As my hands addressed their aches and pains, my clients shared their fantasies and fears with 15-year-old-me. Little did they know, I was dealing with family drama of my own.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
You know who knows machine learning? People who look at the stars all day. And when it comes to what constellations of clothes and shows and music you will like, some of the same principles apply.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
I never could have predicted what happened: my OB performed a C-section on me without anesthesia. Go on, read it again. Because of the anesthesiologist's mistake, and the OB's desire to get it done, I had major abdominal surgery without anesthetic. In a hospital, in the United States, in 2016. It's more common than you'd think.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
I tried exercising. I tried having more meetings. I tried structure. But nothing seemed to dissipate a niggling, hollow feeling of worry. Then I downloaded a new-ish version of The Sims, the popular simulation game. Bingo.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
We'll only be getting five episodes in the new season, but we're just grateful that the extremely NSFW show is back. Season 4 of "Rick and Morty" will be available on Adult Swim on November 10.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Got a presentation coming up? Heading to a conference? Make a great impression by strengthening your public speaking skills with the Complete Public Speaking Masterclass For Every Occasion, now just $12.99.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
In a Saturday game, a group of Yankee fans became a bit rowdy and started chanting "Uber" at Twins' starting pitcher Randy Dobnak, who was previously a Uber driver.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
The 2019 Fall Foliage Map is the ultimate visual planning guide to the annual progressive changing of the leaves. While no tool can be 100% accurate, this tool is meant to help travelers better time their trips to have the best opportunity of catching peak color each year.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Jon Hamm told the story of the night he attended a Saturday Night Live after-party — but had no idea that the host of the show that night would be Donald Trump.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Several Chinese businesses are suspending ties with the Houston Rockets after the American basketball team's general manager expressed support for Hong Kong's pro-democracy protests.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Journalist Ronan Farrow describes being surveilled by two detectives embroiled in an international plot to suppress sexual-assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
A titanic, expanding beam of energy sprang from close to the supermassive black hole in the centre of the Milky Way just 3.5 million years ago, sending a cone-shaped burst of radiation through both poles of the Galaxy and out into deep space.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Museums, the performing arts and historical sites like Fort Ross in California, where an old Russian company flag flies, have been the beneficiaries of their gifts.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Chicago Public Library became the largest system to eliminate late fees, a move that will increase access for low-income families. Will more libraries follow?
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
There's been an explosion of UFO lobbyists in DC — from Tom DeLonge to lawyers who demand that the president does a "Disclosure," in which he admits aliens live among us.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
In 2002, VH1 introduced the 'I Love the…' franchise and changed how we talk about culture, injecting entertainment into the discourse around entertainment.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
For nearly four decades now, Michael Kors has been one of the most persistent and winning personalities in fashion—a designer with rare talent who has blended luxury and popularity to create a global empire. But the question is, with the internet upending the industry, how will he push forward? Kors answers as only he can: By going big and doing it all.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Like many other queer writers and activists of his generation, Lou Sullivan lived a painfully short life: he died in 1991, at the age of thirty-nine, from complications related to AIDS. But he left behind a wealth of material, thirty years of diaries chronicling, in joyous detail, his emerging sense of self, his relationships, and his daily triumphs.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Most of us know somebody who tends to get over involved in certain behaviours, and the saying often goes that they must have an "addictive personality". But is there such a thing?
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
As debate rages over whether Todd Phillips's upcoming 'Joker' valorizes a type of violence that currently plagues American society, it's helpful to look back on the character's origins (or lack thereof) to truly understand what he represents
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
In contrast to the noisy and diverse city, the suburbs were seen as spacious, segregated, and quiet — a much more promising state of affairs to corporations bent on expansion.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
#UPDATE Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US counterpart Donald Trump agree during a phone call to meet in Washington next month to discuss creating a "safe zone" in northern Syria, the Turkish presidency says https://t.co/gl8L51mjJDpic.twitter.com/bMCqF1oS6Z
After one month of safeguarding the Baltic airspace, the @BeAirForce conducted already 109 sorties totalising 191 flying hours. Our #F16 aircraft and crew were already scrambled 16 times and performed 8 interceptions. Yesterday our pilots encountered a #SU34 and SU-24. pic.twitter.com/FsnYyO4WYl
An anti-government protester wearing mask smashes a bureau of Bank of China during a demonstration after a government's ban on face masks under emergency law, at Mong Kok, in Hong Kong, October 4, 2019. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has been making headlines again these last few days. After giving an interview to CBS in which he admitted the mistakes of the Khashoggi murder last year, a media frenzy started, with a vast lineup of reports linked to the 1 year remembrance day of the brutal Khashoggi murder, mainly intended to weaken the position of the Saudi crown prince. Unnamed sources are being quoted stating that MBS's position is being attacked from all sides, including within the Kingdom.
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the planned "safe zone" east of the Euphrates River in Syria in a phone call on Sunday, the Turkish presidency said, adding the two men agreed to meet in Washington next month.
The call came a day after Erdogan said a military incursion into northeastern Syria was imminent, after Ankara accused Washington of stalling efforts to establish a "safe zone" there together.
During the phone call, Erdogan expressed his frustration with the failure of U.S. military and security officials to implement the agreement between the two countries, the presidency said.
OTTAWA -- Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau took aim at the Conservatives on Sunday for not releasing their election platform as the majority of federal party leaders spent the day cramming for Monday's critical English-language debate.
The debate is in Gatineau, Que., within sight of Parliament Hill. Trudeau and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh were the only two leaders to spend the day on the hustings shaking hands and, in Trudeau's case, attacking the Tories, though neither strayed far.
WNU Editor: This weekend's tracking polls show the Liberal Party and Justin Trudeau ahead by a few percentage points. But when I looked at the sampling that was used in these polls, they lean very heavily in favour of the Liberal Party. This confirms to me what I have sensed since the beginning of this election. Pollsters have underestimated Conservative support in the past few Canadian provincial elections, and I think this is also in play in this election. Case in point, one poll shows only 25% believe Trudeau should get a second term .... POLL: Only 25% think Trudeau should get a second term (Toronto Sun). This low poll number usually means the end of a political leader.
But this does not mean the end of Prime Minister Trudeau. Even with his miscues his primary opponent, Conservative leader Andrew Scheer, has IMHO not been effective in this campaign. He has not gained the trust of independent and swing voters to support him, and even his base is not happy with him. Some of my friends who have voted for the Conservative Party in the past are not going to vote even though they dislike Justin Trudeau. This is not a good sign for Conservative leader Scheer. As for my friends who have voted Liberal in the past, I have noticed that their sentiments are even worst. They feel let down by Prime Minister Trudeau, and they have no burning desire to go to the polls to vote for him. Case in point. I live in a riding that has voted Liberal for decades. But in this round I have yet to see one Liberal placard on any home. It is almost as if these voters are ashamed to show to the neighbours that they support Trudeau.
As to what is ahead. This week is debate week. The candidates will be debating each other in an English debate Monday evening, and a few days later in a French debate. Swing voters usually make their final decision on who they will vote for after they have seen these debates, and I expect the same in this election. This time next week is when I will have a better read on who will be Canada's election. But for now, my gut is telling me that we are heading into a Conservative minority government when voters go to the polls on October 21.
* The Conservatives are on 38 per cent, up two per cent, after a surge in support * Six in ten Brexiteers now back Mr Johnson's Party, the most since 2017 election * Labour dropped one per cent to 23 per cent, but has picked up Remainers
Boris Johnson's new Brexit deal has seen the Tories leap further ahead of Labour as the day of departure looms ever closer, a new poll shows.
The Conservatives are on 38 per cent, up two per cent, after a surge in support among Leave voters.
Six in ten Brexiteers are now backing Mr Johnson's Party, the highest level since the 2017 election.
Labour in contrast dropped one per cent to 23 per cent, but has picked up Remain votes according to the poll by Opinium for the Observer.
The Lib Dems saw the largest fall, dropping five per cent from 20 per cent to 15 per cent, including losing seven per cent of Remainers.
WNU Editor: If Nigel Farage/Brexit Party should decide to back Boris Johnson in the next election on the issue of Brexit, the Labour Party and The Liberal Democrats will be completely routed. My prediction. The current parliament will use their parliamentary majority to block any election call, while delaying Brexit. But as this blog has mentioned more than once in the past month, the longer that the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats postpone an election, they will continue to bleed support. Bottom line. Brexit is going to happen, but only after the next election.
'No deal will never be the EU's choice,' says bloc's negotiator Michel Barnier.
The United Kingdom will be "packing our bags and walking out" of the EU in 25 days, Boris Johnson wrote in two British newspapers.
Writing in the Sun and the Daily Express, the British prime minister reiterated his stance that the U.K. will be leaving the bloc on October 31 — and sought to place the blame squarely on Brussels if there's a no-deal Brexit.
He stood by new proposals presented to Brussels earlier this week that the British government says could replace the Irish backstop negotiated during Theresa May's tenure, describing them as "a practical compromise."
WNU Editor: Here is an easy political prediction. It is going to be a crazy October in the U.K., and parliament is going to do all that is necessary to make sure there is another extension on Brexit till next year.
Tunisia's moderate Islamist party appeared to be heading for victory in parliamentary elections, according to polling agencies, though the rival party of a jailed populist tycoon also claimed to come out on top of Sunday's voting.
The election is seen as important for the country's economic and social stability and as a bellwether for the upcoming presidential runoff between detained magnate Nabil Karoui and an independent law professor supported by the Islamists.
The ruling alliance in Kosovo has lost the election, but the winner remains unclear. Incomplete results show leftist-nationalist Vetevendosje (Self-Determination) just ahead the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK).
Vetevendosje (Self-Determination) snatched 26% of the vote at the Sunday's parliamentary election, in Kosovo, barely edging out another opposition party, the LDK, which claimed around 25% according to an early count.
The results are based on more than 76% of ballots cast, the country's electoral officials said.
The two opposition parties are followed by the PDK (Democratic Party of Kosovo) which is part of the ruling coalition and associated with President Hashim Thaci. The PDK won some 21% of the votes.
Portugal's incumbent Socialist Party has collected the most votes in a general election. Prime Minister Antonio Costa's chances in the election were boosted by the country's growing economy.
Prime Minister Antonio Costa's Socialists (PS) came out on top of parliamentary elections held Sunday in Portugal. The first forecasts showed his party expanded its number of mandates in the 230-seat parliament but fell short of winning an outright majority, meaning Costa will need to build a coalition government.
Costa declared victory, saying "we accept the task of ruling Portugal for the next four years with determination and responsibility."
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Chinese soldiers issued a warning to Hong Kong protesters on Sunday who shone lasers at their barracks in the city, in the first direct interaction with mainland military forces in four months of anti-government demonstrations.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) garrison in Kowloon district warned a crowd of a few hundred protesters they could be arrested for targeting its troops and barracks walls with laser lights.
One officer shouted through a loudhailer in broken Cantonese - the main language of Hong Kong - "Bear consequences for your actions."
The stand-off with the PLA came after rallies attended by tens of thousands of protesters earlier on Sunday ended in violent clashes in several locations. Police fired tear gas and baton-charged the crowds, while some demonstrators threw bricks and petrol bombs at police as night fell.
Protesters shout slogans and hold a sign reading "No to Capitulation" during the "Stop Capitulation Rally." Capitulation is what the rally's participants call President Volodymyr Zelensky's plans to end the war in the east of Ukraine using the so-called Steinmeier Formula. Photo by Volodymyr Petrov
KIEV (Reuters) - Thousands of people gathered in Kiev's main square on Sunday to protest against President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's deal with Moscow to grant autonomy to Ukraine's pro-Russian rebel-held east as part of efforts to end a five-year conflict there.
In the first breakthrough toward a possible peace deal in years, envoys from Moscow and Kiev agreed at talks on Tuesday on an election schedule for the Donbass region and on legislation giving it special status. Ukraine also agreed to call back its forces from the current contact line with separatist fighters.
But for many Ukrainians, these measures represent a huge betrayal by Zelenskiy who took power in April after a landslide election win. The war in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 13,000 people since April 2014.
"This is the beginning of the full capitulation of Ukraine," 53-year-old Roman, who fought in Donbass as a volunteer. He declined to give his surname.
WNU Editor: President Volodymyr Zelenskiy won the election in a landslide on a platform to improve the economy, fight corruption, and to end the war. Everyone in Ukraine knows that to end the war these comprises must be made, and kudos to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for having the courage to push for peace. As for today's protests. They are a minority within the country, but they are going to make their opposition felt.
Under terms of the initial deal, Total was to have a 50.1 percent stake, with CNPC getting 30 percent and the Iranian firm Petropars getting 19.9 percent [File Photo/Raheb Homavandi/Reuters]
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh says China's national petroleum company has pulled out of a $5 billion deal to help develop Iran's giant South Pars natural gas field in the Persian Gulf.
The development, announced by Zanganeh on the ministry's SHANA website, comes amid economic pressure on both Iran and China from the United States.
It also follows a series of military confrontations in the area between Iran and the naval forces of Britain and the United States.
WNU Editor: Many things can be read into this Chinese decision to abandon this Iranian project. My read is that the Chinese see this as a bad deal, complicated by sanctions and Iran's aggressive approach towards other oil exporting nations in the region. Bottom line. If given a choice between Iran or Saudi Arabia and other oil exporting nations in the Middle East, China is betting on Saudi Arabia and its allies.
More News On China Withdrawing From A Crucial $5 Billion Iran Gas Project
Key point: Saudi Arabia might not strike back without full U.S. support, but Tehran is thinking about it.
Two weeks after a devastating attack on Saudi oil facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais, one major question remains up in the air: What are the United States and Saudi Arabia going to do in response? Both are attempting to make a compelling case that Iran was directly culpable for the attacks. With proof of Iran's guilt, they can further isolate Tehran diplomatically, potentially paving the way for an aggressive response.
Saudi Arabia is caught between a rock and a hard place, however. If it does nothing, Iran will likely continue its aggression against the major U.S. partner in a bid to force the United States to ease its sanctions — after all, Riyadh can hardly attempt to de-escalate tensions with Tehran given that the latter's main target is the U.S. measures that the kingdom has little control over.
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he departs for Baltimore, Maryland from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, September 12, 2019. Kevin Lamarque, Reuters
This week's White House Report Card finds President Trump facing several impeachment assaults but benefiting from one of the lowest unemployment rates on record.
Democratic pollster John Zogby, one of our two graders, said the contrast is stark but still not driving down his approval ratings
In fact, Zogby singled out one recent approval poll that found Democrats with an 11-point advantage. "Meaning," he told us, that "the pollster has never been to Kentucky, Nebraska, or Kansas. I do not hear anyone talking about impeachment, and when I ask, folks tell me they are so tired of it all and can't watch any of it."
Mitt Romney never knew how to win. He is a pompous "ass" who has been fighting me from the beginning, except when he begged me for my endorsement for his Senate run (I gave it to him), and when he begged me to be Secretary of State (I didn't give it to him). He is so bad for R's!
Somebody please wake up Mitt Romney and tell him that my conversation with the Ukrainian President was a congenial and very appropriate one, and my statement on China pertained to corruption, not politics. If Mitt worked this hard on Obama, he could have won. Sadly, he choked!
* Trump blasted Romney in tweets on Saturday morning from Washington DC * Defended his remarks calling for China and Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden * Romney had denounced Trump's remarks in a pair of tweets on Friday * Trump said Romney 'begged me for my endorsement for his Senate run' * President also lashed out at House Dems and media in Saturday morning tweets * Said impeachment probe is 'a fraud against the American people!' * 'The Media is "Fixed" and Corrupt. It bears no relationship to the truth,' he added * Impeachment probe reached the White House Friday with subpoena of Pence * Ukraine's chief prosecutor says he'll reopen cases including one tied to Biden
President Donald Trump has fired back at Senator Mitt Romney, after the Republican senator broke ranks to harshly criticize Trump over his requests that foreign governments investigate political rival Joe Biden.
'Somebody please wake up Mitt Romney and tell him that my conversation with the Ukrainian President was a congenial and very appropriate one, and my statement on China pertained to corruption, not politics,' Trump wrote on Saturday morning, as his motorcade traveled from the White House to Trump National Golf Course in Sterling, Virginia.
'If Mitt worked this hard on Obama, he could have won. Sadly, he choked!' Trump wrote.
WNU editor: So what is Sen. Mitt Romney's next move? Is it this .... Romney ramps up rhetoric on Trump, but what's his next move? (Londsay Whitehurst, AP). There are also reports that he told Speaker Nancy Pelosi that there are enough Republican support for the impeachment of President Trump. Is he thinking of another run for the Presidency?
A second whistleblower claiming to have information regarding President Trump's phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has come forward, and has already spoken to the intelligence community's inspector general.
Attorney Mark Zaid, who represents both whistleblowers, first told ABC News that the second individual is – like the first whistleblower – an intelligence official, and has firsthand knowledge of certain allegations contained in the first whistleblower complaint, which was not based on any firsthand knowledge. Andrew Bakaj, managing partner of the firm handling the case, verified the existence of the new whistleblower Sunday morning.
WNU Editor: All of this was predicted by this blog two days ago .... 2nd CIA Wants To Blow The Whistle On President Trump's Ukraine Talks (October 4, 2019). My commentary from Friday also still holds .... I do not know what this second CIA official can contribute to this discussion. The transcript has been released, and the Ukrainian President has made his position very clear that he was not aware that a U.S. military aid package was delayed, nor did he feel at anytime pressured by President Trump. In short .... we already know all the facts.
Bottom line. I do not think we are going to learn anything new. But for the news media they have another reason to recycle this story.
More News On A Second Whistleblower On Trump-Ukraine Call Coming Forward
There are rules in exploring energy resources in the Mediterranean Sea, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday, warning Turkey not to engage in drilling activity that is "illegal" and "unacceptable".
"We've made clear that operations in international waters are governed by a set of rules. We've told the Turks that illegal drilling is unacceptable and we'll continue to take diplomatic actions to … ensure that lawful activity takes place," he said during a visit to Greece.
"No country can hold Europe hostage," Pompeo told a press briefing.
Tensions between Cyprus and Turkey over offshore drilling have intensified after Ankara sent a drilling ship to an area already licensed by Nicosia to Italian and French energy companies.
The United States and Greece have signed an updated defense-cooperation pact, a move Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said was not aimed against any one nation in the region, including Turkey.
Nevertheless, in remarks made during his visit to Athens on October 5. Pompeo cited "malign" Russian influence on NATO ally Greece and its neighbors and criticized Iran and China.
The accord announced by Pompeo provides for increasing joint U.S.-Greece and NATO activity at Larissa, Stefanovikio, and Alexandroupoli as well as infrastructure and other improvements at the Souda Bay naval base.
Lockheed Martin's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter—which is built in three versions—recently completed its developmental test phase and is operational with the U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps. Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy will soon join the ranks of JSF operators with the F-35C carrier variant, which is scheduled to become operational later this year or early 2019.
The Navy—which refused to accept anything other than the final Block 3F configuration—is the last of the three services to adopt the aircraft, which the Marines adopted first in 2015 with the F-35B jump-jet variant. Meanwhile, for the Air Force, the F-35A conventional takeoff version is rapidly becoming its mainstay fighter. Indeed, with the production of the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor having been terminated at 187 aircraft and the Air Force seriously considering the retiring its Boeing F-15C Eagle fleet, the JSF might be pressed into the air superiority role. But how does the F-35 stack up against the F-22 as a fighter?
People attend a town council to demand Bolivian President Evo Morales' government enact laws to protect the environment, and national forest reserves and to defend a referendum aimed at blocking Morales from reelection, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia October 4, 2019. The sign reads, "Evo even the dead told you no". REUTERS/Rodrigo Urzagasti
SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA, Bolivia (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands of protesters marched through the streets of Bolivia's largest city, turning up heat on President Evo Morales as they voiced outrage over his government's response to wildfires that have razed broad swaths of the country's forests this year.
Protesters in the wealthy, industrial city of Santa Cruz brandished placards at the demonstration late on Friday calling for a "punishment vote" against Morales in the upcoming Oct. 20 presidential election.
Tightening polls show Morales, Latin America's longest-serving leftist leader, may be forced into a second-round runoff with his chief rival, Carlos Mesa, a business-friendly former president.
The U.S. flag flies in a dawn breeze on top of the White House before the start of the midterm election in Washington, U.S. November 6, 2018. REUTERS/Chris Helgren. Reuters
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump has ordered a substantial reduction in the staff of the National Security Council, according to five people familiar with the plans, as the White House confronts an impeachment inquiry touched off by a whistle-blower complaint related to the agency's work.
Some of the people described the staff cuts as part of a White House effort to make its foreign policy arm leaner under new National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien.
The request to limit the size of the NSC staff was conveyed to senior agency officials by acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and O'Brien this week. The whistle-blower complaint, focused on Trump's conduct in a July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has been followed by damaging reports on the president's private conversations with other world leaders.
WNU Editor: The media is saying that these cuts are due to leaks from the National Security Council. That may be the case. The Trump administration has been plagued by leaks since Day One, and the latest ones are from the Security Council staff. Will these cuts have an impact when it comes to leaks, probably not. But I think these cuts are more a reflection on what National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien wants (i.e. people that he trusts on the staff), and not the current media spin.
VIDEO: 🇪🇨 Protesters in Pambamarquito, northern #Ecuador, block a road in a demonstration against rising fuel prices after the government scrapped subsidies, as a state of emergency is declared pic.twitter.com/bl9rcWTj4D
Huge screens live-streamed Beijing’s grandiose military parade, and colorful fireworks flashed above the city’s glitzy casinos, as Macau commemorated China’s National Day on Oct. 1. Not everyone, however, was in the mood to celebrate. Jason Chao—one of Macau’s most outspoken democracy and human rights activists—had spent weeks applying to hold a peaceful protest in his hometown. Authorities denied his initial application in September, and late on the eve of the Oct. 1 holiday—the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China—he found out that authorities had shot down his appeal.
Chao had planned to gather 15 people to carry placards and posters opposing alleged police brutality in Hong Kong, China’s other Special Administrative Region (SAR) as the two semi-autonomous enclaves are called. In Hong Kong—where protests against a controversial piece of legislation have escalated into an anti-communist rebellion—it was tear gas and Molotov cocktails lighting up the sky on National Day, instead of the usual annual fireworks display, as protesters came out in full force to repudiate Beijing’s control over the territory. But Macau officials denied Chao’s appeal, saying the rally would interfere in Hong Kong affairs.
As unrest grips Hong, authorities in Macau are cracking down on any show of solidarity by Macau residents for their Hong Kong neighbors, who live just an hour’s ferry ride away across the Pearl River Delta. On Oct. 1, two people were questioned for sticking posters on a wall. Photos circulating on social media showed signs that read: “Support each other, Hong Kong and Macau.” In August, authorities detained four students who set up a so-called Lennon Wall—murals of colorful Post-it notes bearing handwritten pro-democracy slogans that are a common sight in Hong Kong. The same month, police banned a demonstration in support of Hong Kong’s anti-government protesters and detained seven people. And earlier this month Macau’s Secretary for Security said an event where two students held signs or banners supporting Hongkongers could be treated as an illegal gathering.
Chao thinks that the turmoil in Hong Kong is putting Macau’s government under pressure. “They want to present Macau as the perfect embodiment of ‘one country, two systems,'” he tells TIME, referring to the political formula by which China administers its SARs. “It’s utterly unconvincing.”
Some say officials are going too far. “Macau police and courts have been illegally repressive of freedom of assembly and of freedom of expression,” Jorge Menezes, a prominent lawyer in Macau, tells TIME.
Experts say that political activity by Macau’s youth has been on the uptick for several years, not just the last few months. “Youth activism in Macau has been challenging the local as well as mainland authorities,” Eilo Yu, associate head and associate professor of government and public administration at the University of Macau, tells TIME.
That may explain why Chinese President Xi Jinping mentioned Macau, alongside Hong Kong and Taiwan, as major risks and challenges for the Chinese Communist Party while speaking to officials in early September.
“Cadres must be vigilant to any wind of change. They must know a deer passing by the rustle of grass and leaves, they must know the coming of a tiger by feeling the wind, they must know the arrival of autumn by the color of one leaf,” Xi said, according to the South China Morning Post.
‘This is China; no one questions it’
Macau — a city of 640,000 crammed into 12 densely populated square miles — has a reputation as China’s well-behaved SAR. Its lawmakers dutifully passed a national security law — making acts like sedition, subversion and treason illegal — that in Hong Kong brought some 500,000 angry citizens to the street and caused the downfall of the city’s leader. In Macau, legislation banning mockery of the Chinese national anthem passed almost without notice; in Hong Kong the bill caused a public outcry and has yet to be passed into law.
Part of Macau’s acceptance of Chinese rule may be down to history. Although the former Portuguese colony returned to Chinese rule in 1999 as an SAR, the territory has been under de facto Chinese rule since 1966 when pro-communist riots ended with the Portuguese government ceding much control to pro-China elites and trades unions.
“The Portuguese struggled to keep control of the government in Macau,” Catherine Chan, an assistant professor of history at the University of Macau, tells TIME.
And unlike Hong Kong, which is one of the world’s largest financial centers, Macau is dependent for mainland cash for its survival. Gaming-related taxes account for about 80% of government revenues, according to the U.S. public policy think-tank the Heritage Foundation. Of the 35 million tourists that came to the city to place their bets in 2018, more than 70% were from mainland China.
“This is China; no one questions it here,” says José Luis de Sales Marques, the mayor of Macau from 1993 to 2001, who now is now the head of Macau’s Institute of European Studies. He tells TIME that what’s happening in Hong Kong is unlikely to spread. “I think we can never say there’s zero risk, but I think there’s very minimal risk here.”
But Macau is plagued by some of the same structural problems that have, in part, driven unrest in Hong Kong. Although the headline numbers look good—the casino hub has the world’s second highest GDP per capita and unemployment rate is low, at around 2%—they mask deeper, systemic issues. The average monthly income in the city is less than $2,000, for example, and an economy highly-dependent on the gaming industry means employment opportunities are largely confined to jobs in casinos, or related industries like construction, tourism and retail that don’t offer the young much social mobility.
Paul Pun, secretary-general of Catholic charity Caritas Macau, tells TIME that inequality is inching upwards in the city, where flashy casinos tower over decaying apartment buildings. “The standard of living and livelihoods are eroded by inflation and the increased cost of living,” he says. According to global consultancy ECA International, Macau has jumped seven places to become the 25th most expensive place in the world to live.
Lawmaker José Pereira Coutinho, who leads the pro-democracy political party New Hope, agrees that frustrations among some Macau residents are growing. “The elderly need better social security and healthcare, and youngsters need housing,” Coutinho says.
Although Coutinho has been outspoken on social issues in Macau, the legislator, whose Macau office wall is adorned with a large portrait of Chinese President Xi Jinping hanging next to a picture of the Portuguese President, is realistic about the bounds of the “one country, two systems” model.
“People want democracy everywhere in the world, but what can we do? We are so small here,” he says.
‘They will crush all opposition’
But a new generation of politicians is calling for change. “We hope the only candidate for chief executive will re-start political reform,” Sulu Sou, Macau’s youngest elected lawmaker, tells TIME.
Small acts of resistance seem to come naturally to the 28-year-old, who during an interview with TIME at his Macau office includes the qualifying phrase “the only candidate” each time he refers to the incoming top official, highlighting that the city’s next leader was the only nominee presented to a selection committee of 400 special interest group representatives.
Sou agrees that Hong Kong’s fight for democracy won’t come to Macau, and he has not made a public declaration of support for the Hong Kong protesters. But it’s clear why he may need to tread carefully if he wants to keep his seat. Just 48 days after he took office in 2017, he was suspended from the legislature so that he could face trial for charges related to participating in a demonstration outside the current Chief Executive Fernando Chui’s house in 2016. Sou said he believed he was just exercising his right to freedom of assembly during the rally to protest a controversial donation made from the semi-official Macau Foundation to a university in China. (Chui had links to both organizations.) Sou was charged with aggravated disobedience and fined before he was allowed to resume his post.
South China Morning Post/Getty Images Sulu Sou Ka-hou celebrates after winning the Macau Legislative Assembly election in Macau on Sept. 18, 2017.
Sou is fighting for the future of Macau in his own way, though. The political party he leads, the New Macau Association, ran an online poll in August with just one question: “Do you agree that the Chief Executive of Macau SAR should be elected by universal suffrage?”
It was set to close on Aug. 25, the day Beijing loyalist and industrialist Ho Iat Seng was announced as the city’s next leader. Sou says that he and other members of his party received threats—he won’t elaborate on their nature—that forced them to close the poll early, but they did release the results: 94% of the 5,698 people who responded to the poll supported universal suffrage. Sou says that although he knows Macau won’t change overnight, he has hope that one day democracy will come to Macau.
But the activist Chao, who helped out on IT support for the online poll, fears that things are moving in the wrong direction.
“I’m concerned that they will crush all opposition, so we can’t even talk about democracy,” Chao says.
(BEIRUT) — U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces in Syria said American troops began withdrawing Monday from northeast Syria ahead of a Turkish invasion that the Kurds say will overturn five years of achievements in the battle against the Islamic State group.
The Syrian Kurdish fighters also accused Washington of failing to abide by its commitments to its key allies in the fight against IS. It’s a major shift in U.S. policy.
The American withdrawal came just hours after the White House said U.S. forces in northeastern Syria will move aside and clear the way for an expected Turkish assault — essentially abandoning Kurdish fighters who fought alongside American forces in the yearslong battle to defeat the Islamic State group.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened for months to launch the military operation across the border. He views the Syria Kurdish forces as a threat to his country as Ankara has struggled with a Kurdish insurgency within Turkey.
In the U.S., Republicans and Democrats have warned that allowing the Turkish attack could lead to a massacre of the Kurds and send a troubling message to American allies across the globe.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, as the Kurdish-led force is known, said the American pullout began first from areas along the Syria-Turkey border.
“The American forces did not abide by their commitments and withdrew their forces along the border with Turkey,” the SDF said in its statement. “Turkey now is preparing to invade northern and eastern parts of Syria.”
“The Turkish military operation in northern and eastern Syria will have a huge negative effect on our war against” IS, it added.
The Kurdish-led fighters have been the main U.S.-backed force in Syria in the fight against IS and in March, the group captured the last sliver of land held by the extremists, marking the end of the so-called caliphate that was declared by IS’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014.
“We will not hesitate for a moment in defending our people” against Turkish troops, the Syrian Kurdish force said, adding that it has lost 11,000 fighters in the war against IS in Syria.
A Turkish attack would lead to a resurgence of IS, it said. IS sleeper cells are already plotting to break free some 12,000 militants detained by Syrian Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria in a “threat to local & international security.”
The Kurdish fighters also control the al-Hol camp, home to more than 70,000 mostly wives and children of IS fighters.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that since the beginning of the crisis in Syria, “we have supported the territorial integrity of this country, and we will continue to support it.”
He added that Ankara is determined to ensure the survival and security of Turkey “by clearing the region from terrorists. We will contribute to peace, peace and stability in Syria.”
The Kurdish Hawar news agency and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also say American troops were evacuating positions near the towns of Ras al-Ayn and Tal Abyad on Monday.
____
Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser contributed to this report from Ankara, Turkey.
(LEOGANE, Haiti) — Gabriel Duvalesse squatted slightly as he prepared to push 50 gallons (190 liters) of cooking oil in an old wheelbarrow to an outdoors market an hour away so he could earn $1.
It was his first job in seven days as deadly protests paralyze Haiti’s economy and shutter businesses and schools. Opposition leaders and thousands of supporters are demanding the resignation of President Jovenel Moïse amid anger over government corruption, ballooning inflation and scarcity of fuel and other basic goods.
Seventeen people have been reported killed and nearly 200 injured in the protests.
The political turmoil is hitting cities and towns outside the capital of Port-au-Prince especially hard, forcing non-government organizations to suspend aid as barricades of large rocks and burning tires cut off the flow of goods between the city and the countryside. The crisis is deepening poverty in places such as Leogane, the epicenter of Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake.
“We are starving,” said 28-year-old Duvalesse, who has been unable to work. “I had to make $2 last one week.”
The United Nations said that before the protests even began, some 2.6 million people across Haiti were vulnerable to food shortages, adding that roadblocks have severely impacted some humanitarian programs. On Sept. 16, the World Food Programme was forced to suspend all food deliveries to schools as demonstrations started.
Meanwhile, cash transfers to some 37,000 people in need were postponed.
U.N. officials also said that private transporters are reluctant to deliver goods given the security situation, a problem that Leogane business owner Vangly Germeille knows well.
He owns a wholesale company that sells items including rice, soap, cooking oil and cereal to small markets. But his warehouse is nearly empty and he struggles to find truck drivers willing to go to markets to deliver the goods because of thieves and barricades.
“It’s an enormous economic loss,” said Germeille, a father of two who is thinking of moving to the Dominican Republic if things don’t improve soon. “If there’s no way to make a living here, I can’t stay.”
Rice, coconuts, milk and diapers are among the dozens of goods that people in this coastal community of more than 200,000 inhabitants say are hard to find since the protests began in mid-September.
On Saturday, a grocery store near the town’s center opened briefly to sell rice, said 40-year-old IT engineer Sony Raymond.
“In less than three hours it was gone,” he said. “Leogane is basically paralyzed.”
Security concerns grew on Sunday after onlookers said they saw two men fatally shoot a third to steal his bike in Leogane.
The crowd then went after the two men with machetes, dragging one of them through the street while witnesses said the other committed suicide. All three bodies still lay on the street hours after it happened, with one ambulance from the health department passing by without stopping.
The protests and barricades are increasingly isolating already struggling communities across Haiti, including those like Barriere Jeudi, where amateur bull fights on weekends provide some distraction from people’s financial problems.
Bruinel Jean-Louis, who repairs refrigerators and stoves, said he hasn’t been able to find much work because he can’t travel to find the parts he needs.
“It takes a very long time, and that also makes me suffer,” he said as several bulls brayed behind him.
To make up for the financial shortfall, he sells halters for horses.
In a small mountain village near the coastal city of Jacmel, some phones began ringing at 5 a.m. on Sunday as friends and family let each other know that a gas station would open that day and there was a limited supply.
The line already began forming as the sun came up.
Théodore Rathgens, a 53-year-old social worker and construction engineer, said that while protests and blockades had caused problems in Jacmel, he didn’t blame Moïse for the problems.
“It’s the political clans,” he said.
Rathgens said Haiti’s justice department should also take it upon itself and not wait for instructions from Moïse to investigate former top government officials accused of mismanaging millions of dollars in funds from a Venezuela-subsidized oil plan slated in part for social programs.
Haitian economist Kesner Pharel noted that Haiti is a country of nearly 11 million people where 60% make less than $2 a day and 25% make less than $1 a day. He said the problem is worsening now that food is not going to Haiti’s capital nor manufactured goods to rural areas, causing a stoppage to the economy.
The situation angers 62-year-old Carolle Bercy, who moved back to Haiti last year after working in financial services for 30 years in Connecticut, both in Stanford and Bridgeport.
She said she has seen people fighting over fuel on the rare instances that a gas station opens, and she worries about the future of Haitians.
“It’s unbelievable,” she said. “No country on earth should go what Haitian people are going through.”
SAMOTHRAKI, Greece (AP) — With oak and chestnut forests, waterfalls and rugged coastline, Samothraki has a wild beauty and a remoteness that sets it apart from other Greek islands.
There are no package holidays here or even a reliable ferry service to the mainland. Island authorities hope to achieve UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status. Yet still, the natural environment is under threat from an insatiable assailant.
Goats outnumber human inhabitants 15-fold and they are munching stretches of Samothraki into a moonscape. After decades of trying to find a solution, experts and locals are working together to find a 21st-century way to save the island’s ecology and economy.
Semi-wild, the goats roam across the island, which is roughly three times the size of Manhattan, and can be spotted on rooftops, in trees or on top of cars as they scour the landscape for anything to eat. Their unchecked overgrazing is causing crisis-level erosion.
Torrential rains two years ago swept away the island’s town hall and severed its roads. There were no trees or vegetation left on the steep, goat-eaten hillsides to stop the mudslides caused by the downpour.
“There are no big trees to hold the soil. And it’s a big problem, both financial and real because (the mud) will come down on our heads,” says George Maskalidis, who helps run Sustainable Samothraki Association, an environmental group.
Samothraki, in the northern Aegean Sea, is a two-hour ferry ride south of Alexandroupoli, a Greek city near the country’s border with Turkey.
With just 3,000 inhabitants and hard to access, the island has largely missed out on Greece’s tourism boom. Mountain herding is still a way of life here and despite trying for three decades, regional authorities have found it hard to build a local consensus on how to deal with the issue.
The goat population, meanwhile, soared fivefold to an estimated 75,000 by the late 1990s. Some parts of the countryside were simply nibbled away.
The goat numbers have since dropped to below 50,000 as there is little left to graze on. But this has left the island in a trap. Most of its goats are malnourished and too scrawny to be used commercially for meat, animal feed is too expensive to maintain a sustainable business and much of the soil is too depleted for trees to grow back.
At the same time, prices for wool, leather, meat and milk have dropped, leading Samothraki’s farmers to grow increasingly desperate.
Yiannis Vavouras, a second-generation goat farmer, says many island farmers have few alternatives.
“Most of us are ready to give up. If I had another job, I would drop the goats,” he says, speaking over the noise of jangling goat bells. “It doesn’t make enough to buy you a coffee.”
Herds soared due to European Union subsidies, under a system that critics say was poorly monitored and lacked any long-term planning. It now may have to be reversed as a livestock reduction appears inevitable, along with grazing limits.
But that correction doesn’t have to be painful, at least according to the island’s resident optimist Carlota Maranon, a Spanish lawyer who settled here a decade ago. She heads the sustainability initiative and has eased islanders’ deep-rooted mistrust of solutions from the mainland or beyond.
The environmental group has worked with overseas researchers and helped create a herd management app, among many other pilot projects, to tackle the issue. Fiercely independent livestock farmers have even joined a new cooperative to try to pool resources and establish a brand for the island.
“It is possible to do things in a more sustainable way,” Maranon says. “That might mean fewer goats but that could actually work out better for the farmers.”
Having a tight-knit community, she says, will also help.
“Everyone here is connected to the herders in some way, so this issue affects everyone. To live off the land, you have to keep it alive,” she said.
(BAGHDAD) — Seven anti-government demonstrators were killed Sunday in ongoing protests in the capital Baghdad, the latest fatalities in six days of clashes that have left more than 100 dead and thousands wounded.
Iraq’s government has scrambled to contain the popular anger that has racked Baghdad and a number of southern cities since Tuesday. Security forces responded with a crackdown on the spontaneous rallies of demonstrators demanding jobs, better services and an end to endemic corruption in the oil-rich country.
In the first official statement from the government accounting for the violence, Interior Ministry spokesman Saad Maan said Sunday that 104 people had been killed in the six days of unrest, including eight members of the security forces, and more than 6,000 wounded. He said an investigation was under way to determine who was behind the most deadly day of violence, in Baghdad on Friday.
The unrest is the most serious challenge facing Iraq two years after the victory against Islamic State militants. The chaos also comes at a critical time for the government, which has been caught in the middle of increasing U.S.-Iran tensions in the region. Iraq is allied with both countries and hosts thousands of U.S. troops, as well as powerful paramilitary forces allied with Iran.
Iraq’s most senior Shiite spiritual leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, has urged the protesters and the security forces to end the violence while the country’s prime minister has called on the protesters to go home. Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi also pledged to meet with the protesters wherever they are and without any armed forces, to hear their demands.
Abdul-Mahdi defended the security forces, saying they were carrying out their duties and would only use force in extreme cases of self-defense.
“We can’t accept the continuation of the situation like this,” Abdul-Mahdi told his Cabinet late Saturday in televised remarks. “We hear of snipers, firebombs, burning a policeman, a citizen.”
Speaking on Sunday, Maan, the Interior Ministry spokesman, said protesters have burned 51 public buildings and eight political party headquarters. He claimed security forces didn’t confront the protesters, adding that “malicious hands” were behind targeting protesters and security members alike.
That contradicted accounts from demonstrators and journalists at the scene who have said they witnessed security forces firing on demonstrators. Some protesters said snipers also took part in breaking up the protests. Maan said most of those killed Friday were hit in the head and heart.
Officials had said earlier there were attempts at “sedition” from snipers who targeted security and protesters alike. They didn’t elaborate.
Late Saturday, the prime minister announced a number of measures designed to appease the protesters, including paying out unemployment benefits and providing subsidized housing and land for low-income groups.
Still, demonstrators took to the streets again Sunday— although in smaller numbers. Hundreds gathered on side streets near Sadr City, a Baghdad suburb, some four kilometers (2.5 miles) from Tahrir Square, which has been the destination of the weeklong rallies, although authorities have prevented protesters from reaching it.
A medical official in a local hospital and a security official said seven protesters were killed and 17 others wounded as they tried to break through a security cordon to head to the city center. The officials, who did not provide details, spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.
Security forces have beefed up their presence in central Baghdad, deploying as far as Sadr City to seal off Tahrir Square.
Army troops blocked a main road Sunday to prevent the protesters from advancing. Soldiers then fired toward the protesters to push them back. After about an hour, there was more intense gunfire, with soldiers firing over the heads of protesters as they tried to advance.
Ducking in reaction to the fire, some protesters piled over one another trying to hide behind the wall of a nearby water fountain. One protester carrying a drum chanted “peaceful, peaceful,” as others joined in. As the gunfire continued, protesters set tires on fire.
Some demonstrators arrived in rickshaws, which have been used to carry the wounded from the bloody clashes.
The U.N. envoy for Iraq appealed for an end to the violence and called for holding to account those responsible. “This must stop. I call on all parties to pause and reflect,” Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert tweeted Saturday night.
Meanwhile, Abdul-Mahdi pledged to meet with the demonstrators to hear their demands.
“I am ready to go wherever our brotherly protesters are and meet them or send them envoys to other locations without any armed forces,” he said late Saturday. “I will go and meet them without weapons and sit with them for hours to listen to their demands.”
He also decreed that those killed in the protests, whether demonstrators or security forces, would be considered “martyrs” eligible for state benefits.
Earlier on Sunday, Baghdad’s streets had been mostly quiet and traffic thin as an eerie calm prevailed. Students made it to schools and government employees returned to work. But burnt tires and debris littered thoroughfares while security remained heavily deployed in many neighborhoods.
Atheer Assem, a pizza restaurant owner, said he was able to shop Sunday, the start of the working week, for ingredients for his baked goods. But he said his clients have stopped coming to his shop because of the violence, even though it is in a neighborhood that has not witnessed any protests.
“The protests are making people afraid to go out,” he said, estimating his sales to have dropped by 70 percent.
(LONDON) — British Prime Minister has renewed his vow to take the country out of the European Union by the Brexit deadline.
Boris Johnson, writing in The Sun on Sunday and Sunday Express newspapers, is contradicting a government pledge in court to ask for an extension if no withdrawal deal with the EU is reached.
He said “we will be packing our bags and walking out on” Oct. 31.
He added: “The only question is whether Brussels cheerily waves us off with a mutually agreeable deal or whether we will be forced to head off on our own.”
A U.K. government document quoted in a Scottish court Friday indicated Johnson intends to comply with a law requiring him to ask for a delay if there’s no deal in place by Oct. 19.
(ANKARA, Turkey) — Turkey has summoned a top U.S. diplomat to protest after U.S. Embassy’s official Twitter account “liked” a tweet that said Turkey should prepare for a political era without the leader of Turkey’s national party, who is reportedly ill.
The Foreign Ministry said the U.S. charge d’affaires was summoned on Sunday despite an embassy statement that said its Twitter account had liked “an unrelated post in error,” and apologized.
Many interpreted the tweet as suggesting that the nationalist leader Devlet Bahceli could soon die. The tweet was posted by a journalist Turkey accuses of belonging to a network led by a cleric who is blamed for a 2016 coup attempt.
The tweet drew ire from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party and as well as Bahceli’s party — which are allies.
(SEOUL, South Korea) — North Korea said Sunday that it won’t meet again with the United States unless it abandons its “hostile policy” against the North, as the two countries offered different takes on their weekend nuclear negotiations in Sweden.
After their first talks in more than seven months in Stockholm on Saturday, the chief North Korean nuclear negotiator said the talks broke down “entirely because the U.S. has not discarded its old stance and attitude” and came to the negotiating table with an “empty hand.” But the U.S. said the two sides had “good discussions” that it intends to build on in two weeks.
On Sunday night, the North’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement accusing the U.S. of trying to mislead public opinion and “spreading a completely ungrounded story that both sides are open to meet” again.
The statement said the Stockholm talks “made us think they have no political will to improve (North Korea)-U.S. relations and may be abusing the bilateral relations for their own partisan interests” at home.
It said North Korea isn’t willing to hold “such sickening negotiations” as those in Stockholm until the U.S. takes “a substantial step to make complete and irreversible withdrawal of the hostile policy toward” the North.
It said the U.S. policy “threatens the security” of North Korea and “hampers the rights to existence and development of its people.”
North Korea has said it has no other option but to develop nuclear weapons to cope with what it calls a U.S. plot to invade the country. The North has also said rounds of U.S.-led sanctions imposed over its nuclear and missile programs are stifling its economy.
Early last year, North Korea entered talks with the U.S. over the fate of its advancing nuclear arsenal in return for political and economic benefits from the U.S.
Saturday’s talks were the first between the sides since the February breakdown of the second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam. The two leaders held a brief, impromptu meeting at the Korean border in late June and agreed to restart diplomacy.
State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said the chief North Korean negotiator’s comments about Saturday’s talks did “not reflect the content or the spirit” of the “good discussions” that took place over 8 ½ hours. She also said the U.S. accepted an invitation from Sweden to return to Stockholm in two weeks to continue talks.
You are subscribed to email updates from World – TIME. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
Email delivery powered by Google
Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States
NORTH KOREA dealt a devastating blow to Donald Trump's hopes of reaching a deal with Kim Jong-un over his nuclear weapons programme after representatives from the two sides had met for talks over the weekend.
EGYPT archaeologists were stunned after a series of nine previously unknown tombs were uncovered, and archaeologists believe one could belong to a prominent ancient figure who's final resting place was thought to be lost forever.
TYPHOON HAGIBIS could be the strongest storm on the planet for 2019. Here are the latest path updates, charts and satellite images for Typhoon Hagibis.
VLADIMIR PUTIN and his ally Syrian President Bashar al Assad could be set to claim more control over the situation in Syria as a Turkish incursion against Washington-aligned Kurdish troops may force Trump to withdraw US operations.
TYPHOON HAGIBIS could smash into Japan this week and have a disastrous effect on the Rugby World Cup, it's been warned. Here is the latest forecast as Hagibis continues to intensify.
DONALD Trump has been accused of abandoning the US army's Kurdish allies after the White House gave the green light for a Turkish invasion of northern Syria by pulling its forces out of the war-ravaged region.
TYPHOON HAGIBIS is rapidly intensifying in the Pacific Ocean and forecasters are now warning the monster storm could become the strongest storm on Earth.
Having the right career skills can make you more competitive and successful, whatever your job or field. Here are those most prized by employers in 2019.
Material participation tests are a set of Internal Revenue Services (IRS) criteria that evaluate whether a taxpayer has materially participated in a trade, business, rental, or other income-producing activity.
Custodial care is non-medical care recommended by a medical professional that helps individuals with their daily basic care, such as eating and bathing.
There are many benefits to buying a used car, but avoid mistakes like waiting to procure financing, foregoing a mechanic check, and not checking the history.
The paradox of rationality is the empirical observation that players who make irrational choices often receive better payoffs than those making rational choices.
Cost accounting is a form of managerial accounting that aims to capture a company's total cost of production by assessing its variable and fixed costs.
A dollar bond is a U.S. denominated bond that trades outside of the United States. Along with the principal, any coupon payments from the bond are paid in U.S. funds.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Robo-advisor tax-loss harvesting is the automated selling of securities in a portfolio to deliberately incur losses to offset any capital gains or taxable income.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
While many have been slow to adapt AI or wary of its benefits, financial advisors who do not adapt the technology to their practice will be left behind.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Find out what it takes for a foreign individual to open a savings account in the U.S., especially in the age of heightened awareness of terrorist threats.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
A prepackaged bankruptcy is a plan for financial reorganization in cooperation with creditors that will take effect once the company enters bankruptcy.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Section 1250 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service Code states the IRS should treat a gain from the sale of depreciated real property as ordinary income.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
The traditional idea of shorting something is selling what you don't have so that you can buy it back later at a lower price. Not everyone realizes that this can also apply to houses.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Gresham's law is a monetary principle stating that "bad money drives out good." It is primarily used for consideration and application in the currency markets.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Full faith and credit is a phrase used to describe the unconditional guarantee or commitment by one entity to back the interest and principal of another entity's debt.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
The satoshi is the smallest unit of the bitcoin cryptocurrency. It is named after Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of the protocol used in blockchains and the bitcoin cryptocurrency.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Give up is a procedure in securities or commodities trading where an executing broker places a trade on behalf of another broker. Often this type of trade happens if work or other obligations prohibit the actions of the original broker to complete the transaction.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Regulation U is a Federal Reserve Board regulation that governs loans by entities involving securities as collateral and the purchase of securities on margin.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
Keynes is regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern day macroeconomic theories. His ideas have developed into a subset of economic hypothesis called "Keynesian economics."
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
A mutual fund custodian is a trust company, bank or similar financial institution responsible for holding and safeguarding the securities owned within a mutual fund.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
The Self-Employed Contributions Act (SECA) tax is a form of taxes that self-employed business owners must pay on their net earnings from self-employment.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now
You are subscribed to email updates from rss_headline. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
Email delivery powered by Google
Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States
A day after Friday's monetary policy announcement, the Times of India headline read: 'RBI cuts repo rate to a 9-year low, growth estimate to a 7-year low.' Put simply, what that means is that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has thrown everything, bar the kitchen sink, at the economy in a bid to get its wheels churning once again.From its February 2019 meeting till the latest last week, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has cut RBI's main signalling rate, the repo rate at which it infuses liquidity, by 135 basis points to 5.15%. Despite this, GDP growth is expected to dip to a seven-year low of 6.1%, a sharp reduction from 7.4 % estimated in February 2019 and 6.9% estimated just two months ago.How did the RBI/MPC go so terribly wrong in their growth estimates? In April 2019, RBI projected Q1 GDP growth at 6.8%. Actual growth came in 180 basis points lower, at a 25-quarter low of just 5%, according to the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO).Why? Part of the reason could be that the MPC's and RBI's (understandable?) reluctance to concede the economic cost of their earlier tight monetary policy. Today, it is fashionable to attribute the continued economic slowdown to the lingering effects of demonetisation and introduction of the goods & services tax (GST). And rightly so. But MPC and RBI, in that order, must also share some of the blame — MPC for keeping monetary policy much too tight, for much too long, and RBI for not realising the enormous collateral damage inevitable in its abrupt attempt to clean up the banking system, and in an unrealistically short timeframe.Tight Monetary Policy Take these one by one. Headline inflation, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), had started trending down from mid-2016. Barring the occasional spike, it has hovered close to the mid-point of MPC's 2-6% target range since. Despite this, MPC under RBI governor Urjit Patel continued its tight monetary policy disregarding clear, and increasingly irrefutable, signs of economic slowdown.RBI, on its part, erred in not thinking through the consequences of its actions to tackle non-performing assets (NPAs). Agreed, NPAs had to be reduced and recalcitrant promoters brought to book. But by cracking down on all defaulting borrowers, regardless of whether default was deliberate or due to extraneous reasons (the Supreme Court cancellation of coal block auctions, for instance), and by compelling banks to make aggressive provisions, virtually overnight, RBI left them with little lendable resources. Add to that the indiscriminate crackdown on bankers by vigilance agencies for lending decisions gone wrong, regardless of whether bona fide or not, and banks just stopped lending. In a bank-driven economy like India's, the consequences are far-reaching, as we are now painfully realising.In fairness to MPC, decision-making in India is also constrained by higher volatility in price of food and oil, two key components of our consumption basket. Does anyone know when the next extreme climate event will hit and what it's going to do to onion prices? Or to oil prices? What is far worse is it doesn't have real-time information about macroeconomic fundamentals that it can rely on. In the words of former RBI governor and incurable wit YV Reddy, never mind the future, 'even the past is uncertain'.Too Little Too LateConsider. As late as December 2018, MPC retained the policy rate at 6.5% and continued with calibrated tightening, since official GDP numbers available till then gave no inkling of the imminent slowdown.Likewise, when MPC met in February 2019 under the less hawkish new governor Shaktikanta Das, GDP numbers had not begun to reflect the full extent of the slowdown (the numbers come with a considerable lag). Consequently, MPC cut rates only by a moderate 25 bps, and continued to cut in baby steps of 25 bps each till August 2019, when it cut by amore aggressive 35 bps.Unfortunately, monetary policy is marked by large and undefinable lags. Timing is everything. So, the cumulative reduction of 135 points came much too late to prevent GDP growth from dipping to a 25-quarter low of 5% in the April- June quarter of 2019-20. Moreover, monetary policy is more effective in tackling inflation than in kickstarting growth. You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. That's the domain of fiscal policy.MPC must, therefore, tread a fine line. The fear is that just as it was behind the curve earlier, it might find itself ahead of the curve some months down the line, if in its zeal to correct for past errors it goes overboard.The fiscal deficit is likely to be breached, despite GoI's claims to the contrary. And turning points are extraordinarily hard to predict. So, even as it eases the monetary spigot to support growth, MPC would do well to remember former RBI governor D Subbarao's lament. If only he'd known the economy was over-heating (it showed up in the data much later), he might have acted earlier to tighten monetary policy. And saved the economy subsequent excesses.
MUMBAI | KOLKATA: Plastic is fast becoming part of the performance metrics for top management in consumer facing companies as they are evaluated on the product's packaging innovation, effective recycle and waste management in a country that is trying to rid single use plastic by 2022."It is no longer the job for just research and development or packaging division people," said Chitranjan Dar, group head of environment, health and safety, projects and R&D at ITC Ltd. "There were points to have a sustainable business in terms of keeping environment green, proper usage of oil or gas. We have now added plastic and allotted few points in the evaluation system for top business heads and we clearly see earlier deterrent is now melting away."The snacks to soaps conglomerate has opened the country's first multilayer packaging collection and recycling initiative in Pune and has partnered rag pickers and recyclers for waste management. To be sure, most companies having been pushing sustainability agenda as one of their top priorities over the past few years, where top managers are judged in the form of energy efficiency, waste management, greenproduct development or water conservation.But now, plastic is being added to the overall assessment level in the key result area or KRA, where decision makers are held accountable."We look at environmental, social and governance or ESG which relates to the purpose of the organisation & how leaders are leading to the purpose of the organisation. We look at it holistically and plastic is a part of it along with energy and water conservation. ESG score is a KPI of senior leaders," said Saugata Gupta, managing director at Marico."Members of senior management are asked to drive a culture of continuously reduce, recycle and reuse waste as we move towards a low waste business. Wastage is tracked across as a performance dimension and plugged into business scorecards along with individual as well as team performance cards," said Rajesh Padmanabhan, director at Welspun Group. "This is driven across the group as a hard coded KRA."India's per capita plastic consumption is 11 kg, lower than the world average of 28 kg, according to Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The Indian government wants to limit single use plastic such as bags, cutlery and straws to reduce plastic waste in the country which uses about 5.6 million tonne annually. While several companies including Hindustan Unilever, Hero Moto-Corp and Swiggy are introducing measures to eliminate use of single-use plastic, the aim is to be plastic neutral."Our packaging development team also has a KRA on how they can reduce the ratio of plastic utilisation in our packaging. From the next cycle, we are evaluating the possibility of including this as a KRA parameter of judging overall senior management performance on how successfully they are driving this initiative," A Sudhakar, director of human resources at Dabur India said.
MUMBAI: Economic growth has probably reached a "trough" and the pace of GDP expansion will start rising by January next year, HDFC Bank managing director Aditya Puri has said.While the crisis with the shadow banks is over, there may be a few companies, especially with exposure to the realty space, that may face problems in the future, Puri told PTI in an interview.The comments were made at an interaction before the RBI sharply revised down its GDP growth target to 6.1 per cent on Friday. The GDP growth has slipped to a six-year low of 5 per cent in the June quarter."I am not saying boisterous… or we are going to have a runaway boom. I am saying that as we are moving ahead, growth will move higher from where it is. We are probably at the trough," Puri said.He said higher government spending, investment in infrastructure, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's move to get more money into the economy and a good monsoon will support the growth.However, given the very large size of India, the measures will take time to yield results, Puri said, adding that by January, he expects a pick-up in the economic growth.Banks are witnessing demand for working capital loans at present, he said, adding that the capacity utilisation needs to move up to 80 per cent from the present 77 per cent for investments to happen and it may take some time for the same.Replying to a query on the fiscal side worries, Puri said while it is "reasonable" to expect a widening of the fiscal gap, he is confident that the same can be bridged through higher disinvestments, better collections of both GST and the income tax, and not worry too much about a marginal slippage.On the issues surrounding the NBFCs (non-banking finance companies), he said the crisis is gone, but there is no easy solution & things will take time to settle down.There may be a few more entities especially having exposure to the realty segment, which will face difficulties, he said, answering a question on recent developments at Altico Capital."The crisis is over, the problem is not over. There will be a few like these. The ALM issue will have to be rectified. I don't think there are any unrecognized large NBFCs which will move into a problem," he said.Stressing that an NBFC going down does not create systemic risks because such entities are not a part of the clearing system, he welcomed efforts like portfolio sell-offs, bringing equity and improvements in cashflows.The RBI has also taken measures to help the sector and the state-run banks have also started lending, he said, adding that we need to keep monitoring the sector in the future.On HDFC Bank's plans, he said it will very well capitalised and will not be needing capital for at least three more years."We are seeing growth in demand," he said, adding that the bank has started lending to newer segments like the small businesses, and even shopkeepers because of technology tools.It has started to go beyond the top 4 million consumers in the country and is now addressing the top 6.5 million consumers courtesy the data it has and also through targeted marketing efforts, he said.He said the quality of its unsecured book is also "quite safe" and the bank expects this stream to continue growing.On the term loans side, Puri said the bank has participated in road and renewable energy projects, and stressed the need to have "good projects" for this to grow.He defined a "good project" as one "where appropriate risks are covered, the construction risk is covered, the owner who was supposed to make payment has been covered and the structuring is such that debt to equity is correct" and assured that such will continue getting money.
Vodafone is testing innovative open access radio technology in Britain - a first for Europe - in a move that could break the grip Huawei, Ericsson and Nokia hold on the telco equipment market. OpenRAN, which has been developed by Vodafone and Intel, standardises the design of hardware and software in the infrastructure, masts and antennae that make up the radio access network that carries mobile calls and data. Vodafone, the world's second largest mobile operator, has trialled the technology in laboratories in South Africa and deployed it in Turkey to deliver 2G and 4G services to customers in both urban and rural areas. It could enable customers to make calls and access data at lower cost. Chief Executive Nick Read said it was ready to fast track OpenRAN into Europe as it sought to expand its list of vendors. "OpenRAN improves the network economics enabling us to reach more people in rural communities and that supports our goal to build digital societies in which no one is left behind," he said on Sunday. The mobile network equipment sector is dominated by three companies: China's Huawei, Sweden Ericsson and Finland's Nokia. Operators generally deploy kit from at least two of them to reduce reliance on a single supplier. Huawei, however, has been blacklisted by the United States over concerns, denied by the company, that its equipment could be used for spying. U.S. mobile networks are therefore barred from using some Huawei equipment and Washington is urging European countries to follow suit. Industry lobby group GSMA, which represents 750 mobile operators, has said a ban on Chinese suppliers would add $62 billion to the costs of 5G networks in Europe, although other analysis has put the figure lower. Vodafone said it was working with companies including U.S.-based Parallel Wireless and Mavenir and UK-based Lime Microsystems on OpenRAN technology. It said it would launch OpenRAN in 120 rural areas in Britain on Monday, and would start trials in Mozambique and Democratic Republic of Congo.
MUMBAI: A local court Sunday sent Waryam Singh, the suspended chairman on Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank to police custody till October 9. Singh was placed under arrest after being 'nabbed' in Mahim in South Mumbai on Saturday evening.He is the fourth arrest in the alleged loan default at the cooperative bank by HDIL group in 'connivance' with bank officials.Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) which has registered a money laundering case in this matter and will soon write to Maldives to attach a yacht owned by the promotors of HDIL group. The agency has also attached a private jet, a nine-seater Bombardier Challenger-300 aircraft registered in the name of Privilege Airways Private Ltd, a company in which both Rakesh and son, Sarang Wadhawan are directors. The father-son duo are in the custody of the Mumbai Police.The city police told the court that they want to confront Singh with the other three arrested accused as he was also an executive director with the realty developer group when he was holding the post of the chairman with the bank, thereby amounting to a case of conflict of interest."We have to confront him with the other accused. The accused was PMC chairman and HDIL executive director at the same time," The EOW told the court. The defence counsel argued that the decisions were taken by ex-MD Joy Thomas (who has been arrested on Friday) and that his client was a 'mere signatory'. "All the documents are already in the custody of RBI appointed administrator and EOW. Back then, when he was a chairman also (and) he never had any access to any documents," he contended.The Mumbai Police is probing a loan default of Rs 4,600 crore and is also investigating 'evergreeing of loans', as they have stumbled upon instances where these alleged masked loans availed from PMC were used to meet the debt obligations of other banks by the realty developer group."Initially it appears that the funds availed by HDIL from PMC Bank have not been utilised for designated purposes of borrowings. Initiall scrutiny of financial statements indicate diversions and misappropriation of funds in larger amounts," read the remand application filed before the court.
NEW DELHI: Private lender YES BANK on Sunday said it has lodged a complaint with Mumbai police and cyber cell against the dissemination of fake news and spread of rumors about the bank's financial health on WhatsApp and other social media platforms. The bank has requested the authorities to form a multi-disciplinary team of experts for detecting the origin of the fake news and assess the short-sell positions, held either directly or indirectly by such accused persons. "Over the past few days some miscreants have been spreading false information and malicious rumors about YES Bank on WhatsApp and other social media platforms to create panic and fear in the mind of its depositors. The messages attempt to portray the Bank in poor light and are intended to tarnish the image of the Bank in the eyes of its depositors, stakeholders and the general public," the lender said in a regulatory filing. YES Bank added that it remains committed to protect the interest of all its valued stakeholders and promises to take strong steps against the fear/ panic mongers. "The bank appeals to its trusted patrons to be cautious of false information circulating against it and assures that its financial position continues to be absolutely safe and sound," it said.Back-to-back reports of promoters selling stakes and lenders to the bank revoking shares pledged with them, battered the stock badly last week. A surge in the scrip on Friday ensured the stock recovered and closed 13.63 per cent down at Rs 42.20 for the week.
The promoters of Zee want to repay debt in the next three months to quell uncertainty surrounding the business, said Zee Entertainment Enterprises MD Punit Goenka. Though 90% of promoter shares in the media company are pledged directly or indirectly, Goenka doesn't forsee any threat of losing control of the family jewel. In an exclusive interview with ET's Gaurav Laghate and Vinod Mahanta, Goenka talks about the VTB deal, repayment plan and possible future stake sale. Edited excerpts:Zee shares have been sliding due to promoter debt issue. What's the latest debt situation?Let's dial back. In January 2019, the total loan against shares and some other securities was about Rs 13,500 crore. Today, that debt stands at Rs 7,000 crore. Almost half of that has been repaid by us or by the markets — whatever you want to call it.The current situation is such that after having sold the 205 MW of solar energy assets, we realised about Rs 1,300 crore of enterprise value. We are in active dialogue for the balance 480 MW of solar assets, which are in advanced stages and should give us some significant enterprise value plus some equity realisation as well which will go towards this Rs 7,000 crore. Apart from this, we have some binding documents on a few of our road assets. That is an active dialogue right now, and we are nearing completion.For the 205 MW, which was sold, the money should be received in this quarter. So, that also will help and within the timeline these three things will take place. We should be able to achieve the objective of getting out of this entire debt position.Just over 90% of promoters' shares are pledged — directly or indirectly. Is there a chance of losing control or a hostile takeover?A hostile takeover in our country is very unlikely. Unless all lenders and VTB Capital (Russian company) put together take any action, it's unlikely. This company's true value comes from the fact that we run it the way we run it. From that perspective, any prospective buyer or investor who will come in — whether strategic or financial — will see that value and would want us to be a part of it.The other thing I keep saying is that it's our passion that drives this business, and not the percentage that we own. The percentages can keep going down or up and we can rebuild it over a period of time. I'm pretty confident that even in this situation, we should be left with at least half of the 22%.There have been questions regarding disclosure of the VTB transaction...That Rs 13,500 crore in January included the VTB loan even at that time and the Rs 7,000 crore includes the VTB loans even today. About VTB, we always clearly stated that this is a loan against share/promoters' liabilities. At that point, there was no need for us to disclose the encumbrance on that loan, because even today, the encumbrance is on the shares of the holding company and not on the shares of Zee directly. But after the new Sebi circular that came, this had to be disclosed, and both VTB and we jointly made the disclosure.Now what is the arrangement with the current lenders and who all have agreed on a standstill agreement?Predominantly, everybody has agreed — all mutual funds, NBFCs — have agreed to the extension till March 2020.Can you share the timeline of future loan repayments?There are multiple due dates for the domestic loans. The next due date is April 2020 and the last one is, I think, in June 2021. But we don't want to wait till then. We want to sort out the problem within the next three months itself and get the whole thing resolved.Currently, uncertainties are unnecessarily driving the whole situation and nobody is talking about the strong performance that the company is delivering. We are in the silent period so can't talk about numbers, but we have been beating the market on all metrics. In two weeks, the results will reflect that. The crown jewel is being protected from that point of view.At what stage is the Invesco Oppenheimer deal? We believe 2.3% stake is yet to be sold.So, the total deal was for up to 11% shares, out of which 8.7% got completed, while 2.3% is remaining. Because of the silent period, it was delayed further. We will engage with them as soon as the silent period is over.Will there be any changes in the terms because the deal was done at ?400 per share and now the share stands at Rs 236?Even when the final transaction took place with Oppenheimer, the share price had come off significantly. They still honoured the sale at ?400 per share for the 8.7% stake. While I can't guarantee what they will do now, we are in dialogue with them and they have said let's finish the silent period, come out with your results and we will re-engage as to how to close the remaining 2.3%.Will there be any talks with VTB on extending the loan period?VTB's loan is due only one year from now and we are already engaging with them to see how we can restructure that further. VTB has been a long-term partner; they have worked with many promoters in this country and outside. They will look at this as an opportunity to create value for themselves and by virtue of that, create value for us also.Are you still open to selling majority stake?We were open to selling majority stake when the strategic players were in dialogue. Our objective is to solve the problem. The stakeholder interest has been prime in our view and will remain prime till this whole problem is solved.With share price coming down, have any strategic buyers reached out to you?Yes, absolutely, they have. They have approached us, but I can't engage till the silent period is over. What I can say is that there is interest and it's the subset of the same people who were in talks earlier. This has happened in the last week or so.How much are you willing to divest to a strategic investor?We will be willing to sell 10-11%. Of course, they are free to buy from the market if they want to buy more.Do you see any hidden hand in the constant shorting of the Zee stock?It's a bear market and short-sellers are driving the market. This is not just in my scrip; the same is happening with multiple scrips. That's where I feel that nobody is valuing the intrinsic value of the asset. It's the overhang that's driving this entire stock market. But, I guess, it's an opportunity for them and they are cashing in on it.As Essel group chairman Subhash Chandra is barred from selling his unpledged stake in Zee till next month in an ongoing dispute with Indiabulls, will that in any way impact on-going or future transactions?It is only restricted to Dr Subhash Chandra. What the judgement says is that Dr Chandra's personal assets, which are not encumbered, he cannot sell. That has no impact on any deal that we are doing.At what stage is the Dish-Airtel Digital TV merger deal?All options are being worked upon including media and non-media assets, whatever it takes.But isn't it a merger deal? That means there won't be any money coming in…Money may not come in, but if that merger takes place, it will unlock the value of the company.It is a Rs 2,000 crore Ebitda business and the stock price is at Rs 16-17 per share. It is bizarre.
NEW DELHI: The dispute, between India's brick-and-mortar stores selling mobile phones and brands such as Samsung, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Realme, appears to have been resolved after a series of recent meetings between the two sides. Retailers said the brands have promised offers or promotions during the festive season in the offline space.This is the fallout after the retailers' association red-flagged predatory pricing and discounts on e-commerce platforms. However, the retailer group has cautioned that it is open to considering legal options against the brands and online platforms, if the promises are not delivered."We've had meetings with the brands to restore the balance between offline and online sales. They have even promised to support us through the festive season. However, if the talks do not materialise into action, and it becomes a do-or-die situation for us, then we will be forced to consider legal options," said Arvinder Khurana, president of the All India Mobile Retailers Association (AIMRA).Samsung, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Realme did not respond to ET's requests seeking comment.National and state-level representatives of the association met with top executives of Samsung, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Realme over the past week to seek the same level of discounts being given by the brands to ecommerce platforms on offline channels.The demand followed clarifications from top ecommerce marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart and many brands that discounts offered online are extended by the brands and not the online channel.
Whatever I have learnt, it is through Gandhi: Ameen Sayani HIS MASTER'S VOICE: On Mahatma's 150 anniversary, legendary radio broadcaster fondly remembers Bapu
Resilience for alliance Since no relationship is conflict proof and because it comes with its own share of conflicts and issues, resilience is the secret ingredient to make it work
NNTR to de-weed Navegaon-Nagzira water project to avoid future conflict Now, officials at the Navegaon Nagzira Tiger Project (NNTP) have launched a campaign to remove the weed, which is locally called 'besharam'
Garba: Mating dance in the age of Instagram As social media has now banished the parents from the loop, the onus of female-safety rests solely in the hands of young girls, a development that evolution may not have prepared them for
RTE admissions: Only 57 confirmed in its final round As per the department officials, parents don't turn up to confirm admissions even after being allotted seats in the student's name
IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jets that destroyed Jaish terror camp in Balakot airstrike code-named 'Spice' However, the Balakot Operation was code-named 'Operation Bandar' to maintain secrecy
BMC deploys 41 teachers for students with special needs Over 41 mobile teachers are deployed by the education department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in its 11,068 schools to groom the 12,000 plus differently-abled students for a bright future, without any hindrance.
Now, I feel accepted as daughter of India: Nirmal Khanna The IAF has engraved the name of Squadron Leader Ravi Khanna on the National War Memorial in Delhi
Maharashtra: State info panel fails to submit its annual report, 2nd time in a row Senior officers are shirking responsibility to juniors, which results in further delay of the report
Man held for stealing sack of onions in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur The police arrested the accused and recovered the stolen stash of onions which was then returned to the trader
Haryana Assembly polls: Two former Congress MLAs, one from Indian National Lok Dal join BJP Welcoming the new leaders, at a programme held in Tilyar here, the Chief Minister urged them to immediately join campaigning for the ruling party
Uttar Pradesh woman hangs herself after rape, names of assaulters found on hand She was first raped by an uncle. Relatives forced her father to settle the matter by mutual consent
