Peter Beinart and the Palestinian Right of Return Mondoweiss – Mondoweiss

Peter Beinart has made lots of noise in the past three weeks in his turning away from the two-state solution for Palestine-Israel, towards advocating for a single bi-national state. His advocacy has been a crisis for liberal-Zionists, of whom Beinart was a leading voice, and whose mantra in the past generation has been the two-state separation; and his advocacy has garnered charges of utopian nonsense, from a former ambassador, and of his being a Nazi, from Alan Dershowitz.

But reaching beyond the noise, there is a single crucial point that has always divided Zionists and Palestinians, even within the talk of a two-state solution: refugees. The issue of Palestinian refugee return is one single issue that like no other unites Palestinians, cutting to the heart of their continued dispossession. Its denial is also an essentially Zionist issue, as Israeli historian Benny Morris has noted:

Transfer was inevitable and inbuilt in Zionism because it sought to transform a land which was Arab into a Jewish state and a Jewish state could not have arisen without a major displacement of Arab population.

This is not just a historical matter. As former Israeli PM Ehud Barak noted in his dissent to Bill Clintons Parameters of 2000, no Israeli prime minister will accept even one refugee on the basis of the [Palestinian] right of return. Former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni negotiating under Ehud Olmert in 2008? Not a single refugee.

In short, the two-state solution was, as far as Israel was concerned, a means of consolidating the ethnic cleansing and ensuring a Jewish majority for a Jewish and democratic state. The whole point of it was demography. And just as allegiance to the two-state rhetoric has been a kind of litmus test for Zionists, entailing support for the Jewish State, the issue of accepting Palestinian refugee return is a real litmus test for seeing whether one is, after all, a Zionist.

And Peter Beinart is still clinging to Zionism in some way, with a certain romanticism of a cultural, or religious, connection, which he now says doesnt have to mean a Jewish state, but rather a general notion of a Jewish homeland, in what he now advocates should be a bi-national one state.

So what about those refugees then?

Beinart has been somewhat shy and hesitant in relating to this issue in his over 7000-word essay Yavne: A Jewish Case for Equality in Israel-Palestine, published in Jewish Currents on July 7th. It appears over half-way down the piece, and Beinart cites some quotes on it, mostly in the context of something that needs to be compromised, reduced or trimmed. Here are the passages:

Scholars have imagined various ways to adapt these models to Israel-Palestine while tackling thorny questions of national rights, immigration, and military powers. Some involve federalism, a central government thatas in Belgium or Canadahands power down to local bodies, through which Jews and Palestinians manage their own affairs. Others involve confederalism, a Jewish state and a Palestinian state that each hand power up to a supranational authority that might look something like the European Union. A Land for All, a group that promotes confederalism, has proposed that Palestinian refugees could return to Israel yet be citizens of Palestine, while Jewish settlers could stay in Palestine and remain citizens of Israel. Alternatively, the famed Palestinian scholar Edward Said suggested in 1999 that in one state, [t]he Law of Return for Jews and the right of return for Palestinian refugees [would] have to be considered and trimmed together.

Trimming the Law of Return need not prevent Israel-Palestine from being a Jewish home. Whats crucial, if it is to remain a refuge for Jews, is not that a Jew from New York can land in Tel Aviv and become a citizen on day one. Its that the state enshrine in its constitution the obligation to be a haven for any Jewand yes, any Palestinianin distress.

It is a pretty dry approach, and Beinart does not seem to feel a need to insert much of his own feelings about it, as to why the Palestinian refugee return in itself is important, nor its backing in international law. He could surely take an example from Yousef Munayyer, who wrote:

The right of return is backed by international law and it is a human right. The right of return is enshrined in the UN Declaration of Human Rights, a declaration that all UN members, including Israel, agree to uphold. It is further enshrined, among other places, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discriminationtwo treaties to which Israel is also a state party. For Palestinians, it is also a sacred right.

Beinart was actually more morally assertive in a podcast with Americans for Peace Now after his piece appeared (July 11th), even if the issue came towards the end of the hour (from minute 47, in the context of a confederation):

I dont think that at this point that a solution, a two-state solution that does not allow for Palestinians to have the right of refugee return, is likely to ultimately be a morally acceptable

Hadar Susskind asked, Refugee return to where?

Beinart:

Well I think ultimately the right of a refugee return, not just to the West Bank but also to Israel proper. Now, one of the ways Land for All thinks about that, is through a notion of those Palestinians refugees remaining, being citizens of a Palestinian state based in West Bank and Gaza, even as they live in Israel proper, right? While Israeli settlers stay in the West Bank and retain their Israeli citizenship. Right, so this is where a confederation model could work. But I do think that the way a two-state solution has been conceived by some people, which is essentially to say, virtually no right of refugee Palestinian return to areas inside Israel proper I have come to the view that I think that would be unlikely to be that effective of a solution. And I also think that we have to really have a conversation about the morality of telling we are a people who for 2000 years have prayed every morning since the creation of modern liturgy, for a return to this land how do we tell people who grew up in a place, that they dont have the right to return to that place? So I think that one of the reasons that I would favor a confederation model over a two-state model, if I had to choose between the two at this point, is that I think it creates more opportunity for meeting peoples legitimate rights to have the option of returning. That does not mean going to someones house and kicking them out of their home. And I dont think its the way most Palestinians I know think about it. But it means maybe compensation and it means having the right to return to the city where you were born. I mean again, one of the things that comes across to anyone who spends time with Palestinian writing and learns from the Palestinian experience, is the enormous power and the importance for people of being able to go back to places that were precious to them. And one of the things that I find appealing about the confederation model, even if one doesnt go fully towards the one-state model, is it provides some way of realizing that. And I am saddened that in our Jewish discourse, that we are people who take so much pride in our ability to remember, to not forget, and to hold sacred memory and to try to fulfil it, are so dismissive of that when it comes to Palestinians.

Well, that is really a bit better. Lets look at that last bit, about remembering, in terms of Israels Law of Return for Jews. The return is mythical. Really, its about biblical myth from times literally immemorial. And thats supposed to somehow trump the actual right of return of Palestinians in times still in actual living memory.

When Beinart talks about how a two-state solution has been conceived by some people, with virtually no right of refugee Palestinian return to areas inside Israel proper its really not just some people. This position is one that cuts across the whole Zionist political spectrum.

Zionists have regularly derided Palestinians who long for this return. The liberal hero Amos Oz has also done so he told a Palestinian refugee from Lifta that the latter is ill, suffering from Reconstritis:

You are ill, I told the man. And I also diagnosed the illness You are ill with Reconstritis. You are seeking in space, what you have lost in time. If you miss Lifta so much, write a book. Make a film. Write a play. Write up a research. Seek what you have lost in time, not in space You miss your childhood? Thats OK, but if you start behaving like a 5-year old child [Oz is literally shouting here] because of your childhood longings, you need to be hospitalized!

But Oz himself was not ill with Reconstritis, by his own diagnosis. He wrote books, but he wrote them in Israel. Because for Zionists, it is not a dream anymore, and if we caused your nightmare by ethnically cleansing you, well, thats just tough write a book.

This position has been widely accepted as being morally legitimate by Israel supporters. It has been understood as a necessary evil, like Tom Cottons necessary evil of slavery in the US. Even if not explicitly stated (or not as explicitly as Barak and Livni), it was a Zionist assumption, the gains of ethnic cleansing must not be compromised.

Its interesting to see how Beinarts current positions on the binational state, are ones that he himself had deemed utopian back in 2015. Notice this, from a debate he had with Yousef Munayyer:

Im simply arguing that when people reject two states in favor of one binational state, which is the main proposed alternative, I wonder where exactly do they see the appetite for this binationalism on either side. Binational states are exceedingly hard to keep together. Binationalism barely works in Belgium. The Czechs and Slovaks couldnt make it work, Scotland is seriously considering seceding from the U.K, as is Catalonia from Spain, and these are all far, far more placid environments than the land between the river and the sea. What would we call this Israeli Palestinian binational state? In post-apartheid South Africa the answer was obvious, because whites and blacks both considered themselves citizens of South Africa. In Israel and Palestine by contrast, this imagined binational state, we have no name because no national identity undergirds it. Lets imagine that someone did create Israstine. What is its army going to look like? It would be an Army operating under conditions of unbelievable stress. [Beinart relates situations in which the army would be torn apart by tensions due to orders to evict or not evict Jewish or Palestinian residents.] This is not progressivism; its the great temptation of progressives, utopianism.

But now that utopianism (which is what his critics now chide him for) has become a viable, necessary vision for Beinart. Which is to say, that if you will it, it is no dream as Zionist founder Herzl said. And the Zionists could dream it, right? Call it Reconstritis or whatever, but they certainly dreamt it, and boy, did they make it happen.

So why, now that we see that the DNA of Zionism for all practical purposes is settler-colonialism and Apartheid, why cant we dream of a better future, one of equality and freedom? Is that so sick?

Peter Beinart has opened up the one-state discussion in Zionist circles, and those who could not dismiss him out of hand, sought to engage with him in serious conversation. That conversation leads inevitably to critical issues of righting injustices done to Palestinians, since it gives up to a large degree the assumption of Jewish supremacy and opens up for considerations of real equality. And that conversation definitely needs to be had.

Original post:

Peter Beinart and the Palestinian Right of Return Mondoweiss - Mondoweiss

How Does the National Education Policy Accelerate the Privatisation of Higher Education? – Economic and Political Weekly

The Draft National Education Policy (DNEP) 2019 continues to be in line with the neo-liberal, anti-democratic, and centralising tendencies that have been prevailing in higher education since the early 1990s.[1] These tendencies are pronounced in the latest DNEP with the incorporation of the elements of revivalism, communalism, and social insensitivity. While advocating for a multidisciplinary liberal education to meet the demands of the job market and the challenges of the 21st century, the DNEP insidiously overlooks the importance of upholding the Constitution, secularism, equality, social justice, and plurality that our social fabric demands. The absence of such inclusivity in the policy speaks much louder than its divisive overtones.

On the state of higher education, the document begins on a concerned note about what it calls the Fragmentation of Higher Education System (MHRD 2019: 203). The reason for this fragmentation is identified as the presence of over 800 universities and 40,000 colleges spread across the country. In effect, the sociocultural diversity, decentralised autonomy of the universities, and the reach and scope of affiliated colleges that have been catering to the needs of students in urban and rural areas are negated in a single stroke withthe label of fragmentation. The new policy proposes to overcome this throughthe establishment of higher educational institutions (HEIs) of a much broader scope and size, which indicates a move towards a monolithic and homogenised educational regime.

With its oft-repeated references to Indianness, the policy draft makes a case for homogenisation. It promises special funding for the study of Indian art, culture, and literature. The draft policy states,

All undergraduate programmes will also emphasise music, visual arts, performing arts, and sports. This shall include Indias deep traditions in the arts, music and sports, including the numerous remarkable local regional traditions. Yoga shall form an integral part of such efforts as well. Institutions will be encouraged and funded to offer full-fledged programmes and courses in these areas (MHRD 2019: 230).

The use of the term Indian in relation to art, culture, and literature is problematic. India is not a monolithic structure. Diversity and plurality are our hallmarks. The dangers of revivalism are inherent in the call to study Indian culture. There is a possibility that the majoritarian culture would emerge as the Indian culture at the cost of other cultures getting a raw deal. Fears abound that the plurality in the art and the way of life couldbe wiped out in this impending homogenisation. The policy makes it clear that adherence to this distorted view of Indianness is compulsory, or at least institutions are lured with the promise of funds.

Another important recommendation of the DNEP is to make students job-ready, and make the education system the hub of the next industrial revolution. It adds,

By focusing on such broad based, flexible, individualised, innovative, and multidisciplinary learning, higher education must aim to prepare its students not just for their first jobs- but also for their second, third and all future jobs over their lifetimes. In particular, the higher education system must aim to form the hub for the next industrial revolution. (MHRD 2019: 203)

The above quote says a lot more than what it does not spellout explicitly. It indirectly points to the fact that government-sector jobs and the security they provide would become a matter of a bygone era. The capitalist dictum of hire and fire at will would soon become a norm in the job market, and the new crop of job seekers have to grapple with this new reality.

The imagination that the education system should emerge as the hub of the next industrial revolution is worrisome because one fails to understand if the role of education is only about industrial prosperity. This is an attack on the fundamental premise of education thatgoes beyondthe "mass-production"of outstanding employees, citizens, and communitiesto make students socially conscious. It does not factor in the realities of our society that include providing basic education to every section of the population. Access, equity, and inclusiveness are the primary needs of our society. Even today, a substantial number of students in higher education are from first-generation-educatedfamilies.The educational goals set out by the DNEP only cater to the privileged lot who have had access to education overgenerations. Although the hyped internationalism and world-class education are desirable, it is essential and urgent to ensure that education reaches all, to pave way for a better life. But, such concerns are not adequately addressed in the current policy draft.

On the other hand, the policy perceives that there is a lack of novel initiatives from the teaching community to improve educational standardsbecause it isnot satisfied with theselection, tenure, promotion, salary increases and other recognition and vertical mobility (MHRD 2019:204).Still, the policycontinues with the unscientific Performance Based Appraisal System (PBAS), initiated under the 2010 Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) of the University Grants Commission (UGC). The academic performance indicators (API) for career advancements, which were discontinued after the release of UGC 2018 regulations, have not been reinstituted (University Grants Commission 2018). It is anti-academic to connect academic innovation, brilliance, and performance to material rewards.

The policy draft is critical of the current regulatory bodies, and accuses them of promoting mediocrity and corruption. It states, private Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have not been treated on an equal footing with public institutions [] this approach has discouraged public-spirited philanthropic HEIs (MHRD 2019: 206). The use of the term public-spirited philanthropic HEIs to refer to private investments seem ironic in an age when education has been commoditised, and is part of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).

The DNEP calls for a thorough revamp of the current structure of higher education, favouring the establishment of large multidisciplinary universities. Accordingly, an educational institute in the country has to fall under one of these three types: research universities (type 1), teaching universities (Type 2), and colleges (type 3).

Both type 1 and 2 institutions have been planned as mega HEIs with 5,00025,000 or more students. These HEIs demand huge resources in terms of land, infrastructure, and all other basic amenities. The proposal to have at least one HEI in every district in the country is not feasible as per the current education system followed by the states. There is no clarity on the modalities, funding, and theoperationality of these HEIs.The idea of liberal and multidisciplinary education envisaged through such HEIs would be limiting in its reach to all sections of the society. It is evident that such centres of learning demand huge investments to procure land and infrastructure, and to administer. The move is directly aimed at increasing privatisation in the education sector. Only large-scale investors have the ability to set up such huge multidisciplinary institutes. This paradigm shift that the policy boasts of is nothing but a direct transfer of power to multinational corporations or big private investors. Meanwhile, that the policy draft makes only a single statement in passing about public education clearly underlines the governments vision for education.

While proposing to revamphigher education, it fails to clarify onthe practicality of such plans. No details are provided about the funding and implementation. The mandates it puts forward make it difficult for the colleges across the country to sustain their efforts to provide access to the regional multitudes. Colleges that do not meet these standards would be shut down, which is tantamount to the denial of opportunities for rural and semi-urban populations.

The suggestion that all institutions need to have student enrolments in the thousands, if not tens of thousands, for optimal use of infrastructure and resources"(MHRD 2019: 212) reveals the overarching design of the policy. There is a negation of the local, the little narratives, and the possibilities for knowledge production and implementation at different levels. The differentiation of HEIs as research and teaching universities is also irrational. HEIsas the centres of learning and knowledge productioncannot be viewed separately.

According to the policy, colleges categorised under type 3 educational institutionsneed to have more than 2,000 students. Colleges that do not meet the criteria, whether government, aided, or self-financed, would be converted to autonomous institutions by 2032 or would be merged with the university they are affiliated. The gradual, yet complete distancing from public education in favour of autonomy would pose a threat to many who do not possess the means for private education.

Granting autonomy to HEIs also has the potential to disturb the current recruitment process that factors in qualification, reservation, and other aspects of the applicants, and undermines natural justice. It could also pave the way for corruption in the form of favouritism, political lobbying, among others.

One of the most problematic parts of the policy is theproposed establishment ofRashtriya Shiksha Aayog, an apex body with the prime minister as its head to oversee the education sector in the country. Knowledge systems should be kept out of the intervention of political office, but the policy goes against this established principle. This is a threat to the education sector and constitutional values as ruling parties would find ways to further their agenda through curricula.

The proposed establishment of the National Research Foundation (NRF) is also restrictive in nature, and is against the assertion of the multidisciplinary approach referred to in the policy multiple times. The NRF is stated to act as a liaison among researchers, ministries of the government, and industry, in order to ensure that the most relevant and societally useful research reaches people (MHRD 2019: 209). As a free space for knowledge formation and dissemination, research need not have an overtly measurable or tangible output. In varied streams of arts and humanities, research leads to the creation of social knowledge and historical awareness about formations of power, culture, and knowledge. This results in the creation of a sociocultural sensitivity, and provides an opportunity to uphold constitutional values. However, as per the policy, the mandate for research is to [create] beneficial linkages among government, industry, and researchers (MHRD 2019: 279), which is an attempt to quantify research for its commoditised capital use-value.

Additionally, the NRF would be vested with powers to identify areas of research that are of special importance to the country, and prioritise funding to them (MHRD 2019: 270). This would certainly become a matter of concern as it would allow officials to act as per their prejudices and toe the line of the ruling dispensation to significantly undermine the research space.

In the section on teacher education, the policy calls for teachers to be "grounded in Indian values, ethos, knowledge, and traditions" (MHRD 2019: 283). The intention behind such a statement is suspect. However, nowhere in the document is it mentioned that a teacher should be socially sensitive, critique knowledge and power formation, and uphold constitutional values.

On the other hand, the policystates that substandard and dysfunctional teacher education institutes (TEIs) that do not meet the basic educational criteria would be shut down. However, the policy does not list out the requisite criteria, except a directive to TEIs to become multidisciplinary. From the policy, it emerges that the multidisciplinary approach is the only possibility by which good teacher education can be imparted.

Originally posted here:

How Does the National Education Policy Accelerate the Privatisation of Higher Education? - Economic and Political Weekly

Bill Talks with Heather Cox Richardson About ‘How the South Won the Civil War’ – BillMoyers.com

The Battle of Bull Run, Battle of Bull Run, Va. July 21st 1861, Currier and Ives. (Library of Congress)

ANNOUNCER: Welcome to Moyers on Democracy. If you want to understand this moment in American politics, heres a suggestion for you: Its the must-read book of the year HOW THE SOUTH WON THE CIVIL WAR, by the historian Heather Cox Richardson. Yes, the Civil War brought an end to the slave order of the South and the rule of the plantation oligarchs who embodied white supremacy. But the Northern victory was short-lived. Slave states soon stripped Black people of their hard-won rights, white supremacy not only rose again to rule the South but spread West across the Mississippi to create new hierarchies of inequality. Thats the story Heather Cox Richardson tells in HOW THE SOUTH WON THE CIVIL WAR, with echoes resounding every day in the current wild and fierce campaign for the presidency. Here to talk with her about Americas ongoing battle between oligarchy and democracy is Bill Moyers.

Photo courtesy of Heather Cox Richardson

BILL MOYERS: Heather Cox Richardson, thank you for joining me.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Oh, its a pleasure to be here.

BILL MOYERS: Will you take us on that long but vivid arc of how we got from Abraham Lincoln, describing the end of the Civil War as a new birth of freedom, to Donald Trump describing America as a land of carnage, a nightmare. From Lincoln to Donald Trump in 2016, what happened?

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: If you think about the Civil War as a war between two different ideologies, two different concepts of what America is supposed to be, is it supposed to be a place where a few wealthy men direct the labor and the lives of the people below them, the women and people of color below them, the way the Confederacy argued? Is that America? Or is America what Lincoln and his ilk in the Republican Party in the North defined the democracy as during the Civil War? Is it a place where all men are equal before the law and should have equal access to resources? And of course, I use the word man there, but thats because thats the language that Lincoln used. But the principle is expandable of course. It looked by 1865 as if that latter ideology, that of the Republicans and that of the idea of equality had triumphed. And certainly, the Republicans and Northerners who had fought for the United States government in that war believed that they had redefined America to mean equality before the law. They really believed that was the case. And that they had defeated what they called the slave power, the oligarchs who had gone ahead and taken over the system in the 1850s. After the Civil War, Easterners moved West across the Mississippi in really large numbers after 1865.

April 2020, Oxford University Press, 272 pgs.

BILL MOYERS: White Southerners went too, of course, and you argue they saw the West as the final frontier ruled by elites, just as elites, with violence and intimidation, had ruled in the old South.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: And in that West, they discover a land that is already susceptible to the idea of racial and gendered hierarchies, because it has its own history of them. And its a place out there where the new American system happens to be a really fertile ground for the Confederate ideology to rise again. And thats exactly what happens with the extractive industries in the West that encouraged the heavily capitalized cattle markets, for example, or mining industries, or later oil, or even agribusiness. You have in the West a development of an economy and, later on, a society that looks very much like the pre-Civil War South. And over the course of the late 19th century, that becomes part of the American mythology, with the idea that you have the cowboy in the West who really stands against what Southerners and Northern Democrats believe is happening in Eastern society, that a newly active government is using its powers to protect African Americans and this is a redistribution of wealth from taxpayers to populations that are simply looking for a government handout. Thats language that rises in 1871, and that is still obviously important in our political discourse. But in contrast to that, in the West, you get the rise of the image of the American cowboy, which is really our image of Reconstruction. In a weird way, people think of Reconstruction, obviously, they think of formerly enslaved people. But the image that has obtained in our textbooks and in our popular culture is the American cowboy, who is beginning to dominate American popular culture by 1866. And that cowboy a single man, because women are in the cowboy image only as wives and mothers, or as women above the saloons in their striped stockings serving liquor and other things is a male image of single white men. Although, again, historically a third of cowboys were people of color. Its a single white man working hard on their own, who dont want anything from the government. Again, historically inaccurate. The government puts more energy into the American plains than it does any other region of the country. But

BILL MOYERS: And also on land that had been taken from Mexico after the Mexican-American War, and on land that had been stolen from the Native Americans after genocide. I mean, its this whole notion of, Im free to roam the land and become a self-made hero, which was the cowboys image to those of us growing up in the 30s and 40s, was really a bastard idea.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: And part of that bastard idea, though, was so interesting. Because it is, in part, the Indian Wars of the Civil War and immediate post-war years that helped to both create the image of the cowboy, but also reinforce the idea that a few white men belong above subordinate groups like the Indigenous people, like Mexicans or Mexican Americans. Like Chinese Americans, like Fiji islanders, about whom they care very much in the late 19th century. And that racial hierarchy and gendered hierarchy really gets tied into the image of the American cowboy. And popularized with this backlash against activism in the East, trying to help African Americans adjust to the new free labor economy. But that image becomes enormously important after 1880. Because in 1880, the South goes solidly Democratic. And, of course, in retrospect, we now know its going to stay Democratic for a very, very long time, indeed. But they dont know that at the time. But what Republicans do note is that they must pick up Western votes if theyre going to continue to dominate the White House and the Senate. After 1888, when we get the installment of Benjamin Harrison in the White House, he loses the popular vote by about 100,000 votes. But hes installed thanks to the Electoral College. The Republicans under Harrison between 1889 and 1890, they let in six new states in 12 months. That was the largest acquisition of new states in American history since the original 13 and its never been matched again. They let in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington, and then Idaho and Wyoming to go ahead and make sure that they would continue to control the Senate, and the Electoral College. And theyre not hiding this. They actually go onto their media which is their equivalent of the Fox News channel at the time and say, by letting in these states, were going to hold onto the Senate for all time and were going to make sure we hold onto the White House for all time. But what that does is it begins to shift the idea of that human freedom. All of a sudden, the Republican Party, which has tried to continue to argue that it is standing in favor of equality, although thats negotiable. After 1888 and the admission of those new states, the Republican Partys got to start adopting that racially charged language in order to get the West on board. And that begins the change in American history that leads to a later union between the West and the South around this idea that really white men ought to be in charge. Its not just a Southern thing. Its a Western thing as well. And they make up a voting bloc in Congress that manages to change a lot of the legislation of the 20th century.

BILL MOYERS: You write about how the massacre of Native Americans at Wounded Knee in 1890, in South Dakota, was an atrocity brought on by politics. And that it played into the use of politics to reimpose inequality, and the use of force for malicious purposes.

Wounded Knee (LOC)

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: It did. What happens is that with the admission of these new states in 1889 and 1890, the Republicans believe that they are going to do very well in the midterm election of 1890. And the big thing on the table in America in 1890 is the tariff high walls around the American economy that protect businesses inside America, they protect them to the degree that because they face no foreign competition, different groups can collude with each other to raise prices. So in 1860, the Republicans insist that an economic downturn thats been happening is only because those tariffs arent high enough. What happens in the election of 1890 is the Republicans think theyre going to win and they lose dramatically. It turns out when these ballots are counted, a Republican Senate or a Democratic Senate hangs on the seat of South Dakota, on one Senate seat. And that Senate seat has pretty clearly been corrupted. Theres a huge fight, then, in the legislature of who actually won. So there the situation sits.

BILL MOYERS: Sits there, for sure, with President Benjamin Harris needing to shore up his support in the Dakotas. So, he sends corrupt cronies out to replace experienced Indian agents and dispatches one-third of the federal Army as well.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: And with that movement of the Army into South Dakota in the largest mobilization of the US Army since the Civil War, Lakota are trying to negotiate with the Army that increasingly wants to bring them into the reservation, to the agencies to make sure that theyre under control. And over the course of the next few months, that situation escalates until a Lakota leader, Sitting Bull, is killed in December of 1890. And then in terror after that, a group of Miniconjou Lakota move across the state. They actually find the Army, the Army doesnt find them. And in the process of corralling them and disarming them later on that month, the soldiers start to fire. And about 250 Lakota are massacred. So, it was a massacre that was really directly attributable to whether or not the Republican Party could control the US Senate in order to protect its tariffs that promoted big business, and protected a few oligarchs.

BILL MOYERS: When Americans moved to the wide-open spaces of the West after the Civil War, they kept alive the same vision of the world that had inspired Confederates. What was their argument?

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: They certainly were not arguing at the time for a renewal of hostilities. But they did believe that America was one in which a few good hard-working white men should dominate women and people of color. And I think thats written all over the West, although we dont like to see that because we love our cowboys. But inherent in Western society, Western politics, Western economy and the Western society after the Civil War was the idea that a few wealthy men should control the industries. Or at least, did control the extractive industries of mining and cattle, and agribusiness and oil. And they should also control politics. And that the legal system should defend their interests while the workers should work for the people in charge. You know, these wealthy cattlemen, for example, were somehow the salt of the earth, hardworking little guys. That image was really in contrast to what was going on, which was the creation of a society that looked, in many ways, like the society of the pre-Civil War South. And by the late 19th and early 20th century, the rise of industrialists in the North who took a lot of their power and their ideological power from the cowboy imagery and from the support that they received in the American West. And to some degree, from Southern leaders as well.

BILL MOYERS: So, the pre-Civil War South was an oligarchy.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Yes. I was very careful with that word. Because there are obviously a lot of words we could use for a system in which a few people take over. But the way that I was using it was with the idea that an oligarchy was a small group, usually of men in that case, who controlled the money in society and therefore came to control the political system, and also the social system.

BILL MOYERS: In order to use government policies to shore up white supremacy and prevent racial equality, right?

HEATHER RICHARDSON: And I think the echoes from that to the present are pretty clear, when you have again a small group of Americans now who define themselves that way, I think. One of the things that I found interesting is with the rise of this small elite group of large planters in the 1850s, the ways in which they came to monopolize popular culture and popular literature so that they simply didnt say, Well, were hard workers and weve been lucky. But they came to believe that they deserved what they had gotten. And that they were somehow better than everybody else. And you can see that through the pulpits, ministers starting to talk about how blessed they were to have these men in their congregations. You can see it through literature, the rise of novels that talk about people who own large numbers of other people as somehow paternalistic patriarchs. And you can see it through the construction of the other, the people who are enslaved, as being somehow almost sub-human. And thats a very deliberate construction in the 1850s. And I would argue, you can see something very similar in America in the 2000 aughts.

BILL MOYERS: In what sense?

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: The emphasis in popular culture on how the people who were at the top really belong there. That they somehow are the best people. That they know more than the rest of us. That if you have a billion dollars, you must somehow be really much more special than those of us who dont have a billion dollars. And I think that really shows in the way that President Trump talks about the people around him. He would appoint only the best people, who by definition, knew more than the experts did. And you look at the position that Jared Kushner has in this administration. I mean, hes a young man with really very little training in anything and hes supposed to be solving the Middle East crisis and handling coronavirus? And I dont even know what his portfolio looks like at this point. But I think thats a reflection that looks very much like that of elite Southerners in the 1850s when they simply thought by virtue of who they were, they could make things work better than anybody else could.

BILL MOYERS: And you write that as this Old South ideology moved West it influenced popular culture, especially in upholding white supremacy. There were Western movies like the classic STAGECOACH, remember? A Confederate soldier joins with the US Cavalry to defeat the savage Apache. And novels such as LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE and GONE WITH THE WIND celebrating the union of Western and Confederate ideology.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Yes. And isnt it fascinatingif you think about, again, Laura Ingalls Wilders a great example. People tend to dismiss her because they see it as a childrens book. And yet, its been enormously influential, enormously influential. And she writes about a world in which Pa takes care of the women folk and dominates the native populations around him. And certainly there are passages in that book that are extraordinarily racist, not only toward Indigenous people, but toward African Americans as well. Its gotten her in trouble lately. But the theme throughout that book is of individualism. Pa is doing it on his own. Pa is not doing it on his own. The reality of her life was that Pa was managing to keep the family together based on the fact his daughters and his wife worked because Pa could never manage to make ends meet. And theyre living in places that are habitable for white settlers like themselves only because of the protection of the US government. And, you know, even scenes like when when Mary goes to college. And remember, they scrimp and save for years for Mary to go to college. And the implication in that book is that they are sending Mary to college. No. Theyre raising money for her train fare and her clothing. Her room and board is being paid for by the state of South Dakota. South Dakota actually, weirdly enough, had the highest rate of literacy in the country in that era. But you dont see that in those books. Because again, you have this wedding, if you will, of individualism to racism and this concept of women being taken care of by their men. Its a very popular trope in American history. But it doesnt reflect reality.

BILL MOYERS: So, when a group of slave holders embraced the idea that they and they alone should control Americas economic and political system, the Americans fought back, won the Civil War, and rededicated the country to equality. But when it happened a second time, when very rich men of property mobilized to take over America again, they largely succeeded by convincing voters that equality for people of color and women and minorities destroyed the liberty of white men. Thats almost the drum beat in the background of American politics today.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: One of the things about that ideology that a few wealthy men should rule, its not new to America. Its been around for a very long time. And whats really radical is the idea that in fact, all of us should have the right to self-government. And the fact that were still fighting about it in America today suggests to me that those two fundamentally different concepts of the role of the American government at least are still absolutely the question of what America really is about. For all the frightening things that are happening in America right now, its also exciting to get to redefend the concept of human self-determination, which is really what weve been doing all along on this continent.

BILL MOYERS: But as you write, the ideology of the Old South and its new Western allies found a powerful reactionary force to reimagine it. Lets go to the very opening scene of your book. Its July, 1964. The Cow Palace outside San Francisco, packed with cheering Republicans whove just nominated Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona as their candidate for the presidency. They came roaring to their feet when he declares, quote

BARRY GOLDWATER: I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice in no virtue.

BILL MOYERS: 56 years later, that scene still plays out in my head. Explain why you chose that moment to begin a story that spans America from the Civil War to now.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Barry Goldwater at that point was known sort of as a cowboy character. And that moment when the state of South Carolina, the state that was responsible for taking the Confederacy out of the Union. When those delegates stand up, they were the ones to put Barry Goldwater over the top, as their delegate yelled when he announced the delegations votes, its that moment when you recognize that there is a new force in American politics. And its the force of reaction against the liberal consensus that was widely shared by Democrats and Republicans both, that in fact, the government should be of the people, by the people and for the people. And thats the moment when you had that reactionary voice saying, No, thats not what America should look like. And its that theory that in fact a few people should run the system and make decisions for the rest of us that has taken over America since 64. It came across as a racial argument. But of course, his skin was in the game for the end of business regulation.

BILL MOYERS: Regulation, right.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Thats what he really cared about. Its interesting the degree to which they harnessed the tradition of American racism and sexism as well, to their project of destroying business regulation.

BILL MOYERS: Goldwaters big bone was government, but that was all mixed up with opposing Civil Rights and keeping segregation, discrimination. This fear of government that Goldwater was stoking at that moment was the same fear that Southern demagogues had stoked to keep Blacks in their place, it was government that was at stake here. It was what you can do with government.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Well, and I think you just hit the nail on the head there with the idea that all of this is about the proper use of government. Is the idea of the United States government to protect property, so that people can accumulate more and more of it, and thereby get the power and the education and the connections to go ahead and direct society in a way thats good for all us, which is their theory. Or is the role of government, in fact, to protect equality before the law, and to make sure that all men, in fact, and all, you know, all people are created equal and have equal access to resources and to opportunity? And those two questions are really the central questions of America.

BILL MOYERS: Ronald Reagan gave the conservative movement its present-day mantra

RONALD REAGAN: The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, Im from the government and Im here to help.

BILL MOYERS: Now just imagine using that mantra today when the pandemic is rampant. And somebody knocks on your door and says, My name is Fauci, and Im here to help you. And they say, But youre from the government. We dont want you.

October 1, 2013, Updated August 14, 2014

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: I love the way you put it earlier when you said, This is all a question of what the government should do. Coming out of World War II, we had a real resurgence of the idea that the government really had a responsibility to promote equality before the law, and to guarantee equal access to resources. And that was a principle that was shared across America, I think, from Republicans and Democrats both. I mean, obviously you saw it with Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the New Deal. But you also saw it with Truman, of course. And then you also saw it Eisenhower and Eisenhowers Middle Way. And the idea was that this American democracy stood against the fascism that had drawn us into World War II. And that FDR was so articulate about fighting back against. You know, when he talks about Italy again and again, FDR talks about how, you know, American democracys messy, for sure, but look, Mussolini was supposed to make the trains run on time and instead, his people are dying and theyre starving to death. And we, us messy members of a democracy, are the ones feeding them. And he says this again and again. And coming out of that war, I think Americans really stood for that. But even before that, theres certainly a group of reactionaries who look at the New Deal and at the Middle Way and they say, We dont believe that the government should interfere in our businesses. We should have the liberty, the freedom to run our businesses as we see fit. And they, in fact, really believe that the New Deal is going to be erased. They really thought it was a temporary measure, and that Americans would turn against that. But, of course, Americans loved the New Deal. It had gotten us out of out of the Depression and it had won World War II. So they didnt have any intention of walking away from that.

BY Harvey J. Kaye | April 27, 2015

BILL MOYERS: But Goldwater and Reagan were riding away from it. And both, as you know, loved casting themselves as cowboys, white hats and all. They wrapped themselves in the mythology of the cowboy as hero; a lone white man carving a new world for white people from a hostile environment. So how did we get from Barry Goldwater in 1964, Richard Nixon, a Californian in 1968, invoking the Southern strategy of stirring up the resentments and fears and hatreds of white Southerners. And Ronald Reagan who opened his campaign in 1980 in Neshoba County, Mississippi, just a few miles from where three Civil Rights volunteers had been murdered. And then George W. Bush buying a Stetson and a Texas ranch to prove he was a Westerner. Finally, to Donald Trump, the rich guy from Queens, not a part of the Southern culture or complex, who used the same racial fears, the same threats and promises that had been used in 64, 68, and 80.

George W. Bush Library

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Well, finally by 1951, you have that famous book by William F. Buckley Jr. called GOD AND MAN AT YALE in which he says, Listen, we got a problem. If we keep on trying to argue against the New Deal on the merits, we keep losing. So, we should stop trying to argue it on the merits. Because when we talked about what was best for most people, people voted for the New Deal. So, he suggests that we needed to start from a baseline, saying that the government should only protect what he calls free enterprise. That is, there shouldnt be regulation. And it should protect Christianity. You could wiggle around the edges. But you needed to have those two things. Well, that doesnt really get much traction. And, of course, William F. Buckley Jr. is the son of an oil man. And he is bankrolled by some pretty serious money there. Its a vision of a very few wealthy men. And it really doesnt get traction until after the Brown vs. Board of Education decision of 1954, when a unanimous Supreme Court, where this chief justice is a Republican and a former governor of California

BILL MOYERS: Youre talking about Earl Warren.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Yes. He says the government needs to stand behind the desegregation of public schools. And with that, a door is open to resurrect the idea of the Reconstruction years. That any kind of government action in trying to level the playing field for African Americans in American society is a redistribution of wealth. And in 1955, we get the formation of NATIONAL REVIEW, of course, with the hiring of James Kirkpatrick, whos a Southern editor. Who hammers again and again and again on the idea that in fact, if you let government be an active government, to go ahead and intervene in things like regulating the economy, or in this case, promoting desegregation, what you are going to get is an attack on liberty, by which they mean tax dollars, your, in coded words, White tax dollars are going to go to African Americans. Who, in their eyes, had not earned that sort of entree into public schools. Which is gonna cost tax dollars among other things there were needed to be troops to have that happen. Well, that idea, that somehow an activist government, a New Deal government, an Eisenhower government was a redistribution of wealth from hard working white people to first African Americans, and then that group of other is going to be expanded to eventually include, in the 1970s, feminist women. But that argument is really established in the 1950s. And the people who adhere to it initially are not traditional Republicans. And theyre certainly not Democrats. They self-identify as a group called movement conservatives. And they are not true conservatives. They are radical extremists. And they know it. They, a few group of capital C conservatives, are going to stand against capital L liberals. By which they mean virtually everybody else in America, Republicans and Democrats both. Because they make no distinction between the liberal consensus of FDR and Eisenhower and Chinese communism. To them, those are the same kind of redistributions of wealth. So that movement conservative argument that gets its roots in the 1950s and then is picked up by Nixon I think he gets backed into a full-hearted embrace of movement conservatism because of the problems hes facing in 1970, with the Vietnam War and Kent State. But by Reagan, you have Reagan fully defending that vision. And you remember, Reagans initial ideas of cutting taxes were not popular. And it was not clear that that was actually going to happen. He has to put George H. W. Bush into his administration as vice president. And he had called that system voodoo economics. But its really after hes shot that he manages to get the popular momentum in Congress to pass his first tax cut. And then he tries to cement the ability to hold those tax cuts through including Evangelicals into the political system on the Republican side, beginning really dramatically in 1986. But, also, by packing the court. So, you can see from there on, this vision snowballing. And then in the 1990s, of course, you get Newt Gingrich becoming the Speaker of the House, and really deliberately purging the Republican Party of traditional Republicans, those he calls, RINOs, or Republicans in Name Only. By the time you get to Trump, that language is there. That whole set up is there. But Trump himself is an interesting character. Because if you remember, he was the most moderate of the Republican candidates when he was running. So he had the racism and the sexism down. But a lot of people who might have liked or might even have not liked the racism and the sexism loved the idea he was gonna make taxes fairer. He was gonna create a better health care system. He was gonna make wealthier people pay more. He was gonna promote infrastructure. All those things that went by the board. Hes put movement conservatism on steroids. And his platform in 2016 was stunning. It was William F. Buckley Jr.s wish list, or Goldwaters wish list. And a narrative that, by the way, has taken off, and been extraordinarily strong since the rise of Reagan.

He was elected in 1980. And you have that cowboy individualism gone wild with the STAR WARS series, which is the movie of 1977. That imagery, that one guy is going to do it on his own without the help of the government is a lovely image. Its a mythological image. Its one that Americans love, but its not reality. In fact, that image has enabled oligarchs like those really taking the reins of power under Ronald Reagan, to skew our laws in such a way that wealth has moved upward, opportunity has been taken away from the vast majority of us. The lives of most Americans, a majority of Americans, has gotten significantly worse, not better. And now under Donald Trump with the coronavirus, but also with the extraordinary dis-junction in the economy. Now, of course, were looking at the recession because of the coronavirus. But even before that, with the booming stock market, and the reality that most Americans didnt have $400 in the bank to meet an emergency. I think people are really coming to realize there is this extraordinary gap between that image and reality. And beginning more to want to root their politics in reality, both to fight the coronavirus and to fight the economic recession. But also to give credit to the essential workers of color, and to the women who are keeping this country running. I thought it was really interesting that one of the tropes from American individualism is, of course, that moms are home, right? Taking care of the kids. Over the weekend in Portland, moms went out and made a wall, a wall of moms to stand between the protesters and the federal troops.

BILL MOYERS: You say that the movement of women into politics rejects the construction of a society in which a few elite white men control the destinies of the rest of the country. And you find hope in that. But I wrote after your last sentence, Yes, but white oligarchs and their mercenaries still have the power.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Yes, they do. And I often dont sleep at night. But people ask me what gets me up every morning, and why do I continue to be optimistic. And I am because I believe in American democracy. I believe in the concept of human self-determination with almost a religious faith. And if I lose that faith, I feel like I will have broken that faith not only with the people around me today, but with all those people who came before us, and fought in wars, and who gave up their time and their money and their energy and did everything that they could to make sure that American democracy would survive. So, were in a very frightening time. But there are a lot of us, I think, who believe in this great American experiment, and will give it our all to make sure it doesnt end on our watch.

BILL MOYERS: Heather Cox Richardson, thank you so much for sharing your time and your thoughts, and for all the work that has inspired so many of us.

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON: Yes. Well, thank you very much.

ANNOUNCER: Thanks for listening to Moyers on Democracy. Read an excerpt from HOW THE SOUTH WON THE CIVIL WAR, a must-read book for understanding how we got to this moment. And, be sure to check out Bills podcast with Heather Cox Richardson, exploring how her daily LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN found a large and loyal following on Facebook and our website.Youll find all this and more at Billmoyers.com.

Excerpt from:

Bill Talks with Heather Cox Richardson About 'How the South Won the Civil War' - BillMoyers.com

Global Nanotechnology in Medical Market 2020 Comprehensive analysis with Top Trends, Size, Share, Future Growth Opportunities & Forecast by 2027…

This latest report studies Nanotechnology in Medical Market globally, particularly in North America, Europe(Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Poland), China, Japan, Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam) the Middle East and Africa(Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria), India, South America(Brazil, Mexico, Colombia), with revenue, import, and export, production, consumption in these regions, from 2015 to 2019, and forecast 2020 to 2027. Global Nanotechnology in Medical market 2020 research report is replete with precise analysis from radical studies, specifically on queries that approach market size, trends, share, forecast, outlook, production, and futuristic developments trends and present and future market status.

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TOC of Nanotechnology in Medical Market Contains Following Points:

Table of Content & Table Of Figures

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Global Nanotechnology in Medical Market 2020 Comprehensive analysis with Top Trends, Size, Share, Future Growth Opportunities & Forecast by 2027...

Mars: Oodles of facts, figures and fun questions about the Red Planet – BBC Focus Magazine

Our nearest planetary neighbour has been inspiring astronomers, stargazers and those trying to understand night sky for thousands of years, but we are forever learning more about the Red Planet. Who knows, one day we might discover even more by living on it.

Here are the Mars facts, figures and info you need to get to know the fourth planet from the Sun.

Mars as seen from Mariner 7 NASA/JPL

That depends on when you travel and how you plan on getting there. As the distance between Earth and Mars is constantly changing, so too does the amount of time it takes to get there. The quickest journey to the Red Planet by a spacecraft was Mariner 7s 1969 flyby, which took 128 days to arrive.

Due to their elliptical orbits, the distance between Mars and Earth is always changing as they spin around the Sun. At their closest approach, Mars is only 54.6 million kilometres (33.9 million miles) away. At their furthest, there are some 400 million km (250 million miles) between them.

Read more about human missions to Mars:

NASA/JPL-Caltech/GSFC/Univ. of Arizona

Mars has two moons; Phobos and Deimos. Phobos is the larger of the two but it is still tiny, with a radius of around 11km. Both moons were named after the Greek gods (and twin sons of the god Mars) of fear and terror respectively. They were discovered in 1877 by American astronomer Asaph Hall.

Mars and Earth have very similar lengths of day. One day on Mars, known as a sol, lasts 24 hours, 39 minutes, and 35.244 Earth seconds.

In 1960, the Soviet Union was the first country to attempt a flyby of Mars with 1M (known in the West as Marsnik) but the mission was unsuccessful. The USA was the first nation to reach Mars successfully when Mariner 4 made a flyby of the Red Planet in July 1965.

NASAs Curiosity rover scoops up some Martian soil (left), and the scoop carrying soil NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Alas, there have been no reported sightings of little green men (yet), but what has been discovered on the planets surface is evidence of persistent liquid water, microbe-supporting chemistry, organic molecules, active methane and rocks. Lots of rocks.

As Mars is smaller than Earth, the effect of gravity is much weaker. Thats great news if you want to lose weight quickly, because if you weighed 75kg on Earth, that would drop to just over 28kg on Mars. The formula is Weight on Mars = (Weight on Earth/Earths gravity (9.81m/s2)) * Martian gravity (3.711m/s2).

Read more Mars reader Q&As:

Getty

Asteroids. Many, many asteroids. The majority of the Solar Systems known asteroids lie between Mars and Jupiter, with between 1.1 and 1.9 million of them larger than a kilometre in diameter. There are millions more smaller ones, but are so spread out the distance between them is in the millions of kilometres.

Martian dust storm NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Despite its thin atmosphere, Mars is still capable of clouds and weather. In fact, when it comes to wind, Mars has the biggest dust storms in the whole of the Solar System. If you want to know the weather right now, NASAs InSight rover is acting as an on-location weather reporter.

Valerio Pellegrini

Mars is currently home to 16 robots, with more planned in the near future. Only two are currently operational, NASAs Curiosity rover and InSight lander, and four either crash-landed on the surface or broke up on entry. To date, Mars is the only known planet in the Universe to be entirely inhabited by robots.

Internally, Mars is made up of a dense iron, nickel and sulphur core, and this is surrounded by a softer silicon and oxygen mantle. The planets 50km-thick crust consists mainly of iron, magnesium, aluminium, calcium and potassium.

Observed structure of the Milky Ways spiral arms NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESO/R. Hurtderivative work: Cmglee/Public domain

Mars can be found in space, but if you want to be more specific its the fourth planet from the Sun in our Solar System, which itself is in the Orion-Cygnus Arm of the Milky Way. If youre into astronomical co-ordinates, it currently resides at RA 0h 58m 6s | Dec +2 10 32.

Strata at Base of Mount Sharp NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

The red colour of Mars comes from the high level of iron oxide in its regolith (surface material). However, why there is so much oxidised iron on a planet with virtually no oxygen in the atmosphere is still a mystery.

Mars is not the sort of place you want to go on a summer holiday. After a months-long journey, you will be welcomed by a maximum temperature of around 20C on the equator in summer. Down at the poles, Mars can get as cold as -125C. The average temperature for the Red Planet is -63C.

Earth is roughly two times bigger than Mars NASA/JPL

The diameter of Mars is 6,790km (4,220 miles), making it roughly half the size of Earth and twice as big as the Moon. This makes it the second-smallest planet in the Solar System.

Although Earth is twice as big a Mars, it is around ten times heavier! So, well let you work out the mass of our home planet knowing that the red one pushes the scales at 6.42 x 1023 kilograms.

Mars is as old as the rest of the Solar System, making it a sprightly 4.6 billion years old.

Mars takes 687 Earth days to orbit the Sun, which means it travels at a brisk 24km/s over its 9.55 AU journey (1 AU is about 150 million km, roughly the distance between the Earth and the Sun).

Mars was once a warm, wet planet thanks to an atmosphere as thick as Earths, but those days are long gone. Now its a dusty old place due to atmospheric erosion, caused by a process known as sputtering. This happens when ions carried by solar wind knock atoms out of the atmosphere and into space.

The various sources of carbon dioxide on Mars and their estimated contribution to Martian atmospheric pressure NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Terraforming means changing a planets surface and atmosphere to be more like Earths and therefore a suitable place to live. However, for it to work we need carbon dioxide, and Mars just doesnt have enough going spare. So until we sort that out, the answer is somewhere between a very, very long time to never.

Mars has what is known as an eccentric orbit, which means its not perfectly circular around the Sun. That means the distance between the two is always changing, but at their closest it is 206 million km, while its furthest is 249 million km. This averages out to around 229 million km.

Galileo Galilei Getty Images

Mars is visible in the night sky with the naked eye, so its impossible to say exactly when anybody first saw it. There are reports of it being sighted by the ancient Egyptians two millennia BCE. However, the first to spot it through a telescope was Galileo Galilei in 1610.

A Viking Orbiter/Lander spacecraft photographed this view of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the Solar System Getty Images

Mars is a rocky planet, covered in impact craters, mountains, volcanoes and deep canyons stretching thousands of miles. Olympus Mons is the tallest mountain in the Solar System, stretching 21,229m above the surface of the planet. That towers more than 12km above Mount Everest.

Mars, the Roman god of War Hulton Archive/Getty Images

The planet Mars was named after the Roman god of War. He was second only to the king of gods, Jupiter, and was a pretty bloodthirsty chap. That might go some way to explaining why the Red Planet was named after him. The animals most associated with him were the wolf and the woodpecker.

A Mars 2 Lander model at the Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics in Russia NASA

The USSR was the first country to place a human-made object on the planets surface. The first attempt, Mars 2, crash-landed in November 1971, but less than a week later Mars 3 landed and remained operational for 14.5 seconds.

One of the first pictures taken by the camera on the Mars Pathfinder lander shortly after its touchdown in 1997 NASA/JPL

Weirdly, the colour of the sky on Mars is the opposite to Earth, being blue towards sunset and sunrise and reddish-pink during the day. This unusual daytime colour is caused by the vast amounts of dust containing Magnetite, an iron ore, suspended in the atmosphere.

Curiosity made these tracks (but killed no cats in the process) NASA/JPL-Caltech

Because Curiosity killed the cat. Its a joke, obvs If you need a little more explanation, NASAs Mars Curiosity Rover landed on the Red Planet in 2012, presumably on top of any Martian felines. As of publication, there have been no reported sightings of cats on Mars and this band has a solid alibi.

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Mars: Oodles of facts, figures and fun questions about the Red Planet - BBC Focus Magazine

Pandemic Legacy, the Board-Game Series for the Age of the Coronavirus – The New Yorker

In a list of retail shortages from early March, plague historians will include toilet paper, baking yeast, and, at some stores, every kind of meat except shrimp and ribs. They should also mention a coperative board game called Pandemic. In 2004, not long after the SARS virus wound a deadly path through China, Singapore, and Canada, Matt Leacock, then a designer at Yahoo, started working on the game during his off hours. Pandemic came out four years later, and made its way from classrooms to medical schoolsit was a staple of the short-lived gift shop at the Centers for Disease Control and Preventioneventually jostling for shelf space among Hasbro stalwarts like Monopoly and Clue in Walmarts across the country. A favorite among doctors battling the coronavirus, Pandemic has grown from curiosity to cathartic release, offering, in miniature, a finite version of our stricken world.

In the past decade, board games have exploded in popularity and variety, and thousands of new games come out every year. Crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter have encouraged the emergence of a lucrative publishing system: veteran designers like Eric M. Lang, who crafts games set in ancient Egypt and feudal Japan, have been able to raise millions of dollars before theyve even finished making their promised sets. Across North America, board game cafs and bars have popped up, from Game Knight Lounge, in Portland, Oregon, to the Uncommons, in Manhattan, to capitalize on a new generations interest.

Modern board-games fans, bored with Life and Scrabble, pursue novelty, drawn by themes that reflect their esoteric interests. In Terraforming Mars, which was released in 2016, players control corporations and institutions, vying to erect domed cities and fill the dusty ocean beds of Mars with fish and water. Its ranked the fourth-best game of all time on the Web site BoardGameGeek. Humbler conceits have proven just as popular. Elizabeth Hargraves Wingspan, about nurturing birds in a nature preserve, relies on data from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The game has sold out every one of its print runs since it came out last year; Hargraves next project, set to appear in August, revolves around migrating monarch butterflies.

Pandemic resembles the Parker Brothers classic Risktheres a world map and continents associated with different colorsbut the goal is reversed. Instead of seeking world domination, as you raise and spread armies against your friends, you must work with other players to stop the march of multiple diseases that threaten to devastate the Earth. Each player controls a character who is uniquely suited to the games tasks. The dispatcher can shuttle another character between continents. The medic can treat more cases of a disease than his colleagues. The scientist can find a cure a little quicker. Players take in the totality of the board and advise one another, wincing together when the results are grim, cheering together when they eradicate a disease. Leacock began devising Pandemic after the bad blood resulting from a particularly acrimonious board-game experiencehis wife was among the unhappy playersspilled into real life. Enter the attractive spell cast by coperative game play: the people around you remain your friends; your enemy is the unfolding of events on the board.

Coperative board games have been gaining popularity, and, in the decade since Pandemic was released, new versions of the game, like novel strains of the flu, have cropped up every year or so. Sometimes the changes are mostly cosmetic: the tenth-anniversary edition comes in a handsome blue case meant to resemble a first-aid kit. Recently, Pandemics publisher, Z-Man Games, announced that Leacock would collaborate once again with Rob Daviau, a veteran Hasbro game designer, to create the third and final installment to their more complex Pandemic Legacy saga, which was begun in 2015.

In a legacy-style game, every time you play, the board might be permanently altered, leaving behind traces of previous decisions and their consequences. Daviau has said that the idea occurred to him while he was tinkering with a new version of Clue. He wondered why Mr. Boddy, apparently untraumatized, kept inviting the same murderous guests to his manor, over and over. What would it be like if the ghost of games past could haunt the present? In an ordinary round of Pandemic, when disease overwhelms a city, an outbreak occurs, and the infection spreads to other states or countries. In the first season of Pandemic Legacy, each game takes place in a given month of a single year. A city pummelled by infection begins to destabilize, and distress simmers among its people. Characters can be scarred and perish. Further outbreaks blossom into riots. Buildings descend into a heap of ashes. As the infected become increasingly restive, you have the option to lob grenades at them. When the players begin the game again, weeks have passed, and they must confront the same web of cities, now wrecked by disease and unrest. Half a decade after the release of Pandemic Legacy: Season 1, the series has revealed itself to be an uncanny fit for the age of COVID-19.

It starts simply. A virus tougher than the rest, the unfortunately prophetic Season 1 teaser reads. But as January turns to February, things take a turn for the worse. This is no ordinary virus. What results is a year that will never be forgotten. The story is also more than a sum of the players past missteps and misfortunes. As the game progresses, a stack of cards directs players to specific panels attached to a set of top secret dossiers, along with cardboard containers that conceal game pieces. (Designers appreciate the delight players take in handling thick tokens and small cubes; Pandemics ninety-six disease cubes, in four colors, mix a satisfying object with a stressful conceit, and more game pieces lie hidden in cardboard containers, like chocolates in an advent calendar.)

The first thing you learn in this meticulous unboxing is that one of the four diseases has mutated into an untreatable form that scientists call C0dA. The name seems to reflect the way in which the game unfolds. As you play, the story develops and new characters emerge: a quarantine specialist in a leather jacket shields the populace from new infections; an operations expert with a walkie-talkie and a hard hat quickly erects research stations. The world changes and yet you return again and again to the beginning of the game. C0dA, incurable, still looms.

Many of the top-secret panels hide stickers to fill in blank spaces in the rule book, leading to moreand more complexdecisions. A minute to learn... a lifetime to master, the motto of the black-and-white-disk-flipping game Othello, is not always taken to heart by game designers. Like vintage-car collectors marvelling at shifters and carburetors, indie-board-game enthusiasts revel in elaborate systems of dos and donts. But such structures often overwhelm casual players. Gloomhaven, a fantasy-themed role-playing gameDungeons & Dragons, without the improvised storytellingis the highest-rated game of all time on BoardGameGeek; its also discouragingly complex for the uninitiated. In this respect, Pandemic Legacy performs a magic trick: as part of the story, the player must earn the rules, tying each new dictum to the suspense of the narrative. You learn about how to deploy roadblocks only after you absorb the fact that C0dA outbreaks might necessitate the drastic step of blockading a city rife with infection. The rules dont just constrict the worldthey construct it, too.

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Pandemic Legacy, the Board-Game Series for the Age of the Coronavirus - The New Yorker

Ex-Lake Ridge star Jasmine Moore talks progress, motivation a year before track & field starts at Tokyo – The Dallas Morning News

If not for the coronavirus pandemic, track and field events at the 2020 Olympics wouldve started Friday.

Former Mansfield Lake Ridge star Jasmine Moore had aspirations to compete in Tokyo.

Building on a dazzling high school tenure, when she won nine career state championships, set national records and earned international recognition, Moore shined during her freshman 2019-20 season at Georgia.

Her season-best mark of 21 feet, 2.75 inches in long jump ranked fifth in the nation during the indoor season and was the eighth longest in Georgia history. Moores season-best triple jump -- 45 feet, 7.25 inches -- led all NCAA competitors and ranked No. 2 all-time at Georgia.

Moore won the triple jump and finished second in the long jump at the SEC Championships en route to becoming the SEC Womens Indoor Freshman Field Athlete of the Year. She qualified for the NCAA indoor championships in both events before that competition and outdoor season were canceled amid the pandemic.

Moore, 19, adding more than nine inches to her triple jump distance less than a year after establishing a national high school record (44 feet, 10 inches) in her final UIL meet showcased the progress she hoped would help her clinch a berth to the Olympics this summer.

Because of the postponement, Olympic track and field events are now scheduled to start a year from Thursday -- July 30, 2021. In a recent interview with The Dallas Morning News, Moore reflected on her adjustment to college, her training amid the pandemic and her hopes for the upcoming year.

Her answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Looking back on your last year, how was your adjustment at Georgia as a freshman?

Moore: At first, the adjustment was kind of hard, being away from my parents and by myself and meeting so many new people. As far as training, it was a lot harder, and I wasnt used to having every day as a competition, and it was really intense. I would say the first three months I definitely struggled. After Thanksgiving break was when I started to get more into my groove.

What was especially challenging?

Moore: As far as training, my food. Obviously at home with your parents, my mom always cooked. Being at school, it was tough because you dont always have time to go to the dining hall and maybe they dont have the best options for you. I tried to balance cooking and fueling my body with appropriate stuff so I could have good performances and not slack. It shows a lot more in college at practice.

School was just a lot harder, too. In high school, you didnt have to study as much for tests or you didnt have as much homework, but in college, thats not going to fly. And Im really close with my parents, so not being with them and seeing them a lot, I was definitely homesick freshman year a lot.

What helped you improve in track to make such big strides in one year?

Moore: I still struggle with confidence a little bit, but basically everybody in the NCAA, Ive either competed against them in high school or international competition, so Ive been in the same boat before. Everyones in school. Everyone has practice. Everyones tired, so I had to stop feeling bad for myself, and that was when I was like, OK, obviously, I was a top recruit coming out of high school, so the expectations for you are pretty high and your expectations for yourself are pretty high, so just lets do it.

Around the same time NCAA canceled the rest of track and field season was when officials made the decision to postpone the Olympics. What was your reaction to that?

Moore: Honestly, as soon as we got sent home from Georgia and we really couldnt go back to school, I was happy they postponed just because it was so hard to practice at home due to all the circumstances with the closed gyms and not being able to do exactly everything how your coach has you at school.

Everything is so structured. Everything is so organized, and going from that to home and trying to practice and have the same intensity, it just wasnt there for me, so I was hoping that it would happen. Im kind of young in my event, so this is great that I have another year to work harder and develop more as an athlete.

What are the benefits of an extra year for you?

Moore: Definitely just to get my technique down a little bit more. Like I said, I am still pretty young in my event, so that will be beneficial to get stronger. Freshman year, I was all over the place because everything was so new that I was driving myself a little crazy. I dont think my practices were as great as they couldve been, so itll be nice now since Im able to get a hold of everything and its not so new anymore.

What does training for you look like during the pandemic?

Moore: Im actually in Georgia right now because my lease started for my house, so Im like, If Im paying, I might as well live here. Our tracks open, but were not able to train with our coaches and our team right now, so that part kind of sucks. My coach said whenever school starts back, well be able to. There will be a lot of new rules as far as being able to train when it comes to the virus and everything like that. Things will be looking a little bit different, but Im sure that well still be able to still get the work in that we need to, especially coming up on an Olympic year.

How do you push yourself every day to stay on top of that with no formal coaching?

Moore: I have more discipline here. I know Im in Georgia to go to school and go to practice, versus when Im at home, its easier to get distracted. I have to stay accountable for myself. The good thing is all the girls who I live with, theyre on the track team as well, so were able to do our workouts, and my trainers sent me exercises on my phone, so I do rehab with videos.

Do you let yourself think about what this summer mightve looked like in a normal, alternate universe?

Moore: We still had all of our events on our family calendar. It was like, Oh, supposed to be in Austin right now for NCAA championships, supposed to be in Oregon for Olympic Trials. That parts been kind of sad because I do think about what it couldve been. Either this couldve been a really good moment for me if I made the Olympic team, or else Id be really sad if I didnt. I dont want to have the disappointment, so thats why Im trying my best to stay on top of everything right now.

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Ex-Lake Ridge star Jasmine Moore talks progress, motivation a year before track & field starts at Tokyo - The Dallas Morning News

ADA 30th Anniversary: MBTA Highlights Progress and Upcoming Accessibility Projects – East Boston Times-Free Press

On the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the nations most significant legislation regarding the civil rights of people with disabilities, the MBTA reaffirms its commitment to beinga leader in accessible publictransportation.

Thanks to the ADA and our riders who have advocated and partnered with us, the MBTA is more reliable and accessible than ever before, said MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak. Were proud of the accessibility accomplishments weve made so far, but were committed to continuing to make improvements, which are fundamental to allowing our neighbors, friends, colleagues, and family members with disabilities to use the MBTA safely and confidently. With that in mind, we celebrate this important anniversary and look forward to continuing our path forward.

This weeksGM Video Updatefeatures additional discussion regarding the history of accessibility at the MBTA and the progress toward a fully accessible T.

By the 1970s, the MBTA had already begun projects and programs with a focus on accessibility, including the Ts first elevator going into service at Quincy Center Station in 1971 and offering door-to-door paratransit service through the use of two lift-equipped vans in and around Brookline in 1977. Early Federal laws and state oversight through the Massachusetts Architectural Board helped to expand a focus on accessibility at the T and, by 1990 when the ADA was signed, around twenty-five MBTA stations were accessible. At that time, some buses were also accessible, though customers were required to call ahead to request these lift-equipped buses be assigned to a particular route.

The signing of the ADA in 1990 aimed to eliminate discrimination against people with disabilities, including in public transportation. Expectations for public transit providers like the MBTA were clarified and called for all parts of service to be accessible, including reliable stop announcements, improved employee trainings, and accessible key stations and vehicles.

The existence of the ADA has also given riders a mechanism for holding organizations accountable for providing accessible service. While the T had made some progress since the signing of the ADA in 1990, a group of riders with disabilities along with the Boston Center for Independent Living filed a class-action lawsuit against the T in 2002 that cited many ADA violations, including broken elevators, inaccessible buses, and employees not equipped to assist customers as needed.

Following a comprehensive settlement agreement of this lawsuit in 2006, the MBTA has fundamentally shifted its approach, initiating accessibility projects and programs with the goal of becoming a global leader in accessible transit. In the fifteen years since the settlement agreement, tremendous progress has been made to name a few:

The MBTA now has over 232 accessible stations including 200 elevators system-wide with elevator up time averaging 99.4 percent or better consistently over the last decade through new elevator maintenance contracts.

The Ts bus fleet is 100 percent accessible with the newest fleet designed with feedback from riders with disabilities that has resulted in a layout that will provide more space and options for all customers, including wheelchair users and families with strollers.

All front-line employees receive improved training in providing accessible and inclusive service to all customers, including one-of-a-kind training in assisting customers with disabilities during emergency situations.

Recognizing that first-hand experiences help shape a more usable system, the MBTA continues to reinforce its efforts to include riders with disabilities in its decision-making processes by hiring talented staff who also have disabilities and improving rider engagement through groups like the TsRiders Transportation Access Group (R-TAG).

The RIDE is also a leader in service quality, efficiency, and innovation among peer paratransit operations. Since the launch of this service on a smaller scale in 1977, the MBTAs ADA door-to-door paratransit RIDE program currently provides service for eligible customers in fifty-eight surrounding towns and communities, including Boston. Of the 1.6 million trips provided last year on the traditional RIDE service, over 245,000 trips were taken as part of the innovative pilot partnership withUber and Lyft, which provides customers with flexible options that best meet their needs and additional similar pilot service offerings to come soon. The upcoming software and technology transition toRoutematchwill also continue to improve the customer experience, enhance reliability, and increase efficiencies by providing customers with a new web-based trip booking platform, a compatible smart phone app, and interactive voice response prompts to assist customers in managing their own trips. The MBTA continues to explore better, more integrated ways to offer trips to its RIDE customers using both paratransit and fixed route service.

While the MBTA is proud of this progress so far, the T is committed to continuous improvement with more projects focused on accessibility in the pipeline. As part of the MBTAs Plan for Accessible Transportation Infrastructure (PATI)that aims to make the system entirely accessible, major upgrades within the next five years include:

The renovation of SymphonyandHynesStations on the Green Line to improve accessibility;

Improvements to nine street-level Green Line stops that make these stations fully accessible;

Over 50 new elevators in design; and

Many innovative technology pilot programs, including indoor navigation for blind/low vision customers.

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ADA 30th Anniversary: MBTA Highlights Progress and Upcoming Accessibility Projects - East Boston Times-Free Press

Factbox: What progress is Britain making on post-Brexit trade deals? – Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is negotiating several bilateral trade deals to come into effect once its exit from the European Union is complete at the end of the year.

FILE PHOTO: European Union and British flags flutter in front of a chancellery ahead of a visit of British Prime Minister Theresa May in Berlin, Germany, April 9, 2019. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke/File Photo

The Department for International Trade has prioritised deals with the EU, the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Heres where things stand:

Total trade value: 232.7 billion pounds (1)

Both sides have said they want a quick deal, but there are clear hurdles. The United States elects a new president in November, and the UK says there is no set timetable because it does not want time pressure to be used against it.

Two rounds of talks have taken place so far, with the third expected to begin on Monday. Both sides have described the talks as constructive and positive, but there are underlying tensions.

The United States imposed retaliatory tariffs on EU exports, including some from Britain, after a row over aircraft subsidies. Britain has demanded that those tariffs, which apply to a wide range of goods including Scotch whisky and tailored suits, be removed to show goodwill.

Other high-profile issues include whether a deal will give U.S. firms access to Britains state-funded healthcare system, and whether Britain will accept U.S. food hygiene standards. The British government says the National Health Service is not on the table, and food standards will not be lowered.

Total trade value: 673 billion pounds (1)

Britain and the European Union have held six formal rounds of talks on a trade agreement to form part of a deal on their future relationship when a status quo transition period expires at the end of this year.

Both sides agreed last month to speed up their talks but their positions are far apart, particularly on the level playing field guarantees of fair competition and on fisheries.

Britain said after the last round that an agreement could be reached in September; EU officials say the earliest any breakthrough could come is towards the end of August.

Total trade value: 18.6 billion pounds (1)

Britain said in its negotiating mandate, published on June 17, that it wanted an ambitious and comprehensive deal including a focus on technology, innovation and research and development.

The first round of talks was held remotely between June 29 and July 10. Trade minister Liz Truss said: Discussions between negotiators were productive and reflected our shared ambition to secure a comprehensive deal to boost trade and investment between our like-minded economies.

The next round of talks is planned for September.

Total trade value: 31.6 billion pounds (1)

Negotiations began in June. Both sides have said they want a deal to come into force by the end of 2020.

Tokyo wanted to conclude talks by the end of July, but Truss has since said she will not be bounced into signing a deal because of time pressure.

Britain says any deal with Japan should be at least as good as the one signed with the EU, and that that deal can be used as a template to speed the process up.

British analysis estimated that, in the long run, the trade deal could increase annual trade flows between both countries by 15.2 billion pounds and increase the size of the UK economy by 1.5 billion pounds.

Total trade value: 2.9 billion pounds (1)

Britain said in its negotiating mandate, published on June 17, that it wanted an ambitious and comprehensive deal supporting both governments Net Zero commitments on climate change.

The first round of trade talks began via videoconference on July 13 and concluded on July 24. Further rounds are expected in due course, Britain said.

(1) Office for National Statistics, UK total trade; all countries, non-seasonally adjusted, 2019, as of July 23.

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Reporting by William James and Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Kevin Liffey

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Factbox: What progress is Britain making on post-Brexit trade deals? - Reuters

Caribbean Event Planner Turns To Technology To Restructure Her Business In a COVID Era – South Florida Caribbean News

Natalie John Dreamy Weddings CEO

ST. KITTS Since COVID-19 outbreak, Natalie John of Dreamy Weddings has turned to technology to develop creative ways to keep her business going.

With restricted access to beaches and iconic attractions and the imposition of curfews and other protocols that enforce physical distancing, John explains that many Caribbean weddings and other celebratory events have either been cancelled, postponed or transformed into virtual affairs.

The St. Kitts-based entrepreneur is celebrating the 20th anniversary of her wedding planning business which offers services in 13 Caribbean destinations. A major international event had been planned for November 6-8, 2020, featuring wedding planner to the stars, Preston Bailey and LA event planner Eddie Zaratsian.

The weekend event was designed to bring greater awareness to the weddings and honeymoon product in St. Kitts through a group vow renewal, wedding planners breakfast forum, as well as island tours and site inspections to showcase the destination.

In light of travel restrictions and the surge in COVID-19 cases in major source markets throughout the US, John has reimagined the November event into a hybrid format, combining in-person and virtual strategies to target an even wider audience than she would have reached through her traditional live event.

This years virtual event will be used to launch next years live event scheduled for Nov. 4 8, 2021 and to kick off an intensive promotional campaign. Both Mr. Bailey & Mr. Zaratsian have reconfirmed their attendance and commitment to the events for 2021.

Several local partners including The St. Kitts Tourism Authority (SKTA), The Royal St. Kitts Hotel, The Park Hyatt and St. Kitts Marriott Resort are sponsors of the event.

The thing with remote participants is that after they engage with you online, you begin to build a relationship. So when you meet later at a face-to-face event, that relationship has already been established and it can make the in-person experience and connection even stronger.

So while challenges exist, this industry leader has enlisted the help of a major celebrity and lifestyle influencer to help create awareness for the wedding and honeymoon market. She will also leverage technology to reach a targeted audience using a platform that combines video, instant messaging, social networking, chat and other audio-visual tools.

This new virtual format is probably the best alternative in these challenging times as we seek to rebuild our tourism business throughout the region. By their very nature, virtual events allow for a higher level of attendance and participation regardless of travel restrictions. Caribbean people are resilient and when we face challenges we explore new options and look at things differently. So rather than displacing live events, digital events can actually enhance them.

John is coauthor of a soon-to-be-released book that will provide industry professionals with new strategies, guidelines and procedures to navigate the industry in a COVID era. She is also the founder of CWEP, an association/network that brings Caribbean wedding and event professionals together digitally to converse, problem-solve, inspire and learn from each other. The organization is currently focused on establishing industry standards andpolicies to address new health and safety protocols.

As a Board Member of the Facebook Group, Travel Advisors Selling the Caribbean (TASC), John also lends her expertise to ensure that the regions unique selling points are fully articulated throughout the travel community.

She is one of organizers of The Caribbean Connection Walk for Wellness, a virtual initiative that will mobilize travel advisors to join the destinations that they sell to focus on a day of action in support of wellness.

The online event will be held on September 12, 2020 which is celebrated as Caribbean Wellness Day. It will raise awareness about the Caribbeans new experiential landscape brought about by a significant shift in health and wellness behaviors as well as visitor expectations in a COVID-19 era.

Although a lot of the existing technology has been around for a while, John envisions that an increase in uptake of new technologies will see virtual formats for some events becoming the norm. She predicts that digital experiences across time, space and borders, will combine the best of in-person and virtual strategies, as long as the events are strategically planned using the right technologies.

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Caribbean Event Planner Turns To Technology To Restructure Her Business In a COVID Era - South Florida Caribbean News

Most Capturing Places To Visit In The Caribbean – CEOWORLD magazine

The Caribbean is an astonishing blend of panoramic views, turquoise water, white sand beaches, romance, adventure, wild music, and lively nightlife! What else is required for a perfect getaway? It welcomes the guests with open arms throughout the year but to fetch the most of it, visit anytime between December and April when the climate is a little cooler, drier and less humid. The Caribbean islands are generally safe to visit with pretty less crime. Barbados isconsidered the safest island whereas Puerto Ricos capital of San Juan is the most dangerous one.1. St. Lucia

What makes St. Lucia unique is its geothermal activity! Yes, its the only island in the world that homes a drive-in volcano. Its blessed with natural hot springs and gurgling mud pools that are visited by tourists in great numbers to bathe and relax. Its imperative landmark is the Pitons (Gros Piton and Petit Piton), a pair of pointy mountains on the west coast. These are the most visited and clicked mountain peak on the island. But what I like the most is that its the only country that is named after a woman (St. Lucy).2. British Virgin Islands (BVI)

The best way that lets you explore the BVI is by chartering a boat, which you can do on a personal level as well as in a group. Apart from capturing the scenic views, you can also participate in various engrossing boating events. All you would feel here is tranquility on its poised palm-lined beaches, while the others bring out the adventure person hidden inside you by offering snorkeling, hiking, swimming, sailing, and scuba diving. If Tortola is the best stop to test your taste buds with its well-renowned scrumptious street food, Anegada is the best destination for a night-stay under the stars.3. US Virgin Islands

The US Virgin Islands like Trunk Bay and Magens Bay is better known for white powdery sand beaches, reefs, and lush hills. It lies in the territory of the US but sharesthe coasts with both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. You can shop your heart out as the islands are a sought after shopping destination too.Though the islands are a relatively safe vacation spot, crimes like pickpocketing and purse snatching do take place so, its better to beware of such stuff so as not to spoil your fun.4. Turks and Caicos

If you can be a little spendthrift for a luxurious vacation, this is the go-to spot for you. Turks and Caicos are one of the most expensive islands in the Caribbean, not just in hotel terms but also in meals, drinks, transportation, etc. Its lesser-known existence makes it an elite island devoid of the crowd. These are capable enough to let you escape from the hustle and bustle of your daily life and rejuvenate you with the requisite luxury and privacy.5. St. Vincent &the GrenadinesThis is yet another pocket-loosening vacation spot in the Caribbean. A plethora of word strings can be attached when thought of St. Vincent like boating, white glittery sand, palm-lined bays, colonial buildings, tranquil beaches, and hillside ocean-view luxurious villas, etc. This untouched natures beauty lets you dive and snorkel around astounding reefs and wrecks. You can also get an opportunity to click magnificent photographs for your Instagram handle around magnificent waterfalls along the Western coast.6. Antigua

Antigua is the home to abundant activities like upscale duty-free shops, boutiques, sailing, and yachting. You can get easy access to its casinos as gambling is legal here. If you happen to be here, try to plan your trip in July-end, as it celebrates a 10-day celebration Carnival from the end of July to early August. Owing to the abundant seafood wealth in its oceans, Antigua has recently become a culinary destination. Its lip-smacking dishes of the conch, salt fish, fungi, rum, and Ducana are worth trying.7. BarbadosWith a fusion of West African and British culture, Barbados magnetizes tourists round the globe. It is considered to be one of the best and safest Caribbean islands that are perfect for a family vacation. The locals are quite polite and friendly and welcome everyone with a broad smile. The island offers a wide range of family-friendly beaches at various parts, all you need to decide the reason for stay, whether youre in search of tranquility or liveliness, romantic walks with your love, or playing water sports.

So which one is kicking your travel hormones to move?

Have you read?Worlds Best Medical Schools.Worlds Best Hospitality And Hotel Management Schools.Worlds Best Business Schools.

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Most Capturing Places To Visit In The Caribbean - CEOWORLD magazine

BRAVE NEW WORLD IS (STILL) HERE – Norwich Radical

By Molly Ellen Pearson

CW: sexual assault, rape

David Wieners TV adaptation of Huxleys classic dystopia launched on Sky One and Peacock on July 15th 2020.

Set in New London in a society where class is enforced by genetic engineering and hypnopaedic indoctrination, the use of the euphoric drug soma is universal, public orgies are wholesome fun and mother is a swear word Brave New World is a novel with many themes. One of them is misogyny and the mechanisms by which it is expressed and perpetuated. Consequently, the portrayal of the novels central female character, Lenina Crowne, and her relationship with John the Savage (the emotional core of the story) are huge contributing factors to the success or failure of any adaptation. Wiener faces the challenge of depicting a society he describes as hugely problematic without condoning it, which raises questions about how the problematic aspects of the novel could, or even should be, adapted.

the challenge of depicting a society he describes as hugely problematic without condoning it

The events of Brave New World take place in 2540CE, but despite the many technological advances of New London, the treatment of women hasnt changed much since Huxleys time or ours. Beneath this brave new worlds veneer of equality, Huxley makes it plain that misogyny is alive and well. Secretaries are unanimously female with lustrous smiles, and are ordered about by powerfully built broad-shouldered men. In one scene two female characters discuss being patted on the behind by their boss, and the sexual assault is accepted as conventional male behaviour. In the opening scene a group of students tour the Hatchery where genetic engineering takes place, and it is made clear by the narration that there are no women amongst them.

Scientists make derisive comments about freemartins (women who have been genetically sterilised in utero with male sex hormone), mocking their tendency to grow beards. Women are subjected to compulsory Pregnancy Substitutes from the age of twenty-one, and those with especially wide pelvises are encouraged to begin having them as teenagers. The word father [is considered] not so much obscene as [mother] with its connotation of something at one remove from the loathsomeness and moral obliquity of child-bearing.

Alexis Soloski, writing for The New York Times, describes Lenina in the novel as a cheerful sex bunny and certainly this is the socially-sanctioned persona she adopts. Yet behind it, Huxleys Lenina is fully aware of the ugliness and meaninglessness of her world. At one point in the novel she recalls waking in the night as a child and hearing with a shock of fear the hypnopaedic suggestions that psychologically condition all citizens, the whispering that haunted all her sleeps. Like the prominent male characters in the story, she is deeply unhappy. But where they feel entitled to complain, to rail against the system, to riot, to write transgressive poetry, to request a transfer to the Falklands, Lenina takes soma and does what is expected of her with a determined smile on her face. For women, this is a familiar and well-indoctrinated message you are powerless, so you had better grit your teeth and just get on with it.

Soloski refers to Huxleys John, with considerably more accuracy, as prissy and deeply neurotic, anti-sex and anti-fun. This is, if anything, a generous assessment. Johns behaviour towards Lenina is characteristic of an abusive relationship. His attitude towards her swings between idealisation and devaluation in a manner characteristic of clinical narcissism. He slut-shames her for watching the immersive porn that is New Londons main form of entertainment (I dont think you ought to see things like that). He is controlling, condescending and physically violent. And yet worryingly, Ehrenreich, who plays John in Wieners adaptation, describes him as a man driven by his ardent belief in a deep, emotional love. At the climax of the novel, John beats Lenina to death for perceived unchastity (and, its implied, rapes her corpse). One wonders how such a statement and such a scene can possibly be reconciled.

Adapting a novel about a society whose bigotry you are unwilling to address, or even acknowledge, misses the point

In the novel, Johns treatment of Lenina is chilling because it is realistic. He is not the first man to feel entitled to a womans chastity; to objectify her, then subject her to physical and verbal abuse because she does not live up to his idealised fantasy. Nor is he the first misogynist to use literature to justify his Madonna-Whore complex (it is no accident that, of all the Shakespeare plays John reads, the most frequently referenced in the novel is Othello). Nor will he be the first to be romanticised because of it.

Dystopia is a vehicle to examine the sociopolitical injustices of our own time. Adapting a novel about a society whose bigotry you are unwilling to address, or even acknowledge, misses the point, resulting in an adaptation that colludes rather than condemns. The treatment of women in Brave New World is hugely problematic for a reason one that this adaption has seemingly decided to gloss over by reframing abuse as deep, emotional love.

Featured image Peacock

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BRAVE NEW WORLD IS (STILL) HERE - Norwich Radical

Trending Now: CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market In-Depth Analysis Of Competitive Landscape, Executive Summary, Development Factors 2026|, Caribou…

LOS ANGELES, United States: QY Research has recently published a report, titled Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size, Status and Forecast 2020-2026. The research report gives the potential headway openings that prevails in the global market. The report is amalgamated depending on research procured from primary and secondary information. The global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics market is relied upon to develop generously and succeed in volume and value during the predicted time period. Moreover, the report gives nitty gritty data on different manufacturers, region, and products which are important to totally understanding the market.

Key Companies/Manufacturers operating in the global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics market include: , Caribou Biosciences, Addgene, CRISPR THERAPEUTICS, Merck KGaA, Mirus Bio LLC, Editas Medicine, Takara Bio USA, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Horizon Discovery Group, Intellia Therapeutics, GE Healthcare Dharmacon

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Segmental Analysis

Both developed and emerging regions are deeply studied by the authors of the report. The regional analysis section of the report offers a comprehensive analysis of the global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics market on the basis of region. Each region is exhaustively researched about so that players can use the analysis to tap into unexplored markets and plan powerful strategies to gain a foothold in lucrative markets.

Global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Segment By Type:

Genome EditingGenetic EngineeringgRNA Database/Gene LibrarCRISPR PlasmidHuman Stem CellsGenetically Modified Organisms/CropsCell Line Engineering CRISPR-Based Therapeutics

Global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Segment By Application:

Biotechnology CompaniesPharmaceutical CompaniesAcademic InstitutesResearch and Development Institutes Based on

Competitive Landscape

Competitor analysis is one of the best sections of the report that compares the progress of leading players based on crucial parameters, including market share, new developments, global reach, local competition, price, and production. From the nature of competition to future changes in the vendor landscape, the report provides in-depth analysis of the competition in the global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics market.

Key companies operating in the global Global and China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics market include , Caribou Biosciences, Addgene, CRISPR THERAPEUTICS, Merck KGaA, Mirus Bio LLC, Editas Medicine, Takara Bio USA, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Horizon Discovery Group, Intellia Therapeutics, GE Healthcare Dharmacon

Key questions answered in the report:

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TOC

1 Report Overview1.1 Study Scope1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size Growth Rate by Type: 2020 VS 20261.2.2 Genome Editing1.2.3 Genetic Engineering1.2.4 gRNA Database/Gene Librar1.2.5 CRISPR Plasmid1.2.6 Human Stem Cells1.2.7 Genetically Modified Organisms/Crops1.2.8 Cell Line Engineering1.3 Market by Application1.3.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Share by Application: 2020 VS 20261.3.2 Biotechnology Companies1.3.3 Pharmaceutical Companies1.3.4 Academic Institutes1.3.5 Research and Development Institutes1.4 Study Objectives1.5 Years Considered 2 Global Growth Trends2.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Perspective (2015-2026)2.2 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Growth Trends by Regions2.2.1 CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Regions: 2015 VS 2020 VS 20262.2.2 CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Historic Market Share by Regions (2015-2020)2.2.3 CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Forecasted Market Size by Regions (2021-2026)2.3 Industry Trends and Growth Strategy2.3.1 Market Trends2.3.2 Market Drivers2.3.3 Market Challenges2.3.4 Market Restraints 3 Competition Landscape by Key Players3.1 Global Top CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Players by Market Size3.1.1 Global Top CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Players by Revenue (2015-2020)3.1.2 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Revenue Market Share by Players (2015-2020)3.2 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Share by Company Type (Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3)3.3 Players Covered: Ranking by CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Revenue3.4 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Concentration Ratio3.4.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Concentration Ratio (CR5 and HHI)3.4.2 Global Top 10 and Top 5 Companies by CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Revenue in 20193.5 Key Players CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Area Served3.6 Key Players CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Product Solution and Service3.7 Date of Enter into CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market3.8 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion Plans 4 CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Breakdown Data by Type (2015-2026)4.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Historic Market Size by Type (2015-2020)4.2 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Forecasted Market Size by Type (2021-2026) 5 CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Breakdown Data by Application (2015-2026)5.1 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Historic Market Size by Application (2015-2020)5.2 Global CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Forecasted Market Size by Application (2021-2026) 6 North America6.1 North America CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size (2015-2026)6.2 North America CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Type (2015-2020)6.3 North America CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Application (2015-2020)6.4 North America CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Country (2015-2020)6.4.1 United States6.4.2 Canada 7 Europe7.1 Europe CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size (2015-2026)7.2 Europe CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Type (2015-2020)7.3 Europe CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Application (2015-2020)7.4 Europe CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Country (2015-2020)7.4.1 Germany7.4.2 France7.4.3 U.K.7.4.4 Italy7.4.5 Russia7.4.6 Nordic7.4.7 Rest of Europe 8 China8.1 China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size (2015-2026)8.2 China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Type (2015-2020)8.3 China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Application (2015-2020)8.4 China CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Region (2015-2020)8.4.1 China8.4.2 Japan8.4.3 South Korea8.4.4 Southeast Asia8.4.5 India8.4.6 Australia8.4.7 Rest of Asia-Pacific 9 Japan9.1 Japan CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size (2015-2026)9.2 Japan CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Type (2015-2020)9.3 Japan CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Application (2015-2020)9.4 Japan CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Country (2015-2020)9.4.1 Mexico9.4.2 Brazil 10 Southeast Asia10.1 Southeast Asia CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size (2015-2026)10.2 Southeast Asia CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Type (2015-2020)10.3 Southeast Asia CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Application (2015-2020)10.4 Southeast Asia CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market Size by Country (2015-2020)10.4.1 Turkey10.4.2 Saudi Arabia10.4.3 UAE10.4.4 Rest of Middle East & Africa 11 Key Players Profiles11.1 Caribou Biosciences11.1.1 Caribou Biosciences Company Details11.1.2 Caribou Biosciences Business Overview11.1.3 Caribou Biosciences CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.1.4 Caribou Biosciences Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020))11.1.5 Caribou Biosciences Recent Development11.2 Addgene11.2.1 Addgene Company Details11.2.2 Addgene Business Overview11.2.3 Addgene CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.2.4 Addgene Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.2.5 Addgene Recent Development11.3 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS11.3.1 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS Company Details11.3.2 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS Business Overview11.3.3 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.3.4 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.3.5 CRISPR THERAPEUTICS Recent Development11.4 Merck KGaA11.4.1 Merck KGaA Company Details11.4.2 Merck KGaA Business Overview11.4.3 Merck KGaA CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.4.4 Merck KGaA Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.4.5 Merck KGaA Recent Development11.5 Mirus Bio LLC11.5.1 Mirus Bio LLC Company Details11.5.2 Mirus Bio LLC Business Overview11.5.3 Mirus Bio LLC CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.5.4 Mirus Bio LLC Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.5.5 Mirus Bio LLC Recent Development11.6 Editas Medicine11.6.1 Editas Medicine Company Details11.6.2 Editas Medicine Business Overview11.6.3 Editas Medicine CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.6.4 Editas Medicine Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.6.5 Editas Medicine Recent Development11.7 Takara Bio USA11.7.1 Takara Bio USA Company Details11.7.2 Takara Bio USA Business Overview11.7.3 Takara Bio USA CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.7.4 Takara Bio USA Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.7.5 Takara Bio USA Recent Development11.8 Thermo Fisher Scientific11.8.1 Thermo Fisher Scientific Company Details11.8.2 Thermo Fisher Scientific Business Overview11.8.3 Thermo Fisher Scientific CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.8.4 Thermo Fisher Scientific Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.8.5 Thermo Fisher Scientific Recent Development11.9 Horizon Discovery Group11.9.1 Horizon Discovery Group Company Details11.9.2 Horizon Discovery Group Business Overview11.9.3 Horizon Discovery Group CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.9.4 Horizon Discovery Group Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.9.5 Horizon Discovery Group Recent Development11.10 Intellia Therapeutics11.10.1 Intellia Therapeutics Company Details11.10.2 Intellia Therapeutics Business Overview11.10.3 Intellia Therapeutics CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction11.10.4 Intellia Therapeutics Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)11.10.5 Intellia Therapeutics Recent Development11.11 GE Healthcare Dharmacon10.11.1 GE Healthcare Dharmacon Company Details10.11.2 GE Healthcare Dharmacon Business Overview10.11.3 GE Healthcare Dharmacon CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Introduction10.11.4 GE Healthcare Dharmacon Revenue in CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Business (2015-2020)10.11.5 GE Healthcare Dharmacon Recent Development 12 Analysts Viewpoints/Conclusions 13 Appendix13.1 Research Methodology13.1.1 Methodology/Research Approach13.1.2 Data Source13.2 Disclaimer13.3 Author Details

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Trending Now: CRISPR-Based Therapeutics Market In-Depth Analysis Of Competitive Landscape, Executive Summary, Development Factors 2026|, Caribou...

Like Herpes, New Conspiracy Theories Erupt from Anti-Tech Activists – American Council on Science and Health

While much remains unknown about SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, we do know this: Like others before it, the new virus evolved naturally, perhaps in bats, before "jumping" into humans. A paper published in Nature Medicine explains that the genome of the virus strongly supports this narrative and that purposeful genetic engineering by humans is far-fetched.

No matter. The conspiracy lives. The Organic Consumers Association, which promotes the organic industry and is a top funder of the anti-GMO conspiracy website U.S. Right to Know (USRTK), just published an article that says:

Despite an ongoing cover-up by government authorities, the biotech industry, the military industrial complex and the mass media, there is growing scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was created and (most likely accidentally) leaked from a dual-use military/civilian lab in Wuhan, China.

Good grief. There are at least three conspiracies in that one sentence: (1) A massive cover-up; (2) the coronavirus was created; and (3) the Wuhan lab serves a military purpose. Let's debunk them one by one.

First, it is essentially impossible for there to be a cover-up involving the government, biotech industry, the military-industrial complex, and the mass media. A group that large would include tens of millions of people, and a study using mathematics alone shows how incredibly unlikely it is for that many conspirators to keep mum. Eventually, one of them would blow its cover.

Second, the claim that there is a "growing scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was created" is like saying that there is a growing consensus that Queen Elizabeth II is a shape-shifting lizard. To support itsridiculous claim, the Organic Consumers Association links to another conspiracy website.

Third, there is no evidence that the Wuhan virus laboratory is producing biological weapons (which is what is meant by "dual use military/civilian lab"). It's a biosafety level 4 (BSL-4) lab, similar to those at the CDC.

From One Conspiracy to Another

Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, and conspiracy theorists gotta theorize. When one conspiracy gets old, they move on to a new one. It's usually the same, predictable people, though.

Before it was interested in coronavirus conspiracies, the Organic Consumers Association was peddling all manner of nonsense, such as9/11 trutherism, chemtrails, FEMA's secret plan to implement martial law,pesticides causing school shootings, and (of course) anti-vaccine propaganda. Anti-tech activists posing as journalists, like Paul Thacker, have moved on from anti-GMO conspiracies to anti-5G ones. And a shocking number of Americans believe that Bill Gates wants to use vaccines to inject people with tracking devices. Your crazy uncle who said the moon landing was faked has moved on to more sinister theories.

Conspiracy Theories Are Like Herpes

We should think of conspiracy theories as "viruses of the mind." They are infectious because they spread from person to person. Like viruses, they are often completely impervious to treatment such as reason or logic. And once infected, a person holds on to conspiracy theories for life.

So basically, conspiracy theories are like herpes.

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Like Herpes, New Conspiracy Theories Erupt from Anti-Tech Activists - American Council on Science and Health

Liberalism debate: How the FDP may be profitable once more WORLD – Pledge Times

FThe FDP is about everything in 2021. Party leader Christian Lindner has formulated the goal for the Bundestag election as to lead the liberals into the federal government. At the same time, the FDP must demonstrate its political relevance in no fewer than six state elections. In order to turn the weak poll values, Benedikt Brechtken, head of the Young Liberals in Recklinghausen, urged his party in a WELT contribution (Dare more liberal provocation) to show clear edges on three topics: capitalism, nuclear power, genetic engineering.

Capitalism, he writes, is the best and most social thing that has ever happened to mankind, due to the surge in prosperity it triggered. Genetic engineering in the form of golden rice can save up to two million lives annually. Nuclear energy contributes like no other energy source to the 1.5 degree target and is extremely safe, while coal energy kills many people.

An overheated housing market, millions of bonuses for scandalous managers and risky banking deals that are dragging entire economies into the abyss. Is the free market to blame for such excesses? WELT editor Moritz Seyffarth is investigating this question.

Source: WELT | kci, mgi, sey

Tactically, there is some reason to believe that, as a small party, you should adopt a strategy of maximum intensification. However, the provocation must also be reliable in terms of content. If you critically tap Brechtkens demands, they quickly collapse. So it was the unbridled casino capitalism (Hans-Werner Sinn) that plunged the world into the 2008 financial crisis. Many economies still suffer from the subsequent impoverishment.

The return to extremely costly nuclear energy is not even demanded by the energy industry itself, which has long since switched to renewables. Its worth taking a look at the topic of nuclear fusion, keyword ITER. And when it comes to green genetic engineering, even the Greens write in the draft of their new basic program that research in this field should be strengthened. Here too, the FDP is not waving a unique position. In short: the Brechtkensche Weg is a wrong way. The provocation fades away like a sparkler.

And yet the FDP has an urgent need to review its course, strategy, and canon of issues. The last state elections were disappointing, the federal government looks black and green, while personnel speculation is blowing around the Hans-Dietrich-Genscher-Haus. What has to happen

The FDP must recognize that the world has changed. You dont have to be a left-wing man to state that the gap between rich and poor has increased significantly. The resulting uncertainty in the population is deep. With Corona, this uncertainty continues to grow: people fear for their jobs, their pensions, their security. Questions about the resilience of society dominate the discussion.

also read

From a liberal perspective, freedom is the sense of politics (Hannah Arendt). The FDP should hold onto this compass without compromising. But it must add social aspects to its core of freedom: liberalism must become more inclusive and broaden its perspective.

Here are some suggestions. Christian Lindner personally should visit a nursing home and find out about the situation of the four million people in need of care in Germany. Conclusive concepts for improving our inefficient care system are urgently needed. Schoolchildren from immigrant families need special support so that they can fulfill their promise of advancement in our performance-oriented society. Here the FDP can set its own valuable accents.

In the tenant country Germany, tenants must be relieved of the fear of being kicked out of their four walls tomorrow. A policy approach that primarily favors investors and owners falls short. When it comes to poverty in old age, the recent decisions by the Union and the SPD are by no means convincing a huge opportunity for the FDP to reposition itself as an advocate for the older generation.

And finally: The demand to abolish the soli for the top ten percent has not been fitting since Corona at the latest. The state needs money, high earners dont really hurt the two or three thousand euros, while entrepreneurs can invest as a corporation at any time. To Benedikt Brechtken: No longer demanding the abolition of the soli for everyone that would be real liberal courage.

Hans Bellstedt (born 1963) is an entrepreneur, lecturer in political communication at the TU Berlin and a member of the FDP.

Hans Bellstedt

Source: Bellstedt

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Liberalism debate: How the FDP may be profitable once more WORLD - Pledge Times

President Trump blocking people on Twitter in violation of First Amendment, lawsuit claims – News Landed

President Trump is being sued for blocking people on Twitter. A free-speech organization, The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, followed up with an additional lawsuit on Friday arguing that President Donald Trumps actions of blocking people on Twitter are in violation of the First Amendment.

The lawsuit claims that the Presidents Twitter account should be treated as a public forum run by a government executive that shouldnt block free speech or expression of opinions. Donald Trumps legal team appealed the lawsuit, claiming that Trump can do as he wishes with his private account. However, the circuit court declined to review the decision in March, Forbes reports.

Since then, the plaintiffs have been unblocked from Trumps Twitter account. However, Trumps legal team also said that people who cant specify the tweet that provoked the president to block them and people who were blocked before the president took office were not intended to be blocked by the president.

Read Also: Are you a TikTok creator? TikTok is paying creators $2 billion for content

The lawsuit claims that the blocking unconstitutionally restricts individuals in participating in a public forum (Trumps Twitter account), access public statements, and petition the government for redress of grievances. Though the president has a separate Twitter account (@potus), the @readDonaldTrump is more frequently used by President Trump to announce political news and updates.

U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Barrington D. Parker writes in an opinion, Since he took office, the President has consistently used the Account as an important tool of governance and executive outreach. He also adds that government officials cant block people from an otherwise open online dialogue because they expressed views with which the official disagrees.

What do you think? Should the presidents personal Twitter account be considered a public forum as it is widely used as a presidential account? Or should the lawsuit be dismissed? Let us know in the comments below!

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President Trump blocking people on Twitter in violation of First Amendment, lawsuit claims - News Landed

Fired Tiverton teacher gets her job back – Fall River Herald News

TIVERTON -- Amy Mullen has her job back with the Tiverton School Department.

U.S. District Court Chief Justice John J. McConnell Jr., ruling on a preliminary injunction Friday morning, said Mullens First Amendment rights were violated when she was terminated from her teaching job April 15 for speaking up about wanting to discuss distance learning as it pertained to her member teachers. Mullen is the head of the teachers union.

In granting the preliminary injunction filed by attorney Elizabeth Wiens, the judge ordered that Mullen be restored as a teacher until further notice. No doubt Ms. Mullen was retaliated against because of her First Amendment speech, McConnell said from the bench at the end of a virtual hearing.

Never once was her teaching called into question in the 25 years Mullen has worked for the district as a special education teacher, McConnell said, adding that she is considered an exemplary teacher.

Four attorneys were representing the School Department two were from the Interlocal Trust, the insurance carrier for the town. There was no ruling on their motion to dismiss the case Mullen brought against the district.

McConnell said he would take the motion to dismiss under advisement but at least part will be denied, he said. He said he was bothered by the individual suits against individual members of the School Committee who voted to terminate Mullen on the recommendation of Superintendent Peter Sanchioni.

Shell be back on the payroll as of today, School Committee attorney Stephen Robinson said Friday afternoon. We clearly will respect the courts orders, Robinson said, but added they respectfully disagree with the judge in his findings of fact and conclusions of law. We will explore our options.

Wiens wrote in the motion for preliminary injunction that Mullen should be reinstated immediately, noting in the 15-page motion that less than two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court held that union speech is overwhelmingly of substantial public concern.

Wiens also wrote that there can be no doubt that speech relating to public education, including the creation of a Distance Learning Plan for students during a global pandemic is a matter of public concern. Mullens speech, Wiens wrote, was the sole factor in her termination.

In providing background, Wiens said Sanchioni repeatedly violated the collective bargaining agreement between the School Department and NEA-Tiverton, and because of numerous grievances and unfair labor practice complaints filed by the union, there was animus towards Mullen.

On March 12, 2020, Mullen attended a professional development committee meeting and communicated to the superintendent that online learning plans need to be negotiated with the union. She learned of a March 18 meeting for a distance learning plan and she arrived early to say the union should be part of the discussion.

Sanchioni raised his voice, told Mullen she was not invited to the meeting and told her he would write her up for insubordination if she did not leave, according to the motion.

She was placed on paid administrative leave on March 21 and told to cease and desist all communications with parents, teachers and administrators, or there would be further discipline, Wiens wrote. An April 6 letter to Mullen from the superintendent notified her of his intent to recommend to the School Committee that she be suspended without pay for her persistent disruption and insubordination. A Facebook post she made violated the gag order, it was later charged.

The School Committee voted unanimously April 14 to terminate Mullen, but voted again at a meeting in May to suspend without pay and terminate her at the end of the 2020-2021 school year. That vote was 4-0, with committee member Sally Black abstaining. Voting in favor was Chairman Jerome Larkin, Vice Chairwoman Diane Farnworth, Deborah Pallasch and Elaine Pavao.

Mullen filed suit soon after her termination, saying she was retaliated against by the district for speaking on behalf of her union members. The district said she was terminated for unprofessional and disruptive behavior.

In a June 17 email to Mullen, who wanted to be on the School Reopening Committee as a representative of the teachers union, she was advised by School Department legal counsel that she was not allowed on school property and not permitted to speak with school staff or administrators because of her suspension, Wiens wrote.

Much of the discussion at the hearing Friday morning centered on whether Mullen was speaking as an employee of the district, or as a private citizen at the distance learning meetings.

The speech took place in the workplace. It had to do with work-related issues, said attorney Marc DeSisto, representing the Interlocal Trust. When a union president speaks, that union official is speaking in a workplace official capacity and not as a private citizen, DeSisto argued, saying union and public employee are symbiotic.

He said the court was crossing out union and making it outside the employee realm. It goes back to whether she spoke as a private citizen and was protected by First Amendment speech, or spoke as an employee subject to disciplinary action.

Wiens told the judge that every court has found that speech as a union representative is not speech as an employee. We allege Amy Mullen was terminated because of her association with the union. The reason for the termination was her status as union president.

Wiens also argued the Tiverton School Department and the individual members of the School Committee who voted to terminate her and thus violated her First Amendment rights, should be held liable for damages for violating the Constitution.

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Fired Tiverton teacher gets her job back - Fall River Herald News

BILL CRAWFORD: What sort of hearts lead us today? – Meridian Star

There are the cold-hearted and the warm-hearted, the kind-hearted and the cruel-hearted, the soft-hearted and the hard-hearted among us. Do hearts matter when it comes to leadership?

Author Clifton Taulbert, who grew up in Glen Allan, Mississippi, thinks so. In 1997, he wrote a book entitled Eight Habits of the Heart gleaned from the people who made a difference in his early life. They told me I was good and that my life had a value.

The people in my small colored community had a thousand reasons not to build, but they ignored that reality and built their lives for my benefit, he wrote. When one builds people, a good community will emerge, one that will leave its imprint beyond our front rooms, far beyond the classroom, beyond the gym, beyond our offices, and, in some cases, beyond geographical boundaries. The Eights Habits of the Heart practiced and lived out in our daily lives builds people and creates a good community.

Those habits are nurturing attitude, responsibility, dependability, friendship, brotherhood, high expectations, courage, and hope.

Pause, now, and re-focus from this heartfelt exposition to our leadership in America today.

Are Taulberts eight habits the traits you sense from them? Or something different?

Back when sit-ins and demonstrations dominated the early 60s in America, the person who led Indias movement to independence from Britain was the often quoted guru of non-violent civil disobedience. He inspired worldwide freedom movements as he campaigned for reconciliation among sub-continent religious sects. Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated at age 79 by a religious zealot.

Gandhi spent two decades of his early life in South Africa before he returned to India. It was there campaigning for the oppressed that he began to formulate his non-violent approach to change. South African History Online writes that Gandhi, harboured no hatred in his heart and was always ready to help people in distress. It was this rare combination of readiness to resist wrong and capacity to love his opponent which baffled his enemies and compelled their admiration.

Hmmm.

These days all sorts of Americans gather as they did in the 60s to demonstrate against what they see as wrong in our society. They have a First Amendment right to do so. The key is such assemblies must be peaceable. Most are, but some have escalated into violence.

One of Taulberts habits is brotherhood. He teaches that brotherhood is the habit that reaches beyond comfortable relationships to extend a welcome to those who may be different from yourself. Jesus told us to love each other including our enemies.

While violence is unacceptable, the leadership challenge today is to manage demonstrations using welcoming security methods that encourage peaceable behavior, not incite violence.

So, are our leaders hearts exhibiting a welcoming spirit and nurturing love for our demonstrating citizens who think differently? Are our leaders telling demonstrators their lives have value? Well, besides those who automatically label them animals, terrorists, agitators, and lowlifes.

Gandhi said, It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.

Regrettably, the heartless are among us, too.

Be patient, bearing with one another in love Ephesians 4:2.

Bill Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.

We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story.

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BILL CRAWFORD: What sort of hearts lead us today? - Meridian Star

SiPearl, Arm to Present at the Open Innovation Platform Ecosystem Forum – HPCwire

MAISONS-LAFFITTE, France, July 31, 2020 SiPearl, the company that is designing the high-performance, low-power microprocessor for the European exascale supercomputer, will be a guest speaker at the upcoming Open Innovation Platform Ecosystem Forum, organized by its industrial partner TSMC, the worlds leading independent semiconductor foundry.

During this annual event, which brings together stakeholders from the ecosystem created by TSMC, Ying-Chih Yang, SiPearls Chief Technical Officer, Craig Prunty, SiPearls Vice President Marketing and Business Development, and Dr. Selma Laabidi, Arm Product Expert, will lead a conference on Accelerating HPC market adoption with Arm Neoverse POPTM IP.

In April this year, SiPearl announced that it had signed a major licensing agreement with ARM for the development of its first generation of microprocessors. Under the terms of this agreement, SiPearl will benefit from the high-performance, secure and scalable next-generation Arm Neoverse platform, codenamed Zeus, as well as Arms robust software and hardware ecosystem. The Zeus platform, which includes Arms POP intellectual property on advanced FinFET2 technology, will enable SiPearl to accelerate its design and ensure outstanding reliability for a very high-end offering, in terms of both computing power and energy efficiency.

About SiPearl

Created by Philippe Notton, SiPearl is the Franco-German company that is bringing to life the European Processor Initiative (EPI) project, designing the high-performance, low-power microprocessor for the European exascale supercomputer. This new generation of microprocessors will enable Europe to set out its technological sovereignty on the strategic markets for high performance computing, artificial intelligence and connected mobility. SiPearl is developing and will market its solutions through close collaboration with its 26 partners from the EPI scientific community, supercomputing centres and leading names from the IT, electronics and automotive industries which are its stakeholders and future clients. It is supported by the European Union3. SiPearl is also a member of the Mont-Blanc 2020 consortium to equip Europe with a dedicated modular and energy-efficient high performance computing microprocessor, and is a member of the PlayFrance.Digital collective for Europe to lead the field for digital technology

Source: SiPearl

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SiPearl, Arm to Present at the Open Innovation Platform Ecosystem Forum - HPCwire

How the ADL is working to end Facebooks thriving ecosystem of Holocaust denial – Haaretz

Following its years-long effort to fight Holocaust denial on Facebook, the Anti-Defamation League has shifted gears from working with the tech giant in combating hate speech to helping lead a campaign to force change on the worlds largest social media platform.

The Stop Hate for Profit campaign was launched in mid-June by a number of U.S. civil rights groups. The effort, initiated following the killing of George Floyd, targets Facebooks $70 billion in annual ad revenues its main source of income to urge the company to commit to 10 recommended reforms for curbing hate speech.

And, while much of the campaign focuses on fighting the systemic issues highlighted by Floyds death, the ADLs long fight to get Holocaust denial off Facebook can be seen in the campaigns call to action.

The ADL, a Jewish organization founded in 1913 to combat antisemitism, partnered with Facebook (along with Google, Microsoft and Twitter) in 2017 to establish the Cyberhate Problem-Solving Lab to fight antisemitism and online hate.

But as the ADLs chief executive, Jonathan Greenblatt, told Haaretz, Facebook has consistently refused to categorize Holocaust denial as a violation of its terms of service, or Community Standards, which prohibit the use of its platform as a vehicle to demonize others or engage in hate speech.

The sentiment echos claims Greenblatt made in an open letter, where hewrote that while our partner organizations have been working with Facebook for years, the companys ongoing unwillingness to take action is inexcusable. The letter adds that in the ADLs experience with Mark Zuckerberg, weve learned that Facebook wont take this seriously unless forced hence the campaign.

'Factual error'

The ADLs literature on the subject points to Zuckerberg himself as to why Facebook has never explicitly categorized Holocaust denial as hate speech. The organization highlights a 2018 interview in which Zuckerberg said he finds Holocaust denial deeply offensive, but Facebook views it as a factual error not necessarily antisemitism or hate speech.

I dont believe that our platform should take that down because I think there are things that different people get wrong, Zuckerberg, who is Jewish, said at the time. I dont think that theyre intentionally getting it wrong.

But even though the new effort is gaining steam with over a thousand companies joining, Facebooks stock actually set records in July, and Zuckerberg has stuck to his position. Were not gonna change our policies or approach on anything because of a threat to a small percent of our revenue, or to any percent of our revenue, he said, the tech news site The Information reported.

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Facebook did not respond to requests for comment.

As Aryeh Tuchman, associate director at the ADLs Center on Extremism, puts it, Holocaust denial is an antisemitic conspiracy theory which is founded on the belief that a global Jewish effort existed and continues to exist! to scam the whole world.

He adds: Seen in this light, it doesnt matter whether a person who promotes Holocaust denial is doing so out of malice or out of error; the bottom line is that they are promoting the greatest antisemitic conspiracy theory since 'The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.'

As part of the pressure campaign on Facebook, the ADL has also documented how hate speech on the platform has appeared alongside major companies ads.

For example, the ADL noted an image of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar transcribed onto an Aunt Jemima maple syrup bottle, her photo placed over the fictitious label Aunt Jihadi. In another example, an ad from the auto insurance company Geico appeared alongside an antisemitic post from a George Soros-focused group of more than 3,000 users, accusing the billionaire philanthropist of funding Black civil rights efforts in order to break down the world order.

The ADL says companies thus might want to pull their ads until hate speech is curbed on the platform.

'Facebook's indifference'

The ADL has long chronicled Holocaust denial on Facebook and notes that a review clearly found explicit denial, as well as the hate-filled and conspiratorial antisemitism common to this philosophy.

A spokesperson for Stop Hate For Profit told Haaretz in a statement how the ADLs expertise in this area has added to the campaign, saying, the ADL has been a critical partner.

Theyve brought incredible resources and expertise to bear, particularly in regards to the antisemitism and Holocaust denial thats rampant on Facebook. What makes this coalition powerful is how it pulls from every corner of American civil society that has been impacted by Facebooks indifference to profiting from hate.

Tuchman also notes the difficulties in researching and quantifying Holocaust denial on the platform, pointing out that unlike Twitter, Facebook is a closed system that doesnt allow for data trends to be easily collected and analyzed.

Tuchman says his team searched for Facebook Groups with titles which suggested that Holocaust denial might be present, and then delved into their contents.

On its website, the ADL lists several Facebook groups dedicated to Holocaust denial and names individuals linked to white supremacy and neo-Nazism who moderate or periodically post in those groups.

This research covers pages that are visible to the public, private groups where you must be approved as a member, and individual Facebook accounts. Tuchman notes that his team has found a thriving ecosystem of Holocaust denial in those groups. Looking at the personal pages of some of the participants we saw that they were also posting Holocaust denial content outside the groups.

Greenblatt adds that as a result of Facebooks refusal to categorize Holocaust denial as a form of antisemitic hate speech, this rhetoric appears across the platform, including in both public and private groups specifically devoted to the topic.

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How the ADL is working to end Facebooks thriving ecosystem of Holocaust denial - Haaretz