Author Archives: Danzig

Wild bison to roam England’s woodlands for the first time in 6,000 years as ‘ecosystem engineers’ – Insider – INSIDER

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A herd of wild bison will be released in southern England for the first time in 6,000 years to help restore an ancient habitat and its surrounding wildlife, according to conservationists.

The move is part of a 1m project ($1.2 million) led by Kent Wildlife Trust and the Wildwood Trust, which aims to restore Blean Woods a former pine wood plantation near Canterbury.

The animals will be welcomed to their new home in the spring of 2022, with conservationists planning to first set free one male and three females to form the core of the new herd, according to the Guardian. The animals will be imported from Poland and the Netherlands countries where previous releases have proven successful.

Conservationists hope that the move will help secure the future of the endangered species and that Europe's largest land mammal will also help naturally regenerate the area.

Wild bison fell trees by eating their bark or rubbing up against them. This will create wide and sunny clearings, which in turn will help native plants to thrive.

"TheWilder Bleanproject will prove that a wilder, nature-based solution is the right one to tackle the climate and nature crisis we now face," Paul Hadaway, of Kent Wildlife Trust said, according to the BBC.

"Using missing keystone species like bison to restore natural processes to habitats is the key to creating bio-abundance in our landscape." What the Trust calls "ecosystem engineering."

The European bison is the closest living relative to the ancient steppe bison, which existed in the UK 6,000 years ago before it was killed off due to hunting.

A team of conservationists will be working over the next 18 months to create a fenced enclosure within a wider 150 hectare (370 acres) area.

The public will be able to visit the area with rangers once the wild animals are settled."This will allow people to experience nature in a way they haven't before," Hadaway said.

Over the centuries, Britain has lost many of its keystone species. But there is a growing re-wilding movement advocating for the reintroduction of large mammals and birds of prey driven to extinction by hunting and habitat loss.

Beavers, last recorded in the 16th century, were successfully reintroduced in 2009 and several populations now thrive around the country.

A Lynx UK Trust has been set up and wants to release the Eurasian lynx into forests in Scotland and the north of England to help keep down deer numbers.

The return of the wolf is perhaps the most controversial suggestion. Plans to release two packs withing a fenced range in Britain's wildest region in northern Scotland have been greeted with horror by walkers and farmers alike.

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Wild bison to roam England's woodlands for the first time in 6,000 years as 'ecosystem engineers' - Insider - INSIDER

Update: Cyberpunk 2077 Adds New Perks, Playstyles And The Ability To Change Your Characters C… – Happy Gamer

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A comprehensive Cyberpunk 2077 preview that was released online recently showcased some details on a lot of the mechanics and features.

The preview posted on the German website Night City Life was later published on Reddit by SMHFHA in which new details on some of the Crafting, Engineering perks, and Athletic suggest a different kind of playstyles.

Some new details from NightCityLife extensive preview from cyberpunkgame

According to the perks posted on Cyberpunk 2077 official page, see them listed below:

Athletic Perks Gladiator reduces damage taken while blocking by 20%. Regeneration slowly regenerates health in combat. Pack Mule doubles carrying capacity. Invincible -increases maximum health by 10%. Super Hero Landing reduces fall damage by 5%. Multitasker lets you shoot while sprinting, sliding, and jumping at the same time. Transporter lets you shoot and sprint while carrying a body. Hard motherfucker at the start of a fight, armor, and resistance are increased by 20% for 10 seconds.

Crafting Perks Master Gunsmith 5% chance of getting an additional prototype component as crafting material for every item made. R&D the said skill that enables you to upgrade items to the legendary quality level. Crazy Science is a trait, a kind of master skill at the bottom of the talent tree, which increases the sales prices of your items by 25%.

Engineering Perks Mech Looter you can loot scrap from drones, robots, and mechs and have a 30% chance of finding weapon parts. Blast Shielding reduces your explosion damage taken by 10%. Shrapnel adds 20 additional damage to all previous garnet effects. Grenadier make the explosion radius of grenades visible to you. Reverse engineering lets you take off weapon mods. You cant touch this make yourself immune to the effects of your grenades.

Furthermore, Cyberpunk 2077 will feature five distinct items quality levels epic, rare, iconic, ordinary, and legendary. Out of the five, the iconic level can be seen as one of a kind that players using guns can pick after the conquering Royce.

Another update that will play an important part in Cyberpunk 2077 is the players ability to change the clothing without being coaxed to use underpowered equipment. In the preview, there were mentions of the ability to add fabric mod to sneakers to give them armor rating.

Another update will be Cyberwares bringing unique play styles to the game. Heres what to expect:

Mantis Blades Happens to be the most famous cyberware in the game. The mighty blades protrude from Vs forearm, and several fragments are available. Blood pump Installed in the cardiovascular system slot. It activates at a certain point in time and improves healing. Micro-rotors Passive cyberware in the nervous system that improves movement speed and precision Reflex tuners are triggered by cyberware and activates slow motion as soon as your health falls below a critical value. Gorilla Hands Logically installed in the hands and vastly improves your strength and melee strength. There are also several fragments here. Monowire The cyberware houses a fiber optic lasso in your arm that you can use to slice opponents in slices easily. The quick hack function via the Monowire is probably one of the fragments. Krenzikov We first encountered this cyberware in Cyberpunk 2077 as a booster spray, but it also exists as an implant for your nervous system. The trigger activates a slow-motion effect as soon as you have successfully avoided an enemy attack. Synlungs Artificial lungs that are installed in the cardiovascular system and improve the regeneration of your endurance.

Night City Life spoke about playstyles in Cyberpunk 2077, stating that there wont be accolades for playing the game in a certain way CDPR wouldnt want to coax players into any set style.

A style like Pacifist run is applicable; however, it wont unlock an achievement.

Cyberpunk 2077 is set to launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on November 19th.

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Update: Cyberpunk 2077 Adds New Perks, Playstyles And The Ability To Change Your Characters C... - Happy Gamer

What it’s like being one of the few dozen people in the park with Phillies playing – NBC Sports Philadelphia

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Bart Braun, one of the most popular and well-respected men in baseballs scouting community, died suddenly at his home in Northern California on Friday. He was 64.

Braun, a former minor-league pitcher, began his scouting career in 1983 and worked for five teams, including the Phillies.

He joined the Phillies in October 2012 as a special assistant to the general manager and was still serving in that capacity at the time of his death.

Like any scout, Braun was all about finding good players. He lent his eyes and insights to the Phillies amateur scouting staff as it prepared for the draft every year and he scoured the majors and the minors for players the team might be interested in acquiring through trades, free-agent signings or waiver claims.

Braun was known for his sense of humor and a tireless work ethic that fueled many miles on baseballs scouting trail. His feel for players, what made them tick and how they might perform as the challenges and the competition became tougher, was legendary. He was adept in the evaluation of both pitchers and position players and general managers from Detroit to Pittsburgh to Atlanta to Tampa Bay to Philadelphia leaned onhim for insights and guidance.

Brauns impact on this current Phillies team can be seen in J.T. Realmuto.

Late in 2014, Ruben Amaro Jr., then the Phillies general manager, and Mike Ondo, the teams director of pro scouting, dispatched Braun to the Dominican Republic to look at a Cuban catcher named Lednier Ricardo.

A workout had been arranged at the Phillies academy in Boca Chica. Luis Garcia, one of the Phillies scouts in the Dominican Republic, was responsible for providing a couple of pitchers so Ricardo could take batting practice.

Braun watched Ricardos workout and was not really impressed.

But he couldnt take his eyes off of one of the pitchers that Garcia had brought in to throw batting practice. The pitcher was a 16-year-old in the process of converting from shortstop. Braun loved the kids quick, loose arm, his sound delivery and his easy velocity. He turned his attention away from the catcher and asked the kid who was pitching batting practice how much it would take to get his name on a contract. The kid said $35,000. Braun ran it up the flagpole to international scouting director Sal Agostinelli and Carlos Salas, another Phillies scout in the Dominican. Done deal.

Within a few years, Sixto Sanchez, the batting practice pitcher that day in the DR, was the Phillies top prospect. He was used as a key chip to acquire Realmuto in a trade from the Miami Marlins in February 2019.

I remember calling Ruben and Mike and telling them, Were not going to sign the catcher, but we might have found a pitcher," Braun recalled a few years after that workout in the DR. It was kind of an accident, a luck deal. We were in the right place at the right time. Sometimes when you keep workingyou bump into stuff.

Thats a classic scouting tale and we tell it at a time when the scouting industry, populated by some of the best people in the game, is being hit hard by cutbacks and layoffs, all in the name of that longed-for place called efficiency. There could be a drastic reduction in the number of minor-league teams as soon as next year and that will mean fewer players and therefore fewer scouts to find them and fewer instructors to develop them. On the scouting side, many teams are using more video and data-based player-evaluation methods. These clubs are saving money but theyre losing some of their soul, the invaluable human qualities of wisdom, experience, passion, instinct, work ethic, dedication and love of the game that scouts bring. Scouts like Bart Braun.

Braun's death has hit the scouting community hard.

"He was a character for sure," said one longtime friend and rival scout. "He had a heart of gold. The last time I saw him was on an airplane. He gave up his first-class seat so I could sit there next to my wife.

"We competed in the Dominican Republic endlessly. He never slept."

Another heartbroken scout friend had this to say about Braun and his tireless commitment to the art of unearthing players:

"He was a true 'dirt scout' and that's the ultimate compliment you can pay a scout."

Phillies general manager Matt Klentak praised Braun's impact on the organization as a person and as a professional.

"Bart was a legend in the scouting world, and his evaluations played a role in virtually every player acquisition that the Phillies have made in recent years," Klentak said."But what many of us will miss most is Bart's energy, his laugh, his loyal friendship, his passion for life and his love for the game of baseball. On behalf of all of Bart's friends and colleagues at the Phillies, I extend our deepest condolences to Patty and Bart Jr."

Braun is the second loss to hit the Phillies scouting staff in the past year. Back in June, the club dedicated its draft to Will Brunson, a member of the scouting staff who died at age 49 in the fall of 2019. Brunson, who pitched in the majors, covered south Texas for the Phillies.

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What it's like being one of the few dozen people in the park with Phillies playing - NBC Sports Philadelphia

John Waters on his 50+ year film career – British GQ

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John Waters seventh book, Mr. Know-It-All, a funhouse mirror image of the traditional self-help manual opens with a quandary. The worst thing that can happen to a creative person has happened to me, he writes. I am accepted.

Its the biggest imaginable shock for a man whos made a career out of his ability to subvert and scandalise. The Baltimore-born directors catalogue of video nasties from 1964 to 2004 were like a grenade attack on cinematic proprietary. He made 300lb drag queen Divine his bodacious Marilyn, introduced the world to the heathen pleasures of a rosary job (google it) and developed scratch n sniffs for cinema audiences imbued with the unholy scents of flatulence and dirty shoes. Back when Waters made the filmed-on-a-shoestring trash classic Pink Flamingos in 1972, even the most outlandish clairvoyant couldnt have foreseen that, 25 years later, the snooty cinephiles of Cannes Film Festival would be toasting the murderous shit-eating trailer-park queen at the films centre.

John Waters style drew freely from high and low culture gross-out gore flicks as well as daring avant-garde works and treated his regular collaborators like Divine and Edith Massey like the A-listers they deserved to be. Before long, actual Hollywood stars like Kathleen Turner and Melanie Griffith were clamouring to be part of Waters self-described filth empire. In the past couple of decades, though, Waters has re-envisioned himself as a kind of alternative public intellectual, Fran Lebowitz with dirtier jokes. His extensive speaking tours and meet-and-greets are a riot (he will sign anything, including a tampon). And he has infiltrated the art establishment with a welcome dose of irreverence: his 2009 installation Rush wasa gargantuan spilt bottle of amyl nitrate. In Waters warped world, even poppers can be high art.

On a perfect July afternoon, Waters telephones from the bohemian gay resort town of Provincetown, Massachussets. In fact, he used to throw a poppers party at the towns annual film festival. Ive seen movie stars and A-list critics all doing poppers! he says. Sadly, the event was a victim of its own success. Then The Boston Globe wrote about it and then the entire town crashed the party. Yet Waters, at 73, remains a mind-expanding heady high.

GQ: In Mr. Know-It-All, you speak movingly about Divines impact on pop culture. Whats your take on RuPauls Drag Race?

John Waters: Im really happy for Ru. Ive known him forever, since he started. Hes been a hard-working person for decades. Hes successfully crossed-over drag to middle America, which I never, ever thought would happen, and given careers to [so many]. Even if you come in sixth on that show, you tour eight clubs in America. Not only was he smart about it; I think another key thing is he is one of the only drag queens who has a great look out of drag. Ru is so chic. His suits are amazing. Divine was just getting there when he died, but in the beginning, he just used to walk round in overalls. In Provincetown, where I live, where theres 5,000 drag shows, the drag queens always think Im snobby. I dont know what they look like out of drag they look completely different! I cant recognise them and Divine, I wouldnt have recognised him out of drag really. I think Divine has a little something to do with it, because Divine put an edge on drag queens. When I was young, they were square. It was like they wanted to be the Queen. They didnt want to have an edge. Now, they all have an edge! Im kind of more interested in drag kings because they are really confusing to me. I think RuPaul should have a drag king version, and I also think he should have Fag Hag Race.

And who would you put as the judge on Fag Hag Race?

Well, I dont know, Im trying to think who is the ultimate fag hag? Thats a good one. I mean, they have Bear Week in Provincetown and Im always just astounded that there are bear fag hags. They look kind of like Grace Metalious, the author of Peyton Place. They wear lumber jackets with greasy ponytails. So Im for the niche fag hags.

In your book Role Models, you talked about your obsession with Rei Kawakubo and her clothes. How big is your Comme des Garons collection now?

Well, its pretty big. Comme des Garons never goes out of style because its never in style. So you never can go wrong. But Im also a big fan of Walter Van Beirendonck. I buy at MAC, which is my favourite clothing store in America, in San Francisco. Its one of a few places that really do carry him. I like Issey Miyake a lot. Paul Smith I like, when Im trying to look normal.

Do you have any outrageous Walter Van Beirendonck pieces?

Well, some of them are too outrageous for me, I am 73! I think the ones that make me laugh the most they arent Walter Van Beirendonck. One was, I cant even remember which [designer] it was, but its a suit that looks like it has cat hair all over it. People say Oh my god, John!, and they try to brush it off. Its quite intricate, the threads. And I have another one that looks like water splashed up on your pants. As I said in my book, my look is disaster at the dry cleaners.

What do you think is the new cinematic underground is it online?

I dont think it is. In the music industry, everybody makes a name online and on YouTube. [But] what movie has premiered on YouTube or online and become a sensation? I cant think of one. Well, Roma was a Netflix movie and it was all over the Oscars last year. Im not against that. Im for anybody that can say yes to make a movie! You know, movies survived it all: they survived television, they survived videos and now they have to survive Netflix. If its good enough, people go. I saw Quentin Tarantinos movie this weekend, and its so great to see a movie that really surprises you and has that much style. Those kind of movies will always come out and win, they just have to be good and they have to be original. [Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood] is the only movie that came out this summer that wasnt a sequel or a prequel or something.

Its true. My favourite line from one of your movies, is Edith Massey in Female Trouble where she says, the world of a heterosexual is a sick and boring life...

But she doesnt even say it right because she didnt know what it meant! She says the world of heterosexual, she doesnt say the world of a heterosexual. It was really a market-testing experiment at the time, because all gay people then applauded, so I could tell the breakdown of my audience.

What kind of politics was that sentiment powered by?

It was just trying to cause trouble. That was filmed in 1973, so, at the time, gay rights were just beginning to start. It was kind of a ludicrous version of that, to have a mother that wanted you to be gay and was really sad and disappointed that you were straight.

How was Edith Massey to direct?

Well, she tried really hard. She would memorise the lines like she was writing sentences in school. Shed write them over and over but wed get there and shed say [in Pink Flamingos] Eggs, eggs! Then shed say Edith shakes the playpen. I said No, you dont say that out loud! Thats a direction. The audiences really loved her right from the beginning when she had a tiny role in Multiple Maniacs. When Andy Warhol met her, he said: Where did you find her? She was like an outsider Gracie Allen [eccentric 1930s actress].

Theres one picture thats been circulated recently, of Divine sneering at Donald Trump at Studio 54. Were you there?

Thats completely fake! Because I know where that picture of Divine is from and he was not with Donald Trump. It could have been true because Donald Trump liked Studio 54, and so did Divine. But we would have always hated him, even though Trump was basically a liberal back then. He was nouveau riche and a bragger. You know how he decorated the White House? It looks like Jeff Koons did it without art history knowledge or intelligence.

Did you see the White Houses horrible Christmas decorations?

They were goth! They were goth Las Vegas! Which could be funny if you were in on it, but [Melania] wasnt in on it. She thought it was beautiful. Tastes can change, but I dont think anybody will ever think that the Trump decorations in the White House were influential or interesting. They were just bad in a way that was just surreal.

Do you think that Trump will get a second term as president?

I most certainly do. I dont think that we have one of [the Democratic candidates] thats strong enough to beat him.

Do you think America could be ready for a gay president with Pete Buttigieg?

Well, I like him. I would be for him, but I dont think he can win when the only thing on the first debate he got credit for was saying I couldnt get it done [relating to police reform]. Thats not exactly a bumper sticker.

You worked with Selma Blair on A Dirty Shame shes been amazing, speaking out about her MS condition. Are you still in touch with her?

I am. I think shes doing a great job. I had written to her and I just heard back from her. I show a movie every year at the Maryland Film Festival and the Provincetown Film Festival just because I love it and I showed this pretty obscure movie she made with Nicolas Cage called Mom and Dad. Its about where every parent in America decides to kill their own children. Shes great in it.

What were her giant boobs in A Dirty Shame made from?

They were latex made by the same guy who made Chucky and made John Travoltas fat suit in Hairspray. You had to put them on every day. Full naked was $5,000 a day, cleavage was, I forget, $2,000? And regular under-the-sweater was $1,000. At the end of the day, they just were used breasts that were shrivelled up. But one day they were missing! Somebody took them and we always thought it was a pervert.

Youve written many books at this point. Could you ever see yourself being a journalist?

Oh, I have been a journalist, certainly in [essay collection] Crackpot. I would love to cover a big trial.

If you were to profile a public figure, who would you like to interview?

The one Id like to get the most because nobody can get her is the defence lawyer Judy Clarke who only handles death penalty cases. She wins, and she gets you life, not death. Shes done some of the biggest ones, and the only one she lost was the Boston Bomber. Shes never given an interview and shes never allowed her clients to talk to the press. So for me, she would be the ultimate get.

In Mr. Know-It-All, you describe Polyester as a whole new level of movie-making for you. Was that the first film where you paid the cast a wage?

No, I paid everybody, even on Pink Flamingos. It wasnt much and it took years to pay back the money from people that I borrowed it from. I dont think I got a salary before Polyester.

And its shocking to read that Hairspray didnt make money until very recently.

No. I got the first cheque for profit like maybe two or three years ago. You know, I think it cost $8 million to make. What happened was, it was doing really well, but then Divine died. That puts a dampener on a comedy. But of course, Hairspray went on to have 20 more lives. I just wish Divine had had the 20 lives with it.

Ive seen some amazing fan tattoos in tribute to your films. Do you have a favourite?

I have seen amazing ones the characters from my movies. Still, my favourite one was that someone had a page of the script of Female Trouble on their leg. Thats amazing. Which scene was it? I cant remember, probably the cha-cha heels scene.

I see people posting that scene every Christmas.

I know, but drag queens still get it wrong. Cha-cha heels arent high heels! Theyre short, squashed heels to this day, most drag queens get it wrong.

Famously, Divine inspired the character of Ursula in The Little Mermaid. Now Disney is remaking it, who do you think should play the role?

Maybe Beth Ditto. But isnt Melissa McCarthy playing it? She was amazing when she dressed as Divine in People magazine.

Theres been a wave of cult gay heroes leaning right-wing recently, like Morrissey and Bret Easton Ellis. What do you make of that?

Well, Tab Hunter voted for Trump. And I actually thought Bret Easton Elliss book [White] was good. I dont agree with him, but I thought it was intelligently written. You know, I have friends that are Republicans. I dont agree with them, but as soon as we make other people feel stupid, well never get them to change their minds.

So is your point of view that we need to find something to break bread over?

Or at least, openly talk, because theyre not going to change their minds if we act like theyre stupid. You know, the insane political correctness even though its mostly correct is gonna make Trump win. Its a class issue. I promise you, in the neighbourhoods in Baltimore that are really struggling with poverty, theyre not worrying about pronoun usage. Im not saying that some dont! But its rich kids schools who are the most stringent police of it. I never understood what a trigger warning was, I thought you went to college to have your values challenged. I thought that was the point of education.

Is there a split between John Waters, the public personality, and the guy you are behind closed doors?

No. I think Im exactly like probably what youd expect. In the early days, I would go to colleges and they thought I was completely [like my films]. They had drugs for me and they thought I lived in a trailer with shit-eating drag queens!

In Mr. Know-It-All, you mention that youre in a relationship. Is it important for you to be private about the personal side of your life?

It is, mainly because my boyfriend has no desire to be in the press. My boyfriends have never been like me. I like somebody very different from me. I like him to be interested in things Im not interested in sometimes. I dont want to fuck myself!

Which of your movies do you think is the most underrated?

Cecil B. Demented. It didnt do great and its not the first one people pick, but it had funny lines in it! My favourite is when Fidget says to Melanie Griffith when theyre at the drive-in: Were beyond the critics reach.

Do you share Kathleen Turners horror in Serial Mom when it comes to white shoes after Labour Day?

Oh yes, I believe in that. Not just shoes, you cant wear white anything except winter white, which is wool. Im a firm believer in that, I pack it all away and then I see people [wearing white] and think your parents didnt tell you?. Its the only thing Im right-wing on.

This interview originally appeared in GQ Style AW19.

How Drag Race changed the world (for better and for worse)

How Drag Race turned British

Never watched RuPauls Drag Race before? After these ten lip syncs, you will

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John Waters on his 50+ year film career - British GQ

Column: The arrogance of unexamined privilege – Valley News

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Published: 7/17/2020 10:10:20 PM

Modified: 7/17/2020 10:10:09 PM

Political correctness. Cancel culture. Identity politics. To many on the political right, these buzz phrases seem to be a bigger problem than a vicious, unremitting pandemic. It is the trifecta of conservative whining.

Whether Tucker Carlson calling U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth a moron for wishing to remove offensive statues, or scores of public intellectuals fretting over cancel culture in the now-infamous Harpers letter, the so-called culture wars are boiling hot.

The complaints of the privileged extend to other snowflake issues too. Safe spaces and trigger warnings are ridiculed. Protests over smart-assed provocateurs like white supremacist Richard Spencer are just the mewling of spoiled children who should have been spanked more often. Suck it up!

The Upper Valley is clearly not exempt.

Last month, Dartmouth College removed the Baker Tower weather vane after students complained that it portrayed Native Americans in an offensive, racist manner. Perhaps predictably, the Dartmouth College Republicans called the removal a blatant attempt at pandering to a handful of community members claiming unwarranted offense.

Windsor School Principal Tiffany Riley remains in limbo after the Mount Ascutney School Board suspended her because of social media posts deemed critical of the Black Lives Matter movement. This also drew criticism as cancel culture overreach from many folks, including an organization called National Coalition Against Censorship.

In an instance more personal to me, Vermont Law School announced its intention to paint over a 1993 mural by Sam Kerson, The Underground Railroad, Vermont and the Fugitive Slave. Here, as in the Dartmouth case, students felt the images of African Americans were offensive and inaccurate. Kerson called the removal thuggery. It is personal to me, as I was the VLS administrator who facilitated the approval and painting of the mural. Kerson reached out to me last week to express his deep disappointment.

Indeed there are occasional anecdotes that reinforce the accusations of political correctness or cancel culture. Sometimes bitching really seems silly. But the rare exception does not disprove the rule: People of color, Indigenous peoples, LGBTQ folks and women have every right to define the language and images they find acceptable and unacceptable. After all, they have endured the slings and arrows (oops!) of society for hundreds of years and I think we in the majority can be generous even if they overdo it now and then.

The (mostly) male and (mostly) white folks who complain about political correctness or cancel culture seem perturbed that anyone dare be so sensitive. This is a particularly arrogant manifestation of unexamined privilege the privilege to decide whether or not another person has the right to be offended. If I declare no malicious intent in using tribe, Negro, colored person or Redskin, then you have no moral authority to object. So there!

Among the qualities my wife has worked to extinguish in me, telling her how she should feel is high on the list. Im working on it. The personal can be broadly instructive. We ought to be listening more to others and not be so quick to tell them how they should feel. The National Coalition Against Censorship is in no position to determine how students of color in Windsor are affected by the principals comments. The Dartmouth College Republicans have no moral authority to declare that community members claims of offense are unwarranted. And the opinions of white people, including Sam Kersons and my own, have no standing in a debate about a murals images and their impact on people of color.

It is essentially a matter of power. The targets of offensive speech and degrading images are those who historically lack power; people of color, gay and trans people, immigrants and others. Those who use the offensive speech have the power and privilege. They are generally, not always, white. Which brings me to the final leg of the trifecta: Identity politics.

I am amused that it is nearly always privileged white people who complain about identity politics. They sharply criticize people who band together based on race, gender, sexual identification or another minority trait. They do this while enjoying the one identity that has conferred advantage for the entire existence of our democratic republic. White people have been playing identity politics forever, establishing an exclusive club that includes only those who they say are included.

The irony is deep.

Steve Nelson lives in Boulder, Colo., and Sharon. He can be reached at stevehutnelson@gmail.com.

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Column: The arrogance of unexamined privilege - Valley News

How Being Vulnerable Can Help You Lead Without Fear – Forbes

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It may seem counterintuitive but allowing yourself to be vulnerable can boost your leadership ... [+] confidence

Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. Especially self-doubt.

That view is a core belief of consultant and bestselling author Alan Weiss. Hes author ofFearless Leadership: Overcoming Reticence, Procrastination, and the Voices of Doubt Inside Your Head.

In a previous column, Alan talked about the role of fear in peoples procrastination and other self-defeating behaviors (see Lead Without Fear: Mindful Choices To Stamp Out Doubt). Here he continues the focus on mindset choices that produce the best results.

Rodger Dean Duncan:We seem to be living in an epidemic of political correctness. To what extent does a fear of violating someone elses notion of whats right jeopardize candor, creative thinking, and good performance?

Alan Weiss

Alan Weiss:Political correctness is actually censorship. Its a huge example of confirmation bias, where you only want to hear what you already believe in and not other opinions.

Self-editing (self-censoring) masks talent and creates great stress and guilt. I think the fear isnt so much the potential violation of someone elses rights or beliefs as it is the potential to be labled (youre a denier) and alienated, combined with the ability of social medial to make that viral today.

Duncan:What are the best ways that fearless leadership can be modeled for team members?

Weiss:it should be discussed with the understanding that people agree to be vulnerable. A lobster has to shed its shellits exoskeletonto grow, and is vulnerable in the process. No one knows, however, how long a lobster can live or how big it can grow.

Counterintuitively, vulnerability aids growth and the shedding of fears. Teams are inherent support systems (if theyre intelligently created) and consequently can provide huge comfort to the members. Everyone has to buy in to the idea of eliminating fear, and they have to call each other on it when it surfaces.

Duncan:The philosopher Santayana said A fanatic is someone who loses sight of his goals and consequently redoubles his efforts. How does that apply to the fear that seems to drive many workaholics? And how does that fear affect their performance?

Weiss:I admire Santayana, but workaholics arent really driven by fear in my opinion. They have an addiction and are driven by a need to gain power through obsessive work. You might make a case that they fear falling behind others production, but I think true workaholism is an addiction and an illness. There is a fear of others outperforming you or gaining favor in the eyes of others, and the resultant behavior is to try to prove youre working hard, which is really neither here nor there.

People who work smart arent fearful, but people who insist on working hard often are because they feel their value is in being present for long hours, not being present with good ideas in short time frames.

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How Being Vulnerable Can Help You Lead Without Fear - Forbes

Left’s one standard is the double standard – News from southeastern Connecticut – theday.com

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Were it not for double standards, the Left would have no standards. How true. In the past few weeks, we have seen uncivilized and ignorant mobs run rampant across the nation's cities (yes, including New London). Historical statues must be torn down in order to assuage the sickening illness of political correctness and historical misrepresentation. Abraham Lincoln and U.S. Grant's stone figures were among the vilified. Yet, even today one of two U.S. Senate office buildings still bears the name of the late Sen. Richard Russell, the ardent segregationist and racist from Georgia. And the honors still pour in for the deceased senator from West Virginia, RobertByrd, who helped organize and was a member ofthe KKK in that state. Even President Obama eulogized him at the time of his death a decade ago. But Lincoln, the emancipator and Grant, the victor over the Confederacy, needed to be defaced and removed from public view. But why expect anything else from leftist Democrats; they fail at everything except for the double standard.

Peter Wilson

Groton

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Left's one standard is the double standard - News from southeastern Connecticut - theday.com

The attack from within – The Tribune India

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Rajesh Ramachandran

The biggest burden for the Congress party is the liberal commentariat the partys well-wishers. After having sucked dry the old, creaky bones of the Congress favour-dispensing mechanism, suddenly the Well-Wishers Unlimited finds the Gandhi family distasteful, the party feudal, the old guard manipulative, the new guard inefficient; in short, it wants someone like Narendra Modi to run the Congress. Well, Sachin Pilots rebellion in Rajasthan has done a great favour to the Congress by exposing the ideological and moral hollowness of some of the leaders and supporters of the party. The so-called guardians of secularism, pluralism and diversity were ambivalent about a leader threatening to split the party with the help of the enemy.

In times when a section of political observers liberally uses the phrase undeclared emergency, this very group has showed no qualms about their friend trying to topple one of the few Opposition governments. After all, the leader in question was their darling, who wined and dined the opinion-makers among the Lutyens elite for over a decade. For them, it was only a case of a person like us a privileged, entitled dynast getting impatient and frustrated with a representative of the unwashed masses; and not a betrayal of ideals, which it really was. Opportunism is the key to success in Indian public life where political correctness, and not political morality, is all it takes for counterfeits to pass off as radical torchbearers.

Now that the Congress spokesperson has revealed the transcript of a purported conversation between a Union minister from the BJP and a former Rajasthan Congress minister, it is safe to assume that the Rajasthan rebellion has the tacit support of the BJP. Sachin Pilot thus emerges from this sordid drama as a rare specimen in Indian politics who, despite being the guardian of the party organisation in the state as Pradesh Congress Committee president and Deputy Chief Minister, plotted to bring his own government down with the help of the rival.

After the Rajasthan rebellion got triggered, it has been endlessly compared with the defection of Jyotiraditya Scindia and, in fact, he himself has made public utterances forcing observers to draw a parallel. But Scindia was not part of the Kamal Nath government, nor was he the head of the Madhya Pradesh unit of the party and, worse, he was not even being considered for a Rajya Sabha nomination. Pilots case is completely different. It was the Gandhi familys largesse and not Rajesh Pilots legacy that has brought Sachin where he is now. He was a member of the Lok Sabha at 26, a Union minister at 31, a PCC chief at 36 and a Deputy CM at 40. This career graph is the stuff dreams are made on. Yet, he is now accused of conspiring with the BJP to fulfil his ambition to become Chief Minister.

Probably, herein lies the real story of the rot within the Congress. It is a party of opportunists with a mix of inheritors and interlopers trying desperately to secure their place at the high table, with power and pelf as their prime driving force. And they are pitted against an organisation driven by ideology. Those who bemoan the debilitating failures of the Congress and blame the Gandhi family do not realise that the raison detre of the Gandhi family leadership is the faith reposed by the greatest opportunists in Indian politics on the only winning proposition they have. Like Pilot, they would all fly away at the first hint of an opportunity; and if they are not doing so, it only means that there is no option for them apart from the Gandhi family leadership.

Congress leaders talk ad nauseam about all the old leaders coming together to take on the BJP and throwing up a new national leadership and a prime ministerial alternative. They want NCPs Sharad Pawar, Trinamool Congress Mamata Banerjee, YSR Congress Jaganmohan Reddy and others to be brought together on a broad platform to revive the Congress wherever it is dead and to offer a real challenge to the BJP. But even this effort would need a leadership that can balance all the mighty egos, and neither Pawar nor Mamata has shown any inclination towards such a grand venture. So far, only the Congress leadership has been successful in forging alliances with some of these very leaders and hence to expect a Mamata or a Pawar to wave a magic wand to recreate the Congress of the 1980s is a needless distraction.

The worst aspect of the current crisis was the thoughtless abdication of his responsibility by Rahul Gandhi and the mother having to succeed the son. With the entire old guard remaining clueless and the newbies trying to fly away to greener pastures, the Congress leaders havent succeeded in their search for an alternative to the Gandhi family. Even a year after the second consecutive Lok Sabha poll debacle, all that the Generation-Next could think about was to defect to the BJP or topple its own governments. The new-generation Congress leaders seem to be more greedy and feudal than their predecessors, who always used the ruse of issues like corruption to trip their competitors within the party. Pilot could not even wait for Ashok Gehlot to commit a blunder or to expose a corruption scandal before proclaiming that he had split 30 MLAs, reducing his own government to a minority.

In this context, there isnt much for the Congress to hope for apart from keeping invested in the regional satraps, who have a mass base and a stake in the survival of the organisation. The Gehlots, Amarinders, Chavans, Hoodas, Chandys and other strongmen are still the best bet for the party, provided it has a full-time president who spends time in Parliament and its committees, and plans polls meticulously. Indian democracy badly needs an Opposition.

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The attack from within - The Tribune India

Two Judges and the Williamsburg Ghost – Courthouse News Service

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A Ninth Circuit opinion handed down in January affirmed the First Amendment principle that the right of public access to new court filings attaches as soon as the clerk receives them.

But during the preceding oral argument at the Ninth Circuits Pasadena courthouse, Judge Mary Murguia asked a natural question: Doesnt Ventura County have to docket those physical files first?

I remembered the question because earlier this year, on the other side of the country, Judge Henry Coke Morgan Jr. asked in essence the same question.

Well, the thing of it is, the clerk has got to make some record of the case being filed before they put it in the box, said Morgan on the federal bench in Norfolk, Virginia. I mean, somebody could walk off with a newly filed case, and if the clerk hadnt entered it somehow

Being in the audience, I could not answer Murguia, but, being in the witness box, I could answer Morgan. Your Honor, there was a, usually like in federal court in Los Angeles, there was an intake log with the case numbers, and the intake clerk did put a case number on the case.

So there was some form of processing before it was placed in the box.

Yes, sir. And the stamping and processing of the check.

***

Read the Schaefer trial transcript: Volume 1Volume 2Volume 3Volume 4

***

Those procedures are part of intake, the actual filing of a legal document, not the later work of putting that filing into the courts docket. Rulings in both cases one against a clerk in California, the other against two clerks in Virginia affirmed a First Amendment right of access at the point of the clerks receipt. But both cases also involved courts based on paper, a medium that is fast disappearing in the rearview mirror of history.

So the same question will be asked by a judge in the future about a digital court: Doesnt the court need to docket those electronic files first?

The answer is more simple in the digital era.

A new document sent electronically from a lawyer to the clerk is filed on its receipt. It is automatically given a number, either a case number or a transaction number, and housed on a server controlled by the court.

Nobody can walk off with it.

In that digital world, the arguments against press access get tougher. Because the e-filed document itself is secure and accounted for. That answers the doubt expressed by both judges.

At that point, the matter of access-on-receipt is no longer a practical one. It is now purely a matter of First Amendment interpretation.

Should the press have access at the point of receipt.

The answer from restrictionist clerks will, based on experience, not rely on facts, because the facts are inconvenient. The answer will instead rely on an analogy that I call The Ghost of Williamsburg.

At a conference on public access organized by the Conference of State Court Administrators that took place in Williamsburg from 2013 to 2016, the overriding theme was that public access to public records in electronic form should be restricted.

In the course of panel discussions, an analogy emerged to combat the notion of press access on receipt. It went like this: You reporters want to go up to people waiting in line and ask them what they are about to file.

In the years since the conference, that old ghost of an analogy keeps popping up. I believe it hangs around because it has a purpose. It allows restrictionists to suggest that the press is asking for something new and crazy, While theyre in line! Ridiculous!

But the analogy is false.

The point of filing was at the clerks counter in the paper world, and the press saw the new cases after they crossed over the counter. It is the same in the electronic world.

The point of filing is the clerks virtual counter where the documents are received and automatically given a number. The press corps wants to see the new cases after they have crossed that virtual counter, not, as the old ghost says, before.

As I have observed, it lurks only in the halls of state courts and has never been seen in a federal courthouse.

When it does show up, the Ghost of Williamsburg almost never comes alone. It is accompanied by a kind of illusion that involves redefining the word filing to mean the point at which the document is placed into the docket.

It goes like this: The document is not really filed until it is put in the case management system by the clerk and then it is backdated to the time it was received. The word backdated is used brazenly by clerks in this context.

But the illusion bumps up against the reality that court rules throughout America, state and federal courts, without exception, say an electronic document is filed when it is tendered or received. Not at the later point when it is placed in the docket.

So at some time in the future, a judge, faced with a First Amendment action over access to electronic filings, will surely ask the question: Doesnt the court need to docket those electronic files first?

And the answer will be: No. It does not.

_____

More stories and columns on the Virginia trial:

First Amendment Bright Line in the Digital Age * National Press Corps Enter First Amendment Fray to See Court Filings on Same Day*U.S. Judge Slaps Virginia Clerks With $2 Million Fee Award in First Amendment Case*E-Filing and the First Amendment* Matter of Choice *The Dicta: Guesswork About Press Access * Presumption and Fact: The Ask for Access *CNSs View Accurately Told*Access Solution: The E-Inbox *Access Law in the Electronic Age * Bread and News * Flip Side of Court Tech * First Amendment Right to See Court Documents on Day of Filing * Tradition of Same-Day Access * The News Cycle

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Two Judges and the Williamsburg Ghost - Courthouse News Service

US Army eSports team accused of violating First Amendment Act: Report – Republic World – Republic World

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The US Army Esports team isguilty of a violation of theFirst Amendment, according toVera Eidelman, a staff attorney for the ACLUs Speech, Privacy and Technology Project. As reported by Vice, theUS Army Esports team, which regularly does streaming sessions on Twitch, banned several people from its channel forasking questions about USwar crimes. While speaking to the publication house,Eidelman said the US government or a government organisation cannot pick and choose what comments it allows on a public forum, which is a clear violation of the First Amendment'sfree speech protections.The staff attorney also claimed there's a recent history of "case law" to back the accusation.

Also Read |Hezbollah Protest Over US Army Commander Visit

Announced in 2018, the US Army Esports team consists of professional gamer who are either active to reserve personnel. The main agenda of the Esports team was generally to increase the appeal of the defence forces in front of the youth in order to boost its annual recruitment. However, since June 2020, the team has repeatedly embroiled itself in numerous controversies surrounding attempts to suppress theuncomfortable questions. It quickly turned into a game for the viewers to see how fast can one get banned from their Twitch or Discord channel by asking edgyquestions.

Also Read |SpaceX Signs Three-year Agreement With US Army To Assess Starlink Broadband

From linkingthe Wikipedia page forwar crimes committed by the United States to bombarding the comment section withanti-army jokesor memes, users have used multiple techniques to rile up theUS Army Esports into banning them. Activist Jordan Uhl,runs his own Twitch stream, told Vice: "It is interesting that(The Army is)being aggressive with removing any incidences of US war crimes (from their Twitch/Discord channels)in what is essentially a recruiting tool for the military. While Uhl understands its simple trolling by the users, he still feelsenraged that the Army isrecruiting on Twitch.

Uhl concludes stating if the US Army is looking to exploit "modern tools andplatforms" that are widely used by the younger generation today, the kids should at least have the right to what the military is all about and what it hasdonein the past.

Also Read |US Army Chief Of Staff Meets Thai PM

Also Read |Hundreds Petition Against The Constitutional AmendmentIn Russia

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The Right Call On The Invocation – Editorial | Editorials – CapeNews.net

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Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The First Amendment to the US Constitution

Donald J. Pickard has made the right call.

Reacting to a concern raised by a voter in Bourne, Mr. Pickard, who is the town moderator, has decided to drop the invocation at the start of Town Meeting.

Mr. Pickard said he understands that his decision will upset a number of people in town.

However, I believe it is more important that we do not offend anyone and their specific religious beliefs by providing an invocation that is perceived as Christianized, he said.

The First Amendment to the Constitution is usually mentioned in connection with freedom of speech or of the press.

But if you look even moderately closely at the wording of the amendment, youll see that theres more in there.

Besides freedom of speech and the press, the amendment also brings in the right to assemble peaceably and to petition the government for a redress of their grievancesa right brought home recently in the widespread and justified protests over the death of a Minneapolis man, George Floyd, while in police custody.

But the very first line of the First Amendment concerns religion: that Congress will not make any law respecting a particular religion or prohibiting the exercise of any religion.

The line was and remains a masterstroke. In 16 words, the Founders took religion off the table. Aware of then-recent European history, when religious wars had devastated the European continent from which they came, the Founders set the entire issue aside.

You can practice whatever religion you want, the First Amendment says, but dont expect that the government will elevate your religion over another or provide you with any special favors.

America essentially has hewed to that idea ever since.

Certainly there was fuzziness around the edges. The Founders were, for the most part, practicing Christians, nearly all of them Protestant. The Christian God was woven into their lives and into their ideals.

So you do have some seepage, such as the phrase In God We Trust or the eye atop the pyramid on American currency.

And, human nature being what it is, religious tensions didnt disappear from the United Statesanything but.

The Roman Catholics, who were fellow Christians, were hardly greeted with open arms by Protestants as they immigrated in increasing numbers into the United States.

The Jews encountered the same discrimination as they arrived on these shores from Protestants and Catholics alike.

In recent decades, Muslim immigrants have run into resistance from Americans who already were here, regardless of whether those Americans practiced any religion themselves.

Leaving aside religious bigotry and discrimination that continue to be practiced by some American citizens, theres the issue of the intrusion of religious, usually Christian, words and practices into what should be secular proceedings and matters.

Flash points in recent decades have included what had been the longtime presence of creches at Christmastime on public land outside town halls and the like.

And prayer in public schools was outlawed only about six decades ago.

Its true that sessions of Congress are opened with a prayer. But in light of a true reading of the First Amendment, the practice is questionable.

Here in Bourne, the issue has properly arisen over the invocation that opens Town Meeting.

A Bourne voter, Robert Zibbell, questioned the Christian nature of the invocation that opened last years Fall Town Meeting. The selectmen told Mr. Zibbell that they would take action to make certain that invocations in the future would be nondenominational in nature.

Along comes last months Annual Town Meetingand a Christian-infused invocation.

Mr. Zibbell again objected, properly. In response, the chairwoman of the board of selectmen, Judith Froman, said communication had fallen down regarding the selectmens decision on the issue last fall.

The town moderator, Mr. Pickard, subsequently decided to drop the invocation entirely for the reason stated above.

Elsewhere on this page, Mr. Zibbell makes the case in a letter to the editor to keep the invocation but to make certain the words are more inclusive and not favoring one religious belief or another.

But any invocation as an official part of a government proceeding is going to violate the First Amendment, even a Town Meeting in a relatively small New England municipality.

On a human level, put yourself in the shoes of someone who doesnt believe in a deity, nondenominational or not. Why should you have to listen to a statement espousing a deity-based message?

This doesnt mean that voters going to Town Meeting should be prohibited from praying. Indeed, they should feel free to pray if they wish to do so.

Exercising their First Amendment rights, they can pray out loud with fellow believers before Town Meeting starts. They can pray silently during the moment of silence just before the meeting, which Mr. Pickard plans to retain. They also can pray silently during some of the lengthy debates that characterize Bourne Town Meetingan understandable reaction in more than a few cases.

But an official prayer from the podium to launch the meeting is, as the expression goes, a bridge too far.

Rather than insist on publicly sponsored words, why not follow the core beliefs of so much spirituality present and active in the United Stateswhether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist or otherand make a point of speaking kindly at Town Meeting, of listening closely, of not judging others by their appearance, of resolving to better understand and appreciate the views and thoughts of others?

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The Right Call On The Invocation - Editorial | Editorials - CapeNews.net

Gene Policinski: Our rights to speak, assembly and seek change have limits – The Mercury

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This spring-now-summer of protest shows no signs of fading away, as demonstrators make their voices heard on issues as disparate as health regulations, gun violence, Confederate statues and institutionalized racism.

Through it all, the First Amendment both fuels those voices and protects those rights at times in collaboration with other amendments in the Bill of Rights.

Still, few of us are steeped in constitutional law and statutory regulations. Primers can provide any citizen with the basics on rights, responsibilities and potential entanglements with a patchwork quilt of federal, state and local laws.

Heres a First Amendment-friendly guide with links to those primers, classes and advisories about protest how the rights of free speech, assembly and petition work when you step outside or go online to be heard.

From the Freedom Forum:

Freedom of Assembly protects the right to peacefully gather with others, without regard to views and opinions when we take the streets in protest or in support of a causes.

Everything you need to know whether youre a student, parent, teacher, school administrator or lawyer about classroom walk-outs and school protests.

Social media platforms are private companies and since the First Amendment only applies to government, they can accept or reject what people post. But given their growing role in public discourse, what are their censorship policies? How do they compare to each other and to the First Amendments protections?

Im just speaking my mind, at work or in a public place how protected is what I say?

Pushing the limits of protected speech: When is disruptive too disruptive?

How it was done: (Video) Shirlene Mercer remembering the modern civil rights-era protests around lunch counter sit-ins in Greensboro, N.C.

From other sources:

The experts at New York Universitys online First Amendment Watch have produced a detailed guide for citizens when recording police activity. Learn about federal and state laws, how your rights apply in different situations and the legal roots for this still-new tool in holding police accountable.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has a quick, to-the-point general guide to know your rights at a protest.

The online legal services site FindLaw has a guide to legal issues ranging from basic rights to a section titled somewhat ominously wartime policies. The same site also provides a guide to each states unique laws about protesting in public.

To all of that information, lets add a few additional items:

When protesting, there is no immunity under the First Amendment that allows you to disregard, without potential arrest and penalty, a direct order even one you believe is illegal from a police officer.

The First Amendment rights of petition and assembly do not give you permission to cross or occupy private property; thats still called trespassing. And as to occupying public property: Since the occupy movement a few years ago, many jurisdictions updated their policies regarding public squares, parks and such, with many outlawing overnight stays or blocking the space so that other, non-involved persons are unable to pass through it.

Blocking traffic on a public street, whether an individual effort or a mass protest, likely is illegal. Again, there is no First Amendment shield against arrest, though police action may well depend on balancing the taking of protesters into custody versus clearing the thoroughfare.

The rights of assembly and petition on National Park Service property have certain limitations, with permits required if a group of 25 or more, or pay attention to this the protest is likely to attract a combined audience of participants and those watching of more than 25. A court decision some years ago cleared the way for individuals to protest with no permit conditions, as long as the person was not blocking others from using the park.

Granted, a recitation of the rules, regulations and legal circumstances around exercising your free speech when assembling peaceably to petition for change may lack the passion of the real thing.

But its those freedoms that give legal protection for the passions that have changed the nations laws, policies and even attitudes, about womens rights, racial injustice, juvenile protection laws, labor regulations and rights and much more.

And thats a lot from a little: the simple but majestic 45 words of the First Amendment.

Gene Policinski is a senior fellow for the First Amendment at the Freedom Forum, and president and chief operating officer of the Freedom Forum Institute. He can be reached at gpolicinski@freedomforum.org, or follow him on Twitter at @genefac.

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COVID-19: Our Failures and the Path to Correction – northernexpress.com

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Guest Opinion By David Frederick | July 18, 2020

Prior to COVID-19 no one alive today had witnessed a worldwide pandemic. The last pandemic, also caused by a virus, resulted in the death of millions. It occurred just over a century ago.

It would seem reasonable to assume that Americans would be comparatively well protected from the reoccurrence of such a plague. Our country is home to many of the most sophisticated scientific research facilities; and in the case of one particularly deadly and disabling epidemic, which occurred in the first half of the 20th century, the United States successfully led the effort to destroy it. That epidemic ended in the 1950s, when publicly funded American universities played a pivotal role in the development of the poliomyelitis vaccine.

Quite the opposite has occurred with the COVID-19 virus. Pandemic statistics demonstrate that the United States with less than 5 percent of the worlds population has experienced close to one-quarter of all COVID-19 deaths. It is to our shame that the United States has been one of the least effective nations in protecting its citizens. Four months after the pandemic had been declared, the federal government had not yet completed implementing adequate testing. Testing remains a necessary prerequisite for identifying and tracking the contagion, as well as developing vaccines, treatments, and public policies necessary to prevent, cure, or control the disease.

How could this happen? One contributing factor is the extreme narcissism demonstrated by Donald J. Trump.

The Mayo Clinic has published an online report that identifies the symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder. Of the 20 symptoms listed, at least 18 are displayed by the president in his Tweets, disinformation campaigns, and the firing of competent public servants for fulfilling their duties.

Although not specifically stated in the Mayo Clinic report, it seems reasonable to assume that the greater the number of symptoms displayed, the more likely it is that the narcissism will be cognitively disabling. For example, exhibiting four out of the 20 defined symptoms e.g., lacking empathy, unable to express remorse, pathological lying, demanding absolute allegiance from others demonstrates a level of narcissism, which although dysfunctional, may be less than disabling.

On the other hand, demonstrating 18 out of 20 symptoms is a strong indication of a more serious incapacitation, wherein afflicted individuals would be unable to confront problems in any context other than how those problems impact them personally. As such, an extreme narcissistic personality disorder would make it virtually impossible for an afflicted individual to have the ability to fulfill obligations defined by the president's oath of office: to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution. In other words, to serve the collective good.

What can be done to protect the nation when leaders either cannot or will not fulfill that duty? A good first step would be to protect our republic from inept or corrupt leaders. One step in doing that is to recognize that normative protocols which have worked for decades are no longer sufficient. Laws are now necessary. An example of this is requiring financial disclosure of all presidential candidates.

Citizens have the right as verified by the Supreme Court decisions of July 10, 2020 to access verifiable information that enables them to determine if candidates for federal elected office have financial or other interests that constitute a potential conflict of interest with the duties of the office they seek. Their submission of income tax returns has been the way this information has traditionally been made available. There have been only two presidential candidates who refused to comply with this norm.

One of those was Richard Nixon. During that era the Republican leadership gave him a choice: He could either submit the tax returns or not be their candidate. The other who refused to comply was Trump. However, in this case, the Republican Party stood mostly silent and watched. Trump not only did not submit his tax returns and repeatably lied about his reasons for failing to do so but also faced no consequences. He had the protection of the GOP, which controlled the Senate.

The second step in protecting our republic from corrupt leadership is the preventing of incessant lying. The pattern of lying goes well beyond Trump. This was demonstrated by the mock impeachment trial conducted in the Senate, wherein Republicans demonstrated their commitment to disregarding traditional norms pertaining to subpoenas, testimony, truth, and justice.

The First Amendment is frequently used as either an explanation or excuse for being constitutionally unable to prevent politicians, news media, and social media from promoting disinformation and propaganda. Thats just nonsense.

The First Amendment is composed of a single sentence containing 45 words. It was created by revolutionaries who, having just liberated the country from a tyrannical monarchy, were distrustful of placing too much power with the government they were creating. As such, the intent of the amendment was to prevent a government from: . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

In essence, the Founding Fathers intent was to enable the governed to take truth to power without being subjected to political or judicial retribution. The First Amendment does not provide foreign or domestic propagandists the right to corrupt public discourse any more than it allows an individual to create panic by screaming fire in a crowded theater.

Establishing public perjury laws will be difficult, but they are necessary. If We the People do not take the actions necessary to prevent elected officials from committing perjury without consequences, the world will likely witness the end of the American experiment in developing a democratic republic.

David Frederick, a centrist-based Independent, regards extremist political partisanship as a dangerous threat to the well-being and security of middle-class Americans. He further believes reestablishing coordinated grassroots truth-to-power messaging is a prerequisite for diminishing that threat. dcf13343@gmail.com

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Viscosity Modifier Market Recent Trends, Opportunities, key drivers and Restraints over the Forecast Period 2020-2026 – Bulletin Line

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LOS ANGELES, United States: The report is an all-inclusive research study of the global Viscosity Modifier market taking into account the growth factors, recent trends, developments, opportunities, and competitive landscape. The market analysts and researchers have done extensive analysis of the global Viscosity Modifier market with the help of research methodologies such as PESTLE and Porters Five Forces analysis. They have provided accurate and reliable market data and useful recommendations with an aim to help the players gain an insight into the overall present and future market scenario. The Viscosity Modifier report comprises in-depth study of the potential segments including product type, application, and end user and their contribution to the overall market size.

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Key Players Mentioned in the Global Viscosity Modifier Market Research Report: BASF, The DOW Chemical Company, Elementis PLC, Akzo Nobel N.V., Clariant AG, Lubrizol, Functional Products Inc., Nalco, Sea-Land Chemical Company, Soltex, Inc., W.R. Grace, AMETEK Brookfield, Sika Corporation U.S.

Global Viscosity Modifier Market Segmentation by Product: Hot Rolled, Cold Rolled

Global Viscosity Modifier Market Segmentation by Application: Paints & Coatings, Cosmetics & Toiletries, Oil & Gas, Others

The Viscosity Modifier Market report has been segregated based on distinct categories, such as product type, application, end user, and region. Each and every segment is evaluated on the basis of CAGR, share, and growth potential. In the regional analysis, the report highlights the prospective region, which is estimated to generate opportunities in the global Viscosity Modifier market in the forthcoming years. This segmental analysis will surely turn out to be a useful tool for the readers, stakeholders, and market participants to get a complete picture of the global Viscosity Modifier market and its potential to grow in the years to come.

Key questions answered in the report:

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Table of Contents:

1 Study Coverage1.1 Viscosity Modifier Product Introduction1.2 Market Segments1.3 Key Viscosity Modifier Manufacturers Covered: Ranking by Revenue1.4 Market by Type1.4.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size Growth Rate by Type1.4.2 Minerals1.4.3 Hydrocolloids1.4.4 Synthetic polymer1.4.5 Others1.5 Market by Application1.5.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size Growth Rate by Application1.5.2 Paints & Coatings1.5.3 Cosmetics & Toiletries1.5.4 Oil & Gas1.5.5 Others1.6 Study Objectives1.7 Years Considered

2 Executive Summary2.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size, Estimates and Forecasts2.1.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue 2015-20262.1.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales 2015-20262.2 Global Viscosity Modifier, Market Size by Producing Regions: 2015 VS 2020 VS 20262.2.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Retrospective Market Scenario in Sales by Region: 2015-20202.2.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Retrospective Market Scenario in Revenue by Region: 2015-2020

3 Global Viscosity Modifier Competitor Landscape by Players3.1 Viscosity Modifier Sales by Manufacturers3.1.1 Viscosity Modifier Sales by Manufacturers (2015-2020)3.1.2 Viscosity Modifier Sales Market Share by Manufacturers (2015-2020)3.2 Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Manufacturers3.2.1 Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Manufacturers (2015-2020)3.2.2 Viscosity Modifier Revenue Share by Manufacturers (2015-2020)3.2.3 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Concentration Ratio (CR5 and HHI) (2015-2020)3.2.4 Global Top 10 and Top 5 Companies by Viscosity Modifier Revenue in 20193.2.5 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Share by Company Type (Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3)3.3 Viscosity Modifier Price by Manufacturers3.4 Viscosity Modifier Manufacturing Base Distribution, Product Types3.4.1 Viscosity Modifier Manufacturers Manufacturing Base Distribution, Headquarters3.4.2 Manufacturers Viscosity Modifier Product Type3.4.3 Date of International Manufacturers Enter into Viscosity Modifier Market3.5 Manufacturers Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion Plans

4 Market Size by Type (2015-2026)4.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size by Type (2015-2020)4.1.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales by Type (2015-2020)4.1.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Type (2015-2020)4.1.3 Viscosity Modifier Average Selling Price (ASP) by Type (2015-2026)4.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Type (2021-2026)4.2.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast by Type (2021-2026)4.2.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast by Type (2021-2026)4.2.3 Viscosity Modifier Average Selling Price (ASP) Forecast by Type (2021-2026)4.3 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Share by Price Tier (2015-2020): Low-End, Mid-Range and High-End

5 Market Size by Application (2015-2026)5.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Market Size by Application (2015-2020)5.1.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales by Application (2015-2020)5.1.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Application (2015-2020)5.1.3 Viscosity Modifier Price by Application (2015-2020)5.2 Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Application (2021-2026)5.2.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast by Application (2021-2026)5.2.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast by Application (2021-2026)5.2.3 Global Viscosity Modifier Price Forecast by Application (2021-2026)

6 North America6.1 North America Viscosity Modifier by Country6.1.1 North America Viscosity Modifier Sales by Country6.1.2 North America Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Country6.1.3 U.S.6.1.4 Canada6.2 North America Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Type6.3 North America Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Application

7 Europe7.1 Europe Viscosity Modifier by Country7.1.1 Europe Viscosity Modifier Sales by Country7.1.2 Europe Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Country7.1.3 Germany7.1.4 France7.1.5 U.K.7.1.6 Italy7.1.7 Russia7.2 Europe Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Type7.3 Europe Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Application

8 Asia Pacific8.1 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier by Region8.1.1 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier Sales by Region8.1.2 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Region8.1.3 China8.1.4 Japan8.1.5 South Korea8.1.6 India8.1.7 Australia8.1.8 Taiwan8.1.9 Indonesia8.1.10 Thailand8.1.11 Malaysia8.1.12 Philippines8.1.13 Vietnam8.2 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Type8.3 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Application

9 Latin America9.1 Latin America Viscosity Modifier by Country9.1.1 Latin America Viscosity Modifier Sales by Country9.1.2 Latin America Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Country9.1.3 Mexico9.1.4 Brazil9.1.5 Argentina9.2 Central & South America Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Type9.3 Central & South America Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Application

10 Middle East and Africa10.1 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier by Country10.1.1 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier Sales by Country10.1.2 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier Revenue by Country10.1.3 Turkey10.1.4 Saudi Arabia10.1.5 U.A.E10.2 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Type10.3 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier Market Facts & Figures by Application

11 Company Profiles11.1 BASF11.1.1 BASF Corporation Information11.1.2 BASF Description and Business Overview11.1.3 BASF Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.1.4 BASF Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.1.5 BASF Related Developments11.2 The DOW Chemical Company11.2.1 The DOW Chemical Company Corporation Information11.2.2 The DOW Chemical Company Description and Business Overview11.2.3 The DOW Chemical Company Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.2.4 The DOW Chemical Company Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.2.5 The DOW Chemical Company Related Developments11.3 Elementis PLC11.3.1 Elementis PLC Corporation Information11.3.2 Elementis PLC Description and Business Overview11.3.3 Elementis PLC Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.3.4 Elementis PLC Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.3.5 Elementis PLC Related Developments11.4 Akzo Nobel N.V.11.4.1 Akzo Nobel N.V. Corporation Information11.4.2 Akzo Nobel N.V. Description and Business Overview11.4.3 Akzo Nobel N.V. Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.4.4 Akzo Nobel N.V. Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.4.5 Akzo Nobel N.V. Related Developments11.5 Clariant AG11.5.1 Clariant AG Corporation Information11.5.2 Clariant AG Description and Business Overview11.5.3 Clariant AG Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.5.4 Clariant AG Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.5.5 Clariant AG Related Developments11.6 Lubrizol11.6.1 Lubrizol Corporation Information11.6.2 Lubrizol Description and Business Overview11.6.3 Lubrizol Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.6.4 Lubrizol Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.6.5 Lubrizol Related Developments11.7 Functional Products Inc.11.7.1 Functional Products Inc. Corporation Information11.7.2 Functional Products Inc. Description and Business Overview11.7.3 Functional Products Inc. Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.7.4 Functional Products Inc. Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.7.5 Functional Products Inc. Related Developments11.8 Nalco11.8.1 Nalco Corporation Information11.8.2 Nalco Description and Business Overview11.8.3 Nalco Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.8.4 Nalco Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.8.5 Nalco Related Developments11.9 Sea-Land Chemical Company11.9.1 Sea-Land Chemical Company Corporation Information11.9.2 Sea-Land Chemical Company Description and Business Overview11.9.3 Sea-Land Chemical Company Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.9.4 Sea-Land Chemical Company Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.9.5 Sea-Land Chemical Company Related Developments11.10 Soltex, Inc.11.10.1 Soltex, Inc. Corporation Information11.10.2 Soltex, Inc. Description and Business Overview11.10.3 Soltex, Inc. Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.10.4 Soltex, Inc. Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.10.5 Soltex, Inc. Related Developments11.1 BASF11.1.1 BASF Corporation Information11.1.2 BASF Description and Business Overview11.1.3 BASF Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.1.4 BASF Viscosity Modifier Products Offered11.1.5 BASF Related Developments11.12 AMETEK Brookfield11.12.1 AMETEK Brookfield Corporation Information11.12.2 AMETEK Brookfield Description and Business Overview11.12.3 AMETEK Brookfield Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.12.4 AMETEK Brookfield Products Offered11.12.5 AMETEK Brookfield Related Developments11.13 Sika Corporation U.S.11.13.1 Sika Corporation U.S. Corporation Information11.13.2 Sika Corporation U.S. Description and Business Overview11.13.3 Sika Corporation U.S. Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin (2015-2020)11.13.4 Sika Corporation U.S. Products Offered11.13.5 Sika Corporation U.S. Related Developments

12 Future Forecast by Regions (Countries) (2021-2026)12.1 Viscosity Modifier Market Estimates and Projections by Region12.1.1 Global Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast by Regions 2021-202612.1.2 Global Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast by Regions 2021-202612.2 North America Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast (2021-2026)12.2.1 North America: Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast (2021-2026)12.2.2 North America: Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast (2021-2026)12.2.3 North America: Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Country (2021-2026)12.3 Europe Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast (2021-2026)12.3.1 Europe: Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast (2021-2026)12.3.2 Europe: Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast (2021-2026)12.3.3 Europe: Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Country (2021-2026)12.4 Asia Pacific Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast (2021-2026)12.4.1 Asia Pacific: Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast (2021-2026)12.4.2 Asia Pacific: Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast (2021-2026)12.4.3 Asia Pacific: Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Region (2021-2026)12.5 Latin America Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast (2021-2026)12.5.1 Latin America: Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast (2021-2026)12.5.2 Latin America: Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast (2021-2026)12.5.3 Latin America: Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Country (2021-2026)12.6 Middle East and Africa Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast (2021-2026)12.6.1 Middle East and Africa: Viscosity Modifier Sales Forecast (2021-2026)12.6.2 Middle East and Africa: Viscosity Modifier Revenue Forecast (2021-2026)12.6.3 Middle East and Africa: Viscosity Modifier Market Size Forecast by Country (2021-2026)

13 Market Opportunities, Challenges, Risks and Influences Factors Analysis13.1 Market Opportunities and Drivers13.2 Market Challenges13.3 Market Risks/Restraints13.4 Porters Five Forces Analysis13.5 Primary Interviews with Key Viscosity Modifier Players (Opinion Leaders)

14 Value Chain and Sales Channels Analysis14.1 Value Chain Analysis14.2 Viscosity Modifier Customers14.3 Sales Channels Analysis14.3.1 Sales Channels14.3.2 Distributors

15 Research Findings and Conclusion

16 Appendix16.1 Research Methodology16.1.1 Methodology/Research Approach16.1.2 Data Source16.2 Author Details16.3 Disclaimer

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Viscosity Modifier Market Recent Trends, Opportunities, key drivers and Restraints over the Forecast Period 2020-2026 - Bulletin Line

US Space Force creates acquisition command to build culture of innovation – SpaceNews

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Gen. John Jay Raymond, the leader of the U.S. Space Force, has been emphatic that the success of the service will depend on its technological might.

You will build the Space Force as the first digital service, and lay the foundation of a service that is innovative and can go fast, Raymond told a group of 86 Air Force Academy graduates who joined the Space Force in April.

Accelerating the pace of innovation is a huge imperative for the newest branch of the U.S. military, established in December 2019 with a mandate to ensure the U.S. stays ahead of foreign adversaries in the space technology race.

The traditional way of buying satellites and other space systems is problematic, Raymond has said, as programs take a decade or longer to move through the military acquisition process and struggle to keep up with commercial space innovation.

Another concern of Raymond, the chief of space operations, is the disjointed nature of the space procurement system, with multiple agencies that work under separate bureaucratic stovepipes.

With these issues in the backdrop, the Space Force on June 30 revealed plans to stand up a Space Systems Command as one of three field commands that will report directly to Raymond.

The other two are the Space Operations Command and the Space Training and Readiness Command, both to be located at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado.

The Space Systems Command will be the acquisition arm of the Space Force. To be run by a three-star general, the command will be responsible for the development, acquisition and maintenance of satellites and ground systems, the procurement of satcom and launch services, and for making investments in next-generation technologies. It will oversee the Space Forces approximately $12 billion annual budget for research, development and procurement of new systems.

The militarys primary space procurement organization today is the Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles Air Force Base. Officials said the new Space Systems Command is not replacing SMC but will be an umbrella organization bringing together SMC and other procurement agencies that are currently dispersed.

Lt. Gen. John JT Thompson, the commander of SMC, told SpaceNews that his organization will become the initial foundation of Space Systems Command. This is truly a work in progress, he said.

With SMC as the anchor, other organizations that will be moving under the Space Systems Command include the Commercial Satellite Communications Office a group based in the Washington D.C. area that manages the procurement of commercial satcom for the Defense Department and the Air Force Research Laboratorys Space Vehicles Directorate, based at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico.

Thompson noted that SMC over the past couple of years has been reorganized under an effort called SMC 2.0 that focused on efficiency and speed. The transformation of SMC makes it exactly what we need as a foundational part for the new field command a flat, agile acquisition organization, pushing authorities down to the lowest level possible for timely decision making.

The next challenge will be to integrate other units beyond SMC, Thompson said. This will enable increased synchronization in delivering technologies and systems to space operators, as well as increased partnership with the labs and their science and technology activities.

The Pentagons Space Development Agency is expected to become part of Space Systems Command although the timing is still being negotiated. DoD established the SDA in March 2019 under the office of the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering in response to criticism that the U.S. military was not keeping up with the innovation happening in the space industry. The agency was given special authorities to cut red tape and acquire space technologies on an accelerated timeline.

Congress directed DoD to transfer the SDA to the Space Force by October 2022 but Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett and Raymond have argued that the SDA should transition to the Space Force sooner.

Before leaving his post on July 10, Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Mike Griffin had pushed to delay the transfer of the SDA, insisting that the agency should not go to the Space Force until it has a chance to complete its first constellation of low orbiting satellites planned for 2022. Griffins departure has stirred speculation that the transfer of SDA to Space Systems Command will be accelerated.

Barrett and Raymond also want to bring the Space Rapid Capabilities Office under Space Systems Command but face pushback from Capitol Hill.

Based at Kirtland Air Force Base, the RCO develops and acquires classified space technologies using special authorities. The office currently reports to a board of directors made up of Air Force, Space Force and DoD officials. New Mexico lawmakers have proposed language in the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act to keep the RCO in its current status, arguing that if the RCO is swallowed up in the new bureaucracy it will slow down programs.

Space Force officials said they are in talks with DoD, Army and Navy leaders about transferring space organizations from those services to the Space Systems Command. That would include portions of the Army Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Alabama, that develop and procure satellites; and the Navys satellite communications office in San Diego, California. This remains a long shot, however, as neither service has signaled it is prepared to turn over any assets.

The Space Force has yet to announce the details of how the former Air Force space units known as space wings will fit under the three new field commands. Some will be assigned to Space Operations Command, others to Space Systems Command.

The space wings will be renamed deltas as a way to define their identity separately from the Air Force. The delta wing is a central design element in the Space Force seal and flag.

Under the new structure, some deltas will report to Space Operations Command and others, like the ones that oversee space launches in Florida and in California, will report to Space Systems Command.

Space Force spokeswoman Lynn Kirby said the space wings will be aligned to the new field commands according to their primary missions. Units responsible for space launch, developmental testing, on-orbit checkout, and sustainment and maintenance of space systems will align under Space Systems Command, she said. Specific unit alignments and timelines will be announced when they are finalized.

The two launch deltas currently the 45h Space Wing at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida; and the 30th Space Wing at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California will be under the Space Systems Command. These wings are now aligned with what used to be the 14th Air Force.

Former SMC commander retired Air Force Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski said it makes sense for the launch units to be aligned under Space Systems Command as SMCs Launch Enterprise is responsible for procuring launch services from commercial companies.

The launch wings are a better fit under Systems Command, Pawlikowski told SpaceNews. Launch operations today are really maintaining a range and overseeing contractors. I think thats a really good move.

Companies that sell space technologies to DoD, SMC and other military organizations hope the standup of a new acquisition command leads to more cohesion and consistency.

Were encouraged by anything that helps to clearly define authorities and discourage competition between entities that are doing the same thing, said one industry executive.

In a recent white paper, the National Security Space Association said the Space Force should set clear lanes in the road for acquiring national security space systems. The paper notes that numerous defense and intelligence organizations are currently involved in developing and procuring space systems, which creates confusion for companies trying to sell technologies to the government.

Tom Tav Taverney, a retired Air Force major general and former vice commander of Air Force Space Command, said the standup of the three new field commands are a significant step forward for the nascent Space Force.

It shows they are trying to re-imagine how acquisition fits into space operations, in a more agile way, Taverney said.

Organizations like SMC, he noted, were built around the notoriously convoluted military acquisition process where bureaucrats spend years writing detailed requirements documents, reviewing and approving those requirements before anything is built.

The reality today is we have to get systems into operations much faster, said Taverney. Adversaries are turning technology in three to five years, threats are emerging faster than we can keep up with.

The Space Force said its new field commands will have a flatter management structure than current organizations. That in itself will help speed up programs to some degree, said Taverney, but its not going to be enough unless processes are simplified and managers are willing to delegate authority.

If the intent is a lean, more agile organization, it certainly would be helpful to empower leaders with decision making, he said.

Pawlikowski, the former SMC commander, said Congress and DoD will have to trust the Space Force leadership and allow them to do things a little different.

The Space Force has been given a big task, she told SpaceNews. The performance of the Space Systems Command will be key to the success of the service, she said. Raymond really understands space operations. Hes going to need a really smart person to do the acquisition side. If they dont get the right talent in there then they will struggle, Pawlikowski said. They need people who understand how to calibrate risk and work their way through it.

Lance Lord, retired Air Force general and former commander of Air Force Space Command, said having a single command focused on acquisition is good for the culture.

One key objective of the Space Force is to cultivate its own unique culture. In space acquisitions, that would be hard to do when people are in different organizations, Lord said. The Space Systems Command creates a center of gravity.

Lord has closely followed the standup of the Space Force. A lot of thought went into this, he said. Im sure there are things that will create little friction to start with. That happens in any reorganization. But theyre heading in the right direction.

This article originally appeared in the July 13, 2020 issue of SpaceNews magazine.

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US Space Force creates acquisition command to build culture of innovation - SpaceNews

Israel Is Spearheading a ‘Bio-Convergence’ Revolution | Anya Eldan – The Times of Israel

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Four months after the World Health Organization declared it a pandemic, COVID-19 remains at the forefront of the global health agenda and will likely continue to be in the foreseeable future. But this acute global challenge hasnt displaced the long-term problems plaguing health systems worldwide increasing rates of multiple chronic diseases, rising drug development costs and inefficient, unsustainable and prohibitively expensive healthcare delivery models. Indeed, the pandemic has only accentuated and exacerbated these pre-existing conditions.

Ignoring or downplaying these longer-standing issues wont help countries effectively combat the current health crisis and are only a recipe for ensuring more crises down the line. Researchers, clinicians, entrepreneurs, business leaders and governments must therefore adopt a two-pronged approach, investing in innovative solutions for addressing both near- and long-term healthcare challenges.

This will entail nothing short of a revolution in medical treatment and Bio-convergence is poised to play a major role in making it happen. Bio-convergence represents a 21st-century approach to problem-solving, an upcoming technological wave with the potential to revolutionize the digital health industry, as well as many other sectors.

What exactly is Bio-convergence? The nascent field fuses life sciences with different technologies from mathematics, engineering, and the physical and computational sciences, creating a sum far greater than its parts. Indeed, the human body is an incredibly complex organism made up of countless intricate systems, so it makes perfect sense that treating it must be multidisciplinary and multifaceted. Enabled by advances in genomics, gene therapy, DNA sequencing, artificial intelligence, big data, nanotechnology, and synthetic biology, Bio-convergence is paving such a holistic path to remarkable innovations in treatment, discovery and delivery, regenerative medicine, and diagnostics, with potential benefits for COVID-19 and well beyond.

It is exactly this tremendous potential for improving healthcare across the board and in the process bettering lives which has led the Israel Innovation Authority, Israels public agency for promoting innovation at all levels, to spearhead efforts to turn the country into a hub of Bio-convergence endeavor and invention.

Bio-Convergence and the Healthcare Landscape

The Bio-convergence opportunity coincides with a crisis moment in the global health system. While breakthroughs in medical research and treatment have increased global life expectancy at birth from 52.6 years in 1960 to 72.6 years in 2018, aging populations and rising rates of chronic conditions like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes have sent healthcare costs surging.

By 2022, global health expenditure will surpass $10 trillion. That spending tends to be disproportionately devoted to managing chronic illness: In the U.S., for instance, nearly 60% of adults have at least one chronic condition, and these individuals account for 90% of healthcare spending overall, according to the Rand Corporation.

Improving outcomes for patients with chronic illnesses while also controlling costs hinges on early, effective, and personalized intervention and thats precisely what Bio-convergence aims to make possible.

How Israel Is Propelling Bio-Convergence Forward

In theory, its clear why Israel is well-positioned to lead the Bio-convergence revolution. With approximately 1,600 active life sciences companies, unparalleled expertise in fields from AI to digital health to nanotechnology, and some of the worlds leading universities, research centers, and hospital systems, the Start-Up Nation is incubating some of the most promising developments in Bio-convergence.

Ranked fifth in the world in patents per capita, the country has the worlds second-largest centralized electronic health records system and is home to more than 600 active medical device companies, 500 AI-driven healthcare companies, and R&D centers established by major multinational companies like Medtronic, Philips, GE, and more. Israels medical, engineering, and scientific knowhow can fairly be described as an excellent fit for Bio-convergence, with healthcare systems and patients alike standing to gain big.

And in practice? Israeli-developed innovations in Bio-convergence are attracting global attention. Consider the case of BiomX, which combines synthetic biology with an advanced AI platform to develop innovative microbiome-based therapeutics which aim at preventing and treating cancer, skin disorders, and other medical conditions. BiomX is a publicly traded company which offers a complete end-to-end solution from target discovery to development of therapeutic compounds.

BiomX is part of an expanding ecosystem of Israeli companies and institutions operating in the field of Bio-convergence:

MeMed harnesses AI, systems engineering, and molecular biology to create a diagnostic platform to generate precise distinctions between bacterial and viral infections.

The Technions Lab for Cancer Drug Delivery & Cell-Based Technologies has developed nano-ghosts, a drug delivery system that delivers cancer drugs directly to cancerous cells, sparing surrounding healthy cells.

Such companies are continuing a longstanding Israeli tradition of biotechnological innovation. In 1996, the Weizmann Institute of Science developed Copaxone, the groundbreaking multiple sclerosis drug that reduces the frequency of relapses. In the 1970s, the Technion, in collaboration with Teva Pharmaceuticals, incubated Azilect, a drug used to treat Parkinsons Disease.

Notably, these breakthroughs were the product of multi-stakeholder, multidisciplinary collaborations bringing together academic researchers, technologists, and industry exemplifying the kind of cross-pollination at the heart of Bio-convergence.

Accelerating Innovation in Bio-Convergence

At the core of Israels early success in Bio-convergence is its world-renowned human capital. Unleashing the full potential of Israels human capital requires smart investments to support and accelerate promising technologies and cutting-edge solutions which is why over the past decade, the Israel Innovation Authority has invested more than $100 million annually in the life sciences sector across a number of different programs.

Through international cooperation agreements, R&D incentive programs targeting multinational corporations, and early-stage incubator programs, the Innovation Authority is propelling Bio-convergence forward for the benefit of humankind.

The innovations that will define the future of healthcare will transcend disciplines, relying on ingenuity and expertise across different domains. This outside-the-box approach gave rise to the Start-Up Nation and it has put Israel in a prime position to pioneer a new era of healthcare with this groundbreaking approach to human wellness.

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Israel Is Spearheading a 'Bio-Convergence' Revolution | Anya Eldan - The Times of Israel

Guest Column: Getting back to the basics – Oak Ridger

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Over the last few weeks people in our town have been seriously asking themselves: What can I do myself to make things right, or better, between the races?

Over the last few weeks people in our town have been seriously asking themselves: What can I do myself to make things right, or better, between the races? Well, over a four-day period, an hour each day, a group of folks have met over Zoom to engage in a series initiated here in Oak Ridge, each seeking to find answers to that question. Here are just a few suggestions for personal actions:

Speak Up! Intervene when you hear people making wrong, hurtful comments especially related to race and race relations. Intervene with your family, neighbors, especially with people that you respect and who respect you in order to get the greatest result. People tend to listen to those with whom they have a close relationship. We all know the difference between right and wrong. If we dont nip it in the bud when we hear what we know to be wrong, we are, each of us, allowing the racism to continue to exist. This is a way that individuals can make changes without ever holding a sign, marching or publicly demonstrating One heart touching another heart, sending out waves of love and care.

Feet Under the Table. Some African Americans in this town have revealed they had never placed their feet under the dinner table in the home of a white person. Many white residents have never had a meal in the home of a black person either. We each can change this. The idea, very simply, is choose someone that you know from work or perhaps you have met at a community meeting from another race, with the goal of developing a close friendship with them. Correspond for now during the COVID-19 pandemic, and once you are able to, plan to have dinner in each others home. You have options even now use the phone, social media, even mail cards to your new friend to begin the relationship. As a start, simply ask how they and their family are doing.

Community Worship. For decades, the Sunday divide has worried some religious leaders. In 1963, during the civil rights movement, Martin Luther King Jr. told an audience at Western Michigan University that 11 a.m. on Sunday morning is "the most segregated hour in this nation" and he also called it a tragedy. Again, this is an idea for after the pandemic. But just consider the idea of setting aside even one day of the month, perhaps a Saturday or Sunday, for a day of community interfaith worship where those who wish can come together for prayer and maybe to break bread together. We all worship the same God we need to seek righteous solutions, together, under God. This would be a good way to break the cultural cycle.

The Golden Rule. We all know that mothers are the first educators of humanity. So, mothers, I suggest that you remember this and instill into your children the moral values they will need to contribute to the betterment of the world. We all have been taught some form of the Golden Rule. (See graphic.) Lets us all live by that, practice it daily, be an example, and teach it to our children.

Listen and Learn. White residents who say they genuinely want to learn, consider how to be a collaborator in whatever processes towards racial justice that are being generated. Dont instinctively take the lead, but listen, learn and offer to help wherever you can.

Our Common History. The earliest Europeans who came as colonists from the Netherlands, Spain, France and Great Britain were Puritans, Pilgrims, Protestants and Papists (Catholics). Most of the settlers to the New World were escaping religious persecution. Driven by religious motives, many of these church members were among abolitionists and anti-slavery advocates. Early newspapers and tracts promoting the abolition of slavery were published by devout church members.

The Underground Railroad was organized to aid enslaved peoples, often at grave risk to many of the religious men and women serving as conductors. Many of the 130 or so historically black colleges were founded and funded by white congregations.

As a people, we simply have not been taught an accurate and true account of our common history. So many who came to this New World actually started as collaborators when religion was part of everyday life, when this country promised equal treatment to all. While the understanding was not practiced at the time, the statement that says, We are all created equal is understandable. So, lets get back to basics! Listen, read, and learn from each other. Peacefully.

Patricia Alston is the public information officer for the Baha'is of Oak Ridge.

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Guest Column: Getting back to the basics - Oak Ridger

‘Afro-indigenous non-binary local organizer’ calls for the ‘abolition of the United States as we know it’ – TheBlaze

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There was a rally outside the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse on Friday, which marked the 50th day of protests in Portland. One of the speakers at the event was Lilith Sinclair, a self-described "afro-indigenous non-binary local organizer." During her speech, she called for the abolition of the United States as we know it."

Sinclair, who is a Black Lives Matter supporter, told the crowd that she is not just "organizing for the abolition of the militarized police state," but also for the "abolition of the United States as we know it." The crowd cheered and applauded for Sinclair's proposal to tear down the United States.

Sinclair also said that Portland was "stolen land," and instructed the crowd to carry out a "land acknowledgment."

Sinclair labels herself as a "Black and Indigenous queer, non-binary femme sex worker." She also identifies as "AFAB," which stands for "assigned female at birth."

In an interview published last month, Sinclair talked about a "global uprising."

"I think it's apt that we are looking at a global uprising against oppressive structures during the month where we celebrate the anniversary of another uprisinganother movement to not just ask for but to demand our rights," Sinclair said.

Following the rally, the tensions flared. People were walking the streets with katanas. Rioters launched fireworks and set off smoke bombs near the Portland Police Bureau.

Vandals attempted to use fencing to barricade the Justice Center and the Internal Revenue Service building. Rioters threw projectiles, such as glass bottles, rocks, and broken pieces of metal from fencing, at Portland police officers.

The street preacher who was assaulted at the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone in Seattle was also in Portland on Friday. The street preacher was allegedly punched in the face and carried away.

Portland has been in headlines this weekend, following videos of law enforcement officers taking away protesters during demonstrations. The mysterious officers are reportedly U.S. Marshals Special Operations Group and Customs and Border Protection's BORTAC. They were deployed to Portland since at least July 14 in an effort to protect federal property.

During clashes with rioters, federal law enforcement officers deployed tear gas on Friday night.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown (D) said, "Having federal troops here is like pouring gasoline on a fire," Portland-based KOIN-TV reported.

"This is appalling," Brown said. "When we need help from the federal government, testing supplies, personal protective equipment, they are missing in action."

On Monday, President Donald Trump commended the federal officers for their work in Portland.

"Portland was totally out of control, and they went in, and I guess we have many people right now in jail and we very much quelled it, and if it starts again, we'll quell it again very easily," Trump said. "It's not hard to do, if you know what you're doing."

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'Afro-indigenous non-binary local organizer' calls for the 'abolition of the United States as we know it' - TheBlaze

Why nurses are joining the call for policing and prison abolition – TheChronicleHerald.ca

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As people across North America protested police brutality and racism in late May, three nursing PhD candidates at Dalhousie University saw the need for nurses to take a stand.

So, Keisha Jefferies, Leah Carrier, andMartha Paynter came together to write a letter in early June. The letter called on nurses across the country to join the movement for police and prison abolition.

We feel its really necessary for our profession, if we are truly champions for public health, to confirm that by joining the movement, said Paynter in an interview Wednesday.

In the letter, the three friends highlight the ways in which police and prison are harmful.

In prisons, Black, Indigenous, and people of colour are disproportionately incarcerated and consequently bare what the letter refers to as the horror of prisons: isolation, restraints, infection, and injury.

To seek care while in prison requires compliance with traumatizing security protocols strip searching, observation, violations of confidentiality, the letter said.

The three colleagues believe nursing is a trusted and respected profession with a huge platform to advocate for communities experiencing harm.

Paynter said its also in the nature of nurses to intervene for the sake of their patients whether it was by administering medication or IV fluids.

What were saying is nurses need to adopt political interventions to change the course of social harm, she said.

The nurses also touched on the role of the police in the deaths of DAndre Campbell, who was shot by police in April in Ontario, and Regis Korchinski-Paquet, who fell from a Toronto balcony in May. The letter said the consequences of policing and prison challenge the efforts of nurses to provide care to their communities.

We will not have our work undone by police and prison systems, the letter reads.

The letter said any investment in reforming the police would be futile. Instead, governments should be investing in areas such as housing, education, and social assistance.

Why arent we deeply troubled by how the tables have turned to frankly dump money into policing, when policing does not work to eliminate harm? said Paynter.It actually creates not just harm but death in our communities.

Nurses are not the answer to the issue of policing, according to Paynter. But they can play a role in building public services that maintain the well-being of communities.

When these services are available, Paynter said policing and prisons would become unnecessary.

This is what she expects would happen if drugs were decriminalized.

Last week, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police released a statement to call on federal lawmakers to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of illegal drugs.

Paynter said the police shouldnt be championed for making the move this late. But if drugs were decriminalized nurses can help keep people safe by facilitating access to safe substances and providing all care thats associated with substance use.

While supporting community-based efforts to abolish policing is a priority for the three registered nurses, their letter also urges nurses in North America to start from within.

(We should) simultaneously be looking inward to see how our profession operates in a way that uses punishment and exclusion and discrimination in its operations, said Paynter.

Paynter gave an example for how nurses can be complicit in oppressing Black, Indigenous, and people of colour.

Nurses are taught to have really racist ideas about pain and policing access to pain relief based on those racist assumptions.

After releasing the letter in June, Paynter said about 1,000 people signed it. It was also translated into French, German, and Spanish.

But when she sent the letter to several nursing organizations across Nova Scotia and Canada, Paynter said she received no endorsements.

Our profession really struggles with divorcing itself from policing even though the evidence is clear that police brutality is one of the greatest infrastructures of systemic racism in this country, said Paynter.

She added that nursing organizations can start their fight against racism by increasing representation of Black, Indigenous and people of colour on their boards.

The letter Jefferies, Carrier, and Paynter wrote was published Wednesday in Public Health Nursing, a peer-reviewed journal.

Paynter said change is happening in policing and the nursing practice, but it needs to continue moving.

I envision nurses as really key leaders in a movement forward where police and prison do not exist.

Nebal Snan is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter, a positionfunded by the federal government.

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Why nurses are joining the call for policing and prison abolition - TheChronicleHerald.ca

JK Rowling ‘could end up in the dock’ if new hate crime laws are passed, critics warn – Press and Journal

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Harry Potter author JK Rowling could fall foul of Scotlands proposed new hate crime legislation for expressing her views on trans issues, critics have warned.

Opponents of a broad extension of stirring up offences claim it is an assault on free speech and should be ditched from when the package is debated at Holyrood,

The proposed revamp of the law widens the offence from race matters to include age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and transgender issues.

Conviction carries a maximum sentence of up to seven years in jail.

Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser, a former lawyer, said his party will oppose the otherwise-uncontroversial and welcomed Hate Crime Bill very vigorously unless the Scottish Government drops that controversial element.

Inverness-born Mr Fraser, who represents Mid-Scotland and Fife, said the provision could impact on an individuals ability to voice what might be controversial or unpopular opinions and said recent examples, including JK Rowling and her recently expressed views on trans issues, could conceivably face prosecution under the legislation.

The view is shared by the director of the Scottish Newspaper Society, John McLellan, who said although it was not the intended purpose of the legislation, it could as a consequence put someone like JK Rowling in the dock.

Mr Fraser, who has led criticism of the Bill from within his party, said: You could create an offence by inadvertently stirring up hatred against a minority group.

To me the easiest way to understand this is to look at practical examples.

Probably the most obvious one recently has been the JK Rowling situation where she expresses a view around trans women and biological sex that causes a lot of upset to some trans rights activists who accuse her of promoting hatred.

I dont think her critics ever suggested that was her intention but under the bill as proposed there would be no need to prove intent, it would simply be sufficient to say that the consequence of somebodys actions was that they could be likely to stir up hatred against a protected group and of course trans people are a protected group.

Conceivably under this legislation, JK Rowling could face prosecution for expressing her views which are in line with biological fact and science.

The bestselling writer has been at the centre of a row about trans rights and has been accused of being transphobic, an allegation Rowling strongly denies.

In December last year, she voiced her support for a researcher who was sacked after tweeting that transgender people cannot change their biological sex.

Last month, Rowling also wrote a lengthy blog post on her reasons for talking about the issue, citing concerns around single-sex spaces.

Mr Fraser, who studied law at Aberdeen University, also used the example of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris which faced a deadly attack in 2015 after it ran a series of satirical cartoons featuring the Prophet Muhammad, stating that running cartoons of this nature could quite conceivably be deemed as stirring up hatred against protected groups.

He added: If the government were prepared to remove part two of the Bill and the introduction of these new stirring up offences, I think the rest of the Bill is largely uncontroversial, unobjectionable and I think that would allow the Bill to go through pretty much as it is with with pretty widespread support.

But if the government is determined to keep the stirring up provisions in then certainly the Conservatives view is we will opposite it very vigorously and I know there are many other parliamentarians in other parties who have similar concerns and many of our external groups from the National Secular Society to the Christian Institute and a whole range of others, have expressed the view that they regard this as unacceptable and an attack on free speech.

The new powers would make it an offence for someone to behave in a threatening or abusive manner, or to communicate threatening or abusive material to another person where there is an intention or likelihood to stir up hatred in respect of the seven protected groups.

Concerns have been raised that individuals will be prosecuted if someone is offended by their words or controversial views but the Scottish Government says the marker of whether conduct is deemed threatening or abusive will be a matter for the courts, depending on the individual facts and circumstances of each case.

John McLellan, director of the Scottish Newspaper Society, the trade association representing the Scottish newspaper industry, said while the abolition of blasphemy is long overdue, the rest of the legislation poses considerable threats to freedom of expression.

Social media is awash with people bearing extreme grudges against those with whom they disagree and this legislation has the potential to give them a legal means to silence their opponents.

John McLellan, director of the Scottish Newspaper Society

Mr McLellan, said: In these times of increasingly bitter division over Brexit, Scottish independence and the environment, as well as gender politics, it is not too far-fetched to see the possibility of the police being drawn into political disputes because they would have to investigate complaints and be used as a tool to attack media organisations and close down debate.

It could be used by those who attackedJK Rowling for her views on gender to instigate a police investigation which could lead to conviction and its clear that plenty of her critics would like to see that happen.

It might not be the purpose of this legislation to put someone like JK Rowling in the dock, but that could easily be the consequence.

Social media is awash with people bearing extreme grudges against those with whom they disagree and this legislation has the potential to give them a legal means to silence their opponents.

A recent blog post by the Scottish Government defending the legislation on its website, said the bill does not seek to stifle criticism or rigorous debate in any way.

It added: It is important that people are free to express their views and opinions and the bill does not change that.

Other high profile opponents of the legislation include former deputy SNP leader Jim Sillars, who in a piece for The Spectator, said Scots are now locked in a woke chamber, adding that the act casts its net wide both in terms of who can claim to be a victim and who can be caught.

Meanwhile, one of Scotlands leading QCs Roddy Dunlop, who was recently appointed dean of the Faculty of Advocates, told The Times that changes to the hate crime laws threaten to criminalise comedians who tell the Scottish, Irishman and Englishman go to a pub joke.

He added: We worry it will be too wide and too much of a curb on freedom of expression.

The National Secular Society, a non-party-political organisation, who support secular cases in the courts and work to promote the separation of religion and state, believe the the legislation drafted is excessive, vague and seriously risks chilling free speech.

However, Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf has said he firmly believes the bill strikes the right balance between respecting freedom of speech and tackling hate speech.

He added that individuals can hold and express views on any topic and subject as long as these are not expressed in an abusive and threatening manner.

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JK Rowling 'could end up in the dock' if new hate crime laws are passed, critics warn - Press and Journal