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Total 100 articles, created at 2016-07-09 18:01 1 Wimbledon: Serena Williams eyes revenge against Angelique Kerber in today's final

(1.14/2) Serena Williams has history in her sights as the defending champion plots to avenge one of the most painful defeats of her career by beating Angelique Kerber in today’s Wimbledon final 2016-07-09 14:37 1KB www.mid-day.com 2 Phoenix police use tear gas on Black Lives Matter rally (PHOTOS, VIDEOS) — RT America (1.03/2) Police have used pepper spray during a civil rights rally in Phoenix, Arizona, late on Friday night. The use of impact munitions didn’t lead to any injuries, and no arrests have been made, Phoenix Police Chief said. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.rt.com 3 Castile would be alive today if he were white: Minnesota Governor

(1.02/2) A county prosecutor investigating the police shooting of a black motorist in Minnesota on Friday said law enforcement authorities in his state and nationwide must improve practices and procedures to prevent future such tragedies, regardless of the outcome of his probe. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 4 Thousands take to streets across US to protest police violence

(1.02/2) Thousands of people took to the streets in US cities on Friday to denounce the fatal police shootings of two black men this week, marching the day after a gunman killed five police officers watching over a similar demonstration in Dallas. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 5 Iran says it will continue its ballistic missile program

(1.02/2) TEHRAN, Iran—Iran says it will continue its ballistic missile program after claims made by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon that its missile tests aren't in the spirit of the 2016-07-09 17:37 1KB newsinfo.inquirer.net 6 reacts to Dallas shootings In an interview with Scott Pelley that aired first on CBSN, Hillary (1.02/2) Clinton shared her thoughts on Thursday's shooting in Dallas. Clinton also took questions about the FBI investigation into her handling of emails as Secretary of State. See their full conversation. 2016-07-09 15:22 1KB www.cbsnews.com

7 DA ‘invites’ IEC to take action against Joburg ads that ‘endorse Tau’

(1.00/2) The Democratic Alliance (DA) appeared to put the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) on notice to act on its complaint about taxpayers’ money seemingly being used for electioneering. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 8 Fire Faith and suspend Hlaudi‚ DA urges ANC

(1.00/2) The Democratic Alliance (DA) on Wednesday greeted the African National Congress’ (ANC) about-turn on the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) “with much scepticism”. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 9 The five ways the left can win back the Leavers Three ways that the case for overlaps with climate scepticism (0.31/2) People voted Leave for many different reasons, but we can still identify key concerns that deserve a progressive response. 2016-07-09 14:11 14KB www.newstatesman.com 10 Does Reggie Yates have the weirdest career in television? The original riot girls: the sparkling legacy of Absolutely Fabulous (0.02/2) From presenting kids’ TV with a badly behaved puppet to serious documentaries, via an all-mouse reggae band. 2016-07-09 14:11 13KB www.newstatesman.com 11 The Formation World Tour reveals Beyoncé’s strength as a storyteller through songs old and new Brief Encounters is warm (0.02/2) and joyful – but no-one in Sheffield calls it "dinner" Perhaps the greatest strength of this innovative and stunning tour is how seamlessly it integrates hits from throughout Beyoncé’s career into a narrative. 2016-07-09 14:11 9KB www.newstatesman.com 12 ANC in KZN puts forward ‘best of the best’ as mayoral candidates

(0.01/2) The African National Congress (ANC) in KwaZulu-Natal is confident that the women and men put forward as mayoral candidates in the province can lead them to a decisive victory. 2016-07-09 18:00 4KB www.timeslive.co.za 13 Olive branches and bombs: President Erdogan and Turkey's precarious politics Jeremy Corbyn is a risk the middle-class can (0.01/2) afford to take With relations to Moscow and the Middle East fraught, Turkey's president faces a multitude of challenges. 2016-07-09 14:11 12KB www.newstatesman.com 14 Of the People Americans share their hopes, fears and frustrations in interviews from the campaign trail. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.nytimes.com 15 ‘Israeli killers' homes must be destroyed the way Palestinians' are’ The lawyer for the family of the Palestinian teenager whose 2014 murder sparked a new spike in settlement violence has called on Israel to treat his killers the same way it does Palestinian militants – which is to destroy their homes. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.rt.com 16 crush Rebels in 13-try rout The Canterbury Crusaders produced a 13-try spectacular, including a Johnny McNicholl hat-trick, to thrash an understaffed Melbourne Rebels 85-26 in Christchurch on Saturday. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 17 Ackermann frets that Lions can come unstuck against Kings The Lions will be targeted men when they take on the Southern Kings in a Super Rugby clash in Johannesburg on Friday night. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 18 Angry squattters set bus alight in Durban after shacks demolished Squattters whose houses were reportedly demolished by eThekwini municipal staff set fire to a bus in Durban at around 10.30am on Saturday‚ police said. 2016-07-09 18:00 946Bytes www.timeslive.co.za 19 Iceland and Leicester have shown the underdog the way‚ says Banyana captain Iceland and Leicester City’s examples have been an inspiration to the underdog around the world‚ said Banyana captain Janine van Wyk ahead of one of her team’s sternest tests they will face against USA in Chicago on Saturday. 2016-07-09 18:00 4KB www.timeslive.co.za 20 Unions not liable if political party interferes in protected strike‚ lawyers say When a political party intervenes in a strike‚ any concerns which the employer has must be raised with the political party and not with the trade unions or employees. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 21 150 rebel Labour MPs to defy Corbyn in imminent Trident vote — RT UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is facing mounting pressure to resign as 150 rebel MPs prepare to vote against him on Britain’s nuclear deterrent later this month. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.rt.com 22 SABC is ‘losing face’, says Democratic lawyers association One is left with an unshakable and frightening impression that the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is facing serious operational challenges and losing face as an independent voice‚ says the National Association of Democratic Lawyers (NADEL). 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 23 UK govt gambled with troops’ mental health over Iraq & Afghanistan – Chilcot — RT UK Multiple wars fought at the same time saw the British government risking troops’ mental health by ignoring their own guidelines on repeated, back-to-back deployments, the Chilcot Inquiry has found. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.rt.com 24 Crunch meeting with Orlando Pirates chairman will decide Teboho Moloi's future Orlando Pirates assistant coach Teboho Moloi is still officially on the three months leave he was granted by the club and is due to have a meeting with chairman Irvin Khoza on his return in the next two weeks. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 25 Witness videos capture Dallas terror — RT America Extraordinary and chilling video captured key moments in the Dallas shooting spree which left five police officers dead and 12 others injured. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.rt.com 26 'We weren't really effective' in Western Cape, admits ANC's Ehrenreich The leader of the opposition in the Cape Town City Council and the province's Cosatu secretary, Tony Ehrenreich, has conceded that he led an ineffective opposition in the council. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za

27 Moscow warns of ‘dangerous consequences’ as US moves to place missile defense system in S. Korea — RT Russian politics The boosting of US missile defense potential in Asia and the Pacific undermines the existing global security balance, the Russian Foreign Ministry said after it was announced that Washington intends to place missile defense systems in South Korea. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.rt.com 28 600 tons of ballot papers to be printed: IEC Approximately 74-million ballot papers will be printed for the upcoming Local Government Elections. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.timeslive.co.za 29 Pentagon wants injection of $20mn to fight ISIS drones — RT America An additional $20 million are needed to deal with Islamic State’s reconnaissance and bomber drones, the US Defense Department has told Congress. The money will be spent in addition to the $190 million already allocated to countering terrorist networks. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.rt.com 30 Motor racing-Button needs a competitive car to stay in F1 Britain's Jenson Button, the most experienced driver on the Formula One starting grid, says he needs a competitive car if he is to stay in the sport for an 18th season. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 31 SA Security agency checks media delegates for Durban Aids conference The South African State Security Agency (SSA) is leading the accreditation process for media delegates attending the 2016 International AIDS Conference‚ and quite possibly all delegates. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 32 Super typhoon hits Taiwan, cutting power and transport Super typhoon Nepartak hit Taiwan on Friday, driving thousands of people from their homes, disrupting power supplies and grounding more than 600 flights, authorities said. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 33 5 pictures from Khanya Mkangisa's Thailand vaycay Just days after confirming that she was single, actress Khanya Mkangisa jetted off to Thailand for what looks like an epic vaycay. 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB www.timeslive.co.za 34 SABC board chair stung by ANC’s scathing criticism The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) takes “serious exception” to insinuations that its managers are neither properly educated nor qualified to run the state broadcaster. 2016-07-09 18:00 3KB www.timeslive.co.za 35 High maternal mortality rate worries KZN health MEC Pregnant women who do not visit clinics out of fear of being tested for HIV may end up endangering not only their own lives‚ but also those of their babies. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 36 Obama downplays Brexit impact at NATO summit US President Barack Obama insisted Friday Brexit would not harm transatlantic unity, but warned against a bitter divorce undermining security in the face of a resurgent Russia. 2016-07-09 18:00 4KB www.timeslive.co.za 37 Winning a council more important than saving economy The tragedy of South Africa today is that we are all consumed by street politics - and our leaders are loving it, happy to promise a tomorrow that will never come. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 38 Tshwane metro municipal manager earns more than President Zuma Tshwane metro municipal manager Jason Ngobeni is the country's highest paid civil servant‚ with his R3-million annual salary package out-earning the president‚ deputy president and cabinet ministers. 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB www.timeslive.co.za 39 Will Ronaldo or Griezmann prevail in battle of the No.7s? — RT Sport Antoine Griezmann’s stunning performances in the number seven shirt for France at Euro 2016 have helped drive his team to the final. But will it be the Frenchman or Portugal’s very own number seven star, Cristiano Ronaldo, who has the last word on Sunday? 2016-07-09 18:00 4KB www.rt.com

40 TNT downs Phoenix in tune-up match Despite missing its Gilas Pilipinas stalwarts, TNT still showed its offensive firepower as it downed Phoenix, 129-118, in an exhibition game Saturday at Moro Lorenzo Sports Center in 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB sports.inquirer.net 41 WATCH: Miami Heat pay tribute to Wade in emotional video It is an emotional time for Miami fans as the Heat parted ways with their star of more than a decade in Dwyane Wade. After the news of Wade's transfer to Chicago broke, the organization 2016-07-09 18:00 1KB sports.inquirer.net 42 Federalism’s time has come, says Nene Pimentel Former Sen. Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. on Saturday said he was very optimistic that the Philippines will finally see a shift to a federal form of government under the leadership of President 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB newsinfo.inquirer.net 43 Palace welcomes drug testing for gov’t workers A Palace official on Saturday welcomed calls for a mandatory drug testing for all government employees, amid the administrations’ relentless war on criminality. Presidential spokesperson Ernesto 2016-07-09 18:00 2KB newsinfo.inquirer.net 44 Despite NBA offers, De Colo staying in Europe Nando de Colo has been getting offers to return to the NBA following an impressive year in the Euroleague where he led CSKA Moscow to the championship. Despite having opportunities to play in 2016-07-09 17:31 1KB sports.inquirer.net 45 New Northern Mindanao police chief named CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—Northern Mindanao got a new police director in Chief Supt. Noel Constantino, who was installed on Friday. Constantino, who once headed the Philippine National Police Academy, 2016-07-09 17:25 1KB newsinfo.inquirer.net 46 5 arrested in antinarcotics operation in Davao del Sur HAGONOY, Davao del Sur – Police authorities arrested five men during two separate anti-drug operations here. Senior Insp. Glenn Amsiwen, the acting town police chief, said on Saturday that 2016-07-09 17:18 1KB newsinfo.inquirer.net

47 Worried Austria admits Beermen ‘not yet ready’ for Govs’ Cup San Miguel coach Leo Austria expressed his concern with most of the Beermen's big men sidelined through their buildup for the incoming 2016 PBA Governors' Cup. Austria went as far as 2016-07-09 17:18 3KB sports.inquirer.net 48 Yasay clarifies stand on ‘sharing South China Sea’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay on Saturday clarified his statement on sharing resources in the disputed West Philippine Sea as reported by an international news agency. In a rejoinder 2016-07-09 17:02 2KB globalnation.inquirer.net 49 Killer robot used by Dallas police opens ethical debate When Dallas police used a bomb-carrying robot to kill a sniper, they also kicked off an ethical debate about technology's use as a crime-fighting weapon. In what appears to be an 2016-07-09 16:55 5KB technology.inquirer.net 50 Pro boxers N’Dam, Ruenroeng qualify for Rio despite losses VARGAS, Venezuela — Professional boxers Amnat Ruenroeng of Thailand and Hassan N'Dam of Cameroon have won spots at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics despite losing in the final qualifying 2016-07-09 16:40 1KB sports.inquirer.net 51 McDonald's in Russia to accept national payment charge cards — RT Business McDonald’s restaurants operating in Russia have started accepting the new Mir credit cards. The cards are part of Russia's national payment system which was created in response to Western sanctions. 2016-07-09 14:17 2KB www.rt.com 52 Spine-chilling moment child-snatcher abducts 4yo girl caught on camera (VIDEO) — RT Viral Disturbing footage of a child being kidnapped in full view of her parents has emerged. Taken at a store in California, security camera footage shows the moment a four-year-old was quickly pulled away by an abductor. 2016-07-09 14:17 1KB www.rt.com 53 Court directs Vijay Mallya to appear, cancels exemption A Delhi court today cancelled the exemption granted to liquor baron Vijay Mallya from personal appearance in a case lodged for allegedly evading summons in connection with a FERA violation case 2016-07-09 15:58 2KB www.mid-day.com 54 Western journalists visit Crimea, say it’s now ‘Russian territory’ — RT News Reunification with Russia has served a beneficial purpose for Crimea and its people, western reporters observed after visiting Sevastopol. They noted the “impressive” work on the 19-km bridge that will link the peninsula with the rest of Russia by 2019. 2016-07-09 14:17 4KB www.rt.com 55 Indonesia traffic jam: 12 die in Java gridlock during Ramadan At least 12 people die of dehydration and exhaustion while sitting in a 13-mile-long traffic jam in Indonesia. 2016-07-09 14:10 1KB www.bbc.co.uk 56 Neymar transfer fraud case dismissed by Madrid court A Spanish court dismisses a fraud and corruption case against Brazilian football superstar Neymar and his father, launched following his transfer to Barcelona. 2016-07-09 14:10 1KB www.bbc.co.uk 57 Rock Hill man receives bond in animal cruelty case On Thursday, Rock Hill Municipal Court Judge Kesha Simpkins set bond at $9,000 for Rock Hill's DeAngelo Roseboro, 21, who is charged with three counts of ill treatment of animals. Each charge carries a sentence of up two years. Police say DeAngelo... 2016-07-09 14:10 3KB www.heraldonline.com 58 Bomb scare at Odeon cinema hall in Delhi's Connaught Place Security officials were sent into a tizzy when a man called up the police control room today and claimed to have planted a bomb at a popular cinema hall in posh Connaught Place in the heart of the city 2016-07-09 15:50 1KB www.mid-day.com 59 Gambia and Tanzania outlaw child marriage The Gambia and Tanzania, both countries where more than 30% of girls are married by the age of 18, outlaw child marriage and introduce tough penalties. 2016-07-09 14:10 2KB www.bbc.co.uk

60 Austrian far-right leader Hofer against leaving EU Austrian far-right presidential candidate Norbert Hofer says leaving the EU would be a mistake, apparently softening his position on a referendum. 2016-07-09 14:10 2KB www.bbc.co.uk 61 Migrant crisis: UN criticises Hungary over border controls Nearly 1,300 migrants are stuck in dire conditions at the Serbia- Hungary border after Hungary blocked their entry, the UN warns. 2016-07-09 14:10 2KB www.bbc.co.uk 62 How China's trawlers are emptying Guinea's oceans Foreign fishing vessels operate illegally off the coast of Guinea, depleting its fish population and destroying marine life. Despite the economic and social consequences of illegal fishing, the Guinean government has failed to police its waters because it doesn't have money to operate surveillance equipment,... 2016-07-09 14:10 7KB www.bbc.co.uk 63 Dabbing in the Dáil: Richard Boyd Barrett explains dance move during drugs debate A global hip-hop dance craze has now worked its way into the stuffy world of Irish politics. 2016-07-09 14:10 2KB www.bbc.co.uk 64 ‘Dark streaks’ on Mars give NASA a hint that Red Planet may have water — RT America NASA has examined thousands of “dark streaks” on Mars which might have formed due to liquid water, ice or vapor. The results of the study give “additional support for the notion that significant amounts of near-surface water can be found on Mars today. " 2016-07-09 14:17 3KB www.rt.com 65 South Carolina town bans 'sagging pants' — RT Viral A South Carolina town council has passed an ordinance that will ban “sagging pants”, hitting residents with fines for their crimes of fashion. 2016-07-09 14:17 2KB www.rt.com 66 Black Power Political Organization claims Dallas shooting on Facebook, vows more attacks — RT America A Facebook community dubbed the ‘Black Power Political Organization’ has claimed responsibility for the shootings in Dallas, which killed at least five police officers. Their page retrieved from cache reveals they promise more attacks. 2016-07-09 14:17 2KB www.rt.com

67 Tesla’s Autopilot back in spotlight as 2nd self-driving crash reported — RT Viral Self-driving cars have taken another blow after a second accident allegedly involving Tesla’s Autopilot mode was reported. The crash in Michigan comes a week after federal officials announced a probe into a fatality involving the Autopilot feature. 2016-07-09 14:17 2KB www.rt.com 68 State Dept. to reopen Clinton email investigation — RT America One day after the Justice Department followed the FBI's recommendation to not prosecute former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, the State Department now says it is reopening an internal investigation of possible mishandling of classified information by Clinton and top aides. 2016-07-09 14:17 2KB www.rt.com 69 US local, state govts spend 3 times more on jails than on education – officials — RT America Over three decades, state and local governments have tripled the amount spent on jails, compared to spending on educating students, the US Department of Education has revealed. 2016-07-09 14:17 4KB www.rt.com 70 Elite K-8 school teaches white students they’re born racist KMorgan 1322 posts 2016-07-09 15:33 7KB www.thetribunepapers.com 71 Op-Ed: Is the Star Trek replicator becoming a reality? Students' 3D-printed fungarium and Martian mini-farm win NASA 'Star Trek Replicator Challenge' https://t.co/ep8QFL7Quz Winners have... 2016-07-09 15:22 801Bytes www.digitaljournal.com 72 Eye Opener: Dallas mourns police ambush New details about the former soldier who killed five Dallas police officers. Also, thousands hit the streets across America in anger over continued racial tension. All that and all that matters in today's Eye Opener. Your world in 90 seconds. Get the Eye Opener delivered straight to your inbox. 2016-07-09 15:22 1KB www.cbsnews.com 73 But Why Aren’t People Buying Electric Cars? Trump is ascendant not because he’s a freedom jouster but because the people are exasperated with a clueless (and contemptuous of them) party... 2016-07-09 14:18 6KB spectator.org

74 America’s Outlaw Heroes of World War II When Tigers Ruled the Sky: The Flying Tigers: American Outlaw Pilots over China in World War II By Bill Yenne (Berkley Caliber... 2016-07-09 14:18 6KB spectator.org 75 The Cops Are the Real Stars It’s a total utter lie that police shootings are a major cause of black deaths. The data is that maybe 1/10 of one... 2016-07-09 14:18 1KB spectator.org 76 Dead Dallas Gunman Identified as a Black Panther; Wanted to Kill White Cops The gunman killed by Dallas PD following the deaths of five police officers and the wounding of a dozen others has been identified as Micah... 2016-07-09 14:18 2KB spectator.org 77 Comey’s Carelessness With Common Sense As I watch FBI Director James Comey respond to members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, even as I attempt to correct... 2016-07-09 14:18 10KB spectator.org 78 Tony Blair’s Comeuppance The Chilcot report into Britain’s part in the 2003 Iraq war, which was finally published on Wednesday, is three times the size of... 2016-07-09 14:18 5KB spectator.org 79 The Problem With Loretta Lynch’s “Hard Look” at Wrongdoers Getting Their Hands on Weapons During her speech on last night’s massacre of Dallas police officers, Attorney General Loretta Lynch pushed the Obama Administration gun control line when she... 2016-07-09 14:18 2KB spectator.org 80 Trump, Saddam, and American Hubris This week punishment came to one presidential candidate telling a truth and reward came to another telling a lie. Such perverse incentives regarding honesty... 2016-07-09 14:17 5KB spectator.org 81 Resisting the Orwellian Attorney Generals Over the past four years, activists have been working to find ways to prosecute individuals, organizations, and companies that are... 2016-07-09 14:18 6KB spectator.org 82 Jaycee Dugard: 18 Years Spent in Captivity Photos Jaycee Dugard, 36, was 11 years old when she was kidnapped by Phillip and Nancy Garrido. 2016-07-09 14:14 954Bytes abcnews.go.com 83 Nike's Ronaldo ad dominates Euro 2016 ad battle while Adidas is left trailing Nike’s ‘The Switch’ ad featuring Cristiano Ronaldo has emerged as the most shared ad of Euro 2016, according to new data from Unruly. 2016-07-09 15:02 3KB www.thedrum.com 84 That Lot hires Simon Cooper to lead the agency’s Snapchat offering Social creative agency That Lot has hired Simon Cooper to oversee the agency’s Snapchat offering. 2016-07-09 15:02 1KB www.thedrum.com 85 Angela Eagle to announce Labour leadership bid on Monday Angela Eagle says she will announce her bid for the leadership of the Labour Party on Monday, saying she will "explain my vision for the country". 2016-07-09 14:12 2KB www.bbc.co.uk 86 The day that Facebook Live changed citizen journalism The cultural fallout from Philando Castile’s death being streamed live on Facebook after he was shot by a police officer marks a turning point in citizen journalism’s parity with news broadcasters in the mind of the viewer. 2016-07-09 15:01 5KB www.thedrum.com 87 Gay marriage vote: The couple hoping to marry in church As gay marriage ceremonies are expected to be approved by a denomination of the Christian church, Lee Battle and her partner are hoping to be among the first to have a church wedding in the UK. 2016-07-09 14:12 6KB www.bbc.co.uk 88 People on the Move: Hires at departures at Twitter, Sky News, 4As and more This week has seen another wave of appointments and departures at brands, media owners and agencies. The Drum has rounded up the key moves below. 2016-07-09 15:01 4KB www.thedrum.com 89 Marketing Moment 100: Jax Beer airs one of the first African American television commercials To celebrate the Ad Club of New York's 120th anniversary, The Drum is inviting readers to share their favorite marketing moments from the past 120 years. 2016-07-09 15:01 2KB www.thedrum.com 90 Don't judge print: It's not dead yet How am I going to survive judging work that doesn’t move and can’t be interacted with? While honored to be selected as a juror, that’s what I thought when I was invited to judge this year’s Cannes Lions Print & Publishing category. 2016-07-09 15:01 3KB www.thedrum.com 91 Dalian Wanda's rival competition to Uefa Champions League a 'realistic prospect' China’s richest man and head of the Dalian Wanda Group, Wang Jianlin, is pushing forward with plans to form a breakaway tournament to the Uefa Champions League with the promise of more money for competing clubs. 2016-07-09 15:01 3KB www.thedrum.com 92 Are women taking over British politics? With Britain set to get its second female prime minister, and other women in the ascendancy, is this a watershed moment in British politics? 2016-07-09 14:12 7KB www.bbc.co.uk 93 News UK launches film magazine Popcorn to support launch of Sky Cinema To support the launch of Sky Cinema, the broadcaster's new brand for its movies in the UK and Ireland, News UK has created a film magazine that will act as a pull-out from its Sun newspaper with promotion for the new hub woven throughout. 2016-07-09 14:59 3KB www.thedrum.com 94 VIDEO: Gig Harbor BoatShop keeps boat- building skills alive Tom Regan discusses the Gig Harbor BoatShop and its newest project. The BoatShop received an $8,000 grant from Hagerty Education Program at America’s Car Museum to offer five paid internships to learn boat building, repair and restoration skills. 2016-07-09 14:12 1KB www.thenewstribune.com 95 Record traffic for the New Statesman website in June 2016 In a single month, four million unique users read more than 27 million pages. 2016-07-09 14:11 3KB www.newstatesman.com

96 The next wearable technology could be your skin Brain training: exposing the myth behind cognitive-enhancement games Electronic tattoos, nerve replacements, and e-skin. 2016-07-09 14:11 10KB www.newstatesman.com 97 Stand United Press Briefing City and community leaders came together at Belmont Regional Center Friday to stand united and to discuss Charlotte's response to recent tragic events around the country. 2016-07-09 14:14 1KB www.charlotteobserver.com 98 Euro 2016: Germans cry foul over penalty, format Germany coach Joachim Low and defender Mats Hummels have criticised the new format for the European Championships which saw 24 nations involved this year, saying the quality has suffered as a result 2016-07-09 14:38 3KB www.mid-day.com 99 Zakir Naik also inspired ISIS aspirant Kalyan youth Startling revelation during investigation by counter terrorism agencies probing Islamic State operations in India, can attract fresh trouble for controversial Islamic preacher Dr Zakir Naik 2016-07-09 14:35 3KB www.mid-day.com 100 S Korea to include Park Tae-Hwan South Korean swimming star Park Tae-Hwan, who was barred from the Olympics for doping, will compete for the national team in Rio after the Court of Arbitration for Sports ruled in his favour 2016-07-09 14:34 974Bytes www.mid-day.com Articles

Total 100 articles, created at 2016-07-09 18:01

1 Wimbledon: Serena Williams eyes revenge against Angelique Kerber in today's final (1.14/2) London: Serena Williams has history in her sights as the defending champion plots to avenge one of the most painful defeats of her career by beating Angelique Kerber in today’s Wimbledon final. Serena Williams Williams suffered a stunning loss against Kerber in the Australian Open final in January and the rivals will face off for the first time since then when they slug it out for the Wimbledon title. There was further frustration for Serena when she lost the French Open final to Garbine Muguruza last month. But the 34-year-old has been revitalised at the All England Club and, after taking just over 48 minutes to crush Elena Vesnina in Wimbledon’s quickest ever semi-final, she has the chance to finally equal Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 major titles by lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish for a seventh time. Making history at Kerber’s expense would be especially sweet, even more so after the fourth seed defeated Serena’s sister Venus in the semi-finals.

Serena Williams to face Kerber in Wimbledon final washingtontimes.com 2016-07-09 14:37 By Agencies www.mid-day.com

2 2 Phoenix police use tear gas on Black Lives Matter rally (PHOTOS, VIDEOS) — RT America (1.03/2) The Black Lives Matter march kicked off outside Phoenix City Hall at 8 pm. An estimated 1,000 participants chanted: “Black lives matter” and “Hands up, don't shoot” as they marched. Police officers escorting the march weren’t dressed in riot gear. Rev. Jarrett Maupin, one of the civil rights leaders that helped stage the march, acknowledged the route of the march was changed to shut down Interstate 10. As a result, police declared the demonstration an “unlawful assembly” by 11 pm. Law enforcement officers in riot gear made a line in the way of the demonstration and put pepper spray to use when protesters approached, preventing demonstrators from taking over a freeway. The time had come to disperse the crowd, Phoenix Police Chief Joe Yahner said, declaring the protest “successful” and saying the demonstrators' message had been heard, ABC News reported. No arrests had been made as of 10:45 pm local time Friday, Yahner said. Damon Cecil, Arizona State Troopers’ public information officer, alleged protesters threw rocks at police and that an activist had been detained after an altercation with police. What does the slogan 'Black Lives Matter' mean now? bbc.co.uk 2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

3 Castile would be alive today if he were white: Minnesota Governor (1.02/2) Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said he had not decided yet whether his office, or a grand jury, would determine if officers should be charged in the fatal shooting on Wednesday night of Philando Castile, 32. "We must do better, in our state and in our nation, to improve police-community interactions to ensure the safety of everyone in this country, but particularly the safety of African Americans, who disproportionately lose their lives as a result," Choi said. Choi's remarks came hours after five police officers were fatally shot and seven wounded after a demonstration in Dallas over fatal shootings by police in Minnesota and Louisiana. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton on Thursday said he believed Castile would be alive today if he were white and has asked the U. S. Justice Department to investigate the shooting. Thousands of people demonstrated on Thursday outside the governor's residence, reacting to a live video Castile's girlfriend Diamond Reynolds posted on the internet of the bloody scene after the shooting. They continued on Friday. Choi said Reynold's video will be part of the investigation. "It makes you sad to watch all of that unfold. But again the public needs to understand we have to have the total picture and that is what investigators are looking at," he said. Officer Jeronimo Yanez of the St. Anthony Police Department shot Castile multiple times during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights, a small St. Paul suburb the department patrols, state authorities said. Yanez and his partner, Officer Joseph Kauser, were placed on administrative leave. A makeshift memorial of flowers, balloons, signs and chalk messages that included "RIP Philando" has sprung up near where Castile was shot. Reynolds' video showed Yanez outside the car pointing a gun inward. She could be heard saying Castile was shot after police pulled their car over, citing a broken tail light. Authorities have not said why police stopped the car. Yanez's attorney Thomas Kelly declined to comment on Friday. The labor union that represents the officer has urged people to reserve judgment. Choi said use of deadly force is justified only when necessary to protect the officer or another from death or great bodily harm. The bar is higher for charging officers than other citizens, but their actions have to be reasonable, he said.

Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton’s Remarks About Philando Castile Are Unhelpful spectator.org 2016-07-09 18:00 REUTERS www.timeslive.co.za

4 Thousands take to streets across US to protest police violence (1.02/2) Protesters clogged roadways in New York City, Atlanta and Philadelphia, and events in San Francisco and Phoenix also drew large crowds. Local media reported that there were no immediate instances of injuries or a significant amount of arrests. Local media in Phoenix reported police in riot gear used pepper spray on protesters. Thousands marched in Atlanta in what appeared to be the largest demonstration, chanting and waving signs demanding justice, video posted to social media showed. Footage from broadcasters showed the massive crowd facing off with dozens of police vehicles that were stopped on a local interstate highway. Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed tweeted that the rally was largely peaceful, though about 10 people had been arrested. Friday was the second day of demonstrations against use of force by police in the wake of the fatal shootings of 32-year-old Philando Castile near St. Paul, Minnesota and 37-year-old Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Castile was killed by police during a traffic stop on Wednesday, and his girlfriend posted live video on the Internet of the bloody scene minutes afterward. Sterling was killed on Tuesday during an altercation with two white police officers outside a convenience store. Graphic video of that incident caused an outcry on social media. "No justice, no peace, no racist police," demonstrators shouted late on Friday in Baton Rouge, where state and local police in riot gear tried to keep them from blocking a busy roadway. The two shootings stoked racial tension that has flared repeatedly across the country following the 2014 killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen, by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Thursday's demonstrations were largely peaceful until gunfire erupted at a Dallas rally that was winding down. Authorities said 25-year-old Micah Johnson, a black U. S. military veteran of the Afghan war who said he wanted to "kill white people," launched a sniper attack that killed five police officers and wounded nine other people. Police killed the gunman with a bomb-carrying robot after cornering him in a parking garage, ending an hours-long standoff. (Additional reporting by Bryn Stole in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Clarence Fernandez) Atlanta march: Demonstrations, protests and rallies in Atlanta ajc.com 2016-07-09 18:00 REUTERS www.timeslive.co.za

5 Iran says it will continue its ballistic missile program (1.02/2) TEHRAN, Iran—Iran says it will continue its ballistic missile program after claims made by the UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-Moon that its missile tests aren’t in the spirit of the country’s landmark nuclear deal with world powers. In comments published on Iran’s foreign ministry website Saturday, spokesperson Bahram Ghasemi says that “Iran will strongly continue its missile program based on its own defense and national security calculations.” He says that Iran’s missile program is not linked to the nuclear deal and does not conflict with the UN Security Council resolution endorsing the agreement. In the first six-month report to the UN Security Council on the implementation of the resolution, the UN chief calls on Iran to stop the tests and says they increase tensions in the Mideast. RELATED STORIES: Iran launches ballistic missiles during military exercise Iran fires 2 missiles marked with ‘Israel must be wiped out’

Despite UN rebuke Iran says it will continue missile program washingtontimes.com 2016-07-09 17:37 Associated Press newsinfo.inquirer.net

6 Hillary Clinton reacts to Dallas shootings (1.02/2) |In an interview with Scott Pelley that aired first on CBSN, Hillary Clinton shared her thoughts on Thursday's shooting in Dallas. Clinton also took questions about the FBI investigation into her handling of emails as Secretary of State. See their full conversation.

The Dallas shooting in the words of people who witnessed it ajc.com 2016-07-09 15:22 Hillary Clinton www.cbsnews.com

7 DA ‘invites’ IEC to take action against Joburg ads that ‘endorse Tau’ (1.00/2) The opposition party has taken issue with City of Johannesburg advertisements that “specifically endorse” mayor . The DA’s federal executive chairman‚ and his party’s mayoral candidate‚ Herman Mashaba‚ laid a complaint against the African National Congress (ANC) at the IEC offices in Parktown on Friday morning. “We are confident that the IEC will accede to our request‚ but if it fails or refuses to do so we will seek other legal avenues to compel adherence to the Electoral Code‚” said Selfe. Mashaba had‚ prior to opening the case‚ said the use of “millions of rand worth of taxpayer’s money…threatens the fairness of the elections and is in contravention of the Municipal Electoral Act”. The adverts‚ Selfe said later‚ state that Tau “is a great leader‚ listing an award for which he has been nominated and conclude by saying ‘clearly the City of Johannesburg is in hands’ ”. Selfe noted that “Tau is currently the mayor of Johannesburg‚ but he is also an ANC candidate in the coming municipal election”. “Any reasonable listener would conclude that the advertisement is only aimed at influencing the outcome of the election in Johannesburg‚ by promoting the candidature of Mr Tau and the ANC‚” Selfe said‚ adding that “this is an infringement of the code”. “We are inviting the IEC to fulfil its mandate and to order the ANC to compel Tau to remove these advertisements‚” he said. “As a courtesy I yesterday wrote to the secretary-general of the ANC to alert him to his duties in terms of the code‚ and to ask him to order Tau to desist with this advertising. We are now asking the IEC do this.” ‘Joburg advertising money being used for ANC electioneering’: DA timeslive.co.za 2016-07-09 18:00 TMG Digital www.timeslive.co.za

8 Fire Faith and suspend Hlaudi‚ DA urges ANC (1.00/2) “The summoning of Communications Minister and the SABC board to Luthuli House will not solve the public broadcaster's problems‚” said the DA’s Phumzile Van Damme. “It is likely to result in another whitewash as evidenced by 's ‘Gupta probe’. “If the ANC is serious about fixing problems at the SABC‚ it would have at its press conference yesterday‚ called on the government to take steps that would set the SABC on a path to recovery.” Van Damme noted too that the “board does not report to Luthuli House‚ it accounts to Parliament‚ and their summoning to Luthuli House constitutes an infringement on the principle of the separation of party and state”. She said her party had complied a list of “16 things to set the SABC on a path to recovery”: - Suspend COO‚ Hlaudi Motsoeneng‚ and institute an independent and impartial disciplinary inquiry into his fitness to hold office; - Suspend the SABC’s non-executive board members and chairperson Mbulayeni Maguvhe for failing in their duties to hold the SABC’s management accountable; - Suspended acting CEO‚ and CFO of the SABC‚ James Aguma for providing financial backing for Motsoeneng’s censorship project; - Drop the disciplinary charges against the SABC staffers suspended for speaking out against Motsoeneng; - Advertise the positions of SABC COO and CFO requiring suitably qualified and impartial broadcasting professionals to head the SABC; - Allow the Portfolio Committee on Communications to interview candidates to serve as an interim board until a new board is appointed; - Provide full disclosure for the reasons for the suspension of SABC CEO Frans Matlala in November 2015; - Reverse the approval of the SABC’s revised editorial policy - which gives SABC COO total control over the public broadcaster - and conduct public consultation; - Drop the Supreme Court of Appeal petition appealing the Western Cape High Court’s decision that found that Motsoeneng’s appointment as COO was irrational and unlawful and thus set it aside; - Implement the remedial action required by the public protector; - Reverse the ban on the airing of footage of violent protests; - Reverse the ban on the reading of newspaper headlines on SABC radio and TV stations; - Reverse the canning of “The Editors” on SAFM; - Reverse the canning of “Kommentaar” on RSG; - Commit to providing equitable and fair coverage of all political parties on SABC stations ahead of the local government election; and - Fire Faith Muthambi for failing to conduct proper oversight over the SABC. Failure to implement these would mean that the words of Jackson Mthembu‚ who held Tuesday’s ANC briefing “will be nothing but hot air”‚ Van Damme said. “The ANC’s sudden awakening to the chaos at the SABC is bizarre and should be met with much scepticism considering they are on record backing Motsoeneng and much of his censorship. “Motsoeneng is because of the ANC.”

Matthews being used to turn SABC into a laughing stock: ANC timeslive.co.za 2016-07-09 18:00 TMG Digital www.timeslive.co.za

9 The five ways the left can win back the Leavers Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism (0.31/2) The liberal left has gone through various forms of disbelief since the Brexit vote. (I include myself in this.) First, we thought, let’s try to have another vote. Second, let’s try to subvert the outcome of the first vote through parliament. Third, let’s hope enough Leave voters wake up feeling remorseful, see the light and switch sides, especially when they realise how unattractive Britain will become. Fourth, let’s try to belittle the working-class people who voted for Brexit by suggesting: a) they are racist; b) we will all go to Stoke-on-Trent to listen to what they have to say (because being listened to by us will make them feel better); c) they fell for transparent lies because they are a bit gullible; d) we will give them some more money through state transfers, because if they had more money, they would be happier – that is what a new, fairer political settlement amounts to. Such responses seem to underestimate the scale of the challenge. People voted Leave for many different reasons. At one end were people who are clearly racist; at the other were utopian liberal internationalists. For much of the working class, however, I think that it came down to five things. These are made for the left to respond to – if only we could work out how to bridge the gap between metropolitan, cosmopolitan progressives and working- class voters who believe in solidarity and community. 1. This was a vote for meaning, rather than money The Remain campaign was all about money and how much people would lose if Britain exited the EU. The Leave campaign was all about restoring a semblance of meaning to people’s lives, despite not having much money. As a vote for something more than money – for pride, belonging, community, identity, a sense of “home” – it was a rejection of the market. We might not much like some elements of this “vote for meaning”, but it was a vote with the heart, rather than the wallet. The result was a reminder that people need something in their lives that feels more important than money – especially, perhaps, when they have little prospect of having much. Above all, they need a sense of narrative. 2. It was a vote for democratic decision-making over opaque and distant power The has a distant, opaque and ineffective decision-making process. Understandably, people want decisions made closer to home. Read Martin Wolf in the or the Harvard-based economist Dani Rodrik: globalisation, democracy and the nation state are incompatible. Nationalism may be the price that we have to pay for a sense of democratic control over our lives. This was a vote to reassert nation state democracy in a time of global markets. That may be romantic and naive but it was a vote for democracy over global forces. There is nothing wrong with people wanting control over their lives: that is what social democracy was supposed to provide. Jacqueline Rose explored this subject in her book States of Fantasy , which examines how politics is driven by a shared public fantasy. (US political life is devoted to the pursuit of the “American Dream”, not the “American Reality”. The vote on 23 June was for a kind of “British Dream” – though it may yet turn out to be a nightmare.) 3. This is high-energy politics People have become more engaged in political debate, and it truly matters to them for the first time in years. Impassioned conversations are being had everywhere, between all sorts of people, about what kind of society we should be and what a good society is. The long-established political systems are in decline. Politics is seen as procedural, distant and untrustworthy. Yet all voters feel that they have something at stake in the outcome, something they want to defend or stand up for. The left-wing philosopher Roberto Mangabeira Unger called for a “high- energy” politics to take over from the exhausted forms of representative democracy in his book What Should the Left Propose? – and this is it. Having more people politically engaged should be good for progressives, because they believe in the power of democratic politics to shape markets. 4. Objects of public love National symbols are still the most potent objects of public love. North of the border, the Scottish National Party seems to have fashioned a forward- looking civic nationalism. If only England, led by the left, could do something similar through localism – real devolution of power to cities, towns, wards and neighbourhoods – and a new civic activism. Most leaders of social-democratic politics are schooled in the tradition of John Rawls, which reduces the search for a fair society to a set of equations. A cheque in the post has become a substitute for human solidarity. The US legal theorist Bonnie Honig argues that as a result proceduralism – politics as a process of allocating rights and responsibilities, rather than a forum for substantive discussions about what makes for a good life or society – has replaced real engagement. Honig’s antidote to proceduralism is a politics that is tumultuous, unpredictable, contingent and fragile, driven by passions and fantasies. She is more interested in a politics that destabilises existing procedures and leads to new forms of political power. Welcome to the Brexit world. Suck it up. Learn to adapt to it. According to Honig, part of the answer is the creation and defence of “objects of public love”, which are the icons of our common life. These help make us a society, because we see ourselves reflected in them. In 2012, a public campaign prevented the privatisation of British forests, which became objects of public love. The 2012 London Olympics were and remain an object of public love for people in the UK, although they now feel more like a long-lost holiday romance (one involving ). The NHS is an object of public affection and loyalty, if not love. Politics across Europe is now driven by a sense of loss and so such objects are more about the past than the future. If the left wants to win back the Leavers, it needs to create more civic shared objects of public love that can be draped in the Union Jack and earn our loyalty, but which also embody the values of tolerance, openness, solidarity and fairness. A distant, top-down state of a social-democratic kind cannot create these shared objects. The left would have to embrace the decentralisation of power and expressions of the good life and relinquish statism. It is worth thinking what this would mean, for example, for the funding of arts and culture. 5. This was a vote for a version of equality People who think that they have little to gain from globalisation voted for a new Brexit settlement in which those who already gain would find it harder to do so. The beneficiaries of a globalised, network economy will struggle now to do as well as they once did. That they will find life harder and the economy may grow less quickly matters little to people in industrial towns left stranded and with no growth in their incomes for two decades. House prices in London will fall. High earners may flee. The creative industries will suffer. The truth is that, for a while now, growth has failed to deliver its moral dividend alongside its economic one because the increased prosperity has not been shared fairly. It should be no surprise that those who have spent years feeling overlooked and neglected by both the market and politics should now feel such resentment and so little sympathy for people with wealth, who might feel, for the first time, that the world is slipping away from them. On the contrary, it might be cause for celebration and satisfaction. In recent times, economic growth has not delivered many dividends at the bottom of the income pile. Will slower growth after Brexit make much difference? The country may be poorer but it could become less unequal. It will almost certainly become uglier. *** The postwar settlement was founded on Keynesian principles, a welfare state and an industrial, fully employed economy. The Thatcherite settlement was about the individual, the private and the market taking precedence over the collective, the public and the state. It was complex because it combined a belief in the strong state and the open market, and yet also a national purpose. We now stand on the verge of a Brexit settlement that will redress the relationships between Britain and Europe, between the white working class and immigrants, and between the cosmopolitan and urban and the communal and provincial. Seen from this perspective, there should be a lot for the left to work with in the aftermath of the Brexit vote. People want more meaning in their lives. They want more democracy. They want an engaged, high-energy politics. They will rally around objects of public love if they are attractive and meaningful. They want greater equality and more of a sense of community. They want lives that have a narrative, and they want national pride to be a part of that. They want a sense that they can exert some control over what is going on around them. This is everything that the left should stand for. We just need to show how all of this is made more possible in a UK that is a part of Europe and, like countries such as Norway and Canada, unafraid of the free flows of people, trade and ideas that also make us rich, diverse and exciting. Charles Leadbeater is an associate of the Centre for London and the co- author of “Hollow Promise: How London Fails People on Modest Incomes and What Should Be Done About It” Committee on Climate Change has “grossly misunderstood the circumstances in the advice that it has given to the government”, said Professor David Campbell, the lead speaker at an event hosted by a climate sceptic think tank in parliament this week. So what, you might ask? Climate policy sceptics challenging a committee of world-renown experts is nothing new. What is new, however, is the legitimacy that the referendum campaign has lent to these tactics and those who peddle them. The cross-pollination between climate change cynics and Eurosceptics is worryingly widespread. Professor Campbell's work, for instance, is being platformed by the Global Warming Policy Foundation of 55 –a think tank founded by the climate science -querying chair of the campaign, Lord Nigel Lawson. Registered at the same London address are the TaxPayers' Alliance, , the European Foundation, and the Centre for Policy Studies: other influential rightwing organisations. This handy map from the Desmog UK Blog reveals just how closely linked the two projects are: For greater detail, view this map on LittleSis Source: www.desmog.uk Backing for such thinking may also be set to come from increasingly high places. Lord Lawson has already come out in support of for Tory leader. Controversial former environment secretary delivered this pro-Brexit speech at the same Tufton Street address. And Andrea Leadsom launched her career as Energy Secretary with the question: "i s climate change real? " Leadsom has recently stressed her support for a business-as-usual approach to environmental policy. But a document compiled by a research group she ran is clearly opposed to those parts of EU environmental legislation that “leaves European business uncompetitive”. Environmentalists fear that arguments like these may lay the path for a legislative "bonfire". And will be far from comforted by Leadsom's recent statement that the government has no plans to introduce further regulations to limit methane leaks from fracking, despite a new CCC report that specifically criticises the regulatory standards of the current regime. So apart from a shared address and a preponderance of snowy hair, what other tell-tale signs are there that you may be dealing with Clurosceptic? (a Brexit-supporting climate sceptic). Here are three things I noticed at the Global Warming Policy Foundation's event earlier this week that help highlight some overlaps: 1. Undermining the mainstream experts Campbell’s call for a review of the Climate Change Committee ’s advice on the fifth carbon budget was echoed by Lawson himself: “I do believe there will be a review following the Brexit shock,” Lawson said. Yet such assertions contradict the Committee’s firm position that “the UK's 2050 objective is not affected by the vote to leave the EU”. Not least since, “the fifth carbon budget recognises uncertainty over a 15 year time horizon; there are a range of policies to meet that budget, consistent with the UK being in or out of Europe”, as a spokesperson for the Committee tells the New Statesman. 2. Misleading claims In making his argument against the legal utility of the Paris Climate Agreement, Professor Campbell misquoted a key section of its final text, replacing the word “should” with “shall”. He brushed this off as immaterial to his wider argument. But, as Carbon Brief ’s Simon Evans points out: “It’s a crucial distinction – it’s the difference between legally binding and not legally binding […] that’s why it took negotiators hours in the final hours of the Paris negotiations because it was a really important word.” 3. Using half-truths to claim a moral high ground Lawson was also keen to stress that forcing developing countries to reduce emissions at the same pace as the developed world would be “positively immoral”. Luckily the international community, as represented by the Paris Agreement, is broadly in agreement. What it does not automatically agree with, however, is the assertion that fossil fuels will necessarily always be the “cheapest or most reliable source of fuel”. Tactics such as these have long been flaunted within environmentalism's relatively marginal debate. But with Leave campaigners' fortunes in the ascendant, they may now help climate-sceptics' wider right-wing worldview go mainstream.

Liam Fox knocked out and surges in first round of voting among Conservative MPs The five ways the left can win back the Leavers newstatesman.com

Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom will battle it out to be the next Prime Minister Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com There's a democratic case for a second referendum - this is how it can be done Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com

Wake up to the political reality - Brexit's blade is splitting Labour in two Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com What Tory grandees Ken Clarke and Malcolm Rifkind really think about the leadership race Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com

Divides run deep in the Conservative party – could they cost Theresa May the leadership? Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com plans to pocket his £84,000 MEP salary until we officially quit the EU Three ways that the case for Brexit overlaps with climate scepticism newstatesman.com

All too often for Labour, equal representation is something we do when it's easy The five ways the left can win back the Leavers newstatesman.com 2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

10 Does Reggie Yates have the weirdest career in television? The original riot girls: the sparkling legacy of Absolutely Fabulous (0.02/2) Is there a television persona with a more eclectic career than Reggie Yates? He’s woken kids up on Saturday mornings , counted down the biggest chart bangers for Radio 1, presented alongside a puppet , voiced the lead singer of an all-mouse reggae band , and set snarling dogs on cash-hungry members of the public. With over twenty years of light and fluffy jobs behind him, now, he’s forging a successful career as a documentary presenter via youth-oriented social programming for BBC Three. How on earth did he get here? As is so often the case, Yates began his career in TV at an extremely young age. At eight years old he appeared in sitcom The Desmonds as a particularly safety-aware child , producing perhaps the cutest Green Cross Code reference of the Nineties. This sparked a string of roles in minor programmes like Between the Lines , and Agent Z & The Penguin from Mars as well as Grange Hill and The Bill. After that, his career in kids’ Saturday Morning TV and his partnership with Fearne Cotton began: first on Diggit (at 15 years old), then Smile. Clockwise from top left: The Desmonds, with Fearne Cotton on Diggit, Nev from Smile, Crucial Tales, Grange Hill and Agent Z & The Penguin from Mars. He was charming, peppy, teasing – his presenting style, and experience interviewing teen pop stars on these programmes, made him a strong candidate for youth music radio, and he landed a job at BBC Radio 1’s black music counterpart 1Xtra at just 18, going on to present Top of the Pops with Cotton in 2003. After TOTP finished airing in 2005, Yates and Cotton took on a co-presenting slot at Radio 1 – Yates would stay at the station until 2012 – to attempt a move into factual programming. The transition from youth culture presenter to television journalist is not an easy one, but that’s not for a lack of people trying. After Big Brother , Davina McCall struggled with her own chat show, which was cancelled after awful reviews, and social documentaries like He's Having a Baby and Let's Talk Sex before finding her niche in filming herself doing extreme physical challenges for charity. Rick Edwards attempted to move into politics coverage with BBC Three show Free Speech and book None of the Above , but is now back presenting lighter fare, including ITV comedy gameshow Safeword and Sky’s comics fanshow DC Fancast. Mid-Noughties pop presenters like Miquita Oliver and Jameela Jamil have all tried a hand at a “serious” BBC Three documentary, but only produced one-offs. Even Yates’s co-presenter of over a decade, Fearne Cotton, had a stab at documentary programming with 2009’s The Truth about Online Anorexia (now she’s releasing a “wellness” cookbook). The difficulties of a smooth transition between two worlds are perhaps best explored through Yates’s own career: just look at this stunning image produced as part of a political engagement campaign called “Hands up Who's Bored?”. It bears all the hallmarks of a clumsy crossover attempt, including a two- tonne metaphor and patronising tone (#makeuthink). But Yates managed to cross this awkward hurdle – even if he had to host Release the Hounds to get there. In an interview with , he recalls why one BBC exec, Danny Cohen, thought he had the potential to make the switch: [Cohen] said I should be doing docs, and asked me to front one on autism. I was adamant that I wasn’t right to do it, but all the reasons I gave Danny as to why I wasn’t a good fit were his reasons why I was. I said: ‘There are no young black guys presenting these shows, and I come from more of a music background; why is anyone going to listen to me?’ And he said: ‘It’s because there’s no one like you doing this that you have a point of difference.’ Yates’s transition began quietly with as the Noughties came to a close. While he continued to host entertainment programmes like The Voice , failed gameshows like Prized Apart , and kept a toe in kids’ TV with his voice role on Rastamouse , his filmography was also growing more factual. Cohen’s suggested autism documentary, Autistic Superstars aired in 2010. He featured in Rich, Famous and in the Slums (yes, that was the genuine title of the show) for Comic Relief the next year, visiting the slums of Kiberia. Despite the poverty porn tone of the title, here Yates did a much better job of integrating with the locals than his co-stars, and revealed a talent for talking sincerely to camera, without sentimentalising his surroundings. In 2012, two more BBC Three shows made it to screens: Tourettes: Let Me Entertain You , which was praised for its human exploration of an oft- mocked condition and the documentary Reggie Yates: Teen Gangs. This was popular enough to secure several follow-ups: Reggie Yates: Extreme South Africa , Reggie Yates: Extreme Russia and a whole series of domestic episodes under the umbrella Reggie Yates: Extreme UK (exploring “modern masculinity” across topics like homophobia and Men’s Rights Activism). As these shows slowly built up a following on BBC Three, Yates continued to dip into more mainstream audiences over the same years, with a popular exploration into the ethics of the fur industry on BBC Two, and a surprisingly arresting turn on BBC One’s Who Do You Think You Are? that took in complex issues of abandonment, Ghanaian culture and the effects of British colonialism. In all of these shows, Yates’s strength comes from a mix of non-judgemental curiosity, and a relatable impulse to intervene with his own opinion when his subjects veer into extremes: whether it’s an eyebrow raised to camera or a straight confrontation of someone’s beliefs. Comparisons with Louis Theroux abound, but Yates doesn’t go for a disguising non-threatening persona, quirky asides or spend much time lingering in the background. There is a calm directness to his style that means his shows often delve immediately into the heart of their subject matter. If this results in a comparative lack of elasticity and colour, Yates’s own relatable personality makes up for it. He becomes a kind of everyman – every despairing headshake or expression of awe matches the audience’s reaction to what’s on screen. This can lead to what some would call problematic moments: Yates could be accused of, for example, being too lenient on some areas of Men’s Rights Activisim. Yates’s latest round of BBC Three documentaries, under the umbrella The Insider , are more immersive than his previous work. In Reggie Yates in the Mexican Drug War , he takes a more traditionally investigative approach, with surprisingly nuanced results, while In Reggie Yates in a Texan Jail , Yates lives like a prisoner for a week, marvelling at the terrible conditions, the trivial crimes that place people there, and the oppressive atmosphere. Again, their accessibility can leave them vulnerable to criticism. His experiences are foregrounded, which risks confining the genuine, lived experiences of real prisoners to the background – at times, the programme risks becoming something akin to Rich, Famous and in the Slums. Yates rescues the show from its own format by sincerely socialising with seemingly every prisoner he meets. But not being up to speed with all the most progressive stances of the minute ends up being crucial to his appeal – as Cohen notes, his lack of expertise can be a blessing in creating honest, accessible programming. It is this engaging mix that has and will continue to shape his success – at BBC Three and beyond. The first episode of Absolutely Fabulous , Jennifer Saunders’s sitcom about a hedonistic PR guru and her stick-in-the-mud daughter, went out on BBC2 in November 1992. The timing for a show about women behaving badly (and refusing to take into account how this would make men feel) could not have been better. The punk-feminist riot grrrl movement was well under way. In March, P J Harvey had released her debut album, Dry ; Elvis Costello observed primly that all her songs seemed to be “about blood and fucking”. Madonna had published Sex , a coffee-table book for the bedroom featuring images of the singer hitchhiking in the nude, and being seen without embarrassment alongside Vanilla Ice. Preceding Absolutely Fabulous by a month was Sinéad O’Connor’s appearance on the US TV show Saturday Night Live , during which she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II to protest against sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. In 1990 Frank Sinatra had threatened to “kick her ass” when she refused to have the American national anthem played before one of her shows. The Goodfellas actor Joe Pesci turned up on SNL a week after O’Connor with the pope’s picture taped back together. “If it was my show, I would have gave her such a smack,” he said, miming a whack with the back of his hand. The audience applauded wildly. Absolutely Fabulous could not have been more necessary. In the programme’s opening scene, Edina Monsoon (Saunders) swigs from a bedside bottle of Bollinger, then clamps sunglasses to her face and staggers downstairs to alternately torment and emotionally blackmail her teenage daughter, Saffy (Julia Sawalha), before leaving for the office – via Harvey Nichols – with Patsy (Joanna Lumley), a coked-up blonde who is as cold as a vodka stalagmite. By the time that first episode was over, with Edina sliding drunkenly down the kitchen window, an abbreviated lexicon of excess had been created (“Bolly”, “Harvey Nicks”, “ Ab Fab ”) and a taboo had been broken. “I don’t think women being drunk is funny,” said Robin Nash, the BBC’s head of TV comedy. The US networks agreed: Roseanne Barr tried to make a version with Carrie Fisher as Edina and Kirstie Alley or Barbara Carrera as Patsy, only to be thwarted by prudishness. There has already been one spin-off film – the 2001 French adaptation Absolument fabuleux – but the official version has been a long time coming. “Most frustratingly for me, it just doesn’t seem to be able to write itself,” Saunders wrote in 2013. Though Absolutely Fabulous: the Movie bears many of the hallmarks of bad British sitcom cinema (floodlit lighting, echo- chamber sets), it is also barbed and appallingly funny in places. Saunders and Lumley proved long ago that they are screen drunks of the calibre of W C Fields or Carol Burnett. Lumley in particular has perfected an elaborate, soused totter, head wobbling on her elongated neck like a jelly on a stick. It’s strangely exhilarating to find no male characters of any influence here. There is a publisher (Mark Gatiss) who is vile to his assistant – unlike Edina, who indulges her own nitwit PA, Bubble (Jane Horrocks). And Saffy’s boyfriend (Robert Webb) is as much of a wet dishcloth as she is. It was always part of the show’s vicious brilliance that Saffy’s self- righteousness felt more disagreeable than anything Edina and Patsy could do. They confessed to having tied her to the central reservation when she was three; Patsy said she’d advised Edina to have an abortion, and described Saffy as a “bitch troll from hell” (a line reprised in the film). This could only be liberating, when few things are treated with more suspicion in society than a woman who neither wants nor likes children. Edina is just about cognisant enough of the damage she has created to make her inability to repair it borderline tragic. Patsy lacks even that sliver of self-awareness. You could find more ​empathy in a switchblade. The film allows Saffy a moment of kinship with a group of drag queens. True to form, though, men play no part in the meagre plot, in which Edina flees the country with Patsy after accidentally killing Kate Moss. Sending TV stars to the south of France seems, in the light of the terrible 1966 Morecambe and Wise film That Riviera Touch , like hollering the word “Macbeth” in a theatre. But this trip incorporates a glorious incident involving Patsy posing as a man. Crossing genders is old hat for her; in series two, it was revealed that she once had a sex-change operation (“It fell off”). Lumley’s ravenous, sexualised presence is heightened spectacularly by her Victor/Victoria get- up, so it’s a pity the script doesn’t give it more space. The sequence evaporates in a puff of innuendo when an explosion of bad taste would have been just the ticket. It may be foolhardy for the final scene to mimic Some Like It Hot : it makes you wish you were watching a real movie rather than trumped-up television. But now that the Ab Fab legacy is ubiquitous – in Sex and the City , Girls and Catastrophe ; in Megan Mullally in Will and Grace , Jane Krakowski in 30 Rock , Amy Schumer and Melissa McCarthy – it would be churlish to deny Saunders this lap of honour.

Chocolate flakes and paperweights: the mesmerizing voice of Roald Dahl The original riot girls: the sparkling legacy of Absolutely Fabulous newstatesman.com "My love life would have been way better": Christine and the Queens on gender fluidity and drag The original riot girls: the sparkling legacy of Absolutely Fabulous newstatesman.com 2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

11 The Formation World Tour reveals Beyoncé’s strength as a storyteller through songs old and new Brief Encounters is warm and joyful – but no-one in Sheffield calls it "dinner" (0.02/2) Colossal. Enormous. Reviews of Beyoncé’s latest shows have been enthralled by the sheer size of the spectacle. In the words of NME , “Nothing about The Formation World Tour is small-scale.” And what else could we expect from the biggest pop star on the planet, whose album releases, televised performances and, yes, world tours, have become bigger and bigger cultural events over the 13 years of her solo career? When her latest visual album, Lemonade , had its surprise release on HBO and Tidal earlier this year, the world was watching. Audiences were captivated by the strange visuals, the hot rage, and the radical politics of Lemonade. On the Formation World Tour, which hit the UK last week, the extent of forward planning behind that release becomes clear. The tour started just two days after the release, combines visuals from Lemonade as well as huge numbers of shots that are either outtakes or filmed at the same time specifically for the tour. The result is that the aesthetic and themes of the album are magnified: both metaphorically, as Beyoncé expands to fill the vacuum of energy caused by tens of thousands of voracious fans, and literally – via a 72-foot-tall LED cube called “the Monolith”, which plays clips, backing imagery and tracks, and rotates to indicate a new “section” of the show has begun (drawing heavily on the structure of Lemonade , the show is split into thematic sections, beginning with the defiance of “Formation” “Sorry” and the “Bow Down” section of “Flawless***”, and ending with the spirituality of “Freedom” and “Halo” performed in shallow water). Lemonade is leant a new violence: as Beyoncé whispers the searing Warsan Shire poem that begins “If it’s what you truly want, I can wear her skin over mine,” the Monolith shows a close-up of her mouth, as she drags the flat side of a razor over her tongue, then her punching the walls of a glass box, dressed in white fur. Anger is amplified via hissing CCTV screens in “Hold Up” and thunderstorm effects during “Don’t Hurt Yourself”, as Beyoncé swirls around the stage in a serpent-embroidered cape, her voice cracking with fury. These songs feel designed for this setting. But much of Lemonade ’s power lies in its intimacy. It feels voyeuristic, like we really are glimpsing the private agonies of a marriage on the brink of collapse. Its rage and disappointment hits as hard in whispers (“What are you doing my love?”) as it does in shouts (“Who the fuck do you think I am?!”). Can you translate those moments of quiet anguish to a 90,000 capacity venue? Beyoncé can. Two acapella moments stand out. “Irreplacable”, a tour favourite for so many years, takes on a new meanness sung without backing amid red lighting, transforming the song from a smiling shrug to a snarl: “I can have another you by tomorrow.” Beyoncé lets the audience sing the majority of “Love On Top”, and here the acapella strategy is joyful, ending with B giggling: “I’m going to stop there, or you guys will just keep on going!” And if a 60-foot screen risks leaving the audience with a mostly virtual experience, this tour employs a range of tricks to remind you that you gaze upon Beyoncé made flesh. The Monolith is often used to house performers, framing them with larger images of themselves – we’re treated to seeing the real Beyoncé dancing between her own virtual legs, for example. When “Diva” begins, the screen’s visuals switch to black and white, and the audience’s eye follows the real Beyoncé and her dancers as they stride down the runway in sequined gold bodysuits like twinkling coins. Perhaps the greatest strength of this tour is how seamlessly it integrates Beyoncé songs old and new, Lemonade visuals and spoken word clips, as well as samples from other artists, into a cohesive narrative. Songs that could easily be dismissed as trivial feel infused with new politics. “I Care”, “Don’t Hurt Yourself” and “Ring the Alarm” cross decades to form a perfect trifecta of indignation. Even “Me, Myself and I”, one of Beyoncé’s most inoffensive mid-Noughties tracks, feels potent. And samples of Kanye West’s “New Slaves”, Skepta and JME’s “That’s Not Me” and Wine-O’s “Pop My Trunk” feel so at home here you could almost miss them. By all rights, a setlist that takes you from 2013’s haunting exploration of post-natal depression, “Mine”, into the Middle Eastern-infused 2002 dancehall hit “Baby Boy”, into Lemonade ’s gleefully vengeful “Hold Up” should feel utterly scatterbrained – especially when it does so via samples of French Montana’s “Freaks” and Sister Nancy’s “Bam Bam”. But somehow, here, it makes perfect sense. Regardless of size and spectacle, on the Formation World Tour, Beyoncé’s gift for storytelling shines through. I can pinpoint the exact moment when I fell, somewhat embarrassingly, for Brief Encounters (Mondays, 9pm), ITV’s new comedy drama about naughty knicker parties in the early Eighties. In the upstairs bedroom of her “posh” detached house in Sheffield, Pauline (Penelope Wilton) was telling her cleaner, Steph (Sophie Rundle), that her butcher husband, Brian (Peter Wight), had received “the nod” from the local Rotary club. I hadn’t the faintest idea what she was on about; as far as I know, the Rotarians aren’t some Freemason-style secret society. But something in her tone – perhaps there was a touch of Alan Bennett about it – caught my attention. That’s when it happened. Moving across the great expanse of fitted carpet, she arrived at a fitted wardrobe the size of a small branch of Tesco. “Brian can get through three shirts in a day,” she announced, coat hangers in hand. “I think it must be to do with working with meat.” I realise that Brief Encounters is basically knickers. An Aldi version of The Full Monty , it arrives on our screens with every cliché of character and plot intact. But my heart is simply not up to the job of resisting it. For one thing, there is the adorable Wilton, giving her all to the part of Pauline, a bored and lonely housewife who is about to find boundless hope at the bottom of a box of mauve negligees – and sod what her sententious neighbour Bunny Matlock (Pippa Haywood) thinks. For another, not only is it set in Sheffield, my home town, but it seems to have been filmed largely in Crookes, the suburb immortalised by the Human League and Jarvis Cocker. As I watched, I felt kind of funny. It was in these streets – the steep hills lined with millstone grit terraces and bounded by open countryside – that my beloved granny lived and to which, when I was a small girl, my father retreated with the woman who became my stepmother. Because of this insider knowledge, I noticed the mistakes, and they annoyed me. Brian the butcher would not have called his evening meal “dinner” and Steph, the cleaner who hopes to earn some much-needed extra cash by throwing knicker parties, is perplexingly well spoken. The series, written by Fay Rusling and Oriane Messina, also makes much of how, when she first decides to become an Ann Summers representative, she is so prudish that she can barely bring herself to touch a sock-style “marital aid” (use your imagination), let alone the cucumber-sized baton that is the Stallion vibrator. Really? I don’t think so. In 1984 I had a job in a Sheffield branch of Boots and all anyone talked about as they piled up the Pampers and wrote down the names of the codeine addicts was sex. I got quite an education. As for the scene in which Pauline’s hairdresser, Dawn (Sharon Rooney), ended up eating her client’s potpourri, believing it was a party nibble. .. What next? Is Bunny Matlock going to mistake a plate of mushy peas for guacamole? Oh, but I forgot. Faced with the buzzing, jerking Stallion, she thought she was looking at a food blender. The trouble is that it’s all so warm-hearted. Even if you don’t believe in their sexual awakening, you want these women to succeed. Plus, Toni Basil and Ultravox are on the soundtrack. For some of us, this is seductive. The Eighties weren’t better times than these; 1982 was a tough year, whether you owned a dry-clean-only sexy maid outfit or not. But given what we’re going through right now, we can be forgiven for a bit of misplaced nostalgia. I certainly prefer misplaced nostalgia – and simple minds – to Brian Cox, whose smooth and gormless face is back on BBC1. His new series, Forces of Nature With Brian Cox (Mondays, 9pm), is about the laws that govern the natural world, a realm that is, as the Alain de Botton of physics says, ​reporting from various exotic locations, beautiful and complex. What is not beautiful and complex is his way with words. Who can bear it? Not me. Even those of us who flunked CSE physics grasp that the “force of gravity is unrelenting”. Forget D:Ream. This is “Dumb Britain: the World Tour”. I fell asleep on a train – when I woke up, Paul McCartney was there Brief Encounters is warm and joyful – but no-one in Sheffield calls it "dinner" newstatesman.com

Life and storytelling: remembering Abbas Kiarostami, the Iranian film director (1940-2016) Brief Encounters is warm and joyful – but no-one in Sheffield calls it "dinner" newstatesman.com 2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

12 ANC in KZN puts forward ‘best of the best’ as mayoral candidates (0.01/2) Provincial chairman Sihle Zikalala unveiled the candidates for 15 mayoral posts on Tuesday – headlined by Zandile Gumede‚ who is slated to lead the Durban-based eThekwini Municipality He said the processes followed were fair and ensured that the best people were put forward for the job. “In the ANC we don't just wake up say: ‘This is a mayor.’ And you don't appoint yourself‚” he said. Three candidates were chosen by each region for the mayoral posts. These were discussed by the provincial structures before being forwarded to the party's national structures for confirmation. “You can see we’ve been serious about the people we’ve pulled in and put forward as mayors. We have ensured that we’ve come up with the best of the best. We’ve embraced the principle of unity‚ and ensured we’ve embraced continuity as a principle that guides us‚” said Zikalala. Earlier‚ KZN secretary Supa Zuma said these candidates would ensure the ANC would win – and win well. “We want to ensure that we govern all 54 municipalities and all 870 wards in KwaZulu-Natal in order to be able to expand on the great strides that we have achieved over the past 16 years since the establishment of a democratic local government. “The provincial executive committee conducted a detailed assessment of the elections campaign‚ looking closely at our strengths and weaknesses in all our 11 regions. Generally‚ we are satisfied with the pace of the campaign and are certain of decisive victory on August 3‚” he said. The candidates that were unveiled include: - eThekwini metro: Zandile Gumede‚ the party's regional chair and a councillor in Durban since 2000‚ who sits on the council's powerful executive committee; - Zululand district: Sipho Nkosi‚ a school principal who has held various positions within the ANC and teacher unions; - uMzinyathi district: Lindokuhle Ngubane‚ who has been put forward to retain her post at the council; - uThungulu district: Nonhle Mkhulisa‚ who will get a promotion from her position of deputy mayor; - iLembe district: Siduduzo Gumede‚ a so-called “Mr Fix-It” who is a councillor in the KwaDukuza municipality; - Ugu district: Tolomane Mnyayiza‚ a former advisor to the provincial legislature and the party's chairman in the Lower South Coast Region; - uMgungundlovu district: Thobekile Maphumulo‚ who has previously served as a deputy mayor and mayor of the Mkhambathini local municipality; - uThukela district: Siphiwe Mazibuko‚ who will get moved upwards from his position as a councillor on the executive committee and chief whip at the same council; - Amajuba district: Musa Ngubane‚ a community activist and medical doctor who is employed by the provincial health department and was involved in the roll-out of the National Health Insurance programme in the region; - Harry Gwala district: Mluleki Ndobe‚ who has been put forward to retain his post as mayor; - uMsunduzi local municipality: Themba Njilo‚ a businessman described as a “passionate community activist who is also an ANC member in good standing”‚ who runs drug rehabilitation centres in the area; - Newcastle local municipality: Makhosini Nkosi‚ a lawyer and an MPL who has previously worked within the municipality's legal department; - Ray Nkonyeni local municipality: Nomusa Mqwebu‚ mayor of the Hibiscus Coast local municipality‚ has been put forward to lead the brand new council; and - uMhlathuze local municipality: Mdu Mhlongo‚ is slated to retain his post as mayor.

KZN ANC candidate shot dead in front of family timeslive.co.za 2016-07-09 18:00 Matthew Savides www.timeslive.co.za

13 Olive branches and bombs: President Erdogan and Turkey's precarious politics Jeremy Corbyn is a risk the middle-class can afford to take (0.01/2) Ergenekon Sungec, a young Turkish travel agent, finally had reason to smile again last week. For months, the gaudy hotels across the road from his office in the Turkish resort town of Kundu have been half empty. The big- spending Russians who used to sign up for his rafting trips and jeep safaris have stayed away since November, when President Vladimir Putin punished Turkey for shooting down a Russian warplane by banning package holidays to the country. On Monday 27 June, in a rare show of humility, Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, extended an olive branch to Moscow, expressing regret for the debacle and clearing the way for a wider thawing of relations. He also formally restored diplomatic ties with Israel following a six-year freeze. After a period of growing isolation, Turkey seemed to be turning over a new leaf. “It is good news for our industry,” said Sungec. “This year has been rubbish but it will make a difference in 2017. We are trying to look forward with hope.” A day later much of that hope evaporated. Suspected Isis operatives launched a triple suicide bombing at Atatürk Airport in Istanbul, killing 44 people. The attack – the eighth in Turkey attributed to Isis in just over a year – served to highlight the country’s myriad domestic problems. Political and social tensions are running high, especially since the return to violence in the mainly Kurdish south-east. Isis, having initially largely left Turkey alone, now appears intent on adding to the turmoil – and the challenges facing Erdogan. For all the criticism he attracts, the Turkish president’s latest diplomatic manoeuvring is a reminder that he is willing to compromise when he has to. Before the Arab uprisings swept across the Middle East in 2011, his Justice and Development Party (AKP) pursued a pragmatic foreign policy, working to strengthen ties with old foes such as Syria, Greece and Armenia. However, Erdogan’s attempt to become the champion of the Sunni Muslim world by launching tirades against Israel and supporting Islamist movements as they rose up against old Arab dictators left Turkey isolated as history turned against him. The civil war in neighbouring Syria increasingly spilled over the border. The US’s co-operation with Kurdish forces in the Syrian conflict fuelled fears in Turkey that it would embolden separatists at home. And when Russia intervened in support of President Assad, Turkish-backed rebels took a beating. Realising that his lack of friends was risking the health of Turkey’s remarkably resilient economy – one of the most buoyant in the G20, with 4.8 per cent growth in the first quarter of 2016 – and fomenting instability, Erdogan decided to try rebuild relations with Russia and Israel. Putin is likely to insist that Turkey soften its hostility to Assad. Further shifts may follow. There are few signs, though, that Erdogan is willing to compromise at home, where he is trying to extend his powers by making himself an executive president – a controversial move within his party and beyond. In theory, the presidency, which he assumed in 2014 after 11 years as prime minister, is a ceremonial office. “The reset mode in foreign policy doesn’t have its equivalent in domestic politics,” said Galip Dalay, research director of al-Sharq Forum, an Istanbul- based think tank. “Turkey’s number-one item on the agenda is changing the political system.” The AKP won a fourth term in office last year with 49 per cent of the vote, its support built on bringing unprecedented prosperity to Turkey. Acolytes argue that the party is correcting the aggressive secularism imposed by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the modern Turkish republic, that excluded women in headscarves from university. Liberals, however, believe their freedoms are under assault from a president who deliberately riles the half of the country that didn’t back his party, tightening alcohol laws and telling childless women that they are “deficient”. The media face ever tighter restrictions and there have been purges of the judiciary. Most significantly of all, the long-running conflict between the state and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) erupted again last year, reopening deep wounds in society. That Erdogan had taken greater steps than any other leader before him to reach out to the sidelined Kurdish minority makes the return to violence all the more alarming. Whole districts in Turkey’s south-east have been flattened with bulldozers after operations to clear them of armed groups purporting to defend their inhabitants from a hostile state. Kurdish militants have retaliated with a series of bombings that killed both security forces and civilians. Hundreds have died. Much of the population has been raised to harbour a deep-seated fear of Kurdish separatism and the campaign against the PKK seems to have boosted Erdogan politically. Isis has played on the divisions and suspicions. Its first wave of bombings hit Kurdish targets – directly contributing to the collapse of the two-year ceasefire last summer. The group never claims responsibility for attacks in Turkey, a tactic that seems designed to stoke mistrust. The government’s critics see the bombings as blowback for turning a blind eye to jihadists piling over the border into Syria. Meanwhile, some of Turkey’s pro-government newspapers blamed the attack at Atatürk Airport on US or British agents supposedly intent on thwarting the country’s success. What is certain is that the bombs scare away the tourists. The White Garden Pension, a small hotel with a shady courtyard in the old district of Antalya, on Turkey’s south coast, had ten cancellations after the latest attack. The area’s old winding streets are most popular with western Europeans, so the thaws with Russia and Israel will make little difference. “We tell each other, perhaps next month will be better,” said the manager, Hasan Erkan. “But maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, there will be another bomb. We just don’t know.” I know I’m middle class, because the day I needed to claim benefits and burst into tears because the queue was too long and I knew I would be going home without the money to pay the overdue electricity bill, the security guard took me aside and told me that if I came back early the next day, someone would be able to see me. I know the family in front of me were not middle class because the buggy they were pushing was a lesser brand than the one I was pushing, and because they were smoking, and because they had strong Sheffield accents, which I heard when they started to remonstrate with the security guard about the special treatment they (rightly) suspected I was getting. I hurried away, their threats to give me a good slapping echoing behind me. The year of being poor was the year I knew my class most keenly. That year, I was thin because I walked a lot and ate mostly lentils, traipsing between the university campus where I studied English literature, and the flat I lived in with my boyfriend and our baby and the mice that poured in under the skirting boards. I paid for things with prayerful checks, hoping my student loan would clear in time. We took part-time jobs to eke out our tax credits – one working days, one working nights, meeting to hand over our baby. I stood in line outside seminar rooms, listening to normal students complain that they “hadn’t had time” to read Middlemarch over the summer, and wanted to deliver a slapping myself. The spines of all my Victorian set texts are split because I held them with one hand, cupping my baby’s head with the other, reading while I breast-fed. That year was pinched and hard, and I knew it wouldn’t last. I knew that, in the end, I was more like the idiot children who couldn’t be bothered to finish a novel than I was like the neighbours I shared my mice with. I had a nice voice to talk to officials with, and a lifetime of trust that people in power were there mostly to help me, and parents who, if everything failed, would always come and get me. I had been brought up to believe that I would do well, sure of my own exceptionalism; my head stuffed with art and politics and foreign travel and table manners, so that if or when I sat down at formal hall one day, I would pass as someone who had always belonged there. My parents were the first generation of their family to go to university and lived very different lives to their parents. They wanted that life for me too. When my boyfriend and me got our degrees and moved for work, we had to leave behind most of our furniture – all cast-offs and donations from family and friends. A little later we came back to do some final tidying up. I called in at my neighbours, and found myself sitting on my own ex-sofa, resting a cup on my own ex-coffee table, politely not mentioning it. That was the difference: neither of us had much, but I could afford to bet that there was more in my future. That’s what being middle class meant to me then. It was the promise that, however tired or wet or hungry I was that day, my future would be warm and dry and plump. I couldn’t always believe it. But I lived as though it were true, and by my acts I was redeemed. Even so, the life me and my boyfriend had was really only possible because of a government that is now held in contempt by many of my peers. It’s hard to agree that New Labour was the epitome of neoliberal evil when tax credits kept you fed. Student loans and tuition fees smarted, but they didn’t stop me from doing OK. Labour helped me. It didn’t hugely help the place where I lived in my year of being poor, though. The constituency of Brightside and Hillsborough (once David Blunkett’s) remains a very safe Labour seat, but it’s never been given a solution for the disappearance of British industry. Unemployment is high, educational attainment low. The white population’s anxiety about immigration was evident when I lived there. Now, the second party in the constituency is Ukip (albeit second by a very long way). Sheffield voted, narrowly, for Leave in the the EU Referendum. I didn’t live there for a general election, but the chances are I would not have voted for Blunkett if I’d had the chance. Class again. My issues were the Iraq war and tuition fees. I had a vague idea that a “proper” Labour government would not have done those things, and I took the goods of the Labour government I had for granted. In its turn, Labour took constituencies like Brightside and Hillsborough for granted, banking that they had no other party to turn to. That freed Labour up to move into the centre, where it won election after election. I still wish Labour had used that power to do more. I still think it’s wrong that the kind of redistribution Labour established could fix me safely back in the class where I started, but not haul up the whole neighbourhood. But I want Labour to have power. I’ve spent too long now watching the class I belong to live on its own sense of moral rectitude, at the expense of the class I temporarily lived within. Corbyn's heritage, heirloom leftism is a luxury good – you can afford it if life under perpetual Tory government is something you can bear the cost of. And, like most retro pleasures you find at the farmers’ market, it’s a very modern version of the old: Corbyn’s Labour is a Labour movement for a world where labour has lost most of its former power. A Labour of the herbivores, headed up by a grammar-school boy, flanked by his Winchester-educated press-strategy man, still expecting the working classes to fall into grateful line. That’s an expectation that can no longer be relied on. I know I'm middle class now because Labour’s failure doesn't hurt me.

Jeremy Corbyn is a risk the middle-class can afford to take The five ways the left can win back the Leavers newstatesman.com 2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

14 Of the People Mayor Shirley Franklin started a program in the city of Atlanta in which every single student who graduated from a public school, she’d find a way to pay for their first year of college. And, after hearing my story, she took an interest in me. She gave me a job in her office and she helped me get into college. Summer came, and I didn’t go to work because I didn’t have a suit. I got a call saying, “You need to get to work,” and she had someone take me suit shopping. They took me and bought me like five different suits and said, “This is how you invest in your kids.” I’m the first person in my family to graduate from college. That is the kind of local politics I grew to love in Atlanta. National politics is more messy. But I have hope that is going to change. Photograph by Ryan Stone for The New York Times

2016-07-09 18:00 The New www.nytimes.com

15 ‘Israeli killers' homes must be destroyed the way Palestinians' are’ The lawyer, Mohannad Jubara, believes it is a fitting and equal punishment for the three Israeli men who abducted 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir in 2014, and burned him to death. The attackers’ motives were allegedly revenge for the killing of three Israeli teens by Palestinian militant group Hamas. Israel is known for destroying the homes of Palestinian militants as a tactic aimed at deterring future attacks. Palestinians believe the practice amounts to collective punishment. Jubara launched his appeal to the Supreme Court, saying Abu Khdeir’s killers should face the same fate. Recently Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the destruction of the home of a Palestinian teen who snuck into an Israeli girl’s bedroom to kill her. The Jewish state also continues its practice of the systematic removal of Palestinian settlements it deems illegal, as in the case of the village of Al- Araqeeb, which was destroyed for the 100th time since July 2010, according to locals and activists. Israel says the village was built on state land and lacked the necessary permits. However, one activist said demolitions went ahead despite the decision by the Israeli Higher Court of Justice, which ruled the land did not belong to the state.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

16 Crusaders crush Rebels in 13-try rout The lop-sided encounter kept the seven-time champions one point behind the Waikato Chiefs who also collected maximum points when they whipped the Queensland Reds 50-5 on Friday and ensured the New Zealand conference will go down to the wire. Had Richie Mo'unga been at his kicking best the Crusaders would have been nudging 50 points by half-time as they scored seven tries in the first 40 minutes to turn with a 43-7 lead over the injury hit Rebels. They added a further six tries in the second half and were threatening competition records until their relentless scoring pace tapered off in the final quarter. The Crusaders set the record for the highest score in Super Rugby when they beat the NSW Waratahs 96-19 in 2002. They scored a record 14 tries in that match which was equalled by the Central Cheetahs earlier this year when they beat the Sunwolves 92-17. Stung by their loss to the Chiefs last week, and losing their place at the top of the ladder, the Crusaders were determined to make amends as they thrived on audacious offloads against a brittle defence. Sam Whitelock, in his 100th Super game and captaining the side in the absence of , set the tone when he scored the opening try after 90 seconds. "We weren't happy after last week and we wanted to start well and the boys did that, spot on," Whitelock said. Although the Rebels ranks were decimated by injury and flanker Colby Fainga'a was converted into a back to plug a hole in the second half, captain Nic Stirzaker made no excuses. "It was a pretty rotten start, a charge down and a try early and then it was tough to stop the rot once it set in. We were pretty dreadful and they were exceptional," he said. In addition to McNicholl's triple, Ryan Crotty and Codie Taylor both scored two tries, while Whitelock, Scott Barrett, Alex Hodgman, Nemani Nadolo, Pete Samu and also crossed the line. Mo'unga landed seven conversions and Nadolo two. scored the Rebels only try in the first half with Reece Hodge, Culum Retallick and Sefa Naivalu scoring after the break. Jack Debreczeni landed three conversions. The Crusaders finish off the regular season next Saturday hosting the Wellington Hurricanes in a rare afternoon match and just ahead of the Chiefs' clash in Dunedin against the defending champion Otago Highlanders. The Rebels, who are well out of contention in the Australian conference, play the Queensland Reds on Friday.

2016-07-09 18:00 AFP www.timeslive.co.za

17 Ackermann frets that Lions can come unstuck against Kings With a strong Lions side awaiting the visiting Kings at Ellis Park‚ the Johannesburg-based side’s coach Johan Ackermann believes that with his side sprinkled with a chunk of Bok players‚ they are now marked men whom others will want to measure themselves against. “I told the players when they became Springboks that that is great‚ but they must understand that with that comes responsibility‚” said Ackermann. “Players now won’t see you as just another player‚ but see you as a Springbok. That means that they are going to come and measure themselves against you. That is part of why we play the game … There’s no need for motivation from the Kings’ side. That is what makes them a dangerous team. “The only thing their coach needs to say is‚ ‘Boys‚ go out there and play against the leading side and show that we can play at this level’. There’s your motivation talk.” The Kings are a side who have seemed to struggle this season as they sit second from the bottom of the overall Super Rugby log‚ having won only two matches. But the Lions‚ who sit at the summit of the log‚ are viewing their opponents with the utmost caution. “A side who are in the corner like them can only gain by coming out and proving to everybody that they can play. For us‚ I’m quite serious about the game in a sense that we need to be at our best‚ or else we can become unstuck‚” said the Lions coach. In most of their matches this season the Kings have shown some great fight against some of the best teams in the competition. The results in most of the games may not have reflected the gallant efforts the Port Elizabeth-based side have put in throughout the season‚ but they have run some teams ragged for parts of their matches. Deon Davids has shown some strength in areas of play the Lions will look to target. “The Kings have a very good scrum and lineout drives‚” Lions captain Jaco Kriel said. “We can’t do anything about that. What we can do is to prepare ourselves to be at our best and bring our A-game.” The match will kick off at 7pm.

2016-07-09 18:00 Chumani Bambani www.timeslive.co.za

18 Angry squattters set bus alight in Durban after shacks demolished Iceland and Leicester City’s examples have been an inspiration to the underdog around the world‚ said Banyana Banyana captain Janine van Wyk ahead of one of her team’s sternest tests they will face against USA in Chicago on Saturday. 2016-07-09 18:00 Matthew Savides www.timeslive.co.za

19 Iceland and Leicester have shown the underdog the way‚ says Banyana captain The South African women’s national team could not have asked for stronger opposition than the world champions‚ and Brazil of women’s football‚ at Chicago’s famous 62‚000- seater Soldier Field at 7pm SA time. Vera Pauw’s Banyana will get a true test of their state of preparedness for the Rio Olympics in August after months of training camps‚ and two defeats in international friendlies away against the Netherlands last month (1-0 and 2- 0). Van Wyk said Banyana have taken some notes from the shock English Premier League title won this past season by Leicester‚ and tiny Iceland’s remarkable run to the Euro 2016 quarterfinals last week – on how the underdog can match vaunted opposition through teamwork. “That’s an example I wanted to give‚ about teams like Iceland and Leicester doing it against top quality teams‚” Banyana’s sturdy attacking right-back said. “I think one critical characteristic that we have as a team is teamwork‚ and that takes you far in a competition too. “We’re growing as a team. The 2012 Olympics was about going there to experience what international football is all about. “We went there having only prepared for three months before the tournament. And it showed because we didn’t connect with each other‚ and so didn’t make it through the group stage. “This time around we have had almost a year preparing together. We’re a close team who have been together for so long and have played matches constantly. “We feel much more confident than in 2012‚ and this time around many of us know what to expect at that level. “Now all these high profile friendlies we are playing are about getting us used to high pressure‚ to get us ready for Rio.” From 196-cap goalkeeper Hope Solo – who will aim to keep her 100th international clean sheet against Banyana – to 2015 Fifa Player of the Year Carli Lloyd and pin-up striker Alex Morgan‚ South Africa will meet the superstars of women’s football at Soldier Field. “Especially before the game‚ ahead of kick-off in the tunnel‚ when we see all these big names next to us who we have looked up to from when we’re young‚ it will dawn on us‚” Van Wyk said. “But we’ve also got to see ourselves as professionals. The game is 90 minutes – anything is possible. “We should forget about their records and who they have in their team and give our best. “We know what to expect of them. We’ve been watching their videos‚ learning their patterns‚ style of play and key players. And if we can get that right I think we can give USA a good match. “Any sort of result would give us huge confidence ahead of going to Rio. But a good performance is most important. If we do that‚ it would be good enough for us. “And even if we don’t get a good result we know we’ll come back stronger from the experience.” Pauw has used her network of international connections to play a key role in arranging the games against Netherlands and USA. “We really appreciate the coach’s hard work for us getting the match against USA. We’re going to make the most of it and grasp every opportunity we can get from it‚” Van Wyk said. “The Netherlands gave us quality games. We had constant pressure on us. We’re also used to playing against African teams‚ where we tend to dominate them. “Then we go into global football and we’re the underdogs‚ trying to adapt to the pressure that we constantly get – especially in our half. “And trying to break through and create chances. And we did do that in the Netherlands – it was just that we didn’t put the ball in the back of the net. “That’s something we’ve been working on in training – on creating and scoring those opportunities.” Banyana grew in strength in their first Olympics in London four years ago‚ losing their first two games 4-1 against Sweden and 3-0 against Canada‚ before finishing with a 0-0 draw against Japan.

2016-07-09 18:00 Marc Strydom www.timeslive.co.za

20 Unions not liable if political party interferes in protected strike‚ lawyers say Law firm Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr was commenting on the issue of who is accountable when a political party intervenes in a protected strike. It says this issue has been settled in the decision of National Union of Food Beverage Wine Spirits and Allied Workers and others v Universal Product Network (UPN) passed by the Labour Court. In that case‚ the union had embarked on a protected strike in October 2015 after failing to reach an agreement on wages and other conditions with the employer. However‚ during the course of the strike‚ banners were displayed criticising the UPN’s holding company‚ Woolworths‚ for doing business with Israel. Also‚ members of a political party‚ the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF)‚ became involved in the strike. The EFF officials visited the UPN premises demanding to negotiate with management. They also told union members to intensify the strike by targeting trucks doing deliveries‚ and entering and leaving the company’s gates. The employer went to court and claimed that the striking employees had failed to comply with the picketing rules and had committed various acts of strike-related misconduct. The union denied it was in alliance or in partnership with the EFF‚ and had no control over the EFF and its programmes. In its judgment passed in November last year‚ the Labour Court said while the court will - in appropriate circumstances - declare an initially protected strike unprotected on account of levels and degrees of violence‚ this was not a conclusion that ought lightly to be reached. Judge Andre van Niekerk said the evidence presented by the employer did not disclose that any “political” demands had been made by the union. “To the extent that the EFF has made demands of the (company) these are not demands made by the union‚ and indeed‚ the union has expressly disassociated itself from both the EFF’s conduct and its demands‚” Van Niekerk said. Aadil Patel and Stephanie Goncalves‚ the law firm’s attorneys‚ said where a political party interfered with a strike and the employer was aggrieved by such actions‚ the employer could not hold the union liable. Patel said the correct course of action was for the employer to hold the political party and its members accountable for their misconduct and institute action against them. “Therefore‚ the mere fact that a strike has taken on a political flavour cannot transform a protected strike into an unprotected one.”

2016-07-09 18:00 Ernest Mabuza www.timeslive.co.za

21 150 rebel Labour MPs to defy Corbyn in imminent Trident vote — RT UK The group, which represents two-thirds of Corbyn’s MPs, will ignore the leader’s call for Trident to be scrapped at a vote expected to be called by outgoing Prime Minister on July 18. Sources say the planned vote by Cameron is an attempt to reunify his Brexit- scarred Conservative party, which is largely united on Trident, and underscores divisions in Labour. Corbyn, who is a proponent of total nuclear disarmament, is expected to offer MPs a free vote on Trident. In recent weeks, the leader has faced a vote of no confidence and almost every shadow minister in his top team has resigned. Rebels are now looking to use the Trident vote to re-emphasize how Corbyn has lost the support of his MPs. One former Labour shadow minister told the Telegraph: “150 MPs will vote for renewal. In the present circumstances, it might be higher than that. People have burnt all bridges with him already, so why would they bother supporting him? “Corbyn doesn’t actually command the support of the trade unions on this. Both GMB and Unite will argue very strongly for a Yes vote … It just reinforces the point that clearly on this issue he’s out of step with the main trade unions.” He added: “Over the last week, I have been contacted by hundreds of Labour members and MPs deeply worried that the Labour party is truly in danger of splitting apart. “I share those fears and call on everyone in our movement to do all we can to avert such a disastrous outcome. I stand ready to do anything I can to save and serve the party.” Tory leadership candidate Theresa May has said it would be “sheer madness” for Britain to give up its nuclear deterrent, arguing all four submarines should be replaced. She said a post-Brexit Britain must show it is “committed” to working with its NATO allies. Activists claim the renewal of Trident is expensive, unsafe, ill-suited for contemporary warfare and in violation of international commitments. Criticism of the nuclear deterrent has even come from within the Royal Navy itself. Former nuclear submariner William McNeilly was dishonorably discharged for compiling and publishing a report exposing multiple safety and security lapses at the base and on the submarines themselves. The massive cost of the weaponry has become the regular refrain of those who oppose renewal. It is expected to cost £205 billion (US$296 billion). The Trident vote comes as a second Labour moderate, Owen Smith, has gone public with his intention to challenge Corbyn for leadership if he refuses to stand down on his own accord. Angela Eagle, the shadow business secretary, went public earlier this week with her threat to trigger a leadership contest unless Corbyn quits. The pair now look set to face their own battle about who will become “unity candidate” for the Labour moderates if the negotiations fail to unseat Corbyn, as expected. With talks between Len McCluskey, the general secretary of the influential Unite union, and both sides of the Labour split dragging into a third day, there is little sign of progress, according to Telegraph sources.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

22 SABC is ‘losing face’, says Democratic lawyers association “It is for this reason that NADEL‚ as a human’s right organisation‚ cannot remain silent‚” said the organisation’s spokesman Memory Sosibo on Thursday. “Independent media stands as one of the crucial guardians of Democracy as it is able to foster an effective‚ accountable and responsive government. It gives a voice to the voiceless and brings matters of importance into public knowledge which allows for meaningful political participation. In order for the SABC to remain effective it needs to maintain its independence and more so to be seen as independent.” NADEL voiced its concerns against the backdrop of the state broadcaster resolving not the air footage of violent protests and the suspension of three senior journalists for disagreeing with management instructions to not report protests against it by civil rights group Right2know. “Perhaps what is more alarming is the resignation of the SABC’s acting chief executive officer‚ Jimi Mathews‚” said Sosibo. “One is left with an unshakable and frightening impression that the SABC is facing serious operational challenges and is losing face as an independent voice.” NADEL said the SABC had‚ in the past‚ been accused of self-censorship‚ a lack of objectivity and selective reporting. “It is‚ however‚ when those fears emanate from within the public broadcaster that alarm bells start ringing. “We as NADEL therefore call upon the SABC to urgently resolve its operational issues in order to improve what has been reported as a toxic working environment within the public broadcaster. The SABC needs to create a working environment that clearly outlines the journalistic responsibility of its staff and enables them to execute their functions without any fear‚” said Sosibo. “Media ought to make comments that are fair and report news in a manner that is in the best interest of the public. There are mechanisms that exist to guard against intolerable media coverage; the SABC therefore should not seek to self-regulate. The SABC is further called upon to take steps towards regaining the public’s confidence in it as an independent voice which serves the best interests of society.”

2016-07-09 18:00 Tmg Digital www.timeslive.co.za

23 UK govt gambled with troops’ mental health over Iraq & Afghanistan – Chilcot — RT UK The report found that so- called ‘ harmony guidelines ’ were ignored or broken due to the heightened operational tempo of fighting two parallel wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Lawyers are reportedly scouring the 2.6 million-word report into the Iraq War even as the families of those killed and mentally or physically scarred consider the damning verdict delivered by Sir John Chilcot’s seven-year investigation on Wednesday. It appears that the military’s guidelines, which experts have said were well- founded and important to mental health, were regularly ignored. The report found that: “ The government’s decision to contribute a military force to a US-led invasion of Iraq inevitably increased the risk that more service personnel would be put in breach of the harmony guidelines. The issue of the potential pressure on service personnel was not a consideration in the decision. ” The 2006 deployment to southern Afghanistan merely compounded the impact on troops, it was found, with further breaches of the guidelines taking place. Figures now show that thousands of troops were placed at breaking point in the course of the wars. During the much-delayed inquiry, Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials told Chilcot that in 2004 alone the rules were broken for as much as 18 percent of the 28,000 army troops fighting in Iraq. That is an estimated 5,000 troops. The guidelines continued to be violated, but with breaches dropping to 10 percent by 2009. The RAF also broke the rules for between 2 and 10 percent of the 7,000 airmen it deployed between 2002 and 2009. Former King’s College professor of military sociology Christopher Dandeker, who is also co-director of the King’s Centre for Military Health Research, has previously told the House of Commons that the rules were well-made to protect service personnel. “ The evidence suggests that if you stay within them they [service personnel] do not suffer; if you go beyond them there is a 20 percent-50 percent likelihood that they will suffer in terms of PTSD, ” he said. Recent years have seen fears of an epidemic of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), and in March 2016 it was reported that desperate calls to a helpline used by serving and former military personnel had surged by 85 percent. The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) said many callers have problems with mental health, work, housing and relationships. The charity said the rise reflected the stress military personnel and their families are under. A February report by MoD Statistics claimed more than 10,000 physical wounds were sustained by British military personnel during the Afghan war and that psychological injury remains rife among UK veterans who have returned home. The figures were compiled by the UK’s cutting-edge military field hospital, which operated in the war-torn state between April 2006 and 2014. The year 2014 marked the official end of Britain’s combat role in Afghanistan, codenamed Operation Herrick.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

24 24 Crunch meeting with Orlando Pirates chairman will decide Teboho Moloi's future Moloi‚ then assistant to Eric Tinkler‚ was granted leave by Pirates in April to attend to a personal matter. This was announced at the same press conference at which Khoza also made long-time defender Siyabonga Sangweni’s retirement public on April 7. Bucs have since opted not to renew Tinkler’s one-year contract and appointed Muhsin Ertugral as head coach. Tinkler has gone on to sign as coach of new PSL club Cape Town City. Pirates’ administrative officer Floyd Mbele said Moloi is set to return to duty in the next two weeks‚ and is scheduled to have a meeting with Khoza when he does. “I think in the next week or two we will be able to have an update [on Moloi] – he should be back by then‚” Mbele said. “He’s still on leave. He did come back at one stage to give an update on the personal matter that he was busy with. “I think he would need to meet the chairman in the next week or two to decide his role going forward. There is a meeting scheduled.” Bucs are in the process of identifying players who will be released from a squad that has become increasingly bloated in an off-season spending spree that is apparently not yet at its conclusion. Pirates’ signings so far have included defender Abbubaker Mobara and winger Riyaad Norodien from Ajax Cape Town‚ Ghanaian attacker Bernard Morrison from AS Vita Club in DR Congo‚ and forward Thabiso Kutumela from Baroka FC. “There isn’t any update on players being released because there are still a number of considerations we are having to take into account‚” Mbele said. “And obviously we have had to get the coach to work with the players first so that we don’t jump the gun. And so that the technical team can give us an idea‚ on players they feel we can release. “Muhsin only started working with the players on Monday and he’s having a close look at them before we make any decisions.” Big things are expected of Pirates after some quality signings made already‚ not least of which Ertugral‚ who has won every cup trophy in South Africa and steered Mpumalanga Black Aces to an impressive fourth place last season. Bucs’ only major trophy since 2012 has been the 2014 Nedbank Cup.

2016-07-09 18:00 Marc Strydom www.timeslive.co.za

25 Witness videos capture Dallas terror — RT America Hundreds were marching in protest at the recent deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling at the hands of police, when the Dallas shooting began. The 100 police monitoring the protest responded and, as the full danger of the situation remained unclear, tensions ran high as plainclothes and uniformed cops tried to clear the streets. As they closed in on the gunmen, the moment an officer was ambushed and shot was captured on video (warning: GRAPHIC). Three of the gunmen were eventually detained. One was surrounded before killing himself, according to police. A local man Mark Hughes, who police identified as a person of interest, alerted police to his presence and handed over his licensed weapon amid scenes of extreme fear and tension. Dallas Mayor addressed the media saying the incident was a “heartbreaking moment for the city of Dallas.” Witnesses described the harrowing event, with one telling the media: “I didn’t see anybody else get shot, it was just the cops.”

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

26 'We weren't really effective' in Western Cape, admits ANC's Ehrenreich His shocking admission comes in the wake of chaos that erupted in Nyanga over the exclusion of an ANC councillor from the party's candidate list. "I think our effectiveness was between 10 and 12%. We weren't really effective at all," said Ehrenreich who addressed the Cape Town Press Club yesterday. The ANC chose Ehrenreich as its mayoral candidate in 2011 hoping to pull votes from the DA. His statement comes a month after he was shafted by the party as its mayoral candidate. His replacement is his chief whip, Xolani Sotashe. Ehrenreich blamed the ruling DA for the ANC's ineffectiveness, saying the party used its majority to change council processes to effectively silence them. "One of the practices in council is that the mayor addresses council . then the leader of the opposition [is given time] to talk about the main challenges," he said. But because his party attracted great media attention he claimed council scrapped the practice. "We never got to the podium anymore. We can ask the questions from the floor and they can switch off the mics," said Ehrenreich. He said the DA administration had spent R50-million to boast about having the best-run city in the country. But, said Ehrenreich, it failed to build affordable housing near the CBD or foster social cohesion. Ehrenreich lambasted the ANC along with the DA. He said there were grave dangers should both parties continue to gain strength. "You can see the party bosses taking centre stage, whether it's in Pretoria . or some of the things that are done by the DA in the City of Cape Town," he said. Meanwhile, there are fears that violence by ANC supporters in Nyanga could spread. Authorities shut down a section of the N2 after protesters torched Golden Arrow buses. The scenes were reminiscent of the violence in Tshwane where the ANC appointed as its mayoral candidate.

2016-07-09 18:00 APHIWE DE www.timeslive.co.za

27 Moscow warns of ‘dangerous consequences’ as US moves to place missile defense system in S. Korea — RT Russian politics “ From the very beginning of the discussion of this issue we have consistently and invariably pointed at the most dangerous consequences of such a decision and called for our partners not to make this wrong choice. Unfortunately, our calls have remained unheard ,” reads a Foreign Ministry statement released Friday. READ MORE: 'Joint decision': US to deploy missile defense to S. Korea in face of growing N. Korea threat Russian diplomats noted that the increase in the Asia-Pacific segment of the global missile defense system by the United States and its allies would undermine the existing strategic balance both in the region and beyond. “ Such actions, regardless of the arguments they are backed with, have the most negative effect on global strategic stability, the adherence to which is such a favored topic of discussions in Washington ,” the statement reads. The ministry also warned that the US steps threaten to increase regional tensions and create additional barriers to the peaceful settlement of the conflict between North and South Korea and nuclear disarmament on the Korean peninsula. The Russian diplomats concluded by expressing hope that the United States and South Korea would once again consider all factors behind the decision and abstain from potentially dangerous actions. Earlier on Friday, the South Korean Ministry of Defense announced that Seoul and Washington had reached an agreement to put a high-tech THAAD missile defense system in South Korea amid growing nuclear and missile threats from the North. According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, the system is expected to be in operation by the end of 2017. THAAD – Terminal High Altitude Area Defense – is an advanced system designed to intercept short, medium, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles during their terminal phase of flight. Equipped with a long-range radar, THAAD is believed to be capable of intercepting Pyongyang’s intermediate-range ballistic missiles. READ MORE: S. Korea agrees to begin talks on US missile defense after North's rocket launch The announcement has also drawn criticism from Beijing. China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday the system would destabilize the security balance in the region without doing anything to end the North's nuclear program. " China strongly urges the United States and South Korea to stop the deployment process of the THAAD anti-missile system, not take any steps to complicate the regional situation and do nothing to harm China's strategic security interests ," it said in a statement on its website.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

28 600 tons of ballot papers to be printed: IEC This follows the ’s failed bid to contest the elections after it was disqualified for not paying its deposit on time. The party took the matter to the Electoral Court at the weekend‚ but its application was dismissed. IEC spokesperson Kate Bapela said once printed and packed the ballot papers will amount to about 600 tons. “The boxes vary in size to suit the ballots and the destinations‚” Bapela said. “The project plan dictates that approximately 74-million ballots will be printed. Not a single ballot has been printed yet‚ as the candidate admission process has been delayed by matters such as the NFP court challenge.” She said the ballot papers are printed by a number of companies at various locations in the country. Bapela could not give details of these companies. “These details are kept confidential during the project. The printing takes place 100% within South Africa.” The companies‚ she said are selected through a “full-scale” tender process “The tender was concluded in December 2015. “The tender‚ like all IEC tenders‚ was advertised in the press and specifically in the Government Tender Bulletin‚ and on the IEC Votaquotes website‚” said Bapela.

2016-07-09 18:00 Nomahlubi Jordaan www.timeslive.co.za

29 Pentagon wants injection of $20mn to fight ISIS drones — RT America The money is expected to be given to the Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Organization (JIDO), the Pentagon’s special office dealing with improvised explosive devices, Defense News reports. By the end of 2016, the JIDO with a budget to deal with new IED threats that emerged during the campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, will become a permanent establishment under the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. The new agency is set to deal with the full range of improvised threats emerging around the world, yet its priority is to engage IED and drone threats posed by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and those that emerge in the course of operation Resolute Support, the US and advise mission to Afghanistan’s security forces. “This effort will fill critical capability gaps defined in the Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems Joint Urgent Operational Needs Statement (JUONS) to support counter-improvised explosive devices (C-IEDs) and improvised threat capability requirements in support of Counter-Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and Resolute Support (C-ISIL/RS) missions,” Defense News quotes the reprogramming document. The program will focus on creating a means to detect and defeat small and tactical unmanned aerial systems posing a “direct threat to US and coalition forces,” the document says. The US Army is developing its own means to counter enemy drones, but their field is engaging large unmanned aerial systems, while the JIDO’s activities are “specifically focused on countering the smaller classes of unmanned aerial systems that can be used in an improvised manner,” JIDO’s spokesman David Small said, adding that it’s liaising with a number of organizations and agencies. IS drones are already on reconnaissance missions and carrying improvised explosive devices. The extremists use both free sale commercial quadrocopters and fixed wing drones. “We expect their use to increase because commercial unmanned aerial vehicles have become very accessible,” Small acknowledged, adding that IS militants in Iraq have already been spotted using drones to deliver with precision small-sized handmade explosive devises. “There are known efforts by ISIL to grow this capability,” Small said. If Congress approves the reprogramming funds, the JIDO’s counter-drone research will bear fruit within “zero to two years,” Small said. Still, the incidence of armed drones by terrorists is considered low now, the spokesman acknowledged, stressing that so far the drones are more commonly used by terrorists as a reconnaissance tool. The stats on use of armed drones by IS remain classified. According to Small, Islamic State has been using drones for four definite purposes, namely tactical observations, monitoring enemy response to IS attacks, guiding Vehicular Borne Improvised Explosive Devices (VBIED) and collecting propaganda material. Monitoring and observation missions require the use of full motion video, Small noted. He said IS attacks employing VBIEDs have become routine and “highly sophisticated.” Exactly what counter-drone means the JIDO will develop is top secret to “keep the enemy guessing,” Small said.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

30 Motor racing-Button needs a competitive car to stay in F1 The 2009 world champion's future at Honda-powered McLaren, who have not won a race since his last victory in 2012, is up in the air beyond this year but he has been linked with a possible return to Williams. "If I am racing next year, I will only be racing if I am in a car that is competitive," the 36- year-old told British reporters at his home grand prix. Button, whose place at McLaren looks likely to be taken by Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne, has never finished on the podium at Silverstone in 16 attempts and does not expect to be a contender on Sunday. McLaren are on a long road back after a difficult switch from Mercedes to Honda power units. "I have enjoyed the journey the last year and a half, but there is a point where you feel you have done enough and you can't give any more to the project to help it move forward," said Button. "Hopefully, a little further into this season, we will see where we are and hopefully it will be a good place to be, or somewhere else is a good place to be, and I can challenge for podiums or victories and I will stay. "I only want to be in F1 next year if I feel it is going to be competitive and enjoyable. It is my decision whether I want to stay in F1 or do something else. I won't walk away if I'm competitive. " Button said any decision would not be about money and he would not drive half-heartedly. He finished sixth in last weekend's Austrian Grand Prix after starting in third place following grid penalties to Mercedes' championship leader Nico Rosberg and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel. Williams, who have Mercedes engines, have had a podium finish this season with Finland's Valtteri Bottas in Canada but have slipped down the championship standings from third to fourth. Brazilian Felipe Massa is their other driver and the one whose future at the team is uncertain. The top three teams -- Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull -- look certain to retain their current lineups for 2017 with the latter two already confirming their drivers and only Rosberg yet to agree an extension.

2016-07-09 18:00 REUTERS www.timeslive.co.za

31 SA Security agency checks media delegates for Durban Aids conference This is according to emails being received by media delegates‚ the conference website and a government webpage. Attendees are also being advised to arrive at least 45 minutes early to have the time to complete the accreditation process. Media delegates received a document by email stating that at the conference they should‚ “... please proceed to Accreditation‚ which is led by the South African State Security Agency. " (emphasis precisely as in the original) The conference website states: "Anyone entering the conference centre in Durban will first need to appear in person at the accreditation office managed by the South African State Security Agency. " A Government Communication and Information Service (GCIS) webpage states: "Members of the media are invited to apply for accreditation to cover the event by completing the online registration form. " Following the links eventually takes you to the conference website's registration page. (The deadline for media registration has passed.) The webpage also directs accreditation enquiries to members of GCIS. Yet Kristina Collins of the International AIDS Society (IAS)‚ which hosts the event‚ told GroundUp that the IAS "is leading the media accreditation [process] by evaluating the media credentials submitted by media. The SSA is not involved in the selection of media attending the conference. " Collins said: "Due to the large global engagement of high level government officials and VIPs at AIDS 2016‚ the SSA mandated and directed a series of security protocols for all conference attendees. We recommend you contact their spokesperson / communications team for further details on this as it was mandated by them. This is a normal practice in South Africa for events of similar size with this level of participation. " Brian Dube‚ Head of Communications for the SSA assured GroundUp that all national and international events of this magnitude are handled in this manner. He cited the World Cup as an example. But Marcus Low‚ editor of Spotlight (previously known as NSP Review)‚ a magazine that monitors the South African government’s response to AIDS‚ said: “I’ve never encountered this at any conference. It seems a clear over- reach to me.” Alex Hotz of Right2Know told GroundUp: “I’m very weary of it because there are members of the LGBTI community and sex workers attending. They have a right to privacy. Some of them are facing criminal violations in their home countries. It puts them at risk to go through this.” The International AIDS Conference is the largest conference in the world dealing with the HIV epidemic. It is held every two years. The last time it was in South Africa was in 2000. It was at that conference where the view that HIV treatment should be made available in developing countries became ascendant. It was to the opening of that conference that the Treatment Action Campaign led the first large AIDS protest in the country – about 5 000 people. About 18 000 delegates are expected to attend the conference later this month.

2016-07-09 18:00 Kayla Molander www.timeslive.co.za

32 Super typhoon hits Taiwan, cutting power and transport Television showed toppled motorcycles and signboards being ripped from buildings and swept across roads in southeast Taiwan, where the year's first typhoon made landfall. By afternoon, the typhoon had moved into the Taiwan Strait, weakening as it headed towards China's southeastern province of Fujian, but flooding and strong winds continued to lash the island's central and southern areas. More than 17,300 people were evacuated from their homes, and over 517,000 households suffered power outages, emergency officials said. "The wind is very strong," said a resident of Taitung, the eastern Taiwan city where the typhoon landed. "Many hut roofs and signs have been blown off. " Three deaths and 172 injuries were reported, bullet train services were suspended and over 340 international and 300 domestic flights cancelled, an emergency services website showed. The typhoon halted work in most of Taiwan. There were no reports of damage at semiconductor plants in the south. Tropical Storm Risk had rated the typhoon as category 5, at the top of its ranking, but it was weakening and should be a tropical storm by the time it hits Fujian on Saturday morning. More than 4,000 people working on coastal fish farms in Fujian were evacuated and fishing boats recalled to port, the official China News Service said. The storm is expected to worsen already severe flooding in parts of central and eastern China, particularly in the major city of Wuhan. Typhoons are common at this time of year in the South China Sea, picking up strength over warm waters and dissipating over land. In 2009, Typhoon Morakot cut a swathe of destruction through southern Taiwan, killing about 700 people and causing damage of up to $3 billion.

2016-07-09 18:00 REUTERS www.timeslive.co.za

33 5 pictures from Khanya Mkangisa's Thailand vaycay Spoiling us with pictures of herself in Bangkok and later at the beach, Khanya has been flaunting that banging body of hers. The actress recently revealed on her SnapChat that she was single, but insisted that she did not want to talk about why. "People keep asking me about it and its just so annoying. But yah, I'm single please don't ask me about my ex-boyfriend. I'm single. single, single. " It's not clear if she's alone on the trip, but judging by these bikini snaps, it certainly won't be for long. #Summerfling Check out 5 snaps from her vaycay.

2016-07-09 18:00 TMG Entertainment www.timeslive.co.za

34 SABC board chair stung by ANC’s scathing criticism Professor Mbulaheni Maguvhe‚ chairman of the SABC board‚ accused the African National Congress’ (ANC) Jackson Mthembu - who on Tuesday said SABC managers had undermined the Constitution and changed policy without consultation – of launching a personal attack on chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng. Maguvhe said in a statement‚ responding to Mthembu’s scathing criticism: “It is unfortunate that the statement made by the chairperson of the subcommittee on communications of the ANC‚ Jackson Mthembu has resulted into a personal attack that suggests that Motsoeneng makes all decisions alone.” Motsoeneng has been engulfed in controversy for allegedly running the broadcaster like a dictator‚ was accused of lying about not having a matric qualification and was at the receiving end of a highly critical report by the public protector‚ which recommended disciplinary action be taken against him. reported on Wednesday that that the ANC – in an about-turn after having previously defended Motsoeneng – said there was a lack of leadership at the SABC and that heads would roll. Maguvhe‚ however‚ was adamant that the “strategies that the COO and his team have put in place‚ and sanctioned by the board have worked for the organisation”. “These political tugs of war by different political parties are diversionary and intended to defocus the corporation from its mandate. We need to reiterate that we will not make any decisions that are aimed at censoring the news.” He went as far as suggesting there was some form of conspiracy at play: “We are also aware of people with business interests who want to see the organisation collapse in order to seize its commercial assets.” Maguvhe praised SABC managers for “all the good achievements including the recent introduction of prioritising local content”. “Those who are stating that the SABC should reverse it local content policy‚ do not want the SABC as a public service broadcaster to empower our own artists and production houses‚” said Maguvhe. The SABC‚ he said‚ was not censoring the news. “It should be noted that the decision is not to censor any violent protests but not to glamorise the act of burning public property‚” he said. The Times quoted a senior ANC member as saying: “This chaos is affecting our election campaign and we can't allow it to continue. How can our people trust the election results when the public broadcaster is censoring news? This goes to the heart of what we fought for and Mthembu has the support of the majority on this. "

2016-07-09 18:00 TMG Digital www.timeslive.co.za

35 High maternal mortality rate worries KZN health MEC And drinking traditional concoctions such as isihlambezo to induce the delivery of a baby is a practice that should be abolished. KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo issued these warnings at a meeting at Nokweja in the Harry Gwala District. However‚ further research is needed to determine the side effects of isihlambezo on the pregnant woman‚ the foetus‚ labour‚ and the outcome of pregnancy‚ according a study titled The Effect of Traditional Herbal Medicines on Pregnancy Outcome: The King Edward VIII Hospital Experience. There is also a need to identify the active chemical substance in herbal medications‚ the study said. The district has a rate of maternal and child mortality of 217 in 100 000 or five deaths per 2 300 women. “For those who get checked and are found to be HIV positive‚ we have a package of services that helps to ensure the delivery children who are HIV negative‚ and to also ensure that the HIV in the mother is properly managed to help them live long and healthy lives‚” said Dhlomo. “Community leaders‚ mayors‚ councillors‚ traditional healers need to work together to save expectant mothers as when a maternal death occurs‚ its devastating effects reverberate from the immediate family to the whole community.” Dhlomo said he was concerned that girls under 18 were not physically ready to give birth. He advised girls and women to go to their nearest clinic and to use dual protection - female contraceptive methods together with men using condoms – as this would provide protection against sexually transmitted infections - including HIV - and unwanted pregnancies. Dhlomo also warned health care workers about the dangers of admonishing young people when they seek family planning services‚ cautioning that failure to assist could result in pregnancy or complications from unsuccessful backstreet abortion. The MEC concluded his visit by officially opening the R8-million Sokhela Clinic in Donnybrook.

2016-07-09 18:00 TMG Digital www.timeslive.co.za

36 Obama downplays Brexit impact at NATO summit Britain's decision to leave the European Union dominated Obama's final NATO meeting before he leaves office, which comes at what he called the most critical time for the military alliance since the Cold War. Russia was meant to be the focus of the two-day meeting, with NATO endorsing its biggest revamp in 15 years in response to Moscow's 2014 intervention in Ukraine. Obama used the Warsaw meeting to tell key US allies Brussels and London to resolve their differences amicably. While Brexit had "created uncertainty" about European integration, the president said fears that it could destabilise the relationship between Europe and the United States were exaggerated. "No one has an interest in protracted, adversarial negotiations," said Obama, who warned ahead of the vote that a non-EU Britain would be at the "back of the queue" for trade deals. "This kind of hyperbole is misplaced," he added, after meeting European Council head Donald Tusk and European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker. On June 23, the British public shocked the world by voting to leave the 28- member bloc in a public referendum, sending financial markets into tailspin and plunging the country into political crisis. The US president told the Financial Times he was "confident" Britain and the EU could make an "orderly transition to a new relationship". Britain would "continue to be a major contributor to European security", he predicted. The White House later announced Obama would cut his trip short by one day to visit Dallas, where a black army veteran killed five white police officers on Thursday in a racially fuelled shooting rampage. British Prime Minister David Cameron -- who was also at his last NATO summit since resigning after the Brexit vote -- insisted Britain would not play a "lesser role in the world". "We are not turning our back on NATO," said Cameron, whose nuclear- armed nation is one of Europe's biggest contributors to the alliance. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg added that Brexit "will not change UK's leading position in NATO". The summit is being held symbolically in the birthplace of the Soviet-era Warsaw Pact and leaders dined on Friday night in the ballroom where the pact was signed in 1955. Its centrepiece is a "Readiness Action Plan" to bolster NATO's nervous eastern flank in the face of a Russia, which the allies see as increasingly aggressive and unpredictable. NATO leaders approved four rotating battalions in Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, up to 4,000 troops in all, as a collective tripwire against fresh Russian adventurism in its old stomping ground. Obama said 1,000 US troops would be stationed in Poland and Britain said it would deploy 650 troops, most of them in Estonia. The plan also included a pledge to spend two percent of annual economic output on defence, ending years of cuts, and the creation of a 5,000-strong "Spearhead" force ready to deploy within days. Stoltenberg echoed calls by German Chancellor Angela Merkel for "meaningful" dialogue with Russia, with NATO and Russian ambassadors set to meet next week. "NATO does not want a new Cold War. The Cold War is history and should remain history," former Norwegian premier Stoltenberg said. But fresh cracks appeared in NATO's unified front on Russia when French President Francois Hollande insisted that Russia was a "not a threat" but a "partner". Moscow bitterly opposes NATO's expansion into its Soviet-era satellites, which it sees as a threat to its own security. "We want to believe that common sense and political will to avoid a confrontation will carry the day. Russia remains open for dialogue," Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said on Friday. Russia is even more strident in its opposition to the Ballistic Missile Defence system the United States is building. Washington says the shield is designed to counter missile threats from Iran or the Middle East, but Russia says it will undercut its strategic nuclear deterrent. In a move likely to draw a sharp response, Stoltenberg said leaders had approved putting the system under NATO control after it reached reached an initial operating level.

2016-07-09 18:00 AFP www.timeslive.co.za

37 Winning a council more important than saving economy The biggest threat we now face as a nation is our sinking economy. Yesterday the International Monetary Fund cut its growth forecast for the country this year to 0.1%, a figure that should spur all of us into action. But this is South Africa, so we brush off the news and act as if nothing has happened. The confirmation of our abysmal economic performance should change the tone of our elections, not to mention the course of this country. It cannot be that a country that seemed so full of promise just a few years ago is now on the verge of zero growth. This is the time for all of us to take to the streets and demand action - now and without politicians' double-talk. This is the time for all our political parties to rally behind an economic vision that will take us out of this morass. But all we hear as the parties campaign for our votes are more empty promises. None of the parties actually has any real idea of how to kick-start this economy. How are they going to increase economic growth sufficiently to create jobs and attract direct foreign investment? It is important that we change the political narrative. The cult of personality will not save us. We need sensible strategies. Today we face our biggest challenge since the 1990s when we navigated the tricky path towards democracy. The Treasury has vowed to cut unnecessary government spending. It says it expects growth and employment to be supported by several structural reforms and state interventions. It remains to be seen whether we will be able to turn the corner fast enough to prevent the ratings agencies from hitting us with the humiliation of junk status at the end of the year.

2016-07-09 18:00 The Times www.timeslive.co.za

38 Tshwane metro municipal manager earns more than President Zuma The municipal manager of cash-strapped Gauteng local municipality Emfuleni‚ Yunus Chamda‚ is earning R2.4- million annually despite the fact that the auditor-general expressed reservations about the municipality's ability to continue as a going concern in its last annual report. President Jacob Zuma earns R2.8-million annually. Ministers in his cabinet earn around R2.3-million while provincial premiers earn about R2.1-million. The 2014/15 salaries of almost all of the country's municipal managers were contained in a response by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) to a parliamentary question by the Democratic Alliance's Nomsa Marchesi. Ngobeni was appointed to the post in 2011‚ and even then‚ was out-earning the president. Officials at the time said that a favourable salary package needed to be offered in a bid to secure him and retain him in the position. Other metro municipal managers salaries range between R1.9-million for Buffalo City and R2.8 million for Ekhuruleni. The eThekwini and Mangaung municipal managers' packages are on par at around R2.4 million each while the City of Cape Town municipal manager earns just over R2.2 million. The Johannesburg municipal manager takes home R2.6 million annually. In Nelson Mandela Bay‚ the position‚ which comes with a salary package of R2-million‚ is vacant. Salaries for municipal managers in district municipalities vary between around R1-million to R1.5-million‚ while in local muncipalities municipal managers' salaries vary wildly from the R425 000 paid to Bela-Bela's to around R1.8-million. Chamda's R2.4-million annual package is the highest paid to a local municipal manager. His salary is nearly double that of the municipal manager for the Sedibeng district municipal manager (R1.4-million) under which Emfuleni falls. Few municipal managers were paid performance bonuses‚ but the Sedibeng and Fezile Dabi district municipalities did give theirs R233 000 and R254 000 respectively. Some municipalities in the Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga had not yet submitted their figures‚ Cogta Minister Des van Rooyen said in his response.

2016-07-09 18:00 Bianca Capazorio www.timeslive.co.za

39 Will Ronaldo or Griezmann prevail in battle of the No.7s? — RT Sport Griezmann’s double in the semi-final against Germany on Thursday – a penalty and a poked finish from close range – sent the host-nation on its way to the Stade de France for the final against Portugal. While Portugal captain Ronaldo has been setting the world alight for the best part of a decade, it’s 25-year-old Griezmann who has dominated so far at Euro 2016. The French attacking midfielder-turned-striker is the tournament’s leading scorer with six goals as well as two assists – compared to Ronaldo’s return of three strikes and three assists. There is a sense that, going into Sunday’s final, there has been a changing of the guard at the top of European football. Ronaldo's three Ballon d'Or titles for world player of the year are testament to the success he has had. But, at 31, his powers are inevitably starting to wane, and Euro 2016 may be the first signs of that. The Portugal captain has surpassed a number of landmarks at the tournament – the first person to score at four European Championships, his country’s record appearance-holder, the highest number of appearances at Euros – but he has cut a frustrated figure at times. He put in a two-goal performance in the 3-3 draw with Hungary in the group stage, as well as a stunning leap to open the scoring against Wales in the semi-final, but at times he has been isolated and on the fringes of games. READ MORE: Portugal beats Wales 2-0 to reach Euro 2016 final His actions away from the matches may be a sign of his sense of frustration – the criticism of Iceland as having a “small mentality” after their 1-1 draw; hurling a reporter’s microphone into a lake after being asked a seemingly innocuous question. Contrast this with Griezmann, who, at 25, is hitting his peak and seems to be enjoying life at Euro 2016. Six goals and some stellar performances have led to widespread acclaim, and mean he is frontrunner for the golden boot and is many people's player of the tournament. He has also won plaudits off the pitch for giving the matchball from the win over Ireland to the son of a murdered French police officer. Club-level rivalry Adding to the spice of Sunday’s game is the club-level rivalry between the pair. Ronaldo famously wears the white of Real Madrid, where he is the club’s talisman and record scorer with 364 goals . Griezmann has played for Atletico Madrid since 2014, where he has netted 57 goals in 107 games. The last time the pair faced each other was in May’s UEFA Champions League Final, which Real won 5-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw in which Griezmann missed a spot-kick during regular time. READ MORE: Real Madrid wins Champions League after beating Atletico on penalties Ronaldo scored the winning penalty in the shootout that day, and he is far and away ahead of the Frenchman in terms of club honors, having claimed three Champions League titles among various domestic honors in Spain and England. Griezmann is yet to land a major trophy, but went some way towards laying the ghost of the Champions League defeat to rest with his penalty against Germany in the semi-final. He will now be relishing the chance of his first honor coming at a home tournament. Ronaldo, though, will be desperate to win a first title at international level - something he is yet to do in his illustrious career despite having previously appeared at six major tournament finals with Portugal, stretching back to Euro 2004. The Portugal captain knows that Sunday may be his last chance to achieve this. To focus on the Ronaldo-Griezmann duel is, of course, to do injustice to the other array of talents that will be on display on Sunday, such as France’s Paul Pogba and Dimitri Payet, and Portugal’s teenage prodigy Renato Sanches. But the clash between the two number sevens will certainly be an intriguing subplot to events in Saint-Denis.

2016-07-09 18:00 www.rt.com

40 TNT downs Phoenix in tune-up match Despite missing its Gilas Pilipinas stalwarts, TNT still showed its offensive firepower as it downed Phoenix, 129-118, in an exhibition game Saturday at Moro Lorenzo Sports Center in Ateneo. Syrian reinforcement Michael Madanly captained the confidence-boosting win for the Tropa with 26 points. Mario Little also imposed his will, finishing with 21 markers, while Mo Tautuaa got 20 in the victory despite nursing an injured right shoulder. The Fuel Masters got to as close as three, 93-90, before Jai Reyes and Madanly buried huge treys to pull away, 103-92, late in the fourth. Marcus Simmons topped Phoenix with 28 points for the Fuel Masters in the defeat. Miguel de Leon/ Philippine Daily Inquirer trainee

2016-07-09 18:00 INQUIRER.net sports.inquirer.net

41 41 WATCH: Miami Heat pay tribute to Wade in emotional video It is an emotional time for Miami fans as the Heat parted ways with their star of more than a decade in Dwyane Wade. After the news of Wade’s transfer to Chicago broke, the organization has come up with numerous ways to thank the star guard for his service. The Heat ran a full page ad in local South Florida papers with the photo of Wade and the caption: “We’ll leave a key under the mat for you.” “Thank you for 13 unforgettable years. Best of luck in Chicago,” the ad also read. The 28-year-old franchise also released an emotional video montage of Wade’s reign in South Beach. Clips from the 2003 NBA Rookie Draft where Wade was picked fifth by Heat up to his phenomenal performance for the team in in the 2015-2016 season, where he willed the Heat to a Eastern Conference semifinals finish, can be seen. Wade helped bring the Heat their first franchise title and two other rings in his 13-year stay.

2016-07-09 18:00 Celest Flores sports.inquirer.net

42 Federalism’s time has come, says Nene Pimentel Former Sen. Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. on Saturday said he was very optimistic that the Philippines will finally see a shift to a federal form of government under the leadership of President Rodrigo Duterte after failed attempts in the past. “If you ask me, 1,000 percent I am very optimistic. Itong issue ng federalism, it’s time has come. Biro mo 1982 pinag-usapan na namin ito. Talking about time tables, it can be done,” Pimentel told reporters at a forum in Intramuros, Manila. Pimentel is the founder of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), which fielded Duterte as its presidential candidate in the elections. The party has formed a “supermajority” in Congress following Duterte’s electoral victory, making sure that the President’s legislative agenda, including federalism, will push through. Pimentel noted that the shift to a federal form of government should be done in the soonest possible time, while Duterte’s political capital is at its peak. “It has to be done as fast as possible while the political capital of Digong is more or less at its height, malaki pa ang traction ni President Digong. Therefore if he pushes for it, the chances are the people will also accept it,” he said. The federal form of government being pushed by Pimentel will see the retention of congressional districts as well as the election of 66 senators to represent 11 federal states—four in Luzon, four in the Visayas and three in Mindanao. The former senator also highlighted the importance of educating the public on the various legal implications of federalism, particularly on changes that will be made in the Constitution. “We have to inform the people so that they will understand by the time na ma-revise na tayo ng Constitution, the people will be ready to accept the principle,” he said. Pimentel said the most efficient way of educating the public on federalism was through the media, the freedom of which, he said, should not be compromised under a new form of government. “We have to use the media because that is the fastest way of bring the issue to the people. That is why the right of media to free speech must always be maintained. Hindi maaaring bawasan yun,” he said. “Even if we are to adopt a federal system of government, we are for the protection of media as an institution.”

2016-07-09 18:00 Yuji Vincent newsinfo.inquirer.net

43 Palace welcomes drug testing for gov’t workers A Palace official on Saturday welcomed calls for a mandatory drug testing for all government employees, amid the administrations’ relentless war on criminality. Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said an obligatory drug testing for state workers would be a “symbolic act,” as it would increase the public’s confidence on the people running the government. “Personally, siyempre I do not give my own personal opinion but that is a welcome development. Hindi po ba? Just to prove to the people na lahat ng mga tao natin ay maayos naman. So that should not be a deterrent, but also more than that, it’s not a question of exposing but it’s a question of expressing, it’s a symbolic act,” Abella said when asked about the proposal. “It’s a very powerful symbolic act, na pinapakita natin na tayong mga nagsisilbi sa gobyerno ay maayos na mga tao ‘yan at they are people worthy of our trust. Kasi ‘yun naman talaga ang priority ng Presidente, na maisoli ‘yung trust and faith in the government,” he added. A nationwide drug testing was administered last week following the assumption of office of Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ronald dela Rosa, where at least 11 policemen tested positive. The Army was also investigating 13 of its personnel who failed the initial screening of mandatory drug test conducted recently at Fort Bonifacio in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency. Duterte won the elections in a landslide, with a platform deeply rooted on a relentless war on drugs and criminality, including shoot-to-kill orders against drug lords and peddlers. The President recently named five retired and active police generals who were alleged drug perpetrators and three alleged “top tier” drug lords operating in the country, adding mayors and other local officials were also involved in illegal drug trade. 2016-07-09 18:00 Yuji Vincent newsinfo.inquirer.net

44 Despite NBA offers, De Colo staying in Europe Nando de Colo has been getting offers to return to the NBA following an impressive year in the Euroleague where he led CSKA Moscow to the championship. Despite having opportunities to play in the NBA, the French guard is not heading towards that direction, feeling content of where he’s currently in. “Yeah. I have some contact with some teams, but I’m feeling good in Russia with the CSKA so I’m happy to play with them,” de Colo told reporters during France’s media availability on Friday at Sofitel Manila. De Colo, who just turned 29 last month, has every reason to stay in Europe after having two unfruitful seasons in the NBA. The 6-foot-5 de Colo suited up for the San Antonio Spurs for a year and a half seasons before being traded to the Toronto Raptors midway through the 2013-14 season. He played a total of 119 games and had a career average of 3.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists. De Colo opted to return to Europe where he was signed by CSKA Moscow. His spectacular year included being named Euroleague MVP after leading the league in scoring norming 19.4 points per game and Euroleague Final Four MVP. Just last month, he reportedly inked a new three-year deal with CSKA Moscow.

2016-07-09 17:31 Mark Giongco sports.inquirer.net

45 New Northern Mindanao police chief named CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—Northern Mindanao got a new police director in Chief Supt. Noel Constantino, who was installed on Friday. Constantino, who once headed the Philippine National Police Academy, replaced Chief Supt. Lyndel Desquitado, whose retirement immediately took effect. In his installation speech, Constantino vowed to wage a relentless war against illegal drug and criminality, regardless of who were involved. “If you refuse to surrender peacefully and insist on doing with your illicit activity, we will throw the book at you, we will hit you hard and hit you harder again and again until you are no longer able to do your illegal activity,” he said. Constantino said police officers suspected of involvement in the illegal drug trade would be treated “just like any other ordinary criminal.” “Make no mistake, there will be no rest, there will be no letup in the total war against illegal drugs and other forms of organized crime in this region,” he said. To date, 37 noncommissioned police officers in the region had been found positive for illegal drug use. Twenty of them had already been booted out of service while the rest were still undergoing dismissal process.

2016-07-09 17:25 Jigger Jerusalem newsinfo.inquirer.net

46 5 arrested in antinarcotics operation in Davao del Sur HAGONOY, Davao del Sur – Police authorities arrested five men during two separate anti-drug operations here. Senior Insp. Glenn Amsiwen, the acting town police chief, said on Saturday that four of those arrested fell during the buy-bust operation conducted inside a subdivision in Barangay (village) Guihing on Friday. Amsiwen said siblings Cirilo, 29 and Rechielo Cañada, 36; Marben Macarayo, 32; and Junmar Alpis, 31; yielded a total of 19 sachets of shabu, a caliber .45 pistol, a homemade .38 revolver and ammunition, and digital weighing scale. Amsiwen said the fifth suspect, Richard Saidain Gomez, 34, a resident of Purok 10, Christian Village, Aplaya, Digos City, was arrested in the second operation, also on Friday. He said the suspect yielded five sachets of shabu. The arrested suspects were being temporarily held at the police’s holding cell as charges of violation of the Anti-Drug Act were being prepared against them. Those who yielded guns will also be charged with illegal possession of firearms, he said.

2016-07-09 17:18 Orlando B newsinfo.inquirer.net

47 Worried Austria admits Beermen ‘not yet ready’ for Govs’ Cup San Miguel coach Leo Austria expressed his concern with most of the Beermen’s big men sidelined through their buildup for the incoming 2016 PBA Governors’ Cup. Austria went as far as to say the Beermen are still not ready with a week left before the opener. “We’re not yet ready for the third conference. A lot of key players namin, especially the big man are not practicing with us. I’m a little bit worried with our situation,” he said. June Mar Fajardo is coming off his stint with Gilas Pilipinas in the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament while Arwind Santos, Gabby Espinas, and Yancy de Ocampo are all still nursing injuries, leaving the bulk of the load on the front court on import AZ Reid, JayR Reyes, and reserve Michael Mabulac. With the two-time MVP set to return to practice on Monday, Austria is hopeful that his prized big man will give the Beermen the boost they obviously lacked in the offseason. “I’m hoping June Mar is still in shape. I’m sure he will be,” the coach said. “Wala lang sya ngayon kasi talagang masakit yung pagkatalo ng Gilas and he’s taking his time to reflect. But I hope that by Monday siguro, naka- refocus na uli sya sa team namin.” Even Reid has also noticed the lack of intensity in the training sessions, saying “I don’t think we’re the same team by any means. We have to go back to playing the way we played because right now, we’re not.” “We got to have better practice habits. We got to work a little harder in practice. It’s not going to be easy because every team is getting better, even the bottom teams are getting better. We just have to focus. We have to be ready,” he continued. The former Best Import, though, is confident that the rest of the team will step up with the Beermen’s core group still not in top shape. “We’re missing the core, but we won’t make any excuses,” said Reid. “We’re professional so you got to be ready anytime. Other guys are getting the opportunities and this is their chance to show what they can do. We’ll see what happens.” But despite the off-season struggles, the Beermen are still expected to be the top contenders in the season-ending conference. “Every conference, ang pressure nasa amin because everybody is expecting us to win,” he said. “We will see sa conference kung anong kulang pa sa amin. If we play as team on both ends at andun pa yung gutom ng team, capable itong team na manalo.”

2016-07-09 17:18 Randolph B sports.inquirer.net

48 Yasay clarifies stand on ‘sharing South China Sea’ Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay on Saturday clarified his statement on sharing resources in the disputed West Philippine Sea as reported by an international news agency. In a rejoinder to an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP) ahead of the arbitration ruling next week, Yasay wrote that what he said was “we have to wait for the ruling and study and dissect its implications.” READ: Duterte open to talks with China, joint exploration at disputed sea “As the ruling will not address sovereignty and delimitation, it is possible that some time in the future, claimant countries might consider entering into arrangements such as joint exploration and utilization of resources in disputed areas that do not prejudice the parties’ claims and delimitation of boundaries in accordance with Unclos (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea),” Yasay said in a statement. The AFP report quoted Yasay as saying that the Philippine government was keen on a joint exploration of the resource-rich South China Sea even if it wins its arbitration case against China. READ: We have to talk to China, says Yasay “We can even have the objective of seeing how we can jointly explore this territory: how we can utilize and benefit mutually from the utilization of the resources in this exclusive economic zone where claims are overlapping,” Yasay reportedly said in the interview. The UN-backed tribunal in The Hague is set to release its verdict on the case filed by the Philippines in 2013 against Beijing’s claim to almost all of the contested areas.

2016-07-09 17:02 Yuji Vincent globalnation.inquirer.net

49 Killer robot used by Dallas police opens ethical debate When Dallas police used a bomb-carrying robot to kill a sniper, they also kicked off an ethical debate about technology’s use as a crime- fighting weapon. In what appears to be an unprecedented tactic, police rigged a bomb-disposal robot to kill an armed suspect in the fatal shootings of five officers in Dallas. While there doesn’t appear to be any hard data on the subject, security experts and law enforcement officials said they couldn’t recall another time when U. S. police have deployed a robot with lethal intent. The strategy opens a new chapter in the escalating use of remote and semi-autonomous devices to fight crime and protect lives. It also raises new questions over when it’s appropriate to dispatch a robot to kill dangerous suspects instead of continuing to negotiate their surrender. “If lethally equipped robots can be used in this situation, when else can they be used?” says Elizabeth Joh, a University of California at Davis law professor who has followed U. S. law enforcement’s use of technology. “Extreme emergencies shouldn’t define the scope of more ordinary situations where police may want to use robots that are capable of harm.” Dallas Police Chief David Brown defended his department’s decision. “Other options would have exposed our officers to great danger,” he said. READ: Dallas police killer was loner, followed black militants Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings applauded Brown for making “the right call” and said he would have no qualms about resorting to the same strategy in the future. “When there’s no other way, I think this is a good example,” he said. “The key thing is to keep our police out of harm’s way.” ROBOTS, SOLDIERS AND POLICE Police have been using such robots for decades to dispose of suspected bombs and in hostage standoffs and fires. Meanwhile, militaries around the world have come to rely on their robotic friends to disable improvised explosive devices — a need that only increased with the U. S. occupation of Iraq following its 2003 invasion. Many of the robots joining police forces are coming from a U. S. Department of Defense program transferring surplus equipment from the military. These exchanges have provided law enforcement agencies with robots such as Packbot made by Endeavor Robotics, the Talon from QinetiQ and the MARCbot made by Exponent. But military experts said ground-level robots are rarely used to kill the enemy. Their main purpose is to detect and defuse bombs to save lives. Military robots are “fairly clunky and used best for reconnaissance rather than the offensive,” said Tom Gorup, an infantry veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who’s now an official at the IT-security firm Rook Security. Airborne robots are another matter. The U. S. military has sent remotely piloted drones to kill hundreds of people, including civilians, in counterterror attacks launched overseas since 2009, based on estimates released last week by the Obama administration. HOW IT (PROBABLY) WORKED The robots working for police departments across the country range in size from devices as small as a dog bone to others as large as a truck. Some are little more than a mechanical arm mounted onto a vehicle and equipped with a video camera and two-way audio communications, according to William Flanagan, a retired deputy police chief from New York’s Nassau County who now does law enforcement and technology consulting. The most versatile robots can climb stairs and navigate other tight spots, such as this one made by Icor Technology. Many models used by police are about the size of a backpack. Flanagan speculated that police in Dallas probably equipped their robot with a low-powered explosive — possibly one similar to what bomb squads use to blow up suspicious packages — that would only disable what’s closest to it. Dallas police didn’t respond to a request for further information about their use of the robot. MACHINE VS. HUMAN Robotics expert Peter W. Singer, of the New America Foundation, said the killing marked the first instance he’s aware of in which police have used a robot to lethal effect. But when he was researching his 2009 book “Wired for War,” a U. S. soldier told him troops in Iraq sometimes used surveillance robots against insurgents, he added in an email Friday. William Cohen, a former Exponent employee who helped design the MARCbot, said that robot was built to save lives instead of ending them. Although he was relieved the killing of the armed suspect in Dallas assured that no other police officers or bystanders would be harmed, Cohen says he’s worried about what might happen next. “It opens a whole new set of questions of how to deal with these kinds of situations,” Cohen said. “Where are the police going to draw the line when trying to decide between continuing to negotiate and doing something like this?”

2016-07-09 16:55 Associated Press technology.inquirer.net

50 Pro boxers N’Dam, Ruenroeng qualify for Rio despite losses VARGAS, Venezuela — Professional boxers Amnat Ruenroeng of Thailand and Hassan N’Dam of Cameroon have won spots at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics despite losing in the final qualifying tournament in Venezuela. Ruenroeng and N’Dam both advanced far enough in the tournament to qualify for Rio even with losses in Friday’s bouts. They are the only prominent boxers who took advantage of AIBA’s controversial decision to allow pros to compete for spots in Rio. The 36-year-old Ruenroeng was stopped in the second round of his lightweight bout against Mexico’s Lindolfo Delgado. Ruenroeng also fought at the Beijing Games. N’Dam lost a unanimous decision to Colombia’s Juan Carlos Carrillo, 24, who knocked out two previous opponents in Venezuela. The 32-year-old N’Dam competed in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

2016-07-09 16:40 Associated Press sports.inquirer.net

51 McDonald's in Russia to accept national payment charge cards — RT Business The Mir payment system was introduced last year after a number of Russian banks (SMP Bank, InvestCapitalBank, Russia Bank and Sobinbank) were unable to use Visa and MasterCard due to US sanctions. Customers found their bank issued credit cards linked to the Visa and MasterCard systems no longer worked. “Starting July 1, all the McDonald’s outlets accept Mir cards along with the cards of other payment systems,” the company said. The fast-food chain is the first US-owned company to join the Russian National Payment Card System (NPCS). READ MORE: Russia to issue 30mn national payment cards in 2016 – CBR head Earlier this week Russia’s Teremok pancake chain began accepting Mir payment cards. “Teremok is accepting Mir cards in all its restaurants in Moscow and the region,” company founder Mikhail Goncharov told the Kommersant daily, stressing that the chain is ready to introduce the service in other cities. KFC restaurants in Russia haven’t joined the system yet. However, the company will start accepting the national payment system soon. “We are ready to start receiving payments via Mir cards as soon as Sberbank – our merchant acquirer – makes the processing possible,” the company said. The largest issuer banks, VTB and Sberbank, are currently working on the technical integration of the new card into the existing payment system. McDonald’s offers the Russian charge card its largest customer traffic. Other enterprises that accept Mir payments include Aeroflot, H&M, Mothercare, TELE2 as well as restaurants Jean Jacques and De Marco. “Everyone realizes that if you want not to lose your clientele, you have to accept these cards,” said VTB 24's Vice President Alexei Kirichek. He added that the largest fast-food chains with heavy customer traffic and high sales level began to accept Mir payments cards despite sanctions. READ MORE: Russia should move to the national payment card this year - Putin Mir charge cards are meant to be used mostly in Russia. However, after agreements to issue co-badged cards under the brands of Mir-Maestro, Mir-JCB and Mir-Amex holders can also use them abroad.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

52 Spine-chilling moment child-snatcher abducts 4yo girl caught on camera (VIDEO) — RT Viral The girl can be seen standing next to a candy machine when an arm reaches through the door of the store and snatches her away. Her mother, who is holding a baby, and a customer quickly rush outside pursuing the abductor. "I heard screaming, I thought they were arguing with each other at first. When I came from behind the counter I asked what was going on,” the owner of the store Stella Moriel told KNBC. Fortunately the kidnapping failed as the child fell to the ground in shock, causing the abductor to lose his grip. The mother can be seen in the footage comforting the distraught child while the father pursued the abductor. With the help of neighbors, who heard the commotion, 24-year-old Terry Lynn Ransom was eventually stopped and arrested by police. "He was smiling like it was some kind of joke or something,” one witness told KNBC. Known to his family as ‘Boots,’ Ransom pleaded not guilty at his arraignment. "He's a loving kid, he had five children of his own, he would have never did this if he wasn't under the influence of drugs,” Ransom’s aunt told KABC . Ransom has been charged with kidnapping and child cruelty, with a bond set at $250,000.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

53 Court directs Vijay Mallya to appear, cancels exemption New Delhi: A Delhi court today cancelled the exemption granted to liquor baron Vijay Mallya from personal appearance in a case lodged for allegedly evading summons in connection with a FERA violation case. Vijay Mallya Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass directed Mallya to personally appear before it on September 9. The exemption from personal appearance to Mallya was granted in December 2000 in a complaint filed by Enforcement Department (ED) for evading the summons issued to him by it. The agency had issued summons to the businessman in connection with alleged payment of 200,000 dollars to the British firm for displaying Kingfisher logo in Formula One World Championships in London and some European countries in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The agency had claimed that the money was allegedly paid without prior approval from RBI in violation of FERA norms. The order came on a plea of the ED, filed through prosecutor N K Matta, which had also sought issuance of non-bailable warrant against the Chairman of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines to secure his presence in the ongoing trial of the case, which is at its final stage. The agency's plea had said Mallya was reported to be in the and his presence in the ongoing trial of this case was essential and had sought the court's direction to him to remain personally present in every hearing. Matta had argued that the court should recall its December 2000 exemption order as a PMLA court in Mumbai has recently issued an open-ended warrant against him in connection with a money laundering case. According to ED, Mallya was summoned on four occasions for questioning in connection with a contract signed in December 1995 with London-based firm Benetton Formula Ltd for promotion of the Kingfisher brand abroad. When Mallya failed to appear before ED in response to the summons, a complaint was filed on March 8, 2000 before a court here and later on charges were framed against him under FERA.

2016-07-09 15:58 By PTI www.mid-day.com

54 Western journalists visit Crimea, say it’s now ‘Russian territory’ — RT News Journalists from the US, the UK, Germany, South Korea, Bulgaria, Romania and Iraq have arrived to Crimea on the invitation of Russia’s Foreign Ministry. Some of have admitted Crimea’s reunification with Russia did led to some positive developments and even acknowledged that it was really the choice of the Crimean people after they visited the peninsula and spoke to the locals. “We have seen some positive developments here … people tell me about many things in their daily life getting better,” Jury Rescheto, the head of the German Deutsche Welle Moscow office, told RT, stressing that he saw “many positive developments … particularly for the local residents” during his visit. He also emphasized that “Crimea now became a Russian territory regardless of whether we [the West] want it or not,” adding that “it is now a fact, a reality.” Joining Russia was the choice of the Crimean people, Zhong Su Ha, the head of the Moscow KBS (Korean Broadcasting System) office, told RT, adding that, when he “ asked the people of Crimea whether they voted for joining Russia, many people answered ‘yes.’ And when [he] asked them if they regret their decision they said ‘no.” The Korean journalists also said that the situation in the peninsula is now calm and comfortable adding that he “feels safe.” Many journalists also expressed their admiration for the 19km-long Crimean Bridge under construction. Once finished, this bridge, which will connect Crimea with Krasnodar region in mainland Russia, will become one of Russia’s largest. Corey Flintoff from Washington-based National Public Radio (NPR) has called the Crimean Bridge “an amazing piece of engineering.” “A very complex and very difficult things have been done here. So I'm very interested in seeing, how this is done. The project takes so much time and so much energy to do something that has never been successfully done in this part of the world before,” the US journalist stressed. His colleague from German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, Evgeny Ushakov, said that reports in the media didn’t do justice to the scale of the work already been done in the Kerch Straight. “The impressions are very good. I had no idea that the construction was going at such a pace, but when the technological bridge is ready; when the piles are hammered; supports are placed – it is impressive,” he said. Following the cool down in relations between Moscow and the West over Russia’s reunion with Crimea in 2014 and the conflict in Ukraine, “it’s interesting for Europe to see how the people really live here; what’s the infrastructure and how Russia is going to connect with Crimean Peninsula,” Liviu Iurea, a correspondent for TV Romania, stressed. With the construction underway in “such an accelerated tempo,” the bridge is likely to meet its deadline, Iurea stressed. Khalid Abdalrahman from an Iraqi broadcaster, Rudaw, said that the bridge “is a huge and interesting project for Crimea, for Russia and also for the tourists.” Once finished, the 19 kilometer- (12 mile-) long Crimean Bridge will become one of largest ever built in Russia. It’s expected to span Crimea with Krasnodar region in mainland Russia, allowing fast, reliable and cost-effective transportation link for passengers, goods and services. The bridge will have a four-lane highway and two-lane railroad, capable of providing access for up to 40,000 and dozens of trains a day to the peninsula over the Kerch Strain. The Crimea Bridge is scheduled to be opened by late 2018 and to become fully operational by 2019. In May, Russia has completed the construction of the energy bridge from mainland to Crimean Peninsula. Four power lines were laid on the bottom of the Kerch Straight, cutting Crimea’s dependence on Ukraine in terms of receiving energy. Last November, local authorities had to declare a state of emergency after all four Ukrainian power lines providing electricity to the peninsula were blown up, leaving Crimea in a total blackout.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

55 Indonesia traffic jam: 12 die in Java gridlock during Ramadan At least 12 people have died of dehydration and exhaustion while sitting in traffic in Indonesia. Traffic filled up three lanes for several days on the island of Java. Crowds travelling to their home villages to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan converged around a single traffic junction, where building work forced them to wait. Most victims were elderly and died in hot cars, officials say. One toddler was poisoned to death by exhaust fumes. Daytime temperatures in the city of Brebes, where the jam occurred, have been close to 30C (86F) all week. The authorities have set up a hotline for stranded drivers to call in a medical emergency but correspondents say it is unclear how help would reach anyone in trouble. Transport officials said the deaths happened between Sunday and Tuesday. The traffic jam was more than 13 miles (21km) long. "There's no space on the road," transport ministry spokesman Hemi Pramuraharjo told the Agence France-Presse news agency. "We don't have a solution. " The Indonesian health ministry said people who were planning a long car journey should rest along the way and take necessary precautions. Local media reported that roads in to the capital Jakarta are expected to be busy over the weekend as people return from the Eid al-Fitr festival that marks the end of Ramadan.

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

56 Neymar transfer fraud case dismissed by Madrid court A Spanish court has dismissed a fraud and corruption case against football superstar Neymar and his father. The case had been brought by the Brazilian investment fund DIS, which formerly owned the transfer rights to the 24-year-old forward. The company claimed it was short-changed when Neymar transferred from Brazilian club Santos to Barcelona in 2013. Neymar and his father, who acts as his agent, have both denied any wrongdoing. In a separate case, Barcelona was forced to pay a fine of 5.5m euros ($6.1m; £4.7m) last month because of tax irregularities in Neymar's transfer from Santos. Since moving to the Nou Camp, he has won two La Liga titles, two Copa del Rey trophies, the Champions League, the European Super Cup, the Spanish Super Cup and the Club World Cup. At Barcelona, he forms a powerful attacking trio with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. In a separate case in Barcelona this week, Messi was sentenced to 21 months in jail for tax fraud. The Argentine football great has appealed against the court's ruling.

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

57 Rock Hill man receives bond in animal cruelty case A handful of business owners, including some from Indian Land, submitted a 1,410-page petition Wednesday asking for off- site beer and wine sales on Sundays. A circuit court judge ruled Wednesday that probable cause exists to prosecute former Northwestern High School assistant principal Kenneth Andrew Williams, who is accused of criminal sexual conduct with a minor. Defense attorney Twana Burris-Alcide questioned Rock Hill detective Phil Tripp about evidence involving text messages and social media posts. Prosecutors said Williams coerced the victim into having a relationship and keeping it quiet. The York Police Department delivered 20 fans to the York Senior Center on Tuesday, just as temperatures soared in the high 90s. The department has donated the fans for four years and the center will give them to area senior adults. July 4 is not only the day the United State of America was born, but it's also the birth date of the city of Tega Cay, which turned 34 on July 4, 2016. Aydan Ellis, 4, is back at his Rock Hill home after waiting nearly four months for a heart transplant at Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte. The boy received a new heart on June 11, the same day his mother had planned a fundraiser for Aydan's medical expenses and an organ donor awareness event. The final phase of the Fort Mill Parkway southern bypass has been completed and the new route opened to traffic June 30. The $27 million project took 13 years to complete. A jury on Thursday found Chris Moore guilty in the 2014 murder of Chester city councilman Odell Williams. A judge sentenced Moore to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A handful of teachers from Indian Land work part of the summer at Red Rocket Fireworks in Fort Mill. Red Rocket seasonal manager Kim Pyles recruited the teachers at Indian Land High School and say the summer work helps the educators earn extra money. Area recreational, occupational and physical therapists, tennis coaches and wheelchair tennis athletes learned from the pros at a clinic at the Rock Hill Tennis Center on Tuesday. The lead prosecutor and defense attorney in the trial for Christopher Moore gave opening statements to jurors on Monday. A jury deadlocked during Moore's first trial in April, forcing a mistrial.

2016-07-09 14:10 www.heraldonline.com

58 Bomb scare at Odeon cinema hall in Delhi's Connaught Place New Delhi: Security officials were sent into a tizzy when a man called up the police control room today and claimed to have planted a bomb at a popular cinema hall in posh Connaught Place in the heart of the city. The call was received around 1.15 PM, following which several police teams, fire tenders and bomb disposal squads were rushed to the Odeon complex, and the premises were evacuated, a Delhi Fire Department official said. "The call was received at the police control room and the building is being thoroughly inspected," Additional DCP (New Delhi) Romil Baniya said.

2016-07-09 15:50 By PTI www.mid-day.com

59 Gambia and Tanzania outlaw child marriage The Gambia and Tanzania have banned child marriage, with tough penalties for those who breach the rulings. Gambia's President Yayha Jammeh announced that anyone marrying a girl below 18 would be jailed for up to 20 years. In Tanzania, the high court imposed a landmark ruling outlawing marriage under the age of 18 for boys and girls. Some 30% of underage girls are married in The Gambia, while in Tanzania the rate is 37%. Africa Live: More on this and other news stories Before the Tanzania ruling, girls as young as 14 could marry with parental consent, while it was 18 for boys. The BBC's Tulanana Bohela in Dar es Salaam says this is a big win for child rights groups and activists, who will now have an easier time rescuing girls from child marriage. The case was brought by lobby group Msichana Initiative. Gambia's President speaking at the Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations at the end of Ramadan, said parents and imams who perform the ceremonies would also face prison. "If you want to know whether what I am saying is true or not, try it tomorrow and see," he warned. Women's rights campaigners have welcomed the ban, however some say that it would be better to engage with local communities to try to change attitudes towards child marriage instead of threatening families with prison sentences, "I don't think locking parents up is the answer... it could lead to a major backlash and sabotage the ban," Isatou Jeng of the women's rights organisation Girls Agenda told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone from the Gambian capital, Banjul. In December last year, Mr Jammeh also outlawed female genital mutilation (FGM), with a prison sentence of up to three years for those that ignored the ban. He said the practice had no place in Islam or in modern society. Three-quarters of women in the mostly Muslim country have had the procedure, according to Unicef.

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

60 Austrian far-right leader Hofer against leaving EU Austrian far-right presidential candidate Norbert Hofer has said he does not want his country to leave the European Union, apparently softening his position on a future referendum. Mr Hofer is aiming to win a rerun of the presidential election on 2 October after his Freedom Party won a court challenge over voting irregularities. After UK voters backed Brexit, he said Austria might also hold a referendum. However, he has now made clear he thinks leaving would be a "mistake". "I'm not in favour of an Austrian exit from the European Union; I've been annoyed for days that people have assumed I am," he told Die Presse newspaper (in German). Mr Hofer was recently narrowly beaten by Alexander Van der Bellen, a Green Party-backed candidate, in a presidential election - but the vote was overturned a week ago after the Freedom Party (FPOe) argued that postal ballots were illegally handled in 94 out of 117 districts. The far-right leader distanced himself from French National Front leader Marine le Pen, saying he did not share her clear anti-EU policy. Mr Hofer's party hopes the rerun will boost his chances on 2 October, but the entire process has been overshadowed by the UK referendum vote to leave the EU. Although latest polls give him a lead over Mr Van der Bellen, a Gallup poll of 600 Austrians suggested 60% opposed any referendum and only 30% favoured an "Oexit". Another survey by the Austrian Society for European Politics suggested that only 23% wanted to leave the EU, a decline of eight percentage points since its last poll in late April and early May. Mr Van der Bellen said on Thursday that his opponent and the FPOe were playing with fire if they "fantasised about an Austrian exit from the EU". The far-right leader had appeared to back a referendum late last month when he said that Austrians should be given a vote "if within the next year the [EU's] course is towards centralisation". But in his interview for Die Presse, Mr Hofer made clear he thought that leaving the EU would "undoubtedly be damaging" for Austria. Leaving the EU would be a "last resort", he stressed, if Turkey joined the bloc or if there were new, centralised EU treaties. Austria's outgoing president, Heinz Fischer, finally stood down on Friday after 12 years in office, leaving the country without a ceremonial head of state until late November at the earliest. In his final address to parliament, he spoke of the UK's decision to leave the EU as "very regrettable and short-sighted".

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

61 Migrant crisis: UN criticises Hungary over border controls Nearly 1,300 migrants are stuck in dire conditions at the Serbia-Hungary border after Hungary blocked their entry, the UN's refugee agency says. The UNHCR criticised Hungary, which said it had deployed 10,000 police and soldiers to seal the border. The agency says it is concerned that migrants are being illegally forced to return from Hungary to Serbia. The numbers of migrants travelling through the Balkans is again on the rise, according to the UN. New measures introduced by Hungary allow its forces to return to Serbia migrants detained within 8km (5 miles) of the border. Serbia's government accused Hungary of breaching international law by returning the migrants. UNHCR regional spokesman in Budapest, Erno Simon told the BBC he is deeply concerned about the practice and the increasingly dangerous conditions for those at the border. The UN says close to 800 migrants are in the open on the Serbian side of the border, lacking shelter and sanitation. A 10-year-old Afghan boy died in a drowning accident at Horgos near a makeshift tent encampment on Thursday. On Friday, the Serbian government called an emergency meeting after 500 migrants entered the country from Bulgaria and Macedonia in 24 hours. With the Hungarian border now effectively closed, all new arrivals in Serbia will either have to stay there, or find new routes to continue their journeys to western Europe. The sharp increase in border security by Hungary's armed forces follows a hardline anti-immigration stance taken by Hungary's government. Janos Lazar, chief of staff to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, said on Friday: "Today, the protection of Hungary and of Europe is the government's task. "For Hungary, security is the most important question. Stopping illegal immigration is a key issue. " Hungary says those caught near the border and returned can claim asylum at transit zones on the border, but reports said only 30 people a day were being allowed through to file claims. Nearly 400,000 migrants passed through Hungary last year, but just over 500 were granted some sort of international protection here. More than one million migrants used the Balkan route to cross to Western Europe before it officially closed in March. 2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

62 How China's trawlers are emptying Guinea's oceans Chinese fishing vessels operate illegally off the coast of Guinea, depleting its fish population and destroying marine life. Despite the economic and social consequences of illegal fishing, the Guinean government has failed to police its waters because it doesn't have money to operate surveillance equipment, as the BBC's Tamasin Ford reports. Abdoulaye Soumah looks out to sea as fishermen bring in the day's catch. Their brightly coloured traditional wooden boats glide into Bonfi port in Conakry, Guinea's capital, where men wait to load the fish into baskets. "We used to get between $700 (£540) and $1,400 worth of fish a day," says the 32-year-old fisherman. "But now, because of the increase in illegal fishing, there are fewer fish," he says angrily. "The same catch will now get around $140 because there's no fish in the zone we normally fish in. " "The next generation doesn't stand a chance" The UN estimates that illegal fishing strips the global economy of more than $23bn every year. And the waters off West Africa have the highest levels of illegal catch in the world, according to the UK-based non-profit organisation, the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), More than a third of all fish caught in the region is illegal, unreported or unregulated, it says. "These illegal pirate fishing operators are in effect stealing from some of the poorest people on our planet to provide short-term profit to wealthy fishing operators," says EJF head Steve Trent. He explains how a mixture of poor governance, limited resources and corruption create a situation ripe for exploitation. And Guinea is one of the worst examples. It is the only country in Africa banned from exporting fish to Europe; the world's biggest market. Levels of illegal fishing are just too high and the EU says the Guinean government "hasn't shown the necessary commitment to reforms". At the fish market in Conakry, Aboubacar Kaba, head of the Artisanal Fisheries Union, grabs a silver fish about the size of his forearm from the back of a refrigerator truck. "This is the most prized fish in Asia; the yellow croaker," he says, claiming this is what the illegal trawlers are after. The fish is now classified as endangered and has reportedly disappeared from Chinese seas because of overfishing. "In 2008 there were 14 Chinese trawlers in these waters," he says. "We're now in 2016 and there are close to 500 trawlers all searching for this species of fish. " And, according to Greenpeace, many of these companies have a history of illegal fishing in the region. Hundreds of incidents of illegal activity by Chinese trawlers have been documented in West Africa over the years. Illegal fishing in Guinea got even worse as the country was battling the deadly Ebola virus, according to a Greenpeace investigation. "During the Ebola outbreak, the country focused all their resources and capacity to deal with Ebola," says Ahmed Diame, the Africa Oceans campaigner at Greenpeace. During a month-long mission at the end of 2014 while Ebola was ravaging the country, a Greenpeace ship spotted an illegal Chinese trawler once every two days. "In this investigation we discovered that some Chinese vessels fishing in West Africa under-report their gross tonnage and this has many implications of course, including loss of revenue to the state," says Mr Diame. Most of the Chinese vessels are known as bottom trawlers; banned in some parts of the world because they are so destructive. They scrape up everything from the bottom of the ocean, ripping up coral and oyster beds, taking with them everything in their path. "Up to 90% of the catch can be thrown back into the sea often already dead," according to Greenpeace. It means fish stocks are rapidly disappearing from West African waters. But while Guinea managed to officially rid the country of Ebola in June, illegal trawlers are still being spotted. "This is where we see them, late at night," says Mr Soumah as he takes me into the artisanal fishing zone on his wooden motorised boat. The area stretches 12 miles from the shore and is exclusively reserved for artisanal fishing on small boats like these. Industrial fishing is forbidden in order to protect the fish stocks. The Environmental Justice Foundation has evidence, yet to be published, that proves illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing is still going on in these waters. Similarly, Greenpeace also started another investigation in January this year across Cape Verde, Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone and Senegal. It will take three years, but the organisation hopes it will get a more detailed analysis of the situation. The issue of the lack of resources couldn't be made clearer as I visit Conakry's Maritime Authority. The rear admiral unlocks a door at the back of his office. Members of the navy and maritime surveillance team sit among impressive looking equipment. This is where they monitor Guinea's waters. The problem, says the deputy commissioner, as he shows me some of the brand new kit delivered by the EU, is that they have never been able to use it. The subscription to the satellite system that drives the equipment costs 10,000 euro ($11,000; £8,500) a year and they just do not have the money. The government says it is trying but without resources, it is an uphill battle. Guinea recently signed a treaty to crack down on illegal fishing but it is too early to say what effect it will have. High hopes rest on Andre Loua, the new minister of fisheries, who was appointed earlier this year. "Yes, I'm very scared if we don't halt illegal fishing," he says frankly. "The direct consequences of illegal fishing is the destruction of fish stocks and that's why the government has taken every opportunity to show it's willing to fight this practice and we are going to keep going until we eradicate illegal fishing in this zone. " But back on Mr Soumah's boat at Bonfi port, these feel like empty words. "The next generation doesn't stand a chance," he says bleakly. "Listen, our children survive on what we do. " Illegal fishing is slowly destroying an already fragile economy here. Mr Soumah thinks the future of his children is dire. "Fishing enables us to educate our children, feed them and provide for their healthcare. So if the illegal fishing directly affects us as fishermen, what do you think the impact is on our children? "

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

63 Dabbing in the Dáil: Richard Boyd Barrett explains dance move during drugs debate It's a global dance craze born out of US hip-hop culture that's swept the world over the last year. From nightclubs to sports grounds to television studios, it seems almost everyone's had a dip at doing the dab. But in a surprising new development, it has worked its way into the stuffy world of Irish politics. In an attempt to get down with the kids, Richard Boyd Barrett brought the dab to the Dáil - the Irish parliament. The left-wing Anti-Austerity Alliance People Before Profit politician pulled the move during a debate on the Irish government's Misuse of Drugs Bill on Thursday. In his speech he said politicians "need to start to listen to young people", adding that some in his Dún Laoghaire constituency in County Dublin had asked him: "Do you have any idea what's going on? " And he said they asked him to dish out a "bit of street language, from the street" to his fellow parliamentarians in the Dáil. "When kids are trying to make a positive statement on the street they do a thing called a dab," he said. "I don't know if you've ever seen it. "I don't know what it means. "But we need to learn what it means, learn what young people are talking about, what matters to them, what they consider positive activity. " Speaking to The Ryan Tubridy Show on RTÉ Radio 1, Mr Boyd Barrett said "we need more" hip-hop in the Dublin parliament. "I don't pretend to be an expert on these things, but it's more from my own kids and young people that I've kind of learnt about these things," he said. "Hip-hop, for a lot of teenagers these days, is the language they speak - it's the cultural language of teenagers. " He added that it's "very obvious" that many young people "are completely alienated from politics". "In any election, it's clear that the biggest demographic that don't vote and don't engage with politics are young people. "I think it's our responsibility to engage with young people. "

2016-07-09 14:10 www.bbc.co.uk

64 ‘Dark streaks’ on Mars give NASA a hint that Red Planet may have water — RT America The agency posted a series of photographs obtained from the Valles Marineris region near Mars' equator which depict numerous dark lines found around the planet’s canyons. According to the scientists, the mysterious streaks might be indications of the presence of either frozen or liquid water, or vapor. “There are so many of them, it's hard to keep track," said Matthew Chojnacki of the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, Tucson, and lead author of the new report in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. The study looked at thousands of lines known as recurring slope lineae, or RSL – a special term adopted by NASA scientists given that the do not yet know how the lines form. "Collectively, results provide additional support for the notion that significant amounts of near-surface water can be found on Mars today and suggest that a widespread mechanism, possibly related to the atmosphere, is recharging RSL sources," the scientists wrote in the press release. According to NASA, the streaks are much more “widespread than previously recognized”. “…if they are indeed associated with contemporary aqueous activity, that makes this canyon system an even more interesting area than it is just from the spectacular geology alone," the scientists pointed out. Although the scientists did write in the press-release that the “dark streaks” “might be signs of liquid water”, they are not sure how they appeared. One of the theories is that the streaks formed due to an underground layer of water. At the same time the scientists say it is unlikely the water from an underground layer reached the surface of canyon ridges and isolated peaks where most of the streaks appear. While liquid water might be the reason for their formation, the researchers have not ruled out other hypotheses. One of them involves the interaction between salts and water vapor. According to scientists, salts might have pulled water vapor from the Martian atmosphere creating “liquid brine” on the ground surface. The streaks might be left-overs of the salt which is left on the surface after the brine evaporates. "There are problems with the mechanism of pulling water from the atmosphere, too," Chojnacki said admitting that questions about the streaks formation still remain. If the theory is correct and the streaks did appear due to the salts’ pulling of vapor than as many as 10 to 40 Olympic- size swimming pools would be required for the dark features to form, scientists explain. Although the whole Valles Marineris region seems to have a lot more water vapor than that, the scientists struggle to state a mechanism which would extract water from the atmosphere. "There do seem to be more ways atmosphere and surface interact in the canyons than in blander topography, such as clouds trailing out of the canyons and low-lying haze in the canyons. " he said. "Perhaps the atmosphere-surface interactions in this region are associated with the high abundance of recurring slope lineae. We can't rule that out, but a mechanism to make the connection is far from clear. " The scientists also do not rule out the fact that the streaks could have formed due to ice which could be present near Mars’ surface. Last month NASA announced it was eager to use the Curiosity Rover to investigate dark streaks and take close-up images of the sites of their abundance.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

65 South Carolina town bans 'sagging pants' — RT Viral Timmonsville’s council voted five to one to ban “public nudity, displaying pornographic material in public, or wearing trousers or shorts where undergarments are exposed.” The sagging pants ban is said to maintain decorum on the streets, and help young people make better choices. “My 8-year-olds have pointed out to me men with their belt buckles right over their privates. That, in my eyes, is very near exposure.” a local mother said . Anyone caught with their pants down twice in Timmonsville will be added to a repeat offenders registry and then face a $600 fine for every ‘saggy trouser’ incident thereafter. Some question the validity of a clothing ban on the basis of freedom of expression and censorship. At an earlier reading of the ordinance, councilwoman Cheryl Qualls raised the issue of racial targeting. “It will increase racial profiling on some of our children here in Timmonsville and across the country.” she said . Timmonsville is not the first US town to ban the offending clothing. In 2010, Dublin, Georgia passed a law banning pants and skirts that fall “more than three inches below the top of the hips, exposing the skin or undergarments.” The saggy pants hip-hop connection opens such bans to criticism for racial profiling. Ocala, Florida was forced to overturn its saggy pants ban after the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) threatened to take legal action against the city for targeting black males. "I'm sorry, it's going to be black males that are the subject of this," NAACP’s Dale Landry said. Arkansas’ Henderson University also faced accusations of racism when it posted signs banning sagging pants from a student center. The signs were taken down after two days, and the administration apologized.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

66 Black Power Political Organization claims Dallas shooting on Facebook, vows more attacks — RT America READ MORE: Dallas protest turns violent, 5 officers dead LIVE UPDATES The group’s page on Facebook appears to have been deleted or blocked, but its content is still available on Google cache. On Friday, the group claimed their “sniper assassins” took down “five police officers,” according to the screen grabs. In the same post, the group also promised to “assassinate” more police officers “in the coming days.” It called to “get your own sniper rifle” and join their thousands of “sniper assassins” across the world. There hasn’t been any official comment on these statements, however, Dallas police said the killed suspect had told negotiators he was not affiliated with any group and acted alone. In earlier publications, the group called “to end the oppression” of black people using the hashtags #BlackPower and #Blackknights, the cache shows. The BPPO’s aim is to create the “United States of Africa”. Its rallying cries are: “Free yourself from the white men” and help “Free Africa from western and non-black people control.” In one of the most peculiar postings, the group boasts it has planted spies in the CIA, FBI, police and among US soldiers who “work for them“ and “give them information.” In June, the group wrote several posts about “black people being tired of government oppression.” The violence started on Thursday night during a peaceful protest in Dallas over the fatal shootings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, LA, and Philando Castile in St. Paul, MN. At least four attackers, holed up in a downtown garage, used sniper rifles against police officers. READ MORE: 4th Dallas suspect shoots himself in standoff with police – reports The incident then spread to the streets, where major corporations, restaurants and courthouses have premises. Police believe the attack was coordinated. Three snipers were arrested and the forth was killed in a standoff with police. A total of 14 people were shot, two of them civilians, the rest were police officers.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

67 Tesla’s Autopilot back in spotlight as 2nd self- driving crash reported — RT Viral Albert Scaglione and his son-in-law Tim Yanke both survived the crash when their Tesla Model X, which they claim was in self-driving mode, crashed and overturned on the Pennsylvania turnpike. Tesla are disputing Scaglione’s claims, telling WXYZ that they received no information to show that Autopilot was activated at the time of the crash. "We received an automated alert from this vehicle on July 1 indicating airbag deployment, but logs containing detailed information on the state of the vehicle controls at the time of the collision were never received,” Tesla said in an email, adding that they had attempted to contact Scaglione three times but failed. “Based on the information we have now, we have no reason to believe that Autopilot had anything to do with this accident” they said. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have opened an investigation into the accident. In a statement they said that they would “determine whether automated functions were in use at the time of the crash.” Tesla are currently under investigation over a fatal crash in 2015 in which an Ohio man was killed while driving a Tesla Model S in Autopilot. Joshua Brown died when the vehicle continued driving as a tractor-trailer crossed the highway in front of him. The top of Brown's car was completely ripped off in the fatal accident. READ MORE: Federal gov’t opens investigation into first known Tesla Autopilot fatality In a blog post Tesla claimed the Autopilot did not engage the brake because it could not distinguish between the brightly lit sky and tractor trailer. The driver of the tractor-trailer told AP that Brown was watching a film in the car when the crash happened. Florida Highway Patrol confirmed that they found a portable DVD player in the vehicle. Autopilot is currently in its “public beta phase,” and customers must acknowledge that before they can use the system. They are also expected to keep their hands on the wheel while it is engaged, as well as to “maintain control and responsibility” for their vehicles. "Autopilot is getting better all the time, but it is not perfect and still requires the driver to remain alert,” Tesla said. “Nonetheless, when used in conjunction with driver oversight, the data is unequivocal that Autopilot reduces driver workload and results in a statistically significant improvement in safety when compared to purely manual driving. "

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

68 State Dept. to reopen Clinton email investigation — RT America State Department spokesman John Kirby set no deadline for the investigation’s completion, but did say the probe is restarting now that the Justice Department has decided against pursuing criminal charges. "We will aim to be as expeditious as possible, but we will not put artificial deadlines on the process," Kirby said, according to the Associated Press. "Our goal will be to be as transparent as possible about our results, while complying with our various legal obligations. " In January, the State Department began its review after declaring that 22 emails from Clinton’s private server held “top secret” classified information. The department suspended its review in April, while the FBI conducted its inquiry. The emails at the center of the inquiry were upgraded to one of the nation’s highest classification levels. One aspect of the investigation is whether any of those emails were classified at the time of transmission. "There could be repercussions," Kirby told reporters Wednesday, even for many of Clinton’s aides who have left the agency. The punishments could range from counseling or warnings to revocation of security clearance. That last punishment could affect the hiring possibilities for many of Clinton’s confidants at the White House, should she win the presidential election. Beyond the Democratic front-runner, the revisited probe is most likely targeting Cheryl Mills, Jake Sullivan and Huma Abedin, who wrote many of the emails to their boss that are now once again under investigation.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

69 US local, state govts spend 3 times more on jails than on education – officials — RT America The department’s brief released on Thursday examined corrections spending and education spending from 1979 to 1980 and 2012 to 2013. It found that spending on elementary and secondary education across the US increased by 107 percent “from $258 to 534 billion” while total state and local corrections expenditures increased by 324 percent “from $17 billion to 71 billion – triple the rate of increase in education spending,” stated the report . “These aren’t just statistics. When I think about the lives of those who are incarcerated, I can’t help but feel disheartened,” Education Secretary John King said on Thursday. “I can’t help but think about their families, spouses, sons, daughters and parents — or about the art not created; the entrepreneurial ideas that may never reach the drawing board; the classrooms these Americans will never lead; and the discoveries they’ll never make.” Over the 33-year period, all of the 50 states had lower expenditure growth on education than for corrections but some states increased their spending on corrections more than others. Massachusetts for increase increased theirs 149 percent, while Texas boosted its allocation by 850 percent. These increases were in comparison to education spending which grew in Michigan just 18 percent and in Nevada 326 percent. The report said that United States has only 5 percent of the world’s population, but more than 20 percent of the world’s incarcerated population. Research has found the increases in the prison population from 490,000 in 1980 to over 2 million in 2014 was due in part to often lengthy mandatory minimum sentence laws. Many of the laws are slowly being repealed or revised like the Rockefeller Drug Laws in New York City. According to King, more than two-thirds of state prison inmates dropped out of high school. Back in 2010, research from Pew also found that young black men between ages 20 and 24 without a high school diploma or GED are more likely to be in jail than to have a job. King also cited research showing a relationship between education rates and incarceration rates: A 10-percent increase in high school graduation rates leads to a 9-percent decrease in the rates of criminal arrest, and reduces murder and assault rates by 20 percent. The policy brief relied on state-level data collected or reported by several federal statistic agencies – the National Center for Education Statistics, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The department said that increasing the amount of money state and local governments spend on educating students could help decrease the jail population. “Reducing incarceration rates and redirecting some of the funds currently spent on corrections in order to make investments in education that we know work,” the Department of Education report said, “could provide a more positive and potentially more effective approach to both reducing crime and increasing opportunity among at-risk youth, particularly if in the PK-12 context the redirected funds are focused on high-poverty schools.” Some of those education investments include increasing teacher salaries for those willing to work in ‘hard-to-staff’ schools and increasing access to high-quality preschool. The brief referred to one study that found incarcerated people who participated in high-quality correctional education – including postsecondary correctional education – were 43 percent less likely to return to prison within three years than those who did not participate in correctional education programs.

2016-07-09 14:17 www.rt.com

70 Elite K-8 school teaches white students they’re born racist Bank Street School for Children at 610 W. 112th St. in Manhattan. Photo: Katie Orlinsky. By Paul Sperry- An elite Manhattan school is teaching white students as young as 6 that they’re born racist and should feel guilty benefiting from “white privilege,” while heaping praise and cupcakes on their black peers. Administrators at the Bank Street School for Children on the Upper West Side claim it’s a novel approach to fighting discrimination, and that several other private New York schools are doing it, but even liberal parents aren’t buying it. Modal Trigger A slide from the Bank School shows the different goals for white children (right) and “kids of color” (left). They complain the K-8 school of 430 kids is separating whites in classes where they’re made to feel awful about their “whiteness,” and all the “kids of color” in other rooms where they’re taught to feel proud about their race and are rewarded with treats and other privileges. “Ever since Ferguson, the school has been increasing anti-white propaganda in its curriculum,” said a parent who requested anonymity because he has children currently enrolled in the school. Bank Street has created a “dedicated space” in the school for “kids of color,” where they’re “embraced” by minority instructors and encouraged to “voice their feelings” and “share experiences about being a kid of color,” according to school presentation slides obtained by The Post. Meanwhile, white kids are herded into separate classrooms and taught to raise their “awareness of the prevalence of Whiteness and privilege,” challenge “notions of colorblindness (and) assumptions of ‘normal,’ ‘good,’ and ‘American’” and “understand and own European ancestry and see the tie to privilege.” The same slides point out that a number of leading private schools across the country also have segregated students by “race-based affinity groups.” It lists several in New York, including Riverdale Country School, Brooklyn Friends School, The Cathedral School, The Calhoun School, Ethical Culture Fieldston School, and Little Red School House and Elisabeth Irwin High School. ‘One hundred percent of the curriculum is what whites have done to other races. They offer nothing that would balance the story.’ Under Bank Street’s “Racial Justice and Advocacy” curriculum, parents say, teachers push white kids to grapple with America’s history of racism. Then they indoctrinate them into thinking “systemic racism” still exists, and that they’re part of the problem and must hold themselves accountable even for acts of racism committed by others. “One hundred percent of the curriculum is what whites have done to other races,” said another Bank Street parent. “They offer nothing that would balance the story.” Added the parent, who also asked to go unnamed: “Any questions they can’t answer they rationalize under the pretense of ‘institutional racism,’ which is never really defined.” The program, these parents say, deliberately instills in white children a strong sense of guilt about their race. Some kids come home in tears, saying, “I’m a bad person.” They say white kids are being brainwashed into thinking any success they achieve is unearned. Indeed, a young white girl is seen confessing on a Bank Street video: “I feel guilty for having a privilege I don’t deserve.” Parents, moreover, say the classroom segregation only breeds resentment. Younger children, for instance, feel left out when the “kids of color” come back to the main classroom munching on cupcakes they were given in their “affinity group.” The divisive program is run by Anshu Wahi, a longtime “social justice” activist who’s held the title of “director of diversity” at Bank Street since 2013. She referred questions to the school’s communications office, which did not respond to requests for comment. Still, Wahi’s radical beliefs come into clear view from recorded conversations with parents, as well as handouts and emails to parents. She believes the answer to racism is teaching white kids to see race in everything — a process called “white racial socialization.” Forget teaching them to be color-blind — that’s a cop-out, she suggests, an excuse to ignore the hardships of people of color. It’s also a “tool of whiteness” to perpetuate the “oppression” of people of color, according to one paper she recommends parents read. Wahi believes even white babies display signs of racism, so she encourages parents to talk to their kids about race as early as kindergarten, making them hyperaware of racial differences, and even “examine your own whiteness.” She defends segregating minority children by race by arguing they need a safe place where they can share their “ouch moments,” including subtle but offensive white comments known as “micro-aggressions.” “Bank Street wants to give kids of color a space to talk about shared experiences,” Wahi explained in a parent handout, “because even in society today, people of color are treated unfairly.” “In the recent past,” she added, “children of color in our Lower School have been told by well-intentioned peers that their skin looks like the color of poop.” Wahi says the school is merely empowering children of color who feel “alienated” and “devalued” in a “dominant white culture.” But some parents fear the school is nurturing resentment among minority pupils and reinforcing perceptions of victimization. The school of 430 students is led by Anshu Wahi, who believes the answer to racism is teaching white children to see race in everything — a process called “white racial socialization.” Her extreme diversity program is based on the premise that America is still plagued by “systemic racism,” which she claims she saw first-hand while serving as a juror hearing criminal cases in Brooklyn. She told parents she was shocked to learn that every case involved a minority defendant. In the same May 2015 meeting with parents, she cited the GI Bill as proof of “white privilege,” claiming the popular post-World War II legislation only benefited white soldiers and their heirs, when in fact, black enrollment in colleges exploded under the GI Bill. Most recently, parents were upset with her airing a documentary film lionizing leaders of the violent Black Panthers movement. On May 31, the Bank Street School screened “Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” which depicts Panthers founder and convicted cop-killer Huey Newton as a martyr. In 2013, moreover, parents expressed outrage over an email from Wahi that seemed to sympathize with Muslim terrorists after the Boston Marathon bombings. The April 17, 2013, message — “From Anshu, our Director of Diversity and Community: The Boston Marathon — Another Perspective” — advised students and parents to “be mindful of stereotypes and dangerous ideas” regarding “Arabs (and) Muslims.” It linked to an article titled “Let’s hope the Boston Marathon bomber is a white American.”

2016-07-09 15:33 By Paul www.thetribunepapers.com

71 Op-Ed: Is the Star Trek replicator becoming a reality? Students' 3D-printed fungarium and Martian mini-farm win NASA 'Star Trek Replicator Challenge' https://t.co/ep8QFL7Quz Winners have been announced in the the Future Engineers 3D Printing Star Trek Replicator Challenge. Their brave new mission? To create something akin to the replicator to assist with deep space missions.

2016-07-09 15:22 By Tim www.digitaljournal.com

72 Eye Opener: Dallas mourns police ambush |New details about the former soldier who killed five Dallas police officers. Also, thousands hit the streets across America in anger over continued racial tension. All that and all that matters in today's Eye Opener. Your world in 90 seconds. Get the Eye Opener delivered straight to your inbox.

2016-07-09 15:22 Eye Opener www.cbsnews.com

73 But Why Aren’t People Buying Electric Cars? Trump is ascendant not because he’s a freedom jouster but because the people are exasperated with a clueless (and contemptuous of them) party apparat that for years has been trotting out one inbred Bush after the next, with Bush-like things in between such as Mittens and Ted. This is not a cheer for Trump. It’s a jeer at the elites. The auto industry is just as clueless — and contemptuous — of the people who are its customers. Witness the hilarious article in Automotive News last week bemoaning the fact that electric vehicles are a hard sell. The article was headlined: “Automakers’ Anxiety: Why Can’t We Sell EVs?” The story went on to quote various auto industry crack pipe smokers such as Britta Gross, a speaker at the recent Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exhibition in Montreal. Gross is director of Advanced Vehicle Commercialization Policy at General Motors. “Consumers (an awful word, isn’t it?) adore these vehicles,” she says. “People love the quietness, the smoothness, the seamless drive.” They’re just reluctant — for reasons apparently inscrutable to Gross — to part with cash. Despite huge subsidies and other forms of jump-starting, sales of electric cars are not just flat, they’re down by about 5 percent. Total sales amount to a literal fraction of the market — a few thousand of them (combined, every make and model) out of 1.4 million sales of IC-engined cars per month. “Why don’t consumers flock to these vehicles,” Gross wonders? “What do we have to do?” How about lowering the price? The problem with electric cars isn’t that they’re not “quiet and smooth.” They are. So is a Mercedes S-Class. The problem is that electric cars cost too much. $30,000 to start for the “affordable” ones like the VW eGolf. Most (like the egregious economic make-work project Tesla) cost much more. Even the Chevy Volt (which I think is ok, see here) costs about as much as an entry- level Lexus or BMW. Axiom: The more an electric car costs to buy, the less it makes economic sense — regardless of its quietness and smoothness. A Mercedes S-Class is of course also expensive. But the difference is it’s supposed to be. Economic sense doesn’t enter into it. The Benz is a high-end luxury car. People buy them as an indulgence and to a great extent because they are expensive. Which makes them exclusive. You have something most people don’t and (if you can afford it) are willing to pay extra for the privilege. It’s exactly the reverse. The more they cost, the less they appeal. Gross and Elon Musk and the other denizens of the automotive opium den have been designing electric cars that for the most part only affluent people can afford and then they wonder why people who can barely afford a six- year loan for a Camry or Civic steer clear. I “adore” the Mercedes S-Class. It is a magnificent car. But I can’t afford one, so I don’t own one. The same applies to electric cars — only much more so. Because unlike an S-Class, an electric car’s primary draw is not that it is “smooth” and “quiet” but that it — hopefully — gets you where you need to go for less than an IC- engined car. This includes the cost to buy the thing — which can’t be too high or it negates any savings achieved by not having to fuel the thing. If it doesn’t make economic sense — if the electric drive’s primary virtues are that it’s “smooth” and “quiet” and (as in the case of the Tesla) quick, then prospective buyers are not going to buy it on account of its fuel-saving virtues. They are going to compare the car to price-comparable IC-engined cars, using a different set of criteria, among them range and convenience. And while strides have been made in both areas, electric cars still can’t go nearly as far as an IC car and take forever (or so it will feel) to recharge when the battery wilts. These issues worsen in less-than-optimum environments such as the heat of summer and the cold of winter. People who spend luxury car money tend to not be too willing to put up with hassles of any kind. They are paying top dollar to avoid hassles. You don’t find port-a-potty toilets at Trump Tower — or AC that gets automatically turned off for the sake of “saving energy” at certain times of the day — for just this reason. And if you did find them, probably you’d change reservations. So it is with electric cars. People looking to save money — not just on fuel, but also on the car itself — would probably be willing to put up with some hassles — including the need to arrange one’s travel to accommodate the recharge times — provided the car makes economic sense. If it reduces their cost of getting around. This obviousness was ignored by the author of the article and an entire roster of car industry PR and marketing short bus occupants whose grasp of the situation is truly Forrest Gumpian. But the truth is, they’ve had to sex up the electric car. Because the technology is still too expensive and too functionally impaired to be a threat to the dominance of the practicality and economic sanity of the IC-engined car. It is probably not possible — without doubling-down on the subsidies that prop up the existence of electric cars as other than curiosities at car shows — to offer one for sale at a price that’s price-competitive (cost to buy and cost to drive) with Camrys and Civics and other A to B commuter car/family car appliances. So, they’ve given up on that — and shifted over to trying to sell them at a price that puts them in the same segment as luxury-performance cars. Only they don’t (and can’t, absent a technological breakthrough that — like Peak Oil — never seems to arrive) perform as well as expensive luxury cars. Which is why most people refrain from buying them. This eludes Gross and the editorial staff of Automotive News. And they ask me why I drink….

2016-07-09 14:18 Eric Peters spectator.org

74 America’s Outlaw Heroes of World War II When Tigers Ruled the Sky: The Flying Tigers: American Outlaw Pilots over China in World War II By Bill Yenne (Berkley Caliber, 360 pages, $27) Bill Yenne’s latest nonfiction work on World War II tells the dramatic and inspiring story of the Flying Tigers, the swash-buckling group of American fighter pilots, known officially and more mundanely as the American Volunteer Group, who took it to air and ground forces of Japan in China during the early days of World War II (early days for America at least — the Japanese had been messing with China since 1931). No less than compared the Tigers to the RAF fighter pilots who saved the United Kingdom during the Battle of Britain, which took place just a year or so before the Tigers went into action and pounded lumps on much larger and better supplied Japanese air forces. These civilian warriors, trained in the U. S. Army, Navy, or Marines before resigning their commissions to go to China, were members neither of the American nor Chinese air force, making them outlaw pilots. Outlaw or no, they seriously slowed the ongoing annexation of China by military forces of Japan, and provided some of the few things Americans could cheer about in the early days of the Pacific war. They also produced some aces (five or more air combat victories) and heroes, not least being top Tiger Claire Chennault, who carried the honorary title of “Colonel” while creating and leading the AVG (the Tigers didn’t use military ranks) and who became a real general after the AVG was folded into the U. S. Army Air Forces in the summer of 1942. The story of the Tigers — by the way, no one seems to know where the name came from, and those were shark’s teeth, not tiger teeth, painted on the front of the AVG’s P-40s — was even more dramatic than the 1942 John Wayne movie of the same name (not one of the Duke’s best). In roughly 50 major aerial battles, the Tigers accounted for more than 200 confirmed Japanese planes shot down. With likely victories, the number could have been twice this. They also destroyed countless Japanese aircraft on the ground in strafing missions. This remarkable total was attained while the Tigers lost only ten planes in combat, even though outnumbered by four to one or more in most engagements. Yenne accounts for the lopsided score by Chennault’s strict training in the fighter tactics he developed and his insistence on strict discipline in the air. Chennault also devised a sophisticated early warning system, combing radar and human spotters, so his pilots almost always knew when the Japanese were on their way. The P-40 was faster straight and level and when diving than the Japanese fighters they were up against, but much less nimble than the lighter Japanese planes. So the Tigers never engaged in dog fights, which would have been suicide as the Japanese fighters could outturn them. The Tigers attacked from above, and dove away when the Japanese fighters tried to engage. They would then climb out and attack the Japanese again from above. The P-40 also had self-sealing gas tanks and armor plating around the pilot and critical engine parts, so it could take lots of hits and keep on flying. The Japanese fighters, by comparison, usually burst into flames when the first.50-caliber slugs hit them. The Tigers, with the help of President Roosevelt and those around him, got into business in 1941 when Chennault, through a series of interlocking Chinese shell companies set up for the purpose, was able to purchase 100 American P-40 fighters, and hire the pilots and ground crews to fly them and keep them in the air. Thus a kind foreign legion of American fighter pilots was born. Bounty hunters, if you will, as they were paid a monthly salary (well above what they were used to in the American military) and a bonus for each Japanese plane destroyed. Roosevelt did not wish to see Japan take over more of China’s cities, or for the Imperial Japanese Army to visit further cruelty on the Chinese population, as it had done in Nanking in 1937, where an estimated quarter of a million Chinese civilians were murdered by rampaging Japanese troops. Japan by 1941 had become a clear threat not just to China and most of the rest of Asia, but to the United States as well, though there was yet no public desire in America to take them on. Roosevelt, the leader of a neutral country, did what leaders of nations do when international law runs crosswise to their nation’s vital security interests. He ignored international law. Once in business, Chennault’s soldiers of fortune did not have it easy. Conditions were crude at the bases they operated from in places like Kunming, as well as others that won’t ring a bell even with folks who know a good deal about WWII. And with Japanese forces to the south of them and the Himalayas to the north and west, it was difficult to supply the AVG with basics like food, fuel, ammunition, and much needed parts for the P-40s that were constantly subjected to the roughest kind of combat flying. For this reason, the AVG was rarely able to put more than a dozen P-40s into the air at one time. It’s a testimony to the AVG’s fierceness and combat success that the Japanese estimated their number at about 300. Once America was in the war at the end of 1941, it was only a matter of time before the AVG and its warriors would be brought into the Army Air Forces. This was accomplished in the summer of 1942, satisfactorily if not smoothly or to the satisfaction of everyone involved. Yenne tells this story, and that of the complex politics, military and civilian, that surrounded the entire enterprise. Readers will encounter players such as Chiang Kai-shek, and the likely brains behind his operation, Madame Chiang. And, always lurking just out of sight, Mao Zedong, whose communist insurgents would win the power struggle to control China in 1949. There was the scratchy general in charge of the China Theater, Joseph “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell, as well as other American officers and Chinese officials, competent, trustworthy, and otherwise. When Tigers Ruled the Sky is a well-told story at all levels — military, personal, and political — of probably the least known of the WWII theaters, of a group of American flyers who it would be a slight to refer to as anything less than heroes, and of an inspirational leader named Claire Chennault.

2016-07-09 14:18 Larry Thornberry spectator.org

75 The Cops Are the Real Stars It’s a total utter lie that police shootings are a major cause of black deaths. The data is that maybe 1/10 of one per cent of black violent deaths are caused by the police. And almost none of those were of UNARMED black men. Of the roughly 30,000 gun deaths per year… two-thirds are suicides. The huge majority of the rest are black-on-black gang and drug related shootings. The Obama clique makes no effort at all to rein in these gangs. The gangs kill and no one proposes any laws about it at all. The idea that the police are a major cause of black mortality is nonsense. The police extend. black lifespans by protecting black neighborhoods from blacks. There is a giant super crisis among blacks: Violence. Drugs. The collapse of the family. Pitiful education. Low participation in the labor force. None of this is caused by the police. The police are the heroes of the black community. Black and white and Hispanic and Asian they take their lives in their hands every day to take the killers off the streets. The cops are the real stars.

2016-07-09 14:18 Ben Stein spectator.org

76 Dead Dallas Gunman Identified as a Black Panther; Wanted to Kill White Cops The gunman killed by Dallas PD following the deaths of five police officers and the wounding of a dozen others has been identified as Micah X. Johnson. Johnson, a 25-year old former Army reservist who served in Afghanistan from November 2013 to July 2014, told hostage negotiators that he wanted to avenge the deaths of black men by killing white police officers. While it is unclear if Johnson was active with Black Lives Matter, it has been indicated that he was involved with several different Black Panther organizations. It is believed that Johnson was not the only shooter. Dallas PD have three yet to be identified people (other than they are 2 men and one woman) in custody in connection with the attack. Needless to say, it will be interesting to see if they are also involved with the Black Panthers or are active with Black Lives Matter. While there are people who have been unjustly killed by police, it is equally unjust to murder police officers much less paint them all with the same brush which asserts they are out to wantonly kill African-Americans as was suggested by Diamond Reynolds, the girlfriend of Philando Castile who was killed by a police officer in Minnesota on Wednesday night. Prior to the Dallas massacre, Reynolds spoke at a protest outside the mansion of Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton. Reynolds told the crowd she live streamed the events following the shooting “so the world would know these police are not here to protect and serve us. They are here to assassinate us. They are here to kill us. Because we are Black.” Notwithstanding her overwhelming grief and the notwithstanding the very strong possibility that her boyfriend was unjustly killed, this is simply unjust and wrong on the part of Reynolds. It’s the sort of thinking that got five police officers killed in Dallas last night.

2016-07-09 14:18 Aaron Goldstein spectator.org

77 Comey’s Carelessness With Common Sense As I watch FBI Director James Comey respond to members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, even as I attempt to correct for my fear and loathing of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the “nothing to see here” approach of the Democratic members of the committee is shocking. Or at least it would be shocking if it were not for the fact that the woman they are compelled to defend is a corrupt self-dealing mendacious reprobate who makes each of them look competent, trustworthy, and sagacious by comparison. In nearly every case where a Republican asked Director Comey whether Hillary Clinton violated a statute regarding the care and handling of classified information, the answer was yes. When asked whether Clinton’s private e-mail server violated State Department policy, the answer was yes (based on Comey’s reading of State’s IG report, not his own investigation). When asked whether someone in her position should have known better, the answer was yes. It is clear that approximately every public statement Clinton made about her use of a private email server was a lie (but Comey confined his legal conclusions to Hillary’s private statements made to the FBI last weekend). Director Comey, formerly the Deputy Attorney General of the United States in the George W. Bush administration, reiterated that a government employee who treated classified information the way that Clinton did would likely face disciplinary actions such as loss of security clearance and termination of employment. Indeed, late on Thursday the State Department announced that it is reopening the investigation into the mishandling of classified information by Clinton and her closest aides. Those aides, particularly Cheryl Mills and Huma Abedin, though no longer government employees, may face sanctions and their ability to get security clearances in a potential Clinton administration is now very much in doubt. It is also worth noting that during the hearing committee chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) told Comey to expect a Congressional referral requesting that he investigate whether Clinton lied to Congress while under oath. This followed Comey’s saying he had never looked into it because he had never received such a referral. No doubt the Democratic response, in an explosion of irony, will be squawks about wasting taxpayers’ money. The “fact pattern” of the Clinton email fiasco, as laid out by Comey in his remarkable Tuesday press conference and reiterated in hours of testimony on Thursday, justifies a criminal referral by the FBI to the Justice Department. But Comey, both Tuesday and Thursday, argued that there had never been a prosecution under the two relevant statutes without additional aggravating factors such as intentional obstruction of an investigation (such as the lies told to the FBI by General Petraeus; again Comey did not consider lies told by Clinton to the public or to Congress), exposure of large quantities of classified information, or disloyalty to the United States. That may be true although the military has punished its members harshly for crimes that seem less egregious, especially given Hillary’s level of responsibility and her specific instructions to underlings not to use private email accounts because of security concerns. But Comey’s more fundamental argument that Clinton did not demonstrate intent to violate the law ignores the plain language of the statute which requires only gross negligence — synonymous in this case with the recklessness and carelessness that Comey had already found her culpable of — to be guilty of a crime. As former federal prosecutor Andy McCarthy points out, this law is not unique in not requiring criminal intent; it is possible to be found guilty of manslaughter without having intended to kill anyone — gross negligence is enough. Comey’s is the same form of argument which has some comparing his rationalization to that of Chief Justice John Roberts, who tortured logic and rewrote the law in order to find Obamacare constitutional; perhaps each did not want to be responsible for a much larger political crisis. In Comey’s case: Should he be responsible for removing from contention the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party? Comey’s tremendous error was not his refusal to send a criminal referral of Hillary Clinton to the Department of Justice; it was his statement that “no reasonable prosecutor” would bring charges given the facts of the case. That simply cannot be true. When it was any Democrat’s opportunity to waste five minutes of Comey’s time, the questions and comments were very similar to each other. Paraphrasing: “How long have you been FBI director?” “Thank you for being so non-partisan.” “Is it still correct that you did not coordinate the investigation with any part of the administration?” And, believe it or not, “Do you think that white supremacist groups are increasing their recruiting abilities because of ’s retweets?” Democrats frequently described the hearing as “political theater,” a maddening characterization when discussing the illegal behavior of a woman who makes a habit of lying to the public about her actions — even when those actions lead to the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi — yet who has the gall to believe she should lead this nation. But such are the low standards of our politics these days, particularly among Democrats. None of this is as new as it may seem to younger voters. Do you remember Marion Barry? Barry was the mayor of Washington, D. C. He was arrested by the FBI after being videotaped smoking crack cocaine (but at least it was with a prostitute). He served six months in prison and was at the next opportunity re-elected mayor. Yes, D. C. was a bastion of what is these days euphemistically called an “urban environment,” white-liberal-speak for a city with a large low-income and minority population and therefore, inexplicably, held to a lower standard of political propriety. (Perhaps that is why urban places which persistently elect Democrats like Kwame Kilpatrick and Chaka Fattah remain so “urban.”) But Barry’s bad behavior was a warm-up act for this generation of Democrats. As I noted last week, Bill Clinton was known to be unable to keep it in his pants and Barack Obama was known to associate with terrorists and haters of America and cheerleaders for Joseph Stalin. And those are just the winners. Among the losers, Al Gore used his connections to scam for himself and his friends tens of millions of dollars of government subsidies under the guise of “An Inconvenient Truth,” a self-serving lie successful on a scale that must have inspired the Clintons. And do I need to say anything at all about John “cheat on my wife while she’s dying of cancer” Edwards? Yet Democrats keep nominating these people — people whom you would never hire to work in your own business — and too few Republicans and independents stand up against raising these degenerates to our high, higher, and highest offices. The depressing part is that I don’t hold out hope for Democrats holding their own to any standard beyond “she’s not a Republican.” Perhaps more depressing is that when it comes to Donald Trump, Republicans seem to have no better argument either. Republican candidates in recent presidential elections have disappointed as well, but they weren’t liars and socialists and scoundrels. Trump is the worst yet, with his public appearances since Comey’s Tuesday bombshell demonstrating an utter inability to prosecute the case against Hillary Clinton, instead rambling on about the upside of Saddam Hussein and why his campaign staff shouldn’t have deleted a tweet containing a six-pointed star that liberals ridiculously tried to use as evidence of anti-Semitism from a man whose daughter recently converted to Judaism. Can’t you please just focus, Donald?!? Other Republicans will need to make the case since Trump’s narcissism and inexperience prevent him from making it effectively. So it was good to see Speaker of the House Paul Ryan playing hardball with a Democratic candidate who should be disqualified from holding any elected (or appointed) office: On Thursday, Ryan asked James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence, to “refrain from providing classified information to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the duration of her candidacy for president.” It’s a transparent, even if bold, non-starter, but if Ryan’s goal is to prevent Mrs. Clinton from again sullying the White House with her presence — and to allow his members to maintain a House majority — he has few options available to him. This is an election that will be solely about driving up the opposition’s negatives since neither major party’s nominee has positives or qualifications worth mentioning and since Trump, surprisingly given his success at blowing Republicans out of the water, is getting much less traction against Hillary. Perhaps that’s because despite Mrs. Clinton’s obvious self-serving corruption, voters view Trump as little better. And hey, at least she can stick to a plan. Ryan’s request, which was immediately rebuffed by the Obama administration, gets to the heart of the thing: Hillary Clinton is both incompetent and untrustworthy. Hillary and her henchmen were complicit in a well-thought-out scheme to deny the public access to the work product that we are entitled to see. Just ask the guy who took the Fifth more than a hundred times when questioned about setting up her server; or don’t bother asking. As Congressman Trey Gowdy noted, it’s not so much that Hillary was careless with her private server; it’s that she was very careful to make sure she disobeyed both law and policy in order to hide… well, wouldn’t you like to know just what she’s hiding? But the sad question is whether enough Americans care, or whether a combination of party loyalty, justifiable skepticism about Mr. Trump, and utter exhaustion and numbness from decades of gutter politics and hyper- partisanship will allow millions of our fellow citizens to throw up their hands and say, “Is she really that much worse than any other politician?” As surely as Hillary lied to us about her email, about “the video” causing the Benghazi attack, about sniper fire in Bosnia, about why Goldman Sachs is willing to pay her nearly $800,000 for three speeches, the answer is “Hell, yes, she’s that much worse.” The only remaining question is whether Donald Trump can show the American people that he is better enough to deserve our votes. On that question, without James Comey to protect him from Americans’ common sense, the jury is still out.

2016-07-09 14:18 Ross Kaminsky spectator.org

78 Tony Blair’s Comeuppance The Chilcot report into Britain’s part in the 2003 Iraq war, which was finally published on Wednesday, is three times the size of the Bible. The executive summary alone runs to 150 pages. It took seven years to write, comprises 2.6 million words, comes in 12 volumes, and costs more than £750 to buy. And buried deep inside it is one particularly damming line. It’s clause 589, and it reads: “The explanation for military action put forward by Mr Blair in October 2004 was not the one given before the conflict.” Just think about that. After Britain had joined the U. S. in a conflict that would cost half a million lives, Tony Blair changed his mind about why he had done it. Back in early 2003, before the war, Blair was clear: we were going to war because Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction (WMD) which, in the post 9/11 world, were a direct threat to Britain. Yet by 2004 it was obvious that Iraq had no WMD. The Iraq Survey Group concluded that Saddam had destroyed them 10 years earlier. At that stage, an honorable man in Blair’s position, realizing that he had made a decision on the basis of intelligence that had been proved wrong, and that, as a consequence, so many lives had been lost, might have done the decent thing and resigned. Instead, Blair merely changed the reason for going to war. We had done it, we were now told, because Saddam had the potential for manufacturing and using WMD. Actually, it is unlikely that either the 2003 or 2004 reasons were genuine. Saddam Hussein had no involvement in 9/11, so it was a big leap for Blair to claim that he was more of a threat to Britain and its allies after that terrible day than before. Certainly, Blair has never come up with a convincing connection between 9/11 and the need to topple Saddam. Even now, having had 15 years to think about it, the best that he can give us is this curious and confusing explanation: “…after 9/11 the calculus of risk had changed fundamentally. We believed we had to change policy on nations developing such weapons in order to eliminate the possibility of WMD and terrorism coming together.” Even if Blair was convinced in 2003 that WMDs Saddam possessed could somehow get into the hands of Al-Qaeda, he was cavalier in examining the evidence presented to him about whether Saddam actually had any. Chilcot points out, for example, that the intelligence reports Tony Blair received before the war “were not challenged and they should have been.” Or at least they weren’t challenged by Blair. But others were deeply skeptical. Blair’s former foreign secretary, , still at that point one of his most senior ministers, resigned over the matter, declaring: “Iraq probably has no weapons of mass destruction in the commonly understood sense of the term.” Meanwhile, UN weapons inspectors, led by Hans Blix, were carrying out 700 inspections in Iraq, and in no case found WMD. Why didn’t Blair challenge these intelligence reports, even though Cook had considered them misleading enough to warrant his resignation, and the UN inspectors were drawing a blank? Why didn’t he demand greater proof, knowing that he was about to send British soldiers into a bloody conflict based on what the intelligence reports were telling him? The conclusion that many people will draw is that the intelligence reports purporting to show Saddam’s WMD were merely a convenient excuse, and that Blair’s real reason for war was entirely different. We can be fairly sure what that real reason was: he considered it to be in Britain’s strategic interests to offer the U. S. unequivocal support for whatever action it chose to take. And if America, for reasons of its own, chose to remove Saddam by force, then Britain would help it do so. In fact, the very first words of the memo Blair sent to George Bush about Iraq on July 28, 2002, a full nine months before the war, were: “I will be with you, whatever.” And over the last 15 years Blair has always said that preserving Britain’s alliance with America was a fundamentally important part of his foreign policy – he was determined to be by America’s side, shoulder to shoulder. As he said on Wednesday, in response to Chilcot: “I believe there are two essential pillars to British foreign policy, our alliance with the United States and our partnership in Europe, and we should keep both strong as a vital national interest.” Most British people would agree that a strong relationship with America is essential. Yet, as Blair knew, most would also consider that alone too flimsy a pretext for going to war. Hence the need to insist that Saddam had WMD that threatened us, and to make that the case for war. So when Blair told the BBC on Thursday morning, in response to Chilcot’s report: “I took it [the decision to go to war] in good faith because I think it was the right thing to do,” we can believe him. Of course he thought it was the right thing to do. But we must also suspect that he concealed his real reason for doing it. That’s why the British people can be justified in believing that Tony Blair misled them. And it’s why Blair’s reputation should never recover.

2016-07-09 14:18 Robert Taylor spectator.org

79 The Problem With Loretta Lynch’s “Hard Look” at Wrongdoers Getting Their Hands on Weapons During her speech on last night’s massacre of Dallas police officers, Attorney General Loretta Lynch pushed the Obama Administration gun control line when she said, “We must take a hard look at the ease with which wrongdoers can get their hands on deadly weapons and the frequency with which they use them.” But until Micah Xavier Johnson began shooting last night, how could anyone have determined he was a wrongdoer? Johnson had no criminal record. What background check would he have failed? Is Lynch recommending the FBI monitor the Facebook activity of prospective gun purchasers? One of Johnson’s Facebook likes was the African American Defense League (AADL), an organization which calls for the murder of police officer. Of course, should the federal government adopt this criteria who can say they wouldn’t deny a permit to a Tea Party member while looking the other way if it’s an AADL aficionado so they don’t get called racist? Of course, if Lynch was honest (and by extension the Obama Administration) she would simply tell us the federal government wanted to abolish private ownership of guns. I’d rather they tell me that than carry on insincerely with this expanded background check nonsense. Now if this measure came to pass it wouldn’t stop the flow of guns either. How has that War on Drugs worked out? The War on Guns would make the War on Drugs look like a Sunday picnic. Unfortunately, for all of America’s virtues, we are a violent society and no piece of legislation or executive order is going to change that fact. The only thing that can change that fact is our culture and those kind of changes happen in baby steps, not in giant leaps and bounds. Loretta Lynch’s hard look is yet another easy answer.

2016-07-09 14:18 Aaron Goldstein spectator.org

80 Trump, Saddam, and American Hubris This week punishment came to one presidential candidate telling a truth and reward came to another telling a lie. Such perverse incentives regarding honesty created the bizarro political world we inhabit. “He was a bad guy — really bad guy,” Donald Trump said of Saddam Hussein. “But you know what he did well? He killed terrorists. He did that so good. They didn’t read them the rights. They didn’t talk. They were terrorists. Over. Today, Iraq is Harvard for terrorism.” Earlier this week, terrorists murdered 150 or so people in a Baghdad bombing. A war justified to roll back international terrorism instead unleashed it. Harvard of terrorism, indeed. The outrage over Trump’s comments stems only in part from the candidate’s impolitic praise for a man deserving condemnation. The larger part of the indignation comes from Trump representing a challenge to both parties’ foreign policy shibboleths, which themselves represent a challenge to common sense. The Republican nominee did not misjudge “bad guy” Saddam Hussein — at least the current Republican nominee didn’t. Like George W. Bush, his successor rarely thinks about consequences. Whereas Bush neglected to anticipate what might fill the void in Iraq, Barack Obama initially chose ISIS over Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the Muslim Brotherhood over Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, and jihadists over Muammar Gaddafi in Libya. Neither the president nor his predecessor grasped the difference between regional bullies and deluded Islamists aiming for world domination, garden-variety evil dictators found in every corner of the globe and fanatics endemic to the Islamic world, and secular strongmen and sectarian true believers. Like so many moves on the real-life “Risk” board, the invasion of Iraq unwittingly sided with worse over bad. But it’s the current GOP presidential nominee, pundits insist with a straight face, who made a terrible strategic error regarding Iraq. More than a decade ago, the fledgling blogosphere pushed the heady theory of “Iraq the model,” which posited that a nation-building exercise in Mesopotamia would unleash a chain reaction of democracies in the Middle East. “I really do believe that we will be greeted as liberators,” Vice President Dick Cheney misjudged. Ken Adelman wrote in the Washington Post, “I believe demolishing Hussein’s military power and liberating Iraq would be a cakewalk.” Bizarre conspiracy theories touting Saddam Hussein’s links to everything from the initial World Trade Center attack to the Oklahoma City Bombing to 9/11 (through a meeting that didn’t happen in Prague with Muhammad Atta) arose in publications whose editors should have known better. The Bush Administration relied on a conman codenamed Curveball as the basis for its false contentions about a secret biological weapons program, on forged documents for its claims that Hussein attempted to procure uranium from Niger to make nukes, and on New York Times reports on weapons of mass destruction that used the discredited Ahmed Chalabi as a source. Few of the allegations or predictions turned out correct. Errors of fact and judgment plagued the whole operation. But it’s Donald Trump who got Iraq wrong? Like most people who talk too much, Trump appears gaffe prone. His varying positions on guns, abortion, and socialized medicine over the years also reveal a candidate without a solid grounding in conservatism. But his instincts on foreign policy more greatly resemble conservative thought than those who doubt the federal government’s ability to deliver a letter but believe that its armies can somehow transform desert-dwelling Muhammadans into Vermont-style town meeting members. Edmund Burke, the Irishman serving in the British Parliament who became the philosophical godfather of American conservatism, warned in Reflections on the Revolution in France against overthrowing the existing order without forethought. He noted that “a sober legislator would carefully compare the possessor whom he was recommended to expel, with the stranger who was proposed to fill his place” before embarking upon violent upheaval. A few years later, George Washington asked in his Farewell Address, “Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground?” More than a half century ago, Young Americans for Freedom posited, “American foreign policy must be judged by this criterion: does it serve the just interests of the United States?” But of late many conservatives look not to such writings for foreign policy guidance but to D. C. and Marvel. Trump rejects this conception of America as a superhero savior-state. Whether his brain knows Sharon Statement from Sharon Osbourne, his gut gets that attempting to remake Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and points beyond does little to make America great again.

2016-07-09 14:17 Daniel J spectator.org

81 Resisting the Orwellian Attorney Generals Over the past four years, climate change activists have been working to find ways to prosecute individuals, organizations, and companies that are their ideological foes. They’ve developed a strategy to use RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) against those who speak out in disagreement with the Obama administration’s war on fossil fuels. More recently, the activists have coordinated with Attorneys General (AG) culminating with a March 29 press conference where the newly formed AGs for Clean Power was announced. Though their specific plans are “vague,” 17 AGs have, as the Huffington Post reported, “committed to pursuing an all-levers approach” to “hold to account those commercial interests that have been, according to the best available evidence, deceiving the American people, communicating in a fraudulent way.” ExxonMobil has been the first and most obvious target. While the RICO Act is federal legislation passed in 1970, more than two dozen states have “Baby RICO” laws — which are, according to InsideClimateNews.org, “broader than the federal version.” Four different investigations claiming that Exxon conspired to cover up its understanding of climate science have been launched. New York AG Eric Schneiderman was the first. Last November, he issued a subpoena demanding “that ExxonMobil Corporation give investigators documents spanning four decades of research findings and communications about climate change.” In January, California AG Kamala Harris announced her investigation into whether Exxon repeatedly lied to the public and its shareholders about the risk to its business from climate change, and in April, Massachusetts AG Maura Healey also opened one. Just days after the March 29 press conference, Virgin Islands’ AG Claude Walker, in his demand for records, became the first to cite the racketeering law to “probe Exxon over its longtime denial of climate change and its products’ role in it.” Additionally, he listed roughly 100 academic institutions and free market think tanks in his subpoena. Separately, Walker also subpoenaed records from the respected Washington, D. C. think tank, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI). Schneiderman and Healey have also requested records from research and advocacy groups. Many legal scholars are skeptical of the legal theory behind these moves. One is Pat Parenteau, a professor of environmental law at the Vermont Law School, who is quoted by InsideClimateNews.org: “Hopefully there is something more than unsubstantiated suspicion to support this.” Parenteau explains: “The most serious question is whether the attorney general [Walker] has any basis to suspect that Exxon has engaged in activities that violate the statutes about obtaining money by false pretense and fraud.” Then there are the opponents. The Wall Street Journal points out: “Both sides see this as a pivotal moment in a growing campaign by environmentalists to deploy a legal strategy used against tobacco companies in the 1990s by arguing that oil companies have long hidden what they know about climate change.” Ronald Bailey, science correspondent for the Reason Foundation — one of the groups named in Walker’s subpoena — said, according to the Washington Times: “These subpoenas are a huge step in using courts to silence people who hold views that differ from those of powerful government officials.” I know this to be true as my organization, though not featured on Walker’s list, is still a victim. We had some essential funding in place that would have allowed us to continue for months without extreme financial stress. However, the D. C. policy shop that was to provide the support for our efforts pulled it as a result of the AG’s campaign. I was told that the funding was approved, but that when I wrote my April 25 column on the film Climate Hustle — which questions the science behind the politically correct narrative of manmade catastrophic climate change — the board got cold feet because they, too, are one of the organizations on the list. At first, I wanted to quit, as without the funding I couldn’t continue. But then, I got mad. I realized that if I stopped doing what I do, these AGs would win — which is their goal. Indirectly, they attempted to silence me. I am grateful for individuals and companies who believe in my work and who have stepped up to fill the funding gap — at least for a few months. Exxon and CEI have filed lawsuits against the accusers. Exxon claimed that the subpoenas “violated constitutional amendments on free speech, unreasonable search and seizure and equal protection.” As a result, last week, Walker withdrew his subpoenas and Healey, reports the Daily Caller, has “agreed to an abeyance of the subpoena, meaning her office won’t enforce the subpoena until all legal appeals are exhausted, which may take a couple of years.” In a big victory for free speech, The Hill states: “The withdrawal closes a major chapter in the drive by liberals and environmentalists to punish Exxon over allegations that it knew decades ago that fossil fuels were causing climate change but denied it publically.” The Heartland Institute, for which I serve as an “expert” on energy issues, is also on the “list.” Its president, Joe Bast, told me: “Because there is a lively debate over the causes and consequences of climate change, this litigation has First Amendment implications.” Where these attacks on free speech go next remains to be seen. But Americans remain hopeful that free speech will reign and scientific inquiry will prevail. True science welcomes a challenge because it can stand up to it — while political correctness must silence challenge.

2016-07-09 14:18 Marita Noon spectator.org

82 Jaycee Dugard: 18 Years Spent in Captivity Photos Jaycee Dugard sits down with ABC's Diane Sawyer for an exclusive television interview to air on July 8, 2016. Dugard was just 11 years old when she was kidnapped by Phillip and Nancy Garrido in 1991 near her home in Lake Tahoe, California. She was held captive for 18 years and gave birth to two daughters while she was a prisoner. Dugard and her girls were rescued in 2009 and reunited with her mother, Terry Probyn. Watch the full interview with Dugard and Diane Sawyer on ABC News' "20/20" on Friday, July 8 at 10 p.m. ET.

2016-07-09 14:14 ABC News abcnews.go.com

83 Nike's Ronaldo ad dominates Euro 2016 ad battle while Adidas is left trailing Nike’s ‘The Switch’ ad featuring Cristiano Ronaldo has emerged as the most shared ad of Euro 2016, according to new data from Unruly. The six-minute long film showing the Real Madrid star magically swapping places with an English teenager has been by far the most shared ad of the tournament, dominating Adidas’ ‘First Never Follows’ ad which stars home nation favourite Paul Pogba. It represents a particular coup for Nike given that, unlike Adidas, it is not an official sponsor of the tournament. The video ad tech company placed it atop its top 10 list with 335,618 shares since its launch on 9 June. Ian Forrester, director of Insight from Unruly, said: “It’s no surprise Nike’s 'The Switch' was the most shared. When we analysed the ads using Unruly Pulse and our Unruly ShareRank algorithm, ‘The Switch’ was by far most shareable, eliciting the most intense emotions of all of the ads we tested. But what really set it apart was the breadth of the emotions it evoked (amazement, inspiration, happiness, hilarity and exhilaration). “But it’s not just doing the business on the sharing charts, it’s also doing the business where it really matters. Thirty-five per cent of consumers who watched the ad said they would like to find out more - the highest of any of the ads tested - while just over a third (34 per cent) said they were interesting in buying the products featured in the ad.” Ronaldo’s confidence and ego is closely rivalled by Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the new Manchester United player helped Volvo take second spot on the list with its ‘Prologue’ ad. The film showing Ibrahimovic reflecting on his roots and how far he has come was shared a total of 61,421 times. Paddy Power’s Scotland anthem was the third most shared while Lufthansa’s ‘Everybody’s Fanhansa’ was fourth and Mars took fifth with its patriotic #Believe video. Below is the top 10 list. 1) Nike - The Switch - 335,618 2) Volvo V90 - ”Prologue” feat. Zlatan Ibrahimović - 61,421 3) Paddy Power - Scotland's Euro 2016 anthem - 47,895 4) Lufthansa - Everybody's Fanhansa- 40,645 5) Mars - #Believe - 33,631 6) Carlsberg - Your Seat For A Euro Seat - 16,135 7) Licor Beirao - We’re Sorry Harry Kane - 14,993 8) Edeka - Das EDEKA Anfeuern - 9,973 9) Beats By Dre - Kane, Griezmann, Götze and Fabregas in B [READY] f. “Firestarter” by The Prodigy - 9,471 10) ITV - UEFA EURO 2016 | ITV FEAT. ERIC CANTONA | LUCKY - 7,679

2016-07-09 15:02 www.thedrum.com

84 That Lot hires Simon Cooper to lead the agency’s Snapchat offering Social creative agency That Lot has hired Simon Cooper to oversee the agency’s Snapchat offering. Formerly a digital producer for BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra, Cooper has spent the last two years experimenting with Snapchat from its beginnings as a youth outreach vehicle to its new status as a social behemoth and ‘must have’ for brands. Cooper will be working with creative directors David Levin and David Schneider to build presences and social experiences for their current client base, as well as offering strategic support in developing new business. Levin said of the appointment: “We’re very chuffed about Simon joining. Our clients like , Nando’s and IHG can see the opportunities with Snapchat and Simon is the Roger Federer of that platform. We’ve watched his Radio 1 stories jealously for a while now, so we’re very happy to have pinched him. We have some really exciting Snapchat plans.” Cooper said: “I'm so excited to join the team at That Lot. We're going to push Snapchat's functionality to its limits - tell stories, produce Snapchat sitcoms, innovate with images and engagement and use the creative brains in the agency alongside talent from our clients to create groundbreaking and original content.” Based in London, That Lot works with a large roster of broadcasters and brands.

2016-07-09 15:02 www.thedrum.com

85 Angela Eagle to announce Labour leadership bid on Monday Angela Eagle has said she will announce a bid for the leadership of the Labour Party on Monday. It comes after Tom Watson called off talks with unions aimed at resolving the stand- off at the top of the party. The deputy leader said Jeremy Corbyn's declaration that he would continue as leader "come what may" meant there was "no realistic prospect of reaching a compromise" over his future. Mr Corbyn has urged the party to "come together". The Unite union had been due to meet representatives of Mr Corbyn and Labour MPs in Brighton on Sunday. Mr Corbyn has refused to step down despite a vote of no confidence passed by the party's MPs last month - and many resignations from his shadow cabinet - in the wake of the EU referendum. Mr Watson said he had made "significant progress" during initial talks with union representatives earlier this week. He said it was his "strong belief" that these discussions could have led to a basis for further talks. "However, since the talks began Jeremy has publicly declared his intention to continue as leader come what may," he added. More than 20 members of Mr Corbyn's shadow cabinet and a similar number of junior ministers walked out last month, after questioning his performance during the EU referendum and his ability to lead the party. Unite's general secretary Len McCluskey had been spearheading efforts to break the deadlock within the party. Reports suggest Mr Watson was due to meet Parliamentary Labour Party chairman John Cryer and chief whip Rosie Winterton on Sunday, ahead of Unite's policy conference on Monday. Appearing on the Show last Sunday, Mr McCluskey said trade unions were "professional negotiators" and could "resolve this issue" inside the Labour Party. "The trade unions can broker a peace - with Jeremy as our leader and the genuine concerns of the PLP, we can bring people together," he said.

2016-07-09 14:12 www.bbc.co.uk

86 The day that Facebook Live changed citizen journalism The cultural fallout from Philando Castile’s death being streamed live on Facebook after he was shot by a police officer marks a turning point in citizen journalism’s parity with news broadcasters in the mind of the viewer. As a consequence of that, the world now knows Diamond Reynolds. Castile’s girlfriend, who shared with millions the harrowing scene in which her partner dies next to her as she bravely reports in real-time her exchange with the cops that fired the shots. “I wanted everybody in the world to see what the police and how they roll,” Reynolds explained as to how she was able to remain calm. “I didn’t do it for pity. I didn’t do it for fame. I did it so that the word knows these police aren’t here to protect us.” Is this the democratisation, or devaluation of reporting? In that moment Reynolds became a reporter. That she felt the need to put her own life in danger to ‘get the story’ says a lot about the value people affix to journalism today. A rudimentary search for Philando Castile’s name on Twitter throws up damming indictments on how today’s media report contentious issues like systemic racist, while some even believe Reynolds should be awarded a Pulitzer prize for her endeavour. What’s more just six per cent of Americans trust the media according to an American Press Institute survey of more than 2,000 adults. It’s debatable whether citizen journalism can become that trusted source and whether or not it even needs to. A more pressing concern for some media experts is how a reader’s voracious appetite for content constantly is pushing them to stories that don’t always have the facts. Granted, there’s a raw quality to Reynolds’ recording but the speed at which its spreading begs the question whether subjective voices and eyewitness accounts could make objective journalism irrelevant. Indeed, its biggest flaw showed itself last night when an innocent man was wrongfully made out to be one of the snipers involved in shooting 11 police officers in Dallas on Twitter. Reliable sources? Media owners have grappled with this issue since the rise of citizen journalism. From its earliest instances like the coverage of the Arab Spring in early 2011 to the images Alton Sterling being shot by police earlier this week, news outlets have tread a fine line in terms of trying not to become too reliant on these images when trying to tell stories as they unfold. But the advent of live-streaming apps like Periscope, Meerkat and YouNow has made it harder to identify the veracity of the source. Neither of these services had the scale of Facebook and so it something like an Arab Spring uprising needed to happen for people to sit up and take notice of what was being shared. Not any more; with around 1.65 billion monthly active users, Facebook has a reach unrivalled by any other social platform in the world. And Reynolds’ post was a glimpse of what that reach can do. Incidences like Castile’s death have been happening for years and yet it’s arguable that no reporter has bottled the complex racial tensions at play as well as Reynolds did. The sheer scale of Facebook meant it then travelled out a speed, with it feeling all the more real to people because they saw it happen themselves. It’s only a matter of time before others Facebook users follow suit, though that glut of content will heighten calls for some form of censorship from the platform. Are they 'filters', or is it 'censorship'? What Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg thinks could be the most “emotional, raw and visceral way” to communicate on his platform, could just as easily be sensitive or violent live content. To censor, or not to censor, is a quandary the social network has been tight-lipped on to date, no doubt mindful of the challenge it faces monitoring all those live videos as they come in. The simple answer is there should be some censorship of what the pubic find unacceptable, e.g. prejudice, nudity, sexual activity, violence or profanity. However, there would be a fear that such content uncensored would change the shape of society for the worse, with people becoming impressionable and influenced by the filtered content. Another way to look at it is by bringing such content to the fore it would highlight other things going on in the world and maybe people can use those insights to improve society as oppose to harming it. So the question is then should applying a moral filter to content a matter of human importance and who decides what filter is the right one. I personally land on the idea that decisions that we make should be for the common good and good where people live in harmony and away from violence,” said Rowan Manning, chief commercial officer at content agency Seven. “However I don’t think it is a simple as one entity taking responsibility. I think principle should be applied here, and that is that the entity, which is the ‘scalar’ or pusher of such content, has the ultimate responsibility to censor their content. For example, if it was a really important, well known influencer who had lots of followers, then they themselves are a ‘scalar’ and therefore has the moral obligation to censor content. If the creator is an unknown criminal propagating violence, then actually it is the platform allowing such content to be accessed and scaled which should take responsibility.”

2016-07-09 15:01 www.thedrum.com

87 Gay marriage vote: The couple hoping to marry in church As gay marriage ceremonies are expected to be approved by a denomination of the Christian church, Lee Battle and her partner are hoping to be among the first to have a church wedding in the UK. After months of uncertainty 37-year-old Lee is hoping she will finally be able to send out her wedding invitations. Currently the mum-of-two and her partner Anne Swift cannot be specific about the venue or the date of their ceremony. They're holding back because on Saturday the general assembly of the United Reformed Church (URC) will decide whether same-sex marriage ceremonies can be held in its churches. The URC has around 56,000 members in Britain , and if the motion is passed it will be the first major Christian denomination in the UK to allow such ceremonies to take place. The motion is expected to gain the two-thirds majority it needs for approval - and church officials reckon the first weddings could take place in the autumn. Lee, who lives in Manchester and is to begin training as a URC minister in September, is trying hard to contain her excitement. "To be able to think that God could be involved in this ceremony for me is just overwhelming," says Lee, who is currently in a long-distance relationship with her partner Anne, who works as a doctor in Cambridge. Lee, who was formerly in a civil partnership with someone else, says it's "completely illogical" for her to marry outside a church. "I remember on my other wedding day it was like a major person missing out of the room," she explains. "It didn't feel quite as it should do because there was this big part of me that was missing in the day, and so to be able to include God and have hymns is just for me a huge step forward. " The URC is not likely to be the only Christian denomination to approve gay marriages in its churches. Quakers allow gay marriages in their places of worship and clergy of some smaller congregations have been known to hold the ceremonies. Meanwhile, the general synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church - which has about as many members as the URC - is set to make a decision on the matter next summer. The Very Reverend Kelvin Holdsworth, the provost of St Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow, expects gay members of his congregation to tie the knot there. "Obviously there's a sense of excitement that this could be the moment where it's going to happen," he says. "It always used to be the case, of course, that people who couldn't get married in England would come running up to Scotland to get married at Gretna Green. And I suspect we'll get a bit of that going on. " And there stands a problem for the Church of England, whose general synod also meets this weekend, and whose 483 bishops, clergy and lay members will eject press and public for two days of private "shared conversations" about human sexuality. The Reverend Andrew Foreshew-Cain, a gay north London vicar who flies a rainbow flag from his church's flagpole, will be taking part. Members of the Church of England held similar shared conversations around the country over the past year - where Mr Foreshew-Cain says he wasn't always welcomed by traditionalists. "For the most part it was a relatively comfortable experience. [But] there were some more conservative people there and that wasn't particularly comfortable," he says. "I was told I was a false preacher and one person was unable to confirm I was a Christian at all when directly asked. "That demonstrated for me that there is probably an absolute line in the church and some people within it think it's their way or no way, which is not, I think, ultimately going to change through these conversations," he explains. Meanwhile, Susie Leafe, the chairwoman of a group called Reform, which aims to 'reform' the Church of England according to the Holy Scriptures, holds a different view. She has advised fellow conservative evangelicals not to take part in those conversations. "The Bible, which is God's word, is very, very clear, that the only place for sexual relationships is within heterosexual marriage," she says. "That is what God blesses, and I believe that I want to stay with what God says and not what our culture says. " Somehow the Church of England's bishops will have reconcile these factions in their response to the conversations - which will come at a future synod meeting. It will be up to the church's bishops to decide what to do about a liberal Anglican wing which is urging change. The choice seems to be to upset its members by refusing to make concessions to them - or to upset traditionalists by doing just that. The Rt Rev David Walker, the bishop of Manchester, describes the task as producing "order out of chaos". "I really do hope and believe that the Church of England can get to a place where even if not absolutely every last single person can think yes that was a good place to get to, the vast majority, almost of all of us, will be able to hold together," he says. The last big Church of England split - over women bishops - ended in 2014 when members of the synod pulled together in the name of unity and supported a complicated compromise. There are now women bishops, but that took years to agree. The church is prepared for difficult times ahead. But Lee believes the Christian perception of LGBT people is changing. "I don't think we're there yet, but I'm optimistic that we will get there. I think there has been a monumental societal shift within the LGBT community and that everybody widely accepts that this is about love," she says.

2016-07-09 14:12 By Callum www.bbc.co.uk

88 People on the Move: Hires at departures at Twitter, Sky News, 4As and more This week has seen another wave of appointments and departures at brands, media owners and agencies. The Drum has rounded up the key moves below. Twitter Twitter has recruited Facebook’s former chief technology officer Bret Taylor (pictured) to its board with immediate effect as it seeks to broaden its management team. Taylor, who currently serves as chief executive of start-up Quip, was appointed as Facebook chief technology officer back in the wake of its acquisition of FriendFeed, the social network he co-founded in 2007. During a diverse career Taylor also served as group product manager at Alphabet during which time he co-developed Google Maps and oversaw introduction of its developer product group. Sky News Sky News has been hit by a slew of departures with the announcement that veteran presenter Andrew Wilson had quit, following hot on the heels of Lorna Dunkley and Samantha Simmonds. Wilson said there were "lots of reasons" for his departure but singled out a move to a new studio for bringing matters to a head , saying: “If ever there were a moment to part with an organisation with which I share so much history, this is it.” No reason was given for Dunkley and Simmonds exit although it is thought to form part of a cost saving plan. 4As Nancy Hill, the president and chief executive of the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As), is to step down from her role after nine years in the job. Hill will depart in 2017 , and the association’s board of directors has initiated a search to identify her successor and ensure a "smooth transition" by next June. “The past eight years have been the experience of a lifetime,” said Hill. "It has been a pleasure to help guide the industry through changing times and to bring issues that I am so passionate about to the forefront. The advertising agency business is continually evolving to meet the needs of clients and identify the best new ways to reach consumers. It has been an honor to play a part in shaping the future of an industry I love.” The marketer, formerly executive vice-president at BBDO worldwide and chief executive of Lowe worldwide's New York office, will focus on consulting following her departure, with plans spend time in Ecuador volunteering and teaching. Xaxis Xaxis EMEA chief executive Caspar Schlickum is departing the WPP- owned trading desk to take on the chief executive role for Wunderman in APAC. Schlickum - who was named Digital Trading Leader of the year at the 2016 DTA's - was one of the founding staff members when WPP set up its trading desk over five years ago. Since then the unit has made several acquisitions , with Schlikum eventually rising to chief executive of its EMEA business, which spans 25 markets consisting of 500 staff, including developers and data scientists. Mark Read, Wunderman’s Global chief executive, said: “Asia is a high priority market for us and Caspar’s unique experience in digital marketing, data and analytics, as well as his understanding of technology-driven business, will be hugely beneficial as we continue to grow our business throughout the region.” Schlikum is understood to be in his existing role for a number of weeks, with an eventual successor set to be announced before his departure, according to Xaxis. FundamentalVR Virtual reality specialists FundamentalVR has hired Scott Dodkins, who joins from Facebook-owned Oculus, to head up its consultancy offer. He also joins the agency’s board as it looks to capitalise on a medium that has piqued the interest of brands including Unilever and McDonald’s. At Oculus, Dodkins secured partnerships across Europe following its acquisition y Facebook in 2014 and steered the go-to-market strategy for the Rift headset which is currently being rolled out across Europe. VideoAmp Cross-screen optimization platform VideoAmp has hired Michael Parkes to serve as the company’s first chief revenue officer. He joins from Amobee, where he served as senior vice president-North American sales. In his new role, he will be responsible for revenue generation and scaling VideoAmp’s sales organization. According to the company, Parkes was “brought on to continue building on VideoAmp's second 100 percent quarter-over-quarter growth.” Want to get your career on the move? Check out The Drum Job page and follow @TheDrumJobs for updates.

2016-07-09 15:01 www.thedrum.com

89 89 Marketing Moment 100: Jax Beer airs one of the first African American television commercials To celebrate the Ad Club of New York's 120th anniversary, The Drum is inviting readers to share their favorite marketing moments from the past 120 years. Today’s marketing moment was chosen by Vann Graves, CCO and CEO at creative agency FL+G. Below, find out why a Jax Beer commercial from 1948 is one of his favorite marketing moments. In 1956, Jax Beer, one of the last breweries built before the prohibition, closed its doors. They were the first company to sell a six-pack, but in 1948, they did something even more extraordinary. Jax Beer created a commercial called, “Whistle Up A Party.” Now, that in and of itself was nothing amazing since seven years prior, on July 1, 1941, the Bulova Watch Company broadcasted the first television commercial in the United States. The 20-second Bulova commercial aired on WNBT, the New York City NBC affiliate, before a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. So, while the Jax Beer spot was not the first, what made "Whistle Up A Party" a truly monumental marketing moment, was the fact that this was one of, if not the first, African American television commercials. Though most have probably never heard of the product, let alone the commercial, it helped pave the way for how marketing and advertising can influence perception and acceptance. To submit your own favorite marketing moment, email [email protected] and include 'Marketing Moments' in the subject line or tweet @TheDrum using the hashtag #marketingmoments.

2016-07-09 15:01 www.thedrum.com

90 Don't judge print: It's not dead yet How am I going to survive judging work that doesn’t move and can’t be interacted with? While honored to be selected as a juror, that’s what I thought when I was invited to judge this year’s Cannes Lions Print & Publishing category. I won’t lie, my expectations were low. And then I learned there were 10 percent fewer entries than last year in the category — further convincing me that I’d be judging a dying category and medium. I prepared myself to take a journey to the past, and off to Cannes I went. But everything changed. After one week of judging, I left completely inspired and with a new perspective on print: It’s far from dead. Power in Print Yes, there’s power in print. Just take a look at the Grand Prix Winner, Burger King. Without context it might seem an odd choice. It’s a simple letter, and while not a piece of beauty, it has started one of the most brilliant campaigns of this year: The “McWhopper”. Burger King bought a full-page ad in The New York Times, publishing an open letter to McDonald's asking the brand to collaborate on a limited product, the "McWhopper.” It was to be sold one day as a message of peace. And it was powerful. There’s a permanency to it when it’s printed in black and white and on paper. Tweets are fleeting. A letter has a soul and heart. If this had been posted on Facebook, it wouldn’t have had the same impact. Interactive Print The industry has tried to make interactive print before with QR codes and failed. This is because we did not embrace print for what it actually is: a physical experience. Mexico’s Paper Glasses campaign showed how powerful something as simple as a physical insert could be. To help children in poorer regions with their vision, they created a simple test called Paper Glasses. Black paper with precisely placed holes, meant to alter depth of field, allowed kids to test their vision. These paper glasses were inserted into schoolbooks along with an eyesight guide, reaching millions of children and helping many remain in school. Again, print proving its worth. Publishing and Editorial Content Content. Content. Content. A day doesn’t go by without a client asking for it, but when we think of content, most of us think of digital film, social campaigns, digital experiences, and user generated content. Not print. But, we must remember, printed information was the original form of content. A great example of how this content can be powerful was It’s Not OK & Home Magazine’s campaign, “Paradise Hill.” Within their editorial pages, they featured a high-income home with telltale signs of domestic violence. In the elegantly shot photos, you’d see broken chairs and blood on stairway railings. On the final page, they revealed the shocking truth, that domestic violence can affect anybody, even those in high-income areas. This idea was beautifully integrated, powerful and didn’t interrupt like the typical ad. I arrived at Cannes cynical of print. I left inspired and ready to find ways to embrace its strengths, not force it into being something it’s not. Corinna Falusi is chief creative officer at Ogilvy & Mather New York

2016-07-09 15:01 www.thedrum.com

91 Dalian Wanda's rival competition to Uefa Champions League a 'realistic prospect' China’s richest man and head of the Dalian Wanda Group , Wang Jianlin, is pushing forward with plans to form a breakaway tournament to the Uefa Champions League with the promise of more money for competing clubs. The property and entertainment conglomerate group run by Jianlin has confirmed that it is in talks with some of the sport’s top leagues over the creation of a new competition that would offer more places to Europe’s biggest clubs while also providing a huge boost in revenue from broadcast rights. Marco Bogarelli, director of Wanda Sports Holding- the privately owned sports arm of the Chinese group- revealed that the company was already in talks with Spain’s La Liga and Italy’s . He also said that plans were in place to begin discussions with the Premier League, Bundesliga and France’s Ligue 1. Rather than enter into any form of direction competition with Uefa, Wanda hopes to win the backing of European football’s governing body and has reportedly planned for a separate competition entirely in the event Uefa rejects the plans. The company already has a significant presence in football having recently become a top-tier partner of Fifa, granting it the highest level of sponsorship rights across a cycle which includes the next four editions of the World Cup. According to the FT , a “handful” of clubs in Spain and Italy were in strong support of the changes, particularly Real Madrid who are the highest earning club in the world. A senior executive at one of the big five leagues said the proposition was “very well planned. The proposal is realistic.” Responding to the news of the discussions Theodore Theodoridis, Uefa’s interim general secretary, said: “It is not the first time that there has been speculation regarding the possibility of a breakaway league, and it probably won’t be the last. “When taking any decisions, we will take into account not only financial rewards to clubs but also the greater good of the game and its development across the continent.” With the English Premier League beginning to dominate European football’s rich list, thanks to lucrative broadcast deals with Sky Sports and BT Sports, it is unsurprising that big clubs outside of England are in favour of a move which may level the financial playfield. At the end of the 2015/16 season, 11th placed Stoke City reportedly earned almost the same in TV revenue prize money (£79m) than this year’s champions League winners Real Madrid earned for winning the competition (£80m).

2016-07-09 15:01 www.thedrum.com

92 Are women taking over British politics? With Britain set to get its second woman prime minister, has the boys' club that has dominated British politics for centuries finally had its day? Remember that group hug? When SNP leader and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood and Green Party leader Natalie Bennett got together at the end of one of the general election TV debates, leaving poor flapping about on the sidelines. That felt, to some, like a moment when things were changing for women in British politics. The impressive performance of female politicians, such as Andrea Leadsom and Scottish Tory leader in the EU referendum TV debates, felt like another. Now, with Mrs Leadsom and Theresa May battling it out for the Tory leadership we are on the verge of getting our second female prime minister, 26 years after Margaret Thatcher left Downing Street. On the global stage, America could be about to get its first female president, in Hillary Clinton, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel continues to dominate European politics. Ulster Unionist Arlene Foster is the first woman to be First Minister in Northern Ireland and Ms Sturgeon continues to dominate things at Holyrood. Labour might even get a female leader for the first time in its history, if Angela Eagle decides to launch a challenge against Jeremy Corbyn. And if UKIP elects one of its high-profile spokeswomen, such as Diane James or Suzanne Evans, to replace Nigel Farage, and the Greens opt for another female leader we could be in a situation where the majority of Britain's political leaders are women, for the first time ever. But have things really changed for women in British politics - or is it all just a historical accident? Many Conservative MPs love the idea that they are going to get a second female leader. What pleases them more than anything is that Labour, for all its hand-wringing about gender equality, and its women-only shortlists, has never managed to have one. The Conservatives, in their practical, common-sense way have simply got on with it, they say. Tim Montgomerie, Times journalist and former Tory insider, argued on the BBC's that the fact that the party does not have a quota system, and women have to compete on equal terms with men for seats and influence, has created better, tougher politicians. Critics argue that party has arrived at an all-women shortlist to choose its next leader almost by accident, after the public schoolboy power games of the alpha males in the contest, Boris Johnson and Michael Gove, ended in predictable disaster. Which is a victory, of sorts, for female level-headedness and common sense. In fact, there have been efforts going on behind the scenes for years in the Conservative Party, to mentor talented women and get them into winnable seats, through organisations like Conservative Women and Women2Win. David Cameron - who has taken his share of stick for having a "problem" with putting women in top cabinet jobs - has overseen a huge increase in female Tory MPs, from an admittedly low base. Ten years ago there were just 17 female Tory MPs, now there are 68. Margaret Thatcher, who made history in 1979 by becoming Britain's first female prime minister, liked to surround herself with powerful, charismatic men. Some have called it the Queen Bee syndrome - the tendency of women in positions of authority to be more critical of subordinates who are also women. She was once asked why she did not have more women in her cabinet. Because they are all so useless, she is reported to have said. But there is no doubt that a generation of Conservative women, from cabinet members right down to members of the tiniest parish council, have looked to Thatcher as a role model. More importantly, the party itself, once the very bastion of male privilege and entitlement, is entirely comfortable with the idea of a woman at the helm. Imagine the endless, tedious questions about whether the party and the country was "ready" for a female leader, that would have attended the run- off between Leadsom and May, had Thatcher not been there first. She went through all of that in her leadership contest in 1975, so they don't have to. Left-wing critics may claim she did little to advance the cause of gender equality in British society during her 11 years in power but Thatcher did break down barriers for women in politics, whether she had intended to or not. It is a profound source of embarrassment to Labour that they have never had a female leader. and have both kept the seat warm between permanent male leaders, but there has never been a Labour Thatcher. The macho culture of the old, industrial trade unions has been blamed by some for a lingering, subliminal sexism at the top of the party. Others say the rise of "identity politics" - treating women as a special interest group rather than as individuals - has had the opposite effect to the one intended. Listening to Old Labour figures muttering about the "sisterhood" would lend weight to that argument. Miranda Green, a former senior Lib Dem aide, told the BBC's Daily Politics that Labour women tended to dismiss Conservative women such as Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom because they "don't fit their idea of a feminist," when they should be celebrating them. But, she added, Labour has at least put the structures in place to get more women into positions where they can challenge for ultimate power. Tony Blair's controversial adoption of all-women shortlists, resulted in the biggest single influx of women MPs into Parliament in its history, permanently changing the character of the place. And Labour can, at least, console itself, that Ms Green's party, the Liberal Democrats, probably have the worst record of female representation in Parliament of any of the major parties. It is easy to see the recent rise of women in British politics as a watershed moment - but we should not get ahead of ourselves. Women are still massively under-represented in politics, and the barriers preventing them from reaching the top, in public life and business as much as in politics, are arguably just as high as they have ever been. They are just in a different place. Strong women are labelled shrill and pushy. The media focuses on their personal grooming and fashion sense in a way that would never happen to their male counterparts. And despite all the warm words from male leaders the formal, and informal, party structures can still mitigate against women getting to the top. But none of that need worry Theresa May or Andrea Leadsom, who have made it through the obstacle course - and can now dream of walking through the doors of Number 10 in early September on their own terms.

2016-07-09 14:12 By Brian www.bbc.co.uk

93 93 News UK launches film magazine Popcorn to support launch of Sky Cinema To support the launch of Sky Cinema, the broadcaster's new brand for its movies in the UK and Ireland, News UK has created a film magazine that will act as a pull-out from its Sun newspaper with promotion for the new hub woven throughout. The magazine, dubbed Popcorn, will be published monthly as a pull-out from the paper, starting on Saturday 16th July. Sky Cinema will act as lead sponsor of the magazine, with promotions including front cover branding, display advertising and sponsored editorial within the magazine as well as a takeover of the Sun Online's dedicated film channel. News UK told The Drum the partnership with Sky “could not have been better timed”, since the Sun brand was already looking at creating a free film franchise to appeal to its readers. Jamie East, film editor at The Sun, said: “Research found that around 75 per cent of our readers regularly watch movies both at the cinema and at home, love reading about them in the paper and many suggested that paid- for film content really enhanced their experience and was actively welcomed. This is where the idea for Popcorn was born. We wanted to create a brand new free film franchise for all Sun readers that could also sit online as a dedicated film channel.” James Hawker, director of entertainment, telecommunications and broadcast, at News UK, said: “Popcorn will help to position Sky Cinema as ‘the home of cinematic viewing’ while helping News UK bring quality, but accessible film content to our readers.” Sky first launched its Sky Movies channel in 1989, and this marks the biggest update to it since. The revamped hub will now include enhanced HD and sound, over 1,000 movies on demand, and a new premiere added every day. Sky Cinema customers will have access to a wider portfolio of movies closer to cinema releases than any other subscription service, it promises. These will be available live, on demand or on the go. The new features will available at no extra cost to existing and new subscribers. The launch of Sky Cinema is being spearheaded by a TV campaign created by WCRS and directed by award-winning director, Patrick Clair who was responsible for the title sequences of The Night Manager and True Detective. The 60-second ad features quotes from some of cinema’s best films, from Forrest Gump, E. T., The Martian to Star Wars: The Force Awakens alongside a visual display by Elastic, the LA studio responsible for the Game of Thrones title sequence. The campaign further spans four 20-second ads each of which showcases a different feature of Sky Cinema and a 40-second brand ad, which airs on July 8th. It will also feature in cinema, digital and print channels. Sky Cinema will be the biggest dedicated movie subscription service in Europe, according to director of Sky Cinema Europe, Ian Lewis. Sky’s movie services in Germany, Austria and Italy are also rebranded and relaunched under the new name.”

2016-07-09 14:59 www.thedrum.com

94 VIDEO: Gig Harbor BoatShop keeps boat- building skills alive The Gig Harbor Rotary Club has placed a Peace Pole outside of the Gig Harbor Civic Center. Gig Harbor pianist and U. S. military veteran Elijah Bossenbroek performs "I Give Up" from his album Carpe Lumen. Follow along as the Gig Harbor Police Department monitors the waters of Gig Harbor during the busy Maritime Gig Festival weekend. Experience Saturday's Maritime Gig Yo' Ho' Harbor Grande Parade with 3- year-old Lexy Davis. Peninsula and Gig Harbor High School Students take part in a mock car accident to highlight the dangers of drunk driving and distracted driving. Residents of the Quail Run housing development know Halloween is approaching when they see neighbors Daniel and Tracy Perkins digging their own graveyard. Most eyes will be on the record-setting Gig Harbor High offense from a season ago, which returns several key pieces. Quarterback Davis Alexander returns, as well as wide receiver Noah Samsen and Peninsula transfer Kyle Olson-Urbon. Peninsula High School junior left tackle Cody Kanouse is the next big recruit out of the Gig Harbor area, and will give valuable blindside protection to new quarterback Ryder Johnson.

2016-07-09 14:12 www.thenewstribune.com

95 Record traffic for the New Statesman website in June 2016 The New Statesman website had record web traffic in June, thanks to its intelligent, informative and passionate coverage of the EU referendum and its aftermath. The site registered more than four million unique users and 27 million page views in June. The most popular single article was Laurie Penny's response to the EU referendum and the death of Jo Cox, " I want my country back ", which was read by 2.6 million people. In a single day - 25 June - more than a million users visited the site. In total there were 4,091,832 unique visitors to the site in June. There were 27,291,666 page views. Jason Cowley, editor of the New Statesman , said: "In these momentous times there is real desire for honest, intelligent reporting and authoritative comment and analysis. Last month's record online traffic figures - boosted by the EU referendum and subsequent fallout - follow very strong online growth since our site relaunched in August last year. Our print magazine sales continue to grow and the New Statesman has not been in better shape for four decades. " Helen Lewis, deputy editor, added: "From social media to supermarket tills, the vote to leave the EU has driven millions of conversations about politics. The New Statesman website has responded by offering intelligent, informative critiques of our options for Brexit, extensive coverage of the fast-moving developments in the Tory leadership race and Labour's shadow cabinet revolt, and passionate polemic about what happens next. The NS now has more than 125,000 fans on both Facebook and Twitter, sharing our stories with their friends and family. " The newstatesman.com team has been boosted by the arrival of Julia Rampen as editor of the Westminster-focused Staggers blog. She joins politics editor George Eaton , special correspondent Stephen Bush and deputy web editor Anoosh Chakelian in reporting on politics inside and outside Westminster. The New Statesman was the first British periodical to launch an online edition (in 1995) and currently publishes all its magazine content online, free to view, a week after print publication. There are also PDF, Kindle and iPad editions of the magazine, published every Thursday. The website combines essays, cultural criticism and reportage with witty, irreverent and polemical blogs and social commentary. More than 40 per cent of the New Statesman's web traffic is generated by online readers sharing content on social media.

2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

96 The next wearable technology could be your skin Brain training: exposing the myth behind cognitive-enhancement games Technology can be awkward. Our pockets are weighed down with ever-larger smartphones, and attempts to introduce more easily accessible smart watches have so far fallen flat. But what if a part of your body could become your computer, with a screen on your arm and maybe even a direct link to your brain? Artificial electronic skin (e- skin) could one day make this a possibility. Researchers are developing flexible, bendable and even stretchable electronic circuits that can be applied directly to the skin. As well as turning your skin into a touchscreen, this could also help replace feeling if you’ve suffered burns or problems with your nervous system. The simplest version of this technology is essentially an electronic tattoo. In 2004, researchers in the US and Japan unveiled a pressure sensor circuit made from pre-stretched thinned silicon strips that could be applied to the forearm. But inorganic materials such as silicon are rigid and the skin is flexible and stretchy. So researchers are now looking to electronic circuits made from organic materials (usually special plastics or forms of carbon such as graphene that conduct electricity) as the basis of e-skin. Typical e-skin consists of a matrix of different electronic components – flexible transistors, organic LEDs, sensors and organic photovoltaic (solar) cells – connected to each other by stretchable or flexible conductive wires. These devices are often built up from very thin layers of material that are sprayed or evaporated onto a flexible base, producing a large (up to tens of cm 2 ) electronic circuit in a skin-like form. Much of the effort to create this technology in the last few years has been driven by robotics and a desire to give machines human-like sensing capabilities. We now have e-skin devices that can detect approaching objects and measure temperature and applied pressure. These can help robots work more safely by being more aware of their surroundings (and any humans that might get in the way). But if integrated with wearable technology , they could do the same for humans, detecting, for example, harmful movements during sport. The technology has also led to the creation of bendable screens , while at least one company is hoping to turn the skin into a touchscreen using sensors and a pico-projector rather than a display. But will we one day come to build this technology directly into our bodies, and how common will it be? The problem with organic electronics at the moment is that they aren’t very reliable and give relatively poor electronic performance. Just like real skin, the e-skin developed so far eventually develops wrinkles. These cause its layers to come apart and the circuits to fail. Plus, atoms in organic materials are more chaotically organised than the inorganic materials used to make traditional electronics. This means electrons move 1,000 times slower in organic materials, so devices made from them will operate much more slowly and would’t deal as well with the heat the circuits generate. Bio-compatibility The other big issue is how to integrate e-skin with the human body so that it doesn’t cause medical problems and so that it can interface with the nervous system. Organic materials are carbon-based (like our bodies) so in some senses are more likely to be biocompatible and not rejected by the body. But carbon particles are good at passing through the cells that make up our body and this would likely to lead to inflammation, generating an immune response that could even, according to certain unverified theories , generate tumours. However, scientists have already had some success linking electronic devices to the nervous system. Researchers at the University of Osaka are leading pioneering research to develop a brain implant from a flexible matrix of organic thin-film transistors that could be activated just by thinking. The difficulty is that such an invasive approach could lead to further problems, especially when we start testing the technology on humans. In coming years we are are likely to see prototype e-skin devices gaining momentum in the form of wearable bodily sensors, and potentially as a way to harvest energy from the body’s movement. What will take much longer are the more complicated circuits such as those found in smartphones. And the other big question we’ve yet to answer is how many people will accept permanent or semi-permanent electronic implants. Would you be willing to effectively become a cyborg? Only time will tell. Luca Santarelli is a PhD Candidate at UCL This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. If you’ve ever searched for a quick-fix to mental lethargy, it’s likely that you’ve browsed through your smartphone app store to take a look at the latest offerings of brain-training games. I certainly have. These games have been designed to sharpen people’s mental acuity, while offering “scientifically proven” means for improving IQs; through a variety of mini-games and careful documentation of improvements to intelligence parameters, people would wield the tools needed to craft the desired, smarter minds that the apps promise. And the market for them has showed no sign of slowing down. In the space of a few years, the demand for the apps has made the industry a billion- dollar one , with growth expected to continue. A couple of the most popular apps have included Lumosity , a web-based program boasting more than 50m users seeking to “improve memory, attention, flexibility, speed of processing and problem solving”, and mobile-based Peak , whose similar goals and striking visuals entice potential users. Though the apps have had huge amounts of success, there is a new body of research emerging to suggest that the successes may not be as a result of the games themselves, but because of the placebo effect. The placebo effect is a phenomenon in which a dummy treatment or process can cause significant changes in a person – simply because that person believes the placebo (posing as a real treatment) will help them. With medication, it can be the mere presentation of a sugar pill disguised as a medicine which can cause a patient to get better. And in the case of apps and games, it seems that anything which promises users cognitive benefit, is more likely to do so. In a study entitled “Placebo effects in cognitive training” published on Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , researchers found that participants who engaged in brain-training games for a single, one hour session showed improvements in IQ by up to ten points, but only if they believed the games would benefit them. The group of cognitive scientists from George Mason University, Virginia, set up the experiment in a particular way to determine whether or not the placebo effect was involved. 50 participants were recruited, after two different posters asking people to sign up to a study were plastered around campus: one labelled “brain training & cognitive enhancement” and the other “email today & participate in a study”. The rewards for the former promised boosts in intelligence, while rewards for the latter granted study credits. Unknown to participants, however, was that both tests were the same, meaning any resulting changes to IQ were as a result of what participants were telling themselves about the tests. The tests centred around the engagement of working memory and other factors to impact fluid intelligence – a type of intelligence which revolves around the application of logic and reason, independent of acquired knowledge. Those who chose to sign up to the “brain training & cognitive enhancement” study, aka the placebo study, were the ones to show remarkable gains in IQ after completing a post-brain games IQ test; gains of five to ten IQ points being made. Those who signed up for the control showed no signs of improvement. Speaking to the Huffington Post , researcher and co-author of the study Cyrus Foroughi said: “Placebos are very pervasive and they have to be controlled for in a tremendous number of fields. This field is no different. So we put together the study to actually test whether expectation for a positive effect can lead to a positive outcome.” Within the scientific community, frustration had already mounted as a result of the falsely promoted uses of brain games, particularly as tools to reverse age-related, cognitive-faltering illnesses such as Alzheimer’s disease. Overstated claims through advertising were enough to encourage scientists to sign an open letter in 2014, condemning the inaccurately purported benefits of brain training games. Earlier this year, Lumosity was fined $2m by the Federal Trade Commission for deceiving consumers with “unfounded claims”. The recent findings strengthen this position, as the effects of cognitive training games seem less to do with the content of the games themselves, and more to do with what users tell themselves will happen after a session of, brain-training puzzle bonanzas. That’s not to say the games themselves don’t offer some benefit – it’s just that further clarification is needed to understand what they exactly contribute to, with the placebo effect factored in. While scientists expand on their research to pinpoint the real effects of brain games, it seems for now that the best options to keep our brains active are the ones we are most familiar with: learn a language , do some exercise , or maybe just read a book .

2016-07-09 14:11 James Chater www.newstatesman.com

97 Stand United Press Briefing Caroline Aufgebauer has a hearing disability, but that did not stop her from performing well on a national Spanish exam. She has developed her own learning methods and now speaks three languages. Protesters blocked Trade and Tryon Streets in uptown Charlotte late Thursday night. They were protesting the killing by police of two black men in separate incidents in Louisiana and Minnesota. Protesters continue to march in Charlotte, stopping traffic at center of city at Trade and Tryon. Raw video by Tony Lone Fight A group of marchers started at Time Warner Cable Arena Thursday night and ended with speeches at Romare Bearden Park. The group protested the separate shootings of two black men, one in Louisiana and another in Minnesota. According to Latresha Wilson, program manager of Bell READy at Grand Oak Elementary, about 160 children are participating in the five-week literacy program this Summer. Mecklenburg County officials are considering a plan that would take water from the U. S. National Whitewater Center blamed in the death of a teenager and dump it into the Catawba River. WBTV meteorologist Lyndsay Tapases with The Charlotte Observer weather forecast for July 7, 2016. Duo from Spartanburg, S. C., talks about cleaning and polishing Panthers mascot statues. For years now, Dave Machado has quietly run Lincoln Charter School, with two campuses, the Charlotte area's biggest charter school. He'll run the North Carolina Office of Charter Schools.

2016-07-09 14:14 www.charlotteobserver.com

98 Euro 2016: Germans cry foul over penalty, format Marseille: Germany coach Joachim Low and defender Mats Hummels have criticised the new format for the European Championships which saw 24 nations involved this year, saying the quality has suffered as a result. German striker Thomas Mueller (left) has an animated chat with goalkeeper Manuel Neuer while Bastian Schweinsteiger (centre) looks on during their Euro 2016 semi-final against France. Pic/Getty Images Speaking after Germany were eliminated by the hosts France in the semi- finals on Thursday night, Low proposed a return to 16 nations in future to ensure more excitement. Problem of plenty "I think 24 teams are too many," he said on sport1.de. "The World Cup’s going to be increased to 40 teams and it’s getting more and more, and that’s a problem in the long term. You get the feeling it’s not doing football any good. The quality is suffering. " Germany faced Ukraine, Poland, Northern Ireland, Slovakia and Italy on their way to the semi-finals while France took on Romania, Albania, Switzerland, Republic of Ireland and Iceland on their way into the last four. According to Hummels, that meant too many games against inferior opponents, who limited themselves to defending goalless draws, three of which could be enough to qualify for the last 16. "The level at this European Championship was not exactly what we had hoped for," Hummels said. "There were many teams who didn’t want to do anything with the ball and just packed men behind the ball. " Nevertheless, Hummels admitted that France were more than a match in Marseille. "We had to play to our highest level and you can't keep opponents like France in their own half for minutes on end," he said. Loew also felt that his team was unlucky to be handed a penalty against the Frenchmen. "We played well up front and we were unlucky to concede a penalty with the handball just a minute before the break," said Loew. Dubious penalty? Referee Nicola Rizzoli awarded the penalty for a Bastian Schweinsteiger handball in first-half injury time, although German players surrounded the match official in protest. Loew said he had to "calm the players down" in the dressing room at half-time. "It doesn’t do you any good to be negative. I don’t want to say anything about referee. If you see the way Schweinsteiger went in, he didn’t have time to react and he was just unlucky. You could say his hands couldn’t have been up, but there is little he can do to control them, so I can’t blame him for that. "

2016-07-09 14:38 By PA www.mid-day.com

99 Zakir Naik also inspired ISIS aspirant Kalyan youth A startling revelation during investigation by counter terrorism agencies probing Islamic State operations in India, can attract fresh trouble for controversial Islamic preacher Dr Zakir Naik. Naik’s ‘hate speeches’ not only inspired one of the five Bangladeshi militants who killed 22 people at an upscale cafe in Dhaka’s diplomatic enclave, but mid-day has found that his lectures had also inspired Kalyan youth Areeb Majeed, an alleged ISIS foot soldier. Zakir Naik is in Saudi Arabia and his legal representative said he will hold a press conference when he is back in India After 24-year-old Areeb was arrested while allegedly sneaking into India in November 2014, he in his statement (a copy is with mid-day) recorded before the NIA, had stated, “I got inspired to study more about my religion from the lectures of Dr Zakir Naik of IRF (Islamic Research Foundation based in Dongri) which I used to listen to on my mobile.” There is a strong possibility that the other Kalyan youths were also inspired by Naik’s hate speeches. The association of Areeb with Naik had not been probed then by NIA or Maharashtra ATS. Naik’s activities to be probed Indian agencies did not probe the impact of Naik’s hate speech on vulnerable Indian youths. Following orders from Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Mumbai Police have formed a team of 20-odd policemen to look into all the records of Naik. A senior police officer on Friday said that the team, apart from personnel from the special branch, would also comprise policemen who had earlier handled cases linked to Naik in the city. The team will also take help from Mumbai Crime Branch and Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). “The team will be scanning all his controversial speeches and videos online. Another team will also look into literature by Naik to see if he has made any hate speech which would have the potential to incite someone and amount to an offence. His social media accounts are also being scrutinised,” the officer said. Police will also look for information on Naik’s Islamic Research Foundation, its funding and people associated with it. Police are also keeping watch to see if any cable operator is airing Naik’s controversial channel, Peace TV, which was not given broadcast licence. “The inquiry is time-bound and is being headed by an additional commissioner-rank officer. The team will submit its report to Commissioner of Police Datta Padsalgikar within a week, and he will submit it to the CM’s office,” the senior officer said. Maharashtra ATS is also carrying out a parallel probe into Naik. Presently, Naik is in Saudi Arabia and is likely to come to India on July 11. Naik’s legal representative Mubin Solkar has earlier said that no agency has inquired with him in connection with the recent Dhaka terror attack.

2016-07-09 14:35 By Vijay www.mid-day.com

100 S Korea to include Park Tae-Hwan Seoul: South Korean swimming star Park Tae-Hwan, who was barred from the Olympics for doping, will compete for the national team in Rio after the Court of Arbitration for Sports ruled in his favour. “We will include Park Tae-Hwan in the list of national athletes who will take part in the Rio,” Korean Olympic Committee Secretary General Cho Young-Ho was quoted as saying by Yonhap news agency.

2016-07-09 14:34 By AFP www.mid-day.com

Total 100 articles. Created at 2016-07-09 18:01