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Will Louisiana GOP hand John Bel Edwards a second term? | Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards prospects for re-election have never looked rosier than they do this third week of February, a little less than eight months away from the Oct. 12 primary. By every objective measure, the Democratic governor holds the edge over his announced Republican challengers and just about anyone else who might be thinking about getting in. That is all the more remarkable given that Edwards was not expected to win four years ago, Republican Donald Trump carried the state with 58 percent of the vote two years ago, and Edwards remains the only Democratic governor in the Deep South. But here he is, looking for all the world like a heavy favorite while Republicans look panicked if not yet desperate. If inmates were being released too early, you can bet folks would pay attention The Louisiana Department of Corrections says complex calculations are to blame for keeping prisoners past their release date. Some of Edwards' advantages come from being the incumbent, some come from his aggressive campaign, and some are the result of the fractured and so-far feckless GOP efforts to throw him off his game. His first big break came late last year when state Republicans failed to settle on a single candidate to carry the banner into the fall. U.S. Sen. John Kennedy, one of the states best-known elected officials, said he preferred to stay in Washington. U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, decided to bide his time in hopes of a shot at someday becoming speaker of the House. State Attorney General Jeff Landry, who gamely tried to organize the united-front strategy, also announced he would seek re-election instead of going after Edwards. That leaves Baton Rouge businessman Eddie Rispone and north Louisiana Congressman Ralph Abraham as the only declared Republicans in the race. Rispone, who co-founded ISC Constructors, a specialty contractor with annual revenues of $350 million, has never run for elected office and is all but unknown to Louisiana voters. Abraham was just elected to his third term representing the 5th Congressional District from his home base in Alto, an unincorporated community in Richland Parish. Others could jump in before the Aug. 6-8 qualifying period, but there doesn't appear to be anyone left in the bullpen with the kind of name recognition of financial resources to make up ground on Edwards. The climb looked even steeper last week with the release of the candidates' first meaningful campaign finance reports. Rispone, who launched his bid in October, reported $5.5 million in his account but only $550,000 from donors, which reflects popular support. The other $5 million is his own money. Abraham, who didnt get started until early December, raised nearly $357,000 in a holiday-shortened month and reported having about $350,000 in the bank. Not shabby, but not awe-inspiring. The governor meanwhile reported having about $8.4 million cash on hand with another $2.1 million in the pro-Edwards Gumbo PAC. That prompted one high-ranking state Republican to hit the panic button this week. Ive been getting a lot of chatter about, Is this the field?" state GOP rules chairman Scott Wilfong said in a radio interview Tuesday (Feb. 19). "Theres definitely some movement to try to get another candidate into the race. Wilfong didn't speculate on who that would be and whether he or she would be able to clear the field or reduced to throwing elbows with Rispone and Abraham for a spot in the runoff. It's also not clear how this newcomer will be able to raise enough money when the current contenders couldn't even scratch up $1 million between them. The money discrepancy is huge," Wilfong said. "I know there is a movement to get another candidate in the race. If that will be successful or not, I dont know. Gunfight at the City of Yes Corral New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell wants to reassure the public that this is not the "Wild, Wild West." The state GOP issued a statement Thursday, noting that Wilfong does not speak for the party or its leadership" and that his claims of a new candidate search are unfounded. From the partys perspective, we feel very confident that we have two great candidates in the race for Governor, either of whom would bring real leadership and reform to Louisiana, state GOP Chairman Louis Gurivch said. Convincing either Rispone or Abraham to bow out might help, but theres not a clear-cut case for who should stay and who should go. And there is no clear party authority to make that decision. Tim Morris is a columnist on the Latitude team at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Latitude is a place to share opinions about the challenges facing Louisiana. Follow @LatitudeNOLA on Facebook and Twitter. Write to Tim at tmorris@nola.com. | Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards is looking like a heavy favorite for a second term. The GOP is scrambling to get a candidate on the field before the Aug. 6 qualifying period. Edwards has about $8.4 million cash on hand. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.nola.com/opinions/2019/02/will-louisiana-gop-hand-john-bel-edwards-a-second-term.html | 0.400188 |
Will Louisiana GOP hand John Bel Edwards a second term? | Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards prospects for re-election have never looked rosier than they do this third week of February, a little less than eight months away from the Oct. 12 primary. By every objective measure, the Democratic governor holds the edge over his announced Republican challengers and just about anyone else who might be thinking about getting in. That is all the more remarkable given that Edwards was not expected to win four years ago, Republican Donald Trump carried the state with 58 percent of the vote two years ago, and Edwards remains the only Democratic governor in the Deep South. But here he is, looking for all the world like a heavy favorite while Republicans look panicked if not yet desperate. If inmates were being released too early, you can bet folks would pay attention The Louisiana Department of Corrections says complex calculations are to blame for keeping prisoners past their release date. Some of Edwards' advantages come from being the incumbent, some come from his aggressive campaign, and some are the result of the fractured and so-far feckless GOP efforts to throw him off his game. His first big break came late last year when state Republicans failed to settle on a single candidate to carry the banner into the fall. U.S. Sen. John Kennedy, one of the states best-known elected officials, said he preferred to stay in Washington. U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, decided to bide his time in hopes of a shot at someday becoming speaker of the House. State Attorney General Jeff Landry, who gamely tried to organize the united-front strategy, also announced he would seek re-election instead of going after Edwards. That leaves Baton Rouge businessman Eddie Rispone and north Louisiana Congressman Ralph Abraham as the only declared Republicans in the race. Rispone, who co-founded ISC Constructors, a specialty contractor with annual revenues of $350 million, has never run for elected office and is all but unknown to Louisiana voters. Abraham was just elected to his third term representing the 5th Congressional District from his home base in Alto, an unincorporated community in Richland Parish. Others could jump in before the Aug. 6-8 qualifying period, but there doesn't appear to be anyone left in the bullpen with the kind of name recognition of financial resources to make up ground on Edwards. The climb looked even steeper last week with the release of the candidates' first meaningful campaign finance reports. Rispone, who launched his bid in October, reported $5.5 million in his account but only $550,000 from donors, which reflects popular support. The other $5 million is his own money. Abraham, who didnt get started until early December, raised nearly $357,000 in a holiday-shortened month and reported having about $350,000 in the bank. Not shabby, but not awe-inspiring. The governor meanwhile reported having about $8.4 million cash on hand with another $2.1 million in the pro-Edwards Gumbo PAC. That prompted one high-ranking state Republican to hit the panic button this week. Ive been getting a lot of chatter about, Is this the field?" state GOP rules chairman Scott Wilfong said in a radio interview Tuesday (Feb. 19). "Theres definitely some movement to try to get another candidate into the race. Wilfong didn't speculate on who that would be and whether he or she would be able to clear the field or reduced to throwing elbows with Rispone and Abraham for a spot in the runoff. It's also not clear how this newcomer will be able to raise enough money when the current contenders couldn't even scratch up $1 million between them. The money discrepancy is huge," Wilfong said. "I know there is a movement to get another candidate in the race. If that will be successful or not, I dont know. Gunfight at the City of Yes Corral New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell wants to reassure the public that this is not the "Wild, Wild West." The state GOP issued a statement Thursday, noting that Wilfong does not speak for the party or its leadership" and that his claims of a new candidate search are unfounded. From the partys perspective, we feel very confident that we have two great candidates in the race for Governor, either of whom would bring real leadership and reform to Louisiana, state GOP Chairman Louis Gurivch said. Convincing either Rispone or Abraham to bow out might help, but theres not a clear-cut case for who should stay and who should go. And there is no clear party authority to make that decision. Tim Morris is a columnist on the Latitude team at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Latitude is a place to share opinions about the challenges facing Louisiana. Follow @LatitudeNOLA on Facebook and Twitter. Write to Tim at tmorris@nola.com. | Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards is looking like a heavy favorite for a second term. The GOP is scrambling to get a candidate on the field before the Aug. 6 qualifying period. Edwards has about $8.4 million cash on hand with another $2.1 million in the pro-Edwards Gumbo PAC. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.nola.com/opinions/2019/02/will-louisiana-gop-hand-john-bel-edwards-a-second-term.html | 0.458257 |
What does the code at the back of a bottle of wine signify? | Here it is: L18065D01 09:01 The answer Thats the lot number. It refers to the bottling date. Most wineries display such codes as a way to trace wine back to the batch from which it was bottled. This can be critical in the event that a product recall becomes necessary. For consumers, it can also explain why two bottles of otherwise identically labelled wine can taste markedly different. Often, a winery will transfer only a portion of a tank into bottles, reserving the rest for bottling at a later date, once the market is thirsty for new stock. That held-over lot, purely by virtue of spending another, say, six months or so maturing in tank, is likely going to taste slightly different than the first lot. Story continues below advertisement While not all countries require such numbers, the European Union mandated them many years ago. And while there is no universal format for how the codes are to appear, in Europe the number must begin with an L, as is the case on your bottle. Im not an inventory-control expert, but Ill take a stab a cracking the code on your bottle. The first two numerals are the final two digits of the bottling year, specifically 2018. This makes sense for a ros that was harvested in 2017 because typically pink wines are meant to be consumed fresh and are bottled early in the year following harvest. My second guess is that the next three digits 065 refer to the number of days elapsed in 2018. Given that January has 31 days and February has 28 (there was no leap year in 2018), there were 59 days in the first two months of the year. If you add the first six days of March, you come up with 65. Im not sure about the rest of the numbers used by the winery in question. The D01 could be a small batch from a larger lot. And I suspect the last four digits divided by a colon 09:01 could be the time of day when the bottle came off the line. Like I say, Im not certain of the finer details of your particular wine. But if Im wrong, I suspect that some lot-number geek out there will advise me of my error soon enough by email or Twitter. E-mail your wine and spirits questions to Beppi Crosariol. Look for answers to select questions to appear in the Wine & Spirits newsletter and on The Globe and Mail website. | "L18065D01 09:01" It refers to the bottling date, which can be critical in the event of a product recall. The code can also explain why two bottles of otherwise identically labelled wine can taste markedly different. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/article-what-does-the-code-at-the-back-of-a-bottle-of-wine-signify/ | 0.105149 |
What's wrong with gas hobs? | Image copyright Getty Images Gas hobs could become a thing of the past if recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change are implemented. Gas hobs and gas boilers use fossil fuels which produce greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists believe these gases are contributing to global warming by increasing the temperature of the planet. This is a problem because the UK is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 based on 1990 levels. This has recently become even more of a problem as emissions from housing suddenly increased by 1% last year, which is believed to be due to reductions in the installation of household energy efficiency measures. Gas is cleaner than coal, but it is still bad for the environment. To reduce these emissions the committee has said new-build homes should be banned from connecting to the gas grid. Instead of gas hobs these homes could be equipped with electric induction hobs and homes could be warmed using heat pumps. An induction hob produces heat using copper wire coils which create an electro-magnetic field underneath a glass ceramic surface. Heat is only produced when a pan with a magnetised based is place on the cooking surface - pans made of copper or aluminium will not work. According to the Committee on Climate Change heat pumps produce efficient electric heating by operating "like a fridge in reverse". Where a fridge's temperature is kept low by the evaporation and cooling of a liquid, heat pumps can be used to take thermal energy from the air outside, where it is compressed. Heat is then transferred into the home using a series of coils. The Renewable Energy Hub says heat pumps are efficient because they don't depend on the burning of fuel to create the heat. There are currently around 160,000 heat pumps in the UK with annual sales of around 20,000. The Committee on Climate Change says this is significantly lower than in other countries and points to Italy where 1.5 million heat pumps were sold in 2016. The Committee on Climate Change said people shouldn't worry about throwing out their current hobs and gas boilers. They are recommending that no new homes are connected to the gas grid by 2025 at the latest. Government advisers want gas hobs to be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. The committee sets out the need to decarbonise heating in existing homes by 2050, through low-carbon heat networks, heat pumps and/or by piping hydrogen through the gas network instead of natural gas. Last year the Dutch government introduced regulations which prevent new homes connecting to the gas grid. It wants all residential buildings to be off gas by 2050, reducing CO2 emissions from all residential buildings. Large cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht have signed a Green Deal, hoping that over the next few years gas-less neighbourhoods will emerge. Although tackling existing homes will be difficult and expensive in the short-term, money will be saved on gas bills in the long term. The committee wants the government to consider the renovations as a national infrastructure priority, akin to widening roads. Government advisers say gas hobs should be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. | Gas hobs and gas boilers use fossil fuels which produce greenhouse gas emissions. | bart | 0 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47320673 | 0.46715 |
What's wrong with gas hobs? | Image copyright Getty Images Gas hobs could become a thing of the past if recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change are implemented. Gas hobs and gas boilers use fossil fuels which produce greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists believe these gases are contributing to global warming by increasing the temperature of the planet. This is a problem because the UK is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 based on 1990 levels. This has recently become even more of a problem as emissions from housing suddenly increased by 1% last year, which is believed to be due to reductions in the installation of household energy efficiency measures. Gas is cleaner than coal, but it is still bad for the environment. To reduce these emissions the committee has said new-build homes should be banned from connecting to the gas grid. Instead of gas hobs these homes could be equipped with electric induction hobs and homes could be warmed using heat pumps. An induction hob produces heat using copper wire coils which create an electro-magnetic field underneath a glass ceramic surface. Heat is only produced when a pan with a magnetised based is place on the cooking surface - pans made of copper or aluminium will not work. According to the Committee on Climate Change heat pumps produce efficient electric heating by operating "like a fridge in reverse". Where a fridge's temperature is kept low by the evaporation and cooling of a liquid, heat pumps can be used to take thermal energy from the air outside, where it is compressed. Heat is then transferred into the home using a series of coils. The Renewable Energy Hub says heat pumps are efficient because they don't depend on the burning of fuel to create the heat. There are currently around 160,000 heat pumps in the UK with annual sales of around 20,000. The Committee on Climate Change says this is significantly lower than in other countries and points to Italy where 1.5 million heat pumps were sold in 2016. The Committee on Climate Change said people shouldn't worry about throwing out their current hobs and gas boilers. They are recommending that no new homes are connected to the gas grid by 2025 at the latest. Government advisers want gas hobs to be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. The committee sets out the need to decarbonise heating in existing homes by 2050, through low-carbon heat networks, heat pumps and/or by piping hydrogen through the gas network instead of natural gas. Last year the Dutch government introduced regulations which prevent new homes connecting to the gas grid. It wants all residential buildings to be off gas by 2050, reducing CO2 emissions from all residential buildings. Large cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht have signed a Green Deal, hoping that over the next few years gas-less neighbourhoods will emerge. Although tackling existing homes will be difficult and expensive in the short-term, money will be saved on gas bills in the long term. The committee wants the government to consider the renovations as a national infrastructure priority, akin to widening roads. Government advisers say gas hobs should be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. | Committee on Climate Change says gas hobs should be banned in new homes. New-build homes could be equipped with electric induction hobs and heat pumps. Gas is cleaner than coal, but it is still bad for the environment. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47320673 | 0.326008 |
What's wrong with gas hobs? | Image copyright Getty Images Gas hobs could become a thing of the past if recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change are implemented. Gas hobs and gas boilers use fossil fuels which produce greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists believe these gases are contributing to global warming by increasing the temperature of the planet. This is a problem because the UK is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 based on 1990 levels. This has recently become even more of a problem as emissions from housing suddenly increased by 1% last year, which is believed to be due to reductions in the installation of household energy efficiency measures. Gas is cleaner than coal, but it is still bad for the environment. To reduce these emissions the committee has said new-build homes should be banned from connecting to the gas grid. Instead of gas hobs these homes could be equipped with electric induction hobs and homes could be warmed using heat pumps. An induction hob produces heat using copper wire coils which create an electro-magnetic field underneath a glass ceramic surface. Heat is only produced when a pan with a magnetised based is place on the cooking surface - pans made of copper or aluminium will not work. According to the Committee on Climate Change heat pumps produce efficient electric heating by operating "like a fridge in reverse". Where a fridge's temperature is kept low by the evaporation and cooling of a liquid, heat pumps can be used to take thermal energy from the air outside, where it is compressed. Heat is then transferred into the home using a series of coils. The Renewable Energy Hub says heat pumps are efficient because they don't depend on the burning of fuel to create the heat. There are currently around 160,000 heat pumps in the UK with annual sales of around 20,000. The Committee on Climate Change says this is significantly lower than in other countries and points to Italy where 1.5 million heat pumps were sold in 2016. The Committee on Climate Change said people shouldn't worry about throwing out their current hobs and gas boilers. They are recommending that no new homes are connected to the gas grid by 2025 at the latest. Government advisers want gas hobs to be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. The committee sets out the need to decarbonise heating in existing homes by 2050, through low-carbon heat networks, heat pumps and/or by piping hydrogen through the gas network instead of natural gas. Last year the Dutch government introduced regulations which prevent new homes connecting to the gas grid. It wants all residential buildings to be off gas by 2050, reducing CO2 emissions from all residential buildings. Large cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht have signed a Green Deal, hoping that over the next few years gas-less neighbourhoods will emerge. Although tackling existing homes will be difficult and expensive in the short-term, money will be saved on gas bills in the long term. The committee wants the government to consider the renovations as a national infrastructure priority, akin to widening roads. Government advisers say gas hobs should be banned from being installed in new homes within six years. | Gas hobs and gas boilers use fossil fuels which produce greenhouse gas emissions. Scientists believe these gases are contributing to global warming by increasing the temperature of the planet. Committee on Climate Change says new-build homes should be banned from connecting to the gas grid. Instead of gas hobs these homes could be equipped with electric induction hobs. | bart | 2 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-47320673 | 0.623738 |
Can Black Panther win best costume design at the Oscars? | Ruth E. Carter knows her Black history. and the 2016 remake of Roots. Carter was Oscar-nominated for her work on Amistad and Malcolm X. But on Feb. 24, she could be the one making history herself. Carter is nominated for best costume design for Black Panther. Along with Ray and Dreamgirls nominee Sharen Davis, she is only the second Black person ever nominated in the category. Should she win the neck-and-neck race against Sandy Powell, nominee for The Favourite, she will become the first Black best costume design winner in Oscar history. Ruth E. Carter's design for Black Panther's Queen Ramonda. ( Courtesy of Disney ) "I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done," says Black Panther costume designer Ruth E. Carter. ( Courtesy of Disney ) Over the phone from New York City, we asked Carter about creating the look of Black Panthers Wakanda, Africas influence on her work, and why the learning curve for superhero style is far steeper than a corset and a bustle. When you (first) see Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) on the landing pad, she has on her 3-D-printed hat; she has on her shoulder mantel (an overcoat that covers the shoulders), which was based on African lace. Using heightened technology to produce those two 3-D-printed pieces and basing them on African traditional dress was one way of showing that this was a technologically advanced country, and this woman was of royal blood. The dress that Ramonda wears, its a recognizable shape for a queen. Its a long dress, its a full skirt. It was undeniable who she was. Article Continued Below Director Ryan Coogler had given you the note that the uniforms of the all-female royal guard, the Dora Milaje, should almost be like jewelry. The neck rings and the arm rings were inspired by the Ndebele tribe. They had a spiny necklace under their neck rings. I started by hiring a jewelry designer, Douriean Fletcher. Her whole esthetic was very Afrocentric. Because the pieces were created by a jewelry designer, it did feel like you can wear them with a gown. Which is what we did with Danai (Gurira) in the casino. Nobody would be feeling like you are wearing armour its armour that feels and looks like jewelry. In the U.S., Black Panther is being shown for free in theatres as part of Black History Month. Its interesting that, even though the movie is based in an imagined world, it has such a connection to Black history and culture that it can be used as an educational tool. Thats what I take a lot of pride in. Black Panther was accurate. (Africans) saw their real cloth. They saw the Lesotho blankets. The Himba women saw their traditional dress. People of Africa rejoiced in seeing their history clearly in the film. African Americans rejoiced because they could make a beautiful connection to their own past. If you win this year, Black Panther will be the first film set in contemporary times to win best costume design since Priscilla, Queen of the Desert won in 1994. People dont realize how much work goes into it. They think the Wizard of Oz is behind a curtain pulling all these levers at the studio and thats how those films get made. Nobody works hard; everyone just makes money. But thats not true. I worked harder on Black Panther than on any film Ive ever done. Maybe we make it look easy but those supersuits you see running through the streets, they stay intact, theres never a crease, theres never a lump, theres never a bump. It takes six months to build that costume. Article Continued Below I think when they look at Mary Queen of Scots beautiful work, I love that designer when they look at these films they go, Wow, they had to research! Oh yeah! I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done. My other films prepared the world to receive this film. Malcolm X prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Selma prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Roots prepared the world to receive Black Panther. We already know the story of African Americans in the U.S. Now it was time to go back to Africa. | Ruth E. Carter is nominated for best costume design for Black Panther. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.thestar.com/life/fashion_style/2019/02/21/can-black-panther-win-best-costume-design-at-the-oscars.html | 0.225319 |
Can Black Panther win best costume design at the Oscars? | Ruth E. Carter knows her Black history. and the 2016 remake of Roots. Carter was Oscar-nominated for her work on Amistad and Malcolm X. But on Feb. 24, she could be the one making history herself. Carter is nominated for best costume design for Black Panther. Along with Ray and Dreamgirls nominee Sharen Davis, she is only the second Black person ever nominated in the category. Should she win the neck-and-neck race against Sandy Powell, nominee for The Favourite, she will become the first Black best costume design winner in Oscar history. Ruth E. Carter's design for Black Panther's Queen Ramonda. ( Courtesy of Disney ) "I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done," says Black Panther costume designer Ruth E. Carter. ( Courtesy of Disney ) Over the phone from New York City, we asked Carter about creating the look of Black Panthers Wakanda, Africas influence on her work, and why the learning curve for superhero style is far steeper than a corset and a bustle. When you (first) see Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) on the landing pad, she has on her 3-D-printed hat; she has on her shoulder mantel (an overcoat that covers the shoulders), which was based on African lace. Using heightened technology to produce those two 3-D-printed pieces and basing them on African traditional dress was one way of showing that this was a technologically advanced country, and this woman was of royal blood. The dress that Ramonda wears, its a recognizable shape for a queen. Its a long dress, its a full skirt. It was undeniable who she was. Article Continued Below Director Ryan Coogler had given you the note that the uniforms of the all-female royal guard, the Dora Milaje, should almost be like jewelry. The neck rings and the arm rings were inspired by the Ndebele tribe. They had a spiny necklace under their neck rings. I started by hiring a jewelry designer, Douriean Fletcher. Her whole esthetic was very Afrocentric. Because the pieces were created by a jewelry designer, it did feel like you can wear them with a gown. Which is what we did with Danai (Gurira) in the casino. Nobody would be feeling like you are wearing armour its armour that feels and looks like jewelry. In the U.S., Black Panther is being shown for free in theatres as part of Black History Month. Its interesting that, even though the movie is based in an imagined world, it has such a connection to Black history and culture that it can be used as an educational tool. Thats what I take a lot of pride in. Black Panther was accurate. (Africans) saw their real cloth. They saw the Lesotho blankets. The Himba women saw their traditional dress. People of Africa rejoiced in seeing their history clearly in the film. African Americans rejoiced because they could make a beautiful connection to their own past. If you win this year, Black Panther will be the first film set in contemporary times to win best costume design since Priscilla, Queen of the Desert won in 1994. People dont realize how much work goes into it. They think the Wizard of Oz is behind a curtain pulling all these levers at the studio and thats how those films get made. Nobody works hard; everyone just makes money. But thats not true. I worked harder on Black Panther than on any film Ive ever done. Maybe we make it look easy but those supersuits you see running through the streets, they stay intact, theres never a crease, theres never a lump, theres never a bump. It takes six months to build that costume. Article Continued Below I think when they look at Mary Queen of Scots beautiful work, I love that designer when they look at these films they go, Wow, they had to research! Oh yeah! I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done. My other films prepared the world to receive this film. Malcolm X prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Selma prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Roots prepared the world to receive Black Panther. We already know the story of African Americans in the U.S. Now it was time to go back to Africa. | Ruth E. Carter is nominated for best costume design for Black Panther. She is only the second Black person ever nominated in the category. If she wins, she will become the first Black best costume designer in Oscar history. | bart | 1 | https://www.thestar.com/life/fashion_style/2019/02/21/can-black-panther-win-best-costume-design-at-the-oscars.html | 0.444264 |
Can Black Panther win best costume design at the Oscars? | Ruth E. Carter knows her Black history. and the 2016 remake of Roots. Carter was Oscar-nominated for her work on Amistad and Malcolm X. But on Feb. 24, she could be the one making history herself. Carter is nominated for best costume design for Black Panther. Along with Ray and Dreamgirls nominee Sharen Davis, she is only the second Black person ever nominated in the category. Should she win the neck-and-neck race against Sandy Powell, nominee for The Favourite, she will become the first Black best costume design winner in Oscar history. Ruth E. Carter's design for Black Panther's Queen Ramonda. ( Courtesy of Disney ) "I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done," says Black Panther costume designer Ruth E. Carter. ( Courtesy of Disney ) Over the phone from New York City, we asked Carter about creating the look of Black Panthers Wakanda, Africas influence on her work, and why the learning curve for superhero style is far steeper than a corset and a bustle. When you (first) see Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) on the landing pad, she has on her 3-D-printed hat; she has on her shoulder mantel (an overcoat that covers the shoulders), which was based on African lace. Using heightened technology to produce those two 3-D-printed pieces and basing them on African traditional dress was one way of showing that this was a technologically advanced country, and this woman was of royal blood. The dress that Ramonda wears, its a recognizable shape for a queen. Its a long dress, its a full skirt. It was undeniable who she was. Article Continued Below Director Ryan Coogler had given you the note that the uniforms of the all-female royal guard, the Dora Milaje, should almost be like jewelry. The neck rings and the arm rings were inspired by the Ndebele tribe. They had a spiny necklace under their neck rings. I started by hiring a jewelry designer, Douriean Fletcher. Her whole esthetic was very Afrocentric. Because the pieces were created by a jewelry designer, it did feel like you can wear them with a gown. Which is what we did with Danai (Gurira) in the casino. Nobody would be feeling like you are wearing armour its armour that feels and looks like jewelry. In the U.S., Black Panther is being shown for free in theatres as part of Black History Month. Its interesting that, even though the movie is based in an imagined world, it has such a connection to Black history and culture that it can be used as an educational tool. Thats what I take a lot of pride in. Black Panther was accurate. (Africans) saw their real cloth. They saw the Lesotho blankets. The Himba women saw their traditional dress. People of Africa rejoiced in seeing their history clearly in the film. African Americans rejoiced because they could make a beautiful connection to their own past. If you win this year, Black Panther will be the first film set in contemporary times to win best costume design since Priscilla, Queen of the Desert won in 1994. People dont realize how much work goes into it. They think the Wizard of Oz is behind a curtain pulling all these levers at the studio and thats how those films get made. Nobody works hard; everyone just makes money. But thats not true. I worked harder on Black Panther than on any film Ive ever done. Maybe we make it look easy but those supersuits you see running through the streets, they stay intact, theres never a crease, theres never a lump, theres never a bump. It takes six months to build that costume. Article Continued Below I think when they look at Mary Queen of Scots beautiful work, I love that designer when they look at these films they go, Wow, they had to research! Oh yeah! I feel like this film is a culmination of everything that Ive done. My other films prepared the world to receive this film. Malcolm X prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Selma prepared the world to receive Black Panther. Roots prepared the world to receive Black Panther. We already know the story of African Americans in the U.S. Now it was time to go back to Africa. | Ruth E. Carter was nominated for her work on Amistad and Malcolm X. She is only the second Black person ever nominated in the category. If she wins, she will become the first Black best costume design winner in Oscar history. In the U.S., Black Panther is being shown for free in theatres as part of Black History Month. | bart | 2 | https://www.thestar.com/life/fashion_style/2019/02/21/can-black-panther-win-best-costume-design-at-the-oscars.html | 0.32368 |
What is the truth about Shamima Begum's citizenship status? | According to the UK government, she is no longer a British citizen. The Home Office wrote to Begums parents on 19 February saying they had made the order to remove her citizenship that day. The governments reasons, or how they might argue the action was legal, are not known. International law makes clear a persons citizenship can not be revoked if doing so would make them stateless. So the Home Office evidently believes Begum either currently holds or is eligible to apply for citizenship of Bangladesh, from where her parents originate, in accordance with article 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981. Begum insists not she says she has never held or applied for Bangladeshi citizenship, and she has never been to country. The Bangladeshi government has been even more explicit, insisting she is not a citizen and there is no question of her being allowed to enter. Experts with knowledge of the British and Bangladeshi legal systems are divided on whether the Home Offices action is legal. Fahad Ansari, a lawyer who acted for two men in a similar case, has said the UK-born children of Bangladeshi parents are automatically dual citizens at birth, but that right lapses at the age of 21. The government lost that case, but only because the two men were over 21, which would not apply to Begum, who is 19. But Najrul Khasru, a British-Bangladeshi barrister and part-time tribunal judge who has reviewed Bangladeshs citizenship laws, told the Guardian he believed Begum was not a Bangladeshi citizen unless, at the time of her birth, her parents had registered her at the High Commission, which he said was very uncommon within the British-Bangladeshi community. The Guardian understands Begums parents say they did not register her birth in this way. Its now up to the courts to decide. Begum familys lawyer has confirmed they wish to appeal the removal of her citizenship, which could be a lengthy process. Crucially, Begums baby son, still less than a week old, was born before the order to strip her nationality was lodged, meaning he is British and his rights are unaffected, Sajid Javid indicated on Wednesday. The child therefore has the right to return to the UK, but the practicalities would be extremely complicated, as he wont have UK identity documents. Begums family are now exploring the legal and practical possibilities of bringing the baby to Britain, if his mother consents, while she awaits the outcome of any appeal in her case. | Shamima Begum has been stripped of her British citizenship. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/21/what-is-the-truth-about-shamima-begums-citizenship-status | 0.345943 |
What is the truth about Shamima Begum's citizenship status? | According to the UK government, she is no longer a British citizen. The Home Office wrote to Begums parents on 19 February saying they had made the order to remove her citizenship that day. The governments reasons, or how they might argue the action was legal, are not known. International law makes clear a persons citizenship can not be revoked if doing so would make them stateless. So the Home Office evidently believes Begum either currently holds or is eligible to apply for citizenship of Bangladesh, from where her parents originate, in accordance with article 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981. Begum insists not she says she has never held or applied for Bangladeshi citizenship, and she has never been to country. The Bangladeshi government has been even more explicit, insisting she is not a citizen and there is no question of her being allowed to enter. Experts with knowledge of the British and Bangladeshi legal systems are divided on whether the Home Offices action is legal. Fahad Ansari, a lawyer who acted for two men in a similar case, has said the UK-born children of Bangladeshi parents are automatically dual citizens at birth, but that right lapses at the age of 21. The government lost that case, but only because the two men were over 21, which would not apply to Begum, who is 19. But Najrul Khasru, a British-Bangladeshi barrister and part-time tribunal judge who has reviewed Bangladeshs citizenship laws, told the Guardian he believed Begum was not a Bangladeshi citizen unless, at the time of her birth, her parents had registered her at the High Commission, which he said was very uncommon within the British-Bangladeshi community. The Guardian understands Begums parents say they did not register her birth in this way. Its now up to the courts to decide. Begum familys lawyer has confirmed they wish to appeal the removal of her citizenship, which could be a lengthy process. Crucially, Begums baby son, still less than a week old, was born before the order to strip her nationality was lodged, meaning he is British and his rights are unaffected, Sajid Javid indicated on Wednesday. The child therefore has the right to return to the UK, but the practicalities would be extremely complicated, as he wont have UK identity documents. Begums family are now exploring the legal and practical possibilities of bringing the baby to Britain, if his mother consents, while she awaits the outcome of any appeal in her case. | Shamima Begum has been stripped of her British citizenship by the Home Office. The 19-year-old insists she has never held or applied for Bangladeshi citizenship. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/21/what-is-the-truth-about-shamima-begums-citizenship-status | 0.295096 |
What is the truth about Shamima Begum's citizenship status? | According to the UK government, she is no longer a British citizen. The Home Office wrote to Begums parents on 19 February saying they had made the order to remove her citizenship that day. The governments reasons, or how they might argue the action was legal, are not known. International law makes clear a persons citizenship can not be revoked if doing so would make them stateless. So the Home Office evidently believes Begum either currently holds or is eligible to apply for citizenship of Bangladesh, from where her parents originate, in accordance with article 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981. Begum insists not she says she has never held or applied for Bangladeshi citizenship, and she has never been to country. The Bangladeshi government has been even more explicit, insisting she is not a citizen and there is no question of her being allowed to enter. Experts with knowledge of the British and Bangladeshi legal systems are divided on whether the Home Offices action is legal. Fahad Ansari, a lawyer who acted for two men in a similar case, has said the UK-born children of Bangladeshi parents are automatically dual citizens at birth, but that right lapses at the age of 21. The government lost that case, but only because the two men were over 21, which would not apply to Begum, who is 19. But Najrul Khasru, a British-Bangladeshi barrister and part-time tribunal judge who has reviewed Bangladeshs citizenship laws, told the Guardian he believed Begum was not a Bangladeshi citizen unless, at the time of her birth, her parents had registered her at the High Commission, which he said was very uncommon within the British-Bangladeshi community. The Guardian understands Begums parents say they did not register her birth in this way. Its now up to the courts to decide. Begum familys lawyer has confirmed they wish to appeal the removal of her citizenship, which could be a lengthy process. Crucially, Begums baby son, still less than a week old, was born before the order to strip her nationality was lodged, meaning he is British and his rights are unaffected, Sajid Javid indicated on Wednesday. The child therefore has the right to return to the UK, but the practicalities would be extremely complicated, as he wont have UK identity documents. Begums family are now exploring the legal and practical possibilities of bringing the baby to Britain, if his mother consents, while she awaits the outcome of any appeal in her case. | Shamima Begum has been stripped of her British citizenship by the Home Office. The 19-year-old insists she has never held or applied for Bangladeshi citizenship, and has never been to country. The government's reasons for removing her citizenship are not known. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/feb/21/what-is-the-truth-about-shamima-begums-citizenship-status | 0.335222 |
Which of this year's films will actually be remembered 20 years from now? | You can bet 1941s How Green Is My Valley wouldnt have toppled Citizen Kane. Theres a fair chance 2014s Boyhood will be better remembered in its 20th-anniversary year than Birdman. The Oscars may be a snapshot of the industry, but theyre usually blurry and often half obscured by someones big fat thumb. The year after the Shakespeare imbroglio, Toni Collette and Haley Joel Osment won for their supporting work in The Sixth Sense; Spike Jonze took the directing prize for Being John Malkovich while Charlie Kaufman won for its screenplay; and Fight Club was named best picture. Actually, none of that is true. Those pictures went home empty-handed, as did Toy Story 2, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Iron Giant, Magnolia, Election and Run Lola Run. Sure, Bradley Cooper wasnt nominated for directing A Star Is Born, but you know therell be a fourth remake in another couple of decades. Here are some films that didnt even make the ballot but will surely stand the test of time. If you dont believe me, clip this out of the newspaper and get back to me in 2039. Eighth Grade: Like a grade-school version of last years Oscar nominee Lady Bird, writer/director Bo Burnham presents 13-year-old Kayla (Elsie Fisher) navigating the final week of Grade 8. The film will be remembered by todays eighth graders long into their greying years. Hereditary: Horror films generally get a bad rap at Oscar time; see the unheralded The Sixth Sense and, from the same year, The Blair Witch Project. This one deserves better, as (again!) does star Toni Collette. A Quiet Place: Another horror that will still be scaring them in years to come, John Krasinskis latest actually scored one Oscar nomination for sound editing. Annihilation: About the only genre to fare worse than horror at Oscar time is science-fiction. Alex Garlands Ex Machina won for its screenplay in 2014, and his follow-up, based on the novel by Jeff VanderMeer, should have got at least that nomination. Sorry to Bother You: This politically trenchant, very funny first feature from writer/director Boots Riley leaves no stone unthrown, and should have swelled the ranks of black nominees with its fine work by Riley and star Lakeith Stanfield. Leave No Trace: You could make an alternate Oscar ballot out of the ignored films from female directors. Debra Graniks searing story of a PTSD-addled veteran living in an urban forest with his 13-year-old daughter would top that list. Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts: Another fantastic film from a female director (Indonesias Mouly Surya), it feels like Quentin Tarantino and Nuri Bilge Ceylon had collaborated on a western. It should have been Indonesias first nominee for Best Foreign Language Film. : Inexplicably missing from the best documentary shortlist, this portrait of childrens TV host Fred Rogers feels like an antidote to the worst of the world of 2019, and will, if we know whats good for us, still be celebrated in 2039. | Some films that didn't even make the ballot will surely stand the test of time. A Quiet Place, Eighth Grade, Annihilation and Sorry to Bother You are among those that will still be celebrated in 2039. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://nationalpost.com/entertainment/movies/which-of-this-years-films-will-actually-be-remembered-20-years-from-now | 0.367158 |
When Is the NHL Trade Deadline? | The 2019 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 25. Teams will have to complete their deals ahead of the 3 p.m. ET deadline. With the NHL season entering its final stretch, teams are beginning to make key roster adjustments in hope of setting themselves up for a postseason run or to make way for future transactions. A handful of teams have been active ahead of the league's trade deadline. The Boston Bruins recently acquired center Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for center Ryan Donato and a draft pick. The Washington Capitals also traded for forward Carl Hagelin, shipping a third-round 2019 pick and a conditional sixth-round 2020 pick to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange. | The NHL trade deadline is Monday, Feb. 25. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.si.com/nhl/2019/nhl-trade-deadline-date-time-2019-season | 0.598908 |
When Is the NHL Trade Deadline? | The 2019 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 25. Teams will have to complete their deals ahead of the 3 p.m. ET deadline. With the NHL season entering its final stretch, teams are beginning to make key roster adjustments in hope of setting themselves up for a postseason run or to make way for future transactions. A handful of teams have been active ahead of the league's trade deadline. The Boston Bruins recently acquired center Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for center Ryan Donato and a draft pick. The Washington Capitals also traded for forward Carl Hagelin, shipping a third-round 2019 pick and a conditional sixth-round 2020 pick to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange. | The 2019 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 25. Teams will have to complete their deals ahead of the 3 p.m. ET deadline. Boston Bruins recently acquired center Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild. | bart | 1 | https://www.si.com/nhl/2019/nhl-trade-deadline-date-time-2019-season | 0.562597 |
When Is the NHL Trade Deadline? | The 2019 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 25. Teams will have to complete their deals ahead of the 3 p.m. ET deadline. With the NHL season entering its final stretch, teams are beginning to make key roster adjustments in hope of setting themselves up for a postseason run or to make way for future transactions. A handful of teams have been active ahead of the league's trade deadline. The Boston Bruins recently acquired center Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for center Ryan Donato and a draft pick. The Washington Capitals also traded for forward Carl Hagelin, shipping a third-round 2019 pick and a conditional sixth-round 2020 pick to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange. | The 2019 NHL trade deadline is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 25. Teams will have to complete their deals ahead of the 3 p.m. ET deadline. The Boston Bruins recently acquired center Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild. The Washington Capitals also traded for forward Carl Hagelin. | bart | 2 | https://www.si.com/nhl/2019/nhl-trade-deadline-date-time-2019-season | 0.582047 |
Will injury impact Zion Williamson's NBA draft stock? | CLOSE SportsPulse: Dan Wolken explains why no one should be panicking over Zion's injury vs. UNC and why his time at Duke has only benefited his NBA career. USA TODAY Duke star Zion Williamsons knee injury called a minor sprain by the team should have no impact on his draft stock, multiple NBA team executives told USA TODAY Sports. They requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about Williamson, who sustained the injury in Wednesday's high-profile game against North Carolina. Even in a worst-case scenario in which Williamson needs knee surgery, teams will still want to draft Williamson with a high pick. Right now, Williamson is the projected No. 1 overall pick in the June draft, and given his extraordinary combination of skill, size, strength, quickness, agility and playmaking, its difficult to see a team passing on him with his latest injury. Potentially millions of dollars. The first in salary for the first pick and the fifth pick in the 2019 draft over four NBA seasons is $12.6 million. Teams drafting in that position are looking long term and are willing to select a guy with so much difference-making ability even if the player will miss some, or all, of the next season. Duke's Zion Williamson reacts after going down against North Carolina on Wednesday. (Photo11: Rob Kinnan, USA TODAY Sports) Its not unheard for teams to select injured players in the draft. In 2014, Joel Embiid had just had surgery on his right foot when the Philadelphia 76ers selected him with the No. 3 overall pick. Embiid missed the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons with another surgery and rehabilitation. It was worth it for the 76ers who now have one of the best centers in the league. Embiid is dominant big man, and the Sixers signed him to a five-year, $147 million extension through 2022-23. This season, Vanderbilt guard Darius Garland underwent surgery to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee, and he remains a top-7 pick in respected mock drafts. It is a conversation taking place in front offices in wake of Williamsons injury. OPINION: Don't blame the NCAA for Williamson injury FTW: Williamson shouldn't play another minute for Duke If the injury was a serious as a torn ACL and MCL or a compound fracture, it could have an impact. But even then, players return from those kinds of injuries and perform at elite levels. Foot and back injuries concern front-office executives the most because of the resulting lingering issues that sometimes occur. Oregons Bol Bol has dropped in some 2019 mock drafts because of a foot injury, which concerns general managers. Embiid returned just fine from a similar injury. Both other big men, such as Yao Ming, have long-term foot problems. Bol is considered a late lottery to mid-first-round pick. But he was as high as No. 6 in some mock drafts before the injury. Michael Porter Jr. was considered one of the top prospects in the 2018 draft until a back injury derailed his freshman season at Missouri. Instead of a team drafting him in the top three, Porter fell to Denver at No. 14. But as history suggests, a team will need considerable evidence that Williamson cant perform like No. 1 pick before they draft someone else. | Zion Williamson's knee injury should have no impact on his draft stock, sources say. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/draft/2019/02/21/zion-williamson-duke-injury-draft-stock/2941405002/ | 0.47143 |
Will injury impact Zion Williamson's NBA draft stock? | CLOSE SportsPulse: Dan Wolken explains why no one should be panicking over Zion's injury vs. UNC and why his time at Duke has only benefited his NBA career. USA TODAY Duke star Zion Williamsons knee injury called a minor sprain by the team should have no impact on his draft stock, multiple NBA team executives told USA TODAY Sports. They requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about Williamson, who sustained the injury in Wednesday's high-profile game against North Carolina. Even in a worst-case scenario in which Williamson needs knee surgery, teams will still want to draft Williamson with a high pick. Right now, Williamson is the projected No. 1 overall pick in the June draft, and given his extraordinary combination of skill, size, strength, quickness, agility and playmaking, its difficult to see a team passing on him with his latest injury. Potentially millions of dollars. The first in salary for the first pick and the fifth pick in the 2019 draft over four NBA seasons is $12.6 million. Teams drafting in that position are looking long term and are willing to select a guy with so much difference-making ability even if the player will miss some, or all, of the next season. Duke's Zion Williamson reacts after going down against North Carolina on Wednesday. (Photo11: Rob Kinnan, USA TODAY Sports) Its not unheard for teams to select injured players in the draft. In 2014, Joel Embiid had just had surgery on his right foot when the Philadelphia 76ers selected him with the No. 3 overall pick. Embiid missed the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons with another surgery and rehabilitation. It was worth it for the 76ers who now have one of the best centers in the league. Embiid is dominant big man, and the Sixers signed him to a five-year, $147 million extension through 2022-23. This season, Vanderbilt guard Darius Garland underwent surgery to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee, and he remains a top-7 pick in respected mock drafts. It is a conversation taking place in front offices in wake of Williamsons injury. OPINION: Don't blame the NCAA for Williamson injury FTW: Williamson shouldn't play another minute for Duke If the injury was a serious as a torn ACL and MCL or a compound fracture, it could have an impact. But even then, players return from those kinds of injuries and perform at elite levels. Foot and back injuries concern front-office executives the most because of the resulting lingering issues that sometimes occur. Oregons Bol Bol has dropped in some 2019 mock drafts because of a foot injury, which concerns general managers. Embiid returned just fine from a similar injury. Both other big men, such as Yao Ming, have long-term foot problems. Bol is considered a late lottery to mid-first-round pick. But he was as high as No. 6 in some mock drafts before the injury. Michael Porter Jr. was considered one of the top prospects in the 2018 draft until a back injury derailed his freshman season at Missouri. Instead of a team drafting him in the top three, Porter fell to Denver at No. 14. But as history suggests, a team will need considerable evidence that Williamson cant perform like No. 1 pick before they draft someone else. | Zion Williamson's knee injury should have no impact on his draft stock, sources say. It's not unheard of for teams to select injured players in the draft. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/draft/2019/02/21/zion-williamson-duke-injury-draft-stock/2941405002/ | 0.529209 |
Will injury impact Zion Williamson's NBA draft stock? | CLOSE SportsPulse: Dan Wolken explains why no one should be panicking over Zion's injury vs. UNC and why his time at Duke has only benefited his NBA career. USA TODAY Duke star Zion Williamsons knee injury called a minor sprain by the team should have no impact on his draft stock, multiple NBA team executives told USA TODAY Sports. They requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about Williamson, who sustained the injury in Wednesday's high-profile game against North Carolina. Even in a worst-case scenario in which Williamson needs knee surgery, teams will still want to draft Williamson with a high pick. Right now, Williamson is the projected No. 1 overall pick in the June draft, and given his extraordinary combination of skill, size, strength, quickness, agility and playmaking, its difficult to see a team passing on him with his latest injury. Potentially millions of dollars. The first in salary for the first pick and the fifth pick in the 2019 draft over four NBA seasons is $12.6 million. Teams drafting in that position are looking long term and are willing to select a guy with so much difference-making ability even if the player will miss some, or all, of the next season. Duke's Zion Williamson reacts after going down against North Carolina on Wednesday. (Photo11: Rob Kinnan, USA TODAY Sports) Its not unheard for teams to select injured players in the draft. In 2014, Joel Embiid had just had surgery on his right foot when the Philadelphia 76ers selected him with the No. 3 overall pick. Embiid missed the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons with another surgery and rehabilitation. It was worth it for the 76ers who now have one of the best centers in the league. Embiid is dominant big man, and the Sixers signed him to a five-year, $147 million extension through 2022-23. This season, Vanderbilt guard Darius Garland underwent surgery to repair a meniscus injury in his left knee, and he remains a top-7 pick in respected mock drafts. It is a conversation taking place in front offices in wake of Williamsons injury. OPINION: Don't blame the NCAA for Williamson injury FTW: Williamson shouldn't play another minute for Duke If the injury was a serious as a torn ACL and MCL or a compound fracture, it could have an impact. But even then, players return from those kinds of injuries and perform at elite levels. Foot and back injuries concern front-office executives the most because of the resulting lingering issues that sometimes occur. Oregons Bol Bol has dropped in some 2019 mock drafts because of a foot injury, which concerns general managers. Embiid returned just fine from a similar injury. Both other big men, such as Yao Ming, have long-term foot problems. Bol is considered a late lottery to mid-first-round pick. But he was as high as No. 6 in some mock drafts before the injury. Michael Porter Jr. was considered one of the top prospects in the 2018 draft until a back injury derailed his freshman season at Missouri. Instead of a team drafting him in the top three, Porter fell to Denver at No. 14. But as history suggests, a team will need considerable evidence that Williamson cant perform like No. 1 pick before they draft someone else. | Zion Williamson's knee injury should have no impact on his draft stock, sources say. It's not unheard of for teams to select injured players in the draft. But teams will need considerable evidence that Williamson can't perform like No. 1 pick before they draft someone else. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/draft/2019/02/21/zion-williamson-duke-injury-draft-stock/2941405002/ | 0.621521 |
Will Cobo Center in Detroit be named TCF by the end of the year? | TCF Financial will soon have its name on the convention center in Detroit as a result of its pending merger with Chemical Financial Corp. When the proposed TCF/Chemical deal gets final approvals the new name of the facility will be TCF Center. When TCF and Chemical were negotiating their merger of equals announced in February both sides were aware Chemical was negotiating a $33 million deal, to be paid $1.5 million annually over 22 years, to have its name on the Detroit convention center, a 59-year old landmark in Detroit that is home of the annual Detroit auto show. The Cobo Center in Detroit (courtesy Cobo Center) On Wednesday Chemical Financial and the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority announced that Chemical had won the naming rights to the center. In a release announcing the deal they said the facility will remain the Cobo Center until the end of 2019. By that time the proposed merger between TCF and Chemical should be complete. As part of the negotiations for the deal it was agreed that the headquarters would be in Detroit where Chemical is building a 20-story, $60 million office building in downtown Detroit, but the name of the company would be TCF Financial. Todays announcement continues to build on our banks investment in the city, its neighborhoods, the region and our state, said Gary Torgow, chairman of the board for Chemical Financial Corp.. Along with our recently announced merger with TCF Financial Corp. that will bring the headquarters of the combined company and the TCF brand to downtown Detroit, we look forward to contributing to make this Center a vibrant destination for our city and our region for many years to come." Opened in 1960 the building has 723,000 square foot of exhibit space and is the 17th largest convention center in the United States The building was originally named after Albert Cobo, the mayor of Detroit from 1950 to 1957. According to a story in the Detroit News city officials have been eager to remove Cobos name from the convention center. With Wednesday's announcement in Detroit, the TCF name will be prominent on two major landmark facilities in the two largest employment centers for the combined company, said TCF spokesman Mark Goldman. In 2005, Wayzata-based TCF Financial agreed to a 26-year, $35 million sponsorship agreement with the University to support Gopher Athletics and the construction of TCF Bank Stadium. They amended that deal in 2017 investing another $8 million in part to support the Universitys Athletes Village. The merger between TCF and Chemical could enhance the value of naming rights deal for TCF Bank Stadium since the combined footprint now includes more Big 10 Conference cities. TCF has national lending operations but its branch locations are concentrated in Minneapolis, Chicago, Milwaukee, the Detroit area and Denver. Chemicals branch locations are concentrated in Michigan and Northern Ohio. Our customers across major cities in the upper Midwest prominently see the TCF name on the field, which builds our brand awareness beyond Minneapolis. We believe our naming rights agreement is a highly successful use of our marketing spend, particularly based on the measurement of our brand strength across all of our markets, Goldman added. | TCF Financial will soon have its name on the convention center in Detroit as a result of its pending merger with Chemical Financial Corp. When the proposed TCF/Chemical deal gets final approvals the new name of the facility will be TCF Center. The building was originally named after Albert Cobo, the mayor of Detroit from 1950 to 1957. | ctrlsum | 2 | http://www.startribune.com/tcf-chemicalbank-win-naming-rights-to-detroit-convention-center/506172202/ | 0.144408 |
What killed the dinosaurs? An asteroid or volcanoes? Or both? | CLOSE Scientists are saying that its now increasingly likely that an asteroid or comet impact could have reignited massive volcanic eruptions in India 66 million years ago. Buzz60 Maybe it wasn't just the asteroid that killed off most of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago: New research reveals how volcanoes half a world away may have also played a role. It's well-known that an asteroid slammed into the Earth near present-day Mexico, unleashing huge tsunamis and ash that blotted out the sun. That led to a "nuclear winter" that wiped out over half the animal and plant species on the planet. But volcanoes located in what's now India may have also contributed to the extinctions, and the new studies pinpoint when those eruptions occurred and how long they lasted. This should give further clues as to what caused the extinction. To understand volcanoes role in mass extinction, we need to understand when the eruptions were occurring, how long they occurred for and how much volume was erupted during what time, study co-author Courtney Sprain, a geoscientist at the University of Liverpool, told Gizmodo. Maybe it wasn't just the asteroid that killed off most of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago: New research reveals how volcanoes half a world away may have also played a role (Photo11: Elenarts, Getty Images/iStockphoto) Sprain and other researchers traveled to India to study those long-past volcanic eruptions, looking at immense mounds of hardened lava known as the "Deccan Traps." Those lava flows, which began before the asteroid impact but erupted for several hundred thousand years afterward, probably spewed immense amounts of carbon dioxide and other noxious, climate-modifying gases into the atmosphere, according to the University of CaliforniaBerkeley. Thursday, in the peer-reviewed journal Science, two separate research teams published studies about what they found in the Deccan Traps. One study, led by Sprain, says it's increasingly likely that the asteroid impact caused the volcanic eruptions in India to intensify as most of the lava erupted about 600,000 years after impact. The other research, however, headed by geoscientist Blari Schoene of Princeton University, said the eruptions happened before the asteroid hit. This implies that that the climate changes caused by the eruptions "could have triggered mass extinction ahead of the collision," CNN reported. While they may differ on the details, what both studies found was that the volcanoes in India erupted for about 1 million years and that both events were likely a factor in the mass extinctions. Both reports pave the way for ongoing research into the subject. In addition, the studies also shed light on our current era of man-made global warming: Studying past climate change "is as relevant today as for these catastrophic events in Earth history," Schoene's study concluded. Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/02/21/dinosaur-extinction-caused-asteroid-volcanoes-both/2938728002/ | Scientists say it's now increasingly likely that an asteroid or comet impact could have reignited massive volcanic eruptions in India 66 million years ago. The eruptions occurred in what's now India and may have contributed to the mass extinctions of the dinosaurs. Both studies pave the way for ongoing research into the subject. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/02/21/dinosaur-extinction-caused-asteroid-volcanoes-both/2938728002/ | 0.106724 |
Will A New Goldman-Backed Credit Card Breathe Life Into Apple Pay? | Apple is partnering with Goldman to offer a new credit card. 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP With additional reporting by Antoine Gara Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card, which its releasing to employees in a test phase in the coming weeks. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apples mobile payment services Apple Wallet and Apple Pay, paving the way for new features, like helping consumers set spending goals and nudging them to pay down debt faster, according to the Wall Street Journal (Apple didnt respond to requests for comment). The iPhone maker is trying to diversify its business away from hardware sales and make its products stickier. Theyre trying to become further entrenched within the consumer ecosystem, says Dan Ives, a technology analyst at Wedbush Securities. Phone sales fell 15% to $52 billion in the last quarter of 2018, compared with the same period in 2017. For Apples payments initiatives, the holy grail would be to build businesses like Chinas Alipay and WeChat Pay, payments apps that have morphed into ecosystems of services, letting consumers book flights and summon rides. Apple is a long way away from that level of penetration, but aspiring to it and finding new ways to spend its $130 billion in cash is a worthwhile effort, says Tom Forte, a consumer technology analyst at D.A. Davidson. Bain Capital Ventures managing partner Matt Harris thinks the card could gain real traction because its bringing together two aggressive, well-funded companies with strong brands and loyal customers, although he thinks adoption will depend on the specifics of the offering. The card will give 2% cash back rewards, but it wont offer massive upfront incentives like the Chase Sapphire card did in 2016, according to the Wall Street Journal. For Apple, this is a toe in the water, Wedbushs Ives says. If successful, Apple could invest more in the cards back-office operations, infrastructure and distribution. In the near term, Ives thinks Apple will invest more heavily in areas like content acquisition, potentially buying a large studio like CBS or Viacom over the next year. But they have a lot of arrows in their quiver, and I think theyre trying to test which are going to be successful. For Goldman, a company that has historically focused its services on the wealthiest of customers, the new card is an opportunity to step further into main-street banking. Goldman will keep the loans for the Apple card on its balance sheet. And through its Marcus platform, which offers personal loans and high-interest savings accounts, it has brought in $27 billion in customer deposits, so it has a growing capacity for lending. Apple Pay has attracted fewer users than expected since its 2014 release. Most Americans still prefer to use a physical card to pay, Matt Harris says. Venture capital firm Loup estimates that 24% of U.S. iPhone users have used Apple Pay. Google Wallet has encountered similar difficulties since it launched in 2011. Osama Bedier, the founder of Google Wallet who now runs point-of-sale software company Poynt, recently told Forbes that it sometimes takes much longer than expected for consumers to adopt a given technology. If consumers arent ready yet, nothing will matter, he says. He also cites a chicken-and-egg problem: Ubiquity trumps novelty, he says. It needs to be everywhere for people to care. Ives is doubtful the new card will move the needle in Apple Pay adoption. We have serious doubts about the overall reaction they can get in a massively competitive space, he says. It's such a difficult market to penetrate, just given existing competition from the core banks and financial institutions. Bains Matt Harris agrees. It would be a fabulously successful effort if it garnered one million active users, which is less than 1% of credit card users in the U.S., he says. If 20% of the Apple credit card users tried Apple Pay, thats only about 200,000 new users, Harris says. Not exactly a sea change. | Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apple Wallet and Apple Pay. | pegasus | 0 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkauflin/2019/02/21/will-a-new-goldman-backed-credit-card-breathe-life-into-apple-pay/ | 0.240588 |
Will A New Goldman-Backed Credit Card Breathe Life Into Apple Pay? | Apple is partnering with Goldman to offer a new credit card. 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP With additional reporting by Antoine Gara Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card, which its releasing to employees in a test phase in the coming weeks. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apples mobile payment services Apple Wallet and Apple Pay, paving the way for new features, like helping consumers set spending goals and nudging them to pay down debt faster, according to the Wall Street Journal (Apple didnt respond to requests for comment). The iPhone maker is trying to diversify its business away from hardware sales and make its products stickier. Theyre trying to become further entrenched within the consumer ecosystem, says Dan Ives, a technology analyst at Wedbush Securities. Phone sales fell 15% to $52 billion in the last quarter of 2018, compared with the same period in 2017. For Apples payments initiatives, the holy grail would be to build businesses like Chinas Alipay and WeChat Pay, payments apps that have morphed into ecosystems of services, letting consumers book flights and summon rides. Apple is a long way away from that level of penetration, but aspiring to it and finding new ways to spend its $130 billion in cash is a worthwhile effort, says Tom Forte, a consumer technology analyst at D.A. Davidson. Bain Capital Ventures managing partner Matt Harris thinks the card could gain real traction because its bringing together two aggressive, well-funded companies with strong brands and loyal customers, although he thinks adoption will depend on the specifics of the offering. The card will give 2% cash back rewards, but it wont offer massive upfront incentives like the Chase Sapphire card did in 2016, according to the Wall Street Journal. For Apple, this is a toe in the water, Wedbushs Ives says. If successful, Apple could invest more in the cards back-office operations, infrastructure and distribution. In the near term, Ives thinks Apple will invest more heavily in areas like content acquisition, potentially buying a large studio like CBS or Viacom over the next year. But they have a lot of arrows in their quiver, and I think theyre trying to test which are going to be successful. For Goldman, a company that has historically focused its services on the wealthiest of customers, the new card is an opportunity to step further into main-street banking. Goldman will keep the loans for the Apple card on its balance sheet. And through its Marcus platform, which offers personal loans and high-interest savings accounts, it has brought in $27 billion in customer deposits, so it has a growing capacity for lending. Apple Pay has attracted fewer users than expected since its 2014 release. Most Americans still prefer to use a physical card to pay, Matt Harris says. Venture capital firm Loup estimates that 24% of U.S. iPhone users have used Apple Pay. Google Wallet has encountered similar difficulties since it launched in 2011. Osama Bedier, the founder of Google Wallet who now runs point-of-sale software company Poynt, recently told Forbes that it sometimes takes much longer than expected for consumers to adopt a given technology. If consumers arent ready yet, nothing will matter, he says. He also cites a chicken-and-egg problem: Ubiquity trumps novelty, he says. It needs to be everywhere for people to care. Ives is doubtful the new card will move the needle in Apple Pay adoption. We have serious doubts about the overall reaction they can get in a massively competitive space, he says. It's such a difficult market to penetrate, just given existing competition from the core banks and financial institutions. Bains Matt Harris agrees. It would be a fabulously successful effort if it garnered one million active users, which is less than 1% of credit card users in the U.S., he says. If 20% of the Apple credit card users tried Apple Pay, thats only about 200,000 new users, Harris says. Not exactly a sea change. | Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apples mobile payment services Apple Wallet and Apple Pay. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkauflin/2019/02/21/will-a-new-goldman-backed-credit-card-breathe-life-into-apple-pay/ | 0.254419 |
Will A New Goldman-Backed Credit Card Breathe Life Into Apple Pay? | Apple is partnering with Goldman to offer a new credit card. 2019 Bloomberg Finance LP With additional reporting by Antoine Gara Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card, which its releasing to employees in a test phase in the coming weeks. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apples mobile payment services Apple Wallet and Apple Pay, paving the way for new features, like helping consumers set spending goals and nudging them to pay down debt faster, according to the Wall Street Journal (Apple didnt respond to requests for comment). The iPhone maker is trying to diversify its business away from hardware sales and make its products stickier. Theyre trying to become further entrenched within the consumer ecosystem, says Dan Ives, a technology analyst at Wedbush Securities. Phone sales fell 15% to $52 billion in the last quarter of 2018, compared with the same period in 2017. For Apples payments initiatives, the holy grail would be to build businesses like Chinas Alipay and WeChat Pay, payments apps that have morphed into ecosystems of services, letting consumers book flights and summon rides. Apple is a long way away from that level of penetration, but aspiring to it and finding new ways to spend its $130 billion in cash is a worthwhile effort, says Tom Forte, a consumer technology analyst at D.A. Davidson. Bain Capital Ventures managing partner Matt Harris thinks the card could gain real traction because its bringing together two aggressive, well-funded companies with strong brands and loyal customers, although he thinks adoption will depend on the specifics of the offering. The card will give 2% cash back rewards, but it wont offer massive upfront incentives like the Chase Sapphire card did in 2016, according to the Wall Street Journal. For Apple, this is a toe in the water, Wedbushs Ives says. If successful, Apple could invest more in the cards back-office operations, infrastructure and distribution. In the near term, Ives thinks Apple will invest more heavily in areas like content acquisition, potentially buying a large studio like CBS or Viacom over the next year. But they have a lot of arrows in their quiver, and I think theyre trying to test which are going to be successful. For Goldman, a company that has historically focused its services on the wealthiest of customers, the new card is an opportunity to step further into main-street banking. Goldman will keep the loans for the Apple card on its balance sheet. And through its Marcus platform, which offers personal loans and high-interest savings accounts, it has brought in $27 billion in customer deposits, so it has a growing capacity for lending. Apple Pay has attracted fewer users than expected since its 2014 release. Most Americans still prefer to use a physical card to pay, Matt Harris says. Venture capital firm Loup estimates that 24% of U.S. iPhone users have used Apple Pay. Google Wallet has encountered similar difficulties since it launched in 2011. Osama Bedier, the founder of Google Wallet who now runs point-of-sale software company Poynt, recently told Forbes that it sometimes takes much longer than expected for consumers to adopt a given technology. If consumers arent ready yet, nothing will matter, he says. He also cites a chicken-and-egg problem: Ubiquity trumps novelty, he says. It needs to be everywhere for people to care. Ives is doubtful the new card will move the needle in Apple Pay adoption. We have serious doubts about the overall reaction they can get in a massively competitive space, he says. It's such a difficult market to penetrate, just given existing competition from the core banks and financial institutions. Bains Matt Harris agrees. It would be a fabulously successful effort if it garnered one million active users, which is less than 1% of credit card users in the U.S., he says. If 20% of the Apple credit card users tried Apple Pay, thats only about 200,000 new users, Harris says. Not exactly a sea change. | Apple is partnering with Goldman Sachs to offer a new credit card. The card will integrate with the iPhone, Apple Watch and Apple Wallet and Apple Pay. The card will give 2% cash back rewards, but it wont offer massive upfront incentives. | pegasus | 2 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkauflin/2019/02/21/will-a-new-goldman-backed-credit-card-breathe-life-into-apple-pay/ | 0.310852 |
Does Blockchain Matter Yet In Intellectual Property For Business? | There is hope that blockchain might provide some alternative to the often-confusing and expensive traditional types of intellectual property protection. Blockchains potential for your business will differ, depending upon what type of intellectual property you are interested in protecting. The three main pillars of intellectual property are patents, copyrights, and trademarks. The potential of blockchain, at the present time, varies for each of these. For patent law, blockchain has probably been most noteworthy because of the influx of applications filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to protect various uses of blockchain technology. But blockchains strength as an unchangeable, distributed ledger is ideally suited to compiling information and lists. While its tamper-proof code can provide solid evidence of facts about what invention may have been created, and when, the only way to get enforceable patent rights is by filing an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, surviving the application (or prosecution) process, and having a federal patent issued in your name. That is the only way to get a legal monopoly. You can invent that Next Great Thing, but if you dont patent your rights, it will be free for anyone to copy once it is out in public and you have exceeded the timetable to get a patent. Blockchain is a great way to track all of the information regarding inventions, inventor names, ownership rights and other formalities. There are also evolving markets for patent pools, investor collaboration, and patent licensing. But nothing about blockchain technology at the moment will provide an alternative to patent protection for inventions. No patent, no monopoly. Copyright protection is a bit different. First of all, because you can claim copyright ownership and gain copyright protectability even without federal registration, the system is more flexible than the patent system. Blockchain provides a great system for recording rights that are created in original works of authorship, which can be anything from a photograph to a book, to a website, to a doctoral thesis. It is very conceivable that an updated blockchain-secured distributed ledger could supplant the copyright system presently in use by the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. But for now, documenting your creation and first publication on blockchain will be more like improving your evidence, rather than securing any legal rights. To actually sue in court based upon copyright, you need to get a copyright registration (which you can do after the fact). The United States Copyright Office is sorely in need of an updated platform which would make it easy for the public to see exactly what is being protected by copyright law. Currently, you can find owner names, registration dates and titles in the Copyright Office online records. But samples of what is actually registered are not generally available without going to the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. So, as with all legal documents, proof of your underlying facts and claims can be critical. Using blockchain to document everything related to your copyrighted property may strongly improve your position, and make it easier to prove the rights which you own. Of the three fundamental types of IP protection, trademarks hold the most immediate blockchain promise. Blockchain is perfect for chronicling proof of use, and nailing down dates and evidence. It is widely known that a federal trademark registration is not necessary to prove rights or to claim ownership of a trademark. With or without blockchain, solid proof of use can be invaluable. By using blockchain, many of the questions which can arise about exactly when, where, and how the trademark was used, can be instantly answered. Blockchain technology also and this applies to copyright as well can be used to track the path of any single article through the stream of commerce. This can let companies know what path their products have traveled to get to a seller, and whether their products are being diverted to unauthorized markets (the gray market), and therefore know whether products showing up for sale by third parties were in fact authentic, or whether the goods might be unlawful copies. Without blockchain, this type of investigation can be much more painstaking, and sometimes virtually impossible. Using blockchain technology to track the root of every single product that a company produces will provide the promise of knowing, with certainty, if a product is truly a copy, or whether it is a genuine product which has been sold and resold in violation of a distribution agreement. For small to medium enterprises, the potential to easily track goods is very attractive. Otherwise, the costs and infrastructure requirements for this type of tracking may be highly prohibitive. There is a nascent industry of publicly documenting trademark rights in all of those names and marks which are not registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. I co-founded a company several years ago (since acquired) which did exactly this. The marketplace is just starting to come to grips with this concept, where every company and individual may opt in to the concept of making a public record of all of their trademark, business name, and product name rights. The highly secured, decentralized ledger which characterizes blockchain technology provides a perfect environment for that type of application. The more information which sees the light of day, the less chance for unintended or undesired conflict over trademark and naming rights, a benefit important to every business, but particularly to entrepreneurs. | Blockchains potential for your business will differ, depending upon what type of intellectual property you are interested in protecting. | bart | 0 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jesscollen/2019/02/21/does-blockchain-matter-yet-in-intellectual-property-for-business/ | 0.272689 |
Does Blockchain Matter Yet In Intellectual Property For Business? | There is hope that blockchain might provide some alternative to the often-confusing and expensive traditional types of intellectual property protection. Blockchains potential for your business will differ, depending upon what type of intellectual property you are interested in protecting. The three main pillars of intellectual property are patents, copyrights, and trademarks. The potential of blockchain, at the present time, varies for each of these. For patent law, blockchain has probably been most noteworthy because of the influx of applications filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to protect various uses of blockchain technology. But blockchains strength as an unchangeable, distributed ledger is ideally suited to compiling information and lists. While its tamper-proof code can provide solid evidence of facts about what invention may have been created, and when, the only way to get enforceable patent rights is by filing an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, surviving the application (or prosecution) process, and having a federal patent issued in your name. That is the only way to get a legal monopoly. You can invent that Next Great Thing, but if you dont patent your rights, it will be free for anyone to copy once it is out in public and you have exceeded the timetable to get a patent. Blockchain is a great way to track all of the information regarding inventions, inventor names, ownership rights and other formalities. There are also evolving markets for patent pools, investor collaboration, and patent licensing. But nothing about blockchain technology at the moment will provide an alternative to patent protection for inventions. No patent, no monopoly. Copyright protection is a bit different. First of all, because you can claim copyright ownership and gain copyright protectability even without federal registration, the system is more flexible than the patent system. Blockchain provides a great system for recording rights that are created in original works of authorship, which can be anything from a photograph to a book, to a website, to a doctoral thesis. It is very conceivable that an updated blockchain-secured distributed ledger could supplant the copyright system presently in use by the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. But for now, documenting your creation and first publication on blockchain will be more like improving your evidence, rather than securing any legal rights. To actually sue in court based upon copyright, you need to get a copyright registration (which you can do after the fact). The United States Copyright Office is sorely in need of an updated platform which would make it easy for the public to see exactly what is being protected by copyright law. Currently, you can find owner names, registration dates and titles in the Copyright Office online records. But samples of what is actually registered are not generally available without going to the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. So, as with all legal documents, proof of your underlying facts and claims can be critical. Using blockchain to document everything related to your copyrighted property may strongly improve your position, and make it easier to prove the rights which you own. Of the three fundamental types of IP protection, trademarks hold the most immediate blockchain promise. Blockchain is perfect for chronicling proof of use, and nailing down dates and evidence. It is widely known that a federal trademark registration is not necessary to prove rights or to claim ownership of a trademark. With or without blockchain, solid proof of use can be invaluable. By using blockchain, many of the questions which can arise about exactly when, where, and how the trademark was used, can be instantly answered. Blockchain technology also and this applies to copyright as well can be used to track the path of any single article through the stream of commerce. This can let companies know what path their products have traveled to get to a seller, and whether their products are being diverted to unauthorized markets (the gray market), and therefore know whether products showing up for sale by third parties were in fact authentic, or whether the goods might be unlawful copies. Without blockchain, this type of investigation can be much more painstaking, and sometimes virtually impossible. Using blockchain technology to track the root of every single product that a company produces will provide the promise of knowing, with certainty, if a product is truly a copy, or whether it is a genuine product which has been sold and resold in violation of a distribution agreement. For small to medium enterprises, the potential to easily track goods is very attractive. Otherwise, the costs and infrastructure requirements for this type of tracking may be highly prohibitive. There is a nascent industry of publicly documenting trademark rights in all of those names and marks which are not registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. I co-founded a company several years ago (since acquired) which did exactly this. The marketplace is just starting to come to grips with this concept, where every company and individual may opt in to the concept of making a public record of all of their trademark, business name, and product name rights. The highly secured, decentralized ledger which characterizes blockchain technology provides a perfect environment for that type of application. The more information which sees the light of day, the less chance for unintended or undesired conflict over trademark and naming rights, a benefit important to every business, but particularly to entrepreneurs. | There is hope that blockchain might provide some alternative to the often-confusing and expensive traditional types of intellectual property protection. Three main pillars of intellectual property are patents, copyrights, and trademarks. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jesscollen/2019/02/21/does-blockchain-matter-yet-in-intellectual-property-for-business/ | 0.117402 |
Does Blockchain Matter Yet In Intellectual Property For Business? | There is hope that blockchain might provide some alternative to the often-confusing and expensive traditional types of intellectual property protection. Blockchains potential for your business will differ, depending upon what type of intellectual property you are interested in protecting. The three main pillars of intellectual property are patents, copyrights, and trademarks. The potential of blockchain, at the present time, varies for each of these. For patent law, blockchain has probably been most noteworthy because of the influx of applications filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to protect various uses of blockchain technology. But blockchains strength as an unchangeable, distributed ledger is ideally suited to compiling information and lists. While its tamper-proof code can provide solid evidence of facts about what invention may have been created, and when, the only way to get enforceable patent rights is by filing an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, surviving the application (or prosecution) process, and having a federal patent issued in your name. That is the only way to get a legal monopoly. You can invent that Next Great Thing, but if you dont patent your rights, it will be free for anyone to copy once it is out in public and you have exceeded the timetable to get a patent. Blockchain is a great way to track all of the information regarding inventions, inventor names, ownership rights and other formalities. There are also evolving markets for patent pools, investor collaboration, and patent licensing. But nothing about blockchain technology at the moment will provide an alternative to patent protection for inventions. No patent, no monopoly. Copyright protection is a bit different. First of all, because you can claim copyright ownership and gain copyright protectability even without federal registration, the system is more flexible than the patent system. Blockchain provides a great system for recording rights that are created in original works of authorship, which can be anything from a photograph to a book, to a website, to a doctoral thesis. It is very conceivable that an updated blockchain-secured distributed ledger could supplant the copyright system presently in use by the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. But for now, documenting your creation and first publication on blockchain will be more like improving your evidence, rather than securing any legal rights. To actually sue in court based upon copyright, you need to get a copyright registration (which you can do after the fact). The United States Copyright Office is sorely in need of an updated platform which would make it easy for the public to see exactly what is being protected by copyright law. Currently, you can find owner names, registration dates and titles in the Copyright Office online records. But samples of what is actually registered are not generally available without going to the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. So, as with all legal documents, proof of your underlying facts and claims can be critical. Using blockchain to document everything related to your copyrighted property may strongly improve your position, and make it easier to prove the rights which you own. Of the three fundamental types of IP protection, trademarks hold the most immediate blockchain promise. Blockchain is perfect for chronicling proof of use, and nailing down dates and evidence. It is widely known that a federal trademark registration is not necessary to prove rights or to claim ownership of a trademark. With or without blockchain, solid proof of use can be invaluable. By using blockchain, many of the questions which can arise about exactly when, where, and how the trademark was used, can be instantly answered. Blockchain technology also and this applies to copyright as well can be used to track the path of any single article through the stream of commerce. This can let companies know what path their products have traveled to get to a seller, and whether their products are being diverted to unauthorized markets (the gray market), and therefore know whether products showing up for sale by third parties were in fact authentic, or whether the goods might be unlawful copies. Without blockchain, this type of investigation can be much more painstaking, and sometimes virtually impossible. Using blockchain technology to track the root of every single product that a company produces will provide the promise of knowing, with certainty, if a product is truly a copy, or whether it is a genuine product which has been sold and resold in violation of a distribution agreement. For small to medium enterprises, the potential to easily track goods is very attractive. Otherwise, the costs and infrastructure requirements for this type of tracking may be highly prohibitive. There is a nascent industry of publicly documenting trademark rights in all of those names and marks which are not registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. I co-founded a company several years ago (since acquired) which did exactly this. The marketplace is just starting to come to grips with this concept, where every company and individual may opt in to the concept of making a public record of all of their trademark, business name, and product name rights. The highly secured, decentralized ledger which characterizes blockchain technology provides a perfect environment for that type of application. The more information which sees the light of day, the less chance for unintended or undesired conflict over trademark and naming rights, a benefit important to every business, but particularly to entrepreneurs. | Blockchains potential for your business will differ, depending upon what type of intellectual property you are interested in protecting. For patent law, blockchain has probably been most noteworthy because of the influx of applications filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. But nothing about blockchain technology at the moment will provide an alternative to patent protection for inventions. | bart | 2 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/jesscollen/2019/02/21/does-blockchain-matter-yet-in-intellectual-property-for-business/ | 0.363849 |
Should Dukes Zion Williamson sit out the rest of the season? | By Daniel Tran Dukes Zion Williamson suffered a knee sprain when his shoe exploded against North Carolina in a nationally televised game. Williamson was picked by many to be the No. 1 NBA Draft pick in 2019 and could potentially lose millions of dollars if teams get scared away. Some are using this incident to make the argument that he should sit out the rest of the season, to protect himself and his NBA dream. Others dont want him to abandon his teammates and quit. This freak injury couldve cost Williamson millions of dollars. College basketball players like Williamson dont need to the risk of putting their body on the line for no money. In fact, he is so highly sought after by the NBA, he might be losing money with this injury. While he is not unanimously expected to go No. 1 in the NBA Draft, many picked him for that position. The injury might scare away teams at the top and cause him to fall. Until college players get paid, there is no reason for Williamson to sacrifice his body for nothing. He needs to assure that he gets healthy by sitting out the rest of the season and prepare for the draft. Injury shows why itd make sense now When Duke came back from a 23-point deficit, Williamson took pride in not quitting. There is no way he should walk away now when Duke has national championship aspirations. He said as much when people told him to sit out earlier in the year to Sports Hub Triad: I just cant stop playing. Id be letting my teammates down. Id be letting Coach K down. Id be letting a lot of people down. If I wanted to sit out, I wouldnt have went to college. I came to Duke to play. Williamson wont quit on his brothers. Williamson explained why he wont sit out a month before his injury The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, wed love to hear what you have to say. | Dukes Zion Williamson suffered a knee sprain when his shoe exploded against North Carolina. Some are using this incident to make the argument that he should sit out the rest of the season. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.oregonlive.com/tylt/2019/02/should-dukes-zion-williamson-sit-out-the-rest-of-the-season.html | 0.224959 |
Should Dukes Zion Williamson sit out the rest of the season? | By Daniel Tran Dukes Zion Williamson suffered a knee sprain when his shoe exploded against North Carolina in a nationally televised game. Williamson was picked by many to be the No. 1 NBA Draft pick in 2019 and could potentially lose millions of dollars if teams get scared away. Some are using this incident to make the argument that he should sit out the rest of the season, to protect himself and his NBA dream. Others dont want him to abandon his teammates and quit. This freak injury couldve cost Williamson millions of dollars. College basketball players like Williamson dont need to the risk of putting their body on the line for no money. In fact, he is so highly sought after by the NBA, he might be losing money with this injury. While he is not unanimously expected to go No. 1 in the NBA Draft, many picked him for that position. The injury might scare away teams at the top and cause him to fall. Until college players get paid, there is no reason for Williamson to sacrifice his body for nothing. He needs to assure that he gets healthy by sitting out the rest of the season and prepare for the draft. Injury shows why itd make sense now When Duke came back from a 23-point deficit, Williamson took pride in not quitting. There is no way he should walk away now when Duke has national championship aspirations. He said as much when people told him to sit out earlier in the year to Sports Hub Triad: I just cant stop playing. Id be letting my teammates down. Id be letting Coach K down. Id be letting a lot of people down. If I wanted to sit out, I wouldnt have went to college. I came to Duke to play. Williamson wont quit on his brothers. Williamson explained why he wont sit out a month before his injury The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, wed love to hear what you have to say. | Dukes Zion Williamson suffered a knee sprain when his shoe exploded against North Carolina. Some are using this incident to make the argument that he should sit out the rest of the season, to protect himself and his NBA dream. Until college players get paid, there is no reason for Williamson to sacrifice his body for nothing. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.oregonlive.com/tylt/2019/02/should-dukes-zion-williamson-sit-out-the-rest-of-the-season.html | 0.38074 |
How did Scottish sides fare in Europe this season? | Thirty eight games, 88,842 miles, 56 goals and a fistful of European coefficient points. After seven months and 12 days, Scottish football's continental competition is finally at an end for another year. Celtic kicked it all off in Armenia in early July, with Brendan Rodgers' side bringing down the curtain on their Europa League campaign in Spain on Thursday. It's been long. It's been emotional. Here, BBC Scotland analyses the impact of Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers on the European stage this term. Hibs fans saw their team draw with Asteras Tripolis in Greece to progress Aberdeen: Derek McInnes' side were knocked out of the Europa League in the second qualifying round - the stage at which they entered after finishing second in the Scottish Premiership - in August after taking English Premier League side Burnley to extra time. Celtic: Participants in the Champions League the previous two seasons, the Scottish champions were knocked out by AEK Athens in the third qualifying round. A 4-1 aggregate win over FK Suduva earned a place in the Europa League group stages, then the Parkhead club finished second behind RB Salzburg, beating RB Leipzig on the way to their last-32 date with Valencia. Hibernian: The Easter Road club went on their longest run in Europe since 1973, kicking it all off with a 12-5 aggregate win over Faroe Islands side Runavik. Greeks Asteras Tripolis were also dealt with, before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Molde denied them a place in the Europa League play-offs with a 3-0 aggregate win. Rangers: The Ibrox side only lost two of their 14 Europa League matches after entering in the first qualifying round in July, having made it through four rounds to reach the group stages. Steven Gerrard's side were eventually knocked out after the final round of matches in their section in December. Coefficient climbers Scotland had slipped from 10th place in Uefa's rankings in 2005, to 26th position at the start of this season. No other nation had dropped so drastically, and it will take more than one good season to redress that balance. Next year, all three Europa League entrants will likely have to enter in the first qualifying round, with the champions again having to negotiate four qualifying rounds to reach the Champions League group stage. However, the performances this campaign have already moved Scotland up to 20th, above the likes of Sweden, Poland and Belarus. Just one more draw for one of our teams would have seen Scotland overtake Serbia and clinch 19th place. Coefficient rankings are calculated by adding up the points from the most recent five campaigns. If Scotland can somehow work its way up to 15th position again, a Premiership club will receive an extra Champions League qualifying place. Denmark currently sit in that position, although Dinamo Zagreb's victory on Thursday maintained their Europa League interest, meaning Croatia could overtake the Danes. This campaign, Scottish clubs have outperformed their recent yearly scores, recording their highest coefficient tally for 11 years. | Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers all made it through to the last 32 of the Europa League. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47325838 | 0.278833 |
How did Scottish sides fare in Europe this season? | Thirty eight games, 88,842 miles, 56 goals and a fistful of European coefficient points. After seven months and 12 days, Scottish football's continental competition is finally at an end for another year. Celtic kicked it all off in Armenia in early July, with Brendan Rodgers' side bringing down the curtain on their Europa League campaign in Spain on Thursday. It's been long. It's been emotional. Here, BBC Scotland analyses the impact of Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers on the European stage this term. Hibs fans saw their team draw with Asteras Tripolis in Greece to progress Aberdeen: Derek McInnes' side were knocked out of the Europa League in the second qualifying round - the stage at which they entered after finishing second in the Scottish Premiership - in August after taking English Premier League side Burnley to extra time. Celtic: Participants in the Champions League the previous two seasons, the Scottish champions were knocked out by AEK Athens in the third qualifying round. A 4-1 aggregate win over FK Suduva earned a place in the Europa League group stages, then the Parkhead club finished second behind RB Salzburg, beating RB Leipzig on the way to their last-32 date with Valencia. Hibernian: The Easter Road club went on their longest run in Europe since 1973, kicking it all off with a 12-5 aggregate win over Faroe Islands side Runavik. Greeks Asteras Tripolis were also dealt with, before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Molde denied them a place in the Europa League play-offs with a 3-0 aggregate win. Rangers: The Ibrox side only lost two of their 14 Europa League matches after entering in the first qualifying round in July, having made it through four rounds to reach the group stages. Steven Gerrard's side were eventually knocked out after the final round of matches in their section in December. Coefficient climbers Scotland had slipped from 10th place in Uefa's rankings in 2005, to 26th position at the start of this season. No other nation had dropped so drastically, and it will take more than one good season to redress that balance. Next year, all three Europa League entrants will likely have to enter in the first qualifying round, with the champions again having to negotiate four qualifying rounds to reach the Champions League group stage. However, the performances this campaign have already moved Scotland up to 20th, above the likes of Sweden, Poland and Belarus. Just one more draw for one of our teams would have seen Scotland overtake Serbia and clinch 19th place. Coefficient rankings are calculated by adding up the points from the most recent five campaigns. If Scotland can somehow work its way up to 15th position again, a Premiership club will receive an extra Champions League qualifying place. Denmark currently sit in that position, although Dinamo Zagreb's victory on Thursday maintained their Europa League interest, meaning Croatia could overtake the Danes. This campaign, Scottish clubs have outperformed their recent yearly scores, recording their highest coefficient tally for 11 years. | Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers all made it through to the last 32 of the Europa League this season. Here, BBC Scotland analyses the impact of each side on the European stage this term. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47325838 | 0.415127 |
How did Scottish sides fare in Europe this season? | Thirty eight games, 88,842 miles, 56 goals and a fistful of European coefficient points. After seven months and 12 days, Scottish football's continental competition is finally at an end for another year. Celtic kicked it all off in Armenia in early July, with Brendan Rodgers' side bringing down the curtain on their Europa League campaign in Spain on Thursday. It's been long. It's been emotional. Here, BBC Scotland analyses the impact of Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers on the European stage this term. Hibs fans saw their team draw with Asteras Tripolis in Greece to progress Aberdeen: Derek McInnes' side were knocked out of the Europa League in the second qualifying round - the stage at which they entered after finishing second in the Scottish Premiership - in August after taking English Premier League side Burnley to extra time. Celtic: Participants in the Champions League the previous two seasons, the Scottish champions were knocked out by AEK Athens in the third qualifying round. A 4-1 aggregate win over FK Suduva earned a place in the Europa League group stages, then the Parkhead club finished second behind RB Salzburg, beating RB Leipzig on the way to their last-32 date with Valencia. Hibernian: The Easter Road club went on their longest run in Europe since 1973, kicking it all off with a 12-5 aggregate win over Faroe Islands side Runavik. Greeks Asteras Tripolis were also dealt with, before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Molde denied them a place in the Europa League play-offs with a 3-0 aggregate win. Rangers: The Ibrox side only lost two of their 14 Europa League matches after entering in the first qualifying round in July, having made it through four rounds to reach the group stages. Steven Gerrard's side were eventually knocked out after the final round of matches in their section in December. Coefficient climbers Scotland had slipped from 10th place in Uefa's rankings in 2005, to 26th position at the start of this season. No other nation had dropped so drastically, and it will take more than one good season to redress that balance. Next year, all three Europa League entrants will likely have to enter in the first qualifying round, with the champions again having to negotiate four qualifying rounds to reach the Champions League group stage. However, the performances this campaign have already moved Scotland up to 20th, above the likes of Sweden, Poland and Belarus. Just one more draw for one of our teams would have seen Scotland overtake Serbia and clinch 19th place. Coefficient rankings are calculated by adding up the points from the most recent five campaigns. If Scotland can somehow work its way up to 15th position again, a Premiership club will receive an extra Champions League qualifying place. Denmark currently sit in that position, although Dinamo Zagreb's victory on Thursday maintained their Europa League interest, meaning Croatia could overtake the Danes. This campaign, Scottish clubs have outperformed their recent yearly scores, recording their highest coefficient tally for 11 years. | Aberdeen, Celtic, Hibernian and Rangers all made it through to the last 32 of the Europa League this season. Here, BBC Scotland analyses the impact of each of their teams on the European stage this term. Scotland finished 20th in Uefa's coefficient rankings for the first time since 2005. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47325838 | 0.449006 |
How many detectives assigned to the Jussie Smollett case? | Something important has been lost in the embarrassing saga of Jussie Smollett, the tuna fish sandwich-loving actor and anti-Trump activist, and those muscular Nigerian brothers. And I suppose its easy to lose whats important with all the panic and intersectional hatred and liberal identity politics gone bad in this Smollett story. Whats been lost is this: Im told that two dozen detectives were assigned to the Smollett case. No. Jussie Smollett There were some 18 people killed in Chicago after Smollett began telling his story in late January, that story in which he cast himself as the hero, about having to fight off pro-Trump racists. Now it turns out that the pro-Trump racists, who he says put a noose around his neck, may actually be his friends, two muscular Nigerian brothers who may or may not have been paid in this deal. Either way, his story is that he fought them off. Even though he had a cellphone in one hand, a tuna sandwich in the other. Smollett must be a certified badass. His sandwich survived. Even in Chicago, a city known for its unending violence and political corruption, assigning two dozen detectives seems a bit overdone. I could go with a lower number say 20 detectives given to me by someone who knows. But thats still high given all the homicides that are never solved. Chicago has an abysmal homicide clearance rate of about 17 percent. Chicagos detective ranks have been decimated by attrition and idiotic shortsighted political management. There arent enough detectives. Thats an issue in the mayoral campaign. Thousands of people have been murdered in Chicago over the past few years, and thousands and thousands more have been shot and survived. Theyre alive because of the wonders of trauma center technology and the brilliance of ER doctors, and the hard work of Chicago Fire Department paramedics. Even so, the city is numb to physical violence on the street. And numb to the emotional violence exerted by the political class. But two dozen detectives for Smollett just doesnt seem right. Make no mistake. Im not blaming the detectives or the Chicago Police Department. They work for a politician. His name is Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who famously announced a few years ago that a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. And when Smollett told his amazing story, about being a black gay man attacked by racist Trump supporters on one of the coldest nights of the year, the media were all over it. National politicians were all over it. They bought it without question. This was an attempted modern-day lynching, tweeted Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris of California. No one should ever have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or color of their skin. We must confront this hate. Sen. Cory Booker, the New Jersey Democrat, issued a similar tweet, although it saddened me that his mythical friend, the dangerous drug dealer T-Bone, had nothing to say. But other Democrats fell in line. And CNN and many who earn their livings in the Washington-New York liberal media echo chamber rushed to judgment. So did a few in Chicago, but Chicago reporters had more healthy skepticism than their national counterparts. It was a perfect anti-Trump story. It fit the prevailing narrative of many in the media (who are themselves liberal Democrats) that Trump supporters are racist and just itching to find some minorities to beat up. Just a few weeks ago, the same media and Twitter mob descended upon those Covington High School boys and blamed them for race hatred in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. It turned out the boys were innocent. But the social justice warriors of the left shrugged and moved on, looking for the next story with which to portray America as a hateful nation because it fits their politics and some found it in Smollett. For a list of media examples, you might want to go to Mediaite and the article Did the Media Jump the Gun on the Jussie Smollett Story? by Caleb Howe. Or you might consider CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin. She looked into the camera, and sighed, and her sigh was full of her politics. This is America in 2019, she said. We get it, Brooke. Were terrible. Donald Trump is the president, and everythings gone to hell. Theres nothing new there. Trump is a political-lightning-rod president, inspiring irrational hate in some and irrational adoration in others and most likely both groups are tribal and wrong. But America isnt a hateful nation. America is the least hateful nation, and the best hope of humankind on Earth. A few weeks ago, after Smollett began telling his tale in which hes the hero fighting oppression and hatred a 1-year-old child was shot in the head. It looked like a street gang may have been targeting his mother. Shes been shot before. The child, Dejon Irving, is on life support. I dont think there were two dozen detectives assigned to Dejon Irvings case. But hes not a star to be used by politicians in pursuit of power. Hes not a symbol. Politicians dont tweet his name. Hes just a little boy from Chicago, shot in the head. | LZ Granderson: Two dozen detectives were assigned to the Jussie Smollett case. | ctrlsum | 0 | http://www.startribune.com/how-many-detectives-assigned-to-the-jussie-smollett-case/506184862/ | 0.64565 |
How many detectives assigned to the Jussie Smollett case? | Something important has been lost in the embarrassing saga of Jussie Smollett, the tuna fish sandwich-loving actor and anti-Trump activist, and those muscular Nigerian brothers. And I suppose its easy to lose whats important with all the panic and intersectional hatred and liberal identity politics gone bad in this Smollett story. Whats been lost is this: Im told that two dozen detectives were assigned to the Smollett case. No. Jussie Smollett There were some 18 people killed in Chicago after Smollett began telling his story in late January, that story in which he cast himself as the hero, about having to fight off pro-Trump racists. Now it turns out that the pro-Trump racists, who he says put a noose around his neck, may actually be his friends, two muscular Nigerian brothers who may or may not have been paid in this deal. Either way, his story is that he fought them off. Even though he had a cellphone in one hand, a tuna sandwich in the other. Smollett must be a certified badass. His sandwich survived. Even in Chicago, a city known for its unending violence and political corruption, assigning two dozen detectives seems a bit overdone. I could go with a lower number say 20 detectives given to me by someone who knows. But thats still high given all the homicides that are never solved. Chicago has an abysmal homicide clearance rate of about 17 percent. Chicagos detective ranks have been decimated by attrition and idiotic shortsighted political management. There arent enough detectives. Thats an issue in the mayoral campaign. Thousands of people have been murdered in Chicago over the past few years, and thousands and thousands more have been shot and survived. Theyre alive because of the wonders of trauma center technology and the brilliance of ER doctors, and the hard work of Chicago Fire Department paramedics. Even so, the city is numb to physical violence on the street. And numb to the emotional violence exerted by the political class. But two dozen detectives for Smollett just doesnt seem right. Make no mistake. Im not blaming the detectives or the Chicago Police Department. They work for a politician. His name is Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who famously announced a few years ago that a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. And when Smollett told his amazing story, about being a black gay man attacked by racist Trump supporters on one of the coldest nights of the year, the media were all over it. National politicians were all over it. They bought it without question. This was an attempted modern-day lynching, tweeted Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris of California. No one should ever have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or color of their skin. We must confront this hate. Sen. Cory Booker, the New Jersey Democrat, issued a similar tweet, although it saddened me that his mythical friend, the dangerous drug dealer T-Bone, had nothing to say. But other Democrats fell in line. And CNN and many who earn their livings in the Washington-New York liberal media echo chamber rushed to judgment. So did a few in Chicago, but Chicago reporters had more healthy skepticism than their national counterparts. It was a perfect anti-Trump story. It fit the prevailing narrative of many in the media (who are themselves liberal Democrats) that Trump supporters are racist and just itching to find some minorities to beat up. Just a few weeks ago, the same media and Twitter mob descended upon those Covington High School boys and blamed them for race hatred in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. It turned out the boys were innocent. But the social justice warriors of the left shrugged and moved on, looking for the next story with which to portray America as a hateful nation because it fits their politics and some found it in Smollett. For a list of media examples, you might want to go to Mediaite and the article Did the Media Jump the Gun on the Jussie Smollett Story? by Caleb Howe. Or you might consider CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin. She looked into the camera, and sighed, and her sigh was full of her politics. This is America in 2019, she said. We get it, Brooke. Were terrible. Donald Trump is the president, and everythings gone to hell. Theres nothing new there. Trump is a political-lightning-rod president, inspiring irrational hate in some and irrational adoration in others and most likely both groups are tribal and wrong. But America isnt a hateful nation. America is the least hateful nation, and the best hope of humankind on Earth. A few weeks ago, after Smollett began telling his tale in which hes the hero fighting oppression and hatred a 1-year-old child was shot in the head. It looked like a street gang may have been targeting his mother. Shes been shot before. The child, Dejon Irving, is on life support. I dont think there were two dozen detectives assigned to Dejon Irvings case. But hes not a star to be used by politicians in pursuit of power. Hes not a symbol. Politicians dont tweet his name. Hes just a little boy from Chicago, shot in the head. | LZ Granderson: Two dozen detectives were assigned to the Jussie Smollett case. LZ: Even in Chicago, a city known for its unending violence and political corruption, assigning two dozen detectives seems a bit overdone. | ctrlsum | 1 | http://www.startribune.com/how-many-detectives-assigned-to-the-jussie-smollett-case/506184862/ | 0.690851 |
How many detectives assigned to the Jussie Smollett case? | Something important has been lost in the embarrassing saga of Jussie Smollett, the tuna fish sandwich-loving actor and anti-Trump activist, and those muscular Nigerian brothers. And I suppose its easy to lose whats important with all the panic and intersectional hatred and liberal identity politics gone bad in this Smollett story. Whats been lost is this: Im told that two dozen detectives were assigned to the Smollett case. No. Jussie Smollett There were some 18 people killed in Chicago after Smollett began telling his story in late January, that story in which he cast himself as the hero, about having to fight off pro-Trump racists. Now it turns out that the pro-Trump racists, who he says put a noose around his neck, may actually be his friends, two muscular Nigerian brothers who may or may not have been paid in this deal. Either way, his story is that he fought them off. Even though he had a cellphone in one hand, a tuna sandwich in the other. Smollett must be a certified badass. His sandwich survived. Even in Chicago, a city known for its unending violence and political corruption, assigning two dozen detectives seems a bit overdone. I could go with a lower number say 20 detectives given to me by someone who knows. But thats still high given all the homicides that are never solved. Chicago has an abysmal homicide clearance rate of about 17 percent. Chicagos detective ranks have been decimated by attrition and idiotic shortsighted political management. There arent enough detectives. Thats an issue in the mayoral campaign. Thousands of people have been murdered in Chicago over the past few years, and thousands and thousands more have been shot and survived. Theyre alive because of the wonders of trauma center technology and the brilliance of ER doctors, and the hard work of Chicago Fire Department paramedics. Even so, the city is numb to physical violence on the street. And numb to the emotional violence exerted by the political class. But two dozen detectives for Smollett just doesnt seem right. Make no mistake. Im not blaming the detectives or the Chicago Police Department. They work for a politician. His name is Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who famously announced a few years ago that a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. And when Smollett told his amazing story, about being a black gay man attacked by racist Trump supporters on one of the coldest nights of the year, the media were all over it. National politicians were all over it. They bought it without question. This was an attempted modern-day lynching, tweeted Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris of California. No one should ever have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or color of their skin. We must confront this hate. Sen. Cory Booker, the New Jersey Democrat, issued a similar tweet, although it saddened me that his mythical friend, the dangerous drug dealer T-Bone, had nothing to say. But other Democrats fell in line. And CNN and many who earn their livings in the Washington-New York liberal media echo chamber rushed to judgment. So did a few in Chicago, but Chicago reporters had more healthy skepticism than their national counterparts. It was a perfect anti-Trump story. It fit the prevailing narrative of many in the media (who are themselves liberal Democrats) that Trump supporters are racist and just itching to find some minorities to beat up. Just a few weeks ago, the same media and Twitter mob descended upon those Covington High School boys and blamed them for race hatred in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. It turned out the boys were innocent. But the social justice warriors of the left shrugged and moved on, looking for the next story with which to portray America as a hateful nation because it fits their politics and some found it in Smollett. For a list of media examples, you might want to go to Mediaite and the article Did the Media Jump the Gun on the Jussie Smollett Story? by Caleb Howe. Or you might consider CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin. She looked into the camera, and sighed, and her sigh was full of her politics. This is America in 2019, she said. We get it, Brooke. Were terrible. Donald Trump is the president, and everythings gone to hell. Theres nothing new there. Trump is a political-lightning-rod president, inspiring irrational hate in some and irrational adoration in others and most likely both groups are tribal and wrong. But America isnt a hateful nation. America is the least hateful nation, and the best hope of humankind on Earth. A few weeks ago, after Smollett began telling his tale in which hes the hero fighting oppression and hatred a 1-year-old child was shot in the head. It looked like a street gang may have been targeting his mother. Shes been shot before. The child, Dejon Irving, is on life support. I dont think there were two dozen detectives assigned to Dejon Irvings case. But hes not a star to be used by politicians in pursuit of power. Hes not a symbol. Politicians dont tweet his name. Hes just a little boy from Chicago, shot in the head. | LZ Granderson: Two dozen detectives were assigned to the Jussie Smollett case. LZ: Even in Chicago, a city known for its unending violence and political corruption, assigning two dozen detectives seems a bit overdone. He says it fits the prevailing narrative of many in the media that Trump supporters are racist. | ctrlsum | 2 | http://www.startribune.com/how-many-detectives-assigned-to-the-jussie-smollett-case/506184862/ | 0.719233 |
Did Dodgers Just Drop Scary Hint About Clayton Kershaw? | The headline was innocent enough -- Kershaw gets day off after frustrating 'pen -- but the subhead was concerning: "Roberts won't 'overplay' early discouraging spring practice." The quotes that followed were downright scary. To me, anyway. But see if you don't agree. From Dave Roberts, 1) He didnt feel his best and we knew it was going to rain today so I told him to just go home ... Hes a little down, so I just said go home. He just didnt feel right. Roberts, 2) I dont want to overplay it, because Im going to give him some days off this spring anyway ... He didnt say he was hurt, just that it didnt feel as good as he wanted to feel. Just some frustration. He worked really hard this offseason. The article appeared at Dodgers.com, which means it's club sanctioned information -- actual public relations material (although league writers will tell you otherwise) -- and material that Los Angeles inherently agreed to disseminate. All Roberts had to say if he was asked about his long-time ace, was "Kersh wasn't feeling well, so I told him to take a day." Easy, and especially so with an organization as accustomed to spin as this one. Especially so with a player -- with a patient, if you will -- who keeps his health care records as close to the vest as this one. Kershaw has been shelved with back injuries in each of the last three seasons, has dealt with both hip and bicep issues additionally, and has worked 149, 175 and 161 1/3 regular season innings from 2016 to 2018 after averaging 221 per for the previous six. His velocity has been trending down. He was supposedly working on a new exercise regimen to regain some of that lost oomph on his fastball. I was skeptical -- pitchers don't get healthier with age and mileage -- but I wasn't prepared for a problem a week into camp. Kershaw is the Dodgers' highest paid player, fresh off a newly-minted three-year $93 million contract extension. He's on a team that appears to be watching what it spends down to the last dollar; a team that's at $198,385,000 in collective bargain threshold money as we speak, with $7,831,667 of leeway to avoid going over the $206 million limit, and the luxury tax penalty that goes along with it. He's followed in the rotation by three guys who missed time due to injury in recent seasons and another who had Tommy John surgery before he threw a pitch in rookie ball. He's on a team that's intentionally parted with offense with a plan to increase run prevention. I have no idea why Roberts would offer the comments he did with a man standing in front of him with a microphone. Or a notepad, it doesn't matter which. Maybe we'll find out Friday if there is a follow-up from the league-approved publication and writer Ken Gurnick. In the meantime you'll forgive me if I'm a little frightened. Because if you're not frightened, you should be. And if you are frightened, you should be. | Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw was told to take a day off by manager Dave Roberts. | pegasus | 0 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/howardcole/2019/02/21/did-dodgers-just-drop-scary-hint-about-clayton-kershaw/ | 0.162939 |
Did Dodgers Just Drop Scary Hint About Clayton Kershaw? | The headline was innocent enough -- Kershaw gets day off after frustrating 'pen -- but the subhead was concerning: "Roberts won't 'overplay' early discouraging spring practice." The quotes that followed were downright scary. To me, anyway. But see if you don't agree. From Dave Roberts, 1) He didnt feel his best and we knew it was going to rain today so I told him to just go home ... Hes a little down, so I just said go home. He just didnt feel right. Roberts, 2) I dont want to overplay it, because Im going to give him some days off this spring anyway ... He didnt say he was hurt, just that it didnt feel as good as he wanted to feel. Just some frustration. He worked really hard this offseason. The article appeared at Dodgers.com, which means it's club sanctioned information -- actual public relations material (although league writers will tell you otherwise) -- and material that Los Angeles inherently agreed to disseminate. All Roberts had to say if he was asked about his long-time ace, was "Kersh wasn't feeling well, so I told him to take a day." Easy, and especially so with an organization as accustomed to spin as this one. Especially so with a player -- with a patient, if you will -- who keeps his health care records as close to the vest as this one. Kershaw has been shelved with back injuries in each of the last three seasons, has dealt with both hip and bicep issues additionally, and has worked 149, 175 and 161 1/3 regular season innings from 2016 to 2018 after averaging 221 per for the previous six. His velocity has been trending down. He was supposedly working on a new exercise regimen to regain some of that lost oomph on his fastball. I was skeptical -- pitchers don't get healthier with age and mileage -- but I wasn't prepared for a problem a week into camp. Kershaw is the Dodgers' highest paid player, fresh off a newly-minted three-year $93 million contract extension. He's on a team that appears to be watching what it spends down to the last dollar; a team that's at $198,385,000 in collective bargain threshold money as we speak, with $7,831,667 of leeway to avoid going over the $206 million limit, and the luxury tax penalty that goes along with it. He's followed in the rotation by three guys who missed time due to injury in recent seasons and another who had Tommy John surgery before he threw a pitch in rookie ball. He's on a team that's intentionally parted with offense with a plan to increase run prevention. I have no idea why Roberts would offer the comments he did with a man standing in front of him with a microphone. Or a notepad, it doesn't matter which. Maybe we'll find out Friday if there is a follow-up from the league-approved publication and writer Ken Gurnick. In the meantime you'll forgive me if I'm a little frightened. Because if you're not frightened, you should be. And if you are frightened, you should be. | Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Clayton Kershaw "didn't feel his best" Kershaw has been sidelined with back injuries in each of the last three seasons. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/howardcole/2019/02/21/did-dodgers-just-drop-scary-hint-about-clayton-kershaw/ | 0.191117 |
Did Dodgers Just Drop Scary Hint About Clayton Kershaw? | The headline was innocent enough -- Kershaw gets day off after frustrating 'pen -- but the subhead was concerning: "Roberts won't 'overplay' early discouraging spring practice." The quotes that followed were downright scary. To me, anyway. But see if you don't agree. From Dave Roberts, 1) He didnt feel his best and we knew it was going to rain today so I told him to just go home ... Hes a little down, so I just said go home. He just didnt feel right. Roberts, 2) I dont want to overplay it, because Im going to give him some days off this spring anyway ... He didnt say he was hurt, just that it didnt feel as good as he wanted to feel. Just some frustration. He worked really hard this offseason. The article appeared at Dodgers.com, which means it's club sanctioned information -- actual public relations material (although league writers will tell you otherwise) -- and material that Los Angeles inherently agreed to disseminate. All Roberts had to say if he was asked about his long-time ace, was "Kersh wasn't feeling well, so I told him to take a day." Easy, and especially so with an organization as accustomed to spin as this one. Especially so with a player -- with a patient, if you will -- who keeps his health care records as close to the vest as this one. Kershaw has been shelved with back injuries in each of the last three seasons, has dealt with both hip and bicep issues additionally, and has worked 149, 175 and 161 1/3 regular season innings from 2016 to 2018 after averaging 221 per for the previous six. His velocity has been trending down. He was supposedly working on a new exercise regimen to regain some of that lost oomph on his fastball. I was skeptical -- pitchers don't get healthier with age and mileage -- but I wasn't prepared for a problem a week into camp. Kershaw is the Dodgers' highest paid player, fresh off a newly-minted three-year $93 million contract extension. He's on a team that appears to be watching what it spends down to the last dollar; a team that's at $198,385,000 in collective bargain threshold money as we speak, with $7,831,667 of leeway to avoid going over the $206 million limit, and the luxury tax penalty that goes along with it. He's followed in the rotation by three guys who missed time due to injury in recent seasons and another who had Tommy John surgery before he threw a pitch in rookie ball. He's on a team that's intentionally parted with offense with a plan to increase run prevention. I have no idea why Roberts would offer the comments he did with a man standing in front of him with a microphone. Or a notepad, it doesn't matter which. Maybe we'll find out Friday if there is a follow-up from the league-approved publication and writer Ken Gurnick. In the meantime you'll forgive me if I'm a little frightened. Because if you're not frightened, you should be. And if you are frightened, you should be. | Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Clayton Kershaw "didn't feel his best" Kershaw has been sidelined with back injuries in each of the last three seasons. Roberts said he didn't want to "overplay" the situation. Kershaw is the Dodgers' highest paid player, fresh off a three-year contract extension. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/howardcole/2019/02/21/did-dodgers-just-drop-scary-hint-about-clayton-kershaw/ | 0.178005 |
Could changes in university funding limit student places? | Image copyright Getty Images Universities will have to offer fewer places if cuts in tuition fees are not replaced by government money, say leading research universities. A funding review of post 18 study is expected to be published next month. The Russell Group, and seven charities, want ministers to rule out an overall drop in funding. The government says job prospects and drop out rates are as important as fair access. An independent panel, led by Philip Augar, has been asked to look at whether the current system offers value for money for students and taxpayers in England. Tuition fees are now the main source of funding for universities. Universities receive 9,250 a year per student, up front - to meet teaching costs. The Russell Group of research focused universities argues that some courses will close if tuition fees are cut, and not replaced with taxpayer funding. Colin Bailey, the Principal of Queen Mary University in London, says they break even overall on the cost of teaching home students under the current system, but if tuition fees were reduced that would change. "We would have to reduce our places, because there are only so many courses you can run at a loss. "Therefore there would be a de facto cap on numbers. There will be some courses which would be under pressure." Image copyright Getty Images 'Privileged kids will get the places' Universities already receive top up cash from the government for courses that are very expensive to teach, such as engineering and medicine. That is likely to continue whatever the panel recommends. Universities are worried about potential tuition fee reductions in subjects such as English, history or languages, which might not attract a government top up. In a statement backed by seven charities that help low income students into university, the Russell Group says a reduction in places could lead to fewer students from poorer backgrounds getting places. "The more privileged students will get the places, because some of the poorer students may not get the three As or have the same family support", says Colin Bailey from Queen Mary University. Anand Shukla is the chief executive of Brightside, one of the charities that has also signed the statement. "We are concerned that if a cut to tuition fees leads to an overall cut in university funding, then efforts to improve social mobility will go into reverse. " These arguments are likely to face a strong push back from the government, which has ruled out any cap on numbers. Ministers may also point to recent data on graduate earnings. While a degree from a high profile university, such as those in the Russell Group, can lead to a significant increase in how much you earn - that's not the case across all universities, or degree subjects. The figures published last year suggest that a third of men are going to universities which have a negligible impact on their earnings by the age of 29. In response to the Russell Group's joint statement, the government says there are now record numbers of disadvantaged students and the review is intended to make sure there are no barriers to going to university. Image copyright Getty Images 'A sharp cut to funding' The Department for Education said: "We need the access and participation work done by universities to ensure all parts of society have fair access." "But participation also has to mean successful participation and that means focusing not just on admissions but on progression, dropout rates and ultimately employment." The Labour Party is committed to getting rid of tuition fees and funding universities directly. Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary, said: "A small cut in tuition fees with no replacement in funding would be the worst of all worlds. "Students will still face tens of thousands of pounds of debt and those with low incomes would see no benefit at all." "Meanwhile, universities will see a sharp cut to their funding, which could create a crisis in the sector". Tuition fees are the most politically contentious issue being considered by the review panel, but its remit is far wider. Further education colleges in England have been the most cash starved part of education under successive governments, and are also pressing for a rethink on their funding. | Yes, but only if there is a cap on the number of places. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-47322531 | 0.111988 |
Why didn't Amazon pay federal taxes for the second consecutive year? | Though Amazons Queens headquarters were ultimately scuppered it turns out the company is already receiving benefits from the government Amazon will not be moving to New York after all. After months of public debate, the plans for the technology and e-commerce company to establish a second headquarters in Long Island City were ultimately scuppered last week. Cities across the US have been attempting to lure Amazon by offering public subsidies in the hopes that the company would bring jobs. And New York was no exception, offering Amazon nearly $3bn in tax incentives. Researchers, activists and union leaders claimed that money could have been better spent. 'We proved Amazon wrong': activists celebrate Bezos retreat from Queens Read more Amazon is already getting plenty of benefits from the federal government. The company nearly doubled its profits to $11.2bn in 2018 from $5.6bn the year before and, for the second year running didnt pay a single cent of federal income tax. In fact, Amazon reported a federal income tax rebate for the past two years totalling almost $270m according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy analysis of Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Netflix also paid no federal or income tax on profits of $845m last year. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Amazon reported a federal income tax rebate for the past two years totalling almost $270m. Illustration: Mona Chalabi In a statement issued to the Guardian, Amazon said: Corporate tax is based on profits, not revenues, and our profits remain modest given retail is a highly competitive, low-margin business and our continued heavy investment. The use of the word modest in this statement was, it seems, not sarcastic. | Amazon didn't pay a single cent of federal income tax for the second year running. The company received a rebate of almost $270m for the past two years totalling almost $300m. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2019/feb/22/amazon-taxes-federal-benefits | 0.304462 |
Why didn't Amazon pay federal taxes for the second consecutive year? | Though Amazons Queens headquarters were ultimately scuppered it turns out the company is already receiving benefits from the government Amazon will not be moving to New York after all. After months of public debate, the plans for the technology and e-commerce company to establish a second headquarters in Long Island City were ultimately scuppered last week. Cities across the US have been attempting to lure Amazon by offering public subsidies in the hopes that the company would bring jobs. And New York was no exception, offering Amazon nearly $3bn in tax incentives. Researchers, activists and union leaders claimed that money could have been better spent. 'We proved Amazon wrong': activists celebrate Bezos retreat from Queens Read more Amazon is already getting plenty of benefits from the federal government. The company nearly doubled its profits to $11.2bn in 2018 from $5.6bn the year before and, for the second year running didnt pay a single cent of federal income tax. In fact, Amazon reported a federal income tax rebate for the past two years totalling almost $270m according to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy analysis of Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Netflix also paid no federal or income tax on profits of $845m last year. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Amazon reported a federal income tax rebate for the past two years totalling almost $270m. Illustration: Mona Chalabi In a statement issued to the Guardian, Amazon said: Corporate tax is based on profits, not revenues, and our profits remain modest given retail is a highly competitive, low-margin business and our continued heavy investment. The use of the word modest in this statement was, it seems, not sarcastic. | Amazon didn't pay a single cent of federal income tax for the second year running. The company received a rebate of almost $270m for the past two years totalling almost $300m. Amazon said its profits are'modest' and that it doesn't pay any corporate tax. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2019/feb/22/amazon-taxes-federal-benefits | 0.409312 |
Which banks do customers love or hate? | Image copyright Getty Images Metro Bank has taken top spot in an official survey of customers' satisfaction with their banks, with the Royal Bank of Scotland ranked bottom. Despite Metro's share price having been hit, in part, by errors in the way it accounted for some of its lending, the bank overtook First Direct to go top. Some 83% of its personal customers said they would recommend the bank to their family and friends. The rankings are published every six months by the UK's competition body. Banks must prominently display the results in branches, on websites and apps, with the aim to encourage competition on customer service. The rankings are drawn from the views of 16,000 people (1,000 from each bank), who were asked how likely they would be to recommend their account provider to friends and family. For personal banking, Metro Bank - which started operating in the UK in 2010 - was the most popular. Image copyright Reuters It has had a relatively tough few months in terms of its share price, but was second in the customer satisfaction ratings six months ago and has now taken top spot. A Metro Bank spokesman said: "Our offering is simple. We believe in providing the very best in service and convenience for both consumers and businesses, and this latest set of results speaks for itself." It has switched positions from six months ago with First Direct, with the Nationwide Building Society maintaining its position in third. The Royal Bank of Scotland was bottom of the 16 banks on the list. It scored poorly on services in branches. On the day that its parent company RBS announced a doubling in annual profits, the survey revealed that fewer than half (47%) of Royal Bank of Scotland personal current account customers said they would recommend the bank. Among the various categories, TSB - which suffered a major IT failure that led to the departure of its chief executive last year - finished bottom of online and mobile banking services. Clydesdale Bank was bottom on the ranking of overdraft services. HSBC-owned First Direct, which has no branches, was top of both these categories. Business banking Nearly 20,000 small businesses were also asked about customer service at banks, resulting in a ranking of 14 banks. Swedish import Handelsbanken was ranked top with an 85% satisfaction rating, with a particularly strong showing in the relationship and account management category (91%). Metro Bank was second and Santander third. TSB was bottom of the 14. Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority, which published the results, said: "We introduced this survey last August so that people can see exactly how well banks are treating their customers. "If people are unhappy with the customer service they are currently getting, I would encourage them to look at the results and think about switching to a better performing bank." | Metro Bank has taken top spot in an official survey of customers' satisfaction with their banks. The Royal Bank of Scotland was bottom of the list. | pegasus | 0 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47251465 | 0.434379 |
Which banks do customers love or hate? | Image copyright Getty Images Metro Bank has taken top spot in an official survey of customers' satisfaction with their banks, with the Royal Bank of Scotland ranked bottom. Despite Metro's share price having been hit, in part, by errors in the way it accounted for some of its lending, the bank overtook First Direct to go top. Some 83% of its personal customers said they would recommend the bank to their family and friends. The rankings are published every six months by the UK's competition body. Banks must prominently display the results in branches, on websites and apps, with the aim to encourage competition on customer service. The rankings are drawn from the views of 16,000 people (1,000 from each bank), who were asked how likely they would be to recommend their account provider to friends and family. For personal banking, Metro Bank - which started operating in the UK in 2010 - was the most popular. Image copyright Reuters It has had a relatively tough few months in terms of its share price, but was second in the customer satisfaction ratings six months ago and has now taken top spot. A Metro Bank spokesman said: "Our offering is simple. We believe in providing the very best in service and convenience for both consumers and businesses, and this latest set of results speaks for itself." It has switched positions from six months ago with First Direct, with the Nationwide Building Society maintaining its position in third. The Royal Bank of Scotland was bottom of the 16 banks on the list. It scored poorly on services in branches. On the day that its parent company RBS announced a doubling in annual profits, the survey revealed that fewer than half (47%) of Royal Bank of Scotland personal current account customers said they would recommend the bank. Among the various categories, TSB - which suffered a major IT failure that led to the departure of its chief executive last year - finished bottom of online and mobile banking services. Clydesdale Bank was bottom on the ranking of overdraft services. HSBC-owned First Direct, which has no branches, was top of both these categories. Business banking Nearly 20,000 small businesses were also asked about customer service at banks, resulting in a ranking of 14 banks. Swedish import Handelsbanken was ranked top with an 85% satisfaction rating, with a particularly strong showing in the relationship and account management category (91%). Metro Bank was second and Santander third. TSB was bottom of the 14. Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority, which published the results, said: "We introduced this survey last August so that people can see exactly how well banks are treating their customers. "If people are unhappy with the customer service they are currently getting, I would encourage them to look at the results and think about switching to a better performing bank." | Metro Bank took top spot in survey of customers' satisfaction with banks. Royal Bank of Scotland was ranked bottom of the list. The rankings are published every six months by the UK's competition body. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47251465 | 0.402992 |
Which banks do customers love or hate? | Image copyright Getty Images Metro Bank has taken top spot in an official survey of customers' satisfaction with their banks, with the Royal Bank of Scotland ranked bottom. Despite Metro's share price having been hit, in part, by errors in the way it accounted for some of its lending, the bank overtook First Direct to go top. Some 83% of its personal customers said they would recommend the bank to their family and friends. The rankings are published every six months by the UK's competition body. Banks must prominently display the results in branches, on websites and apps, with the aim to encourage competition on customer service. The rankings are drawn from the views of 16,000 people (1,000 from each bank), who were asked how likely they would be to recommend their account provider to friends and family. For personal banking, Metro Bank - which started operating in the UK in 2010 - was the most popular. Image copyright Reuters It has had a relatively tough few months in terms of its share price, but was second in the customer satisfaction ratings six months ago and has now taken top spot. A Metro Bank spokesman said: "Our offering is simple. We believe in providing the very best in service and convenience for both consumers and businesses, and this latest set of results speaks for itself." It has switched positions from six months ago with First Direct, with the Nationwide Building Society maintaining its position in third. The Royal Bank of Scotland was bottom of the 16 banks on the list. It scored poorly on services in branches. On the day that its parent company RBS announced a doubling in annual profits, the survey revealed that fewer than half (47%) of Royal Bank of Scotland personal current account customers said they would recommend the bank. Among the various categories, TSB - which suffered a major IT failure that led to the departure of its chief executive last year - finished bottom of online and mobile banking services. Clydesdale Bank was bottom on the ranking of overdraft services. HSBC-owned First Direct, which has no branches, was top of both these categories. Business banking Nearly 20,000 small businesses were also asked about customer service at banks, resulting in a ranking of 14 banks. Swedish import Handelsbanken was ranked top with an 85% satisfaction rating, with a particularly strong showing in the relationship and account management category (91%). Metro Bank was second and Santander third. TSB was bottom of the 14. Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority, which published the results, said: "We introduced this survey last August so that people can see exactly how well banks are treating their customers. "If people are unhappy with the customer service they are currently getting, I would encourage them to look at the results and think about switching to a better performing bank." | Metro Bank overtakes First Direct to go top in survey of customers' satisfaction. Royal Bank of Scotland is bottom of the 16 banks on the list of customer satisfaction ratings by the Competition and Markets Authority. The rankings are published every six months by the UK's competition body. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47251465 | 0.349638 |
Could Trumps next trade move be a tariff on imported cars? | Open this photo in gallery New cars sit on a lot at the Auto Warehousing Company near the Port of Richmond on May 24, 2018 in Richmond, Calif. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Sometimes, on a bad night, Brad Strong wakes at 2 a.m. and cant get back to sleep. The insomnia isnt about his family or money or health. Its about tariffs. The Strong familys three car dealerships in Salt Lake City could suffer a significant blow if President Donald Trump proceeds with a proposal to impose tariffs of 20 to 25 per cent on imported autos and auto parts. Strong may be in for a few more sleepless nights. Story continues below advertisement By Sunday, Trumps Commerce Department is expected to issue an opinion on whether auto imports endanger U.S. national security enough to justify such import taxes. Trump would then have 90 days to decide whether to impose them. The department could decide to postpone its conclusion. Or it could just hand its recommendations to Trump without making them public. But if it does suggest that Trump impose the tariffs, Commerce would be advocating a major escalation in Trumps combative trade policies. So far, he has stuck tariffs on imported steel, aluminum, dishwashers, solar panels and hundreds of Chinese goods. The tariffs have become a financial burden for U.S. companies that import goods and parts and have led some to pass on their higher costs to customers. Many economists worry about the eventual impact on the U.S. economy. U.S. auto tariffs would almost surely lead Japan and the European Union to retaliate. They could also spark a rebellion in the U.S. Congress including from Trumps fellow Republicans over concern that he is raising tariffs by invoking his authority to label certain imports a threat to Americas national security. I dont believe that minivans from Canada or other allies are a threat to our national security, said Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio. I hope the administration takes a step back and reconsiders any auto tariffs. The tariffs could have far-reaching consequences on the companies that make cars, often with imported parts; on the dealerships that sell them; and on the consumers who buy them. U.S. imports of passenger vehicles and auto parts amounted to $340 billion in 2017. All three of Strongs dealerships sell vehicles made by German automakers Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche. No Porsches or Audis are built in America. Only a couple of Volkswagen models are. The likely result is higher prices and lower sales for Strong and other dealers who sell imported vehicles. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement I worry about the people that work for me and their families, said Strong, who fears that his dealerships would have to lay off some of their 225 employees. If 25 per cent tariffs were imposed on imported parts and vehicles, including from Canada and Mexico, the price of imported vehicles would jump more than 17 per cent, or an average of around $5,000 each, according to IHS Markit. Even the prices of vehicles made in the U.S. would rise by about 5 per cent, or $1,800, because all use some imported parts. Luxury brands would absorb the sharpest increase: $5,800 on average, IHS concluded. Mass-market vehicle prices would rise an average of $3,300. If the tariffs are fully assessed, IHS senior economist Peter Nagle predicts that price increases would cause U.S. auto sales to fall by an average of 1.8 million vehicles a year through 2026. Were talking about an environment where sales are slowing already, Nagle said. In addition to Audi and Porsche, the most affected brands would be Mazda, Aston Martin and McLaren, which build all of their vehicles outside the U.S. The tariffs also would hit Audi, Porsche, Volvo, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai and Volkswagen hard. Nearly 100 per cent of Volvos sold in the U.S. were produced elsewhere last year. The figure is 67 per cent for BMW, 63 per cent for Mercedes, 84 per cent for the VW group and 62 per cent for Hyundai. Story continues below advertisement I think it would be harmful to the whole economy, said Howard Hakes, president of Hitchcock Automotive, which has three Toyota showrooms in metro Los Angeles. You put a 25 per cent tariff on that, youre slowing down the train thats rolling already. Mario Murgado, who owns Honda, Volkswagen, Audi and other dealerships in the Miami and Chicago areas, has a different view. He says hes willing to sacrifice sales if necessary to make global trade fairer. Other countries, Murgado argues, assess higher tariffs than the U.S. does, while countries like Japan impose other barriers to importing U.S. vehicles. Im just trying to do the right thing thats in the best interest of our country, he said. Of the 17.2 million vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2017, 52 per cent were produced in the U.S., according to the Center for Automotive Research. Fourteen per cent came from Mexico and 11 per cent from Canada. Ten per cent were made in Japan, 5 per cent in South Korea, 3 per cent in Germany and 5 per cent elsewhere. There are many ways auto tariffs could be imposed. The worst-case scenario for the industry would be tariffs on both vehicles and parts. The administration also could slap levies on vehicles but not parts. Or it could suspend tariffs and use them for bargaining. But the tariffs would likely invite retaliation aimed at U.S. farmers or other sectors of the economy, said Kristin Dziczek, a vice-president at the Center for Automotive Research. Story continues below advertisement If we (tax) Audis, Germany could say, We dont want your peanut butter, she said. Trump ran for president on a vow to shrink Americas trade deficit with the rest of the world by renegotiating trade deals and attacking what he called abusive practices by other nations. The administration has invoked a little-used weapon in trade policy: Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which empowers a president to restrict imports and impose unlimited tariffs if Commerce finds that they threaten national security. The administration has used that authority to tax imported steel and aluminum. Now, it may use it on auto imports. Especially in the case of autos, the administration seems to be relying on a broad definition of national security. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross last year said it could include a very big variety of things that one would not normally associate directly with military security, including the U.S. economy. Trump has sought to use the steel and aluminum tariffs and the threat of auto tariffs as leverage in trade negotiations, including a rewrite of a North American agreement with Mexico and Canada. To the shock of many lawmakers and businesses, Trump kept in place the steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico even after they agreed to a new pact last year. So its not clear if he is content to use them as a negotiating tactic or if theyre a permanent policy from a president who has called himself a Tariff Man. Story continues below advertisement Its hard to know exactly what the intent of the policies are, said Bryan Riley, director of the Free Trade Initiative at the conservative National Taxpayers Union. In her view, said Syracuse University economist Mary Lovely: This is not a negotiating tactic. Trump is a true believer He wrongly believes tariffs will help the U.S. auto industry. The auto industry itself opposes auto tariffs. And Congress is getting restless. Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Penn., and Mark Warner, D-Va., have introduced legislation to reassert congressional control over trade. Their bill would give Congress 60 days to approve any tariffs imposed on national security grounds. It would also shift responsibility for Section 232 investigations away from Commerce to the Pentagon. Toomey noted that Trump agreed last summer to hold off on any auto tariffs while the U.S. and EU held trade talks. Negotiations are continuing, Toomey said. That means we should not see a new round of auto tariffs. | The Strong familys three car dealerships in Salt Lake City could suffer a significant blow if President Donald Trump proceeds with a proposal to impose tariffs of 20 to 25 per cent on imported autos and auto parts. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/international-business/us-business/article-could-trumps-next-trade-move-be-a-tariff-on-imported-cars/ | 0.169257 |
Could Trumps next trade move be a tariff on imported cars? | Open this photo in gallery New cars sit on a lot at the Auto Warehousing Company near the Port of Richmond on May 24, 2018 in Richmond, Calif. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Sometimes, on a bad night, Brad Strong wakes at 2 a.m. and cant get back to sleep. The insomnia isnt about his family or money or health. Its about tariffs. The Strong familys three car dealerships in Salt Lake City could suffer a significant blow if President Donald Trump proceeds with a proposal to impose tariffs of 20 to 25 per cent on imported autos and auto parts. Strong may be in for a few more sleepless nights. Story continues below advertisement By Sunday, Trumps Commerce Department is expected to issue an opinion on whether auto imports endanger U.S. national security enough to justify such import taxes. Trump would then have 90 days to decide whether to impose them. The department could decide to postpone its conclusion. Or it could just hand its recommendations to Trump without making them public. But if it does suggest that Trump impose the tariffs, Commerce would be advocating a major escalation in Trumps combative trade policies. So far, he has stuck tariffs on imported steel, aluminum, dishwashers, solar panels and hundreds of Chinese goods. The tariffs have become a financial burden for U.S. companies that import goods and parts and have led some to pass on their higher costs to customers. Many economists worry about the eventual impact on the U.S. economy. U.S. auto tariffs would almost surely lead Japan and the European Union to retaliate. They could also spark a rebellion in the U.S. Congress including from Trumps fellow Republicans over concern that he is raising tariffs by invoking his authority to label certain imports a threat to Americas national security. I dont believe that minivans from Canada or other allies are a threat to our national security, said Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio. I hope the administration takes a step back and reconsiders any auto tariffs. The tariffs could have far-reaching consequences on the companies that make cars, often with imported parts; on the dealerships that sell them; and on the consumers who buy them. U.S. imports of passenger vehicles and auto parts amounted to $340 billion in 2017. All three of Strongs dealerships sell vehicles made by German automakers Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche. No Porsches or Audis are built in America. Only a couple of Volkswagen models are. The likely result is higher prices and lower sales for Strong and other dealers who sell imported vehicles. Story continues below advertisement Story continues below advertisement I worry about the people that work for me and their families, said Strong, who fears that his dealerships would have to lay off some of their 225 employees. If 25 per cent tariffs were imposed on imported parts and vehicles, including from Canada and Mexico, the price of imported vehicles would jump more than 17 per cent, or an average of around $5,000 each, according to IHS Markit. Even the prices of vehicles made in the U.S. would rise by about 5 per cent, or $1,800, because all use some imported parts. Luxury brands would absorb the sharpest increase: $5,800 on average, IHS concluded. Mass-market vehicle prices would rise an average of $3,300. If the tariffs are fully assessed, IHS senior economist Peter Nagle predicts that price increases would cause U.S. auto sales to fall by an average of 1.8 million vehicles a year through 2026. Were talking about an environment where sales are slowing already, Nagle said. In addition to Audi and Porsche, the most affected brands would be Mazda, Aston Martin and McLaren, which build all of their vehicles outside the U.S. The tariffs also would hit Audi, Porsche, Volvo, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai and Volkswagen hard. Nearly 100 per cent of Volvos sold in the U.S. were produced elsewhere last year. The figure is 67 per cent for BMW, 63 per cent for Mercedes, 84 per cent for the VW group and 62 per cent for Hyundai. Story continues below advertisement I think it would be harmful to the whole economy, said Howard Hakes, president of Hitchcock Automotive, which has three Toyota showrooms in metro Los Angeles. You put a 25 per cent tariff on that, youre slowing down the train thats rolling already. Mario Murgado, who owns Honda, Volkswagen, Audi and other dealerships in the Miami and Chicago areas, has a different view. He says hes willing to sacrifice sales if necessary to make global trade fairer. Other countries, Murgado argues, assess higher tariffs than the U.S. does, while countries like Japan impose other barriers to importing U.S. vehicles. Im just trying to do the right thing thats in the best interest of our country, he said. Of the 17.2 million vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2017, 52 per cent were produced in the U.S., according to the Center for Automotive Research. Fourteen per cent came from Mexico and 11 per cent from Canada. Ten per cent were made in Japan, 5 per cent in South Korea, 3 per cent in Germany and 5 per cent elsewhere. There are many ways auto tariffs could be imposed. The worst-case scenario for the industry would be tariffs on both vehicles and parts. The administration also could slap levies on vehicles but not parts. Or it could suspend tariffs and use them for bargaining. But the tariffs would likely invite retaliation aimed at U.S. farmers or other sectors of the economy, said Kristin Dziczek, a vice-president at the Center for Automotive Research. Story continues below advertisement If we (tax) Audis, Germany could say, We dont want your peanut butter, she said. Trump ran for president on a vow to shrink Americas trade deficit with the rest of the world by renegotiating trade deals and attacking what he called abusive practices by other nations. The administration has invoked a little-used weapon in trade policy: Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which empowers a president to restrict imports and impose unlimited tariffs if Commerce finds that they threaten national security. The administration has used that authority to tax imported steel and aluminum. Now, it may use it on auto imports. Especially in the case of autos, the administration seems to be relying on a broad definition of national security. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross last year said it could include a very big variety of things that one would not normally associate directly with military security, including the U.S. economy. Trump has sought to use the steel and aluminum tariffs and the threat of auto tariffs as leverage in trade negotiations, including a rewrite of a North American agreement with Mexico and Canada. To the shock of many lawmakers and businesses, Trump kept in place the steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico even after they agreed to a new pact last year. So its not clear if he is content to use them as a negotiating tactic or if theyre a permanent policy from a president who has called himself a Tariff Man. Story continues below advertisement Its hard to know exactly what the intent of the policies are, said Bryan Riley, director of the Free Trade Initiative at the conservative National Taxpayers Union. In her view, said Syracuse University economist Mary Lovely: This is not a negotiating tactic. Trump is a true believer He wrongly believes tariffs will help the U.S. auto industry. The auto industry itself opposes auto tariffs. And Congress is getting restless. Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Penn., and Mark Warner, D-Va., have introduced legislation to reassert congressional control over trade. Their bill would give Congress 60 days to approve any tariffs imposed on national security grounds. It would also shift responsibility for Section 232 investigations away from Commerce to the Pentagon. Toomey noted that Trump agreed last summer to hold off on any auto tariffs while the U.S. and EU held trade talks. Negotiations are continuing, Toomey said. That means we should not see a new round of auto tariffs. | The Strong familys three car dealerships in Salt Lake City could suffer a significant blow if President Donald Trump proceeds with a proposal to impose tariffs of 20 to 25 per cent on imported autos and auto parts. The Commerce Department is expected to issue an opinion on whether auto imports endanger U.S. national security enough to justify such import taxes. | pegasus | 2 | https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/international-business/us-business/article-could-trumps-next-trade-move-be-a-tariff-on-imported-cars/ | 0.216586 |
What Did Elliott Abrams Have to Do With the El Mozote Massacre? | In El Salvador, the Reagan administration, with Abrams as point man, routinely defended the Salvadoran government in face of evidence that its regular army, and allied right-wing death squads, were operating with impunity, killing peasants, students, union leaders, and anyone considered anti-government or pro-guerrilla. Abrams went so far as to defend one of the death squads most notorious leaders, Roberto DAubuisson, who was responsible for the murder of Archbishop Oscar Romero while he was saying mass, in March 1980. It was Romeros assassination that touched off a civil war in El Salvador an alliance of the military and the oligarchs, which had ruled for decades with support from the United States, against a Marxist-inspired insurgency. Most of the support for the revolution came from El Salvadors peasants, who had little to lose in seeking to overthrow a government that had resorted to brutal repression to keep them in miserable poverty. To drain the peasant sea in which guerrillas swam, to borrow from Mao, the Atlacatl battalion, whose officers had recently completed counterinsurgency training in the United States, launched a scorched earth operation in Morazon, a mountainous region where semi-literate peasants labored on their small plots of sisal and corn. I began reporting from El Salvador for the New York Times in December, 1980. Four American Roman Catholic churchwomen had just been raped and murdered by Salvadoran soldiers, another heinous crime that the Reagan administration sought to cover up. One year later, I was smuggled by guerrillas into Morazon. I was accompanied by Susan Meiselas, the photojournalist already well-known for her work in Nicaragua. Simultaneously, but separately, Alma Guillermoprieto of the Washington Post made her way into the area as well. When we reached El Mozote, evidence of the massacre was still abundant. Skeletons were being picked over by vultures, the stench of death carried by the breeze. My reporting and Susan's pictures appeared in the Times, and Alma's reporting in the Post, in January 1982. Immediately, the administration attacked us and sought to deny the stories, calling them guerrilla propaganda. The reports were not credible, Abrams said. As Abrams put it, El Mozote appears to be an incident that is at least being significantly misused, at the very best, by the guerrillas. So the murder of hundreds of children became a mere incident. I returned to El Mozote last year, the first time since the 1980s. I found a survivor, Amadeo Sanchez. He had been eight years old at the time, a peasant boy who worked in the fields with his father. When word of the Atlacatls operation reached his village, the gun fire close enough to be heard, and the helicopter gunships overhead, Sanchez told me he fled with his father. His mother remained in the village, with Sanchezs three younger siblings, including a one-year old brother. I have done nothing wrong, nothing is going to happen to me, Sanchez recalled his mother saying. | Elliott Abrams was point man for the Reagan administration in El Salvador. He says the administration tried to cover up the massacre of hundreds of children. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/ilhan-omar-elliott-abrams-and-el-mozote-massacre/582889/?utm_source=feed | 0.264115 |
What Did Elliott Abrams Have to Do With the El Mozote Massacre? | In El Salvador, the Reagan administration, with Abrams as point man, routinely defended the Salvadoran government in face of evidence that its regular army, and allied right-wing death squads, were operating with impunity, killing peasants, students, union leaders, and anyone considered anti-government or pro-guerrilla. Abrams went so far as to defend one of the death squads most notorious leaders, Roberto DAubuisson, who was responsible for the murder of Archbishop Oscar Romero while he was saying mass, in March 1980. It was Romeros assassination that touched off a civil war in El Salvador an alliance of the military and the oligarchs, which had ruled for decades with support from the United States, against a Marxist-inspired insurgency. Most of the support for the revolution came from El Salvadors peasants, who had little to lose in seeking to overthrow a government that had resorted to brutal repression to keep them in miserable poverty. To drain the peasant sea in which guerrillas swam, to borrow from Mao, the Atlacatl battalion, whose officers had recently completed counterinsurgency training in the United States, launched a scorched earth operation in Morazon, a mountainous region where semi-literate peasants labored on their small plots of sisal and corn. I began reporting from El Salvador for the New York Times in December, 1980. Four American Roman Catholic churchwomen had just been raped and murdered by Salvadoran soldiers, another heinous crime that the Reagan administration sought to cover up. One year later, I was smuggled by guerrillas into Morazon. I was accompanied by Susan Meiselas, the photojournalist already well-known for her work in Nicaragua. Simultaneously, but separately, Alma Guillermoprieto of the Washington Post made her way into the area as well. When we reached El Mozote, evidence of the massacre was still abundant. Skeletons were being picked over by vultures, the stench of death carried by the breeze. My reporting and Susan's pictures appeared in the Times, and Alma's reporting in the Post, in January 1982. Immediately, the administration attacked us and sought to deny the stories, calling them guerrilla propaganda. The reports were not credible, Abrams said. As Abrams put it, El Mozote appears to be an incident that is at least being significantly misused, at the very best, by the guerrillas. So the murder of hundreds of children became a mere incident. I returned to El Mozote last year, the first time since the 1980s. I found a survivor, Amadeo Sanchez. He had been eight years old at the time, a peasant boy who worked in the fields with his father. When word of the Atlacatls operation reached his village, the gun fire close enough to be heard, and the helicopter gunships overhead, Sanchez told me he fled with his father. His mother remained in the village, with Sanchezs three younger siblings, including a one-year old brother. I have done nothing wrong, nothing is going to happen to me, Sanchez recalled his mother saying. | Elliott Abrams was point man for the Reagan administration in El Salvador. He says the administration tried to cover up the massacre of hundreds of children. Abrams says the massacre was a mere "incident" that was being misused by the guerrillas. The U.S. is still supporting the Salvadoran government, he says. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/ilhan-omar-elliott-abrams-and-el-mozote-massacre/582889/?utm_source=feed | 0.411192 |
What is A Fair Tip For A Fill-In Caddie? | Years back as an inexperienced recreational golfer, I once under-tipped a forecaddie and suffered the embarrassment of right then and there being told what the recommended gratuity was before reaching into my pocket to rectify the situation. So the Kuchar looper-lowballing scandal hit home, granted my flub never resulted in getting tarred and feathered on Twitter. Theres a range when it comes to a regular tour caddys piece of their pros winnings on the PGA TOUR. But the rule of thumb is if youre playing wing man on the course to an established player you get a bonus for a top-10 finish and 10% of the prize money for a win. So by that math if a golfer tops the leaderboard and receives a check for 1.3 million, the etiquette is the caddies cut is $130,000. David Ortiz who works at El Camaleon Golf Club, in Playa del Carmen where the Mayakoba Classic is played was paid $5000 by Matt Kuchar to fill in for his regular caddie. Mum would be the word if that was the end of it but Kuchar went on to top the leaderboard and receive a winners check for $1.296 million. Ten weeks later Ortiz was offered a $15,000 bonus that he reportedly found unacceptable and turned down. When the story broke on Golf.com a couple days ago, the interwebs went wild with condemnation against Kuchar for not ponying up more. Ortiz didnt expect 10 percent of the winnings but had imagined that a $50,000 bonus would be the right amount. Yesterday Kuchar defended his decision. "It's done. Listen, I feel like I was fair and good. You can't make everybody happy. You're not going to buy people's ability to be OK with you, and this seems to be a social media issue more than anything, he told GolfChannel.com. I think it shouldn't be, knowing that there was a complete, agreed-upon deal that not only did I meet but exceeded. So, I certainly don't lose sleep over this. This is something that I'm quite happy with, and I was really happy for him to have a great week and make a good sum of money. Making $5,000 is a great week." Kuchar in a conversation with Golf.com writer Michael Bamberger said the agreement with Ortiz was a payment of $1,000 if he missed the cut, $2,000 if he made the cut, $3,000 for a top-20 result, and $4,000 for a top-10 finish. The extra $1000 was a thank you. While Ortiz reportedly accepted Kuchars contract before electing to work with him and legally doesnt have a leg to stand on in this dispute, the player ranked 10th all time on the career money list comes off as tone deaf in his defense. If Kuch could have this one back Im betting the nine time PGA TOUR winner would have given Ortiz a much more generous Thank You, right there on the spot back in November. If you have an amazing meal at a restaurant and the service was spectacular, when it comes time to pencil in the tip, youre probably going to aim higher than the minimum recommended gratuity. | David Ortiz was paid $5000 by Matt Kuchar to fill in for his regular caddie. | bart | 0 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikedojc/2019/02/15/what-is-a-fair-tip-for-a-fill-in-caddie/ | 0.116852 |
What is A Fair Tip For A Fill-In Caddie? | Years back as an inexperienced recreational golfer, I once under-tipped a forecaddie and suffered the embarrassment of right then and there being told what the recommended gratuity was before reaching into my pocket to rectify the situation. So the Kuchar looper-lowballing scandal hit home, granted my flub never resulted in getting tarred and feathered on Twitter. Theres a range when it comes to a regular tour caddys piece of their pros winnings on the PGA TOUR. But the rule of thumb is if youre playing wing man on the course to an established player you get a bonus for a top-10 finish and 10% of the prize money for a win. So by that math if a golfer tops the leaderboard and receives a check for 1.3 million, the etiquette is the caddies cut is $130,000. David Ortiz who works at El Camaleon Golf Club, in Playa del Carmen where the Mayakoba Classic is played was paid $5000 by Matt Kuchar to fill in for his regular caddie. Mum would be the word if that was the end of it but Kuchar went on to top the leaderboard and receive a winners check for $1.296 million. Ten weeks later Ortiz was offered a $15,000 bonus that he reportedly found unacceptable and turned down. When the story broke on Golf.com a couple days ago, the interwebs went wild with condemnation against Kuchar for not ponying up more. Ortiz didnt expect 10 percent of the winnings but had imagined that a $50,000 bonus would be the right amount. Yesterday Kuchar defended his decision. "It's done. Listen, I feel like I was fair and good. You can't make everybody happy. You're not going to buy people's ability to be OK with you, and this seems to be a social media issue more than anything, he told GolfChannel.com. I think it shouldn't be, knowing that there was a complete, agreed-upon deal that not only did I meet but exceeded. So, I certainly don't lose sleep over this. This is something that I'm quite happy with, and I was really happy for him to have a great week and make a good sum of money. Making $5,000 is a great week." Kuchar in a conversation with Golf.com writer Michael Bamberger said the agreement with Ortiz was a payment of $1,000 if he missed the cut, $2,000 if he made the cut, $3,000 for a top-20 result, and $4,000 for a top-10 finish. The extra $1000 was a thank you. While Ortiz reportedly accepted Kuchars contract before electing to work with him and legally doesnt have a leg to stand on in this dispute, the player ranked 10th all time on the career money list comes off as tone deaf in his defense. If Kuch could have this one back Im betting the nine time PGA TOUR winner would have given Ortiz a much more generous Thank You, right there on the spot back in November. If you have an amazing meal at a restaurant and the service was spectacular, when it comes time to pencil in the tip, youre probably going to aim higher than the minimum recommended gratuity. | David Ortiz was paid $5000 by Matt Kuchar to fill in for his regular caddie. Ortiz was offered a $15,000 bonus that he reportedly found unacceptable and turned down. | bart | 1 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikedojc/2019/02/15/what-is-a-fair-tip-for-a-fill-in-caddie/ | 0.167111 |
What is A Fair Tip For A Fill-In Caddie? | Years back as an inexperienced recreational golfer, I once under-tipped a forecaddie and suffered the embarrassment of right then and there being told what the recommended gratuity was before reaching into my pocket to rectify the situation. So the Kuchar looper-lowballing scandal hit home, granted my flub never resulted in getting tarred and feathered on Twitter. Theres a range when it comes to a regular tour caddys piece of their pros winnings on the PGA TOUR. But the rule of thumb is if youre playing wing man on the course to an established player you get a bonus for a top-10 finish and 10% of the prize money for a win. So by that math if a golfer tops the leaderboard and receives a check for 1.3 million, the etiquette is the caddies cut is $130,000. David Ortiz who works at El Camaleon Golf Club, in Playa del Carmen where the Mayakoba Classic is played was paid $5000 by Matt Kuchar to fill in for his regular caddie. Mum would be the word if that was the end of it but Kuchar went on to top the leaderboard and receive a winners check for $1.296 million. Ten weeks later Ortiz was offered a $15,000 bonus that he reportedly found unacceptable and turned down. When the story broke on Golf.com a couple days ago, the interwebs went wild with condemnation against Kuchar for not ponying up more. Ortiz didnt expect 10 percent of the winnings but had imagined that a $50,000 bonus would be the right amount. Yesterday Kuchar defended his decision. "It's done. Listen, I feel like I was fair and good. You can't make everybody happy. You're not going to buy people's ability to be OK with you, and this seems to be a social media issue more than anything, he told GolfChannel.com. I think it shouldn't be, knowing that there was a complete, agreed-upon deal that not only did I meet but exceeded. So, I certainly don't lose sleep over this. This is something that I'm quite happy with, and I was really happy for him to have a great week and make a good sum of money. Making $5,000 is a great week." Kuchar in a conversation with Golf.com writer Michael Bamberger said the agreement with Ortiz was a payment of $1,000 if he missed the cut, $2,000 if he made the cut, $3,000 for a top-20 result, and $4,000 for a top-10 finish. The extra $1000 was a thank you. While Ortiz reportedly accepted Kuchars contract before electing to work with him and legally doesnt have a leg to stand on in this dispute, the player ranked 10th all time on the career money list comes off as tone deaf in his defense. If Kuch could have this one back Im betting the nine time PGA TOUR winner would have given Ortiz a much more generous Thank You, right there on the spot back in November. If you have an amazing meal at a restaurant and the service was spectacular, when it comes time to pencil in the tip, youre probably going to aim higher than the minimum recommended gratuity. | Matt Kuchar has defended his decision to pay a fill-in caddie $5,000 for his winnings at the Mayakoba Classic. The tip was supposed to be $10,000, but the amount was increased to $15,000. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikedojc/2019/02/15/what-is-a-fair-tip-for-a-fill-in-caddie/ | 0.143918 |
What does the future hold for the Saints at quarterback after a successful 2018? | New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) takes the field during the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints at the Superdome on Sunday, December 23, 2018. (Photo by Michael DeMocker, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune) At age 39, Brees delivered a master class in how to play the quarterback position, especially in an absurdly efficient first 11 games. In that span, Brees completed 76.4 percent of his passes and had a 29:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio. His cumulative passer rating in those games was 127.4, a figure achieved through consistently excellent play Brees compiled a passer rating of 110 or better in nine of the first 11 games, and he became the second player in NFL history to record three games with a 150-plus passer rating in a single season, joining Kirk Cousins in 2015. With Brees playing at such a high level, the Saints ripped off 10 consecutive wins and finished 13-3 to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs. As superb as Brees was in 2018, he came back to earth in the home stretch of the season. In his final four games (Brees sat out the season finale), Brees passed for just 214.7 yards per game just 6.4 yards per attempt and threw as many interceptions (3) as touchdowns. The Saints went 3-1 in that stretch, but that was largely thanks to a defense that held opponents to 16 points per game. He bounced back a bit in the playoffs, throwing for 550 yards and four touchdowns. He turned 40 in the week leading up to the NFC championship game, and has already made it clear he will return for his 19th NFL season in 2019. | Drew Brees had an incredible start to the 2018 season. The 39-year-old is expected to return for his 19th NFL season in 2019. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.nola.com/expo/sports/g66l-2019/02/5ad6d45c864125/what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-saints-at-quarterback-after-a-successful-2018-.html | 0.141885 |
What does the future hold for the Saints at quarterback after a successful 2018? | New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) takes the field during the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints at the Superdome on Sunday, December 23, 2018. (Photo by Michael DeMocker, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune) At age 39, Brees delivered a master class in how to play the quarterback position, especially in an absurdly efficient first 11 games. In that span, Brees completed 76.4 percent of his passes and had a 29:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio. His cumulative passer rating in those games was 127.4, a figure achieved through consistently excellent play Brees compiled a passer rating of 110 or better in nine of the first 11 games, and he became the second player in NFL history to record three games with a 150-plus passer rating in a single season, joining Kirk Cousins in 2015. With Brees playing at such a high level, the Saints ripped off 10 consecutive wins and finished 13-3 to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs. As superb as Brees was in 2018, he came back to earth in the home stretch of the season. In his final four games (Brees sat out the season finale), Brees passed for just 214.7 yards per game just 6.4 yards per attempt and threw as many interceptions (3) as touchdowns. The Saints went 3-1 in that stretch, but that was largely thanks to a defense that held opponents to 16 points per game. He bounced back a bit in the playoffs, throwing for 550 yards and four touchdowns. He turned 40 in the week leading up to the NFC championship game, and has already made it clear he will return for his 19th NFL season in 2019. | Drew Brees had an incredible start to the 2018 season. The 39-year-old finished with a 127.4 passer rating. He is expected to return for his 19th NFL season in 2019. The Saints won 13-3 to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.nola.com/expo/sports/g66l-2019/02/5ad6d45c864125/what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-saints-at-quarterback-after-a-successful-2018-.html | 0.236769 |
Will Dell Technologies Continue to Surge Higher? | As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Dell Technologies As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Dell Technologies Inc. DELL. The stock has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month, while it is also above its 20 Day SMA too. This combination of strong price performance and favorable technical, could suggest that the stock may be on the right path. We certainly think that this might be the case, particularly if you consider DELLs recent earnings estimate revision activity. From this look, the companys future is quite favorable; as DELL has earned itself a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), meaning that its recent run may continue for a bit longer, and that this isnt the top for the in-focus company. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%. This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month. The stock has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month. | pegasus | 1 | https://news.yahoo.com/dell-technologies-continue-surge-higher-124312996.html | 0.168442 |
Will Dell Technologies Continue to Surge Higher? | As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Dell Technologies As of late, it has definitely been a great time to be an investor in Dell Technologies Inc. DELL. The stock has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month, while it is also above its 20 Day SMA too. This combination of strong price performance and favorable technical, could suggest that the stock may be on the right path. We certainly think that this might be the case, particularly if you consider DELLs recent earnings estimate revision activity. From this look, the companys future is quite favorable; as DELL has earned itself a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), meaning that its recent run may continue for a bit longer, and that this isnt the top for the in-focus company. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%. This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research | Dell Technologies Inc. (DELL) has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month. The stock has moved higher by 0.8% in the past month. This combination of strong price performance and favorable technical, could suggest that the stock may be on the right path. | pegasus | 2 | https://news.yahoo.com/dell-technologies-continue-surge-higher-124312996.html | 0.206487 |
Is my Gmail account really going away? | Q: I have had a Gmail account for the past few years. Recently I was informed that effective in early April 2019 all personal Gmail accounts will be deleted. I would appreciate your recommendations for a replacement email provider. A: I have been contacted a number of times on this issue and I am happy to say that your Gmail account is not going anywhere. You, like many others, have misinterpreted a message from Google that has been sent out to let users know that their Google+ account is being deleted. Google rolled out Google+ in 2011 in an attempt to compete with social media services like Facebook and Twitter. As it turns out, Google+ failed spectacularly, as evidenced by the fact that most Gmail users didnt even realize they had a Google+ account. Google announced last year that it would be shutting down the service and the email you received is simply confirmation of that fact. The email is intended to let you know in case you need to preserve any data you may have uploaded to that service. Q: I am using a Canon color printer on my home network and all of a sudden my Windows 10 computer will only print in black and white. My other computers using Windows 7 will still print in color. A: If the printer was working normally on your Windows 10 system it is possible that a recent Windows update might have made an unwanted change to your print settings. The first thing you will want to verify is that your printer settings are set correctly. To do this, open your Control Panel and then click on Devices and Printers. Locate your printer, right click it and select Printing Preferences. Look under the Paper Quality tab and you should see the ability to choose Black and White or Color as your preference. Just set it to Color and then click OK and close out the control panel. If you do not have these choices in the preferences Control Panel you may need to completely uninstall the print driver and set it up from scratch. Start this process by opening up the Printer Control Panel and right clicking on your printer and deleting it. Then click the Search box and type printui /s /t2 and hit Enter. This will bring up a list of all of the printer drivers on your PC. Locate your Canon, highlight it and click on the Remove button. Once you have done this, reboot and then setup the printer just like you did when you first installed it. If needed, you should be able to get setup instructions and software from the Canon support site. helpline@chron.com | Your Gmail account is not going anywhere, an email expert says. A recent Windows update may have made an unwanted change to your print settings. | pegasus | 0 | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/jaylee/article/Is-my-Gmail-account-really-going-away-13607363.php | 0.468267 |
Is my Gmail account really going away? | Q: I have had a Gmail account for the past few years. Recently I was informed that effective in early April 2019 all personal Gmail accounts will be deleted. I would appreciate your recommendations for a replacement email provider. A: I have been contacted a number of times on this issue and I am happy to say that your Gmail account is not going anywhere. You, like many others, have misinterpreted a message from Google that has been sent out to let users know that their Google+ account is being deleted. Google rolled out Google+ in 2011 in an attempt to compete with social media services like Facebook and Twitter. As it turns out, Google+ failed spectacularly, as evidenced by the fact that most Gmail users didnt even realize they had a Google+ account. Google announced last year that it would be shutting down the service and the email you received is simply confirmation of that fact. The email is intended to let you know in case you need to preserve any data you may have uploaded to that service. Q: I am using a Canon color printer on my home network and all of a sudden my Windows 10 computer will only print in black and white. My other computers using Windows 7 will still print in color. A: If the printer was working normally on your Windows 10 system it is possible that a recent Windows update might have made an unwanted change to your print settings. The first thing you will want to verify is that your printer settings are set correctly. To do this, open your Control Panel and then click on Devices and Printers. Locate your printer, right click it and select Printing Preferences. Look under the Paper Quality tab and you should see the ability to choose Black and White or Color as your preference. Just set it to Color and then click OK and close out the control panel. If you do not have these choices in the preferences Control Panel you may need to completely uninstall the print driver and set it up from scratch. Start this process by opening up the Printer Control Panel and right clicking on your printer and deleting it. Then click the Search box and type printui /s /t2 and hit Enter. This will bring up a list of all of the printer drivers on your PC. Locate your Canon, highlight it and click on the Remove button. Once you have done this, reboot and then setup the printer just like you did when you first installed it. If needed, you should be able to get setup instructions and software from the Canon support site. helpline@chron.com | Your Gmail account is not going anywhere, an email expert says. A recent Windows update may have made an unwanted change to your print settings. You may need to completely uninstall the print driver and set it up from scratch. | pegasus | 1 | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/jaylee/article/Is-my-Gmail-account-really-going-away-13607363.php | 0.51934 |
Is my Gmail account really going away? | Q: I have had a Gmail account for the past few years. Recently I was informed that effective in early April 2019 all personal Gmail accounts will be deleted. I would appreciate your recommendations for a replacement email provider. A: I have been contacted a number of times on this issue and I am happy to say that your Gmail account is not going anywhere. You, like many others, have misinterpreted a message from Google that has been sent out to let users know that their Google+ account is being deleted. Google rolled out Google+ in 2011 in an attempt to compete with social media services like Facebook and Twitter. As it turns out, Google+ failed spectacularly, as evidenced by the fact that most Gmail users didnt even realize they had a Google+ account. Google announced last year that it would be shutting down the service and the email you received is simply confirmation of that fact. The email is intended to let you know in case you need to preserve any data you may have uploaded to that service. Q: I am using a Canon color printer on my home network and all of a sudden my Windows 10 computer will only print in black and white. My other computers using Windows 7 will still print in color. A: If the printer was working normally on your Windows 10 system it is possible that a recent Windows update might have made an unwanted change to your print settings. The first thing you will want to verify is that your printer settings are set correctly. To do this, open your Control Panel and then click on Devices and Printers. Locate your printer, right click it and select Printing Preferences. Look under the Paper Quality tab and you should see the ability to choose Black and White or Color as your preference. Just set it to Color and then click OK and close out the control panel. If you do not have these choices in the preferences Control Panel you may need to completely uninstall the print driver and set it up from scratch. Start this process by opening up the Printer Control Panel and right clicking on your printer and deleting it. Then click the Search box and type printui /s /t2 and hit Enter. This will bring up a list of all of the printer drivers on your PC. Locate your Canon, highlight it and click on the Remove button. Once you have done this, reboot and then setup the printer just like you did when you first installed it. If needed, you should be able to get setup instructions and software from the Canon support site. helpline@chron.com | Your Gmail account is not going anywhere, an email expert says. A recent Windows update may have made an unwanted change to your print settings. You may need to completely uninstall the print driver and set it up from scratch. If you are still having trouble, you can get setup instructions and software from the Canon support site. | pegasus | 2 | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/jaylee/article/Is-my-Gmail-account-really-going-away-13607363.php | 0.556819 |
How much does Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods get paid? | Atrium Health gave Gene Woods about $6.1 million in total compensation last year, an increase of more than 12 percent from the year before, according to disclosures the Charlotte-based hospital system released on Thursday. Woods package includes a salary of about $1.7 million and a cash bonus of $1.6 million. The remainder includes contributions Atrium makes toward health benefits, as well as cash awards for performance. Its the largest payout for Woods since he began work at the public nonprofit in April 2016. In a statement, Atrium said its board of commissioners used independent, third-party experts to provide compensation data on organizations of similar size, scope and complexity. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Charlotte Observer It also noted that combined compensation for Atriums top 10 executives is less than 1 percent of total compensation for all its roughly 63,000 employees. The figure includes more than 36,000 in the Charlotte metro area. For 2017, Woods made about $5.4 million in total compensation. In 2016, he received $1.7 million in total compensation, including a salary of $828,110 and a bonus of $500,000. That year, he replaced predecessor Michael Tarwater. Last year was one of much change, some of it turbulent, at the states largest hospital network. That included: In February, Atrium announced a name change from Carolinas HealthCare System, a move it said reflected its growth from a single community hospital in Charlotte to a regional health care giant. The next day, Atrium announced plans to combine with Georgia-based health care system Navicent. That deal closed in December. In March, Atrium said it had ended discussions with UNC Health Care to form a joint operating company, citing an inability to reach an agreement to form a mega-system. In April, a group of about 90 doctors announced they wanted to leave Atrium, accusing it of monopolistic and anti-competitive behavior. Atrium granted the doctors requests to break away. In July, Atrium switched anesthesiology providers at most of its Charlotte-area hospitals. The termination of its contract with a longtime vendor sparked lawsuits that are pending in North Carolina Business Court; In October, Atrium said it was seeking to build a $116 million hospital and $13.5 million medical office in western Union County, a project it estimated to be completed in early 2022. And in November, Atrium said that personal information for more than 2 million of it patients may have been compromised in a data breach of billing information, including addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. Gene Woods is president and CEO of Carolinas HealthCare System Jon Strayhorn Jon Strayhorn MAC330 In disclosing Woods latest compensation figures, Atrium noted that it also invested more than $100 million in its frontline employees, nurses and doctors last year. Those investments included announcing in June an increase in Atriums minimum wage to $12.50 per hour, up from $11.50. That change impacted more than 7,500 employees in the Charlotte metro area, Atrium said at the time. This month, Atrium said it plans to increase pay for more than 15,000 employees, primarily nurses and those in nursing support roles across the Charlotte-based hospital system. Those increases will range from 2 to 5 percent for some workers and 5 percent on average for others, Atrium said. | Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods got about $6.1 million in total compensation last year. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article226281770.html | 0.517423 |
How much does Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods get paid? | Atrium Health gave Gene Woods about $6.1 million in total compensation last year, an increase of more than 12 percent from the year before, according to disclosures the Charlotte-based hospital system released on Thursday. Woods package includes a salary of about $1.7 million and a cash bonus of $1.6 million. The remainder includes contributions Atrium makes toward health benefits, as well as cash awards for performance. Its the largest payout for Woods since he began work at the public nonprofit in April 2016. In a statement, Atrium said its board of commissioners used independent, third-party experts to provide compensation data on organizations of similar size, scope and complexity. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Charlotte Observer It also noted that combined compensation for Atriums top 10 executives is less than 1 percent of total compensation for all its roughly 63,000 employees. The figure includes more than 36,000 in the Charlotte metro area. For 2017, Woods made about $5.4 million in total compensation. In 2016, he received $1.7 million in total compensation, including a salary of $828,110 and a bonus of $500,000. That year, he replaced predecessor Michael Tarwater. Last year was one of much change, some of it turbulent, at the states largest hospital network. That included: In February, Atrium announced a name change from Carolinas HealthCare System, a move it said reflected its growth from a single community hospital in Charlotte to a regional health care giant. The next day, Atrium announced plans to combine with Georgia-based health care system Navicent. That deal closed in December. In March, Atrium said it had ended discussions with UNC Health Care to form a joint operating company, citing an inability to reach an agreement to form a mega-system. In April, a group of about 90 doctors announced they wanted to leave Atrium, accusing it of monopolistic and anti-competitive behavior. Atrium granted the doctors requests to break away. In July, Atrium switched anesthesiology providers at most of its Charlotte-area hospitals. The termination of its contract with a longtime vendor sparked lawsuits that are pending in North Carolina Business Court; In October, Atrium said it was seeking to build a $116 million hospital and $13.5 million medical office in western Union County, a project it estimated to be completed in early 2022. And in November, Atrium said that personal information for more than 2 million of it patients may have been compromised in a data breach of billing information, including addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. Gene Woods is president and CEO of Carolinas HealthCare System Jon Strayhorn Jon Strayhorn MAC330 In disclosing Woods latest compensation figures, Atrium noted that it also invested more than $100 million in its frontline employees, nurses and doctors last year. Those investments included announcing in June an increase in Atriums minimum wage to $12.50 per hour, up from $11.50. That change impacted more than 7,500 employees in the Charlotte metro area, Atrium said at the time. This month, Atrium said it plans to increase pay for more than 15,000 employees, primarily nurses and those in nursing support roles across the Charlotte-based hospital system. Those increases will range from 2 to 5 percent for some workers and 5 percent on average for others, Atrium said. | Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods got about $6.1 million in total compensation last year. It's the largest payout for Woods since he began work at the public nonprofit in April 2016. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article226281770.html | 0.553721 |
How much does Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods get paid? | Atrium Health gave Gene Woods about $6.1 million in total compensation last year, an increase of more than 12 percent from the year before, according to disclosures the Charlotte-based hospital system released on Thursday. Woods package includes a salary of about $1.7 million and a cash bonus of $1.6 million. The remainder includes contributions Atrium makes toward health benefits, as well as cash awards for performance. Its the largest payout for Woods since he began work at the public nonprofit in April 2016. In a statement, Atrium said its board of commissioners used independent, third-party experts to provide compensation data on organizations of similar size, scope and complexity. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Charlotte Observer It also noted that combined compensation for Atriums top 10 executives is less than 1 percent of total compensation for all its roughly 63,000 employees. The figure includes more than 36,000 in the Charlotte metro area. For 2017, Woods made about $5.4 million in total compensation. In 2016, he received $1.7 million in total compensation, including a salary of $828,110 and a bonus of $500,000. That year, he replaced predecessor Michael Tarwater. Last year was one of much change, some of it turbulent, at the states largest hospital network. That included: In February, Atrium announced a name change from Carolinas HealthCare System, a move it said reflected its growth from a single community hospital in Charlotte to a regional health care giant. The next day, Atrium announced plans to combine with Georgia-based health care system Navicent. That deal closed in December. In March, Atrium said it had ended discussions with UNC Health Care to form a joint operating company, citing an inability to reach an agreement to form a mega-system. In April, a group of about 90 doctors announced they wanted to leave Atrium, accusing it of monopolistic and anti-competitive behavior. Atrium granted the doctors requests to break away. In July, Atrium switched anesthesiology providers at most of its Charlotte-area hospitals. The termination of its contract with a longtime vendor sparked lawsuits that are pending in North Carolina Business Court; In October, Atrium said it was seeking to build a $116 million hospital and $13.5 million medical office in western Union County, a project it estimated to be completed in early 2022. And in November, Atrium said that personal information for more than 2 million of it patients may have been compromised in a data breach of billing information, including addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. Gene Woods is president and CEO of Carolinas HealthCare System Jon Strayhorn Jon Strayhorn MAC330 In disclosing Woods latest compensation figures, Atrium noted that it also invested more than $100 million in its frontline employees, nurses and doctors last year. Those investments included announcing in June an increase in Atriums minimum wage to $12.50 per hour, up from $11.50. That change impacted more than 7,500 employees in the Charlotte metro area, Atrium said at the time. This month, Atrium said it plans to increase pay for more than 15,000 employees, primarily nurses and those in nursing support roles across the Charlotte-based hospital system. Those increases will range from 2 to 5 percent for some workers and 5 percent on average for others, Atrium said. | Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods got about $6.1 million in total compensation last year. It's the largest payout for Woods since he began work at the public nonprofit in April 2016. Atrium said its board of commissioners used independent, third-party experts to provide compensation data. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article226281770.html | 0.607108 |
Is the Clinton campaign setting a trap for Trump or does it really think it can win Arizona? | Arizona has voted for the Republican candidate fifteen times in the last sixteen elections. (The exception was 1996, when the state narrowly voted for Bill Clinton over Bob Dole.) Clinton was up a shade over one percent in the polls in the state in mid-August, but has since fallen back to earthshe currently trails Trump by an average of four points. FiveThirtyEights polls-plus forecast gives her a 23.3 percent chance of winning the state, which means that she has about the same chance of winning Arizona as she does of winning Missouri and Georgia, two states she almost certainly is going to lose. And yet, the Clinton campaign has announced a six-figure ad buy in the state. Maybe. The Clinton campaign, led by campaign manager Robby Mook, wants to shoot the moon. Of course, any campaign manager would, but Mook has sent signs that he and the campaign are eyeing a landslidethey just hired staffers in Georgia, another Democratic dream state. But its just as likely that all this ambition is a feint, meant to force Trump to spend time and resources in states the Clinton campaign fully expects him to winless than a day before the Arizona ad buy was announced Politico reported that the Clinton campaign was convinced that Trump had fallen for one of the oldest tricks in the book. This would be the equivalent of Hillary having to campaign in Massachusetts or having to campaign in California, except [to raise] money, Democratic strategist Chris Lehane told Politico. Either he has fallen for it hook, line and sinker, or there are substantive concerns given his changes in some of the margins within specific cohorts of voters. Either way, its good news. In other words, the Clinton campaign sees ad buys in Arizona as a win-win. At the very least, they can fool Trump into spending his own resources in the state. At most, they win Arizona for the first time in twenty years. | The Clinton campaign has announced a six-figure ad buy in Arizona. The state has voted for the Republican candidate fifteen times in the last sixteen elections. | pegasus | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136502/clinton-campaign-setting-trap-trump-really-think-can-win-arizona | 0.12883 |
Is the Clinton campaign setting a trap for Trump or does it really think it can win Arizona? | Arizona has voted for the Republican candidate fifteen times in the last sixteen elections. (The exception was 1996, when the state narrowly voted for Bill Clinton over Bob Dole.) Clinton was up a shade over one percent in the polls in the state in mid-August, but has since fallen back to earthshe currently trails Trump by an average of four points. FiveThirtyEights polls-plus forecast gives her a 23.3 percent chance of winning the state, which means that she has about the same chance of winning Arizona as she does of winning Missouri and Georgia, two states she almost certainly is going to lose. And yet, the Clinton campaign has announced a six-figure ad buy in the state. Maybe. The Clinton campaign, led by campaign manager Robby Mook, wants to shoot the moon. Of course, any campaign manager would, but Mook has sent signs that he and the campaign are eyeing a landslidethey just hired staffers in Georgia, another Democratic dream state. But its just as likely that all this ambition is a feint, meant to force Trump to spend time and resources in states the Clinton campaign fully expects him to winless than a day before the Arizona ad buy was announced Politico reported that the Clinton campaign was convinced that Trump had fallen for one of the oldest tricks in the book. This would be the equivalent of Hillary having to campaign in Massachusetts or having to campaign in California, except [to raise] money, Democratic strategist Chris Lehane told Politico. Either he has fallen for it hook, line and sinker, or there are substantive concerns given his changes in some of the margins within specific cohorts of voters. Either way, its good news. In other words, the Clinton campaign sees ad buys in Arizona as a win-win. At the very least, they can fool Trump into spending his own resources in the state. At most, they win Arizona for the first time in twenty years. | The Clinton campaign has announced a six-figure ad buy in the state. Arizona has voted for the Republican candidate fifteen times in the last sixteen elections. It's just as likely that all this ambition is a feint, meant to force Trump to spend time and resources in states the Clinton campaign fully expects him to win. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136502/clinton-campaign-setting-trap-trump-really-think-can-win-arizona | 0.304658 |
What Makes A Novel Subversive? | Judy Blumes books are famous for pushing the decency envelope. Her 1972 novel Forever is also frequently banned for sexual content and for profanity. (Pretty much yearly since its publication, Forever has been challenged by Focus on the Family or The Christian Coalition.) But theres another aspect to Forever thats rarely discussed: It has a fat character who has lots of sex. Sybil is often seen as a foil to the main character Katherine, a rail-thin control freak who loses her virginity deliberately and with purpose. Sybil is the other side of the body image spectrum: Shes fat and has been laid by six guys. At least she gets to have sex, which is pretty uncommon for a fat girl in 1972 young adult fiction. (And theres a penis named Ralph in the book, yet another reason to read this classic.) But Forever is an extreme outlier. The way the media depicts fat charactersand fat peoplehas been a problem for generations. In 2011 NPR aired a piece on fat stereotypes in pop culture. The report dissected the typical fat character in TV shows and films: someone self-loathing and desperate to be loved. Of course, the lives of fat people arent much different from those of thin people. But you wouldnt know that from the way fat bodies are portrayed on TV and in film. Research on weight bias in the media suggests that most representations of fat people in media are stigmatizing. More research suggests that shows like The Biggest Loser and More to Love reinforce anti-fat bias rather than fat acceptance. We were all teenagers once This is why Eleanor & Park is so refreshingly different. Like many protagonists in young adult novels, Eleanor is a teenager whos desperate to be an adult so she can escape her awful circumstances. But while the parents trying to ban the book pounced on the profanity, they ignored one of the novels biggest triumphs: Eleanor is fat. Yes, Eleanor is a fat female protagonist in a young adult romance novel and shes in loveshe even has a cute boyfriend named Park. As author John Green wrote in a review of the novel, the obstacle in Eleanor & Park is simply the world. The world cannot stomach a relationship between a good-looking Korean kid and Big Red. (Big Red is Eleanors nickname.) Last year, BuzzFeed writer Kaye Toal penned a beautiful personal essay about discovering Eleanor in an airport bookstore. Part of what struck Toal as significant about Eleanor is that she is fat yet is not required to become thin or change in order to be loved. Despite the recent increase in fat characters appearing on television and in movies, many of them are required to change in order to be accepted. Not surprisingly, another study published in 2013 connects the prevalence of the thin ideal in popular literature to low self-esteem in female readers. Letting Eleanor be fat and be loved is much needed in todays climate of the obesity epidemic and misplaced concerns with fatness. Park loves Eleanor; she loves him back. A simple story, but with a difference. Eleanors fat is not really a crucial aspect of her being. She doesnt need to be fixed. Thats what makes this lovely and painful novel subversiveand what makes efforts to ban it all the more misguided. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. | Frida Ghitis: Judy Blume's 1972 novel Forever has a fat character who has lots of sex. She says the novel is subversive because the character is not required to be thin to be loved. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137295/makes-novel-subversive | 0.230818 |
What Makes A Novel Subversive? | Judy Blumes books are famous for pushing the decency envelope. Her 1972 novel Forever is also frequently banned for sexual content and for profanity. (Pretty much yearly since its publication, Forever has been challenged by Focus on the Family or The Christian Coalition.) But theres another aspect to Forever thats rarely discussed: It has a fat character who has lots of sex. Sybil is often seen as a foil to the main character Katherine, a rail-thin control freak who loses her virginity deliberately and with purpose. Sybil is the other side of the body image spectrum: Shes fat and has been laid by six guys. At least she gets to have sex, which is pretty uncommon for a fat girl in 1972 young adult fiction. (And theres a penis named Ralph in the book, yet another reason to read this classic.) But Forever is an extreme outlier. The way the media depicts fat charactersand fat peoplehas been a problem for generations. In 2011 NPR aired a piece on fat stereotypes in pop culture. The report dissected the typical fat character in TV shows and films: someone self-loathing and desperate to be loved. Of course, the lives of fat people arent much different from those of thin people. But you wouldnt know that from the way fat bodies are portrayed on TV and in film. Research on weight bias in the media suggests that most representations of fat people in media are stigmatizing. More research suggests that shows like The Biggest Loser and More to Love reinforce anti-fat bias rather than fat acceptance. We were all teenagers once This is why Eleanor & Park is so refreshingly different. Like many protagonists in young adult novels, Eleanor is a teenager whos desperate to be an adult so she can escape her awful circumstances. But while the parents trying to ban the book pounced on the profanity, they ignored one of the novels biggest triumphs: Eleanor is fat. Yes, Eleanor is a fat female protagonist in a young adult romance novel and shes in loveshe even has a cute boyfriend named Park. As author John Green wrote in a review of the novel, the obstacle in Eleanor & Park is simply the world. The world cannot stomach a relationship between a good-looking Korean kid and Big Red. (Big Red is Eleanors nickname.) Last year, BuzzFeed writer Kaye Toal penned a beautiful personal essay about discovering Eleanor in an airport bookstore. Part of what struck Toal as significant about Eleanor is that she is fat yet is not required to become thin or change in order to be loved. Despite the recent increase in fat characters appearing on television and in movies, many of them are required to change in order to be accepted. Not surprisingly, another study published in 2013 connects the prevalence of the thin ideal in popular literature to low self-esteem in female readers. Letting Eleanor be fat and be loved is much needed in todays climate of the obesity epidemic and misplaced concerns with fatness. Park loves Eleanor; she loves him back. A simple story, but with a difference. Eleanors fat is not really a crucial aspect of her being. She doesnt need to be fixed. Thats what makes this lovely and painful novel subversiveand what makes efforts to ban it all the more misguided. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. | Frida Ghitis: Judy Blume's 1972 novel Forever has a fat character who has lots of sex. She says the novel is subversive because the character is not required to be thin to be loved. Ghitis says the book is refreshingly different from the typical fat character in pop culture. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137295/makes-novel-subversive | 0.302231 |
Who Detoxified Paul Ryans Budget? | Initially, it looked like Ryans extreme agenda would become a death warrant for Republican candidates. In May 2011, the month after Republicans had passed Ryans budget on a party-line vote, Republican Congressman Chris Lee resigned, opening up a heavily GOP district in upstate New York. Republicans had a solid candidate, state legislator Jane Corwin; Democrats nominated Kathy Hochul, a moderate county clerk. Hochul immediately got to work savaging the Ryan budget. Corwin had never had a chance to vote for that budget, and she outspent Hochul 2-1 in the race. But Hochul, now New Yorks lieutenant governor, won by vowing to preserve social programs from the Ryan budget. Liberals assumed that the Ryan budget would continue to be poisonous in elections, and that any future efforts to pass it would be punished at the ballot box. But it didnt materialize that way. Republicans kept passing budgets similar to Ryans cuts-for-the-poor, tax-breaks-for-the-rich approach. But though Democrats spent money on campaign ads in 2012 and 2014 that specifically focused on Ryans plans to transform Medicare, the attack lost its bite. Part of this can be attributed to Democratic fecklessness. Even when Ryan was the vice-presidential nominee in 2012and even when he reiterated that if elected, he and Mitt Romney would pass his budgetthis emblem of the conservative domestic policy agenda merely sat in the background of the presidential campaign. Instead, character-based attacks on Romneys private equity record and statements about 47 percent of the country being moochers took the lead. Partly because, by the time he was nominated, Ryan had become somebody Democrats could work with, relative to the Tea Party conservatives whod swept into the House in 2010. Ron Wyden had joined with Ryan in late 2011 to endorse his Medicare plan. After the election, Patty Murray engineered a Bipartisan Budget Act with Ryan in 2013, to avert a government shutdown. When Ryan became Speaker last October, he ushered through another Bipartisan Budget Act. The flack he took on his right for that deal, which increased discretionary spending modestly while offsetting that with other cuts, established him as the sensible alternative (again, relatively), the guy Democrats could deal with in the opposition party. And this is where media culpability comes in. Reporters and pundits have historically gone to bat for Ryan, exalting him as a legitimate thinker trying to solve problems rather than a dangerous ideologue. Politifact helped negate Democrats Medicare attacks by calling them the 2011 Lie of the Year. Nobody in Congress gets more loving profiles, dating from before he became the Veep nominee or Speaker to the present day. That Ryans budgets were mainly snake oil, that his plans would have dire consequences for every American without a trust fund, usually get edited out of the story. Even today, the media assists Ryan when he tries to distance himself from Donald Trumpwhen in reality, Trump would likely be little more than an autopen as president, signing whatever noxious policy Ryan shuttled through the House and put on his desk. Despite this, the media almost affords him sympathy for his plight about dealing with Trump (hes campaigning with Trump on Saturday, so it cant be that wrenching), rather than recognizing his role as the author of the agenda the next Republican president will carry out. The normalization of Ryan as a serious, honest figure allows him to put out as radical a budget as would ever be initiated in American history without anyone batting an eyelash. This may not come back to sting the country next year, if Trump falls the way his poll numbers currently suggest. But at some not-too-distant point, when conservatives capture the entire government, theyll be able to implement this blueprint, the Ryan budget, that should have been made into nuclear waste long ago. | Paul Waldman: Paul Ryan's budget was a death warrant for Republican candidates. He says Democrats spent money on campaign ads in 2012 and 2014 that focused on Ryans plans to transform Medicare, but the attack lost its bite. Ryan became somebody Democrats could work with, Waldman says. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137553/detoxified-paul-ryans-budget | 0.156114 |
Why was Hillary Clinton so cavalier about the question of her health? | The Clinton campaign claims she was diagnosed with pneumonia on Friday, meaning that the press and the public were notified two days later, and only after she semi-collapsed on camera. One explanation for the Clinton campaigns silence is simply that it was in uncharted water: It is normal to release bills of health (both Clinton and Trump have given the public the bare minimum on this count), but there is no norm relating to the release of a pneumonia diagnosis. Dr. Lisa R. Bardack, M.D., Clinton's doctor, says the Democratic nominee has pneumonia. Full statement: pic.twitter.com/qloLbhjdZy Dan Merica (@danmericaCNN) September 11, 2016 Clinton did cop to having allergies a week ago (sort of), and no one took it seriously, because people dont take allergies seriously. So its also possible that the Clinton campaign, obsessed with narrative at a granular level, worried about the backlash of disclosing a low-level health problem. But Clinton has also spent the last few weeks being extremely cavalier about the question of her health, treating the issue as stemming from a hare-brained corner of the vast right wing conspiracy, rather than the legitimate one it has now become. In late August, she appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where Kimmel took her pulse and she opened a jar of pickles to prove her vitality. This was just two weeks before the pneumonia diagnosis. Its possible that this was just wishful thinkingthat Clintons health would cease to be an issue, exposing the candidates enemies as the weirdos they arebut it also fits a troubling pattern of choosing opacity over openness and of making short-term decisions that backfire spectacularly. That, politically speaking at least, seems to be the biggest blunder here. Clintons pneumonia is now a political issue, because it fits snuggly within a narrative that has existed for two and a half decades that the Clintons, and Hillary in particular, are not honest with the public or the press except when it is absolutely necessary. The Clinton campaign only has itself to blame. | Hillary Clinton's pneumonia diagnosis came two days after she semi-collapsed on camera. Clinton has been cavalier about the question of her health, treating the issue as stemming from a hare-brained corner of the vast right wing conspiracy, rather than a legitimate one. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136719/hillary-clinton-cavalier-question-health | 0.226969 |
Did a Clinton campaign decision made in May doom down-ballot Democrats? | One of the biggest takeaways from Julys DNC was that Hillary Clinton was actively courting Republicans. The last two days of the convention were all about flag waving and military might: Ronald Reagan would have been proud. Moreover, the DNCs highest profile speakersboth Clintons, Barack Obama, Tim Kaine, Michael Bloombergrelentlessly argued that Trumpism was not Republicanism and that Trump was an aberration, not a representative of the party of Lincoln. This made many Democrats and progressives nervous. The Clinton campaign had decided to woo Republicans, particularly moderate or suburban ones, and they worried that this would hurt down-ballot Democrats and, potentially, hurt Clinton with Bernie Sanders voters. At the time, it seemed like a risky, but worthwhile strategy: Sanders voters seemed to be coming around to Clinton and down-ballot Democrats could tie their opponents to Trumps vile policies and comments. What we didnt know at the time, however, was that the decision to run against Trumpism and not Republicanism was made in May, when the Democratic primary was definitively won, but not yet over. BuzzFeeds Ruby Cramer has a long and sharp article that uses WikiLeaks emails to illuminate the decision to make the campaign about personality, not policy: On the trail, Clinton doesnt engage much in the economic and social debates that typically animate both parties in a presidential election. (In May, on at least two occasions, WikiLeaks emails show, Clintons team asked the DNC to stay out of policy when it came to framing Trump once around his May 12 meeting with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, and a second time in relation to infrastructure messaging.) Unfortunately, as Cramer notes, the strategy hasnt worked. With less than 50 days until election day, the race is still close. And down-ballot Democrats in key races are struggling because their Republican challengers have been able to wriggle free of the association with Trump. As Cramer notes, New Hampshire Republican Kelly Ayotte is seen as a different kind of Republican by voters, while Senators Pat Toomey and Richard Burr are currently winning a fifth of Clinton voters. The Clinton campaign has signaled that it is going to change strategies: That it will no longer simply make the case that Trump shouldnt be elected, but that it will make a more forceful case for the differences between the two candidates policies. Theres enough time for this strategy to pay dividends for Clinton, but it may be too late for down-ballot Democrats. | Hillary Clinton was actively courting Republicans at the DNC. The Clinton campaign worried that this would hurt down-ballot Democrats and, potentially, hurt Clinton with Bernie Sanders voters. Unfortunately, as Ruby Cramer notes, the strategy hasn't worked. | bart | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137093/clinton-campaign-decision-made-may-doom-down-ballot-democrats | 0.294279 |
Did a Clinton campaign decision made in May doom down-ballot Democrats? | One of the biggest takeaways from Julys DNC was that Hillary Clinton was actively courting Republicans. The last two days of the convention were all about flag waving and military might: Ronald Reagan would have been proud. Moreover, the DNCs highest profile speakersboth Clintons, Barack Obama, Tim Kaine, Michael Bloombergrelentlessly argued that Trumpism was not Republicanism and that Trump was an aberration, not a representative of the party of Lincoln. This made many Democrats and progressives nervous. The Clinton campaign had decided to woo Republicans, particularly moderate or suburban ones, and they worried that this would hurt down-ballot Democrats and, potentially, hurt Clinton with Bernie Sanders voters. At the time, it seemed like a risky, but worthwhile strategy: Sanders voters seemed to be coming around to Clinton and down-ballot Democrats could tie their opponents to Trumps vile policies and comments. What we didnt know at the time, however, was that the decision to run against Trumpism and not Republicanism was made in May, when the Democratic primary was definitively won, but not yet over. BuzzFeeds Ruby Cramer has a long and sharp article that uses WikiLeaks emails to illuminate the decision to make the campaign about personality, not policy: On the trail, Clinton doesnt engage much in the economic and social debates that typically animate both parties in a presidential election. (In May, on at least two occasions, WikiLeaks emails show, Clintons team asked the DNC to stay out of policy when it came to framing Trump once around his May 12 meeting with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, and a second time in relation to infrastructure messaging.) Unfortunately, as Cramer notes, the strategy hasnt worked. With less than 50 days until election day, the race is still close. And down-ballot Democrats in key races are struggling because their Republican challengers have been able to wriggle free of the association with Trump. As Cramer notes, New Hampshire Republican Kelly Ayotte is seen as a different kind of Republican by voters, while Senators Pat Toomey and Richard Burr are currently winning a fifth of Clinton voters. The Clinton campaign has signaled that it is going to change strategies: That it will no longer simply make the case that Trump shouldnt be elected, but that it will make a more forceful case for the differences between the two candidates policies. Theres enough time for this strategy to pay dividends for Clinton, but it may be too late for down-ballot Democrats. | Hillary Clinton was actively courting Republicans at the DNC. The Clinton campaign worried that this would hurt down-ballot Democrats and, potentially, hurt Clinton with Bernie Sanders voters. Unfortunately, as Ruby Cramer notes, the strategy hasnt worked. With less than 50 days until election day, the race is still close. | bart | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137093/clinton-campaign-decision-made-may-doom-down-ballot-democrats | 0.385926 |
Could Donald Trump take The New York Times to court for publishing his tax returns? | Trump has threatened to sue the Times for publishing three pages from his 1995 tax returns. The Times story quotes one of Trumps lawyers, who argued that publication of the records is illegal without Trumps authorization and promised prompt initiation of appropriate legal action. He was referring to section 7213 of the tax code stating that it is a felony for any person to willfully print or publish tax returns provided in a manner unauthorized, which is punishable by a fine of $5,000, imprisonment for five years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution. Most legal experts, however, are confident that Trump has no basis for a suit against a media organization like the Times, which is protected under First Amendment privileges specific to journalists. The candidate will not be able to win damages in a suit against the paper because the documents printed are of vital public concerna legal precedent established nearly 50 years ago in the landmark case New York Times v. Sullivan, in which the Supreme Court ruled: The theory of our Constitution is that ... every newspaper express its view on matters of public concern, and may not be barred from speaking or publishing because those in control of government think that what is said or written is unwise, unfair, false, or malicious. The Supreme Court further clarified the public concern protection in a 2001 case, Bartnicki v. Hopper, deciding in favor of a radio journalist who aired a phone call that was illegally taped by a third party. The legal precedent is overwhelmingly on the side of the Times, but media skeptics have outlined Trumps potential legal strategy against executive editor Dean Baquet. The Hills media columnist Joe Concha and Law Newzs Robert Barnes, a First Amendment and tax lawyer in California, both argued that Baquet displayed willful intent to break the law when he publicly stated that he would risk jail time to obtain Trumps tax records at a Harvard University forum two weeks ago. Barnes, writing for Fox News, suggested that Trump could bring a criminal willfulness prosecution against the editor, claiming that this is as close as you get to a smoking gun of willful intent to break the law. It wouldnt be the first paper Trump has attempted to sue, but theres one snag: If he files a suit, it would be an admission that the returns are real, which could be even more devastating to his campaign. | Trump has threatened to sue the Times for publishing three pages from his 1995 tax returns. | bart | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137392/donald-trump-take-new-york-times-court-publishing-tax-returns | 0.101086 |
Could Donald Trump take The New York Times to court for publishing his tax returns? | Trump has threatened to sue the Times for publishing three pages from his 1995 tax returns. The Times story quotes one of Trumps lawyers, who argued that publication of the records is illegal without Trumps authorization and promised prompt initiation of appropriate legal action. He was referring to section 7213 of the tax code stating that it is a felony for any person to willfully print or publish tax returns provided in a manner unauthorized, which is punishable by a fine of $5,000, imprisonment for five years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution. Most legal experts, however, are confident that Trump has no basis for a suit against a media organization like the Times, which is protected under First Amendment privileges specific to journalists. The candidate will not be able to win damages in a suit against the paper because the documents printed are of vital public concerna legal precedent established nearly 50 years ago in the landmark case New York Times v. Sullivan, in which the Supreme Court ruled: The theory of our Constitution is that ... every newspaper express its view on matters of public concern, and may not be barred from speaking or publishing because those in control of government think that what is said or written is unwise, unfair, false, or malicious. The Supreme Court further clarified the public concern protection in a 2001 case, Bartnicki v. Hopper, deciding in favor of a radio journalist who aired a phone call that was illegally taped by a third party. The legal precedent is overwhelmingly on the side of the Times, but media skeptics have outlined Trumps potential legal strategy against executive editor Dean Baquet. The Hills media columnist Joe Concha and Law Newzs Robert Barnes, a First Amendment and tax lawyer in California, both argued that Baquet displayed willful intent to break the law when he publicly stated that he would risk jail time to obtain Trumps tax records at a Harvard University forum two weeks ago. Barnes, writing for Fox News, suggested that Trump could bring a criminal willfulness prosecution against the editor, claiming that this is as close as you get to a smoking gun of willful intent to break the law. It wouldnt be the first paper Trump has attempted to sue, but theres one snag: If he files a suit, it would be an admission that the returns are real, which could be even more devastating to his campaign. | Trump has threatened to sue the Times for publishing three pages from his 1995 tax returns. Most legal experts are confident that Trump has no basis for a suit against a media organization like the Times, which is protected under First Amendment privileges specific to journalists. | pegasus | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137392/donald-trump-take-new-york-times-court-publishing-tax-returns | 0.188469 |
Should Hillary Clinton have gone after the tape more last night? | The tape had dominated the news for 72 hours, but Clinton herself stayed mumher aides told the press that she wanted to save her response for the biggest stage possible. And when Anderson Cooper asked her about it, her response was pitch perfect. What we all saw and heard on Friday was Donald talking about women, she said. I think its clear to anyone who heard it that it represents exactly who he is. Because weve seen this throughout the campaign. He has also targeted immigrants, African Americans, Latinos, people with disabilities. In other words, she wasnt going to pummel Trump with the tape, but to slot it into an argument that shes been building for months: Donald Trump is a bigot who is unfit for the office. But Trump also raised the stakes by appearing in a press conference before the debate with four women who have accused the Clintons of abetting or committing sexual assault, and inviting them to sit in the front row of the debate itself. Trump was clearly using these women as a human shield, and some wondered if the move got under Clintons skin. Feels like we would have heard more on "the tape" from Clinton tonight under other circumstances. Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) October 10, 2016 Clinton was probably held back by the town-hall formatits hard to really pummel your opponent when youre ostensibly supposed to focus on individual voters. But its a question worth asking, especially given that the horse race punditry has knocked Clinton for not finishing Trump off on Sunday. Clinton may have held back to avoid counterpunches about her husband, but its just as likely that she exercised restraint simply because she doesnt have to be the person to pummel Trump over the tape. The Clinton campaign will spend the next month running ad after ad about it, and her surrogates will go on offense, too, allowing her to take the elevated position she did last night. This is an attack thats still going to be incredibly effective for the next four weeks. | Clinton didn't go after "the tape" more than she did on Sunday. She didn't have to, but it's still an effective line of attack for the next month. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137671/hillary-clinton-gone-the-tape-last-night | 0.141131 |
Should Hillary Clinton have gone after the tape more last night? | The tape had dominated the news for 72 hours, but Clinton herself stayed mumher aides told the press that she wanted to save her response for the biggest stage possible. And when Anderson Cooper asked her about it, her response was pitch perfect. What we all saw and heard on Friday was Donald talking about women, she said. I think its clear to anyone who heard it that it represents exactly who he is. Because weve seen this throughout the campaign. He has also targeted immigrants, African Americans, Latinos, people with disabilities. In other words, she wasnt going to pummel Trump with the tape, but to slot it into an argument that shes been building for months: Donald Trump is a bigot who is unfit for the office. But Trump also raised the stakes by appearing in a press conference before the debate with four women who have accused the Clintons of abetting or committing sexual assault, and inviting them to sit in the front row of the debate itself. Trump was clearly using these women as a human shield, and some wondered if the move got under Clintons skin. Feels like we would have heard more on "the tape" from Clinton tonight under other circumstances. Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) October 10, 2016 Clinton was probably held back by the town-hall formatits hard to really pummel your opponent when youre ostensibly supposed to focus on individual voters. But its a question worth asking, especially given that the horse race punditry has knocked Clinton for not finishing Trump off on Sunday. Clinton may have held back to avoid counterpunches about her husband, but its just as likely that she exercised restraint simply because she doesnt have to be the person to pummel Trump over the tape. The Clinton campaign will spend the next month running ad after ad about it, and her surrogates will go on offense, too, allowing her to take the elevated position she did last night. This is an attack thats still going to be incredibly effective for the next four weeks. | Clinton didn't go after "the tape" more than she did on Sunday. She didn't have to, but she did have to use it to make a point about Donald Trump. Clinton's campaign will spend the next month running ad after ad about it, and her surrogates will go on offense, too. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137671/hillary-clinton-gone-the-tape-last-night | 0.147279 |
Is Sean Hannity gunning for a position in the Trump White House? | Theres a lot of great gossip in Robert Drapers latest piece for The New York Times magazine about the ongoing Trump-fueled civil war in conservative media. We learn, for instance, that Trump and Ann Coulter are especially close, that she helped him with his Mexican rapist announcement speech, and that Trump has given her jewelry and a free membership to Mar-a-Lago. Trump has made my life better in so many ways, Coulter tells Draper. Draper writes that Trump has implicitly encouraged his supporters to consider themselves part of the campaign team, so it should come as no surprise that these members of the media (Im careful to not say journalists) are acting like campaign staffers. And it should especially come as no surprise that some of them may be eyeing positions in the Trump White House, should he win in November. Similarly, while weve known for a while that Trump gets his talking points from conservative radio, Drapers piece lays out just how intertwined they are. Heres Draper on Hannity, for instance: I asked Hannity if it was true that, as a Trump confidant had told me, he wished to be considered as a potential Trump White House chief of staff. Thats news to me, he insisted, adding a politicians practiced nondenial denial: I have radio and TV contracts that I will honor through December 2020. Nonetheless, Hannitys service to the Trump campaign well exceeds that of ritually bashing Clinton and giving Trump free airtime. He has offered private strategic advice to the campaign. The same Trump confidant told me of at least one instance in which Hannity drafted an unsolicited memo outlining the message Trump should offer after the Orlando nightclub shooting in June. This helps explain why the elusive Trump pivot never happened: Trump may be listening to people like Reince Preibus with one ear, but Hannity and Coulter have the other, and theyre the ones who seem to have control over the puppet strings. This should also disqualify Hannity as a theoretically objective source on Trumps supposed (and fake) opposition to the Iraq War. Even if the chief of staff thing really is just a rumor, the fact that Hannity has taken on the mantle of unofficial aide should disqualify his defense of Trump completely. | New York Times' Draper writes that Trump has 'implicitly encouraged' his supporters to consider themselves 'part of the campaign team' Some of them may be eyeing positions in the Trump White House, should he win in November. Hannity's service to the Trump campaign well exceeds that of ritually bashing Clinton and giving Trump free airtime. | pegasus | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137317/sean-hannity-gunning-position-trump-white-house | 0.100961 |
Is Donald Trump beta-testing Trump TV? Or is he just out of options? | One of the elections most consistent narratives has been that Donald Trump is only out for himselfthat hes using the national political spotlight to make money and build his brand, which helps explain, for instance, why he frequently turns campaign events into infomercials for his new hotel in Washington, D.C. Trump is reportedly frustrated that he cant monetize his captive audience. Since the summer, rumors have swirled around the idea of a Trump-centered TV network that would compete with Fox News for elderly, far-right eyeballs. Trump TV seems to be more than a glimmer in Trumps eye. Earlier this month, Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, reportedly met with an investment firm LionTree to discuss a potential network. Before the final debate, the Trump campaign live-streamed what many interpreted as a low-rent test of the concept in the form of a 30-minute show featuring two anchors and General Michael Flynn. And last night, the campaign announced nightly broadcasts at 6:30PM. The first installment of Trump TV was suitably bizarre. The show promised that it would feature none of the spin you see on normal news programs, but then campaign manager Kellyanne Conway came on and spun the hell out of the election, telling anchors Boris Epshteyn and Cliff Sims that everything was fine and Trump had a plausible path to victory. (Epshteyn and Sims, who often finish each others sentences, would be an adorable double act if the sentences they were finishing werent so absurd and/or horrific.) And The Blazes Tomi Lahren, the pundit this election deserves, came on to give Trumps supporters a pep talk: If youre looking for someone thats got a love of country as deep as Donald Trumpand Ive seen itthen youre going to have to join the basket, youre going to have to jump out of the basket, and youre going to have to make your voices heard. Its certainly possible that Trump and his allies, particularly Kushner, are using these livestreams as a trial run. But Trump and company may be turning to livestreams simply ecause they have no other options. Even Fox News (aside from Hannity and, to a lesser extent, OReilly) isnt the safe space it was a month or two ago: Like every other network, it is also reporting that Trump is losing. The Facebook broadcasts exist to give Trump the kind of media bubble he cravesand if they lead to something bigger, then so be it. | Donald Trump is reportedly testing a Trump-centered TV network. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/138125/donald-trump-beta-testing-trump-tv-just-options | 0.271247 |
Is Donald Trump beta-testing Trump TV? Or is he just out of options? | One of the elections most consistent narratives has been that Donald Trump is only out for himselfthat hes using the national political spotlight to make money and build his brand, which helps explain, for instance, why he frequently turns campaign events into infomercials for his new hotel in Washington, D.C. Trump is reportedly frustrated that he cant monetize his captive audience. Since the summer, rumors have swirled around the idea of a Trump-centered TV network that would compete with Fox News for elderly, far-right eyeballs. Trump TV seems to be more than a glimmer in Trumps eye. Earlier this month, Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, reportedly met with an investment firm LionTree to discuss a potential network. Before the final debate, the Trump campaign live-streamed what many interpreted as a low-rent test of the concept in the form of a 30-minute show featuring two anchors and General Michael Flynn. And last night, the campaign announced nightly broadcasts at 6:30PM. The first installment of Trump TV was suitably bizarre. The show promised that it would feature none of the spin you see on normal news programs, but then campaign manager Kellyanne Conway came on and spun the hell out of the election, telling anchors Boris Epshteyn and Cliff Sims that everything was fine and Trump had a plausible path to victory. (Epshteyn and Sims, who often finish each others sentences, would be an adorable double act if the sentences they were finishing werent so absurd and/or horrific.) And The Blazes Tomi Lahren, the pundit this election deserves, came on to give Trumps supporters a pep talk: If youre looking for someone thats got a love of country as deep as Donald Trumpand Ive seen itthen youre going to have to join the basket, youre going to have to jump out of the basket, and youre going to have to make your voices heard. Its certainly possible that Trump and his allies, particularly Kushner, are using these livestreams as a trial run. But Trump and company may be turning to livestreams simply ecause they have no other options. Even Fox News (aside from Hannity and, to a lesser extent, OReilly) isnt the safe space it was a month or two ago: Like every other network, it is also reporting that Trump is losing. The Facebook broadcasts exist to give Trump the kind of media bubble he cravesand if they lead to something bigger, then so be it. | Donald Trump is reportedly testing a Trump-centered TV network. The network will broadcast nightly from 6:30pm to 8:30p.m. ET. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/138125/donald-trump-beta-testing-trump-tv-just-options | 0.340917 |
Should Hillary Clintons inner circle place high hopes in Paul Ryan if Clinton wins? | The Huffington Posts Jonathan Cohn has a long and very interesting feature about Clintons policy agenda, the state of Democratic politics, and what a Clinton presidency could look like. Theres a lot of interesting stuff in hereincluding the irony of the fact that Clinton has invested heavily in policy during an election that has been all about personalitybut one paragraph in particular stuck out to me: Clintons inner circle is also placing high hopes on the man who could end up becoming her chief antagonist: Paul Ryan. Last year, the Republican House speaker worked with the White House and Democratic leaders to pass an omnibus spending bill that gave both parties something to smile about in the tax policy department. To one Clinton ally, this signaled that Ryan and the Republicans, even in the context of an election campaign, are prepared to do business on not-insignificant matters. This person went on: The optimistic storyline is that its a precursor to future cooperation and, after an election when you have some kind of wind at your back as a new president, itd be very difficult for them not to work with you on some of these kinds of things. Of course, as Cohn notes, Obama also entered the White House in 2008 with the same high hopes, having won an electoral mandate with a post-partisan message. There has been very little cooperation over the last eight years, however, even though Obama won another mandate in 2008. If elected, its highly likely that Republicans will acknowledge that Clinton has a mandate, howeverits likely that theyll cite her (likely) narrow victory or her (lunatic) opponent to delegitimize her. Meanwhile, the biggest threat to Ryans speakership is internal, given that Republicans would probably win more seats in 2018his incentive is to placate his own party and the right and hope for a Republican president in 2020. Certainly not, though its worth pointing out here that, despite the high hopes rhetoric, the bar is very low here: Given the partisan makeup of Congress, Clinton and Ryan would almost certainly have no choice but to work together occasionally. Team Clinton wasnt going to come out and say it was gearing up for four years of trench warfare, even though thats probably whats going to happen. | Hillary Clintons inner circle is placing high hopes on Paul Ryan if she wins the presidency. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137030/hillary-clintons-inner-circle-place-high-hopes-paul-ryan-clinton-wins | 0.404622 |
Should Hillary Clintons inner circle place high hopes in Paul Ryan if Clinton wins? | The Huffington Posts Jonathan Cohn has a long and very interesting feature about Clintons policy agenda, the state of Democratic politics, and what a Clinton presidency could look like. Theres a lot of interesting stuff in hereincluding the irony of the fact that Clinton has invested heavily in policy during an election that has been all about personalitybut one paragraph in particular stuck out to me: Clintons inner circle is also placing high hopes on the man who could end up becoming her chief antagonist: Paul Ryan. Last year, the Republican House speaker worked with the White House and Democratic leaders to pass an omnibus spending bill that gave both parties something to smile about in the tax policy department. To one Clinton ally, this signaled that Ryan and the Republicans, even in the context of an election campaign, are prepared to do business on not-insignificant matters. This person went on: The optimistic storyline is that its a precursor to future cooperation and, after an election when you have some kind of wind at your back as a new president, itd be very difficult for them not to work with you on some of these kinds of things. Of course, as Cohn notes, Obama also entered the White House in 2008 with the same high hopes, having won an electoral mandate with a post-partisan message. There has been very little cooperation over the last eight years, however, even though Obama won another mandate in 2008. If elected, its highly likely that Republicans will acknowledge that Clinton has a mandate, howeverits likely that theyll cite her (likely) narrow victory or her (lunatic) opponent to delegitimize her. Meanwhile, the biggest threat to Ryans speakership is internal, given that Republicans would probably win more seats in 2018his incentive is to placate his own party and the right and hope for a Republican president in 2020. Certainly not, though its worth pointing out here that, despite the high hopes rhetoric, the bar is very low here: Given the partisan makeup of Congress, Clinton and Ryan would almost certainly have no choice but to work together occasionally. Team Clinton wasnt going to come out and say it was gearing up for four years of trench warfare, even though thats probably whats going to happen. | Clinton's inner circle is placing high hopes on the man who could end up becoming her chief antagonist: Paul Ryan. Ryan and the Republicans, even in the context of an election campaign , are prepared to do business on not-insignificant matters. | pegasus | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137030/hillary-clintons-inner-circle-place-high-hopes-paul-ryan-clinton-wins | 0.416369 |
Should Hillary Clintons inner circle place high hopes in Paul Ryan if Clinton wins? | The Huffington Posts Jonathan Cohn has a long and very interesting feature about Clintons policy agenda, the state of Democratic politics, and what a Clinton presidency could look like. Theres a lot of interesting stuff in hereincluding the irony of the fact that Clinton has invested heavily in policy during an election that has been all about personalitybut one paragraph in particular stuck out to me: Clintons inner circle is also placing high hopes on the man who could end up becoming her chief antagonist: Paul Ryan. Last year, the Republican House speaker worked with the White House and Democratic leaders to pass an omnibus spending bill that gave both parties something to smile about in the tax policy department. To one Clinton ally, this signaled that Ryan and the Republicans, even in the context of an election campaign, are prepared to do business on not-insignificant matters. This person went on: The optimistic storyline is that its a precursor to future cooperation and, after an election when you have some kind of wind at your back as a new president, itd be very difficult for them not to work with you on some of these kinds of things. Of course, as Cohn notes, Obama also entered the White House in 2008 with the same high hopes, having won an electoral mandate with a post-partisan message. There has been very little cooperation over the last eight years, however, even though Obama won another mandate in 2008. If elected, its highly likely that Republicans will acknowledge that Clinton has a mandate, howeverits likely that theyll cite her (likely) narrow victory or her (lunatic) opponent to delegitimize her. Meanwhile, the biggest threat to Ryans speakership is internal, given that Republicans would probably win more seats in 2018his incentive is to placate his own party and the right and hope for a Republican president in 2020. Certainly not, though its worth pointing out here that, despite the high hopes rhetoric, the bar is very low here: Given the partisan makeup of Congress, Clinton and Ryan would almost certainly have no choice but to work together occasionally. Team Clinton wasnt going to come out and say it was gearing up for four years of trench warfare, even though thats probably whats going to happen. | Hillary Clintons inner circle is placing high hopes on Paul Ryan if she wins the White House. One Clinton ally said that Ryan and the Republicans are prepared to do business on not-insignificant matters The bar is very low here: Given the partisan makeup of Congress, Clinton and Ryan would almost certainly have to work together. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137030/hillary-clintons-inner-circle-place-high-hopes-paul-ryan-clinton-wins | 0.516917 |
Can Mike Pence convince women its OK to vote for a misogynist? | In the days before the first presidential debate, the Trump campaign saw a glimmer of hope. For months, the Republican nominee had been lagging in the polls with women, a crucial cohort in national elections. But as Hillary Clinton lost some of her support nationally in early September, her advantage among women all but evaporated. Polls showed that Donald Trump had pulled almost even with the Democratic nominee among women. Days before the debate, he was down just five points. Then, at the debate, Trump rattled off some acerbic comments about Rosie ODonnell and took the bait when Clinton mentioned Alicia Machado, the 1996 Miss Universe whom Trump had called Miss Housekeeping and ridiculed for gaining weight. In three days, Clinton had regained her 20-point lead with women. Trump, it seems, is incapable of restraining himself from insulting and alienating women. Thats why he needs Mike Pence. At Virginias Longwood University tonight, expect the Indiana governor to turn on the charm. If any politician can appeal to Republican women, its Pence. Its not just that he has a wife of over 30 years, a squeaky clean personality, and a photogenic smile. As an evangelical Christian, he also fervently opposes abortion. With Trump avoiding the topic altogether, Republican women may welcome Pences strong views on the subject. If he fails to win Republican women over, Trump could be in real trouble. According to Politico, Trump is losing educated white women to Hillary Clinton by a staggering 30 points, 57 to 27 percent. Four years ago, Romney won the same demographic by 6 points. In order to cobble together a decent showing on November 8, Trump needs at least some of them on his side. And Mike Pence, believe it or not, is pretty much his best shot at winning them over. | Donald Trump has been lagging in the polls with women, a crucial cohort in national elections. Trump, it seems, is incapable of restraining himself from insulting and alienating women. Thats why he needs Mike Pence. If any politician can appeal to Republican women, it's Pence, writes Julian Zelizer. | bart | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137456/can-mike-pence-convince-women-its-ok-vote-misogynist | 0.157905 |
What if Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war? | NBC News got an earful from critics after Matt Lauer on Wednesday night allowed Donald Trump to lie about opposing the Iraq war. The network got another, smaller earful from critics Thursday, when it posted this tweet. Donald Trump doubles down on disputed Iraq war opposition claim https://t.co/jKJtbSGOiK pic.twitter.com/sSHNuuXpTM NBC News (@NBCNews) September 9, 2016 Of course, theres nothing disputed about it. His claim to have opposed the Iraq war before it began is false. As of Friday morning, the linked article portrayed the situation accurately, which suggests an upside to all of this weeks failures: Trump wont be able to lie so brazenly about this to reporters and moderators in the future. The fact that hes gotten so far in this campaign on the basis of fabricated opposition to the Iraq war is genuinely shocking. It isnt one of his more incidental lies, like that hes a generous altruist or that Trump Tower sells the worlds best taco bowl. It rests at the foundation of the story he tells about his candidacy: that though he lacks governing experience, he has better judgment than both the 16 Republicans he defeated in the primary and trigger happy Hillary Clinton. Along with racism, its one of the big reasons hes the GOP nominee, and its a story he continues to tell to this day about why he deserves to be president. We dont have to go back all that far to remember someone who, despite very little political experience, became president because he opposed the Iraq war when everyone else was falling into line. Now imagine it had been revealed in 2008 that Barack Obamas opposition to the Iraq war was fabricatedthat hed just made it up. It wouldnt have been disputed. He just wouldve lost. In other words, it isnt good enough to simply correct Trump every time he repeats this lie going forward. It should dog him every day from now until the election, even if he stops telling it. | If Barack Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war, he would have lost. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136676/obama-lied-opposition-iraq-war | 0.492878 |
What if Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war? | NBC News got an earful from critics after Matt Lauer on Wednesday night allowed Donald Trump to lie about opposing the Iraq war. The network got another, smaller earful from critics Thursday, when it posted this tweet. Donald Trump doubles down on disputed Iraq war opposition claim https://t.co/jKJtbSGOiK pic.twitter.com/sSHNuuXpTM NBC News (@NBCNews) September 9, 2016 Of course, theres nothing disputed about it. His claim to have opposed the Iraq war before it began is false. As of Friday morning, the linked article portrayed the situation accurately, which suggests an upside to all of this weeks failures: Trump wont be able to lie so brazenly about this to reporters and moderators in the future. The fact that hes gotten so far in this campaign on the basis of fabricated opposition to the Iraq war is genuinely shocking. It isnt one of his more incidental lies, like that hes a generous altruist or that Trump Tower sells the worlds best taco bowl. It rests at the foundation of the story he tells about his candidacy: that though he lacks governing experience, he has better judgment than both the 16 Republicans he defeated in the primary and trigger happy Hillary Clinton. Along with racism, its one of the big reasons hes the GOP nominee, and its a story he continues to tell to this day about why he deserves to be president. We dont have to go back all that far to remember someone who, despite very little political experience, became president because he opposed the Iraq war when everyone else was falling into line. Now imagine it had been revealed in 2008 that Barack Obamas opposition to the Iraq war was fabricatedthat hed just made it up. It wouldnt have been disputed. He just wouldve lost. In other words, it isnt good enough to simply correct Trump every time he repeats this lie going forward. It should dog him every day from now until the election, even if he stops telling it. | If Barack Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war, it wouldn't have been "disputed" He would have lost the election, however, if he had made it up. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136676/obama-lied-opposition-iraq-war | 0.419797 |
What if Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war? | NBC News got an earful from critics after Matt Lauer on Wednesday night allowed Donald Trump to lie about opposing the Iraq war. The network got another, smaller earful from critics Thursday, when it posted this tweet. Donald Trump doubles down on disputed Iraq war opposition claim https://t.co/jKJtbSGOiK pic.twitter.com/sSHNuuXpTM NBC News (@NBCNews) September 9, 2016 Of course, theres nothing disputed about it. His claim to have opposed the Iraq war before it began is false. As of Friday morning, the linked article portrayed the situation accurately, which suggests an upside to all of this weeks failures: Trump wont be able to lie so brazenly about this to reporters and moderators in the future. The fact that hes gotten so far in this campaign on the basis of fabricated opposition to the Iraq war is genuinely shocking. It isnt one of his more incidental lies, like that hes a generous altruist or that Trump Tower sells the worlds best taco bowl. It rests at the foundation of the story he tells about his candidacy: that though he lacks governing experience, he has better judgment than both the 16 Republicans he defeated in the primary and trigger happy Hillary Clinton. Along with racism, its one of the big reasons hes the GOP nominee, and its a story he continues to tell to this day about why he deserves to be president. We dont have to go back all that far to remember someone who, despite very little political experience, became president because he opposed the Iraq war when everyone else was falling into line. Now imagine it had been revealed in 2008 that Barack Obamas opposition to the Iraq war was fabricatedthat hed just made it up. It wouldnt have been disputed. He just wouldve lost. In other words, it isnt good enough to simply correct Trump every time he repeats this lie going forward. It should dog him every day from now until the election, even if he stops telling it. | If Barack Obama had lied about his opposition to the Iraq war, it wouldn't have been "disputed" He would have lost the election, however, because he would have had to admit that he had made it up. Trump's claim to have opposed the Iraq War before it began is false, and it rests on the foundation of his candidacy. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136676/obama-lied-opposition-iraq-war | 0.530941 |
Who Will Win the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature? | Famous, Famous-ish, and Not-at-All Famous Non-American Writers Who Are Not Going to Win Haruki Murakami (Japanese novelist and jogger; 4/1 odds) John Banville (Irish novelist; 20/1 odds) Milan Kundera (Czech novelist and playwright; 50/1 odds) William Trevor (Irish novelist, short story writer, and playwright; 66/1 odds) Rohinton Mistry (Indo-Canadian novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Margaret Atwood (Canadian novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Paul Muldoon (Irish poet; 66/1 odds) Salman Rushdie (Indo-British novelist, short story writer, and Facebook user; 66/1 odds) Tom Stoppard (English playwright and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Colm Toibin (Irish novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Julian Barnes (English novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Don Paterson (Scottish poet; 100/1 odds) A. S. Byatt (English novelist; 100/1 odds) James Kelman (Scottish novelist, short story writer, playwright, and essayist; 100/1 odds) Hilary Mantel (English novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Mostly these are famous writers who people have bet on because theyre famous. Some have strong claims to being Nobel-ish, but theres always a but. Trevor is interesting, but hes too similar to Alice Munro, who won in 2013. Stoppard would be great, but he wrote Shakespeare in Love. Atwood would be cool, but theres Munro again, which means a Canadian isnt going to win for a long, long time. Kundera seems like a Nobel contender in a lot of ways, but he isnt even the best Czech writer of his generation (thatd be Ivan Klima) and he hasnt done good work in a long, long time. Don Paterson clearly bet on himself to win, which is something I would advise marginal English language writers to do. And then theres Murakami, who always leads the betting and has a credible claim to being our Dickensan internationally popular, accessible, and often brilliant writer. But Murakami is not going to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. One other interesting thing to note: Last year, the popular British novelists in contention, aka Chris Hitchenss Former Designated Drivers, were Salman Rushdie and Ian McEwan; this year, Julian Barnes seems to have wrestled the keys away from McEwan, or perhaps McEwans Look Whos Talking novelization was seen as being not Nobel material. Sorry, but These Americans Are Not Going to Win Philip Roth (American novelist; 7/1 odds) Bob Dylan (American songwriter and radio host; 50/1 odds) Richard Ford (American novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Cormac McCathy (American novelist and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Joan Didion (American novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Ursula Le Guin (American novelist and wizard; 66/1 odds) Were due! We really are. An American hasnt won the Nobel since Toni Morrison won in freaking 1993. But 2016 is not Americas year. For one thing, any American who won would probably have to say something about the Age of Trump or whatever in their Nobel lecture. And dont get me wrong: The Nobel Committee would love nothing more than to send a passive-aggressive signal to America by awarding the prize to someone who stands for everything Donald Trump opposes. But none of these elder statesmen and -women really fits that bill. That none of these Americans can really claim the mantle of The One True Great American Novelist makes it even harder. Many of these writers are also interested in navel-gazing Great American Male questions, and the Nobel has moved on since it gave the prize to Hemingway. Roth would be the favorite, but retirement should disqualify him. The lede of this Richard Ford review of Bruce Springsteens memoir disqualifies him, but the Nobel Committee wouldnt give him the prize anyway, for fear of being cussed out. Cormac McCarthy wont win because Darkness implacable would beat down on the man as he spat violently onto the dirt. LeGuin is too popular and too genre, even though that would rule. And a nonfiction writer won last year, making a Didion victory unlikely. Bob Dylan 100 percent is not going to win. Stop saying Bob Dylan should win the Nobel Prize. Were due! Its been 23 years! Give us the prize or well elect Donald Trump! There are a lot of reasons to believe that none of these writers will win. Robinsons writing is too fixated on Grace and the peculiarities of American theologies. Lydia Davis has never written a story longer than two sentences. Don DeLillo may as well be retired. Pynchon is too goofy. (That said, seeing what Pynchon would do with the acceptance speech would be amazing and Pynchon really isnt too goofy and absolutely deserves to win.) Of these writers, only Ashbery can really claim to be the godfather of an entire class of American literature, though something tells me that if the Nobel goes to a poet, it wont be him. I recently told a colleague that I thought Portis should win and they straight up laughed in my face. (Portis is our Mark Twain.) Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (14/1 odds) Im of two minds here. Giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be amazing. The response to it would be amazing, her tweets about it would be amazing. Literary awards are usually dull and often pointless, but Oates winning would set fire to everything we thought we knew about the Nobel Prize. Yes, we would. But also, giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be bad, even if they made a dispensation that said, This award does not apply to her tweets, which are bad. In any case, if you are the person who bets on Joyce Carol Oates every year so she is always near the top of the Ladbrokes Nobel Prize list, my email address is ashephard@tnr.com. Maybe, Just Maybe, This Year... Or Next Year.... Or, More Accurately, in Five Years Ismail Kadare (Albanian novelist and poet; 16/1 odds) Javier Maras (Spanish novelist, short story writer, essayist, and translator; 16/1 odds) Lszl Krasznahorkai (Hungarian novelist and screenwriter; 20/1 odds) Cesar Aira (Argentine novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 20/1 odds) Peter Handke (Austrian novelist and playwright; 25/1 odds) Pter Ndas (Hungarian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 25/1 odds) Amos Oz (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Adam Zagajewski (Polish poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Enrique Vila-Matas (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) A lot of men! Specifically, a lot of very serious men who are widely read by very serious men. I went to a Krasznahorkai reading a few years ago and it was what I imagine attending a Rush concert wouldve been like in 1980upper-middle class single white men between the ages of 18 and 34 as far as the eye could see. These are all deserving candidates, but this is probably not their year, and it may never be. In some cases, its that they are on the young sidemost are in their 60s or early 70s, practically spring chickens as far the Nobel is concerned. Furthermore, theres evidence to suggest that an international reputation (i.e. being popular or popular-ish in America) works against authors vying for the Nobel. Recent history may work against them, tooa European novelist, Patrick Modiano, won in 2014, which is a significant barrier to entry. Albanian novelist and person who maybe deserves the Nobel the most in this group Ismail Kadare faces an additional barrier in that he often writes about the evils of 20th century communism and totalitarianism, a fixation that overlaps significantly with recent winners Alexievich and Modiano and Herta Mueller. But I could see at least two of these writers (my bets: Krasznahorkai and Marias) winning in the next decade. Karl Ove Knausgaard (Norwegian cigarette smoker; 66/1 odds) Pretty annoying! Les Murray (Australian poet and critic; 50/1 odds) Gerald Murnane (Australian novelist; 50/1 odds) David Malouf (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) Peter Carey (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) An Australian hasnt won the Nobel Prize since 1973 (Patrick White), so the continent of Australia is overdue. Antnio Lobo Antunes (Portugese novelist; 20/1 odds) Abraham B. Yehoshua (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Doris Kareva (Estonian poet; 33/1 odds) Mircea Cartarescu (Romanian novelist, poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Juan Mars (Catalan novelist, journalist, and screenwriter; 33/1 odds) Kjell Askildsen (Norwegian short story writer; 33/1 odds) Claudio Magris (Italian novelist and nonfiction writer; 33/1 odds) Nawal El Saadawi (Egyptian novelist and nonfiction writer; 50/1 odds) Cees Nooteboom (Dutch novelist and poet; 50/1 odds) Leonard Nolens (Belgian poet and memoirist; 50/1 odds) Jaan Kaplinski (Estonian poet and philosopher; 50/1 odds) Jussi Adler-Olsen (Danish novelist; 50/1 odds) Olga Tokarczuk (Polish novelist; 50/1 odds) Yevgeniy Yevtushenko (Russian poet; 50/1 odds) Karel Schoeman (South African novelist and translator; 66/1 odds) Yan Lianke (Chinese novelist and short story writer;66/1 odds) Bei Dao (Chinese poet; 66/1 odds) Nuruddin Farah (Somali novelist; 66/1 odds) Dacia Maraini (Italian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Juan Goytisolo (Spanish novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Mia Couto (Mozambican novelist and short story writer; 66/1) odds Eduardo Mendoza-Garriga (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) F. Sionil Jos (Filipino novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Antonio Muoz Molina (Spanish novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Mohammed Dowlatabadi (Iranian novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Sergio Pitol (Mexican novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dubravka Ugresic (Croatian novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dag Solstad (Norwegian novelist, short story writer, and playwright; no Ladbrokes odds) Someone Youve Never Heard of From a Country Youve Never Visited (2/1 Ladbrokes odds) With the last three Nobel Prizes having gone to a Canadian international bestselling author who writes in the coveted people looking at lakes category (Alice Munro), a French guy who writes about remembering stuff that he thought he forgot but actually didnt (Patrick Modiano), and a Belarusian woman who sort of makes stuff up and calls it oral history (Svetlana Alexievich), this years winner is anyones guess. But the underdog always has a distinct advantage. The Nobel Prize often goes to writers who have little or no publishing history in the United States, and that includes a whole heck of a lot of the people included above. And even those who have been published in the U.S. are not widely read. But there are a lot of stellar names in this category. Antunes and Yehoshua are not as widely read in the U.S. as they should be, and both are probably the greatest living writers in their respective countries. Solstad is the Scandanivan most likely to snatch the Nobel from Jon Fosses hands. The Romanian writer Mircea Cartarescu will win the award, but probably not until sometime in the mid-2020s. Still, many of these contenders are too similar to recent winners. If an unknown wins the Nobel, it is more likely than not that they wont come from this list. | The odds are high for Haruki Murakami to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137496/will-win-2016-nobel-prize-literature | 0.154454 |
Who Will Win the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature? | Famous, Famous-ish, and Not-at-All Famous Non-American Writers Who Are Not Going to Win Haruki Murakami (Japanese novelist and jogger; 4/1 odds) John Banville (Irish novelist; 20/1 odds) Milan Kundera (Czech novelist and playwright; 50/1 odds) William Trevor (Irish novelist, short story writer, and playwright; 66/1 odds) Rohinton Mistry (Indo-Canadian novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Margaret Atwood (Canadian novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Paul Muldoon (Irish poet; 66/1 odds) Salman Rushdie (Indo-British novelist, short story writer, and Facebook user; 66/1 odds) Tom Stoppard (English playwright and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Colm Toibin (Irish novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Julian Barnes (English novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Don Paterson (Scottish poet; 100/1 odds) A. S. Byatt (English novelist; 100/1 odds) James Kelman (Scottish novelist, short story writer, playwright, and essayist; 100/1 odds) Hilary Mantel (English novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Mostly these are famous writers who people have bet on because theyre famous. Some have strong claims to being Nobel-ish, but theres always a but. Trevor is interesting, but hes too similar to Alice Munro, who won in 2013. Stoppard would be great, but he wrote Shakespeare in Love. Atwood would be cool, but theres Munro again, which means a Canadian isnt going to win for a long, long time. Kundera seems like a Nobel contender in a lot of ways, but he isnt even the best Czech writer of his generation (thatd be Ivan Klima) and he hasnt done good work in a long, long time. Don Paterson clearly bet on himself to win, which is something I would advise marginal English language writers to do. And then theres Murakami, who always leads the betting and has a credible claim to being our Dickensan internationally popular, accessible, and often brilliant writer. But Murakami is not going to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. One other interesting thing to note: Last year, the popular British novelists in contention, aka Chris Hitchenss Former Designated Drivers, were Salman Rushdie and Ian McEwan; this year, Julian Barnes seems to have wrestled the keys away from McEwan, or perhaps McEwans Look Whos Talking novelization was seen as being not Nobel material. Sorry, but These Americans Are Not Going to Win Philip Roth (American novelist; 7/1 odds) Bob Dylan (American songwriter and radio host; 50/1 odds) Richard Ford (American novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Cormac McCathy (American novelist and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Joan Didion (American novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Ursula Le Guin (American novelist and wizard; 66/1 odds) Were due! We really are. An American hasnt won the Nobel since Toni Morrison won in freaking 1993. But 2016 is not Americas year. For one thing, any American who won would probably have to say something about the Age of Trump or whatever in their Nobel lecture. And dont get me wrong: The Nobel Committee would love nothing more than to send a passive-aggressive signal to America by awarding the prize to someone who stands for everything Donald Trump opposes. But none of these elder statesmen and -women really fits that bill. That none of these Americans can really claim the mantle of The One True Great American Novelist makes it even harder. Many of these writers are also interested in navel-gazing Great American Male questions, and the Nobel has moved on since it gave the prize to Hemingway. Roth would be the favorite, but retirement should disqualify him. The lede of this Richard Ford review of Bruce Springsteens memoir disqualifies him, but the Nobel Committee wouldnt give him the prize anyway, for fear of being cussed out. Cormac McCarthy wont win because Darkness implacable would beat down on the man as he spat violently onto the dirt. LeGuin is too popular and too genre, even though that would rule. And a nonfiction writer won last year, making a Didion victory unlikely. Bob Dylan 100 percent is not going to win. Stop saying Bob Dylan should win the Nobel Prize. Were due! Its been 23 years! Give us the prize or well elect Donald Trump! There are a lot of reasons to believe that none of these writers will win. Robinsons writing is too fixated on Grace and the peculiarities of American theologies. Lydia Davis has never written a story longer than two sentences. Don DeLillo may as well be retired. Pynchon is too goofy. (That said, seeing what Pynchon would do with the acceptance speech would be amazing and Pynchon really isnt too goofy and absolutely deserves to win.) Of these writers, only Ashbery can really claim to be the godfather of an entire class of American literature, though something tells me that if the Nobel goes to a poet, it wont be him. I recently told a colleague that I thought Portis should win and they straight up laughed in my face. (Portis is our Mark Twain.) Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (14/1 odds) Im of two minds here. Giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be amazing. The response to it would be amazing, her tweets about it would be amazing. Literary awards are usually dull and often pointless, but Oates winning would set fire to everything we thought we knew about the Nobel Prize. Yes, we would. But also, giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be bad, even if they made a dispensation that said, This award does not apply to her tweets, which are bad. In any case, if you are the person who bets on Joyce Carol Oates every year so she is always near the top of the Ladbrokes Nobel Prize list, my email address is ashephard@tnr.com. Maybe, Just Maybe, This Year... Or Next Year.... Or, More Accurately, in Five Years Ismail Kadare (Albanian novelist and poet; 16/1 odds) Javier Maras (Spanish novelist, short story writer, essayist, and translator; 16/1 odds) Lszl Krasznahorkai (Hungarian novelist and screenwriter; 20/1 odds) Cesar Aira (Argentine novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 20/1 odds) Peter Handke (Austrian novelist and playwright; 25/1 odds) Pter Ndas (Hungarian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 25/1 odds) Amos Oz (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Adam Zagajewski (Polish poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Enrique Vila-Matas (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) A lot of men! Specifically, a lot of very serious men who are widely read by very serious men. I went to a Krasznahorkai reading a few years ago and it was what I imagine attending a Rush concert wouldve been like in 1980upper-middle class single white men between the ages of 18 and 34 as far as the eye could see. These are all deserving candidates, but this is probably not their year, and it may never be. In some cases, its that they are on the young sidemost are in their 60s or early 70s, practically spring chickens as far the Nobel is concerned. Furthermore, theres evidence to suggest that an international reputation (i.e. being popular or popular-ish in America) works against authors vying for the Nobel. Recent history may work against them, tooa European novelist, Patrick Modiano, won in 2014, which is a significant barrier to entry. Albanian novelist and person who maybe deserves the Nobel the most in this group Ismail Kadare faces an additional barrier in that he often writes about the evils of 20th century communism and totalitarianism, a fixation that overlaps significantly with recent winners Alexievich and Modiano and Herta Mueller. But I could see at least two of these writers (my bets: Krasznahorkai and Marias) winning in the next decade. Karl Ove Knausgaard (Norwegian cigarette smoker; 66/1 odds) Pretty annoying! Les Murray (Australian poet and critic; 50/1 odds) Gerald Murnane (Australian novelist; 50/1 odds) David Malouf (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) Peter Carey (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) An Australian hasnt won the Nobel Prize since 1973 (Patrick White), so the continent of Australia is overdue. Antnio Lobo Antunes (Portugese novelist; 20/1 odds) Abraham B. Yehoshua (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Doris Kareva (Estonian poet; 33/1 odds) Mircea Cartarescu (Romanian novelist, poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Juan Mars (Catalan novelist, journalist, and screenwriter; 33/1 odds) Kjell Askildsen (Norwegian short story writer; 33/1 odds) Claudio Magris (Italian novelist and nonfiction writer; 33/1 odds) Nawal El Saadawi (Egyptian novelist and nonfiction writer; 50/1 odds) Cees Nooteboom (Dutch novelist and poet; 50/1 odds) Leonard Nolens (Belgian poet and memoirist; 50/1 odds) Jaan Kaplinski (Estonian poet and philosopher; 50/1 odds) Jussi Adler-Olsen (Danish novelist; 50/1 odds) Olga Tokarczuk (Polish novelist; 50/1 odds) Yevgeniy Yevtushenko (Russian poet; 50/1 odds) Karel Schoeman (South African novelist and translator; 66/1 odds) Yan Lianke (Chinese novelist and short story writer;66/1 odds) Bei Dao (Chinese poet; 66/1 odds) Nuruddin Farah (Somali novelist; 66/1 odds) Dacia Maraini (Italian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Juan Goytisolo (Spanish novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Mia Couto (Mozambican novelist and short story writer; 66/1) odds Eduardo Mendoza-Garriga (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) F. Sionil Jos (Filipino novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Antonio Muoz Molina (Spanish novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Mohammed Dowlatabadi (Iranian novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Sergio Pitol (Mexican novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dubravka Ugresic (Croatian novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dag Solstad (Norwegian novelist, short story writer, and playwright; no Ladbrokes odds) Someone Youve Never Heard of From a Country Youve Never Visited (2/1 Ladbrokes odds) With the last three Nobel Prizes having gone to a Canadian international bestselling author who writes in the coveted people looking at lakes category (Alice Munro), a French guy who writes about remembering stuff that he thought he forgot but actually didnt (Patrick Modiano), and a Belarusian woman who sort of makes stuff up and calls it oral history (Svetlana Alexievich), this years winner is anyones guess. But the underdog always has a distinct advantage. The Nobel Prize often goes to writers who have little or no publishing history in the United States, and that includes a whole heck of a lot of the people included above. And even those who have been published in the U.S. are not widely read. But there are a lot of stellar names in this category. Antunes and Yehoshua are not as widely read in the U.S. as they should be, and both are probably the greatest living writers in their respective countries. Solstad is the Scandanivan most likely to snatch the Nobel from Jon Fosses hands. The Romanian writer Mircea Cartarescu will win the award, but probably not until sometime in the mid-2020s. Still, many of these contenders are too similar to recent winners. If an unknown wins the Nobel, it is more likely than not that they wont come from this list. | The odds are good for Haruki Murakami to win the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature. But there are some famous non-American writers who are not going to win. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137496/will-win-2016-nobel-prize-literature | 0.341197 |
Who Will Win the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature? | Famous, Famous-ish, and Not-at-All Famous Non-American Writers Who Are Not Going to Win Haruki Murakami (Japanese novelist and jogger; 4/1 odds) John Banville (Irish novelist; 20/1 odds) Milan Kundera (Czech novelist and playwright; 50/1 odds) William Trevor (Irish novelist, short story writer, and playwright; 66/1 odds) Rohinton Mistry (Indo-Canadian novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Margaret Atwood (Canadian novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Paul Muldoon (Irish poet; 66/1 odds) Salman Rushdie (Indo-British novelist, short story writer, and Facebook user; 66/1 odds) Tom Stoppard (English playwright and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Colm Toibin (Irish novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Julian Barnes (English novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Don Paterson (Scottish poet; 100/1 odds) A. S. Byatt (English novelist; 100/1 odds) James Kelman (Scottish novelist, short story writer, playwright, and essayist; 100/1 odds) Hilary Mantel (English novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Mostly these are famous writers who people have bet on because theyre famous. Some have strong claims to being Nobel-ish, but theres always a but. Trevor is interesting, but hes too similar to Alice Munro, who won in 2013. Stoppard would be great, but he wrote Shakespeare in Love. Atwood would be cool, but theres Munro again, which means a Canadian isnt going to win for a long, long time. Kundera seems like a Nobel contender in a lot of ways, but he isnt even the best Czech writer of his generation (thatd be Ivan Klima) and he hasnt done good work in a long, long time. Don Paterson clearly bet on himself to win, which is something I would advise marginal English language writers to do. And then theres Murakami, who always leads the betting and has a credible claim to being our Dickensan internationally popular, accessible, and often brilliant writer. But Murakami is not going to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. One other interesting thing to note: Last year, the popular British novelists in contention, aka Chris Hitchenss Former Designated Drivers, were Salman Rushdie and Ian McEwan; this year, Julian Barnes seems to have wrestled the keys away from McEwan, or perhaps McEwans Look Whos Talking novelization was seen as being not Nobel material. Sorry, but These Americans Are Not Going to Win Philip Roth (American novelist; 7/1 odds) Bob Dylan (American songwriter and radio host; 50/1 odds) Richard Ford (American novelist and short story writer; 66/1 odds) Cormac McCathy (American novelist and screenwriter; 66/1 odds) Joan Didion (American novelist and essayist; 66/1 odds) Ursula Le Guin (American novelist and wizard; 66/1 odds) Were due! We really are. An American hasnt won the Nobel since Toni Morrison won in freaking 1993. But 2016 is not Americas year. For one thing, any American who won would probably have to say something about the Age of Trump or whatever in their Nobel lecture. And dont get me wrong: The Nobel Committee would love nothing more than to send a passive-aggressive signal to America by awarding the prize to someone who stands for everything Donald Trump opposes. But none of these elder statesmen and -women really fits that bill. That none of these Americans can really claim the mantle of The One True Great American Novelist makes it even harder. Many of these writers are also interested in navel-gazing Great American Male questions, and the Nobel has moved on since it gave the prize to Hemingway. Roth would be the favorite, but retirement should disqualify him. The lede of this Richard Ford review of Bruce Springsteens memoir disqualifies him, but the Nobel Committee wouldnt give him the prize anyway, for fear of being cussed out. Cormac McCarthy wont win because Darkness implacable would beat down on the man as he spat violently onto the dirt. LeGuin is too popular and too genre, even though that would rule. And a nonfiction writer won last year, making a Didion victory unlikely. Bob Dylan 100 percent is not going to win. Stop saying Bob Dylan should win the Nobel Prize. Were due! Its been 23 years! Give us the prize or well elect Donald Trump! There are a lot of reasons to believe that none of these writers will win. Robinsons writing is too fixated on Grace and the peculiarities of American theologies. Lydia Davis has never written a story longer than two sentences. Don DeLillo may as well be retired. Pynchon is too goofy. (That said, seeing what Pynchon would do with the acceptance speech would be amazing and Pynchon really isnt too goofy and absolutely deserves to win.) Of these writers, only Ashbery can really claim to be the godfather of an entire class of American literature, though something tells me that if the Nobel goes to a poet, it wont be him. I recently told a colleague that I thought Portis should win and they straight up laughed in my face. (Portis is our Mark Twain.) Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (14/1 odds) Im of two minds here. Giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be amazing. The response to it would be amazing, her tweets about it would be amazing. Literary awards are usually dull and often pointless, but Oates winning would set fire to everything we thought we knew about the Nobel Prize. Yes, we would. But also, giving Joyce Carol Oates the Nobel would be bad, even if they made a dispensation that said, This award does not apply to her tweets, which are bad. In any case, if you are the person who bets on Joyce Carol Oates every year so she is always near the top of the Ladbrokes Nobel Prize list, my email address is ashephard@tnr.com. Maybe, Just Maybe, This Year... Or Next Year.... Or, More Accurately, in Five Years Ismail Kadare (Albanian novelist and poet; 16/1 odds) Javier Maras (Spanish novelist, short story writer, essayist, and translator; 16/1 odds) Lszl Krasznahorkai (Hungarian novelist and screenwriter; 20/1 odds) Cesar Aira (Argentine novelist, short story writer, and essayist; 20/1 odds) Peter Handke (Austrian novelist and playwright; 25/1 odds) Pter Ndas (Hungarian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 25/1 odds) Amos Oz (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Adam Zagajewski (Polish poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Enrique Vila-Matas (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) A lot of men! Specifically, a lot of very serious men who are widely read by very serious men. I went to a Krasznahorkai reading a few years ago and it was what I imagine attending a Rush concert wouldve been like in 1980upper-middle class single white men between the ages of 18 and 34 as far as the eye could see. These are all deserving candidates, but this is probably not their year, and it may never be. In some cases, its that they are on the young sidemost are in their 60s or early 70s, practically spring chickens as far the Nobel is concerned. Furthermore, theres evidence to suggest that an international reputation (i.e. being popular or popular-ish in America) works against authors vying for the Nobel. Recent history may work against them, tooa European novelist, Patrick Modiano, won in 2014, which is a significant barrier to entry. Albanian novelist and person who maybe deserves the Nobel the most in this group Ismail Kadare faces an additional barrier in that he often writes about the evils of 20th century communism and totalitarianism, a fixation that overlaps significantly with recent winners Alexievich and Modiano and Herta Mueller. But I could see at least two of these writers (my bets: Krasznahorkai and Marias) winning in the next decade. Karl Ove Knausgaard (Norwegian cigarette smoker; 66/1 odds) Pretty annoying! Les Murray (Australian poet and critic; 50/1 odds) Gerald Murnane (Australian novelist; 50/1 odds) David Malouf (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) Peter Carey (Australian novelist; 66/1 odds) An Australian hasnt won the Nobel Prize since 1973 (Patrick White), so the continent of Australia is overdue. Antnio Lobo Antunes (Portugese novelist; 20/1 odds) Abraham B. Yehoshua (Israeli novelist; 25/1 odds) Doris Kareva (Estonian poet; 33/1 odds) Mircea Cartarescu (Romanian novelist, poet and essayist; 33/1 odds) Juan Mars (Catalan novelist, journalist, and screenwriter; 33/1 odds) Kjell Askildsen (Norwegian short story writer; 33/1 odds) Claudio Magris (Italian novelist and nonfiction writer; 33/1 odds) Nawal El Saadawi (Egyptian novelist and nonfiction writer; 50/1 odds) Cees Nooteboom (Dutch novelist and poet; 50/1 odds) Leonard Nolens (Belgian poet and memoirist; 50/1 odds) Jaan Kaplinski (Estonian poet and philosopher; 50/1 odds) Jussi Adler-Olsen (Danish novelist; 50/1 odds) Olga Tokarczuk (Polish novelist; 50/1 odds) Yevgeniy Yevtushenko (Russian poet; 50/1 odds) Karel Schoeman (South African novelist and translator; 66/1 odds) Yan Lianke (Chinese novelist and short story writer;66/1 odds) Bei Dao (Chinese poet; 66/1 odds) Nuruddin Farah (Somali novelist; 66/1 odds) Dacia Maraini (Italian novelist, playwright, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Juan Goytisolo (Spanish novelist, poet, and essayist; 66/1 odds) Mia Couto (Mozambican novelist and short story writer; 66/1) odds Eduardo Mendoza-Garriga (Spanish novelist; 66/1 odds) F. Sionil Jos (Filipino novelist and short story writer; 100/1 odds) Antonio Muoz Molina (Spanish novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Mohammed Dowlatabadi (Iranian novelist; no Ladbrokes odds) Sergio Pitol (Mexican novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dubravka Ugresic (Croatian novelist, short story writer, and essayist; no Ladbrokes odds) Dag Solstad (Norwegian novelist, short story writer, and playwright; no Ladbrokes odds) Someone Youve Never Heard of From a Country Youve Never Visited (2/1 Ladbrokes odds) With the last three Nobel Prizes having gone to a Canadian international bestselling author who writes in the coveted people looking at lakes category (Alice Munro), a French guy who writes about remembering stuff that he thought he forgot but actually didnt (Patrick Modiano), and a Belarusian woman who sort of makes stuff up and calls it oral history (Svetlana Alexievich), this years winner is anyones guess. But the underdog always has a distinct advantage. The Nobel Prize often goes to writers who have little or no publishing history in the United States, and that includes a whole heck of a lot of the people included above. And even those who have been published in the U.S. are not widely read. But there are a lot of stellar names in this category. Antunes and Yehoshua are not as widely read in the U.S. as they should be, and both are probably the greatest living writers in their respective countries. Solstad is the Scandanivan most likely to snatch the Nobel from Jon Fosses hands. The Romanian writer Mircea Cartarescu will win the award, but probably not until sometime in the mid-2020s. Still, many of these contenders are too similar to recent winners. If an unknown wins the Nobel, it is more likely than not that they wont come from this list. | The odds are good for Haruki Murakami to win the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature. But there are some famous non-American writers who are not going to win, says the author. The winner will be announced on December 11. The odds for the winner are currently at $1.5 million. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/article/137496/will-win-2016-nobel-prize-literature | 0.300866 |
Why has Donald Trump drawn out the birther question for weeks? | Birtherism is the foundation of Trumps political career. By asking repeated racist and delegitimizing questions about President Barack Obamas birthplace, Trump built the movement that would propel him to the Republican nomination in 2016. But for the past few weeks, Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani, and Kellyanne Conway, among others, have insisted that Trump is a birther no more. And over the same period of time, Trump himself was silent on the issue, claiming instead that he doesnt talk about that anymore. The first question is more straightforward. Trumps position as the leader of the birther movement is an election issue, and its one that reporters have repeatedly asked about over the past 15 months. Its possible that the news conference Trump is holding on Friday morning is meant to make the issue go away. But its more likely that theres a bit of strategy involved. Trumps outreach to African Americans is not really about winning the black votethats not going to happen. Instead, its been about trying to give so-called moderate or suburban Republicans an excuse to vote for himrenouncing birtherism, in this light, is an attempt to take away an excuse for these voters not to vote for him. The race is tightening and the Trump campaign doesnt want what they think of as distractions from Trumps larger message. Similarly, Trump and his team may simply be working to take a card out of Clintons deck ahead of the debates. If Clinton tries to attack him for being a birther he can claim to have buried the issue and try to move on. Finally, though less likely, its also possible that the Trump campaign has begun to see Obamas rising popularity as a liability. The question of why Trump has taken months to personally address his birther pastand drawn out that address for weeksis harder to answer, however. Its possible that this is a last resort, an acknowledgment that the issue cant be handled by surrogates alone. So you watch. The Trump campaign has been committed to political theater above all else, and Trumps supposed renunciation of birtherism looks like its just that. | Trump has been silent on the issue for weeks, but his surrogates have insisted he is no longer a birther. Julian Zelizer says it may be part of a strategy to distract attention from other issues. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136872/donald-trump-drawn-birther-question-weeks | 0.104998 |
Why has Donald Trump drawn out the birther question for weeks? | Birtherism is the foundation of Trumps political career. By asking repeated racist and delegitimizing questions about President Barack Obamas birthplace, Trump built the movement that would propel him to the Republican nomination in 2016. But for the past few weeks, Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani, and Kellyanne Conway, among others, have insisted that Trump is a birther no more. And over the same period of time, Trump himself was silent on the issue, claiming instead that he doesnt talk about that anymore. The first question is more straightforward. Trumps position as the leader of the birther movement is an election issue, and its one that reporters have repeatedly asked about over the past 15 months. Its possible that the news conference Trump is holding on Friday morning is meant to make the issue go away. But its more likely that theres a bit of strategy involved. Trumps outreach to African Americans is not really about winning the black votethats not going to happen. Instead, its been about trying to give so-called moderate or suburban Republicans an excuse to vote for himrenouncing birtherism, in this light, is an attempt to take away an excuse for these voters not to vote for him. The race is tightening and the Trump campaign doesnt want what they think of as distractions from Trumps larger message. Similarly, Trump and his team may simply be working to take a card out of Clintons deck ahead of the debates. If Clinton tries to attack him for being a birther he can claim to have buried the issue and try to move on. Finally, though less likely, its also possible that the Trump campaign has begun to see Obamas rising popularity as a liability. The question of why Trump has taken months to personally address his birther pastand drawn out that address for weeksis harder to answer, however. Its possible that this is a last resort, an acknowledgment that the issue cant be handled by surrogates alone. So you watch. The Trump campaign has been committed to political theater above all else, and Trumps supposed renunciation of birtherism looks like its just that. | Trump has been silent on the issue for weeks, but his surrogates have insisted he is no longer a birther. Julian Zelizer says it may be part of a strategy to keep the issue off the campaign trail. He says it could also be a last-ditch effort to keep Obama off the trail. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/136872/donald-trump-drawn-birther-question-weeks | 0.153958 |
How long will Harvard hold out against its striking dining hall workers? | Seven hundred and fifty workers at one of the nations most elite universities have been on strike for higher wages and a revision to their health care plans since October 5. It is the first strike at the school in 33 years. But three weeks in, Harvards administration shows no signs of budging. Today, one of the striking workers, Rosa Ines Rivera, penned an op-ed for The New York Times in which she wrote, While Ive earned no college credits here, Ive had a lesson in hypocrisy. As a worker in the public health school dining hall, Rivera noted the gap between the schools purported mission to make health care a fundamental right for all and its proposal that its lowest paid workers take on a larger share of their health insurance costs. That proposal would take nearly 10 percent of the workers annual incomes, according to an analysis by Harvard medical students, and isnt affordable for most of the workers based on state guidelines. Ironically, Harvard faculty protested similar changes in health insurance premiums last year, when their deductible was raised from $0 to $250 a person. The school ultimately conceded to the faculty in that fight, offering them plans without any deductibles or coinsurance costs. The dining hall workers are also demanding a raise, to $35,000 a year. Currently, according to Rivera, the average salary for a Harvard dining hall worker is $31,193 a year. This wasnt enough to keep her and her two children in their own apartment in the Boston area. Harvard has countered that this salary is higher than the minimum wage and higher than what other cafeteria workers make in Boston. Yet the sticking point for many is that Harvard is the wealthiest school in the nation, with its $35 billion endowment, far above the next schools by $10 billion. As faculty, students, local politicians, and even celebrities join the picketers, it is clear that momentum is building to push the administration to re-negotiate with the striking workers and finalize a contract. But there has been no sign from the administration that any progress has been made. Instead, the school has hired temporary workers and offered boxed lunches, a solution that has resulted in students finding meat in bread pudding, uncooked chicken, and bugs in their food. | Three weeks into strike, Harvard administration shows no signs of budging. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/138092/long-will-harvard-hold-striking-dining-hall-workers | 0.100762 |
How long will Harvard hold out against its striking dining hall workers? | Seven hundred and fifty workers at one of the nations most elite universities have been on strike for higher wages and a revision to their health care plans since October 5. It is the first strike at the school in 33 years. But three weeks in, Harvards administration shows no signs of budging. Today, one of the striking workers, Rosa Ines Rivera, penned an op-ed for The New York Times in which she wrote, While Ive earned no college credits here, Ive had a lesson in hypocrisy. As a worker in the public health school dining hall, Rivera noted the gap between the schools purported mission to make health care a fundamental right for all and its proposal that its lowest paid workers take on a larger share of their health insurance costs. That proposal would take nearly 10 percent of the workers annual incomes, according to an analysis by Harvard medical students, and isnt affordable for most of the workers based on state guidelines. Ironically, Harvard faculty protested similar changes in health insurance premiums last year, when their deductible was raised from $0 to $250 a person. The school ultimately conceded to the faculty in that fight, offering them plans without any deductibles or coinsurance costs. The dining hall workers are also demanding a raise, to $35,000 a year. Currently, according to Rivera, the average salary for a Harvard dining hall worker is $31,193 a year. This wasnt enough to keep her and her two children in their own apartment in the Boston area. Harvard has countered that this salary is higher than the minimum wage and higher than what other cafeteria workers make in Boston. Yet the sticking point for many is that Harvard is the wealthiest school in the nation, with its $35 billion endowment, far above the next schools by $10 billion. As faculty, students, local politicians, and even celebrities join the picketers, it is clear that momentum is building to push the administration to re-negotiate with the striking workers and finalize a contract. But there has been no sign from the administration that any progress has been made. Instead, the school has hired temporary workers and offered boxed lunches, a solution that has resulted in students finding meat in bread pudding, uncooked chicken, and bugs in their food. | Dining hall workers at Harvard are on strike for higher wages and a revision to their health care plans. It is the first strike at the school in 33 years, but three weeks in, Harvards administration shows no signs of budging. | bart | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/138092/long-will-harvard-hold-striking-dining-hall-workers | 0.152647 |
How long will Harvard hold out against its striking dining hall workers? | Seven hundred and fifty workers at one of the nations most elite universities have been on strike for higher wages and a revision to their health care plans since October 5. It is the first strike at the school in 33 years. But three weeks in, Harvards administration shows no signs of budging. Today, one of the striking workers, Rosa Ines Rivera, penned an op-ed for The New York Times in which she wrote, While Ive earned no college credits here, Ive had a lesson in hypocrisy. As a worker in the public health school dining hall, Rivera noted the gap between the schools purported mission to make health care a fundamental right for all and its proposal that its lowest paid workers take on a larger share of their health insurance costs. That proposal would take nearly 10 percent of the workers annual incomes, according to an analysis by Harvard medical students, and isnt affordable for most of the workers based on state guidelines. Ironically, Harvard faculty protested similar changes in health insurance premiums last year, when their deductible was raised from $0 to $250 a person. The school ultimately conceded to the faculty in that fight, offering them plans without any deductibles or coinsurance costs. The dining hall workers are also demanding a raise, to $35,000 a year. Currently, according to Rivera, the average salary for a Harvard dining hall worker is $31,193 a year. This wasnt enough to keep her and her two children in their own apartment in the Boston area. Harvard has countered that this salary is higher than the minimum wage and higher than what other cafeteria workers make in Boston. Yet the sticking point for many is that Harvard is the wealthiest school in the nation, with its $35 billion endowment, far above the next schools by $10 billion. As faculty, students, local politicians, and even celebrities join the picketers, it is clear that momentum is building to push the administration to re-negotiate with the striking workers and finalize a contract. But there has been no sign from the administration that any progress has been made. Instead, the school has hired temporary workers and offered boxed lunches, a solution that has resulted in students finding meat in bread pudding, uncooked chicken, and bugs in their food. | Dining hall workers at Harvard are on strike for higher wages and a revision to their health care plans. It is the first strike at the school in 33 years, but three weeks in, Harvards administration shows no signs of budging. One of the striking workers, Rosa Ines Rivera, penned an op-ed for The New York Times. | bart | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/138092/long-will-harvard-hold-striking-dining-hall-workers | 0.182318 |
Will Mike Pence break with Donald Trump over his tax returns? | Pences job is straightforward, even if it isnt always very easy: He has to sell Trump to wary Republicans by making him seem reasonable and to convince voters that he will be a steady hand in crisis. Over the last two months, Pence has often seemed like a cleanup crew: a guy who can look in the eye of any interviewer, smile, and say, Well, that was just Donald being Donald. Just two weeks after the Democratic convention, Pence was already being labeled Trumps apologist-in-chief. But Pence has also occasionally broken with Trump. Often, hes cleared a path for Trump to follow him: He endorsed Paul Ryan days before Trump did and said that Barack Obama was born in the United States days before Trump (sort of) did. He also released a statement calling Captain Humayun Khan a hero while his running-mate was viciously attacking his father, Khizr Khan, who spoke at the DNC with his wife. Pence is going to get asked about Trumps refusal to release his tax returns and the three pages of his 1995 returns that The New York Times published on Sunday, which showed a $916 million loss. When asked on Good Morning America about the fact that Trump seemed to admit to not paying income tax in the first presidential debate, Pence quickly came to the rescue with some Midwestern charm: Oh no, gosh, no, Pence said. He said afterward that hes paid federal taxes. .... I think hes joked in the past about ... like any good businessman, he works to pay as little taxes as he can. But that answer will be harder to deliver on Tuesday, given what we know now. A break from Trump seems unlikely, since he has strongly signaled that he has no plan to release his returns and has defiantly suggested that paying no income tax makes him smart. Still, Pences answer to the question will be illuminating: It could show the distance between the two candidates or it could show how the Trump-Pence campaign is planning to respond to the rash of attacks that they are surely expecting over the campaigns final month. | Mike Pence will be asked about Donald Trump's tax returns on Tuesday. Pence has been seen as Trump's "apologist-in-chief" But he has also occasionally broken with Trump. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137412/will-mike-pence-break-donald-trump-tax-returns | 0.196114 |
Will Mike Pence break with Donald Trump over his tax returns? | Pences job is straightforward, even if it isnt always very easy: He has to sell Trump to wary Republicans by making him seem reasonable and to convince voters that he will be a steady hand in crisis. Over the last two months, Pence has often seemed like a cleanup crew: a guy who can look in the eye of any interviewer, smile, and say, Well, that was just Donald being Donald. Just two weeks after the Democratic convention, Pence was already being labeled Trumps apologist-in-chief. But Pence has also occasionally broken with Trump. Often, hes cleared a path for Trump to follow him: He endorsed Paul Ryan days before Trump did and said that Barack Obama was born in the United States days before Trump (sort of) did. He also released a statement calling Captain Humayun Khan a hero while his running-mate was viciously attacking his father, Khizr Khan, who spoke at the DNC with his wife. Pence is going to get asked about Trumps refusal to release his tax returns and the three pages of his 1995 returns that The New York Times published on Sunday, which showed a $916 million loss. When asked on Good Morning America about the fact that Trump seemed to admit to not paying income tax in the first presidential debate, Pence quickly came to the rescue with some Midwestern charm: Oh no, gosh, no, Pence said. He said afterward that hes paid federal taxes. .... I think hes joked in the past about ... like any good businessman, he works to pay as little taxes as he can. But that answer will be harder to deliver on Tuesday, given what we know now. A break from Trump seems unlikely, since he has strongly signaled that he has no plan to release his returns and has defiantly suggested that paying no income tax makes him smart. Still, Pences answer to the question will be illuminating: It could show the distance between the two candidates or it could show how the Trump-Pence campaign is planning to respond to the rash of attacks that they are surely expecting over the campaigns final month. | Mike Pence is going to get asked about Donald Trump's refusal to release his tax returns and the three pages of his 1995 returns that The New York Times published on Sunday. When asked on Good Morning America about the fact that Trump seemed to admit to not paying income tax in the first presidential debate, Pence quickly came to the rescue with some Midwestern charm. | pegasus | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137412/will-mike-pence-break-donald-trump-tax-returns | 0.144505 |
Is JPMorgan Chases New Cryptocurrency a Threat to Ripple, Other Crypto Assets? | Mega-bank JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) recently announced that it will launch its own cryptocurrency, becoming the first U.S. bank to do so. At first, this might sound like an odd move. After all, JPMorgan Chase's CEO Jamie Dimon has been very outspoken against leading cryptocurrency bitcoin, going so far as to call it a "fraud." However, there are some big differences between bitcoin, the more than 2,000 other existing cryptocurrencies (that's not a typo), and the new cryptocurrency JPMorgan Chase is planning to create. Design of hexagons with block chain prominently featured in the center. More Image source: Getty Images. The new cryptocurrency will be called JPM Coin, and the purpose will be to speed up transaction settlement times. This could be specifically useful for international transactions, cutting settlement times from hours, or even days to settlements that occur in real time. Initially, JPM Coin will be used in just a small portion of the company's business, but could become more widely used within the company if its usage appears to be worthwhile. Also, JPM Coin will be a so-called "stable coin," with its value pegged to the U.S. dollar. This is similar to some existing cryptocurrencies, such as Tether. In other words, you won't see massive price fluctuations like you have with bitcoin, Ethereum, and others a JPM Coin will be worth one dollar. When I read the news that JPMorgan Chase was creating its own cryptocurrency, I asked, "why don't they simply use an existing cryptocurrency that is designed to do the same thing?" Ripple in particular would make a lot of sense. After all, Ripple is specifically designed to facilitate near-instantaneous cross-border transactions, and has partnerships with several major financial institutions. There are a few possible explanations why JPMorgan chose to carve its own path. For one thing, if the bank controls the entire supply of its cryptocurrency, it could make regulatory compliance issues far easier than they otherwise would be. Also, JPMorgan moves more than $6 trillion in payments per day, so maybe it felt like creating its own cryptocurrency was warranted simply by its sheer size. Finally, while Ripple is designed for the exact purpose that JPMorgan is creating JPM Coin for, its value isn't pegged to the U.S. dollar and can fluctuate dramatically over time, and JPMorgan Chase may not have wanted to deal with this uncertainty. For context, Ripple trades for about $0.30, but traded for more than 10 times that amount just over a year ago. In 2017 alone, Ripple's price rose by a staggering 36,600%. Banks like JPMorgan Chase may simply not want to deal with this kind of volatility. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse tweeted shortly after the news that JPM Coin "misses the point" of cryptocurrencies, while some analysts have called JPMorgan's effort a major threat to Ripple's very existence. If JPMorgan Chase's cryptocurrency is indeed successful, and the bank experiences significant efficiency and other operational advantages by using it, I'd be surprised if other banks didn't do something similar by creating their own proprietary, dollar-denominated cryptocurrencies as well. While there are many factors that determine cryptocurrency prices, it's fair to say that just like stocks, at least some of their price is based on investors' perceptions of their future potential. In other words, bitcoin's price isn't just based on how many people are using the cryptocurrency as a form of payment today. | The new JPMorgan Chase cryptocurrency will be pegged to the U.S. dollar. Some analysts have called JPMorgan's effort a major threat to Ripple's very existence. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://news.yahoo.com/jpmorgan-chase-cryptocurrency-threat-ripple-145930908.html | 0.428212 |
Is JPMorgan Chases New Cryptocurrency a Threat to Ripple, Other Crypto Assets? | Mega-bank JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) recently announced that it will launch its own cryptocurrency, becoming the first U.S. bank to do so. At first, this might sound like an odd move. After all, JPMorgan Chase's CEO Jamie Dimon has been very outspoken against leading cryptocurrency bitcoin, going so far as to call it a "fraud." However, there are some big differences between bitcoin, the more than 2,000 other existing cryptocurrencies (that's not a typo), and the new cryptocurrency JPMorgan Chase is planning to create. Design of hexagons with block chain prominently featured in the center. More Image source: Getty Images. The new cryptocurrency will be called JPM Coin, and the purpose will be to speed up transaction settlement times. This could be specifically useful for international transactions, cutting settlement times from hours, or even days to settlements that occur in real time. Initially, JPM Coin will be used in just a small portion of the company's business, but could become more widely used within the company if its usage appears to be worthwhile. Also, JPM Coin will be a so-called "stable coin," with its value pegged to the U.S. dollar. This is similar to some existing cryptocurrencies, such as Tether. In other words, you won't see massive price fluctuations like you have with bitcoin, Ethereum, and others a JPM Coin will be worth one dollar. When I read the news that JPMorgan Chase was creating its own cryptocurrency, I asked, "why don't they simply use an existing cryptocurrency that is designed to do the same thing?" Ripple in particular would make a lot of sense. After all, Ripple is specifically designed to facilitate near-instantaneous cross-border transactions, and has partnerships with several major financial institutions. There are a few possible explanations why JPMorgan chose to carve its own path. For one thing, if the bank controls the entire supply of its cryptocurrency, it could make regulatory compliance issues far easier than they otherwise would be. Also, JPMorgan moves more than $6 trillion in payments per day, so maybe it felt like creating its own cryptocurrency was warranted simply by its sheer size. Finally, while Ripple is designed for the exact purpose that JPMorgan is creating JPM Coin for, its value isn't pegged to the U.S. dollar and can fluctuate dramatically over time, and JPMorgan Chase may not have wanted to deal with this uncertainty. For context, Ripple trades for about $0.30, but traded for more than 10 times that amount just over a year ago. In 2017 alone, Ripple's price rose by a staggering 36,600%. Banks like JPMorgan Chase may simply not want to deal with this kind of volatility. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse tweeted shortly after the news that JPM Coin "misses the point" of cryptocurrencies, while some analysts have called JPMorgan's effort a major threat to Ripple's very existence. If JPMorgan Chase's cryptocurrency is indeed successful, and the bank experiences significant efficiency and other operational advantages by using it, I'd be surprised if other banks didn't do something similar by creating their own proprietary, dollar-denominated cryptocurrencies as well. While there are many factors that determine cryptocurrency prices, it's fair to say that just like stocks, at least some of their price is based on investors' perceptions of their future potential. In other words, bitcoin's price isn't just based on how many people are using the cryptocurrency as a form of payment today. | The new JPMorgan Chase cryptocurrency will be pegged to the U.S. dollar. Some analysts have called JPMorgan's effort a major threat to Ripple's very existence. If JPMorgan Chase's cryptocurrency is successful, and the bank experiences significant efficiency and other operational advantages by using it, I'd be surprised if other banks didn't do something similar. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://news.yahoo.com/jpmorgan-chase-cryptocurrency-threat-ripple-145930908.html | 0.510713 |
Will the press try to manufacture a horse race out of a blowout? | Just as nature abhors a vacuum, the press corps is said to abhor a boring campaign. It is thus widely assumed in elite political circles that at some point in the coming four weeks Donald Trump will benefit from a comeback narrative, in which reporters and pundits will cite narrowing polls or less erratic behavior to suggest we have a real race on our hands. This goes a long way toward explaining why after the second presidential debate Sunday night, cable news talking heads concluded that Trump had stopped the bleeding or won on points, when most regular viewers saw no such thing. But it is worth noting there has not been a single true presidential election blowout in the modern media age. Barack Obama defeated John McCain by just over seven points in 2008, a blowout by modern standards, but a close enough race that McCain took a lead in the polls after the Republican National Convention. Liberals, traumatized by eight years of the Bush presidency, were nervous about the outcome until the very end. With the bottom falling out of Trumps campaign, it is feasible to imagine a true blowout on November 8. And if polls suggest thats where were headed, it isnt clear to me that the press wont find that a novel, juicy, dramatic story in its own right. <sports metaphor>Consider: Most baseball fans will agree that the best games to watch are pitchers duels (or other closely contested games) and huge blowouts. In-between they can be a bit of a slog. The 2012 election was that kind of game; President Obama led Mitt Romney by a modest but steady margin basically the whole time, and won by a modest but healthy margin on Election Day. The impulse to manufacture a horse race out of contest like that was very hard for reporters to overcome. Most didnt even try. But if Clinton appears poised to win the popular vote by 10, 11, 12 points, not only would contriving a horse race narrative seem ridiculous, it wouldnt make the race more interesting in any meaningful way. Like a baseball blowout, simply watching a contestant get pummeled can be pretty interesting.</sports metaphor> Especially because a true blowout would be historic in modern timesand even more especially because it would come at the expense of the most loathsome political figures in modern American history. | Julian Zelizer: It's feasible to imagine a true blowout on November 8. He says the press will try to manufacture a horse race out of a blowout. | ctrlsum | 1 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137686/will-press-try-manufacture-horse-race-blowout | 0.365211 |
Will the press try to manufacture a horse race out of a blowout? | Just as nature abhors a vacuum, the press corps is said to abhor a boring campaign. It is thus widely assumed in elite political circles that at some point in the coming four weeks Donald Trump will benefit from a comeback narrative, in which reporters and pundits will cite narrowing polls or less erratic behavior to suggest we have a real race on our hands. This goes a long way toward explaining why after the second presidential debate Sunday night, cable news talking heads concluded that Trump had stopped the bleeding or won on points, when most regular viewers saw no such thing. But it is worth noting there has not been a single true presidential election blowout in the modern media age. Barack Obama defeated John McCain by just over seven points in 2008, a blowout by modern standards, but a close enough race that McCain took a lead in the polls after the Republican National Convention. Liberals, traumatized by eight years of the Bush presidency, were nervous about the outcome until the very end. With the bottom falling out of Trumps campaign, it is feasible to imagine a true blowout on November 8. And if polls suggest thats where were headed, it isnt clear to me that the press wont find that a novel, juicy, dramatic story in its own right. <sports metaphor>Consider: Most baseball fans will agree that the best games to watch are pitchers duels (or other closely contested games) and huge blowouts. In-between they can be a bit of a slog. The 2012 election was that kind of game; President Obama led Mitt Romney by a modest but steady margin basically the whole time, and won by a modest but healthy margin on Election Day. The impulse to manufacture a horse race out of contest like that was very hard for reporters to overcome. Most didnt even try. But if Clinton appears poised to win the popular vote by 10, 11, 12 points, not only would contriving a horse race narrative seem ridiculous, it wouldnt make the race more interesting in any meaningful way. Like a baseball blowout, simply watching a contestant get pummeled can be pretty interesting.</sports metaphor> Especially because a true blowout would be historic in modern timesand even more especially because it would come at the expense of the most loathsome political figures in modern American history. | Julian Zelizer: It's feasible to imagine a true blowout on November 8. He says the press will try to manufacture a horse race out of a blowout, but it wouldn't be very interesting. Zelizer says a true presidential election blowout would be historic in modern times. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137686/will-press-try-manufacture-horse-race-blowout | 0.498329 |
What's in Store for Consolidated Edison (ED) Q4 Earnings? | Consolidated Edison Inc ED is set to report fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 results on Feb 21, before market opens. In the last reported quarter, the company witnessed a positive earnings surprise of 5.41%. The bottom line outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the trailing four quarters, the average beat being 4.50%. Lets see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement. Why a Likely Positive Earnings Surprise Our proven model shows a likely earnings beat for Consolidated Edison this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. This is the case here as you will see below. Earnings ESP: Consolidated Edison has an Earnings ESP of +0.44%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before theyre reported with our Earnings ESP Filter. Zacks Rank: Consolidated Edison currently carries a Zacks Rank #2, which when combined with a positive ESP makes us confident of probable earnings beat. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Note that we caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 or 5 (Sell-rated) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions. Consolidated Edison Inc Price and EPS Surprise Consolidated Edison Inc Price and EPS Surprise | Consolidated Edison Inc Quote Factors Under Consideration In the middle of the fourth quarter, the companys service territories witnessed storms and heavy rain that led to flooding. This most probably have caused a few outages, leading to disruption in smooth power supply across the companys service territories. Therefore, temperature is likely to hurt Consolidated Edison's revenues in the to-be-reported quarter. In line with this, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Consolidated Edison's fourth-quarter sales pegged at $2.80 billion reflects a year-over-year decline of 5.4%. During the quarter, Consolidated Edison's subsidiary completed its previously announced acquisition of Sempra Energys SRE subsidiary for $1.6 billion, which owns 980 megawatts (MW) AC of operating renewable electric production projects. Such heavy investments, although are earnings accretive over the long run, tend to push up the acquirers expenses. Moreover, construction expenditures incurred by the company for its Utilities have also been on the rise, lately. Together, these factors might weigh on the companys bottom-line results in the to-be-reported quarter. In line with this, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for Consolidated Edison's fourth-quarter earnings pegged at 76 cents reflects an annual decline of 5%. Utility Stocks With Favorable Combination The Southern Company SO is expected to release fourth-quarter results on Feb 20. It has an Earnings ESP of +22.29% and a Zacks Rank #2. Pinnacle West Capital Corporation PNW is expected to release fourth-quarter results on Feb 22. It has an Earnings ESP of +4.17% and a Zacks Rank #2. From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%. This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs. Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (PNW) : Free Stock Analysis Report Southern Company (The) (SO) : Free Stock Analysis Report Consolidated Edison Inc (ED) : Free Stock Analysis Report Sempra Energy (SRE) : Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. | Consolidated Edison Inc ED is set to report fourth-quarter and full-year 2018 results on Feb 21, before market opens. In the last reported quarter, the company witnessed a positive earnings surprise of 5.41%. The company has an Earnings ESP of +0.44%. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://news.yahoo.com/whats-store-consolidated-edison-ed-143802608.html | 0.14678 |
Is JT Leroys Fiction Any Good? | At a recent screening of his film Author: The JT Leroy Story, director Jeff Feuerzeig bristled when an audience member suggested that the novels by the transgender, HIV-positive, ex-truck-stop-prostitute Jeremiah Terminator LeRoythe literary persona created by author Laura Albertwouldnt have been such a big hit had the backstory not been so salacious. I mean, I liked them, replied Feuerzeig, who hadnt read any of Leroys three novels before the author was outed as Albert in 2005. They were bestsellers, he added, as proof of their merit. For the first time in over a decade, the artistic validity of Leroyand Albertswork is poised to eclipse the incredible backstory of what many outlets called the biggest literary hoax of our time. There are myriad synopses available online, but if you want a full recap of the scandal, you can do no better than watching Feuerzeigs film, which is almost entirely narrated by Albert. Two of the books Albert wrote as Leroythe novel Sarah (1999) and the short story collection The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things (2001)were recently re-released by HarperCollins. (The former will include a new foreword by Feuerzeig as well as two previously unpublished stories.) Now, after the dust of has settled, or perhaps just lost the luster of novelty, the books can be examined in a new, sober light. I have always been interested in what occurs when a reader approaches a falsified memoir, or a novel written under shaky pretenses. Or perhaps they see the book more as a cultural artifactto read it is to engage with a period in literary history, and to grapple with the meaty questions of authorial obligation. THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, by JT Leroy Harper Perennial, 288 pp, $14.99 Lets get the bad news out of the way first: The Heart is Deceitful Above All ThingsLeroys second book, a collection of short storiesis virtually unreadable. A series of vignettes ostensibly covering the beginning of LeRoys life, mostly through the lens of his relationship with his mother Sarah, the stories serve up every possible Southern gothic clich in existence, both historical and contemporary: A Bible-thumping, whip-happy grandfather, a rotating door of handsy stepfathers, a combustible meth lab, a boundary-less relationship between mother and son reminiscent of Capotes childhood. The abuses are so frequent and so uniformly macabre that the narrative becomes paradoxically dull rather than provocative. There are endless throbbing, seeping wounds, many of them perpetrated by Sarah, who is supposed to come off as magnetic despite her instability, but actually presents as a bundle of disparate pathologies and sadistic impulses. She is about as fully formed and comprehensible as a nightmare. | Author: The JT Leroy Story, by Jeff Feuerzeig, is almost entirely narrated by Laura Albert. Leroy's fiction is poised to eclipse the incredible backstory of what many outlets called the biggest literary hoax of our time The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things is virtually unreadable. | ctrlsum | 2 | https://newrepublic.com/article/136715/jt-leroys-fiction-good | 0.13042 |
What happened to Roger Ailes, Trumps debate whisperer? | Ailess involvement in Trumps campaign was a story even before Ailes was fired from Fox News for decades of alleged sexual harassment. It was yet another disqualifying attribute of Trumps campaignanother example of Trumps deep-seated misogynybut it was also widely treated as Trumps ace in the hole. Ailes scripted Nixons New Nixon strategy in 1968 and saved Reagan in 1984, feeding him the famous line, I am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponents youth and inexperience. Ailes was reportedly advising Trump specifically on his debate performance and if anyone could make Trump disciplined, it would be Ailes. As CNN reported earlier this month, Ailes was playing Henry Higgins to Trumps Eliza Doolittle: Ailess main objective is to sharpen Trumps message. He is trying to help the candidate get his message out in a smart, cogent way while also maintaining his air of authenticity, one source familiar with the conversations said. He is also trying to help Trump come up with memorable one-liners that will stay in voters minds, drive headlines, and perhaps even turn the tide in Trumps favor. Lets take these point by point. Trumps message, whatever you may think of it, is mostly pretty sharp: He uses border security as a catch-all to explain crime, terrorism, and the economy. Last night, Trump started sort of sharpall the mentions of China and Mexico in the first ten minutesbut then completely fell apart. He had no message. Well, the more or less non-stop ranting was neither. Trump had one good linehis comment about Clinton having had 30 years to figure out the countrys problemsbut mostly he returned again and again to the same tactic: interrupting Clinton with the word wrong. One of Clintons most salient messages was that Trump was a sexist bully whose temperament made him unfit for the office and he proved it for her over and over. As for the headlines, well, theyre mostly about how Trump got trounced. In 2016, Roger Ailes has been exposed over and over again as a lying, sexist fraud. The first debate was icing on the cake. | Ailes' involvement in Trump's campaign was a story even before Ailes was fired from Fox News for decades of alleged sexual harassment. | ctrlsum | 0 | https://newrepublic.com/minutes/137244/happened-roger-ailes-trumps-debate-whisperer | 0.101578 |
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