GENEVA - The U.N. human rights office calls the decision to close Jordans Teachers Syndicate another blow to the unions freedom of association and to its ability to operate without governmental interference.

U.N. rights officials say they are deeply disturbed by the increasingly restrictive and heavy-handed measures being imposed on the independent trade union right to freedom of opinion and expression. They cite worrying reports of excessive use of force by security forces late last month against hundreds of demonstrators who were protesting the arrest and suspension of the Teachers Syndicates leaders.

U.N. human rights spokesman Rupert Colville says his agency has serious concerns about a growing clampdown on press freedoms. He says a recent order by the attorney general to ban all news stories about the syndicates closure and the arrest of its board members tramples on peoples civic rights.

The actions against the Teachers Syndicate, which has over 100,000 members, and its supporters, are emblematic of a growing pattern of suppression of public freedoms and the restriction of civic and democratic space by the Jordanian government, including against labor rights activists, human rights defenders, journalists and those who have peacefully criticized the government, said Colville.

The government and the Teachers Syndicate have been engaged in disputes over low teacher salaries in public schools since the union was formed in 2011. After a four-week strike last October, the government agreed to raise teacher salaries from 35 to 74 percent, depending on their professional level.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Colville says salary increases have been frozen until the end of the year, raising tensions with the syndicate.

While Jordan is clearly facing an economic crisis, like many other countries, partly because of the COVID-19 restrictions, we encourage the government to engage in good faith negotiations with the Teachers Syndicate about their concerns rather than imposing measures that unlawfully restrict the rights to freedom of association, peaceful assembly, opinion and expression, said Colville.

Schools are closed for summer holidays but are due to reopen at the end of the month. However, the U.N. human rights office warns further pressure on the Teachers Syndicate may trigger more strikes, resulting in additional school closures. Among the losers, it says, would be the children, who would be deprived of their right to education.

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UN Denounces Muzzling of Teachers Union in Jordan - Voice of America

GAZA CITY: The Gaza Strips rulers Hamas fired rockets into the sea on Monday after repeated exchanges of fire with Israel in recent days, Palestinian security sources and eyewitnesses said.At least eight rockets were seen in the sky, heading toward the Mediterranean Sea, said AFP journalists in the coastal strip, which has been under Israeli blockade for more than a decade.The interior ministry of the Palestinian enclave under Hamas control since 2007 referred to an act of resistance.The rockets were a message to Israel to let it know that armed groups in Gaza will not remain silent in the face of an Israeli blockade and aggression, a source close to Hamas told AFP.The source noted that Mondays rocket fire coincided with the recent launch of incendiary balloons into Israel.In the past week, such balloons have flown three times from Gaza into Israel, each time triggering retaliatory strikes against Hamas positions.The latest came Sunday night when the Israeli military announced that one of its aircraft had struck at a Hamas observation post in northern Gaza.Hamas and Israel have fought three wars since 2008.Despite a truce last year, backed by the UN, Egypt and Qatar, the two sides clash sporadically with rockets, mortar fire or incendiary balloons from Gaza and retaliatory strikes by Israel.Palestinian analysts say fire from Gaza often aims to pressure Israel to give the green light for the transfer of financial aid into the strip.I dont expect a war because neither side wants a war at this stage, Jamal Al-Fadi, professor of political science at Gazas Al-Azhar University, told AFP.These rockets and incendiary balloons are messages from Hamas to Israel to improve economic conditions in the enclave, ease the blockade and implement part of the agreements reached by the two sides, he added.

According to the World Bank, around 53 percent of Gazas population lived below the poverty line before the novel coronavirus crisis.That number could rise above 60 percent due to economic fallout from the pandemic, it has said.So far 81 cases of the novel coronavirus, including one death, have been recorded in the enclave of two million people, where schools reopened this weekend after a five-month shutdown.Israeli Defense Minister and alternate prime minister Benny Gantz said Monday he would be happy to see Gaza develop and for Palestinians in the strip to be able to work in Israel.But that can only happen on one condition: that the boys come home, he said.Gantz was referring to the bodies of two soldiers believed to have been killed in the 2014 Gaza war and their remains held by Hamas, and possibly to two Israeli civilians thought to be held captive by Hamas after they crossed into Gaza over five years ago.In 2011, Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was freed in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

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Jordan to ramp up repatriation of nationals - Arab News

One of the biggest shoes of 2020 is one that no one liked at all at first. The Union x Air Jordan IV, the follow up to the brand's much-talked-about collaboration on the Air Jordan 1 from 2018, was destined to be a "sneaker of the year" since rumors started to swirl about its existence last year. People didn't need to know what it looked like to want it. It was an Air Jordan by Union. It was going to be great. It was going to resell for $1,000. And everyone who mattered was going to wear them and make you want them even more.

To talk about the Union x Air Jordan IV, we need to go back in time a bit first. Union was started by James Jebbia in New York City in 1989, before he founded Supreme in 1994. The store became one of the first outlets for a burgeoning streetwear culture that would help overlap skateboarding, hip-hop, sneakers, and surf into a style and aesthetic unlike anything before it. Chris Gibbs bought Union in 2008. The NYC store closed in 2009. And now only a Los Angeles store represents the business.

Union became known as a taste-leader in the streetwear world. It wasn't a typical sneaker boutique, although some of its past collaborations include its era-defining take on the Nike Air 180. It was a shop that sold the brands and products that it liked, whether they were the biggest labels at the time or not. (Union was one of the first shops in the U.S. that sold Visvim.) Its Air Jordan 1 collaboration came out not long after the retailer worked with Gary Aspden on an Adidas SPZL collection.

The Air Jordan 1 project was debuted in a unique way. It was placed at a booth at the Rose Bowl Flea Market without any promotion online and organically, at least to our knowledge, discovered by influencers such as Sean Wotherspoon and Emily Oberg, who didn't think the shoes were real.

The sneakers, with their mismatched uppers combining Air Jordan 1 colorways that first released in 1985, took some time to grow on people. Not everyone was sold on them at first. black/red combined with white/blue was a jarring mix. But the hype on the sneakers spiraled out of control, with pairs eventually selling for nearly $2,000.

This wasn't the first time that hype was seen on a Union x Air Jordan 1. A year earlier at ComplexCon, riots nearly broke out as the retailer attempted to release a mismatch pair of black and gold Jordan 1s.

"I underestimated the demand and fervor of the Jordan customer. 2,000 kids lined up yesterday. We were just caught off guard and it messed things up," said Gibbs about the release then. "We love to have the Jordans, but we have other good product and a regular non-Jordan hooligan that's trying to see some of our other shit. Obviously, there's other normal Jordan fans, but there are rough guys fucking it up for everything. They almost pushed over our wall."

Whether by coincidence or design, hype tends to follow Union Air Jordan 1s. Since the release and critical acclaim of the 2018 Air Jordan 1s, the brand's Twitter account tweeted on a regular basis about the shoes, making the sneakers part of the company's identity.

Another collaboration with Jordan Brand has been teased for quite some time. Rumors started to circulate that it would be an Air Jordan IV, unarguably a top-five Air Jordan of all timemaybe even the greatest, depending on who you ask.

"We're definitely circling the wagons around the Jordan IVs," Gibbs told Complex in a July 2019 interview. "It's not 100 percent confirmed yet, but that's kind of where it's at."

One of the few ways that Union could have upped the hype ante on their previous collaborations was with this Air Jordan IV. This time, though, unlike the previous two sneakers (the black/gold pair was released without anyone's prior knowledge at ComplexCon) everyone saw it coming. It was going to be big from the start.

But then there was a lulla letdown when the sneakers were unofficially unveiled. And some could have predicted that outcome. The last sneakers weren't exactly what you'd expect from one of the biggest collaborations of that year, but they became it over time. The sneakers grew on people.

The Air Jordan IVs were different. They had a flapped over tongue, a mesh toebox, and a shape unlike any previous Air Jordan IVs. They didn't appeal to purists of the brand or those simply in it for the hype. But once people were able to see high-definition photos of the shoes, see them styled the right way, and notice that they look more traditional than they thought, the tide on the internet started to turn.

Today, Aug. 6, Union finally gave an official look at the Air Jordans, as well as two pairs of non-retro sneakers that will be included in the collection. And the shoes look much different from the earlier leaked photos. For starters, the tongue can come to full length with the removal of a few stitches.

In a short blog post, Gibbs said: "First time around we took a crack at the AJ I, which was my all time favorite. For our sophomore album... we pivot to my 2nd favorite; the AJ IV. Back in the day, I had always liked to wear my IV's with a short tongue, so I would fold them over themselves and tie them down."

Gibbs used to the sneakers rollout to explain the design of the shoe. "The other major thing we did was that we edited the paneling of the shoes to create a slightly different shape to the shoe. You might not catch this at first, but when you compare our design to the OG AJ IVs. you can tell we added an extra panel, he says. We did this for 2 reasons; first off, it created a dope toe vamp view when you look down... my favorite view is when you look right down at kicks; the 'birds-eye view.' Secondly, It allows for a more balanced ratio of mesh to suede, which is something I was trying to achieve as well."

The sneakers make a lot more sense now, and it's started to change people's minds. Seeing the shoes with a full-length tongue makes the difference to some. Seeing better quality pictures of the shoes also helps. For others, they've simply warmed up to the design or appreciated the story behind them. Needless to say, the hype is afoot on the Union x Air Jordan IVs.

As for me? I'm undecided on my critical analysis of the sneakers (which have been shown in Noir and Guava colorways). I'm not going for Air Jordan IVs anyway, but can still hold a favorable view of the sneaker through a removed lens.

No matter how people feel about these sneakers, this hype was bound to happen. They will be limited. They will resell for a ton of money. The high-profile celebrities and cool internet folks will wear them and kids across America will view them as their grails. Guests on Sneaker Shopping will buy them. The prices will shoot up and people will forget that they hated the shoe to begin with.

It's a sneaker collaboration that's too big to fail. It's weird to lump a Union x Air Jordan IV in with Nike's string of Travis Scott sneakers, Dior x Air Jordan 1s, Ben & Jerry's x Nike SB Dunks, but that's the expectation at this pointeven if Union is the consistently-low-resting heart-rate of a shop that's cool on all accounts, but still beats to its own drum.

Those sneakers take zero convincing to like before consumers even see them. A Union x Air Jordan IV, in theory, should be the same thing. But theres something challenging about the design. Its not a shoe you need to understand to like, but its something you need to consider a few times before you make up your mind. Even with all that said, theres always going to be people who like the shoes anyway, even if they dont know why. As Ive said before, its a Union Air Jordan. Its going to resell for a lot and be worn by famous people.

It's what Gibbs alluded to earlier, their Air Jordans bring in a different consumer from their everyday shopper. It's someone who's going to have different expectations. When the stakes are higher, that's harder to communicate, but that's the case here. It's not a bad thing, either. It's growth and recognition for a small shop that's been the pulse of the streetwear scene since its inception. It just comes with new levels of stress and people to satisfyones that will like the product once someone they deem as cool wears it. Just wait for it to happen with the Union x Air Jordan IVs, they're one Instagram photo away from sneaker of the year.

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You're Going to Like the Union x Air Jordan IVs, Even If You Hated Them - Complex

By Jones, N., Baird, S., Presler-Marshall, E., Maachowska, A., Kilburn, K., Abu Hamad, B., Essaid, A., Amaireh, W., Sajdi, J., Banioweda, K., Alabbadi, T., Alheiwidi, S., Ashareef, Q., Altal, S., Kharabsheh, W., Abu Taleb, H., Abu Azzam, M. and Abu Hammad, B.

Introduction

Situated at the crossroads of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Jordan has a long history of hosting the regions refugees. Beginning with Palestine refugees in 1948, followed by Iraqi refugees in the 1990s and, since 2011, accepting hundreds of thousands of Syrians fleeing both drought and civil war, it is estimated that of Jordans approximately 10 million inhabitants, 1 in 3 is a refugee. Of those, more than 2 million are Palestinian (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), 2019b), just over 660,000 are Syrian, and nearly 100,000 are from Iraq, Yemen and Sudan (UNHCR, 2019). While the country is ranked high in terms of human development (United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), 2019), Jordan has faced significant economic and social challenges in seeking to absorb its large refugee population. Its public schools, many of which are running double-shift, cannot meet demand and the country faces severe and escalating water shortages. The labour market is also struggling to keep up with the burgeoning population. It is estimated that the real unemployment rate is twice that of the officially reported rate of 15% (CIA World Factbook, 2019; World Bank, 2019b).

Jordans refugee populations are especially vulnerable. While most Palestine refugees have been granted full citizenship, which affords them the same rights and services as other Jordanian citizens, the nearly 20% who remain living in refugee camps (especially those originally from Gaza) are legally barred from doing many types of work, which means they have a poverty rate approaching one-third (31%) (Tiltnes and Zhang, 2013; Palestinian Return Centre, 2018). Jordans Syrian refugees of whom approximately 85% live in urban host communities and 15% live in one of two formal camps are in many ways even more vulnerable, despite assistance from the international community. Approximately 85% live below the Jordanian poverty line (UNHCR, 2018).

Girls and women face additional gender-related barriers, due to social norms and laws that position them as second-class citizens. The Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ranks Jordan as very high in terms of gender inequality, and notes that womens rights within the family and access to civil liberties are particularly limited (OECD, 2019b). The World Bank (2019b) reports that womens labour force participation rates in Jordan are among the lowest in the world, while the World Economic Forum (WEF, 2018) notes that Jordans ranking in terms of womens economic opportunity has dropped significantly from 105th to 144th in the past decade.

This report draws on baseline evidence from GAGE (Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence) a unique longitudinal mixed-methods research and impact evaluation study focused on what works to support the development of adolescents capabilities during the second decade of life (1019 years). Recognising that the transformations that take place during adolescence are second only to those experienced in infancy and early childhood in terms of their scope and speed, and that the current generation of adolescents (1.2 billion) is the largest ever, the development community is increasingly focused on how to capitalise on the window of opportunity that is adolescence, to reap a triple dividend: for adolescents today, for their adult trajectories, and for their children.

GAGE brings to this global movement a focus on gender. Our starting point is that adolescent transitions often shape lives in highly gendered ways, due to the prevailing norms of socio-cultural environments. These norms especially around sexuality start to become more rigidly enforced and more consequential in early adolescence, forcing girls and boys trajectories to diverge as they approach adulthood. Understanding this divergence, and tailoring programme interventions accordingly, is critical if we are to fast-track social change.

Drawing on GAGEs mixed-methods research in Jordan, this report synthesises findings about adolescent girls and boys capabilities across six key domains: (1) education and learning; (2) health, nutrition, and sexual and reproductive health (SRH); (3) bodily integrity and freedom from violence; (4) psychosocial well-being; (5) voice and agency; and (6) economic empowerment. It concludes with policy and programming implications viewed through a multidimensional capability lens.

GAGE framing and methods

Conceptual framing

GAGEs conceptual framework takes a holistic approach that pays careful attention to the interconnectedness of what we call the 3 Cs capabilities, contexts, and change strategies to understand what works to support adolescent girls and boys development and empowerment, now and in the future (see Figure 1). This framing draws on the three components of Pawson and Tilleys (1997) approach to evaluation, which highlights the importance of outcomes, causal mechanisms and contexts. However, we tailor that approach to the specific challenges of understanding what works in improving adolescent girls and boys capabilities.

The first building block of our conceptual framework is capability outcomes. Championed originally by Amartya Sen (1984; 2004), and nuanced to better capture complex gender dynamics at intra-household and societal levels by Martha Nussbaum (2011) and Naila Kabeer (2003), the capabilities approach has evolved as a broad normative framework exploring the kinds of assets (economic, human, political, emotional and social) that expand the capacity of individuals to achieve valued ways of doing and being. Importantly, the approach can encompass relevant investments in girls and boys with diverse trajectories, including the most marginalised and hardest to reach, such as those who have a disability or girls who are already mothers.

The second building block of our conceptual framework is context. Our 3 Cs framework situates girls and boys ecologically, recognising that their capability outcomes are highly dependent on family or household, community, state and global contexts.

The third and final building block of our conceptual framework acknowledges that girls and boys contextual realities can be mediated by a range of change strategies, including: empowering individual adolescents; supporting parents; engaging with men and boys on gender inequalities; sensitising community leaders; enhancing adolescent-responsive services; and addressing system-level deficits.

Research questions

Stemming from our conceptual framework, there are three sets of questions that are central to GAGEs research.They focus on:

adolescent experiences and the ways in which these are gendered and also differ according to adolescents economic, social and geographical positioning;

the ways in which programmes and services address adolescent vulnerabilities and support the development of their full capabilities; and

the strengths and weaknesses of programme design and implementation in terms of ensuring programme efficacy, scale and sustainability.

At baseline, we are focusing on the first two questions. We will explore the third question in more detail during subsequent rounds of research currently scheduled for 2019/2020 and 2021/2022.

Research sample and methodology

GAGE is using both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore these research questions. Our baseline data was collected between mid-2018 and early 2019 and included a survey of nearly 4,000 adolescents and their caregivers. We also conducted in-depth individual interviews with 240 young people and their caregivers, held focus group discussions with adolescents, with parents and with community leaders, and conducted key informant interviews with service providers, governmental and nongovernmental stakeholders.

Research sample overview

GAGE research sites were informed by two complementary considerations: (1) a review of existing data and evidence on adolescents and gender in Jordan, which highlighted where the evidence base is especially thin (see Presler-Marshall et al., 2017; Presler-Marshall, 2018); and (2) the design of UNICEF Jordans integrated adolescent and youth programme for vulnerable girls and boys, through which we are exploring questions related to change strategies (as per the GAGE conceptual framework) and how they shape the development trajectories of adolescents from refugee and host communities alike.

GAGE is working in five governorates in Jordan Amman, Mafraq, Irbid, Zarqa and Jerash where most of the Syrian refugee population live. In order to explore the complexity of adolescent realities in refugee and host communities, we spread our sample across three very different contexts: host communities , informal tented settlements (ITSs), and United Nations (UN) refugee camps (see map in Annex 1). Recognising that recent attention has been focused on the Syrian population, and that Jordans Palestinian population is increasingly invisible to development actors, we have also included the ex-Gazan Palestinian population in Jerash refugee camp, which has high rates of child marriage and is particularly disadvantaged economically and socially due to residents lacking national identity documents.

To understand the effects of UNICEFs programming especially its Makani centres (see Annex 2) it was important that our sample included participants and non-participants. For participants, we were able to select adolescents using data from UNICEFs Bayantati (Our Data) database. For non-participants, we undertook a twostep process. In host communities, to minimise differences between the participant and non-participant sample, we selected adolescents whose families were either receiving UNICEFs Hajati cash transfer for vulnerable households, or those who were eligible but due to resource constraints were still on the waiting list (as of mid-2018). In the camps, because there is no equivalent cash transfer programme, we relied on the Refugee Assistance Information System (RAIS) of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and selected adolescents from families with similar vulnerability scores.

Our final quantitative sample consisted of 4,000 adolescents, equally split by sex (girls and boys) and by age cohort (younger adolescents aged 1012 years, and older adolescents aged 1517 years). Because sampling was based on household vulnerability, and refugee households are more vulnerable than Jordanian households, our sample is tilted towards refugees (with 15% Jordanians) (see Table 1 and 2 for details) (Baird et al., 2018). In line with the mandate of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to leave no one behind, we also deliberately over sampled some groups of especially marginalised young people, including those with disabilities and girls who were (or had been) married. Our qualitative sample, which consisted of 240 adolescents, was purposively selected out of the larger sample (for more details on the research methods and research ethics, see Jones et al., 2018).

Read the full report, executive summary, and executive summary in Arabic

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Adolescent well-being in Jordan: Exploring gendered capabilities, contexts and change strategies - A synthesis report on GAGE Jordan baseline findings...

It should come as no surprise thatMichael Jordans impactstretches well beyond the basketball court. Athletes, entertainers, and ordinary people around the world look at Jordan for inspiration across all walks.One of these fans is Kevin Hart.

Hart, who prides himself on his hard work drive to always get better, recently sat down with Joe Rogan on his podcast to discuss the impact that Jordan had on his life.

Hart might be known to the casual audience as the loud, funny leading man of several comedies and television shows. While this is true, he did not get to where he is by chance. Comedy, like sports, is a competitive field in its own right, and reaching Harts status requires an equal amount of talent and savvy in getting his name out there.

Hart isnt just a comedian; after all, he.is a media mogul, an entrepreneur, and an innovator in many ways. Seeing somebody like Michael Jordan, who showed that athletes could become a brand unto themselves, likely played dividends in getting Hart to where he is today, and it shows.

Hart is always thinking ahead about what he can do on camera, on the stage, and wherever else hes needed.

He spoke on this to Rogan.

RELATED: Joe Rogans Classic American Muscle Car Set Him Back Over $100k

Speaking aboutThe Last Dancedocumentary with Rogan, Hart, who once famously madeJordan angry with his jabs at a charity event (per NESN), was taken aback byhow otherworldly Jordan seemson and off the court. Amazed, he beamed about what it was like to see a man reach Jordans heights the way he did.

Hes an alien, Hart told the podcast host. Hes one of us. Hes one of those aliens [that] other aliens identify with.

To outsiders and people who never had to reach a Jordan or hart level, Jordans career seems as unlikely as getting superpowers or winning the lottery. However, for Hart, it gives him a benchmark for what he can aspire to be, even as his name grows bigger across the globe.

What this shows you is how different MJ was. That man was a f**ing winner. He was a winner. And thats it. Thats it. MJ won. There is no other conversation. When you watch this doc, and you watched how he approached his days, and why he approached it, and the things that he did, and his reason for doing them, and ultimately what he did, and what his priority and what his goals were, you go, F***.

This is nothing new to those who paid attention. Kobe Bryant was notorious for looking up at Jordan not just as the greatest basketball player ever, but one of the greatest workers.

Just because the diminutive Hart cant go out there and win NBA championships, however, it doesnt mean that he cant use Jordan as inspiration in his field.

Jordan goes beyond sports. While other athletes like Tiger Woods, LeBron James, Serena Williams, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Tom Brady have become international games, none have done so at the level Jordan did. No one ever calls somebody the Tiger Woods of baseball, football, or basketball. They almost always call somebody at the peak of a sport the Michael Jordan of whatever it is.

Hart might be a multi-millionaire celebrity now, but in the 1990s, he was another young man who watched Jordan ascend from NBA All-Star to a worldwide juggernaut. It makes sense, looking back, that Hart could see a man like that and grow inspired to use his methods in another world. Harts story is the story of a lot of people around the world.

This is what separates Jordan from every other athlete in history, and he will likely do so for many years to come, as well.

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Kevin Hart Tried to Explain Michael Jordan's Greatness to Joe Rogan - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Weston Kay stands in front of a brick backdrop wearing a pair of oversized glasses, a denim shirt, and a patchy beard while brandishing a razor in hand and says, "It's time to put an end to all the speculation and cut these Shattered Backboard Jordans in half to see if the leather quality's that good.and if they're worth the $1,000 I paid for them."

Kay, who runs the leather goods brand Rose Anvil and YouTube page of the same name, has gained notoriety for cutting apart sneakers on the internet to inspect the quality of the product. He's inspected the aforementioned Air Jordan 1s, as well as a pair of lesser-quality Air Jordan 1 mids, Air Force 1s, Common Projects, Vans, and more. And he's found out whether the sneakers are good or poor in quality and amassed nearly 200,000 subscribers in the process.

"I make wallets, belts and our biggest selling thing is camera harnesses for photographers," says Kay, who is located in northern Utah, where he says there is no sneaker culture, aside from a skate shop in town. "I'm not a cobbler, I'm just a general leather worker."

Kay's videos have drawn interest mainly for two reasons: first, nearly every person with an above average interest in sneakers pays attention to quality, and second, there's something very Good Internet about cutting a sneaker in half.

His videos show that cheaper shoes, such as an Air Jordan 1 Mid, aren't even made out of real leather, while the "Shattered Backboard" Air Jordan 1s are constructed of higher-quality leather in parts of the shoe.

"I'm kind of ignorant to the whole hype game and what's hot," says Kay. "I go in fairly blind to the cultural significance of shoes and what people think of shoes. It makes it easier for me to stay unbiased and look at it from a real world sense without being swayed by hype."

The Common Projects Achilles, which retails for over $400, has long been touted as "the only sneaker you'll ever need" by men's style experts who don't know much about sneakers. It's an all-white sneaker made in Italy and renowned for its quality. Kay deconstructed a pair of these and found out quite the opposite was true.

"It really surprised me that that was one that I kind of fell victim to the hype behind it. I heard in my comment sections, online, and just throughout my life that Common Projects were this ultra high-quality sneaker," says Kay. "I was expecting something a little bit more like a boot out of them, like full leather and a lot higher quality. They ended up just being an average shoe. It was a little bit overpriced."

In his video, Kay found out the shoes were made out of "chrome-tanned leather," which is a leather made from a cheaper process than vegetable-tanned leather. He also found out that shoes have a softer sole than Vans or Converse, which means it will wear down faster.

When it came time to dissect the Shattered Backboards, Kay says he felt hesitant. He's not the first person to destroy a sneaker online, although many have done so without the purpose of actually learning about the shoe, rather lighting it on fire or dipping it in fudge for Instagram likes or YouTube views.

"That's a lot of people's holy grail shoes and then they just see some guy cutting it apart on YouTube," says Kay about the Shattered Backboards. "A lot of people were really interested and a lot of people were upset."

He found that the toebox leather on the shoe, which is perceived to be some of the best Jordan has ever put out, was a "pretty good leather for the price." The black leather that's on the toe and heel, Kay says, was a "cheap" leather without grain. Given the $160 retail price on the sneakers, Kay was impressed.

"They're far from really high quality," he says. "They're decent quality for a sneaker."

As far as leather quality in sneakers, goes Kay says many are average, and there may be several factors that cause that. "I think it's planned obsolescence," says Kay. "I also think that when you get these big companies, you have so many people that are trying to make a buck all the way up the corporate ladder. It's all about the bottom line, and they know their shoes are gonna sell no matter what. I think companies are trying to make more money. I think they want people to buy shoes more often."

As far as the future of the channel goes, Kay says he's interested in dissecting an original 1985 Air Jordan 1, although he admits it's probably too expensive. He's also had unnamed boot companies mad at him for exposing what's in their products. Through the whole process, Kay admits that he's gotten a few things wrong (which has been called out by the commenters).

What the future holds for Kay, as far as YouTube goes, remains unknown, but he's going along with it and seeing where it takes him.

"I never intended to be a guy that cuts shoes and boots and half on YouTube. It's funny, right?" says Kay. "It makes me appreciate the sneakers a lot more. It's just really fun seeing what people are paying and how much hype dictates quality in that world."

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Meet the Leather Expert That's Ripping Apart $1,000 Air Jordans - Complex

UConn will have three scholarships opening next spring, with forwards Tyler Polley, Josh Carlton and Isaiah Whaley all in their senior years. Diggins and Hawkins account for two, and could be the replacements if Bouknight, who is appearing in mock drafts, moves on to the NBA. UConns next recruiting target will probably be a frontcourt player, such as Samson Johnson, 6-10, who played with Adama Sanogo at the Patrick School in New Jersey. Once UConn fills the three spots, Hurley and his staff will be able to wait and see how the season plays out and what additional needs they will have from the Class of 2021. The nationwide recruiting battle has been brewing for 7-0 Bristol Central center Donovan Clingan, clearly a top UConn priority in the Class of 2022.

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Meet Jordan Hawkins: Heres what to know about the newest UConn mens basketball recruit - Hartford Courant

During these uncertain times just a month before the scheduled beginning of an NFL uncertain season, versatility is more important than ever.

Moments before 49ers right tackle Mike McGlinchey followed teammate Arik Armstead to the podiumfor the start of his briefing with Bay Area reporters, McGlinchey took ahold of a spray bottle and rag.

Typically, a staff member disinfects the area in the auditorium at Levi's Stadium between interviews. On Monday, McGlinchey insisted on doing the chore himself.

Its going to be important this season for players --especially backup players --to fill a variety of roles. McGlincheys status as a starter is not in question, but he is getting into the act, too.

Versatility is going to be absolutely huge, McGlinchey said. Its going to make or break guys having jobs and make or break situations to fill our roster because we can get in any situation at any point this year that were not just looking out for injury, were looking out for something we cant really defend ourselves from at times.

To be able to plug and play guys in different positions at different times is really going to allow us to keep moving as smoothly as operationally possible.

Through Sunday, 105 players throughout the NFL have spent time on the reserve/COVID-19 list in the opening weeks of training camp. Seventy-five of those players have been activated, leaving 30 players who are unable to return to their teams practice facilities until cleared.

Both 49ers added to the list, receiver Richie James and running back Jeff Wilson, have been activated.

Teams must prepare for the possibility that they will have to come up with solutions for such problems as several players at one position going on reserve/COVID-19 at the same time. Each team is allowed to carry 16 players on their practice squads this season to help alleviate any concerns.

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It is reasonable to expect teams will have players on the practice squad getting familiar playing both ways. Teams will certainly have reserve defensive backs cross train at cornerback and safety. Some defensive linemen and linebackers will have to know all the spots within their position groups. And backup offensive linemen must be functional at multiple positions as insurance, too.

Two of the 49ers' newcomers fit that description, McGlinchey said.

Daniel Brunskill and Tom Compton are rotating during walk-throughs as they compete for the starting job at right guard. Brunskill started at three different positions for the 49ers last season, so he is a fit at nearly every position on the offensive line.

[RELATED:How Jimmy G, Trent Williams feel about fan-less games]

Compton is a veteran who has played right tackle and both guard positions in the course of his eight-year career.

Rookie Colton McKivitz, a fifth-round draft pick, started at left tackle and right tackle at West Virginia. He also is likely to be available to play guard for the 49ers.

Its two guys come in and compete really hard for us and give us added depth not just at the one position, but a bunch of them, McGlinchey said of Compton and McKivitz. Its going to allow us to do certain things with those guys and push other guys forward.

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Armstead excited to team up with Jordan again on 49ers - Comcast SportsNet Bay Area

SALT LAKE CITY A teenager and a young child are in critical condition at Primary Childrens Hospital after a car accident late Saturday night.

According to Salt Lake City Police, a car was speeding while driving west on Indiana Avenue. As the car turned onto Delong Street, it flipped and rolled into the Jordan River Canal.

The 20-year-old driver and two juveniles escaped the car before first responders arrived.

A 15-year-old and a 2-year-old were pulled from the wreckage in the canal.

Two officers with the Salt Lake City Police Department were the first to arrive on the scene.

They jumped into the canals murky water to rescue the trapped children from the almost fully submerged car.

They jumped out of their cars and into action. Its unknown how long the juveniles were in the water at the time, said Sgt. Andrew Cluff of the Salt Lake City Police Department. With the situation being as it was, officers felt compelled to jump in and do all that they could do to get them out of the car.

Crews from Salt Lake City Fire arrived shortly after and assisted the officers in getting the children out of the water.

We are more than willing to put our lives on the line to save anyone, Cluff said. With regard to this incident, with the car completely submerged, officers were completely submerged in the car trying to get the juveniles out.

Investigators believe speed was the ultimate factor in this crash. It is unlikely the driver will face any criminal charges. The speed limit for that section of Indiana Avenue and Delong Street is 30 miles per hour.

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SLC Police and Fire crews pull children from car in Jordan River Canal - fox13now.com

The Jorda nCity Council meeting on Aug. 3 ran about three hours and 20 minutes. It ended after 10 p.m., having started at 6:30 p.m. Two councilors were not there.

When I was on the city council, and even before, there was much discussion about how long the meetings were, and what was to be done to shorten them. One of the changes made was to eliminate a second public comment session at the end of the meeting.

Back then I did a little research and learned that the two public comment periods ran an average of seven to eleven minutes combined. The council, in its wisdom decided to eliminate one public comment period.

Meetings continued to run long, Most of the length came from councilors repeating themselves ad infinitum, and debating things during council comment. Often the things being debated had been decided earlier in the meeting. Sometimes councilors brought up things for discussion which would have been more appropriately handled as an agenda item. Those ambushes deprived (and still deprive) co-councilors of an opportunity to make a reasoned response, and opposed to just knee-jerking it.

Even back then, the councilors (well, some of them anyway) wanted to behave like unruly children, talking over each other, interrupting, holding side discussions, and generally ignoring Roberts Rules, which were then the legally mandated form for conducting a council meeting in Jordan.

So here we are again, with the council having a meeting running over three hours, just like in 2011.

Roberts Rules is gone. Audience participation is all but gone. The only ones to blame for long council meeting are the councilors themselves.

So heres my suggestion. The mayor, as chair of the meeting has the power to instruct each councilor to take turns speaking, and to limit each turn to some set time (three minutes is what the council deems adequate for the unwashed masses). The chair has the power to tell the council no one will speak until each councilor has taken his or her turn, after which each councilor may take a second, time constrained turn if he or she wishes.

The mayor, as chair has the power to tell anyone (including MnDOT) their presentation may not exceed a predetermined length. Id say 10 minutes is fair.

The mayor, as chair, also has the power to table agenda items if it looks like the agenda is too long, or contains especially time consuming items (like closed session legal issues).

And finally, the chair has the power to require that councilors not discuss during council comment any topic that has been on the agenda during the meeting. Rehashing what went on earlier in the meeting is just a waste of time.

The Quote: Talk low. Talk slow. And dont say too much. -John Wayne

Thom Boncher is a retired marketing communications manager, former Jordan City Council member and Jordan resident since 2003.

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Commentary: Shades of the past at City Hall - SW News Media

Every quilt, as they say, has a story. With gold metallic thread, this one links all the way to Jordan from a dot on the map in the Pioneer Valley.

I was commissioned to make a quilt for King Abdullah II in Jordan by Bill Schenker, explains Brenda Knight, of Granby.

Schenker, who is the retired police chief in South Hadley, was among the group of law enforcement members from across Western Massachusetts who were part of a security team for Jordans king, Abdullah II, decades ago. The team provided security to the king and his brother when they attended the Eaglebrook School and Deerfield Academy.

Through the whole school year, he would guard him from Friday night through Sunday, every weekend, Knight explains. Bill got to know him really well over the years. They had him and his brother over to their home for barbecues and ball games. They are still very good friends. He went to visit him in Jordan a few times. They even went to his wedding.

More than a year ago now, Schenker thought hed like to get a quilt made for his old friends birthday. Someone mentioned Knights name, and thus began the story of the quilts creation.

Measuring a little over 7-feet square, the quilt, now en route to the king, is composed of star blocks, the colors chosen from a jelly roll which is a collection of fabric strips with complementary colors and patterns. It features tan shades that Knight says represented the desert and blues which reflect the sky. I also wanted to depict the ancient ruins (of Jordan), she added.

In the center, on a large square, were sewn the royal crown, a map of Jordan showing its major cities, and the flag of Jordan. The border and backing is royal blue, though upon close inspection there is royal purple as well.

The fabric is batik, says Knight, manufactured in Indonesia.

Once the squares were sewn together, she passed the project on to her daughter, Selena Krajewski, in Pennsylvania. Krajewski machine quilted the piece with the gold thread. She did a masterful job, said Knight. It came out very well.

Knight herself is masterful. As a child she learned to sew from her mother. She didnt pick up quilting until she was a young mother. I went to a lot of quilting classes, explains the long-time member of the Hands Across the Valley Quilters Club.

She has tried her hand at basket weaving. In addition, in her home hangs a number of paintings reflecting her love of the countryside in which she lives. She has tried oils and acrylic, but likes watercolor the best.

Quilting remains her favorite craft. Sewing I Spy quilts for the children at the Shriners Hospital gives me joy. But I was a bit stressed while working on the Kings quilt, she admits. I wanted everything to go right.

The first priority in quilting is planning. When Knight met with Schenker, she had the initial idea of something Americana, reminiscent of the kings years in New England. But Schenker had an idea of his own. How about two quilts? One to represent Deerfield Academy and the other to represent King Abdullahs new Kings Academy in Jordan?

Schenker told Knight he knew that the new academy, designed much like Deerfield and built in 2008, was close to the kings heart. That seemed a bit of a reach with Knights time constraints, so she brought quilt samples and he brought literature about Jordan. Together, they came up with a plan.

Before being sent to Jordan, the completed quilt hung in the Granby Public Library for a few hours. Many quilting friends and curious townsfolk came, said Knight.

It was the Schenkers first time seeing the completed quilt. It was emotional, she adds. I was happy that they were so pleased with it.

The quilt is en route to Jordan, where, Knight has been told, it will hang in a place of honor in a government building near the kings office.

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Jordan King Abdullah II is gifted with quilt crafted in Granby - masslive.com