you feel like you might faint, sit down on the ground. </p><p>The Mexican visitors, who lack training but not experience, required no such warnings. </p><p class="cms-textAlign-center">::</p><p>In 1977, forensic anthropologist William Bass was summoned to a cemetery in Franklin, Tenn., where police had discovered what they assumed was a recent murder victim. </p><p>Bass came to the same conclusion, estimating that based on the bodyâs condition, the man had been dead for less than a year. He was off by more than a century. </p><p>The body turned out to be that of a Confederate soldier felled in the Battle of Nashville in 1864. Digging for anything of value, grave robbers had removed the corpse from a cast-iron coffin that had prevented its decomposition.</p><p>For Bass, it was a transformative moment. Science, he realized, understood very little about how bodies decompose.</p> <img class="image" alt="TIJUANA, BAJA CALIF. -- MONDAY, JUNE 4, 2018: A cluster of mass graves where unidentified bodies, a majority of them victims of homicides related to drug violence, are buried at Panteon (accent over the o) Municipal Numero (accent over the u) 12 in colonia La Presa, Tijuana, Baja Calif., on June 4, 2018. Roughly 120-140 bodies are transported monthly, buried 20 deep in each grave, from the morgue at the Medical Forensic Service, El SEMEFO (Servicio Médico Forense). In 2018, Tijuana, a population of roughly 1.8 million people, tallied 2518 homicides, the most ever recorded in a Mexican City. With 133 killings for every 100,000 people, it is now one of the deadliest cities in the world. The force behind the killings is competition among Mexican cartels fighting over the local drug market. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)" width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d0d4d86/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ee90f4a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/110x73!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 110w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fc2d857/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/180x120!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 180w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b29c1d9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ed889ef/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fa98c60/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d0d4d86/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5624x3749+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2F7e%2F62933deb6ef983f96e5ca406f879%2F3047046-fg-tijuana-homicide-gxc-3856.JPG 840w"> <p class="promo-category">World & Nation</p><p class="promo-title"> Where are Mexicoâs disappeared? Many have been in government graves all along </p><p class="promo-description">Some 80,000 Mexicans have disappeared in the last 15 years. Many are now thought to be in government custody â" among the thousands of corpses that pass through morgues each year without ever being identified and end up in common graves.</p><p class="promo-timestamp" data-date="Feb. 28, 2021" data-shouldshowdate="true" data-shouldshowtime="true" data-timestamp="1614510040691"></p> <p>Soon the University of Tennessee, where he worked, had granted him a former dump site behind the medical school to experiment on donated corpses. After community protests erupted â" âthis makes us SICKâ read one picketerâs sign â" the university fenced the area with razor wire. </p><p>For years, Bass and his researchers operated in relative obscurity. Then in 1994 crime writer Patricia Cornwell published âThe Body Farm,â a thriller loosely inspired by the facility, earning it both fame and a new nickname. </p><p>Today more than 5,000 people have registered to donate their bodies when they die. Researchers at the farm regularly serve as expert witnesses in murder trials and conduct trainings for the FBI. </p><p>When the U.S. government asked a few years ago if it could start sending Mexican teams to the farm to learn about forensic excavation, the researchers soon realized that theyâd have to adapt their typical course.</p> <img class="image" alt="Investigators at a homicide scene in Acapulco." width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0f897c0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6720x4480+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fea%2Ff0%2F9a22f7854afbbecc0a0569ee4036%2F3078419-fg-mexico-drugs-gxc-2168.JPG" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e901523/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6720x4480+0+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fea%2Ff0%2F9a22f7854afbbecc0a0569ee4036%2F3078419-fg-mexico-drugs-gxc-2168.JPG 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/111d82b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6720x4480+0+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fea%2Ff0%2F9a22f7854afbbecc0a0569ee4036%2F3078419-fg-mexico-drugs-gxc-2168.JPG 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7ace5ce/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6720x4480+0+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fea%2Ff0%2F9a22f7854afbbecc0a0569ee4036%2F3078419-fg-mexico-drugs-gxc-2168.JPG 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0f897c0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6720x4480+0+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fea%2Ff0%2F9a22f7854afbbecc0a0569ee4036%2F3078419-fg-mexico-drugs-gxc-2168.JPG 840w"> Crime scene investigators at a homicide scene in Acapulco, Guerrero, in 2019.(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) <p>Simply put, Mexican investigators work under some of the most chilling and challenging conditions in the world.</p><p>âIn one grave you might find three heads and five limbs,â Sandra MacÃas Gutiérrez, a morgue worker from the state of Colima, said over a lunch of pizza and soda during a break from class one day. âThe narcos like to dismember the bodies theyâve already killed to make identifications really hard.â </p><p>Many parts of her country have not been at peace since 2006, when then-President Felipe Calderón declared war on the drug cartels, and killings and disappearances soared. The perpetrators â" sometimes the narcos, sometimes corrupt police â" began pioneering ever more barbaric forms of murder. </p> <img class="image" alt width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d77d8d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/85a72ef/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/110x73!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 110w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/16347bb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/180x120!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 180w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/50378fc/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0018820/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fef62fb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d77d8d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1526x1017+261+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8e%2F41%2F2bcdaa423525df04a6e6e2ee5c9f%2Fla-1549048785-8u6cqlnbba-snap-image 840w"> <p class="promo-category">World & Nation</p><p class="promo-title"> Meth and murder: A new kind of drug war has made Tijuana one of the deadliest cities on Earth </p><p class="promo-timestamp" data-date="Jan. 30, 2019" data-shouldshowdate="true" data-shouldshowtime="true" data-timestamp="1548846008000"></p> <p>Many Mexicans closely associate the drug war with the United States, not only because of the vast American appetite for illegal drugs and the large numbers of firearms spilling south over the border, but also because the dramatic rise in violence coincided with a controversial and costly cross-border security partnership called the Mérida Initiative.</p><p>At the behest of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who says the warlike approach to drug trafficking turned Mexico into a âgraveyard,â a new bilateral agreement is being negotiated. </p><p>U.S. officials say they will focus less on fortifying the Mexican military and adopt a âholisticâ approach to public safety â" targeting gun traffickers, funding drug treatment and supporting more forensic training programs like the one that brought the Mexicans to Tennessee.</p><p class="cms-textAlign-center">::</p><p>Tensions that in recent years have strained the U.S.-Mexico relationship at the highest levels â" including a claim by López Obrador that the U.S. fabricated a drug case against a former Mexican defense minister â" were nonexistent on the farm.</p><p>The students and their teachers bonded over their love of bones, at one point crowding around a set of ribs whose owner had suffered from a rare disorder that caused parts of them to fuse together. </p> <p class="infobox-title">Column One</p> <p class="infobox-description">A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times.</p> More stories <p>And they commiserated over the hit television show âCSI: Crime Scene Investigation,â which they agreed had spawned inaccurate expectations about the speed of forensic investigations.</p><p>The students spent the first two days in class, taking their seats each morning in a staid ballroom at the Hilton in downtown Knoxville for several hours of lectures.</p><p>They covered the science of decomposition and forensic entomology, learning how to approximate the time of death based on which insects are present. With the help of Spanish interpreters, they listened carefully as the instructors explained the best ways to retrieve evidence when a body has been burned.</p><p>By the third day, they were ready to get down in the dirt. They climbed into vans and rode across town to the Body Farm.</p> <img class="image" alt="Two people sort bones on a blue tarp." width="840" height="630" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/822abd1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/840x630!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa7%2F45%2Fa61a32174dd3ad6adc4fdef696ff%2Fimg-0244.jpg" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7851ee2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/320x240!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa7%2F45%2Fa61a32174dd3ad6adc4fdef696ff%2Fimg-0244.jpg 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/52f3fd9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/568x426!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa7%2F45%2Fa61a32174dd3ad6adc4fdef696ff%2Fimg-0244.jpg 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ae7c0bf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/768x576!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa7%2F45%2Fa61a32174dd3ad6adc4fdef696ff%2Fimg-0244.jpg 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/822abd1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/840x630!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fa7%2F45%2Fa61a32174dd3ad6adc4fdef696ff%2Fimg-0244.jpg 840w"> Raul Robles, right, was one of two dozen Mexican crime scene investigators to attend a course at the University of Tennessee.(Kate Linthicum / Los Angeles Times) <p>After donning puffy white hazmat suits and blue booties, they walked the grounds. Some of the bodies they passed were mummified, with leather-like skin clinging to their ribs. Others were still covered in blackened flesh. Most of their hands and feet had been covered with red plastic netting to protect them from the hungry raccoons that poke around here at night. </p><p>The cool, wet air meant the smell of decomposition was much less intense than it would have been during the sweltering months of summer. </p><p>The Mexicans broke into four teams, each of which would spend the coming days excavating a mock grave.</p> <img class="image" alt="Logo for Latino Life" width="840" height="560" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7538980/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a8cfc40/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/110x73!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 110w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ada1273/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/180x120!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 180w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/91c3b8d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/320x213!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/808ab2c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/568x379!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7a1700a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/768x512!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7538980/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1013x675+94+0/resize/840x560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2F1d%2F0aed81f6484092abfa8490247b35%2Flatino-life-gif.gif 840w"> <p class="promo-title"> Covering the issues, politics, culture and lifestyle of the Latino community in L.A., California and beyond. </p> <p>For a typical course, researchers bury a single, intact body. But this time, to replicate situations common in Mexico, they prepared more complex graves, disassembling several skeletons and burying them along with various pieces of evidence. </p><p>At one burial site, just next to a wooden gallows that researchers sometimes use to simulate hangings, several students quickly established a rectangular grid with stakes and string. Then they began deliberately removing the earth, eventually revealing a necklace, then a handgun and finally what appeared to be a femur. </p><p>Several stretched out on their stomachs as they swept away dirt with their fingers and tiny brushes. Every time they exposed a new layer â" the deepest was about 4 feet â" they stopped to map and photograph it. </p> <img class="image" alt="Researcher and student at the Body Farm" width="840" height="630" data-lazy-load="true" src="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d9c7fc5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/840x630!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1d%2Ff8%2F9141573b47f5a6af9b300bcdcff1%2Fimg-0215.jpg" srcset="https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/721e210/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/320x240!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1d%2Ff8%2F9141573b47f5a6af9b300bcdcff1%2Fimg-0215.jpg 320w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c5d9a4b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/568x426!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1d%2Ff8%2F9141573b47f5a6af9b300bcdcff1%2Fimg-0215.jpg 568w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fbd9bb8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/768x576!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1d%2Ff8%2F9141573b47f5a6af9b300bcdcff1%2Fimg-0215.jpg 768w, https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d9c7fc5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4032x3024+0+0/resize/840x630!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F1d%2Ff8%2F9141573b47f5a6af9b300bcdcff1%2Fimg-0215.jpg 840w"> Joanne Devlin of the Body Farm sifts through dirt with Isaac Aquino Toledo, a forensic archeologist from the Mexican state of Hidalgo.(Kate Linthicum / Los Angeles Times) <p>âWe want to preserve the spatial relationship of different pieces of evidence with the body,â said Joanne Devlin, an associate director of the farm, who explained that preserving the specific timeline of when things were buried would be crucial for building a case later. </p><p>The Mexicans shared their own tips. </p><p>Isaac Aquino Toledo, 43, used small wooden stakes to hold the evidence in place while he worked, an unusual trick Devlin thought was genius.</p><p>âSometimes I find the footprint of a shoe and then I find that same shoe on the victim,â said Aquino, a forensic anthropologist from the state of Hidalgo. âItâs usually because the killers made the victim dig their own grave.â </p><p>Later, as he was digging, he sighed: âI wish there was a better way to remove this dirt.â</p><p>âWe need a forensic dustbuster,â Devlin said. âInvent one! You can retire!â</p><p>Along with teaching the best practices, the researchers demonstrated some shortcuts.</p><p>âIf you donât have time or itâs dangerous, you can use this method,â Mary Davis explained to a group of students, showing them that instead of measuring each bone in a grave they could approximate by drawing them on a grid.</p><p>At another gravesite, Carolina Montes, a forensic investigator from the city of Tepic in western Mexico, was sifting through dirt with a sieve. </p><p>She held up a small off-white object that looked like a pebble. </p><p>âIs it cartilage?â a friend asked.</p><p>âI think itâs a tooth,â Montes said, depositing it in a bag of evidence.</p><p>Montes, 26, said most forensic training programs in Mexico didnât teach much about excavation and that people mostly learned on the job. She found that excavating the mock grave at the Body Farm was a lot easier than working back home.</p><p>âThe grave is not very deep and the dirt is easy to dig through,â she said. âWeâre used to graves with 10 people in them.â<br></p><p class="cms-textAlign-center"></p><p class="cms-textAlign-center">::</p><p>When her students had finished their work, one of the teachers, Lee Meadows Jantz, took the bones they had recovered and laid them on a blue tarp. They would be cleaned, boxed and put in storage for future study along with roughly 1,600 other skeletons. </p><p>Then she asked her team a question: âHave you ever buried a body?â</p><p>Several people broke out in laughter â" until they realized she was serious.</p><p>It is a ritual carried out at the end of most Body Farm training courses. Meadows Jantz had a partly decomposed corpse waiting, wrapped in a tarp, ready to be placed in a mock grave. </p><p>The Mexicans buried it under a barren honeysuckle along with a few pieces of evidence. âThrow in another shoe!â one yelled. </p><p>In the spring the honeysuckle would bloom with white flowers. In late summer, it would turn deep red. After several seasons, the body would become just bones â" clues for other students to unearth. </p><p>That afternoon at a graduation ceremony at the hotel, the director thanked the students, telling them, âI feel that we have learned just as much from you.â</p><p>Each was given a small bag packed with trowels, brushes and other tools of the trade â" items that are in short supply back home.</p><p>Often, Mexican forensic investigators have to buy supplies themselves because their departments are so underfunded. Sometimes tools are purchased by local collectives of families searching for their loved ones.</p><p>The collectives, which alert authorities to the location of possible graves, often stand watch during excavations, praying out loud for their sons or daughters to be found even as they dread such an outcome. It is not uncommon for investigators to work to the sound of wailing mothers.</p><p>âItâs very painful,â Montes said. âBut I do this work so I can help people return to their homes.â </p><p>How to deal with those emotions is not something taught at the Body Farm.</p><p>Cecilia Sanchez in The Timesâ Mexico City bureau contributed to this report. </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-26164057569553663132021-11-14T05:19:00.001-08:002021-11-14T05:19:37.596-08:00A Black Woman Invented Home Security Why Did It Go So Wrong<img src="https://media.wired.com/photos/618f01ce5912caeff6aa6171/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/A-Black-Woman-Invented-Home-Security.-Why-Did-It-Go-So-Wrong-.jpg" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p>Thereâs a well-known story among surveillance studies scholars and students of Black innovation: that of Marie Van Brittan Brown, a Black woman from Jamaica, Queens, New York who is now recognized as having invented the home security system in 1966. Brown worked long hours as a nurse and often came home late at night. Her husband also worked âirregular hours,â and Brown worried about who might knock on her door if she were home alone at night. Similar versions of Brownâs story can be found at the MIT Lemelson Center and all around the internet, including on Wikipedia, the African American history site Blackpast, and the history site Timeline. Itâs understandable that attention would be paid to Brownâs pioneering work as a Black woman inventor whose contribution has rightly been cited in the development of subsequent home security systems and as the origin point for a massive industry.</p><p class="paywall">Brownâs inventor origin story is quite different from that of a similar technologyâs creatorâ"Jamie Siminoff, founder of DoorBot, which eventually became the Ring Doorbell. Siminoff started DoorBot in a garage in 2012, after he grew annoyed by people constantly ringing his doorbell. âI was like, how the fuck can there not be a doorbell that goes to your phone?â Siminoff told Digital Trends. As Caroline Haskins wrote in Vice, âDoorBot was thus posed as an answer to a question perhaps only he had ever asked.â Indeed, Brownâs patent is cited in Siminoffâs patent.</p><p class="paywall">A Black woman who feared for her safety creates a system. A white guy develops an iteration of this system later because he is annoyed that people are ringing his doorbell too often. This becomes a tool to manage Amazonâs loss prevention. Eventually, it leads to a boom not only in home security products like the Amazon suite and Googleâs security cameras, along with a variety of others, but increasing measures to make the home, the neighborhood, and all public and private spaces a 24/7 watched fortress, complete with cameras, drones, security robots, and automated license plate readers. But amid this escalation, one urgent question arises: What are we defending ourselves against?</p><p class="paywall">While the progression from Brownâs invention to Siminoffâs may seem unlikely or even paradoxical, it isn't: Surveillance technology always âfinds its level.â Its gaze is always going to wind up focused on Black folksâ"even if that was not the âintentâ of the inventor. Surveillance, first and foremost, performs a carceral function by attempting the capture and control of marginalized populations. That it may serve additional functions is somewhat beside the point. Surveillance systems, no matter their origin, will always exist to serve power.</p><p class="paywall">Earlier this year, at Amazonâs annual device launch, the company focused on how it would like us to think about security. A security robot named Astro, essentially a roving Alexa with a camera and big âeyesâ to enhance the sense of âcuteness,â will roll around your house and scan the faces of people in your home. A security drone will fly around the house in a predetermined path. This is alongside a host of other initiatives built on existing products: Ring Alarm Pro, Ring Always Home Cam, Virtual Security Guard. Safety, Amazon would have us believe, comes in the form of cameras, or to be more precise, cameras everywhere pointed at everything all the time.</p><p class="paywall">Amazon is not the only one. This trend can also be seen with the rise of automated license plate reader systems for individual neighborhoods, Googleâs partnership with ADT, and the companyâs launch of âsmartâ security cameras that offer the ability to define âeventsâ to record, recognize friendly faces, and detect noises such as glass breaking. As tech giants seek to saturate every aspect of our lives, home security has become a 50 billion dollar business in the United States alone.</p><p class="paywall">In keeping with its surveillance expansion over the years, Amazonâs Ring partnered with more than 400 police departments across the country, after a successful multiyear strategy to turn law enforcement into part-time doorbell sales agents and cement the term âporch pirateâ into our lexicon. The behemoth then cynically attempted to counter the obvious racial consequences of this in its own consumer-driven way. In 2020 it debuted the Ring dash cam with a Traffic Stop mode that allows drivers to say âAlexa Iâm being pulled over,â at which point Alexa will begin recording the subsequent traffic stop. The company that has made so much hay enabling surveillance, supercharging the ability to blast out racist notions about who belongs in a neighborhood and acting as a gentrifying force now throws a bone to people who may be guilty of âdriving while Black.â This is very much the same logic that drove the push for body cams. In both instances, the results in terms of protecting Black lives have not lived up to the claims of advocates.</p><p class="paywall">No amount of advances in technology will change the basic truth that surveillance and carceral technology exist to serve those in control. </p><p class="paywall">In Dark Matters: On the Surveillance of Blackness, Simone Browne, professor of Black Studies in the Department of African and African Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, suggests that anti-Black racism is fundamentally coded into all our systems of vision, oversight, observation, and surveillance. She argues that there is no such thing as a system of surveillance, at least when human beings are involved, that does not add to anti-Blackness. According to Browne, âThe historical formation of surveillance is not outside the historical formation of slavery.â</p><p class="paywall">No amount of advances in technology will change the basic truth that surveillance and carceral technology exist to serve those in control. The narratives about police response times and accountability have remained the same, even though the 50-plus years since Brownâs patent have seen far more surveillance in both public and private spaces. This calls into question prevailing assumptions about what keeps communities safeâ"a point thatâs been made repeatedly by community activists and police abolitionists. Brownâs invention is not evidence of some kind of conscious complicity with repressive technologies; rather, it demonstrates that the repressive function of technologies lies in their imbrication in pervasive notions of race.</p><p class="paywall">Many of these tools have become agents of gentrification. They offload the âpolicingâ of Black folks in public spaces to individuals who become de facto cops. Early advertisements for the Ring were explicit about this, even promising bounties in the form of free products. Though the company has toned this rhetoric down in recent years, a key aspect of Ring and Neighbors is still the assertion that by owning the device, you are doing your part to âfight crime.â</p><p class="paywall">More and better forms of surveillance have not, nor will they ever, be a solution to these issues.</p><p class="paywall">Narratives about how a given surveillance technology will improve the way policing works for and in Black communities have similarly remained relatively stable over time. Claims about improved police response times, increased safety and accountability, more safety or better community relations continually mark the introduction of new surveillance technologiesâ"from police body cams to Project Green Light in Detroit, Stingrays or surveillance planes in Baltimore, neighborhood automated license plate readers, and Ring Doorbells. While this may be indicative of what communities demand from policing, there is an alternative read: The promises remain both the same and undelivered because these technologies exist to further entrench the surveillance of Black and brown bodies as a practice that is foundational to how law enforcement operates in this country. Put another way, these technologies nibble around the edges of problems that are systemic. More and better forms of surveillance have not, nor will they ever, be a solution to these issues.</p><p class="paywall">Remarkably, like Amazon and other private providers, US cities and states make assertions about more surveillance producing more safety, despite the fact that other countries have already tested this idea and found it wanting. The United Kingdom has what is reputed to be the largest network of CCTV cameras in a democracy, with between 4 million and 5.9 million cameras in use as of 2015, many of them operated not by government but by businesses and individuals. Yet even the Surveillance Commissioner for the UK and Wales worried that the point of the cameras was to âbuild a surveillance society,â not to prevent crime, as there is little evidence that cameras deter crime, and the crimes they do impact tend to be property crimes rather than violent ones. This is as incontrovertible empirical proof as one could ask for that visual and audio surveillance of the environment does not create safer communities.</p><p class="paywall">Yet as Browne argues clearly, what it does do is contribute to paranoia and anxiety, which, in the US, is always tied to race. The primary purpose of these devices is to entrench and promote racialized anxieties, advanced under cover of a âsafetyâ that does not deliver and is itself implicated in racism.</p><p class="paywall">Thereâs a 2020 Alexa Super Bowl spot that runs through a variety of scenarios in which Michael B Jordanâ"who has notably played Oscar Grant, the victim of a murder by BART officers, in Fruitvale Station and Killmonger, the âvillainâ in Black Pantherâ"acts as Alexa. Jordan reads to the Alexa owner while she takes a bubble bath, dims the lights for her, and takes off his shirt while being showered by sprinklers. The symbolism is undeniable. Fetishizing Blacknessâ"Black sexuality as well as Black âcriminalityââ"as something to be captured, ingested, and subdued by technology is a centuries-old American project, of which surveillance is an essential part. But, as Tawana Petty, director of the Data Justice Program at Detroit Community Technology Project consistently asserts, âSurveillance ainât safety.â Surveillance initiatives and technologies, no matter where they start, will end up directed at the most marginalizedâ"particularly Black and brown populations. This is because the technologies are primarily exercises of power rather than efforts to enact systemic change.</p><p class="paywall">As Iâve argued before, one reason itâs so difficult to push back on surveillance is because individuals who purchase these technologies often imagine themselves on the âright endâ of the cameraâ"and in many cases they are correct. The people who purchase Rings, for instance, imagine that the footage will only be used to incriminate âoutsiders,â never themselves. Yet, while itâs true that surveillance falls first and disproportionately on the most marginalized, itâs worth considering how the world that Amazon (and Google, and Flock) want to build, one covered in devices that watch and record our every move, will eventually come for us all.</p><p class="paywall">Even a cursory look at the landscape proves troubling: Since the pandemic, there has been a meteoric rise in services that monitor white collar employees, an arena that was in many cases once confined to factory and warehouse workers. Automobiles are increasingly computers on wheels, meant to record the driverâs every movement, a tech that previously had been mainly applied to truckers and delivery drivers. Apps whose stated purpose is to monitor children become tools for abusive partners and stalkers. As tech companies extend their tendrils into every aspect of our livesâ"so that your grocery store sells devices that diagnose your health while also being an arm of law enforcement and collecting the sensitive and intimate data from every device in your homeâ"those who are traditionally on the âright sideâ of the camera should consider what this might mean for their own autonomy and safety.</p><p class="paywall">Brown was granted a patent in 1969 but never saw her invention brought to life. While she intended to catch the attention of home builders and manufacturers, that scenario did not materialize in her lifetime. In our time, however, home builders are integrating âsmartâ security systems as part of their suite of amenities. The system that Brown intended to spy on would-be burglars on her stoop now watches the entire family and anyone who crosses the systemâs threshold. Owners can send footage to law enforcement or upload it to social media, each instance bringing us closer to the day when we are endlessly watched while continually being told to feel less and less safe.</p>More Great WIRED Stories<li>ð"© The latest on tech, science, and more: Get our newsletters!</li><li>Greg LeMond and the amazing candy-colored dream bike</li><li>What can convince people to just get vaccinated already?</li><li>Facebook failed the people who tried to improve it</li><li>Dune is an exercise in delayed gratification</li><li>11 key security settings in Windows 11</li><li>ð'ï¸ Explore AI like never before with our new database</li><li>ð"± Torn between the latest phones? Never fearâ"check out our iPhone buying guide and favorite Android phones</li> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-5571117966880823332021-11-14T02:55:00.001-08:002021-11-14T02:55:49.657-08:00Anti-Japan Tribalism on the Comfort Women Issue<img src="https://thediplomat.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/sizes/td-story-s-2/thediplomat_2021-11-14-025110.jpg" class="ff-og-image-inserted">Advertisement<p>In December 2015, the governments of South Korea and Japan reached a âfinal and irreversibleâ resolution to the comfort women issue. Then-Prime Minister Abe Shinzo expressed anew his âmost sincere apologies and remorseâ and agreed to donate 1 billion yen (10.8 billion won at the time) from the government budget to support the victims. The Reconciliation and Healing Foundation was established, and the donation was paid to 34 of the 45 former comfort women who were alive at the time.</p><p>In 2017, the Moon Jae-in administration effectively abandoned this agreement made by the Park Geun-hye administration, citing the fact that the wishes of the former comfort women victims were not properly reflected in the negotiations. Despite the fact that the Foundation still held assets of 6 billion won, its charter was revoked and Moon declared that a âtrue resolutionâ had not been reached. The Japanese government urged the Korean government to adhere to the agreement and remedy what it considered Koreaâs breach of international law, but this was met with inaction on the part of the Korean government.</p><p>In January 2021, another bombshell. In a lawsuit filed against Japan for damages by twelve former comfort women, the 34th Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court ruled that Japan must compensate the plaintiffs 100 million won each. Many of the plaintiffs at this trial claimed that they had been abducted, which some of the former comfort women had also claimed. It was a textbook case of âforced recruitment theoryâ and was accepted by the Court at face value. Now, however, the forced recruitment theory is being significantly undermined. The testimonies of the comfort women are sometimes inconsistent. Prominent former comfort woman Lee Yong-soo initially said that she had been recruited on false pretenses, but later said that she had been forcibly recruited by the Japanese military. Moreover, Leeâs testimony is only her life story. It is not supported by objective evidence. No documents have been found to prove forced recruitment, and no family member, acquaintance, or other third party has come forward to testify to that fact.</p><p>Another key element relied upon by those affiliated with the anti-Japanese movement through the comfort women issue is the âsex slaves theory.â According to this theory, comfort women did not receive wages, could not quit even if they wished to, and had no freedom of movement in their everyday lives. According to the âbasic factsâ of the ruling, the Court has consistently adhered to the sex slaves theory. These are not, however, historical facts. Rather, they reflect the Anti-Japan Tribalism mentality of South Korea, a fictional assumption. âComfort womenâ were engaged in a âhigh-risk, high-returnâ occupation. Some occasionally earned enormous sums, and a great many returned to Korea or re-entered the workforce after their contracted term of employment ended. Restrictions on daily freedoms applied equally to military personnel, civilian employees, nurses, and anyone else in the battlefield environment. In conclusion, comfort women were not sex slaves, but sex workers who were fundamentally no different from todayâs sex industry workers.</p><p>The courts of one nation cannot exercise jurisdiction over the acts of another nation exercising its sovereignty, even if those act are unlawful. This is the principle of international customary law known as state immunity, and it is designed to prevent legal battles turning into armed conflict and to facilitate international peace. The Court declared that the actions taken by Japan for the mobilization, maintenance and management of the comfort women were âanti-humanitarian crimesâ and handed down the ruling of an exception to state immunity.</p><p class="td-ad-inline td-ad-inline-txt ng-hide" ng-show="dplpw.ad">Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.</p><p>In April of this year, the 15th Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court handed down a ruling that was completely at variance with the January ruling, causing surprise both within and outside South Korea. A lawsuit filed by 20 former comfort women was identical in nature to that filed in the January trial, yet the Court dismissed it without deliberating on the facts, citing state immunity. The presentment relating to this accounted for almost two-thirds of the 79 pages of the judgment. According to this ruling, international customary law that considers a âhumanitarian crimeâ as an exception to state immunity has not yet been established. Further, if we look at the rulings of courts at various levels in the United States, seven European countries, and the International Court of Justice in relation to illegal acts by the German army during World War II, with the exception of some courts in Italy, all granted state immunity in respect of the acts perpetrated by the German army.</p><p>The April ruling contains an important point of detail that should be noted. Namely, the law is not the sole or last resort remedy for âcomfort women victims.â An alternative may be a âdiplomatic agreement,â as the agreement between South Korea and Japan in 2015 showed. The ruling also goes into considerable detail on this point. Ultimately, the April ruling seems to be a âpracticalâ ruling that considers the intention to find a realistic solution to the problem and ways of doing so. The January ruling rejected the common understanding of diplomacy as involving another party. The Japanese government is calling for the agreement to be observed and is unlikely to change its position in the future, given that not only Japanese political parties but more than two-thirds of the Japanese public believe that South Korea is responsible for the catastrophic situation. The January ruling was a âtheoreticalâ ruling based on anti-Japan tribalism.</p>Diplomat BriefWeekly NewsletterN<p>Get briefed on the story of the week, and developing stories to watch across the Asia-Pacific.</p>Get the Newsletter <p>The April ruling is by no means without its problems. The Court accepted the forced recruitment theory and the sex slaves theory through the âbasic facts.â Therefore, neither of the two rulings resolves the issue in any âfundamentalâ sense. However, we have to consider what is the current mainstream theory in Korean society. We must also remember the experience that changed the historical perception in Japan and the struggle that came with it. As we saw in the whirlwind of âanti-Japan tribalism,â the seeds of change in South Korea are now sprouting. And South Korea is âDynamic Korea,â a country that is constantly changing.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-62129439742410767212021-11-14T00:34:00.001-08:002021-11-14T00:34:36.966-08:00Time to consolidate No more mass NRL rule changes but six-again tweak looms<p>Peter Vâlandys has given a strong hint the NRL wonât pursue another off-season of mass rule changes but has forecast a tweaking of the six-again rule to penalise teams who give away cynical set re-starts in their territory.</p><p>Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Vâlandys is due to receive a report this week from the NRLâs consultation sessions with the 16 clubs about a range of issues, including potential rule changes after a record season of blowout scores.</p><p>Vâlandys has been rugby leagueâs top dog for two years and during that time the NRL has seen the introduction of the six-again concept, the captainâs challenge, two-point field goals and extra bunker reviews, along with a reduction in scrums.</p><p>Vâlandys on Sunday forecast the NRL would not see any major rule changes this summer but the ARLC chairman said would area that will come under scrutiny is the six-again option, to address teams conceding set re-starts early in the tackle count when an opposition team is trying to carry the ball out of their end.</p><p>âA lot of the coaches have said when theyâre stuck in their own half itâs not much of an advantage [to receive a six-again],â Vâlandys said. âIt is one area that has been mentioned that we will certainly look at. It could be that it might not be a six-again when youâre in your own defensive end, and instead a penalty.</p><img alt="The NRL will resist another off-season of mass rule changes." loading="lazy" src="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.353%2C$multiply_0.3541%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_32/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/5f0a8059e3740e4250fd8e41bbc75c45a180cbf7" height="212" width="375" srcset="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.353%2C$multiply_0.3541%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_32/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/5f0a8059e3740e4250fd8e41bbc75c45a180cbf7, https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.353%2C$multiply_0.7082%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_32/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/5f0a8059e3740e4250fd8e41bbc75c45a180cbf7 2x"><p>The NRL will resist another off-season of mass rule changes.Credit:Getty</p><p>âNone of this has been approved, but it has been raised and it will all come under consideration when we see the final report. But from my understanding, the Commission would prefer to consolidate this year rather than make a lot of change.â</p><p>Premiers Penrith gave away the highest percentage of their six-agains in the opposition half en route to winning their first title in 18 years.</p><p>The issue has been a bugbear of fans who have watched players deliberately slow the ruck or stand offside knowing they wonât concede a territorial advantage with a full penalty.</p><p>Despite critics claiming the game was causing too much fatigue and leading to uncompetitive matches, Vâlandys said a fan poll on the NRL website earlier this year showed 65 per cent (of more than 22,000 respondents) said the speed of matches was âjust rightâ.</p><p>In the same poll, 54 per cent of more than 23,000 voters said the six-again concept was a positive addition to the game.</p><p>It will mean the rule - introduced during the COVID-enforced shut down of the season last year - wonât be going anywhere, despite staunch opposition in some quarters about its effect on the game.</p><p>âWeâre going to consolidate this year,â Vâlandys said. âYouâve got to listen to the fans, and I feel a lot of the fans overwhelmingly like the rule changes which is why we want to consolidate. We need it to bed down.</p><p>âPeople now find the captainâs challenge part of the game, and once they get bedded down and become par for the course they forget about it and recognise itâs just part of the game.</p><p>Vâlandys, fellow ARLC member Wayne Pearce, NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo and head of football Graham Annesley will discuss the findings of the review with clubs - including match review and judiciary recommendations - before taking them to a meeting of the NRLâs innovations committee.</p><p>The ARLC will sign off on any rule changes after its meeting in early December.</p><p>Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-61433123500929286822021-11-13T22:10:00.001-08:002021-11-13T22:10:22.453-08:00Search is underway for 100s of carers across Greater Manchester<img src="https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/resources/images/13190830/" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p> LEADING childcare service Koru Kids is searching for hundreds of nannies in Greater Manchester to meet a soaring demand from under-pressure parents. </p><p> The platform, which matches suitable candidates to families needing help in their area, has expanded into the region following a period of sustained growth. </p> <p> And now it is on the hunt for candidates to help provide reliable and consistent childcare solutions to parents who need an extra hand. </p> <p> CEO Rachel Carrell, who founded the firm in 2016 after finding it difficult and expensive to balance career and family demands, said: âAccessing suitable childcare is one of the biggest problems families face in this country, and the pandemic has only made things more difficult. </p> <p> âThe system is broken, and itâs left to parents to plug the gaps â" often to the detriment of their career prospects and family lives. </p> <p> âSince launching in 2016, we have helped thousands of families pair up with after school nannies in their local area and we want to make this service as widely available as possible. </p> <p> âThrough Koru Kids, parents are able to access flexible and consistent childcare that meets their needs, and our nannies are able to work part-time to earn extra money while they balance other commitments such as education or another job. </p> <p> âWe want to find 2,500 new nannies per month across the UK so we can help the ever growing number of families who need an extra helping hand picking up the kids from school.â </p> <p> Koru Kids is one of the UKâs top childcare service providers and specialises in recruiting, training and matching nannies to families. </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-90302254825566951272021-11-13T19:45:00.001-08:002021-11-13T19:45:53.705-08:00The Polish Simulator Company Gamers Love to Hate<img src="https://media.wired.com/photos/618ec514b535bb0d53e49c74/191:100/w_1280,c_limit/Games-The-Polish-Simulator-Company.jpg" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p>PlayWay S.A. is one of the strangest companies in Polandâs booming games industryâ"and also one of the most successful. The company has built an expansive catalog of strangely mundane games, mostly first-person simulators that let players live out vocational fantasies, such as working in an auto shop, renovating houses, or managing a gas station. While the companyâs games donât seem like obvious hits, they frequently land at or near the top of Steamâs global bestseller listâ"in September, for example, Gas Station Simulator debuted in the No. 2 spot.</p><p class="paywall">PlayWayâs capacity to create hits from such curious subjects has made it even more popular with investors, whoâve driven its market capitalization up to $751 million (2.94 billion PLN). This makes PlayWay the thirteenth-largest company on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, and the third-largest games companyâ"trailing only CD Projekt Red, developers of The Witcher series and Cyberpunk 2077, and Ten Square Games, the mobile giant behind Letâs Fish and Fishing Clash. PlayWay offers shareholders a return on investment percentage thatâs 50 percent better than Facebookâs and Alphabetâs, and around the same as Appleâs. And it frequently schedules substantial dividend payouts, including a recently announced distribution of roughly $3 per share.</p><p class="paywall">While other large games publishers have dealt with rising production costs and new competition from the mobile market by cutting their release schedules to a minimum of blockbusters and legacy IP, PlayWay has continuously expanded its output. Over the last 12 months, the company released 28 new titles, and it has more than 100 new titles in development. Thereâs a first-person president simulator, a wedding planner simulator, an animal shelter simulator, a drug dealer simulator, a cooking simulator, a truck building simulator, a crime scene inspector simulator, a gold mining simulator, a soccer referee simulator, a paleontologist simulator, an autopsy simulator, a moon colony simulator, a 911 operator simulator, a pope simulator, and even a Jesus simulator. There are so many games in the works, even Krzyysztof Kostowski, PlayWayâs founder and CEO, has trouble keeping track. âItâs from us?â he asked when I mentioned Dolphin Trainer VR during a visit to one of the companyâs offices in Warsaw this summer.</p><p class="paywall">To make this high-volume approach to publishing work, PlayWay relies on a huge network of external development studios, many of which are staffed by just a handful of people working remotely. One studio, Baked Games, is currently developing three games with PlayWay from its headquarters in a small house on a residential street in Czeladź, an hour outside of Krakow. PlayWay is currently partnered with 120 such studios in Polandâ"more than a quarter of the 440 total in Poland today. This approach has helped PlayWay maintain its own comparatively small sizeâ"by triple-A publisher standardsâ"with just 40 full-time employees, mostly QA testers and some finance and marketing executives. For comparison, CD Projekt Red employs more than 900 people, and EA has over 9,800 employees.</p><p class="paywall">In lieu of lavish marketing campaigns, PlayWay uses free demos and stand-alone prologues to promote upcoming titles, hoping to build word of mouth by giving away free samples of a larger game concept that will become a complete product at some later date. (Over the last year, 12 of the companyâs 28 releases have been free prologues or demos.) The company feeds off its past successes by continuously swapping new titles into the recommended slots on the Steam store page for its biggest hits to attract players to its newest releases. PlayWay uses audience feedback from these free demos and prologues, in particular the number of players who add titles to their Steam wishlist, to decide which games should get more funding for promotion and post-release content.</p><p class="paywall">Some players have criticized PlayWay as a kind of pyramid scheme for the attention economy, manipulating players with an endless array of new titles that may never develop beyond rough sketches, clunky collections of environments, items, and task lists. On Polish gaming forums, itâs sometimes derided as a âtrailer companyâ instead of a game publisher, one more interested in producing marketing material than finished games. Kostowski disputes this description, insisting that the company will release every game it announces. And while there may be production delays, he says the company is always as transparent as possible about schedule changes through updates to developer blogs and announcements on each gameâs Steam page.</p><p class="paywall">For investors, PlayWay is the ideal model for a modern video game company. Its low overhead costs and distributed network of labor have given it the ability to scour the market for niche audiences capable of driving viral hits, like 2018âs House Flipperâ"which was made by a team of seven developers and has sold more than a million copies for $19.99 each, with six DLC add-ons and post-release ports to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.</p><p class="paywall">âThey were one of the first to really hack this mobile games process for PC,â says Borys Musielak, a managing partner at Smok Ventures, one of PlayWayâs backers. âYou create something, put it out there, test it, launch a small marketing campaign to see if it sticks, and if it sticks, you push a lot of money into it. As an investor, itâs an amazing strategy.â</p><p class="paywall">Like many in the Polish games industry, Kostowski got his start through piracy, which was prevalent in the 1990s and early 2000s due to some loopholes in the countryâs copyright laws. While studying economics at the University of Warsaw, he started selling bootleg PC games to small newsstand kiosks and game shops around the city. Demand was high and expenses were minimalâ"just the cost of blank 3.5 mm disks and gas money for delivery runs. After a few years, Kostowski decided to drop out of school and focus on games full-time.</p><p class="paywall">He eventually became an official importer and began publishing original games, mostly short hobby projects made by amateur designers he met on message boards. While triple-A games could sell for as much as $10-12 (40-50 PLN), he sold the original games for a fraction of the price of triple-A games from North Americaâ"the equivalent of $1-2 (5-10 PLN)â"to an audience of mostly young kids, who were happy to have something new to play every few weeks and didnât mind the crude designs and limited production values. Oftentimes, the developers themselves werenât far removed from childhood. MichaÅ ÅmiaÅko, who made three games for Kostowski, told me he was still in high school when he signed his first official development contract, for the short 2D platformer Karate Panda. Because he was underage at the time, he says he had his father sign the contract for him to avoid any potential legal issues.</p><p class="paywall">In 2011, Kostowski realized his wholesale business was on the verge of obsolescence as Steam and torrenting made downloading games even easier than a trip to the corner store. He decided to transition into digital publishing full-time under the new PlayWay moniker. The company had its first real hit in 2014, with Car Mechanic Simulator, a game built around tinkering with drive trains, transmissions, and exhaust systems, then testing the modifications on a trial course. Players were given 20 different repair orders and asked to sleuth out what specific part was causing the problem, fix it, and then test the fix on the road.</p><p class="paywall">The game had a crude charm that contrasted with the sprawling and heavily scripted best sellers of the periodâ"Grand Theft Auto V, The Last of Us, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassinâs Creed IV: Black Flag, Battlefield 4, and Tomb Raider. It offered a view of the world not as a grand cinematic adventure, but as a workshop filled with simple, solvable problems. There was also a hint of autobiography in its complexity and satisfying representation of cause and effect. Kostowski had taught himself the basics of car maintenance while delivering games around Warsaw, and in the early 2000s he began restoring old cars as a hobby. To date, he has restored more than 400 cars, which he sells through a side business in Warsaw called Black Mirror.</p><p class="paywall">In 2018, PlayWay had a new viral breakout with House Simulator, which was similarly inspired by yet another of Kostowskiâs side ventures, a small real estate operation through which he bought and renovated apartment and office buildings around Warsaw to use as income-generating properties. (PlayWayâs main campus is on a small forested piece of property Kostowski owns in Hornowek, a town outside Warsaw that borders Kampinos National Park.)</p><p class="paywall">You can see hints of Kostowskiâs prudence and entrepreneurialism woven through many of PlayWayâs most popular titles. Theyâre less simulations or puzzles than interactive morality plays that let players put themselves in the role of the yeoman trying to carve out a profit from a series of minor and seemingly unrelated tasksâ"ones that help keep the machinery of a larger commercial operation running.</p><p class="paywall">Itâs an especially powerful fantasy in the games market, which has undergone a decade of upheaval. As the global mobile market has overtaken the home and handheld console market, big publishers have scrambled to consolidate their operations and increase profitability to keep investors from relocating. In practice, this has felt like an enormous cultural deceleration, with publishers cutting their annual release schedules to a bare minimum of battle royales and zombie IPs that have long since outlasted their reason for being. Not counting rereleases, ports, and DLC, EA released 73 original titles in 2010 and just 11 in 2020. Over the same period, Ubisoftâs yearly output went from 47 to 13, Sonyâs declined from 59 to 15, and Nintendoâs went from 31 to 10. For companies like PlayWay, these reductions have created a market openingâ"over the same period, it went from releasing two games a year to nearly 30. Like a new owner taking over an aging walk-up in a neighborhood of glassy townhouses and luxury high-rises, PlayWay has established a business that is custodial as much as it is creative. Its enormous catalog of simulations gives players the comfort of feeling their own market relevance revived, one turned screw at a time.</p><p class="paywall">Another of PlayWayâs recent hits, 2019âs UBOATâ"a hybrid crew management and submarine combat gameâ"owes its existence to nostalgia for the early 2000s games market as much as it does to World War II. Development began after Kostowski noticed that Ubisoft had given up on Silent Hunter, a strategy series built around submarine battles the company published in the mid-2000s, which had a small but loyal following in Poland. Even older versions of the game would sell steadily when he stocked them. âEach week, I could sell one box,â Kostowski says. âIt wasnât peaking like The Witcher sales, but it was stable.â</p><p class="paywall">UBOAT is still in early access, but itâs already become a burgeoning franchise for PlayWay. The game has amassed more than 10,000 positive Steam reviews, and PlayWay has announced two new spin-off titlesâ"the tactical combat game Uboat Commander and the virtual reality title UBOAT VR. While itâs unlikely that would be enough for Ubisoft or Activision-Blizzard, it has so far been a steady earner for PlayWay, one of dozens that flow through the companyâs coffers each month, creating a spectacle of continuity in an industry that has never finished changing.</p><p class="paywall">âI like stable,â Kostowski says. âI like a stable life.â</p>More Great WIRED Stories<li>ð"© The latest on tech, science, and more: Get our newsletters!</li><li>Weighing Big Tech's promise to Black America</li><li>I used Facebook without the algorithm, and you can too</li><li>How to install Android 12â"and get these great features</li><li>Games can show us how to govern the metaverse</li><li>If clouds are made of water, how do they stay in the air?</li><li>ð'ï¸ Explore AI like never before with our new database</li><li>ð® WIRED Games: Get the latest tips, reviews, and more</li><li>ð'» Upgrade your work game with our Gear teamâs favorite laptops, keyboards, typing alternatives, and noise-canceling headphones</li> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-13233410452029798542021-11-13T17:17:00.001-08:002021-11-13T17:17:08.983-08:00Joe Biden building back better one lie at a time<img src="https://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/media/image/2021/11/12/Climate_COP26_Summit_90403.jpg-a8b31_c0-248-5942-3714_s1200x700.jpg?8599fa73d0adba535bb6965221b3094ad1e48f2d" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p class="article-category">OPINION:</p> <p>A new report from the Tax Policy Center said President Joe Bidenâs âBuild Back Betterâ social spending agenda would hike taxes on almost a third of Americaâs middle-class â" specifically, on 30 percent of those very same families who are already, currently, presently struggling under this administrationâs rising inflation and strict COVID-19 clamps on the free market.</p> <p>My, how Joeâs lies do pile up.</p> <p>In August of 2020, Campaign Biden said this, as captured in a Forbes headline: âBiden Pledges âNo New Taxesâ On Incomes Under $400,000, âMom And Popâ Businesses.â</p> <p>In April 2021, White House Biden said this, as captured in a partial CNBC headline: âBiden promises no new taxes on anyone making less than $400,000.â Tellingly, the rest of the headline read this way: âExperts doubt he can keep that pledge.â</p> <p>Yet pledge he did.</p> <p>Even the Biden-fawning Washington Post, in a fact-check, confirmed, reminding how then-candidate Joe first said on âSquawk Boxâ on May 22, 2020, that ânobody making under 400,000 bucks would have their taxes raised, period, bingo,â and then said on ABCâs â20/20â on August 23, 2020, that âI will raise taxes for anybody making over $400,000â but âno new taxesâ for others.</p> <p>No denying it. He said it. Biden promised. Period, bingo â" no new taxes on those making less than $400,000.</p> <p>But here is where the myth separates from reality.</p> <p>âTaking into account all major tax provisions, roughly 20 percent to 30 percent of middle-income households would pay more in taxes in 2022,â Tax Policy Center reported. </p> <p>At first, the extra tax burden would be small, maybe in the $100 range or even less. But as the years pass, the âBuild Back Betterâ burdens to middle-class grow. For instance, the Biden plan calls for limits on Child Tax Credits â" something that hits at working-class America. It also fiddles with state and local tax deductions, the SALT formula, so that wealthier types in blue states, think California, think New York, get more benefits at the expense of, you guessed it, the middle class.</p> <p>So much for no new taxes.</p> <p>But thatâs just one lie in a bucket of lies being perpetrated by Biden, by the Biden administration.</p> <p>How about the lie that says infrastructure is child care, or free college?</p> <p>Or the lie that suggests âBuild Back Betterâ is in line with the Constitution, not at all a socialist-styled redistribution of wealth?</p> <p>Or how about that lie that went like this, as penned in a BBC News headline from December 2020: âJoe Biden: Covid vaccination in US will not be mandatory.â</p> <p>Or how about that whole Afghanistan lie about not leaving U.S. citizens behind, not leaving U.S. allies behind, not screwing over Americaâs foreign friends and fleeing in the dark of night?</p> <p>At least Bidenâs âBuild Back Betterâ lies arenât drawing blood.</p> <p>What they are doing, though, are advancing ideas that politicians canât be trusted, that Democrats arenât to be relied upon, that Biden himself canât be counted on for anything â" excepting, of course, his utter unreliability. </p> <p>And thatâs a nice way of saying heâs a serial liar.</p> <p>And thatâs an offhand way of saying itâs shaky, scary times for America.</p> <p>⢠Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast âBold and Bluntâ by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter by clicking HERE. Her latest book, âSocialists Donât Sleep: Christians Must Rise Or America Will Fall,â is available by clicking HERE.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-28310714004571935502021-11-13T14:48:00.001-08:002021-11-13T14:48:52.505-08:00Busy times Whats behind the explosion in beekeeper numbers<p class="_1HzXw">A few years ago, Julie Dinsdale had a desk job in corporate IT, a far cry from her life today, running a commercial beekeeping business that exports honey to markets around the world.</p>Key points:<li class data-component="ListItem">Registered beekeeper numbers have 'exploded' in Western Australia by 688 per cent in the past decade </li><li class data-component="ListItem">The Bee Industry Council of WA says the increase is good for food production </li><li class data-component="ListItem">Newcomers are being asked to ensure they are educated about biosecurity risks </li><p class="_1HzXw">Ms Dinsdale is one of thousands of West Australians drawn to beekeeping in recent years, resulting in a 688 per cent increase in registered beekeepers since 2011.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"I left [the job] after 20 years and decided it was time to see what else I could do and the bees took a natural course for me," she said.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"They're fascinating, good for the environment, help us to slow down and have an appreciation of our footprint on this earth.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"It's been an interesting journey. A lot the skills I learnt in the corporate world certainly come into play now ... giving confidence to my husband and I in growing this business."</p><img alt="Bee Industry Council of WA chairman Brendon Fewster standing in front of hives at Muchea in July 2020." src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/960123479a4f8670ba92476a669ef141?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=2001&cropW=3000&xPos=0&yPos=0&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" data-component="Image" data-nojs="true" data-sizes="100vw"><img alt="Bee Industry Council of WA chairman Brendon Fewster standing in front of hives at Muchea in July 2020." src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/960123479a4f8670ba92476a669ef141?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=2001&cropW=3000&xPos=0&yPos=0&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" sizes="100vw" data-component="Image"> Brendon Fewster says the commercial honey industry welcomes the increase in new players. (Jessica Hayes: ABC Rural )'Explosion' of new players<p class="_1HzXw">Ten years ago, just 582 beekeepers were registered with the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD). </p><p class="_1HzXw">Today there are more than 4000.</p><p class="_1HzXw">Bee Industry Council of WA chairman Brendon Fewster said the "explosion" of beekeepers coincided with the development of the flow hive â" an easier, less invasive way to harvest honey.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"People are learning a lot about the bees and we're having a big influx of beekeepers because it's quite an interesting job," he said.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"We are seeing everyone enter the industry; lawyers, doctors, tradies ... It's a very broad spectrum of people who have had an interest in bees and beekeeping."</p><p class="_1HzXw">Mr Fewster said the rise in beekeeper numbers was welcome among established players in the industry.</p><img alt="Julie Dinsdale" src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/e51ce9edb99b69f3261a23fd3fb38652?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=2688&cropW=4032&xPos=0&yPos=168&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" data-component="Image" data-nojs="true" data-sizes="100vw"><img alt="Julie Dinsdale" src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/e51ce9edb99b69f3261a23fd3fb38652?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=2688&cropW=4032&xPos=0&yPos=168&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" sizes="100vw" data-component="Image"> julie Dinsdale traded in corporate life for honey after following her passion for bees. (Supplied.)<p class="_1HzXw">"Not too many other industries would have come close to that kind of growth," he said.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"Fifteen to twenty years ago we had quite a lot of commercial beekeepers and that dropped off, but that number is starting to build back up.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"The state can handle quite a few commercial beekeepers, and we're getting back to where we can sustain quite comfortably where the number is at the moment."</p>Community buzz<p class="_1HzXw">WA Apiarists' Society president Stephen Boylen said recreational beekeepers accounted for a large share of new entrants.</p><p class="_1HzXw">He said grassroots apiarist hubs have emerged as the backyard beekeeping community has grown, including 15 chapters of the 'Bee Buddy Network' in Perth and South West WA.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"Small groups meet and sit and talk bees," he said. "There's so much to learn, tips and techniques that people share.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"Experienced and inexperienced keepers swap stories and it creates an environment where people [who] don't have bees but are thinking about it can come and ask questions."</p><img alt="A close up of bees from a hive " src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/9287a9723747f78e094c57d113a15b53?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=3333&cropW=5000&xPos=0&yPos=0&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" data-component="Image" data-nojs="true" data-sizes="100vw"><img alt="A close up of bees from a hive " src="https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/9287a9723747f78e094c57d113a15b53?impolicy=wcms_crop_resize&cropH=3333&cropW=5000&xPos=0&yPos=0&width=862&height=575" class="_1sqAO WIJbJ" sizes="100vw" data-component="Image"> The increase in registered beekeepers has also increased biosecurity risks.(ABC Rural: Annie Brown )Biosecurity must remain a priority <p class="_1HzXw">DPIRD biosecurity project officer James Sheehan said beekeepers â" both professional and amateur â" should register their bees to support the state's biosecurity</p><p class="_1HzXw">"While beekeeping is a rewarding hobby and profession, without the proper and regular care, poor beekeeping practice can lead to breaches to our biosecurity status, loss of colonies and serious impacts on other beekeepers and wild bee populations," he said.</p><p class="_1HzXw">"We encourage all new beekeepers to take the time to find a mentor, undertake training and become familiar with the various requirements for keeping bees in WA."</p>Find more local news Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-40079760285311802352021-11-13T12:29:00.001-08:002021-11-13T12:29:55.264-08:00Countries strike deal at COP26 climate summit after last-minute compromise on coal<img src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/106975191-1636790621621-gettyimages-1352927828-if209366_2021111271903066.jpeg?v=1636790814" class="ff-og-image-inserted">COP26 President Alok Sharma (L) MP and Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change speak at the start of the stock taking Plenary on day thirteen of the COP26 at SECC on November 12, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland.Ian Forsyth | Getty Images News | Getty Images<p>Negotiators from nearly 200 countries at the COP26 summit on Saturday reached an agreement to try to prevent progressively worse and potentially irreversible climate impacts.</p><p>The announcement comes several hours after the scheduled Friday evening deadline.</p><p>Delegates had struggled to resolve major sticking points, such as phasing out coal, fossil fuel subsidies and financial support to low-income countries.</p><p>India raised a last-minute change of fossil fuel language in the pact, going from a "phase out" of coal to a "phase down." After initial objections, opposing countries ultimately conceded.</p><p>The U.N. meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, was billed as humanity's last and best chance to keep the all-important goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius alive. This temperature threshold refers to the aspirational target inscribed in the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement.</p><p>Keeping average temperatures from surpassing this level requires the world to almost halve greenhouse gas emissions in the next 8 years and reach net-zero emissions by 2050. It is critically important to prevent the worst of what the climate crisis has in store.</p><p>The world's leading scientists have warned the world has already warmed roughly 1.1 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and the latest projections, despite numerous pledges at the Glasgow summit, show the world is on track for a rise of 2.4 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.</p><p>U.N. Secretary General António Guterres had bluntly warned the carbon-cutting pledges on the table during the final throes of the marathon talks were "very probably" not enough to avert a climate catastrophe. He told the Associated Press news agency that the goal of keeping 1.5 degrees Celsius alive was on "life support."</p><p>Climate activists and campaigners have been sharply critical of COP26, describing it as an "exclusionary" fortnight of talks centered on "business as usual and blah, blah, blah."</p><p>In an emotional address to assembled delegates, the U.K.'s COP26 President Alok Sharma said he was "deeply sorry" for the way the process had unfolded.</p><p>"I understand the deep disappointment. It's also vital we protect this package," Sharma said.</p>Fossil fuel policy<p>A third draft agreement published on Saturday morning included watered-down text on the phasing out of fossil fuels, which crucially only committed countries to accelerate efforts to end the use of "unabated" coal and "inefficient" fossil fuel subsidies.</p><p>If this language remains in the final agreement, it will mark the first time the outcome of an international climate summit has explicitly mentioned fossil fuels. However, environmental experts are deeply concerned the terminology creates a loophole for countries to delay urgently needed climate action.</p><p>An analysis published by Global Witness on Monday found there were more delegates associated with the fossil fuel industry at COP26 than from any single country. It raised serious questions about the credibility of the talks, particularly because it is the burning of fossil fuels that is the chief driver of the climate crisis.</p><p>Delegations representing China, India and some African countries spoke out against the phasing out of fossil fuels on Saturday.</p><p>Researchers have repeatedly stressed that the best weapon to tackle rising global temperatures is to cut greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible.</p><p>The two-week summit saw a blizzard of climate pledges designed to meet the moment, with countries promising to end and reverse deforestation, move away from coal and reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030.</p><p>The U.S. and China, the world's two largest emitters, surprised many by agreeing to work together this decade to prevent global heating from surpassing 1.5 degrees Celsius. And a new first-of-its-kind alliance was also launched with countries and subnational groups committing to setting an end date to oil and gas use and halting granting new licenses for exploration.</p><p>Business leaders and financial institutions, meanwhile, pledged to invest more in "net zero-aligned projects." This has since been criticized, however, for missing the point on fossil fuels.</p>Climate finance<p>Low-income countries arrived in Glasgow determined to secure compensation for climate-linked "loss and damage," a term used by the U.N. to refer to the destruction already being inflicted on lives, livelihoods and infrastructure.</p><p>Those on the frontlines of the climate crisis, which are the least responsible for climate change, have long sought financial support from high-income countries to compensate them for this damage. Rich nations, such as the U.S., U.K. and European Union, have been reluctant to accept liability.</p>Read more about clean energy from CNBC Pro<p>SocGen says $500 billion is about to pour into hydrogen â" and picks the stocks to cash in</p><p>Two under-the-radar stock picks from the infrastructure bill, according to Goldman</p><p>These electric-vehicle charging stocks are surging on the infrastructure bill</p><p>The latest draft falls short of setting up a fund to compensate countries for climate-linked loss and damage. The G-77 group of developing countries expressed "extreme disappointment" at this omission.</p><p>Shauna Aminath, minister of environment for the Maldives, said on Saturday: "For some, loss and damage may be the beginning of conversation and dialogue, but for us, this is a matter of survival."</p><p>"This does not bring hope to our hearts, but serves as yet another conversation where we put our homes on the line while those who have other options decide how quickly they want to act to save those who don't," Aminath said.</p><p>â"CNBC's Jessica Bursztynsky contributed to this report.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-84382051571621329392021-11-13T02:57:00.001-08:002021-11-13T02:57:52.595-08:00COP26 pact to include watered down phasing out of coal and fossil fuels<img src="https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/2591540_COP26_001-2c96_1636800722.jpg" class="ff-og-image-inserted"> COP26 president Alok Sharma speaks with the UNâs Patricia Espinosa (Picture: AFP) <p>Countries are compelled to accelerate the phase out of âunabated coalâ and âinefficient fossil fuel subsidiesâ in the third draft text of the COP26 agreement.</p> <p>World leaders are considering it this morning with many hoping they can settle on the agreement, which will be the first to mention either pollutant.</p> <p>However wording of the text, urging countries to make âeffortsâ to cut the dirtiest fossil fuels, appears to be a watering down of the deal.</p> <p>The latest draft also asks nations to ârevisit and strengthenâ their emissions-cutting targets next year. </p> <p>It urges developed countries to at least double their collective provision of climate finance to help developing nations adapt to climate change, from 2019 levels, by 2025.</p> <p>The historic reference to coal and fossil fuel subsidies has survived into the latest draft of the âcover decisionâ text for an overarching deal that countries are hoping to strike in Glasgow, despite expected pushback from some big producer and emitter nations.</p> More: Environment<br> <p>It calls on countries to accelerate technology and policies to shift towards low emission energy systems, by scaling up clean power generation and energy efficiency. </p> <p>The pact also recognises the need for support towards a âjust transitionâ, seen as important to protect those who might be hit by job losses or higher costs from the shift to clean energy.</p> <p>Scientists have warned that keeping temperature rises to 1.5°C requires global emissions to be cut by 45% by 2030, and to zero overall by mid-century.</p> <p> <br>MORE : Deadline to reach climate deal at COP26 missed as negotiator âbrings sleeping bagâ<br> </p> <p> <br>MORE : Oceans polluted with 26,000 tonnes of plastic during the pandemic<br> </p> <p>This is a breaking news story, more to follow soon⦠Check back shortly for further updates.</p> <p>Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected]. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.</p> <p>For more stories like this, check our news page.</p> <p>Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. </p> <p> Get your need-to-know<br>latest news, feel-good stories, analysis and more </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-15355829756100008692021-11-13T00:36:00.001-08:002021-11-13T00:36:21.784-08:00Hear the story behind iconic image of ministers speech in the sea<img width="480" height="360" class="ezlazyload entry-thumb td-modal-image" src="data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns=%22http://www.w3.org/2000/svg%22 width=%22480%22 height=%22360%22%3E%3C/svg%3E" data-ezsrcset="https://www.theunionjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hqdefault-17.jpg 480w,https://www.theunionjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hqdefault-17-300x225.jpg 300w,https://www.theunionjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hqdefault-17-80x60.jpg 80w,https://www.theunionjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hqdefault-17-265x198.jpg 265w" sizes="(max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px" alt="Hear the story behind iconic image of minister's speech in the sea" title="Hear the story behind iconic image of minister's speech in the sea" ezimgfmt="rs rscb12 src ng ngcb12 srcset" data-ezsrc="https://www.theunionjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hqdefault-17.jpg">Hear the story behind iconic image of minister's speech in the sea<p>.tdi_2.td-a-rec{text-align:center}.tdi_2 .td-element-style{z-index:-1}.tdi_2.td-a-rec-img{text-align:left}.tdi_2.td-a-rec-img img{margin:0 auto 0 0}@media(max-width:767px){.tdi_2.td-a-rec-img{text-align:center}}</p><p>CNNâs Rosemary Church speaks with Simon Kofe, foreign minister of the small island nation Tuvalu, whose speech at UN climate summit COP26 became widely shared on social media.</p><p>[embedded content]</p><p>.tdi_3.td-a-rec{text-align:center}.tdi_3 .td-element-style{z-index:-1}.tdi_3.td-a-rec-img{text-align:left}.tdi_3.td-a-rec-img img{margin:0 auto 0 0}@media(max-width:767px){.tdi_3.td-a-rec-img{text-align:center}}</p>.large-mobile-banner-1-multi-114{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none;line-height:0;margin-bottom:15px!important;margin-left:0!important;margin-right:0!important;margin-top:15px!important;min-height:250px;min-width:250px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}.td-post-sharing-classic{position:relative;height:20px}.td-post-sharing{margin-left:-3px;margin-right:-3px;font-family:open sans,open sans regular,sans-serif;z-index:2;white-space:nowrap;opacity:0}.td-post-sharing.td-social-show-all{white-space:normal}.td-js-loaded .td-post-sharing{-webkit-transition:opacity .3s;transition:opacity .3s;opacity:1}.td-post-sharing-classic+.td-post-sharing{margin-top:15px}@media(max-width:767px){.td-post-sharing-classic+.td-post-sharing{margin-top:8px}}.td-post-sharing-top{margin-bottom:30px}@media(max-width:767px){.td-post-sharing-top{margin-bottom:20px}}.td-post-sharing-bottom{border-style:solid;border-color:#ededed;border-width:1px 0;padding:21px 0;margin-bottom:42px}.td-post-sharing-bottom .td-post-sharing{margin-bottom:-7px}.td-post-sharing-visible,.td-social-sharing-hidden{display:inline-block}.td-social-sharing-hidden ul{display:none}.td-social-show-all .td-pulldown-filter-list{display:inline-block}.td-social-network,.td-social-handler{position:relative;display:inline-block;margin:0 3px 7px;height:40px;min-width:40px;font-size:11px;text-align:center;vertical-align:middle}.td-ps-notext .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-notext .td-social-handler .td-social-but-icon{border-top-right-radius:2px;border-bottom-right-radius:2px}.td-social-network{color:#000;overflow:hidden}.td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{border-top-left-radius:2px;border-bottom-left-radius:2px}.td-social-network .td-social-but-text{border-top-right-radius:2px;border-bottom-right-radius:2px}.td-social-network:hover{opacity:.8!important}.td-social-handler{color:#444;border:1px solid #e9e9e9;border-radius:2px}.td-social-handler .td-social-but-text{font-weight:700}.td-social-handler .td-social-but-text:before{background-color:#000;opacity:.08}.td-social-share-text{margin-right:18px}.td-social-share-text:before,.td-social-share-text:after{content:'';position:absolute;top:50%;-webkit-transform:translateY(-50%);transform:translateY(-50%);left:100%;width:0;height:0;border-style:solid}.td-social-share-text:before{border-width:9px 0 9px 11px;border-color:transparent transparent transparent #e9e9e9}.td-social-share-text:after{border-width:8px 0 8px 10px;border-color:transparent transparent transparent #fff}.td-social-but-text,.td-social-but-icon{display:inline-block;position:relative}.td-social-but-icon{padding-left:13px;padding-right:13px;line-height:40px;z-index:1}.td-social-but-icon i{position:relative;top:-1px;vertical-align:middle}.td-social-but-text{margin-left:-6px;padding-left:12px;padding-right:17px;line-height:40px}.td-social-but-text:before{content:'';position:absolute;top:12px;left:0;width:1px;height:16px;background-color:#fff;opacity:.2;z-index:1}.td-social-handler i,.td-social-facebook i,.td-social-reddit i,.td-social-linkedin i,.td-social-tumblr i,.td-social-stumbleupon i,.td-social-vk i,.td-social-viber i{font-size:14px}.td-social-telegram i{font-size:16px}.td-social-mail i,.td-social-line i,.td-social-print i{font-size:15px}.td-social-handler .td-icon-share{top:-1px;left:-1px}.td-social-twitter .td-icon-twitter{font-size:12px}.td-social-pinterest .td-icon-pinterest{font-size:13px}.td-social-whatsapp .td-icon-whatsapp{font-size:18px}.td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:12px}.td-social-reddit .td-icon-reddit{left:-1px}.td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:12px}.td-social-telegram .td-icon-telegram{left:-1px}.td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:11px}.td-social-stumbleupon .td-icon-stumbleupon{left:-2px}.td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:11px}.td-social-digg .td-icon-digg{left:-2px;font-size:17px}.td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:11px}.td-social-vk .td-icon-vk{left:-2px}.td-social-naver .td-icon-naver{left:-1px;font-size:16px}.td-social-expand-tabs i{top:-2px;left:-1px;font-size:16px}@media(min-width:767px){.td-social-line,.td-social-viber{display:none}}.td-ps-bg .td-social-network{color:#fff}.td-ps-bg .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-text{background-color:#516eab}.td-ps-bg .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-text{background-color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-bg .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-text{background-color:#ca212a}.td-ps-bg .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-text{background-color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-bg .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-text{background-color:#f54200}.td-ps-bg .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-mail .td-social-but-text,.td-ps-bg .td-social-digg .td-social-but-text{background-color:#000}.td-ps-bg .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-print .td-social-but-text{background-color:#333}.td-ps-bg .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-text{background-color:#0266a0}.td-ps-bg .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-text{background-color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-bg .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-text{background-color:#179cde}.td-ps-bg .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-text{background-color:#ee4813}.td-ps-bg .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-vk .td-social-but-text{background-color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-bg .td-social-line .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-line .td-social-but-text{background-color:#00b900}.td-ps-bg .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-viber .td-social-but-text{background-color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-bg .td-social-naver .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bg .td-social-naver .td-social-but-text{background-color:#3ec729}.td-ps-dark-bg .td-social-network{color:#fff}.td-ps-dark-bg .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-dark-bg .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{background-color:#000}.td-ps-border .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{line-height:38px;border-width:1px;border-style:solid}.td-ps-border .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{border-left-width:0}.td-ps-border .td-social-network .td-social-but-text:before{background-color:#000;opacity:.08}.td-ps-border.td-ps-padding .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{border-right-width:0}.td-ps-border.td-ps-padding .td-social-network.td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-icon{border-right-width:1px}.td-ps-border-grey .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-grey .td-social-but-text{border-color:#e9e9e9}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-text{border-color:#516eab}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-text{border-color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-text{border-color:#ca212a}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-text{border-color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-text{border-color:#f54200}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-mail .td-social-but-text,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-digg .td-social-but-text{border-color:#000}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-print .td-social-but-text{border-color:#333}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-text{border-color:#0266a0}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-text{border-color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-text{border-color:#179cde}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-text{border-color:#ee4813}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-vk .td-social-but-text{border-color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-line .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-line .td-social-but-text{border-color:#00b900}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-viber .td-social-but-text{border-color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-border-colored .td-social-viber .td-social-but-text{border-color:#3ec729}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-but-icon{height:100%;border-color:transparent!important}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{color:#fff}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#516eab}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#ca212a}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#f54200}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#000}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#333}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#0266a0}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#179cde}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#ee4813}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-line .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#00b900}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-naver .td-social-but-icon{background-color:#3ec729}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-but-text{margin-left:-3px}.td-ps-icon-bg .td-social-network .td-social-but-text:before{display:none}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon:after{content:'';position:absolute;top:50%;-webkit-transform:translateY(-50%);transform:translateY(-50%);left:calc(100% + 1px);width:0;height:0;border-style:solid;border-width:9px 0 9px 11px;border-color:transparent transparent transparent #000}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{padding-left:20px}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-network .td-social-but-text:before{display:none}.td-ps-icon-arrow.td-ps-padding .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon:after{left:100%}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#516eab}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#ca212a}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#f54200}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon:after,.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#000}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#333}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#0266a0}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#179cde}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#ee4813}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-line .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#00b900}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-naver .td-social-but-icon:after{border-left-color:#3ec729}.td-ps-icon-arrow .td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-icon:after{display:none}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-icon{color:#516eab}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-icon{color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-icon{color:#ca212a}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-icon{color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon{color:#f54200}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon{color:#000}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon{color:#333}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-icon{color:#0266a0}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-icon{color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon{color:#179cde}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon{color:#ee4813}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon{color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-line .td-social-but-icon{color:#00b900}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-viber .td-social-but-icon{color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-icon-color .td-social-naver .td-social-but-icon{color:#3ec729}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-but-text{font-weight:700}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-facebook .td-social-but-text{color:#516eab}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-twitter .td-social-but-text{color:#29c5f6}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-pinterest .td-social-but-text{color:#ca212a}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-whatsapp .td-social-but-text{color:#7bbf6a}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-text{color:#f54200}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-mail .td-social-but-text,.td-ps-text-color .td-social-digg .td-social-but-text{color:#000}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-print .td-social-but-text{color:#333}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-linkedin .td-social-but-text{color:#0266a0}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-tumblr .td-social-but-text{color:#3e5a70}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-text{color:#179cde}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-text{color:#ee4813}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-vk .td-social-but-text{color:#4c75a3}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-line .td-social-but-text{color:#00b900}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-viber .td-social-but-text{color:#5d54a4}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-naver .td-social-but-text{color:#3ec729}.td-ps-text-color .td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-text{color:#b1b1b1}.td-ps-notext .td-social-but-icon{width:40px}.td-ps-notext .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{display:none}.td-ps-padding .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{padding-left:17px;padding-right:17px}.td-ps-padding .td-social-handler .td-social-but-icon{width:40px}.td-ps-padding .td-social-reddit .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-padding .td-social-telegram .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:16px}.td-ps-padding .td-social-stumbleupon .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-padding .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-padding .td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:13px}.td-ps-padding .td-social-vk .td-social-but-icon{padding-right:14px}.td-ps-padding .td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-icon{padding-left:13px}.td-ps-rounded .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{border-top-left-radius:100px;border-bottom-left-radius:100px}.td-ps-rounded .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{border-top-right-radius:100px;border-bottom-right-radius:100px}.td-ps-rounded.td-ps-notext .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{border-top-right-radius:100px;border-bottom-right-radius:100px}.td-ps-rounded .td-social-expand-tabs{border-radius:100px}.td-ps-bar .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bar .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{-webkit-box-shadow:inset 0 -3px 0 0 rgba(0,0,0,.31);box-shadow:inset 0 -3px rgba(0,0,0,.31)}.td-ps-bar .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bar .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bar .td-social-mail .td-social-but-text,.td-ps-bar .td-social-digg .td-social-but-text{-webkit-box-shadow:inset 0 -3px 0 0 rgba(255,255,255,.28);box-shadow:inset 0 -3px rgba(255,255,255,.28)}.td-ps-bar .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-bar .td-social-print .td-social-but-text{-webkit-box-shadow:inset 0 -3px 0 0 rgba(255,255,255,.2);box-shadow:inset 0 -3px rgba(255,255,255,.2)}.td-ps-big .td-social-but-icon{display:block;line-height:60px}.td-ps-big .td-social-but-icon .td-icon-share{width:auto}.td-ps-big .td-social-handler .td-social-but-text:before{display:none}.td-ps-big .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-icon{width:90px}.td-ps-big .td-social-expand-tabs .td-social-but-icon{width:60px}@media(max-width:767px){.td-ps-big .td-social-share-text{display:none}}.td-ps-big .td-social-facebook i,.td-ps-big .td-social-reddit i,.td-ps-big .td-social-mail i,.td-ps-big .td-social-linkedin i,.td-ps-big .td-social-tumblr i,.td-ps-big .td-social-stumbleupon i{margin-top:-2px}.td-ps-big .td-social-facebook i,.td-ps-big .td-social-reddit i,.td-ps-big .td-social-linkedin i,.td-ps-big .td-social-tumblr i,.td-ps-big .td-social-stumbleupon i,.td-ps-big .td-social-vk i,.td-ps-big .td-social-viber i,.td-ps-big .td-social-share-text i{font-size:22px}.td-ps-big .td-social-telegram i{font-size:24px}.td-ps-big .td-social-mail i,.td-ps-big .td-social-line i,.td-ps-big .td-social-print i{font-size:23px}.td-ps-big .td-social-twitter i,.td-ps-big .td-social-expand-tabs i{font-size:20px}.td-ps-big .td-social-whatsapp i,.td-ps-big .td-social-naver i{font-size:26px}.td-ps-big .td-social-pinterest .td-icon-pinterest{font-size:21px}.td-ps-big .td-social-telegram .td-icon-telegram{left:1px}.td-ps-big .td-social-stumbleupon .td-icon-stumbleupon{left:-2px}.td-ps-big .td-social-digg .td-icon-digg{left:-1px;font-size:25px}.td-ps-big .td-social-vk .td-icon-vk{left:-1px}.td-ps-big .td-social-naver .td-icon-naver{left:0}.td-ps-big .td-social-but-text{margin-left:0;padding-top:0;padding-left:17px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-network,.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-handler{height:60px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-network{width:60px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{width:60px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-icon{line-height:40px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-notext .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text{display:block;line-height:1}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-network,.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-handler{height:90px;font-size:13px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-network{min-width:60px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-but-icon{border-bottom-left-radius:0;border-top-right-radius:2px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding.td-ps-bar .td-social-but-icon{-webkit-box-shadow:none;box-shadow:0 0}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-but-text{display:block;padding-bottom:17px;line-height:1;border-top-left-radius:0;border-top-right-radius:0;border-bottom-left-radius:2px}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-but-text:before{display:none}.td-ps-big.td-ps-padding .td-social-expand-tabs i{line-height:90px}.td-ps-nogap{margin-left:0;margin-right:0}.td-ps-nogap .td-social-network,.td-ps-nogap .td-social-handler{margin-left:0;margin-right:0;border-radius:0}.td-ps-nogap .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon,.td-ps-nogap .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{border-radius:0}.td-ps-nogap .td-social-expand-tabs{border-radius:0}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon{height:100%}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-network .td-social-but-icon:before{content:'';position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;background-color:rgba(0,0,0,.31)}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-network .td-social-but-text{padding-left:17px}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-network .td-social-but-text:before{display:none}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-mail .td-social-but-icon:before,.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-digg .td-social-but-icon:before{background-color:rgba(255,255,255,.2)}.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-print .td-social-but-icon:before{background-color:rgba(255,255,255,.1)}@media(max-width:767px){.td-post-sharing-style1 .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text,.td-post-sharing-style3 .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text,.td-post-sharing-style5 .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text,.td-post-sharing-style14 .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text,.td-post-sharing-style16 .td-social-share-text .td-social-but-text{display:none!important}}@media(max-width:767px){.td-post-sharing-style2 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style4 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style6 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style7 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style15 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style17 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style18 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style19 .td-social-share-text,.td-post-sharing-style20 .td-social-share-text{display:none!important}}Previous articleTaylor Swift Goes On TikTok Commenting SPREE & Fans LOSE IT! Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-74877687415504966722021-11-12T22:16:00.001-08:002021-11-12T22:16:37.642-08:00Irans deputy FM in Europe for talks<img data-lazyloaded="1" src="https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-696x509.jpg" width="696" height="509" class="entry-thumb td-modal-image" data-sizes="(max-width: 696px) 100vw, 696px" alt title="Iran's deputy negotiator Bagheri speaks during a news conference in Almaty" srcset="https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-696x509.jpg 696w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-300x219.jpg 300w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-1024x749.jpg 1024w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-1536x1123.jpg 1536w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-2048x1497.jpg 2048w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-1068x781.jpg 1068w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-574x420.jpg 574w, https://ifpnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IMG_20211108_215225_449-80x60.jpg 80w">Iran's deputy negotiator Ali Bagheri speaks during a news conference in Almaty April 5, 2013. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov<p>Iranâs deputy foreign minister for political affairs has arrived in the British capital, London, as part of his European tour to sit down with high-ranking UK officials.</p><p>Heading a diplomatic delegation, Ali Bagheri Kani is scheduled to meet with his opposite number as well as several other Foreign Office authorities on Thursday.</p><p>Among issues on the agenda are consultations about Vienna talks.</p><p>A fresh round of negotiations about the 2015 Iran nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is to resume in Vienna on October 30, 2021. The talks will focus on the lifting of cruel and inhumane sanctions against Iran.</p><p>Bagheri Kaniâs tour of Europe had already taken him to Paris and Berlin.</p><p>âAs part of consultations with my colleagues in other countries, I will meet several European counterparts in the coming days,â he tweeted.</p><p>âExchanging views on bilateral and regional issues as well as the future talks [in Vienna] is on the agenda. We will spare no effort to advance our national interests, namely the lifting of illegal sanctions,â he added.</p><p>As for the Vienna talks, the senior diplomat underlined, âWe will have no nuclear negotiations because the nuclear issue was completely agreed on, in 2015, in a deal between Iran and the 5+1 group,â he explained.</p><p>Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian described Bagheriâs negotiations in Europe as successful.</p><p>âThese days, Dr. Bagheri is engaged in successful talks in Europe,â he said in a tweet.</p><p>âAt the negotiating table in Vienna, we are ready to deliver a good agreement. The return of all parties to their commitments is an important and leading principle,â Amir Abdollahina added.</p><p> Subscribe </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-74424617947738160572021-11-12T19:53:00.001-08:002021-11-12T19:53:27.039-08:00US When will the Delta Variant outbreak dissipate<img width="696" height="392" class="entry-thumb td-modal-image" src="https://i0.wp.com/kwttoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/3-33.jpg?resize=696%2C392&ssl=1" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/kwttoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/3-33.jpg?resize=696%2C392&ssl=1 696w, https://i0.wp.com/kwttoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/3-33.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&ssl=1 1392w" sizes="(-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2) 1392px, (min-resolution: 192dpi) 1392px, 696px" alt="U.S. - When will the Delta Variant outbreak dissipate?" title="U.S. - When will the Delta Variant outbreak dissipate?"> U.S. â" When will the Delta Variant outbreak dissipate? <p>The United States has entered the fourth wave of the pandemic or fifth, depending on which expert you ask. As the vaccination campaign lags and the contagious delta variant spreads, cases and hospitalisations are at their highest since last winter. COVID-19 deaths, too, are on a steady incline.</p> <p>While trends are improving in Florida, Texas and other Southern States that bore the worst of the summer surge, itâs clear that delta isnât done with the United States. Covid-19 is moving north and west for the winter as people head indoors, close their windows and breathe stagnant air.</p> <p>Children have accounted for nearly 17 percent of cases since the pandemic first began. To control the spread of Covid among children, regulators authorized the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech in children aged five to 11 last week â" the first vaccine available to children that young.</p> <p>Walgreens Boots Alliance said in a statement that it has immunised more than 200,000 children against COVID-19 and booked hundreds of thousands of appointments over the next few weeks. Childrenâs Hospital Los Angeles has inoculated 425 children since Nov. 3 and expects to soon be vaccinating around 90 children daily as it books more appointments.</p> <p>Progress on vaccination continues, yet nearly 60 million Americans age 12 and older remain unvaccinated. Thatâs an improvement since July, when 100 million were unvaccinated, said White House Covid-19 coordinator Jeff Zients.</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-6519379863822811022021-11-12T17:27:00.001-08:002021-11-12T17:27:23.305-08:00Soccer - Early Di Maria goal gives Argentina 1-0 win at Uruguay<img src="https://onecms-res.cloudinary.com/image/upload/s--x4PyyKTG--/fl_relative%2Cg_south_east%2Cl_one-cms:core:watermark:reuters%2Cw_0.1/f_auto%2Cq_auto/c_fill%2Cg_auto%2Ch_676%2Cw_1200/v1/one-cms/core/2021-11-13t010135z_1_lynxmpehac00i_rtroptp_3_soccer-worldcup-ury-arg-report.jpg?itok=u8mCH_Ue" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p>MONTEVIDEO : Argentina started without Lionel Messi but a moment of magic from Angel Di Maria was enough to give them a barely deserved 1-0 win over Uruguay in Friday's World Cup qualifier in Montevideo.</p><p>Di Maria curled a sublime shot past the outstretched arms of Fernando Muslera with just six minutes gone to give the visitors all three points.</p><p>The result takes them to second place with 28 points in the South American qualifying group, six behind Brazil, who beat Colombia on Thursday to become the first South American team to guarantee their place in Qatar.</p><p>The top four teams qualify automatically for the finals and the fifth-placed side goes into an inter-regional playoff.</p><p>Uruguay remain on 16 points, fourth equal with Chile and Colombia. Ecuador is third.</p><p> (Reporting by Andrew Downie, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)</p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-87538807226916451052021-11-12T15:06:00.001-08:002021-11-12T15:06:10.488-08:00Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon charged with contempt of CongressNormal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text size<p>Washington: Donald Trumpâs former campaign chief Steve Bannon has been indicted by a grand jury for defying a subpoena to appear before the US Congress to testify about the January 6 storming of the Capitol.</p><p>A federal magistrate was expected to issue an arrest warrant for Bannon following the criminal indictment.</p><img alt="Steve Bannon, Donald Trumpâs former chief strategist has been indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress." src="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.237%2C$multiply_0.3541%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_44/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/ad8ecc1d84fbbe281d861bae3582dbc95528702e" height="212" width="375" srcset="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.237%2C$multiply_0.3541%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_44/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/ad8ecc1d84fbbe281d861bae3582dbc95528702e, https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.237%2C$multiply_0.7082%2C$ratio_1.776846%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_44/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/ad8ecc1d84fbbe281d861bae3582dbc95528702e 2x"><p>Steve Bannon, Donald Trumpâs former chief strategist has been indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress.Credit:AP</p><p>Bannon was indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to provide documents to congressional investigators and refusing to sit for a deposition, the US Department of Justice announced.</p><p>As well as fines, he faces up to a year in jail for each count.</p><p>It is the first time in decades that the US government had pursued criminal charges against anyone for contempt of Congress.</p><p>The Bannon case is seen as important in establishing the principle that people cannot brazenly refuse to testify when called to appear before a relevant congressional committee.</p><p>âSince my first day in office, I have promised Justice Department employees that together we would show the American people by word and deed that the department adheres to the rule of law, follows the facts and the law and pursues equal justice under the law,â US Attorney-General Merrick Garland said in a statement.</p><p>âTodayâs charges reflect the departmentâs steadfast commitment to these principles.â</p>Advertisement<p>Bannonâs lawyers told the House of Representatives January 6 select committee in October that he would not comply with its subpoena because Trump had instructed him not to produce any documents or testimony âconcerning privileged materialâ.</p><img alt="A congressional committee is investigating the causes behind the January 6 storming of the Capitol. " loading="lazy" src="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.224%2C$multiply_0.4431%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_0/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/62f92fcf3c7603bf1e024bd72232ed689d94ce5b" height="224" width="335" srcset="https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.224%2C$multiply_0.4431%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_0/t_crop_custom/q_86%2Cf_auto/62f92fcf3c7603bf1e024bd72232ed689d94ce5b, https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.224%2C$multiply_0.8862%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_0/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/62f92fcf3c7603bf1e024bd72232ed689d94ce5b 2x"><p>A congressional committee is investigating the causes behind the January 6 storming of the Capitol. Credit:AP</p><p>After serving as Trumpâs campaign chief, Bannon was a senior White House advisor during the former presidentâs first seven months in office.</p><p>In January Trump granted clemency to Bannon as part of a wave of 143 pardons and commutations issued during his final day in the White House. The 67-year-old was charged last year with defrauding Trump supporters over an effort to raise private funds to build the presidentâs wall on the US-Mexico border.</p><p>More to come</p>Most Viewed in World Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9043175931348942329.post-30058500197646264362021-11-12T12:45:00.001-08:002021-11-12T12:45:09.023-08:00BBC Top Gear to return for 31st series this weekend<img src="https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/resources/images/13197763/" class="ff-og-image-inserted"><p> Being able to film abroad for the first time in 18 months gives the programme a bit more to play with in terms of challenges, and there are a whole bunch to contend with. </p> <p> Tackling the Icelandic wilderness in some British 'classics' which are unsuitable for the terrain encompasses one of those, whilst the trio also head to Cornwall to reinvent the camping holiday with some new electric cars. </p> <p> They'll also be battling it out with some F1 drivers, paying tribute to legendary rider Eddie Kidd OBE with a motorbike stunt spectacular and testing out a few supercars. </p> <p> Top Gear TV returns this Sunday! Here's your full series 31 preview â' https://t.co/OhMutdZzgb pic.twitter.com/6voY9HtzRF </p>â" Top Gear (@BBC_TopGear) November 12, 2021 <p> Paddy McGuinness spoke ahead of the series launch about what works well in presenting with Flintoff, Harris and himself. </p> <p> He said: "Our chemistry comes naturally. You watch a lot of shows and people are striving for that chemistry. But it either happens or it doesnât, and from the off it just happened for us without even trying. </p> <p> "Even when we were messing about together before we had even filmed an episode, it was insane. Nothing is off limits with us. We have a great laugh off camera, as well as on it. I think thatâs why itâs been such a success - because people believe us. Long may it continue!" </p> When does the new series of Top Gear start? <p> The first episode of the 31st series will air on BBC One at 8pm on Sunday November 14. </p> <p> It will then be made available online via BBC iPlayer once it has finished. </p> <p> Four episodes will be shown in total, each airing at the same time on the following three Sundays. </p> <p> Top Gear will begin airing at 8pm on BBC One on Sunday November 14. </p> Shafira Jenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07080292190014424326noreply@blogger.com0