On The Money: Democratic leaders report ‘some progress’ in stimulus talks | Prosecutors hint at probe into ‘possibly extensive and protracted criminal…

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Happy Monday and welcome back to On The Money. Im Sylvan Lane, and heres your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

See something I missed? Let me know at slane@thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N.

Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@thehill.com, njagoda@thehill.com and nelis@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @NJagoda and @NivElis.

THE BIG DEALDemocratic leaders report 'some progress' in stimulus talks with White House: Democratic leaders announced slow progress with White House negotiators Monday after meeting for nearly two hours in Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiNegotiators hit gas on coronavirus talks as frustration mounts Hillicon Valley: NSA warns of new security threats | Teen accused of Twitter hack pleads not guilty | Experts warn of mail-in voting misinformation Schiff, Khanna call for free masks for all Americans in coronavirus aid package MOREs (D-Calif.) office on Capitol Hill.

It was productive. Were moving down the track, but we still have our differences. We are trying to have a clearer understanding of what the needs are, Pelosi said after meeting with Treasury Secretary Steven MnuchinSteven Terner MnuchinNegotiators hit gas on coronavirus talks as frustration mounts Schiff, Khanna call for free masks for all Americans in coronavirus aid package Lawmakers aim for COVID-19 relief deal this week MORE and White House chief of staff Mark MeadowsMark Randall MeadowsNegotiators hit gas on coronavirus talks as frustration mounts Lawmakers aim for COVID-19 relief deal this week On The Money: Unemployment debate sparks GOP divisions | Pandemic reveals flaws of unemployment insurance programs | Survey finds nearly one-third of rehired workers laid off again MORE.

The needs are that millions of children in our country are food insecure. Millions of people in our country are concerned about being evicted, she added. The way we can correct so much of that is for us to defeat the virus. Much of our discussion has to be on how we defeat the virus, and that takes dollars and policy.

The Hills Alexander Bolton explains here.

The prognosis: Asked if a deal might emerge in the next 48 hours, both Democratic leaders remained silent. Staffs on both sides plan to work late into Monday evening.

Whats on the table:

LEADING THE DAY

Prosecutors hint at probe into 'possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization' The Manhattan district attorney's office on Monday hinted that its subpoena for President TrumpDonald John TrumpMark Kelly clinches Democratic Senate nod in Arizona Trump camp considering White House South Lawn for convention speech: reports Longtime Rep. Lacy Clay defeated in Missouri Democratic primary MORE's tax returns is part of an investigation into potential fraud allegations detailed in media reports in recent years.

In response to the latest legal challenge by Trump's attorneys, New York County prosecutors said that news reports about the president's financial history provide sufficient justification for requesting the extensive amount of information from the accounting firm Mazars in their grand jury investigation.

The Hills Harper Neidig breaks it down here.

What prosecutors are eyeing:

Trump backs potential Microsoft, TikTok deal, sets September deadline: President Trump said Monday that social media platform TikTok must end its U.S. operations on Sept. 15 if a pending deal with Microsoft to buy the company from Chinese group ByteDance does not go through.

We set a date I set a date of around Sept. 15, at which point its going to be out of business in the United States, Trump told reporters. But if somebody, and whether its Microsoft or somebody else, buys it, that will be interesting.

Trump noted that he approved of Microsoft buying TikTok. Microsoft confirmed Sunday that it had spoken to Trump and was in talks to buy TikTok from ByteDance, a Beijing-based company that is currently under investigation by the Treasury Departments Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

I dont mind whether its Microsoft or somebody else a big company, a secure company, a very American company buys it, Trump said Monday. Its probably easier to buy the whole thing than to buy 30 percent of it.

The Hills Maggie Miller has more here.

GOOD TO KNOW

ODDS AND ENDS

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On The Money: Democratic leaders report 'some progress' in stimulus talks | Prosecutors hint at probe into 'possibly extensive and protracted criminal...

DCSS BOE updated on school opening progress – The Demopolis Times – Demopolis Times

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Demopolis Superintendent Kyle Kallhoff updated members of the Board of Education on plans for the reopening of schools on August 20.

From improving sanitization within classrooms and buildings to handling online learning, Kallhoff said it is a schoolwide effort involving everyone.

We just have to do more than weve ever done before. We all have to get used to it and pitch in, he said.

The school system will be cleaning daily, but there will professional deep cleaning once each week. The contract for that calls for about $100,000 in spending with those funds being made available through the CARES Act.

Masks will also be required, even in outdoor spaces with gatherings of 10 or more people.

This will include football games and there will be signage placed reminding people to wear their masks, Kallhoff said.

To assist online students living in rural areas that may have trouble with Internet connectivity, the system plans to park buses acting as Wi-Fi hot spots at specified locations where those students can go to connect.

The superintendent also addressed the need to accommodate for the academic slide that will exist from schools closing early in the spring.

We are working on plans to help our students get caught up, he said.

Efforts are also underway in providing the state mandated isolation area for students who may begin showing symptoms of the coronavirus. Every teacher will have a scanning thermometer and other health supplies. Screen guards will also be installed for bus drivers. These items are being funded through the Coronavirus Relief Fund.

The CRF will also fund technology needed for remote learning, such as Chrome books, a system wide Zoom account, Schoology training, and secure testing software.

Kallhoff said protocols have been set for teachers who need to send a student to the isolation room.

If a child shows any symptom that student will go straight to the isolation room, Kallhoff said.

The superintendent also reported on the current status of the Virtual Learning Academy as well as remote learning.

About 885, or one-third of Demopolis students, have registered for the Virtual Learning Academy, meaning they will be taking all their classes online from their homes.

Remote learning will be provided to on-campus students in the case classes have to be canceled or if a student has to be absent for an extended number of days. For some students missing classes, a paper packet may be required.

Students in the school systems special education program will have a blended approach as some services will require on-campus classes.

Kallhoff said there is still much work and planning to be done.

We still need a plan for feeding our virtual students. We also need to improve our remote learning plan in case of a shutdown. The plan we used in the spring is not acceptable; we need something for the long haul, he said.

The system is also working on a waiver that students will sign for extra-curricular activities stating they understand the risks of COVID-19.

In the regular session of the special meeting, the board approved the following items.

Approving a salary schedule revision for Pre-K auxiliary teacher.

Approval of a bid from Borden Dairy to provide milk. The bid was $69,000.

Approval of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Demopolis Police Department in providing School Resource Officers for each of the four campuses. The SROs are provided to schools with a split cost between the DCSS and the City of Demopolis. Kallhoff said the school system pays about $80,000 for the officers.

Approval of contracts with Derrick McCormack for technology assistance, Architecture/Construction/Maintenance instruction with Rick Wilson and Alan Lashley, and special education support with Jennifer Jones.

The board approved the following personnel items.

Conditional Employment Elizabeth Dickerson as English Teacher at DHS; Lydia Williams as rotating custodian

Approved substitute roster

Miscellaneous personnel issues:

The 2020-2021 salary schedule remains the same with only one change, that being an increase of Pre-K Auxiliary teacher salary from $19,223 to $20,000 per the State Department of Education Salary Matrix.

Modify the long-term substitute for Emily Black to be Brittney Stacey rather than Nan Dollar as approved in June.

Regina Hill to serve as long-term substitute for Janie Basinger.

Will Ayers to receive $3,500 supplement as varsity football assistant coach and $2,500 as head boys track coach.

The board also approved supplements for Virtual Learning Academy Lead Teachers.

Jill Tutt and Kristina Kallhoff will each serve as Lead Teachers.

Virtual Learning Academy teachers at the elementary grade levels are: Gabrielle McVay, Nicholas Seymore, Lisa Martin, Laurice Thomasson, Lindsay Thorne, Brittany Donald, Kristin Phillips, Julie Harrison, Stephanie Pittman, Sue Hughes, Jannalee Duke, Jennifer Helms, Katie Kolar, Patricia Bolden and Julia Singleton.

Virtual Learning Academy teachers at the secondary grade levels are: Trish McVay, Beth Lindsay, Nicole Aledo, Susan Browder, Kim Easly-Bell, Jackie Tripp, Allene Jones, Jami Webb, Beth Wideman, Dianne McNeill, Brasswell Brasswell, Deborah McAfee, Jack Gantt, Rebecca Pipkins, Rachel White, Caitlyn White, Cynthia Phillips, Deborah Boykin, Michael Duran, Robin Dunn, Kim Browder, Cyd Johnston, Traci Spiller, Tonya Thornton and Amie Miler.

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DCSS BOE updated on school opening progress - The Demopolis Times - Demopolis Times

Slight progress as urgency grows on virus relief – Yahoo News

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Senate Minority leader Senator Chuck Schumer told reporters "we are not going to give up. We are not going to walk away," as negotiations continue on a huge coronavirus relief bill. (August 4)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER: The Senate Republicans are so divided and tied up in knots that all Leader McConnell can do is go to the floor and make partisan speeches. He's not in the room negotiating, because the Republicans can't even articulate a coherent position.

We're going to keep fighting until we get there. We are not going to give up. We are not going to walk away, but we're not going to let them pick out one or two issues and then say let's go home.

The Republicans are so tied up, so many of them, in their ideological not that they don't want to spend money. Republicans don't seem to understand the scale and scope of the crisis. The disease has washed over our country like a flood, and Republicans are acting like we just need to fix a leaky faucet. Now I'm hopeful. The negotiations are moving forward bit by bit, and we are moving closer together on certain issues.

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Slight progress as urgency grows on virus relief - Yahoo News

East Tennessee’s COVID-19 case rates are trending up, despite progress elsewhere in the state – WBIR.com

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In Davidson County, home to Nashville, the case rate has trended down for about ten days. In East Tennessee, most counties are seeing record increases.

KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. For the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, East Tennessee was seemingly spared.

It took the Tennessee Department of Health's 16-county region 81 days to reach 1,000 confirmed cases. It took Davidson County just 31 days.

In the past month, however, that's changed.

"Our cases have increased quite a bit, our deaths have gone up," said Dr. Martha Buchanan, director of the Knox County Health Department. "Data has shown some places when they closed bars have seen their case rates go down."

On Wednesday evening, the Knox County Board of Health voted to close all bars in the county beginning Aug. 3. The board defined a bar as any business that makes 50 percent or more of their profit through alcohol sales.

The Tennessee Department of Health defines the case rate as the number of new cases a day per 100,000 people, averaged over 14 days. Any county with a case rate equal to or less than 10 is considering to be below the "threshold for acceptable disease transmission within the community."

As of July 31, Davidson County home to Nashville had a case rate of about 37.41, a big decline from 51.64 on July 20.

In Hamblen County, the case rate was 63.36 on July 31, a significant increase from the case rate of 34.87 on July 20. In Knox County, the case rate was 23.83 on July 31, up from 18.29 on July 20.

Those numbers influence the counties' transmission rate, or R naught.

"The transmission rate is, for every person who has a disease... how many other people are they going to make sick?" Dr. Buchanan said.

The goal is to have a transmission rate below one. That would mean the spread is slowing down.

According to the University of Tennessee's Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19), the transmission rate is below one in parts of Middle Tennessee and Shelby County.

In East Tennessee, the counties are all red, yellow or orange meaning the cases are still growing exponentially.

Dr. Martha Buchanan said it requires a team effort to reduce the spread in the East Tennessee region.

"The virus nor people respect boundaries of counties. We go back and forth a lot," she said. "I think it would be helpful if we had across the board, similar policies in limiting the spread of disease."

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East Tennessee's COVID-19 case rates are trending up, despite progress elsewhere in the state - WBIR.com

At the Table: Work-in-progress Artis in Schenectady worth the wait – The Daily Gazette

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SCHENECTADY After five months, the seesaw nature of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to make me hesitant to dine indoors. Fortunately, the season lends itself to enjoying meals outdoors, whether its takeout at home or on a patio at the venue.

I was flipping through the internet under recently opened restaurants. I had heard the name Artis and wanted to track it down. Because it was new, its online information was sketchy; nevertheless I persisted.

Billed as Artis Southern Cuisine & Steakhouse, I was intrigued by just the name. So we pieced together segments of the menus we found online and ordered via Uber Eats (yup, you can get a ride and a meal from the same outfit a blessing in these days of masks, social distancing and frequent handwashing). We had been curious about how delivery would affect the variables governing takeout.

Dinner guest completed the online form, which included charges not only for the food and tax, but also for a service fee ($5.78), a delivery fee ($1.99) and a deliveryperson tip ($7.40), according to the receipt downloaded a little while later. Im wondering whether or not anything equivalent to a tip for the restaurant was included.

During the online ordering, the arrival time of our meal changed three times, a little later with each update. Delivery of the food was approximately an hour later than originally scheduled, though we were alerted with each change.

So what of the food? In a word, it was very good. I wish we had been able to enjoy our meal at the venue itself, but online photos depicted happy diners elbow-to-elbow at large tables without a mask in sight, and we were scared off. Artis does make it clear, however, that COVID-19 guidelines are in place, although the photos did not support their lengthy online declaration.

My guest ordered Beef Ribs (make that Rib, but it was the meat of two ribs on a single bone, $17 with two side dishes). From a list of nine sides (mac/ cheese, potato salad, fried cabbage, baked beans, macaroni salad, collard greens, coconut rice and beans, sweet potato casserole and a side salad, sold separately as well for $3 or $5), Guest chose collard greens and coconut rice.

I requested the sweet potato casserole and the mac and cheese with my entre of Fried Haddock ($15). However, when the food was delivered, we discovered the pairs of sides had been reversed. This was no problem for us because we always share.

My guest also ordered a house salad ($6.50), which was superfluous because he could have had one as a side with his entre. The winner of the evening was the beef rib. One rib bone with meat enough for two ribs. The old description rang true: The meat was so tender it fell off the bone. There was enough to share for dinner and enough remaining to enjoy the next day.

It was the first time my guest had tried coconut rice. He remarked that the slight sweetness provided an unusual but pleasant complement to the tangy sauced rib. The collard greens surprised his taste buds with a hint of cloves.

My pan-fried haddock (whiting, as it was described elsewhere on the menu) was slightly blackened, but was neither overly seasoned nor greasy. Along with some of the best mac and cheese I have ever enjoyed, the dinner was a winner. The sweet potato casserole was not composed of sliced, but rather slightly mashed sweet potatoes. Topped with slightly melted mini marshmallows, I had the feeling the dish couldnt make up its mind solid or semi-mashed, side vegetable or dessert. The dish may have been representative of a particular area in the South, or a recipe from Grandma.

To open a restaurant in these unsettled times is an act of bravery. Artis is incomplete.

Only a 6-ounce NY strip steak ($20) is offered on the Steakhouse menu, albeit it can be ordered paired with shrimp ($24), snow crab legs ($32) or a lobster tail ($42).

Experience will polish the venues rough edges. But judging from the variety of items on the menu and the quality of the food we sampled, in time, Artis Southern Cuisine & Steakhouse could quickly become a local treasure.

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At the Table: Work-in-progress Artis in Schenectady worth the wait - The Daily Gazette

A Second U Expands Education Platform with Precision Nutrition, Bringing World-Class Nutrition Certification to the Foundation’s Trainers – Club…

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Club Industry was not involved in the creation of this content.

Toronto, Aug. 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --A Second U, a nonprofit foundation that trains formerly incarcerated people for careers in the fitness industry, announces today the expansion of its education program, which will now include nutrition certification fromPrecision Nutrition, the worlds largest online nutrition and healthy lifestyle coaching and certification company. Through the new partnership, A Second U trainers will gain complimentary access to the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification. This will provide A Second U trainers with the ability to integrate nutrition coaching into their personal training programs, while also pursuing new clients as online nutrition coaches.

Jeffrey Korzenik, author of Untapped Talent: How Second Chance Hiring Works for Your Business and the Community, and chief investment strategist at Fifth Third Bank, N.A., has become an advocate of hiring practice reform that supports the employment of formerly incarcerated individuals. When reacting to the news of this partnership, he stated: The stigma of incarceration compounded by a limited education and a lack of employment history make it incredibly difficult for those with criminal records to find steady employment after re-entry. A Second U helps to remove these barriers and together with Precision Nutrition, can elevate its education offering and help these trainers not only satisfy a need for employment but also a desire for stable and fulfilling careers.

Throughout A Second Us intensive six-week program, participants class work focuses on preparation for a national certification exam, and also teaches a set of soft skills such as interpersonal skills and salesmanship. The Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification is the worlds most respected nutrition education program and provides fitness professionals and those interested in a career in health or nutrition with a deep understanding of nutrition, the authority to coach it, and the ability to turn what theyve learned into results. Combined, these two programs provide these formerly incarcerated individuals with a diversified education to help them secure and maintain employment.

Like so many formerly incarcerated individuals, I struggled to build a career aligned with my newfound passion for fitness upon re-entry and that experience inspired me to build the A Second U program. For me, education has always been key to building my confidence and establishing myself in the fitness industry. Partnering with Precision Nutrition helps A Second U expand our education program by providing myself and all of our trainers with the latest in the science of nutrition, allowing us to coach beyond fitness to better health, said Hector Guadalupe, founder of A Second U.

In addition to the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification, each A Second U trainer will gain unrestricted access to Precision Nutritions extensive library of client-facing articles and infographics, as well as the first-hand experiences shared in the Precision Nutrition online communities.

Health and fitness professionals know that without proper nutrition, clients will struggle with weight, body composition, metabolism, and achieving their health goals. That is where Precision Nutrition's Level 1 Certification comes in, bridging the gap between nutrition, sleep, movement and stress management to create a holistic approach coaches can use to help their clients get sustainable results, said Marc Zionts, Executive Chairman of Precision Nutrition. Precision Nutrition is proud to be that bridge for the ambitious and hard-working trainers at A Second U, helping them to continue their investment in themselves and ultimately, their clients, too.

About Precision Nutrition

Precision Nutrition offers a sustainable, practice-based approach to losing fat, building strength, and getting healthy. As a global leader in providing health and fitness professionals the education, tools, and coaching they need, nearly 100,000 coaches in over 140 countries use the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certificationalong with ProCoach, the companys proprietary coaching softwareto improve client results, increase operational efficiency, and drive business growth. Precision Nutrition offers the only nutrition certification endorsed by CrossFit, the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). The American Council on Exercise (ACE) and The National Board for Health and Wellness Coaching (NBHWC) also approve Precision Nutrition for its professionals continuing education credits.

In addition, Precision Nutrition Coaching for Men and Women is a personalized, evidence-based healthy nutrition and lifestyle program, which has been validated in multiple peer-reviewed studies and helped over 100,000 people improve their nutrition, fitness, and lifestyle. For more information, visit http://www.precisionnutrition.com.

About A Second U Foundation

A Second U Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to educate, certify, and secure employment for formerly incarcerated people as certified personal trainers. Through opportunity, empowerment, and community, they aim to eliminate recidivism or the tendency for reoffending. Since 2016, A Second Us program which combines education and mentorship has helped more than 200 individuals get certified as personal trainers. For more information, or to donate, please visitwww.asecondufoundation.org.

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A Second U Expands Education Platform with Precision Nutrition, Bringing World-Class Nutrition Certification to the Foundation's Trainers - Club...

The CBC Books Writers to Watch list: 24 Canadian writers on the rise in 2020 – CBC.ca

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It's time for the CBC Booksannual writers to watch list! Here are 24 writers on the rise the CBC Books class of 2020.

Sarah Louise Butler is a writer from Nelson, B.C. Her work has appeared in Room. Her first novel,The Wild Heavens, came out in spring 2020.

The Wild Heavensis a novel about the magic and mystery of nature and our relationship to it. Over the course of one cold winter day, a young mother, Sandy Langley, reflects on her grandfather, who was obsessed with a mysterious creature in the woods, their relationship, motherhood and more, while finally coming to terms with the mysteries and tragedies that shaped her life and made her who she is.

Jillian Christmas is a Vancouver-based educator, activist,community organizerand spoken word poet who focuses on increasinganti-oppression initiatives in spoken word.She is the former artistic director of Vancouver's Verses Festival of Words.The Gospel of Breakingis her debut poetry collection.

The Gospel of Breakingdraws on Christmas's politics, family history and queer lineage, telling stories of love, friendship and community.

Desmond Cole is ajournalist, radio hostand activist based inToronto.His writing has appeared in the Toronto Star, Toronto Life, Now Magazineandthe Walrus.The Skin We're Inis his first book.

The Skin We're Inlooks at one year, 2017, and chronicles Cole's personal journalism, activism and experiences alongside stories that made the headlines across the country, including refugees crossing the Canada-U.S. border in the middle of winter and the death of Somali-CanadianAbdirahman Abdiat the hands of the Ottawa police.

Megan Gail Colesis a playwright from Savage Cove on the Great Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland. She has published theshort story collectionEating Habits of the Chronically Lonesomeand the novel Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club. Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club was a finalist for the 2019 Scotiabank Giller Prize and was defended on Canada Reads 2020 by Alayna Fender.

Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Clubrevolves around a cast of flawed characters all connected to a trendy St. John's restaurant. Over the course of a snowy February day, theyare implicated in each other's hopes, dreams and pains as they try to survive harsh economic times in the province.

Eva Crocker is a novelist and short story writer from Newfoundland. She is the author of the short story collectionBarrelling Forwardand the novel All I Ask.All IAskwill be available in August 2020.

In All IAsk, Stacey wakes up one morning to the police pounding on her door. They claim they are looking for "illegal digital material" and seize her phone and computer. Worried for her safety, Stacey bands together with her friends to seek a way toan authentic, unencumbered way of life.

ChantalGibson is an artist, poet and educator from Vancouver. With ancestral roots in Nova Scotia, Gibson's literary approach is dedicated to challenging imperialist ideas by way of a close look at Canadian literature, history, art, media and pop culture. She is the author of the poetry collectionHow She Read.

How She Readis a collection of genre-blurring poems about the representation of Black women in Canada from a cultural perspective. It was a finalist for the 2019 Griffin Poetry Prize.

Michelle Good is a Cree writer and lawyer, as well as a member of Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. She published her first novel,Five Little Indians,in spring 2020.

InFive Little Indians, Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie and Maisie were taken from their families and sent to a residential school when they were very small. Barely out of childhood, they are released and left to contend with the seedy world of eastside Vancouver. Fuelled by the trauma of their childhood, the five friends cross paths over the decades and struggle with the weight of their shared past.

Gemma Hickey is an LGBTQ activist and writer from Newfoundland. They became the first person in Canada to receive a gender neutral birth certificate and passport. Their first book,Almost Feral, came out in 2019.

A few years ago, Hickey did a908-kilometre walk across the island of Newfoundland. They did it to raise awareness and money for survivors of institutional religious abuse. Their memoir,Almost Feral, describes that journey and the equally hard road ofcomingto terms with their identity throughout the journey digging into the good and bad in theirpast along the way with an eye on motivating others to accept themselves and what they stand for.

Jasmin Kaur is a poet who's been embraced by pop culture. She's a Sikh illustrator and spoken word artist living in Vancouver whose work has shown up everywhere, from Reese Witherspoon's social media toJennifer Lopez's performance at the 2018 American Music Awards. Her first poetry collection is calledWhen You Ask Me Where I'm Going.

When You Ask Me Where I'm Goingis a mix of poetry, prose and artwork. The book aims to spark debate around themes of mental health, feminism, immigration and personal empowerment. It's a look at what it means to be alive and willing to fight for rights in theworld.

Adnan Khan is a journalist and magazine writer from Toronto.He was the recipient of the2016 RBC Taylor Prize for Emerging Writersand was a readerfor theCBC Nonfiction Prizein 2017. He published his first book,There Has to Be a Knife, in 2019.

There Has to Be a Knifeis about a chef who unravels after the death of his ex-girlfriend.When Omar Ali is informed his ex-girlfriend Anna has died, he resolves to retrieve her suicide note from her parents. Filled with grief and unable to cope, the 27-year-old line cook spirals out of control, participating in break-ins and online terrorism.

Helen Knott is a social worker, poet and writer of Dane Zaa, Nehiyaw and European descent.Her memoir,In My Own Moccasins, is a story of addiction, sexual violence and intergenerational trauma. It explores how colonization has affected her family over generations. It is also a story of hope and redemption, celebrating the resilience and history of her family.

In My Own Moccasins,was onthe 2020 RBC Taylor Prize longlist. In 2020, she launched a literary prize for single parents.

Stphane Larue is a novelist from Quebec. He's spent 15 years in the restaurant industry, where he started as a dishwasher. This became the inspiration for his first novel,The Dishwasher.

The French version of the book,Le Plongeur,won thePrix des libraires du Qubec and thePrix Senghorand was shortlisted for the Governor General's Literary Award for French-language fiction.It was translated into English by Pablo Strauss. The English version won the 2020 Amazon First Novel Award.

David Ly is a poet who lives in Vancouver.His poetry has appeared in publications like The Puritan, PRISM international and The Temz Review. His first poetry collection,Mythical Man,was published in spring 2020.

Mythical Man explores the many facets of queer love. The book builds on themes of toxic masculinity, race and identity in the 21st century.

Karen McBrideis an Algonquin Anishinaabe writer from the Timiskaming First Nation in the territory that is now Quebec. Her first novel,Crow Winter, was published in 2019.

Crow Winter is about a young Indigenous woman namedHazel Ellis, who has the magical power tocross between thespiritualandmaterialworlds. Following the loss of her father, Hazel returns to her reservation, Spirit Bear Point First Nation,to be with her mother and to reconcile her grief.

J.R. McConvey is a writer from Toronto. His work has been published in the Malahat Review, Joyland and the Dalhousie Review.He was also longlisted for the2016CBC Poetry Prize. His first book, the fantastical short story collection,Different Beasts, was published in 2019.

Different Beastsis a short story collection that explores the beastly side of humanityand the human side of monsters. The characters are both otherworldly and earth-bound, ranging from mutant angels and insectoid demon-gods topoliticians and parents.Different Beastswon the 2020 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize in the speculative fiction category.

Noor Nagais aCanadian-Egyptian writer.She won the 2017 Bronwen Wallace Awardfor her poemThe Mistress and the Ping.She also wonthe Disquiet Fiction Prize in 2019.Her debut novelAmerican Girl and Boy from Shobrakheitis forthcoming in the fall 2021. Her first book is the poetry collection Washes, Prays.

Washes, Praysfollows Coocoo, a young immigrant woman living in Toronto who begins to question her faith after falling in love with Muhammad, a married father of two. Coocoo wonders how she can reconcile her faith with her actions and whether her relationship withMuhammad can really last.

Cole Pauls is a Tahltan comic artist. He created the comicDakwkda Warriorsas a language revival initiative. In 2017, it won Broken Pencil Magazine's Best Comic and Best Zine of the Year Award. It's now a full-length graphic novel, which wasshortlistedfor the 2020 Doug Wright Award for best book for kids.Pauls was also nominated for theforthe 2020 Doug Wright Award for best emerging talent.

In Dakwkda Warriors, two Earth Protectors are charged with saving the planet from evil pioneers and cyborg sasquatches.The comic, which incorporates a blend of English and Southern Tutchone, serves as an allegory for colonialism.

AlexPugsleyis a filmmaker and writer from Nova Scotia. He is the co-author of the novelKay Darling. His fiction has appeared in the Dalhousie Review, Brick and McSweeney's.His latest book is the novelAubrey McKee.

Aubrey McKeeis the the first in a series of five autobiographical novels by Alex Pugsley.Aubrey McKeetells the story of a boy growing up in 1970s and 1980s Halifax. The second novel in the series willfollowthe narrator's arrival in Toronto as a young man.

Yusuf Saadiis a poet from Montreal.Pluviophileis his first collection. He won theMalahat Review's 2016 Far Horizons Award for Poetry for the poemThe Place Words Go to Die, which is inPluviophile.

Pluviophileis a mix of longer sonnets and shorter meditations, all of which explore humanity's relationship with divinity and how we value our bodies, our language and how we connect with each other and the greater world.

John Elizabeth Stintzi is anovelist, poet, teacher and visual artist. They won the RBC Bronwen Wallace Award for emerging writers for their workSelections From Junebat.The complete poetrycollection,Junebat, was published in spring 2020. Stintzi is also the author of the novelVanishing Monuments.

InVanishing Monuments,Alani Baum has not seen their mother since they were 17 years old almost 30 years ago. The non-binary photographer ran away from home with their girlfriend.When their mother's dementia worsensAlani is forced to run back to her. In the face of a debilitatingillness, Alani has to contend with painful memories from the past.

Souvankham Thammavongsais an Ontario writer and poet.Her stories have won an O. Henry Award and appeared inHarper's,Granta,The Paris ReviewandNoon.She has published four books of poetry, including 2019'sCluster.She published her first work of fiction, the short story collectionHow to Pronounce Knife, in spring 2020.

How to Pronounce Knifeis a collection of idiosyncratic and diverse stories. From a young man painting nails in a salonto a housewife learning English from soap operas,How to Pronounce Knifeexplores the tragedy and humour inthe daily lives of immigrants.

Jesse Thistle is a Mtis-Cree academic specializing in Indigenous homelessness, addiction and inter-generational trauma. For Thistle, these issues are more than just subjects on the page. After a difficult childhood, Thistle spent much of his early adulthood struggling with addiction while living on the streets of Toronto. Told in short chapters interspersedwith poetry, his memoirFrom the Ashesdetails how his issues with abandonment and addiction led to homelessness, incarceration and his eventual redemption through higher education.

From the Ashesis his first book.From the Asheswas defended byGeorge CanyononCanada Reads2020. It won the 2020 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize for nonfiction.

Jenny Heijun Wills is an academic and author who currently teaches at the University of Winnipeg. She was born in Korea and adopted as an infant by a white family in southern Ontario. In her late 20s, Wills traveled to Seoul to look for her first family. She chronicles this emotional,rocky reunion in her memoirOlder Sister. Not Necessarily Related.

Older Sister. Not Necessarily Related.shares this journey in a series of vignettes and letters. It also explores the impact of being raised by a family of a different ethnicity and culture. It won the$60,000 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.

Evan Winter is a writer currently living in Markham, Ont.He was born in England to South American parents. The fantasy novelThe Rage of Dragonsis his first book.The Rage of Dragonswas originally self-published before it was acquired by Orbit Books. It is the first book in a planned series. The second novel, The Fires of Vengeance, is set to be published in fall 2020.

InThe Rage of Dragons, a world is caught in an eternal warand protagonist Tau is his people's only hope for survival. Describedas a mix ofGame of ThronesandGladiator,The Rage of Dragonsfollows Tau as he attempts to get revenge and become the greatest swordsman to ever live.

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The CBC Books Writers to Watch list: 24 Canadian writers on the rise in 2020 - CBC.ca

Quick-Take: A Look at the Thinline Anima, the New Rado Zeitgeist – Prestige Online

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Rado has unveiled a limited edition of the True Thinline Automatic, made using olive green high-tech ceramic.

When it comes to watchmaking, Rado is known to dominate the entire industry as the most innovative when it comes to ceramic watch cases. Reputed for designs that unabashedly celebrate high-tech materials, the brands various timepieces also manage to be impeccably light, flat, and elegant all-round. True to its love for new design codes, Rado has recently unveiled a new limited edition of the True Thinline Automatic, made using olive green ceramic. High-tech, lightweight, and scratch-resistant, the timepiece itself offers wearers with a watch that is at once transparent, and highly complex in its mechanisms.

Bringing together some of Rados most important advancements in materiality, the watch comes housed in a super thin monobloc case, and is presented in a wholly new hue a colour that has been achieved through an elaborate development process.

A closer look at the timepiece, and youll see that the bridges and plates of its movement have been created using black anodised aluminium, which is a large part of why it manages to be so lightweight. The term Anima originates from the Latin word for air, breath, and soul, and likewise, the Thinline Anima proudly reveals its core. Extensively skeletonised, wearers get a close look at its inner workings the same is true of the date window, which rests at 6 oclock.

To find out more about the Rado Thinline Anima, visit rado.com.

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Quick-Take: A Look at the Thinline Anima, the New Rado Zeitgeist - Prestige Online

How Will Christians Answer This Moment in History? – Sojourners

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The writerJames Baldwinstated in 1962, It is, alas, the truth that to be an American writer today means mounting an unending attack on all that Americans believe themselves to hold sacred.

It is the truth that to be a person of faith in America todayis to recognize that America desires Jesus slogans over morally grounded Jesus-inspired action.

America as a nation stands on the precipice of what Rev. William Barber II refers to as the third reconstruction, a moment in history when the zeitgeist of the nation clashes with the myth of our history. The nationwide unrest, witnessed from Maine to California, is part of Americas reckoning with a lie this nation has refused to acknowledge. As a nation, racialized thinking and white supremacy is part of not only our history, but saturates all of our institutions. I will not bore you with historical details, but scholars such as Michelle Alexander, Ibram X. Kendi, Carol Anderson, and Richard Rothstein make the case powerfully that America has a spiritual malady supported by institutions that either aggressively promote these ideals or willfully ignore their reality. Our national reckoning and possible reconstruction rest at the epicenter of this myth many today courageously seek to exorcise from our body politic.

Portland and cities such as Chicago, where I live, work, and serve, offer an additional challenge to people who want to be free of the lie that comes with loving whiteness over ethnicity and power over democracy. One must understand whiteness is a socially constructed identity, created in reaction to Blackness. Ethnicity, on the other hand, is a culturally rooted identity of shared story, music, and usually, good food. One quickly sets up a hierarchy. The other sets a table and tells stories enabling people to struggle to find common chords in the collective human enterprise.

Federal troops being sent to Portland, and possibly Chicago, complicates the movement for Black lives. The case of Portland serves as a map to help us avoid marginalizing Black voices: In a city that is 77 percent white, where a coalition organized and led by Black activists is speaking directly to Americas lie of equality, we witness the stories Black anguish quieted by those on the Left and the Rightalong with media commentators. Federal troops in camouflage, without insignia, have engaged white protesters in a manner Black people have screamed about to this nation since the early formation of policing, modeled after southern slave patrols.

White protesters in Portland were given a glimpse of how Black lives do not matter in the face of state-sanctioned violence. As a result, protests swelled in Portland and news coverage increased not to highlight racial inequity, Black pain, or the racialized deployment of the police, but instead to highlight the horrific federal transgression of constitutional authority. The heightened sensitivity was again connected to Americas historical lie reasserting itself. White citizens were being treated as three fifthsof a person. The outrage shifted from policy, defunding the police, reparations, courageous conversations on race, repentance, and what does justice look like in America to legitimate constitutional questions that again failed to acknowledge Black suffering. Republicans using the Lee Atwater and Karl Rove handbooks seized upon this moment to speak of outside agitators to frame an alt-right interpretation of the protests. This strategy is not unlike the propaganda deployed against Martin Luther King Jr. by George Wallace in Alabama. Americas racial lie has an undercurrent that does not believe that three-fifths semi-citizens have the intellectual capacity for free agency and must be under some sinister influence from the Left.

Again, Black suffering was silenced and white discomfort and pain was lifted up in the process. People of faith, those who claim Jesus, have a moral obligation and spiritual call to resist participation in this complicated social sin. How people of faith answer in this moment will determine the future of the American church. Will believers in Jesus decide to be chaplains for the empire orprophets to the nation?

Chaplains are in a position to advise those in power, but the proximity to power recuses them from the call to resist, rebel, and join revolutionary movements. The prophet, on the other hand, seeks to disrupt power and has a heart that holds the memory of Rachels tears, the orphans death, and the poors exploitation as sacraments for a faithful journey. People of faith, in this moment, must decide: Shall we follow a dark-skinned Palestinian Jew, who cast his lot with those who had their backs against the wall, or will we march with the advisers of Herod, hoping our presence is enough to keep an arrogant Herod from harming all the Hebrew children?

The deployment of federal troops as a Roman legion seeking to posses the streets of Portland and Chicago must be resisted by people of faith, who have been baptized by the radical notions of Jesus who lived, loved, and ministered with and to the disinherited. How we respond to this moment will determine the future of the American church. Shall we be chaplains or prophets? The question is upon us. What shall be your answer to this moment of history?

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How Will Christians Answer This Moment in History? - Sojourners

We need full integration of black perspective in the telling of history – Big Issue

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Band leader Shabaka Hutchings sets out what the Black Lives Matter movement means to him and how we must all engage in an honest discourse to build a more equal society free of racism

Black Lives Matter. We will keep saying it until the injustices of the past are reconciled to the inequalities of the present. George Floyds death traumatised us. If you fully comprehend the systemic rot that enabled this violence to exist then it is impossible to return to a normality that centres the facilitation of half-truths and justifications which disengage us from the reality of a racial structure that is literally killing black people. This stands true in America as it does in the UK.

A myth is an idealised conception in which people/events are decontextualised and meaning is reassigned. The power to dictate what myths society sees as central to its narrative is at the heart of political control. We saw the weaponisation of myths surrounding immigration in Britain used to secure a Brexit vote, for example. The structure of white supremacy aims at dictating the parameters of the real. Its insidiousness lies in an ability to promote myths of its own making as objective reality. Bandleader and composer Sun Ra was raised in Birmingham, Alabama during the horrors of a segregated America. He famously proclaimed There Are Other Worlds (They Have Not Told You Of) while claiming to be from Saturn and aligning his spiritual ontology with that of ancient Egypt. By subverting the process of societal self-identification and claiming a mental position outside the narrow spectrum of potential assigned to him as a black man in America, Sun Ra was performing a radical act of decolonialisation. His work in this regard must be built upon as the Black Lives Matter movement challenges us to see beyond structures that society proclaims to be self-evident. Art must inspire us as we build new legacies from the ruins of the Empire.

DID YOU KNOW

If you pay for the magazine you should always take it. Vendors are working for a hand up, not a handout.

A proclamation that Black Lives Matter is the first step. This rallying cry must be made with such force that society cannot choose to ignore the fundamental changes that the slogan implies. Support for organisations on the ground that have been active in campaigning for racial justice and equality must be sustained. Our school curriculums must be updated to reflect the voices, perspectives and narratives of historically oppressed communities. We do not need a black history month, we need full integration of black perspective in the current telling of British history. Moral justification for the trail of brutality left by British imperialism arises from cognitive skills conditioned in childhood to function within a self-affirming binary framework. The simple tenet of comic book/cartoon characters presented as either good guys or bad guys is doggedly maintained in adult life and applied to geopolitical and historical formations. The remedy is the promotion of a multiplicity of perspectives detached from the hierarchical bias ingrained into the fabric of our society that those with the most money deserve power and that this power is in itself reflective of intelligence, and the right to rule. If the telling of history doesnt centre multiple perspectives in any given sequence of events then it is not history, it is propaganda. History must be seen as a fluid construct engaged in a continual process of gathering insight as to how the past relates to the present. When the contextual development of public monuments is stagnated under the pretext of historical preservation we give precedence to the zeitgeist of eras past in which racism wasnt called racism, it was called racial logic. We allow ourselves to be blinded to what it means to celebrate the brutal logic of the victor. All these statues must all fall ideologically, if not physically.

If we are to change what skin colour signifies in our society then an honest discourse must occur embodying the meaning of race in the present

The black diaspora can be conceived of as a singular unit engaged in a struggle that has spanned centuries. It is important to recognise that though the struggle for equality and self-actualisation is manifested with the particularities of specific societal histories, the struggle is against the same root ideology white supremacy. Across cultures, darker people suffer most. Why? This proclamation by OutKasts Andre 3000 depicts a truth that serves as a backdrop to every first advancement achieved by a black person in the UK, to every black person who works to have their accomplishments regarded as at least equal, to every black person who has to engage in the exhausting work of debating the truth of their lived realities and to every black person who strives to have the life that their grandparents could only dream of when they came over on the Windrush. The great thinker Stuart Hall defines race as a floating signifier and one of those major concepts that organise the great classificatory systems of difference which operate in human societies alongside gender, class, sexuality and age. If we are to change what skin colour signifies in our society then an honest discourse must occur embodying the meaning of race in the present, a thorough and ongoing examination of how we got here, and utopias must be depicted which further the imaginative scope of an equal future.

Shabaka Hutchings leads the bands Sons of Kemet, The Comet Is Coming and Shabaka and the Ancestors

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We need full integration of black perspective in the telling of history - Big Issue

NBA: Black Lives Matter and basketballs role in discussion on racism – BBC Sport

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LeBron James has been among the most vocal of those calling for change

When fans tuned in as the NBA season resumed at Disney World on Thursday, they were watching a game with a different feel.

On gleaming courts refashioned from ballrooms, in a basketball 'bubble' protected from coronavirus at the Florida resort, three words were stencilled alongside the enormous NBA logo: 'Black Lives Matter'.

Jerseys ordinarily emblazoned with well-known surnames - prized products sold to fans around the world - instead carried activist slogans: 'Justice Now', 'See Us', 'Hear Us', 'Respect Us', 'Love Us'.

The stands were empty and silent, but one message is already echoing loudly: the NBA wants to talk about racism.

Even before the shocking death of George Floyd triggered a national reckoning, sport had long been a vehicle for protesting against what has been called America's Original Sin.

Big moments - like the raising of a fist by Tommie Smith and John Carlos in a black power salute as the 'Star Spangled Banner' played at the 1968 Olympics - have become iconic images.

More recent gestures, like those sparked by Colin Kaepernick's refusal to stand for the national anthem, have become a contentious point of political debate in the United States.

Race, as the respected San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich puts it, is the "elephant in the room in our country" - one that has come charging into the locker room on many occasions.

Of all sports, basketball is arguably the most obvious place for an unvarnished conversation.

From its earliest days of being popularised as entertainment by the Harlem Globetrotters, to a sport still primarily played by black athletes and, in the US, watched largely by ethnic minority fans (two-thirds of those who tuned in during 2016-17 on US TV were non-white), race has figured prominently in the NBA.

The league says it will embrace the conversation head-on this time. But will it be any different than in the past - and will it make a difference?

Black players have always been aware of the thin line that separates them from a life of professional success and a far different fate.

As the youngest of three sons of a single mother growing up in inner city Philadelphia, Rasheed Wallace realised early that it would be hard going, as did everyone around him.

"The stakes are high, the stakes are real high," Wallace - who played for 2004 champions the Detroit Pistons - tells the BBC. Growing up poor and with few opportunities, sports are one of the few ways young black men, especially, can conceive of success.

"You see a lot of black parents getting on their kids, no matter [whether] it's football, basketball, baseball or any sport. It's like, 'look - this could be our ticket out of here'," he says.

"There's a standard you have to live up to. And for us, being black kids in the ghetto, we know that. That if I can make it, I got a chance to make it better for my family."

But that success does not change how the world views a black man when he is out of team uniform, Wallace believes.

Stephen Jackson was sitting on his living room sofa in late May when his phone began to light up with messages.

"I opened one from a close friend and it said: 'Do you see what they did to your twin in Minnesota?'," Jackson, a former San Antonio Spurs shooting guard, tells the BBC. He knew immediately what it meant.

George Floyd had been a close friend for more than 20 years.

Floyd, an imposing Texan of over 6ft 8in who was 46 when he was killed, and Jackson, 42, looked so much alike they called themselves twins.

Today, one has an NBA championship ring and network sports podcast, and the other is dead.

"That could have been me," Jackson says. "I see myself down there because we look so much alike. I definitely see myself getting murdered in the same fashion by a cop."

Wallace agrees. "For sure, it could have been me. Especially with my attitude, the way I am."

He adds: "Now I think [race] is even more of a bigger burden. It's almost like it's a danger to stand up, to be black. It's a danger for you to be jogging in a neighbourhood. It's almost to the point where black men, we're the targets."

Floyd had been a star athlete in his younger days, and was recruited to play basketball for a university team. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter in relation to his death. Three other officers were also charged with aiding and abetting murder. A tentative trial date has been set for March 2021.

For those like Jackson and Wallace, talent has kept misfortune at bay, but it is no guarantee of a happy outcome.

Asked who he would call basketball's greatest of all time, the legendary Kareem Abdul Jabbar did not name Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain or some other household star but Earl Manigault, a street ball player he knew in Harlem, New York as a youth.

Manigault is little known, for he never made it into the professional ranks. Seen as a prodigy on street courts, he instead went from an impoverished youth to difficult adulthood, becoming addicted to heroin and serving time for drug possession.

"For every Michael Jordan, there's an Earl Manigault," Manigault once told the New York Times. "We all can't make it. Somebody has to fail. I was the one."

This is the realisation the rest of the country has been waking up to in 2020 - that the cards are stacked this way in black America. The NBA says it wants to bring it into further focus.

According to the league's 2020 handbook, a "central goal" of the season will be to use the NBA's platform "to bring attention and sustained action to issues of social injustice, including combating systemic racism, expanding educational and economic opportunities across the black community, enacting meaningful police and criminal justice reform and promoting greater civic engagement".

Some, including Jackson, are sceptical. This is not the first time the league has made public statements on racial justice.

In 2014, the league allowed players to wear T-shirts bearing the words 'I can't breathe' before matches. Eric Garner, a black man from New York, had uttered the words before he died in a police chokehold during an arrest.

The same year, commissioner Adam Silver ejected Donald Sterling, then owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, from the league after racist remarks he made about black players emerged.

The league publicly condemned Sterling and the team was sold.

But critics say that on the metrics that matter, nothing much has changed. Three-quarters of players in the NBA are black, but only one of the 30 teams has a black majority owner - Michael Jordan of the Charlotte Hornets. As recently as 2017, there were only three black general managers. Now there are six.

After retiring from playing, Wallace served as an assistant coach for the Pistons for a season. There were not many like him in the league.

"We don't get the quote-unquote 'white opportunities' - to be that GM, to be that head coach, assistant GM or partial owner, whatever. That's always up to the white people," he says.

It is another closed door yet to be fully opened - but needs to be, he says, so that youngsters in neighbourhoods like the one he grew up in can see they "don't have to just play basketball or football or baseball to become someone, to become a significant person in my community, or to even make a lot of money".

He adds: "That's the only outlet that we see as young black men: I gotta make it in basketball or football or baseball. And that's all that we're offered."

It would be hard to argue there has not been any progress.

The arc of basketball history has bent toward a bit more justice since the 1920s - when black athletes were forced to stay in segregated hotels while travelling through the American South - or even the 1980s, when white players were paid $26,000 more on average, despite poorer performances on the court.

Black players today have far greater power and command greater respect as public figures, plus the earnings to match. Playing for the Harlem Globetrotters in the 1930s was worth as little as $7.50 a game - $144 (111) today - according to basketball historian Doug Merlino, but it was often a choice between that or a life of menial labour.

The current top five NBA players, all of whom are black, will make a collective $192m (147m) on salaries alone over 2019-20.

There are those - fans, commentators and players themselves - who will see the limits of sports activism, or reject it altogether.

"Shut up and dribble" was the response from Laura Ingraham, a right-wing news anchor, when in 2018 LeBron James gave an ESPN interview criticising President Trump's attitudes on race.

That Ingraham did not have similar advice more recently for Drew Brees, a white American football player, to keep out of politics have, in many people's view,external-link lent her previous comments a racial tinge. (Brees had made remarks rejecting the take the knee protest in his sport.)

But the sentiment is not unique to conservative news figures. On plenty of forums and comments below sports talk shows, are complaints from fans decrying the forays of their favourite court stars into politics.

Others see a heavy dose of hypocrisy in how players, former players and the league handle divisive political issues.

Jackson, for example, was engulfed in controversy after making anti-Semitic comments on social media.

He said his comments were taken out of context, but the episode extinguished a measure of sympathy for his racial activism among many. For some others, it nullified all goodwill entirely.

In a column for the Hollywood Reporter,external-link Jabbar said Jackson's comments "undid whatever progress his previous advocacy may have achieved" by himself committing "the kind of dehumanising characterisation of a people that causes the police abuses that killed his friend, George Floyd".

He wrote of "a very troubling omen for the future of the Black Lives Matter movement," adding: "So too is the shocking lack of massive indignation."

More recently, Houston Rockets star James Harden drew fury when he was photographed wearing a mask with an emblem supporting 'Blue Lives Matter', a counter-organisation to Black Lives Matter that backs police.

Harden said he was not trying to make a statement - he just thought that the design 'looked cool' and covered his beard.

Detractors will say it proves sportsmen may not be the best agents of political messaging, and that it distracts from the experience fans are paying for with their time and money - a reprieve from politics.

And if politics should be allowed to enter in, where should the line be drawn? Another row was stirred up after Josh Hawley, the Republican Missouri Senator, wrote to Silver to complain the NBA is allowing Black Lives Matter-themed slogans, but not those supporting US troops, or backing free speech in Hong Kong.

The senator accused the NBA of "excusing and apologising for the brutal repression of the Chinese Communist regime".

"Free expression appears to stop at the edge of your corporate sponsors' sensibilities," he chided.

But even if thorny questions remain, there is no doubt that the zeitgeist in America has shifted more broadly.

Poll after poll in 2020 shows that, unlike in the past, Americans are largely accepting the idea that racism exists and plays a part in the many social ills black people face in the country.

The "myth" that America's problems with race are largely overcome is being challenged, whether in basketball or in the greater society, believes Popovich, the 71-year-old Spurs coach.

"You can't go on and enjoy your life if you don't understand what has happened to so many," he says.

As for the league's race campaign, he is realistic about the prospect of influence.

"Fans are like any other group of people - some will get it, some will understand, some will just enjoy the games and move on," he says.

"Others will hopefully get involved in being part of the solution of being anti-racist, but that's a pretty individual thing."

After all, sport - as much a cultural product of the times as any entertainment - can only reflect the realities of its era. In 2020, the reality is that to be black is in itself to be political, and that position is not a choice, whether you are a basketball star or a bouncer.

The slogan stencilled beside the NBA logo is a reminder. The lives of so many of the men dribbling, jumping, performing feats of athleticism are black ones - and they matter not just on the court.

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NBA: Black Lives Matter and basketballs role in discussion on racism - BBC Sport

Chris Jones: Eugenics, George Bernard Shaw and the need for a dramatic reckoning – TwinCities.com-Pioneer Press

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This month, Planned Parenthood removed the name of Margaret Sanger from its health clinic in Manhattan. By way of explanation, the organization cited its founders harmful connections to the eugenics movement.

So is this now curtains for George Bernard Shaw?

How about H.G. Wells and his The War of the Worlds?

Henrik Ibsen and his A Dolls House?

T.S. Eliot? Virginia Woolf?

All of the above had strong connections to the eugenics movement. So did the hugely influential economist John Maynard Keynes. At one point in its history, the British newspaper now known as the Guardian editorialized as to the movements worth.

This is not merely an academic question. One of Canadas largest theaters, the Shaw Festival Theatre, is named after George Bernard Shaw, although it does not produce only his work. Until its disappearance last year, Chicago had a dedicated-to-Shaw company known as ShawChicago. A sequel to Ibsens A Dolls House was just on Broadway. And if youre a fan of My Fair Lady, a constant in our repertoire, youll likely know that musical was based on Shaws Pygmalion.

What is tricky for progressives about eugenics is that most of its adherents came from the left. Around the turn of the 20th century, the movement was widely seen as a logical extension for anyone of serious socialist belief.

Ibsen, for example, still is widely seen as a crucial advocate for womens rights and other progressive ideas.

What is eugenics? Simply put, its the idea that a society can best thrive by breeding more of its stronger members than those perceived to be weak or immoral or otherwise less desirable for the common good. In Shaws view, as manifest in several of his plays (Man and Superman, for example) the best leaders are enlightened, progressive, intelligent, effective people, not those crude fools the general populace might elect.

Shaw wanted people in charge not unlike himself. Its a fast highway from there to naked white supremacy.

Eugenics led to a profoundly dangerous and indisputably racist desire to exert a kind of human control over the findings of Charles Darwin, so as to render Darwinian notions of the survival of the fittest subject to governmental policy. That could mean encouraging the so-called best and brightest to have more children, so-called positive eugenics, but it also involved the selective use of contraception to control reproduction (hence Sangers embroilment), the propagation of forced sterilization, especially of individuals with disabilities, and restrictions on immigration.

All of those things were seriously discussed by these white literary figures, revered to this day. Its incredible, when you think about it.

A sympathetic view of the above people would point out that they held these beliefs prior to the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, fascists who quickly showed the world that the road from eugenics to death camps was short and direct. Churchill was also interested in eugenics early in his life; he wasnt a Nazi, he fought them off.

Some might also argue that most of these people came to see the error of their views and that the import and worth of their other achievements (Planned Parenthood, macroeconomics, elegant verbiage, powerful dramas, feminism, the promotion of class mobility) outweighed the import of their attachments (sometimes relatively brief) to this horrifically misguided philosophy and pseudo-science.

Where you stand likely matches where you stand on other recent controversies involving whether to judge venerated historical figures entirely within the context of their times, their sins so mitigated, or by contemporary moral absolutes when it comes to whom we want to be on our pedestals, or viewable on cable, or with their names on a theatrical marquee.

For most people, it is a wrenching issue, being as human perfection is so elusive.

But although the historic attachment to eugenics is not an easy topic for the left to discuss, if Planned Parenthood can have that reckoning with the legacy of its founder, so can the literary and theatrical establishment. A reckoning is not necessarily the same thing as a cancellation. As Angela Saini wrote in, ahem, the Guardian last fall, that instinct should be tempered by the sober understanding that the slope that sends society towards moral shame is built by many.

And like freeway construction, it keeps starting over and over.

One thing is for sure, the kudzu-like spreading of sympathy for eugenics 125 years ago offers a cautionary tale about the dangers of elitism and moral superiority, a curse that can and does afflict both left and right, then and now.

History teaches us that insisting on solutions for other people, controlling their words, thoughts, actions and desires, judging them at every moment, asserting we know so much better than them, often comes with dangerous unintended consequences.

And the assumption that the future of our societies rest on the back of our geniuses is similarly fraught. We forget the role of hereditary privilege. And of luck.

In this era of technological societal dominance by very few highly effective channels, we need to be acutely aware of what can happen when those that run them accumulate far too much power.

Right, Mr. Shaw?

Chris Jones is a critic for the Chicago Tribune.

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Chris Jones: Eugenics, George Bernard Shaw and the need for a dramatic reckoning - TwinCities.com-Pioneer Press

Portland demonstrates that government spying on citizens has become commonplace, and easy – Washington Times

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ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Last week, this column argued that the only constitutional role for armed federal forces in Portland, Oregon, was to assist U.S. marshals in protecting federal property and personnel there in this case, the federal courthouse and those who come to it. The column also argued that under the U.S. Constitution, the feds have no lawful role in policing streets unless requested to do so by the governor or legislature of any state.

In Portlands case, the governor of Oregon and the mayor of Portland both asked acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf to bring his forces home. He agreed to do so when Oregons governor offered to beef up security at the federal courthouse.

Yet, the federal forces were doing more than just protecting federal property. They were agitating the peaceful demonstrators in Portlands streets by firing an internationally banned variant of tear gas repeatedly and indiscriminately into crowds for hours at a time every night. The feds were also spying on journalists who were in the crowds of protesters reporting on what they observed.

Here is the backstory.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held, for many generations, that the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution protects the right to be let alone. Today, we call this privacy.

Those who wrote the Constitution were acutely aware of the proclivities of government to monitor the communications and behavior of folks it hates and fears. King George III sent British troops and government agents into the homes of colonists under various pretexts, the most notorious of which was to examine letters, papers and pamphlets to ascertain if the kings tax on them had been paid.

This Stamp Act tax cost more to enforce than it generated in revenue. Was the king dumb or dumb like a fox? Probably the latter; the true purpose of the tax was not to raise money but to remind the colonists that the king could cross the thresholds of their homes a right he did not have in Great Britain through the use of his soldiers and agents. And, while inside the home, his agents could discover who was agitating for secession.

With memories of these royal abuses fresh in their minds, the members of the first Congress led by James Madison approved and passed the Fourth Amendment. The states ratified it as part of the Bill of Rights. Madison also drafted the Ninth Amendment, which reflects the existence in all people of natural human rights knowable by the exercise of reason and insulated from government intrusion. Among those rights is privacy.

May the government lawfully invade the right to privacy? Under the Fourth Amendment, it may do so only pursuant to search warrants issued by a judge, and the judge may only issue a search warrant after taking testimony under oath demonstrating that it is more likely than not that the place to be searched will yield evidence of criminal behavior. Plus, the warrant must specify the place to be searched or the person or thing to be seized.

The language and requirements in the Fourth Amendment are the most specific in the Constitution. Madison insisted upon this so it would be both an obstacle to the new American government doing to its citizens what the king and his agents had done to the colonists, and an inducement to the government to focus law enforcement on probable causes of crime rather than spying on political enemies.

Now, back to the feds in Portland.

We know from their admissions that the feds compiled dossiers on numerous journalists covering their activities in Portland. We also know that some data in those dossiers came from public sources and some did not. The governmental acquisition of data from nonpublic, nongovernment sources without search warrants constitutes spying.

The government spies routinely on Americans today so much so that the revelation of it ceases to shock.

Why would the feds do this?

For starters, it is far easier to spy unlawfully than it is to obtain a search warrant. As well, the feds have established a vast network of domestic spies the 60,000-person strong National Security Agency. It captures all electronic data, voice and text, communicated within the United States without warrants and with few complaints.

All this directly assaults the right to privacy, but the feds do it anyway. The spying is so normal that a deputy DHS secretary ordered it in Portland without seeking approval up his chain of command.

The government also spies to intimidate and this brings us back to Portland. When the government discovers personal information that it has no right to acquire without a warrant information devoid of criminal evidence, information that the Fourth Amendment bars the government from obtaining without a warrant and then tells you it has this information, it chills your freedom.

Chilling can make you pause before exposing or criticizing the government. The Supreme Court has characterized this as a violation of both the Fourth Amendment and the freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment.

To Mr. Wolfs credit, he either fired or transferred (it is unclear which) the deputy secretary who ordered DHS agents to spy on journalists in Portland. Yet, when ordered, they readily complied with the order. Thats how commonplace federal spying has become and how easy.

The folks who did this should all lose their jobs. Why? Because it is unlawful to obey an unlawful order.

Or have our constitutional rights been so emasculated that the government doesnt know the difference?

Andrew P. Napolitano, a former judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, is a regular contributor to The Washington Times. He is the author of nine books on the U.S. Constitution.

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Portland demonstrates that government spying on citizens has become commonplace, and easy - Washington Times

Plainclothes NYC police grab protester and throw her into unmarked car – WSWS

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By Niles Niemuth 30 July 2020

Shock and anger quickly spread online Tuesday as video posted on social media showed a group of armed men in street clothes snatching a young protester off the street and trundling her into an unmarked van during a peaceful demonstration against police violence in New York City.

While the men refused to identify themselves at the scene of the kidnapping, the New York Police Department (NYPD) later identified them as members of the police forces plainclothes Warrant Squad.

Outrage over Tuesdays incident was compounded by its similarity to the snatch and grab detentions carried out in recent weeks by federal paramilitary police in Portland, Oregon. In that city, a tactical wing of Customs and Border Protection known as BORTAC, sent in by President Trump to crack down on protests near the federal courthouse, has been seizing protesters, throwing them into unmarked vans and taking them to secret locations where they are subject to questioning for hours on end. The element of terror and intimidation is enhanced by the fact that the victims do not know who has picked them up or where they are being held.

All such actions violate the US Constitutions First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and assembly and its Fourth Amendment ban on arbitrary searches or seizures. They also run counter to the requirement that arrests be based on probable cause.

The NYPD played down the unconstitutional arrest, claiming the Warrant Squad routinely uses unmarked vehicles to effectively locate wanted suspects. But it is clear that the abduction of 18-year-old Nikki Stone was intended to send a signal to demonstrators, as well as the Trump administration, that the New York police are more than capable of cracking down on protests without direct federal intervention.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to deploy federal forces to Democratic-controlled cities throughout the country, including New York, to suppress demonstrations that have continued since the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police on May 25. There have been reports of federal police in Detroit and other cities.

Nikki Stone is a homeless youth who has been participating in protests throughout the city. The authorities have justified her chilling arrestwhich bystanders took to be a kidnappingwith allegations of vandalism, including spray painting the lenses of police cameras around City Hall Park. She was released from police custody early Wednesday and charged with several counts of graffiti painting and criminal mischief.

The citys Democratic mayor, Bill de Blasio, responded to the arrest by upholding the right of non-uniformed, unidentified NYPD officers to grab peaceful protesters off the street, while mildly criticizing the timing of the arrest.

This is not Portland, he said. I want to emphasize what you see on that video are NYPD officers, federal agencies are not involved! I think it was the wrong time and place to effectuate that arrest. I want to affirm very clearly, no one is allowed to damage police property. If you damage property it will lead to consequences.

As with Trumps attempted coup on June 1, the Democratic Party has downplayed the authoritarian and fascistic character of Trumps deployment of paramilitary federal forces, dismissing it is an electoral ploy to raise flagging poll numbers. At the same time they argue that they are capable of suppressing protests in the cities they control with heavily armed local police, bolstered when necessary by National Guard troops under the command of state governors.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, gave a speech Tuesday in which he endorsed the prosecution of anarchists and arsonists and insisted that he would be better equipped to suppress popular anger by coordinating with local police forces. The Democrats have made clear that they are willing to collaborate with the Trump administration in suppressing protests as long as they retain a measure of control.

This isnt about law and order, Biden said of Trumps crackdown, its about a political strategy to revive a failing campaign. Every instinct Trump has is to add fuel to the fire. Thats the last thing, the last thing we need. We need leadership to calm the water and lower the temperature. Thats how we will restore peace in the streets.

On Wednesday, Oregons Democratic governor, Kate Brown, announced via Twitter that an agreement had been reached in negotiations with the White House for the Oregon State Police to take over policing the area around the federal court house.

Federal police, including Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, are set to begin a phased withdrawal from the city, while other agents from the Department of Homeland Security will remain inside the courthouse. CBP forces deployed last week to Seattle, Washington will also leave that city, following lobbying by Democratic Mayor Jenny Durkan and Governor Jay Inslee, also a Democrat.

State and local law enforcement will begin securing properties and streets, especially those surrounding federal properties that have been under nightly attack for the past two months, Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said in a statement announcing the agreement. Oregon State Police will coordinate with Federal Protective Service (FPS) officers to ensure all federal facilities remain protected and secure.

Wolf added, President Trump has also made it clear that this Administration is ready and willing to partner with state and local law enforcement to protect every Americanand you see that commitment in Portland with this plan. The Department and this Administration will also continue to fulfill its solemn obligation to uphold federal law across the country.

While the Trump administration appears to have backed off for now on the deployment of federal forces against protesters in Portland and Seattle, the Justice Department is moving forward with an expansion of Operation Legend, an anti-violence initiative involving the deployment of nearly 100 officers from the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Agency and other federal police agencies to Detroit, Cleveland and Milwaukee. Hundreds of agents have already been welcomed by Democratic mayors in Kansas City, Chicago and Albuquerque, with the assurance that the agents will aid in the arrest of those deemed chronic violent criminals by Attorney General William Barr.

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Plainclothes NYC police grab protester and throw her into unmarked car - WSWS

UAE partners with Airbus to launch satellite testing and assembly centre – The National

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The UAE's flourishing space sector is taking another leap forward as a satellite testing and assembly centre is prepared for launch in Al Ain.

Tawazun Economic Council has joined forces with major airline and aerospace manufacturer Airbus and the National Space Science and Technology Centre (NSSTC), at UAE and University, to drive forward plans to begin operations at the centre early next year.

The project will create 32 jobs, with 22 of the new employees to be Emirati.

Workers will receive training at Airbus facilities in France as well as locally.

The partnership was formed by Tawazun, a body which was was founded in 1992 to help develop a sustainable defence and security industry in the UAE.

"This is our second project after Yahsat, and there are many more projects to come, as Tawazun works to further develop the UAE space sector," said Matar Ali Al Romaithi, chief economic development officer for Tawazun.

"The UAE is building and acquiring the knowledge required to become a regional hub for space activities and advanced research and development.

"This centre is an integral part of those plans and consequently Tawazun has worked to make sure that it operates as a sustainable resource for the next five to seven years with a view to becoming permanent.

"We also value the significant contribution that Airbus is making to the Centres sustainability, as well as to the increase and development of our Emirati resource and expertise. NSSTC will accumulate critical knowledge from Airbus through this project, and our national competencies and skills will increase significantly."

The UAE successfully launched KhalifaSat, the first satellite designed, tested and manufactured entirely by Emirati engineers, from Japan in October, 2018.

This week, the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre released new high-resolution images of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, captured by KhalifaSat.

The UAE's space sector has enjoyed remarkable success in recent years, with the launch of KhalifaSat followed by the country's first astronaut, Hazza Al Mansouri, travelling aboard the International Space Centre last September.

Only last month, the Hope probe began its milestone mission to Mars.

The Satellite Assembly, Integration and Testing Centre will develop and build communication, navigation and hyperspectral satellites ranging in size between 50 and 250 kilogrammes.

It will be based at the NSSTC site in Al Ain, with Airbus supporting the design, outfitting and commissioning of the facility.

Airbus will also manage the procurement, installation and operational qualification required for the equipment.

Airbus has pledged to play a leading role in bolstering the UAE aerospace industry.

"The space industry is an important and strategic sector for the UAE, as it enables the development of high-level skills and drives innovation," said Mikail Houari, president of the Mena region for Airbus.

"Airbus remains committed to supporting the advancement of all key elements of the UAEs aerospace industry. For many years, we have worked closely in partnership with the nations leading industrial entities to help create new technological solutions and provide global expertise and experience to local talent."

The growing UAE space sector has provided 3,000 jobs at 50 space related entities, five space research and development centres and three universities offering space degrees.

Emirati engineers with the Hope probe in the clean room at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre headquarters. Courtesy: MBRSC

The Hope spacecraft was delivered to Japan on board the world's largest cargo plane in April. The overall journey from Dubai to the Tanegashima Space Centre took 83 hours. Courtesy: MBRSC

The Japanese H-IIA rocket that will deliver Hope to space on July 15. Courtesy: Dubai Media Office

The probe underwent several different tests in the clean room prior to its departure to Japan, including being exposed to extreme temperatures. Courtesy: MBRSC

The probe before the solar panels were installed. Courtesy: Wam

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, accompanied by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, visited the Mohammed Bin RashidSpace Centreas the last external part of the Hope Probe was installed. Courtesy: Wam

"This is in line with the vision of the UAE government, achieving the goals of the national agenda through the implementation of contemporary, sustainable developmental projects," said Saeed Ahmed Ghobash, chancellor of UAE University.

The NSSTC was created by the UAE University alongside the UAE Space Agency.

"UAE University possesses distinctive scientific and technical capabilities that enable it to keep abreast of global trends in applied scientific research, the fourth industrial revolution, the requirements of artificial intelligence, and space science and technology. The universitys work contributes to the development of a knowledge and digital based economy."

The UAE Space Agency is funding the first two projects that will be completed under the management and operation of NSSTC.

The first will be a satellite that will augment navigational capabilities for the UAE and the second will be the Arab 813 Satellite.

Both projects are currently underway with the support of Airbus and will be completed at the new facilities.

Updated: August 5, 2020 05:02 PM

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UAE partners with Airbus to launch satellite testing and assembly centre - The National

June TechCred to Fund Record-Setting Number of In-Demand Credentials WKTN- A division of Home Town Media – WKTN Radio

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Next Round Launches Today

(COLUMBUS, Ohio)Lt. Governor Jon Husted, who serves as Director of the Governors Office of Workforce Transformation, announced today that 302 Ohio companies have been approved for TechCred funding, allowing them another opportunity to upskill their current and future employees with technology-focused skills.

The results of the June application period is evidence of the demand employers have for people with tech-focused credentials, said Lt. Governor Husted. These skills help create job security and higher wages for the employee and helps make sure Ohio employers have the talent they need to compete.

In May, updates were made to TechCred to support the changing needs of Ohio businesses and workers during the economic recovery amid the COVID-19 health crisis in anticipation of the June application period.

Following the June application period, applications were approved for 302 Ohio employers, funding 3,241 credentials that will help upskill Ohio workers. The increase in applications from employers proves that technology skills are more important for Ohio workers than ever. The June round was record setting, with a 101 percent increase in the number of credentials that will be funded compared to the January round, which was previously the most successful application period in the programs history.

TechCred is helping create a stronger workforce in Ohio, said Lydia Mihalik, Director of the Ohio Development Services Agency. Employees are expanding their skills, and employers are getting the talent they need to grow their business.

In addition to the June awards, Lt. Governor Husted announced that the list of eligible TechCred credentials now includes examples of education and training providers that offer each certificate or certification as a resource to employers.

The examples listed under each credential are based on training provider submissions and are not meant to be an exhaustive list of providers offering each credential within the state or online. Employers are welcome to work with a training provider that is not listed.

The importance of upskilling as we continue through and emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be overstated, said Ohio Department of Higher Education Chancellor Randy Gardner. Education plays a vital role in keeping Ohios economy strong, and increased participation in the TechCred program bolsters Ohios workforce for the future.

To date, 695 Ohio employers have been allocated funding through four rounds, supporting 7,473 technology-focused credentials to be earned by Ohio employees.

The next application period of the TechCred program opens today, August 4th and closes on August 31st, allowing for another opportunity for current and incoming employees to earn tech-focused skills.

You can learn more about the program athttp://TechCred.Ohio.gov

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June TechCred to Fund Record-Setting Number of In-Demand Credentials WKTN- A division of Home Town Media - WKTN Radio

Managing air quality: Urban intergovernmental institutions appear to be logical choice – The Financial Express

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By KK Pandey

The municipal governance for ambient air quality (AAQ) has assumed special significance with the first-ever allocation of Rs 4,400 crore for FY21 by the Fifteenth National Finance Commission (NFC) to 50 urban agglomerations (UAs) as part of Rs 29,250 crore share of urban local bodies (ULBs). Water supply (WS), solid waste management (SWM) and roads that determine AAQ got further allocation for UAs and other ULBs for the same period.

Three important points deserve special attention of NFC, which is working out further details for the remaining period of its mandate: (i) the role and significance of municipal services in pollution caused by PM2.5 and PM10, (ii) institutional arrangements/governance, and (iii) mobilisation of funds at the city level.

First, adequacy of municipal services in terms of treatment of water, solid waste (household/municipal/electronic/end-of-use vehicles/hazardous /green leaves/construction and demolition waste, etc), roads, footpath, dividers/roundabout, greenery/plantation, maintenance of parks/lakes, etc, determine the levels of AAQ. It is estimated that 6.4% of GDP (largely in urban centres) is lost due to inadequacies in WS and SWM. The two are also important from the angle of resource efficiency/circular economy, where the output from one sector is used as input for another product. It is argued that 90-95% of solid waste can be processed for another input.

Second, the institutional arrangements and governance among UAs to protect air quality go beyond the administrative jurisdiction of cities. The 50 UAs have 264 ULBs and other census towns, villages, special townships (railways, industries, etc, with multiple institutional arrangements for municipal services). The National Capital Region (NCR), for example, involves administrative city (MCDs, NDMC, and Cantonment Board), physical city (Gurugram, Noida, etc) and the city region.

Third, the budgetary allocation to ULBs is not enough to meet the requisite actions. Requirements of funds (also indicating physical gap) are fairly high than NFC grant and kitty of municipal finance. HPEC report estimates investment requirements of Rs 31 lakh crore at 2010 prices in a 20 years perspective with 75%-plus share for WS, SWM and municipal roads.

Therefore, the urban intergovernmental institutions (centre, states and ULBs) appear to be the logical choice for the management of AAQ. The role of ministry of environment and forest/Central Pollution Control Board and their counterparts in the states is to supplement urban institutions with AQI and enable them to link NFC grants in the overall framework of NCAP (National Clean Air Programme) with a nodal agency role to largest ULB to manage AAQ in UA. The census towns should also be immediately upgraded as ULB status by their respective states.

At the same time, a five-year plan (physical/fiscal gap) should be worked out for entire UA. It should be based on environmental and energy audit as per the Model Municipal Law of 2003, which are yet to be applied. AAQ-related innovations such as C&D waste, participatory maintenance of parks, footpaths, etc, as applied in Ahmedabad, Indore, Delhi, Pune, and Namami Gange, etc, should be included. Certain cases, like the NCR, need specific arrangements.

Using NFC funds as seed capital, extra-budgetary resources from the community, corporate social responsibility funds and public-private partnerships need to be mobilised. The NFC grant also needs upward revision in proportion to the size of UA.

The author isProfessor, Urban Management, Indian Institute of Public Administration. Views are personal

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Managing air quality: Urban intergovernmental institutions appear to be logical choice - The Financial Express

Trump Tries to Make It Hard for Anyone Else to Behave Ethically, Either – The New Yorker

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Given what you know of the Trump Administration, you may not be shocked to learn thathidden away behind a wall of acronyms, and obscured in the recesses of the federal rule-making processit is doing its best to stall the trend toward ethical investing. The Department of Labor, in June, proposed changes to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) that would make it hard for pension funds to steer money toward so-called E.S.G. fundsthose that put a priority on environmental, social, and governance factors, such as whether a company is switching to renewable energy or putting women on its board or treating its workers fairly.

A couple of caveats first: E.S.G. investing is no panacea. (A Blackrock E.S.G. fund, for instance, had ExxonMobil as its twentieth-largest holding at one point, which is roughly akin to the Vatican setting aside a corner of the Sistine Chapel for satanic rituals.) And, at this late date, the idea that green capitalism is going to single-handedly save the day seems absurd. Still, people have pensions, and theyre going to be invested somewhere. E.S.G. funds saw record growth in 2019, and that rise steepened as the pandemic hit. The rebound in civil society has been impressive, with an increase in volunteering, social cohesion, community support and focus on public good vs. private freedoms, JPMorgan said in a recent note to clients. We see the Covid-19 crisis accelerating the trend to ESG investment. Oh, and theres another reason: a Financial Times analysis in June found that, in the past decade, you made more money investing responsibly.

Who wouldnt like all this? Well, diehard libertarians clinging to the Milton Friedman theory that a corporation has no social responsibility beyond making money, and people who run unethical enterprises. This (often overlapping) set of players orbits in a loose constellation around the businessman in the Oval Office, who himself has never been accused of behaving ethically. Now Trumps Secretary of Labor, Eugene Scalia (the son of the late Supreme Court Justice), has proposed the rule changes, which would force pension funds seeking to invest ethically to jump through any number of hoops proving that theres no pecuniary difference with more cavalier holdings.

Happily, New York Statewhich is home to, among other things, a great many fundshas decided to fight back. Linda Lacewell, the states superintendent of financial services, wrote Scalia last week to say, In our view, the rise of ESG investing in recent years is a welcome development that reflects both a more sophisticated approach to investment and risk analysis and one more in line with the challenges facing investors today. As Ali Zaidi, who handles climate policy for Governor Andrew Cuomo, explained to me in an interview, the proposed rule is essentially an effort to take information away from the market. Whats really stunning, Zaidi added, is that it comes as the economic feedback to this incredible challenge we face in the form of the COVID crisis has actually reminded us how important E.S.G. and climate-risk analysis really are. In financial regulatory parlance, we talk about stress testing. In some ways, the stress testing is happening right now, and showing that a lot of these industries sit on a house of sand, not a firm foundation. That is to say, you better hope that you werent long on oil going into the pandemic, because you not only helped to wreck the planetyou also lost your shirt.

As Zaidi pointed out, like all else in our public life, the result of the Administrations efforts rests on the outcome of the November elections. The Department of Labors rule changes will probably come late enough in the Trump term that, if hes defeated, it will be relatively easy for Congress to overturn them. And Elizabeth Warren, who seems likely to wield some power on financial questions in a Biden Administration, has made it clear that shell have no patience for this kind of irresponsibility. As she wrote in a letter to the Wall Street Journal last month, Mr. Scalia seems to think that burying our heads in the sand and pretending that there is no risk to manage is risk management itself. If Mr. Scalia truly wanted to protect retirees, hed remove roadblocks to ESG investing, call on his colleagues to create strong ESG standards and support my Climate Risk Disclosure Act. The bottom line, as she points out, is that climate change threatens the stability of our economy. Indeed, as a new study published last Thursday makes clear, by 2100, as much as twenty per cent of global G.D.P. could be threatened by coastal flooding, in a worst-case scenario. Add in desertification, heat waves, agricultural collapsepretty soon, there isnt much of an economy left to worry about.

The situation seems obvious by this pointbut clearly not, at least in the Azkaban where American policy is currently formulated. Others, however, are catching on. Mark Fawcett, the chief investment officer for the National Employment Savings Trust, the United Kingdoms largest public pension fund by number of members, announced last week that it will begin to divest its massive portfolio from fossil fuels. Why? Just like coronavirus, climate change poses serious risks to both our savers and their investments, Fawcett said. It has the potential to cause catastrophic damage and completely disrupt our way of life. No one wants to save throughout their life to retire into a world devastated by climate change.

According to the World Bank, fashion is responsible for ten per cent of the planets greenhouse-gas emissions, more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined. Which is why its good that the fashion writer Shonagh Marshall has launched Denier, a Web site that features her conversations about the industrys relation to people, the planet, and profit. (And also a pretty good pun.) The sites early content includes a particularly fine colloquy with Liz Ricketts, of the Or Foundation, about what happens to the clothes that Americans give away to charities. I interviewed Marshall, whos based in New York, last week; our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Fashion, broadly defined, seems to be a large part of the climate equation. Is it possible to reimagine it as an industry? If so, is that reimagining under way, or is it mostly greenwashing so far?

It is possible to reimagine it, and I think the regenerative nature at the very core of the fashion industry makes it ripe for dreaming up new systems. There are a number of fashion designers that have built their businesses with concerns for the climate crisis at the center. They act as interesting case studies in that all the decisions they make have the well-being of people and the planet as a focus, even if this means forgoing profit. But there is a lot of greenwashing, and fast fashion and luxury design houses have done little to change all elements of their business. Often, they focus on one thing, such as carbon emissions, which is fantastichowever, as we know, this is just not enough! A brilliant resource to find out how well a fashion brand is doing across people, planet, and animals is Good on You. Fashion companies are rated from 1 (We Avoid) to 5 (Great), and it includes lengthy descriptions about why they are rated this way.

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Trump Tries to Make It Hard for Anyone Else to Behave Ethically, Either - The New Yorker

Teva and Alvotech Announce Strategic Partnership to Collaborate in the U.S. Biosimilar Market – Business Wire

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TEL AVIV, Israel & REYKJAVIK, Iceland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: and TASE: TEVA) and biopharmaceutical company Alvotech today announced that they have entered into an exclusive strategic partnership for the commercialization in the U.S. of five biosimilar product candidates. This strategic partnership combines Tevas long-standing commercial presence and extensive infrastructure in the U.S. market with Alvotechs scientific experience and state-of-the-art biologics manufacturing. The initial pipeline contains biosimilar candidates addressing multiple therapeutic areas.

Robert Wessman, Alvotechs founder and Chairman said, We are very proud to announce our strategic alliance with Teva a leading global pharmaceutical company, to accelerate the introduction and adoption of new biosimilar medicines for patients in the U.S. market. This is not only a big moment for the biosimilar industry but also a very special moment for Alvotech, as we continue to join forces with leading global and regional partners around the world.

This commercial partnership with Alvotech will enable Teva to lend its technical expertise in working with the FDA to bring products to the U.S. market while broadening its growing biosimilar portfolio and continuing to leverage its unique cross-functional expertise across both specialty and generic medicines, said Brendan OGrady, Executive Vice President and Head of North America Commercial at Teva. This collaboration is another step in our unwavering commitment to develop and enable access to quality medications to help improve the lives of patients."

Under this partnership agreement, Alvotech will be responsible for the development, registration and supply of the biosimilars, while Teva will be exclusively commercializing the products in the U.S. The originator products of these five candidates currently generate around $35 billion in U.S. sales. The agreement includes an upfront payment, with subsequent milestone payments over the next several years. Teva and Alvotech will share profit from the commercialization of the biosimilars. All other financial terms and product details remain confidential.

About Alvotech

Alvotech is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and manufacture of high quality biosimilars for global markets. We are specialists in biotechnology, seeking to be a global leader in the biosimilar space by delivering high quality, cost-competitive products and services to our partners and to patients worldwide. Our fully integrated approach, with high-quality in-house competencies throughout the value chain, enables the accelerated development of biosimilar medicines.

Alvotechs initial pipeline contains several monoclonal-antibody and fusion-protein biosimilar candidates aimed at treating autoimmunity, oncology, ophthalmology and inflammatory conditions to improve quality of life for patients around the world. For more information, please visit our website, http://www.alvotech.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

About Teva

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE and TASE: TEVA) has been developing and producing medicines to improve peoples lives for more than a century. We are a global leader in generic and specialty medicines with a portfolio consisting of over 3,500 products in nearly every therapeutic area. Around 200 million people around the world take a Teva medicine every day, and are served by one of the largest and most complex supply chains in the pharmaceutical industry. Along with our established presence in generics, we have significant innovative research and operations supporting our growing portfolio of specialty and biopharmaceutical products. Learn more at http://www.tevapharm.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding the strategic partnership with Alvotech for the commercialization in the U.S. of biosimilar product candidates, which are based on managements current beliefs and expectations and are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown, that could cause our future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from that expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include risks relating to:

the potential that the expected benefits and opportunities related to our collaboration with Alvotech may not be realized or may take longer to realize than expected;

challenges inherent in product research and development, including uncertainty of clinical success and obtaining regulatory approvals for the biosimilar product candidates;

the commercial success of the biosimilar product candidates, if approved;

our ability to successfully compete in the marketplace, including: that we are substantially dependent on our generic products; consolidation of our customer base and commercial alliances among our customers; the increase in the number of competitors targeting generic opportunities and seeking U.S. market exclusivity for generic versions of significant products; competition for our specialty products, especially COPAXONE, our leading medicine, which faces competition from existing and potential additional generic versions, competing glatiramer acetate products and orally-administered alternatives; the uncertainty of commercial success of AJOVY or AUSTEDO; competition from companies with greater resources and capabilities; delays in launches of new products and our ability to achieve expected results from investments in our product pipeline; ability to develop and commercialize biopharmaceutical products; efforts of pharmaceutical companies to limit the use of generics, including through legislation and regulations and the effectiveness of our patents and other measures to protect our intellectual property rights;

our substantial indebtedness, which may limit our ability to incur additional indebtedness, engage in additional transactions or make new investments, may result in a further downgrade of our credit ratings; and our inability to raise debt or borrow funds in amounts or on terms that are favorable to us;

our business and operations in general, including: duration, and geographic reach of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on our business, financial condition, operations, cash flows, and liquidity and on the economy in general; interruptions in our supply chain, including due to potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations and business in geographic locations impacted by the pandemic and on the business operations of our customers and suppliers; adequacy of and our ability to successfully execute and maintain the activities and efforts related to the measures we have taken or may take in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated costs therewith; implementation of our restructuring plan announced in December 2017; challenges associated with conducting business globally, including adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, political or economic instability, major hostilities or terrorism; our ability to attract, hire and retain highly skilled personnel; our ability to develop and commercialize additional pharmaceutical products; compliance with anti-corruption sanctions and trade control laws; manufacturing or quality control problems; disruptions of information technology systems; breaches of our data security; variations in intellectual property laws; significant sales to a limited number of customers; our ability to successfully bid for suitable acquisition targets or licensing opportunities, or to consummate and integrate acquisitions; our prospects and opportunities for growth if we sell assets and potential difficulties related to the operation of our new global enterprise resource planning (ERP) system;

compliance, regulatory and litigation matters, including: increased legal and regulatory action in connection with public concern over the abuse of opioid medications in the U.S. and our ability to reach a final resolution of the remaining opioid-related litigation; costs and delays resulting from the extensive governmental regulation to which we are subject or delays in governmental processing time including due to modified government operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic and effects on product and patent approvals; the effects of reforms in healthcare regulation and reductions in pharmaceutical pricing, reimbursement and coverage; governmental investigations into S&M practices; potential liability for patent infringement; product liability claims; increased government scrutiny of our patent settlement agreements; failure to comply with complex Medicare and Medicaid reporting and payment obligations; and environmental risks;

other financial and economic risks, including: our exposure to currency fluctuations and restrictions as well as credit risks; potential impairments of our intangible assets; potential significant increases in tax liabilities; and the effect on our overall effective tax rate of the termination or expiration of governmental programs or tax benefits, or of a change in our business;

and other factors discussed in Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, including in the sections captioned "Risk Factors and Forward Looking Statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements or other information contained herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. You are cautioned not to put undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

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Teva and Alvotech Announce Strategic Partnership to Collaborate in the U.S. Biosimilar Market - Business Wire

SpaceX Wins FCC Approval To Test Starlink Ground Stations In 6 States – Wccftech

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A cluster of 60 SpaceX Starlink satellites before launch on January 29, 2020. The launch, believed to have cost SpaceX $50 million, was the company's third launch of an operational batch of Starlink satellites. (Image Credit: SpaceX)

Hawthorne, California-based astronautic launch services provider and equipment manufacturer Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) plans to diversify its operations through launching an internet network consisting of non-geostationary satellites and ground base stations. Dubbed as Starlink, this network eventually intends to function on its own through using lasers for relaying data between the satellites to ensure global coverage.

SpaceX's plans for Starlink have however come under the scrutiny of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which is yet to decide on whether to maintain the company's preferential access to certain frequency bands. Additionally, the Commission is also yet to change its mind about Starlink being 'experimental' in nature; a shift that will qualify the network to receive American government funds for providing internet access to users in rural areas.

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To this end, Starlink just scored a big win from the FCC as the regulatory body has granted SpaceX Services Inc. temporary authority to operate Starlink ground stations located in six American states. The approval comes following SpaceX's decision to file the Special Temporary Authority (STA) request with the FCC in mid-June.

For the initial stage of Starlink's launch, SpaceX will have to use ground-based Earth stations to operate the network and provide users with the ability to connect with internet servers. The company requested the FCC to allow it to temporarily operate six Earth stations in different American states to test these ground stations and the satellites, in an attempt to ensure that the network performs according to expectations once it is launched commercially later this year.

The six ground stations for which SpaceX has received FCC approval are located in Hitterdal, MN; Tionesta, CA; Robertsdale, AL; and Baxley, GA, Butte, MT; and Colburn, ID. For uploading data from the stations to the Starlink satellites, the company intends to use the 28.6-29.1 GHz and 29.5-30.0 GHz spectrums and for downlink, it intends to use the 17.8-18.6 GHz and 18.8-19.3 GHz.

The Falcon 9 Block 5 (Booster B1049.5) with the eighth batch of Starlink satellites lifts off on 4th June 2020 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. (Image: SpaceX livestream)

FCC's approval also requires SpaceX to be responsible for any interference that might occur with existing users of the aforementioned spectrum bands. Specifically, they are tilted against SpaceX due to the facts. that while the company is responsible for not willfully causing interference with other, current users of the band and that it is not liable to receive any protection from said interference, should this interference occur then SpaceX is required to stop broadcasting from the ground station that is responsible for the occurrence and proceed to inform the FCC of the event.

Each of SpaceX's gateway Earth stations featureseight antennas which are manufactured by in-house by SpaceX. The antennas come with minor and major diameters of 1.5 meters each, are located 3.2 meters above ground level, have an input power of 50 Watts and Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) of 66.5 decibel-Watt. EIRP is an indicator of the antenna's maximum power output in a single direction.

SpaceX's STA period commences today and it will last for 60 days before ending in September. In the narrative for the authorization request, the company directly tied the grant to its ability to refine Starlink for creating a network that is capable of serving populations in areas that are typically either deprived of internet connectivity or where users find it difficult to obtain coverage. SpaceX is also required to coordinate with any federal users of the frequency bands in which it has been authorized to operate, and the approval comes as the company prepares to expand the number of Starlink satellites orbiting the Earth by conducting more launches.

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SpaceX Wins FCC Approval To Test Starlink Ground Stations In 6 States - Wccftech