Will the Utica Comets be playing an outdoor game? – Utica Observer Dispatch

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The possibility of a professional outdoor hockey game in the Mohawk Valley took a considerable step Thursday.

The Mohawk Valley Regional Economic Development Council was awarded $82.7 million for 81 economic development projects, state officials announced Thursday.

Among those projects is a proposal for the Mohawk Valley Garden group to hold a "Winter Festival Sporting Event" as part of the 25th anniversary of Romes Griffiss Business and Technology Park and the grand opening of the Nexus Center in downtown Utica, according to the awards listing.

In development on Whitesboro Street next to the Adirondack Bank Center, the Nexus Center is touted as a tournament-based recreation facility primarily for hockey, box lacrosse and soccer.

The "Winter Festival Sporting Event" project was awarded $345,000. The listing mentions the event would include a "Utica Comets (American Hockey League) outdoor game, an NCAA Division III game featuring Utica College, a (Major Arena Soccer League) match featuring Utica City FC, and other local and regional competitions."

No further details, including dates for the possible events, were announced.

Rome Mayor Jacqueline Izzo said that the bulk of the $345,000 would be used for an outdoor game at the Griffiss Business Park. The money would fund a portable rink and seating areas, with everything set up near one of the hangars, Izzo said. She referred to this as retrofitting the area for the game.

"It sounds like a really exciting event for the community," Izzo said. "Outdoor hockey events are the rage right now."

Rob Esche, president of Mohawk Valley Garden, could not be reached for comment Thursday. Mohawk Valley Garden is an overall organization that manages the Utica Comets and Utica City FC, among others.

Esche told the Observer-Dispatch in 2017 that he was looking to have an outdoor game in the Utica area, but noted there were challenges in finding a suitable venue. He said at the time he had spoken with Syracuse Crunch owner Howard Dolgon about being included in an outdoor game, but those plans didnt come to fruition.

"We would love to compete on that type of stage," Esche said in January 2017. "I think it would be a great experience. Im all for building the sport in Central New York and building the sport as a whole. ..."

AHL Vice President of Communications Jason Chaimovitch said the scheduling process hasnt started yet for the 2020-21 season. That process usually starts early in the year, he said. The AHL would work with the Comets for the possible game, he said.

"We would help in making sure it gets scheduled," Chaimovitch said. "It is not on our radar, yet."

There have been 10 outdoor games in the AHLs history. Most notably, the Syracuse Crunch put on an outdoor game in 2010 at the New York State Fairgrounds. The Rochester Americans also played at Frontier Field in 2013.

Utica College Athletic Director Dave Fontaine and mens hockey coach Gary Heenan said they didnt have any details surrounding the schools possible involvement.

Notably, UC was included as part of the Frozen Dome Classic in 2014 when the Comets and Crunch played in Syracuse.

Contact reporter Ben Birnell at 315-792-5032 or follow him on Twitter @OD_Birnell.

Observer-Dispatch reporter Edward Harris contributed to this story.

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We wish we’d written that: STAT staffers share their favorite stories of 2019 – STAT

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As we look back on 2019, we at STAT find ourselves a little jealous.

There has been a lot of stellar health and science journalism this year, and below is a roundup of the stories we wish we had written.

And wed be remiss if we didnt admit the origins of this annual tradition Bloomberg Businessweek did it first, and head over there for more great reads.

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Story by Blake Ellis and Melanie Hicken, CNN InvestigatesPhotographs by Melissa Lyttle for CNN

Teaira Shorters appendix ruptured while she was in jail, serving time for minor offenses such as not wearing a seatbelt. She began to experience symptoms while in custody but her pleas for medical help were ignored for days which ultimately resulted in a life-threatening infection.

This investigation of an individual case sheds light on institutional problems in our foster care and prison system that put vulnerable populations at terrible risk. Melissa Lyttles photographs bring us directly into the life of this young woman trying to move forward. Contributed by Alissa Ambrose

By Ryan Cross, Chemical & Engineering News

When a young man in Wilsons clinical trial of a gene therapy died, in 1999, it basically shut down the field for a decade and made Wilson a pariah. C&ENs profile shows us not only how the tragedy made Wilson reassess his approach to science but also how it turned him into one of gene therapys most outspoken critics: Although he believes deeply that repairing genes can cure some of our most devastating diseases, Wilson is also outspoken about the risky approaches that some gene therapy studies are taking today. Contributed by Sharon Begley

By Ava Kofman, ProPublica

To read this piece is to see todays equivalent of a Dickensian debtors prison. Ava Kofman lays out, detail by infuriating detail, how digital technologies touted as progress are used to criminalize poverty. Supposedly, installing ankle monitors is a way to get people out of jail. But because companies charge the wearers daily fees they often cant keep up with and because their devices make it especially hard to land or hold down a job the practice ends up sweeping more people behind bars. Kofman masterfully weaves a tale of bodies controlled by private firms, of lives upended by machines that were supposed to set them free. As one young man puts it, I get in trouble for living. For being me. Contributed by Eric Boodman

By Martin Enserink, SciencePhotography by Tom Bouyer, Expedition 5300

Journalist Martin Enserink journeyed high into the Andes to write about research into the effects of chronic mountain sickness traveling, effectively, into thin air. He and photographer Tom Bouyer, whose striking photographs make this a visually arresting piece, traveled to La Rinconada, Peru, the worlds highest settlement and a gold mining town. If that activity draws to mind the wild, wild west, hang on to that thought. Enserink described La Riconada, which is north of Lake Titicaca, as Madmaxian, observing that the researchers typically retreat to their hotel rooms by 8 p.m. for safetys sake.

This forgotten part of the world is perilous for other reasons. People living in an environment with half the oxygen available to lungs at sea level can experience a host of physical ailments. These researchers would like to pave the way to therapies for chronic mountain sickness, but first need to better define what living and working at this altitude does to human bodies. Its a fascinating read. Contributed by Helen Branswell

By Ben Elgin, Bloomberg

At first, the foreboding ads flooding D.C.-area television sets didnt make much sense: Why would an advocacy group representing Americas sheriffs care whether states can import prescription drugs from Canada? Bloomberg investigated and found an answer: The pharmaceutical industry was funding the ads through an intermediary group, the Partnership for Safe Medicines. In a year already dominated by heavy-handed lobbying and advocacy surrounding prescription drug pricing, Bloomberg spotlighted one of the most brazen examples of indirect ad campaigns meant to gin up antagonism toward attempts at lowering drug prices. Contributed by Lev Facher

By Caroline Chen, ProPublica

Chens exhaustive investigation of the unregulated $2 billion stem cell industry showed how questionable marketing practices and misleading scientific claims are duping patients into paying thousands of dollars for injections of amniotic stem cells that dont work. Chens work prompted the Food and Drug Administration to ramp up its enforcement efforts. Contributed by Adam Feuerstein

By Rob Copeland and Bradley Hope, Wall Street Journal

This is the story of how Martin Shkreli, the cartoonishly disgraced biotech entrepreneur, continued to run his synonymous-with-greed drug company from federal prison. There are memorable cameos from inmates called Krispy and D-Block, fascinating details about a corporate power struggle, and an Austrian interior designer who made a regrettable investment. But the star of course is Shkreli, whose jailhouse persona lands somewhere between Jordan Belfort and Pepe the Frog. Despite lots of seemingly reasonable advice to just give it a rest, he remains convinced of his own gift for drug development and incapable of ever, for any reason, logging off. Contributed by Damian Garde

By Betsy McKay, Wall Street Journal

Our job as journalists is to notice the obvious, and this story does that brilliantly. For years, cardiovascular disease has been in decline, and it was expected to fall below cancer as the leading cause of death. In the words of Robert Anderson, chief of the CDCs mortality statistics branch, Its highly unlikely given the current trend that there will be a crossover anytime soon. In fact, the rates of heart attack and stroke mortality among people in their 40s and 50s are increasing. The story even takes a paragraph to embrace a celebrity angle, noting the deaths due to stroke of 90s icons John Singleton, who directed Boyz N the Hood and Luke Perry, who played bad boy Dylan McKay on Beverly Hills, 90210. But the story does more, explaining how heart disease patients have changed over 20 years. Once, they were men who smoked and had sky-high LDL levels. Now they are younger, more obese, and more likely to be women. The big question left behind is what society can do to put cardiovascular disease back in decline. Contributed by Matthew Herper

By Mike Hixenbaugh and Keri Blakinger, NBC News and the Houston Chronicle

In this series, reporters from NBC News and the Houston Chronicle reveal how incorrect determinations of various forms of child abuse have imprisoned relatives or separated them from children. These are incredibly complicated stories involving vulnerable children, and they show how difficult it can be to distinguish between accident and abuse. But the series reveals the ties among childrens hospitals and child welfare and law enforcement agencies and the authority conceded to doctors by the legal system. What comes across is how parents worries about a sick or injured child might just be the start of their nightmare. Contributed by Andrew Joseph

By Nellie Bowles, New York Times

Weve all heard the stories of the Silicon Valley pioneers who, after having gotten us all hopelessly addicted to our phones, now carefully limit their own childrens screen time. In this smart and provocative news analysis, reporter Nellie Bowles examines that phenomenon as well as its flip side. She tells the story of a health-tech startup called Care.Coach that employs workers in the Philippines and Latin America to operate digital avatars that live within tables and are being tested as companions for low-income seniors in the U.S. Its a telling example, she writes, of a growing class divide in how care, education, and all those services and interactions that make up our lives get delivered. As more screens appear in the lives of the poor, screens are disappearing from the lives of the rich, Bowles writes. Its an observation thats lingered with me and shaped how I, as a health-tech reporter, think about covering the growing number of health-care inventions that get delivered through screens. Contributed by Rebecca Robbins

By Anna Edney, Susan Berfield, and Evelyn Yu, Bloomberg Businessweek

Bloombergs Anna Edney has owned the generic drugs might kill you beat literally all year long, from three features over three days in January to a cover story in September to right up to the week she started her maternity leave. (Congratulations, Anna!) Pharmaceutical manufacturing and quality control is rarely the flashiest or the easiest thing to write about. But she and her colleagues showed real problems in the oversight of generic drug factories in the U.S. and overseas and illustrated the consequences lackluster oversight can have for real people. My hat is also tipped to Justin Metz, who did the simple and perfect cover photo illustration for one of Edneys stories in the Sept. 16 edition of Businessweek. Contributed by Kate Sheridan

By Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic

The Atlantics Sarah Zhang has done fantastic reporting this year on the cultural ramifications of consumer DNA testing, including this story about an Indiana fertility doctor named Donald Cline. Decades ago, Cline allegedly used his own sperm to impregnate his patients without telling them. DNA tests from 23andMe and Ancestry.com have turned up at least 50 children Cline fathered with his patients. This story told with sensitivity and gripping detail examines how those children found each other and how Clines actions have impacted their lives. Contributed by Megan Thielking

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The Top 10 Memes That Defined the Decade – Highsnobiety

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Its hard to remember a time before memes. How did mankind convey our affections before we could DM a picture of Baby Yoda to our crush? What did we talk to our co-workers about before The Dress? In the early days of the Internet, users traded posts, information and stories on shared-interest forums. Nowadays, though, most users simply write pithy captions atop a familiar image, making it instantly relatable, instantly shareable and potentially viral.

As social networks and sharing platforms like Facebook, Reddit, Twitter and Instagram emerged and solidified themselves, memes emerged as a universal language. You might not understand the captions, but everyone knows what Good Guy Greg stands for. Or at least, they used to. As the Internet continues to expand and consume everything it touches, the shelf-life of memes has gotten shorter and shorter every day, some like covfefe were beaten to death the day they were born. As a rule of thumb: as soon as a meme is co-opted by a brand, its dead in the water. Some brands like Steakumms, for whatever reason interrogate this phenomenon on their social media accounts, which then becomes a meme in its own rite.

Memes also became a form of social and literal currency in the 2010s. With the emergence of aggregator accounts like @fuckjerry and @thefatjewish, a select few accounts and personalities earned millions of dollars off of sharing meme content, much of which was pinched from various timelines with no credit or recompense to the original author. These entrepreneurs made beaucoup bucks, establishing themselves as would-be moguls of the new media landscape. It wasnt until later in the decade that mass movements like #fuckfuckjerry caused unfollowing sprees of accounts that plagiarized meme content. Like everything else, memes became political.

There are millions of memes made every day. Some of them might even be original. There could very well be a decade-winning meme created between the time that this piece was written and the time it is published. While this list is by no means exhaustive, it is definitive. There are millions of memes, but these are the only ones that mattered. These are the Memes That Defined the Decade, in no particular order. Do not @ us.

There were plenty of memes and viral image macros that came before Antoine Dodsons local news interview about a rapist run amok in Lincoln Park, but none were quite as popular, or as influential. There were screenshots, quotables, and AutoTuned remixes. Dont take my word for it, though; listen to YouTube commenter lil0mike0gkb: This is historical. This marks the day when the Internet officially became funny.

We in this bitch. Finna get crunk. Eyebrows on fleek. Da fuq. In just six seconds in 2014, Viner Peaches Monroee changed the way modern brands were allowed to talk on the Internet, and she was never paid a dime for work.

Some memes are hard to explain. This isnt one of those. Its a simple crop of a three-panel comic showing a dog calmly sipping from a mug as the room around him is engulfed in flames. This is Fine, he says. Weve all been this dog. As I try to distill ten years of the Internet into a digestible article, I am this dog right now. This is fine.

The killing of Harambe the Gorilla in 2016 was an entire meme unto itself, but Twitter users @sexualjumanji and @brandonwardell created an absurd movement out of saying Dicks Out for Harambe. Wardell even wrangled a Vine cosign out of a bemused Danny Trejo. And just in case you thought that was the most 2016 sentence youd ever read, check this one out: the perceived outrage over the unjust killing of a gorilla reached its cultural zenith when a fake-news story went viral shortly after Donald Trump was elected President, alleging that over 11,000 Americans had voted for Harambe.

While there are plenty of webcomix and cartoons that have birthed memes, including the aforementioned Pepe, no one piece of media has contributed more to the Meme Discourse than the One Who Lives in a Pineapple Under the Sea. To name but a few: Evil Patrick, Caveman Spongebob, Confused Mr. Krabs, Krusty Krab vs. Chum Bucket, MY LEG, eVeN tYpInG LiKe ThIs is usually paired with a Spongebob reference. Squidwards grumpy, doom-and-gloom has made him a mascot for the workingmans existential ennui as a generation went to work day after day, many began to feel for Mr. Tentacles. Maybe we were a little harsh on Spongebobs eight-legged coworker growing up.

Even if you arent familiar with the @pixelatedboat tweet, above, you are probably familiar with the phenomenon. Ken Bone, Doja Cat, Chewbacca Mom all Milkshake Ducks in one way or another. The term was named the 2017 Word of the Year by Australias Macquarie Dictionary, even though the term is two words. Go figure.

Small brain: explaining memesBig brain: showing memesExploding brain: using the meme to explain itGalaxy brain: memes

There was a brief period in 2016 when creepy clown stories kept popping up in the news, instilling a nationwide panic and a spike in reported cases of coulrophobia. As the decade went on, though, eventually people embraced their inner clown-like qualities. Photos of people applying clown makeup, tying their clown shoes, and going out on yet another Tinder Date, for example. Honk, honk.

This isnt about Keanu Reeves the Actor, per se, its more about Keanu Reeves as an Idea. There was Sad Keanu, slumped over and sullenly eating a sandwich, and Happy Keanu. Then there was Conspiracy Keanu and, as memes got weirder as the decade went on, a Mini Keanu. The Keanu Meme reached its peak earlier this year, when Reeves played an exaggerated version of himself in the 2019 Netflix rom-com Always Be My Maybe.

Pepe the Frog crawled out of the primordial ooze of the Internet in 2008, but it wasnt until 2015 that Matt Furies deadbeat frog character went mainstream in all the wrong ways. Of all the memes on this list, only Pepe has his own Anti-Defamation League factsheet. Pepe became the avatar of anonymous hate and in October 2015, Donald Trump even retweeted a Pepefied version of himself. Alt-right figurehead Richard Spencer was mid-way through explaining the symbolism of the Pepe pin on his lapel when a masked man cold-clocked him in the face. Disturbed by impact his creation had on the political discourse, Furie killed the blissfully stoned frog-dude in 2017.

Ben Roazen is a writer, editor, and a hack-of-all-trades. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.

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The hope of Chanukah – The Spectator USA

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The neighbors got together for drinks and carols at the weekend. As an English Jew, I love the carols all those old-time bangers from the time when midwinter really was bleak, all those Zionist lyrics about royal Davids city and kings in Israel. I consider it a mitzvah, a religious obligation, to spread the joy, because theres not enough joy to the world these days, so I play the piano, this year in an impromptu trio with an Irish American fiddler and an English literary critic who, it transpires, toots a mean descant on the trumpet. We spread the joy as a farmer spreads muck, but its the spirit that counts. Without rehearsal or premeditation, we turned Silent Night into a Dean Martin drunk song.

Two nights later, it was the first night of Chanukah. My three daughters lit three menorahs and we sangMaoz Tzur (Rock of Ages):

Furiously they assailed usBut Thine arm availed usAnd Thy word broke their swordWhen our strength failed us

The song has become associated with the Maccabean Revolt of 167 BC the first nationalist movement in history but it was written, like many of the carols, in the Middle Ages. Its impossible not to read those words without thinking of those who fought for their religious freedom against the Syrian tyrant Antiochus IV and those who died for it in medieval and modern Europe as in a kosher market in Jersey City.

It may come as a surprise, but Jews dont spend most of their time thinking about anti-Semitism. Or rather, we spend as little time as safely possible thinking about it. We are obliged to choose life, and life and the making of joy and children mean we must refuse to be defined by a morbid shadow-play of other peoples projections. The tide of hate and violence is rising, however.

It has become acceptable to say appalling things about Jews some of them calumnies carrying the stale flavor of the Middle Ages, some of them more recent and carrying the Germanic taste of blood and iron things that remain unsayable about any other people. Especially online, which for reasons that elude me is considered to be a Casablancaof the media, where anything goes and no one is accountable.

It also appears to have become acceptable, in New York City in particular, for Orthodox Jews to be assaulted without the police or mayor doing much about it. And it appears that the strength of many Jewish organizations, the Anti-Defamation League among them, is more devoted to sustaining the Democratic partys coalition than to doing their job of defending Jews. The same goes for many assimilated Jews, who keep their own heads down and complain that religious Jews make it hard for themselves and everyone else. But there are also many, including many people who are not Jewish, who do stand up for what is right and fair, and who fight against lies and incitement.

Furiously they assail us. This year was the first year I received anti-Semitic tweets, anonymous physical threats, notifications that my name was on a list for future punishment, Holocaust denial (on one impressively sick occasion in rhyming couplets) and, in an unneeded further proof of the collapse of our public discourse, images of the alt-right fetish object Pepe the Frog. This year, while the dimwitted online world argued about tropes, my younger daughters learnt to read trope, the ancient cantillation that they will perform when the elder of them has herbat mitzvahin May. Rock of Ages, let our song / Praise thy saving power.

So I refuse to give up hope, and I know that we will be here, and there too, for as long as we have the faith to do so. In many ways, we are living in an age of miracles. The United States, despite its balkanized society and demented politics, remains an island of tolerance between religions, despite the perverse hostility of the Democratic left, street thugs and a few college professors. The state of Israel, which did not exist when my grandparents families were murdered, is thriving and has never had such good diplomatic relations with some many states and peoples. This year, work began on the Abrahamic Family House, in the United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi, a development whose centerpiece is a common religious space, with a mosque, a church and a synagogue.

The year ended with what, for an English Jew living in the United States, was an almost overwhelming double gift. On December 11, President Trump extended the protections of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act (1964) to Jews, as the George W. Bush administrations Department of Education had decreed in 2004 for Sikhs, Muslims and Jews, and the Obama administrations Department of Justice had confirmed in 2010.

On December 12, Jeremy Corbyn and a hard-left Labour party were demolished in Britains general elections. The elections were about many things Brexit, the National Health Service, the prospect of punitive taxation but a crucial factor was Corbyns foul politics, including his defense of the murderers of the IRA, Hamas and Hezbollah, and his seeking out of the company of Holocaust deniers and those who rationalize a selective and obsessive hatred as anti-Zionism.

On the first night of Chanukah, Britains prime minister Boris Johnson sent amessage to Britains Jews: When the Maccabees drove the forces of darkness out of Jerusalem, they had to do so on their own. Today, as Britains Jews seek to drive back the darkness of resurgent anti-Semitism, you have every decent person in this country fighting by your side.

From darkness to light: from the prospect of a Labour government that promised to drive Zionists almost all Jews, in fact from public life, to a Conservative government whose leader sends a clear and moral message, albeit one in which Johnson, an Oxford-educated Classicist, mixed Antiochus III with Antiochus IV.

President Trumps Executive Order and the British publics rejection of Corbyn show that the Jews are not alone in these difficult times. They show that, for all the experts who complain about populism, decency is not inimical to democracy. They show that, despite everything, we should look forward in hope.

I pray that the coming year will be a better one for all of us, including the Kurds of Syria, the Muslims of China and thepeople of Iran, hundreds of whom have beenkilled in recent weeks for demanding their freedom. The Abrahamic family house has many mansions.I wish all my friends and readers a Happy Christmas and aChag Chanukah Sameach.

Dominic Green is Life & Arts editor of Spectator USA.

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The hope of Chanukah - The Spectator USA

Beaches (film) – Wikipedia

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Beaches (also known as Forever Friends) is a 1988 American comedy-drama film adapted by Mary Agnes Donoghue from the Iris Rainer Dart novel of the same name. It was directed by Garry Marshall, and stars Bette Midler, Barbara Hershey, Mayim Bialik, John Heard, James Read, Spalding Gray, and Lainie Kazan.

Despite generally negative reviews from critics, the film was a commercial success, grossing $59 million in the box office, and gained a cult following.

A sequel, based on the novel Beaches II: I'll Be There was planned with Barbara Eden but never filmed.

Beaches is the story of two friends from different backgrounds whose friendship spans 30 years, 1958-1988, through childhood, love, and tragedy: Cecilia Carol "C.C." Bloom, a New York actress and singer, and Hillary Whitney, a San Francisco heiress and lawyer. The film begins with middle-aged C.C. receiving a note during a rehearsal for her upcoming Los Angeles concert. She leaves the rehearsal in a panic and tries frantically to travel to her friend's side. Unable to get a flight to San Francisco because of fog, she rents a car and drives overnight, reflecting on her life with Hillary.

It is 1958; a rich little girl, Hillary, meets child performer C.C., under the boardwalk on the beach in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Hillary is lost and C.C. is hiding from her overbearing stage mother. They become fast friends, growing up and bonding through letters of support to each other. A grown-up Hillary goes on to become a human rights lawyer, while C.C.'s singing career is not exactly taking off. They write to each other regularly and give updates on their lives. Hillary shows up at the New York City dive bar where C.C. is performing, their first meeting since Atlantic City. She moves in with C.C. and gets a job with the ACLU. C.C. is now performing singing telegrams, leading to a job offer from John, the artistic director of the Falcon Players, after she sings his birthday telegram.

A love triangle ensues as Hillary and John are instantly attracted to one another, leaving C.C. in the cold and feeling resentment toward her best friend. Matters are made worse when Hillary and John sleep together on the opening-night of C.C.'s first lead in an off-Broadway production. When Hillary returns home to care for her ailing father, the two friends resolve their issues about John, as John does not have romantic feelings for C.C. After her father passes away, Hillary spends time at her family beach house with lawyer Michael Essex, eventually marrying him. C.C. and John spend a lot of time together, start dating and eventually marry. Hillary and Michael travel to New York to see C.C. perform on Broadway, where she has become a star. When C.C. finds out that Hillary has stopped working as a lawyer, she accuses Hillary of giving up on her dreams. Hillary responds that C.C. has become no more than a "pretentious [social] climber" who is obsessed with her career. After the argument, Hillary ignores C.C.'s letters, throwing herself into being a dutiful, but unchallenged, wife.

John tells C.C. that her self-centeredness and obsession with her career have him feeling left behind and he asks for a divorce. Despite the separation, John tells her, 'I love you, I'll always love you. I just want to let go of us before us gets bad.' Upset at the thought of her marriage failing, C.C. turns to her mother, who lives in Miami Beach. Her mother tells her that she has given up a lot for her daughter, and C.C. starts to understand when her mother tells her the effect that her selfishness has had on those closest to her. Meanwhile, Hillary returns home from a trip earlier than expected to find her husband having breakfast with another woman, both wearing pajamas. When Hillary learns that C.C. is performing in San Francisco, she makes contact for the first time in years. They learn of each other's divorces, then discover that they have been secretly jealous of each other for years: Hillary is upset that she has none of the talent or charisma that C.C. is noted for, while C.C. admits she has always been envious of Hillary's beauty and intelligence. The two then realize that their feud could have been avoided by honest communication.

Hillary tells C.C. that she is pregnant and that she has already decided to keep the baby and raise the child as a single parent, a decision that wins her much admiration from the feisty and independent C.C., who promises she will stay and help her out. C.C. even starts talking of settling down and having a family of her own, having become engaged to Hillary's obstetrician. However, when C.C.'s agent calls with the perfect comeback gig for her, C.C. quickly abandons her fianc and any notions of the domestic life and races back to New York City, discovering that the comeback gig is at her ex-husband John's theater, bringing her full circle to where she began her theatrical career. Hillary eventually gives birth to a daughter, whom she names Victoria Cecilia. When Victoria is a young girl, Hillary finds herself easily exhausted and breathless, a state she attributes to her busy schedule as a mother and a lawyer. When she collapses while at court, she is diagnosed with viral cardiomyopathy requiring a heart transplant if she is to live. Having a rare tissue type, she realizes she will most likely die before a heart is found.

In the meantime, C.C. has become a big star, having won a Tony award and completed her latest hit album. When she learns of Hillary's illness she agrees to accompany Hillary and Victoria to the beach house for the summer. Hillary becomes depressed due to her debilitated state and inadvertently takes her frustration out on C.C. whom she sees having fun with and connecting with Victoria. Hillary eventually begins to accept her prognosis bravely, appreciating her time with Victoria and C.C. Hillary and Victoria return to San Francisco, while C.C. heads to Los Angeles for her concert. While Victoria is packing to travel to the concert, Hillary collapses, leading to the note C.C. receives at the start of the movie which prompts her overnight drive to San Francisco. C.C. takes Hillary and Victoria to the beach house. The two friends watch the sun setting over the beach, transitioning directly to a scene of C.C. and Victoria at a cemetery (all with C.C. singing "Wind Beneath My Wings" in the background).

After the funeral, C.C. tells Victoria that her mother wanted her to live with her, although several of her family members have asked. C.C. admits that she is very selfish and has no idea what kind of a mother she will make, but also tells her: "there's nothing in the world that I want more than to be with you". She then takes Victoria into her arms and the two console each other in their grief. C.C. goes forward with her concert, and concludes it singing "The Glory of Love," the first song Hillary heard her sing 30 years ago; as it ends, C.C. tearfully waves toward the sky, in tribute to her. After the show, she leaves hand-in-hand with Victoria and begins telling stories of when she first met her mother. C.C.'s and Victoria's voices fade as we hear the younger C.C. and Hillary from 1958: "Be sure to keep in touch, C.C., OK?" "Well sure, we're friends aren't we?" The film ends with a young C.C. and Hillary taking pictures together, in a photo booth, on the day they first met.

The film's theme song, "Wind Beneath My Wings", hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and won Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year in 1990.

The film took in $5,160,258 during its opening weekend beginning January 21, 1989. It grossed $57,041,866 domestically.[3]

The film was released on VHS and laserdisc by Touchstone Home Video on August 23, 1989, with a DVD release on August 13, 2002, followed by a special-edition DVD on April 26, 2005. The film was later released in High Definition Blu-ray format on November 6, 2012.

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 39% based on 41 critic reviews, and an average rating of 4.4/10.[4]

Included on the soundtrack was Midler's performance of "Wind Beneath My Wings", which became an immediate smash hit. The song went on to win Grammys for Record of the Year and Song of the Year in 1990.

It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction (Albert Brenner and Garrett Lewis).[5]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

Lifetime announced a remake of the film, which aired on January 22, 2017. The updated version was directed by Allison Anders with the script by Bart Barker and Nikole Beckwith, and Idina Menzel plays the role of C.C.[7][8] Nia Long plays the role of Hillary alongside Menzel. The film includes the songs "Wind Beneath My Wings" and "The Glory of Love".[9][10]

A musical stage adaptation has been written, based on the book by Iris Rainer Dart, with lyrics and book by Dart and Thom Thomas (book) and music by David Austin. The musical premiered at the Signature Theatre, Arlington, Virginia in February 2014. The musical was directed by Eric D. Schaeffer, with Alysha Umphress as Cee Cee Bloom and Mara Davi as Bertie White.[11][12]

The musical next opened at the Drury Lane Theatre, Oakbrook, Illinois in June 2015 (previews). Again directed by Schaeffer, Shoshana Bean plays Cee Cee and Whitney Bashor plays Bertie.[13] The choreographer is Lorin Latarro, with scenic design by Derek McLane, lighting design by Howell Binkley, costume design by Alejo Vietti and sound design by Kai Harada.[14]

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Beaches (film) - Wikipedia

Beaches (1988) – Rotten Tomatoes

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Based on a novel by Iris Rainer Dart, Beaches traces the 30-year oil-and-water friendship between free-spirited Bronx Jew CC Bloom (Bette Midler) and uptight San Francisco WASP Hillary Essex (Barbara Hershey). The two meet as children in Atlantic City (played by Mayim Bialik and Marcie Leeds) and are reunited in the 1960s, when CC is a struggling singer and Hillary is trying to break free from her staid upbringing by becoming an activist. The two ladies room together, then fall out when both are attracted to off-Broadway producer John Pierce (John Heard). CC wins John, but she quickly outgrows him as she matriculates into a bawdy performer. The recently patched-up friendship between CC and Hillary is torn asunder again when Hillary and her new husband express distaste for CC's performing style. Comes the 1970s, and CC and Hillary are reunited after shedding their respective spouses. Broke again, they once more become Manhattan roommates. Their bond strengthens, but there is tragedy in store for the duo.

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Beaches (1988) - Rotten Tomatoes

Christmas Day means beach day when the temperature is 80 – FOX 13 Tampa Bay

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Bay Area beaches packed Christmas Day

Photojournalist Lucas Bogg reports

CLEARWATER BEACH, Fla. - Many people chose to spend their Christmas at one of the country's top-rated beaches. Clearwater Beach was crowded, and many visitors were from out of town.

"It is definitely better than being in negative weather," says Jonny Isenberg, who is visiting from Canada. "Where we come from it is freezing cold right now, so it's a plus being in the sun right now."

After a brief cold and wet stretch of weather leading up to Christmas Day, Mother Nature redeemed herself in a big way Wednesday, bringing sunny skies and the fifth-warmest Christmas Day temperatureto Clearwater Beach.

"Clearwater is a sunny place and beautiful beach," says Michael Krach.

He and his wife, Mickey are in town from Madison, Wisconsin and they have a message for their friends back north: "It's not terribly cold in Wisconsin right now, but we're telling them, 'Eat their hearts out. Merry Christmas!'"

Those visiting Clearwater Beach did have to pack their patience. The Clearwater Memorial Causeway had stop-and-go traffic most of the day, and most of the city parking lots were full. Most beachgoers tell FOX 13 News that it was completely worth it.

"Being here on Christmas is better than a physical present," says Jason Frank, who came with his family from London, England. "This weather is awesome. The kids are having fun, so I'm just loving it."

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Christmas Day means beach day when the temperature is 80 - FOX 13 Tampa Bay

Save The Date: Sign up for the annual Adopt-A-Beach Coastal Bend Winter cleanup – KIIITV.com

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CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas Sign up for the 16th Annual Adopt-A-Beach Coastal Bend Winter Cleanup on Saturday, February 8 is now open.

Volunteers can sign up at http://www.texasadoptabeach.orgor show up on-site to take part in a fun-filled day of giving back to our community and taking care of theTexas coast.

What: GLO Adopt-A-Beach Winter CleanupWhen: Saturday, February 8, 2020, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

*Check-in for the Adopt-A-Beach Coastal Bend Winter Cleanup at one of the five locations below:

1) Aransas Pass /Redfish Bay - Nueces CountyCheck-in: Lighthouse Lakes Park, 4 miles east of Aransas Pass on Highway 361

Contact: Richard Gonzales, 361-779-7351, richard.gonzales@texasadoptabeach.org

2) Packery Flats - Nueces CountyCheck-in: Parking lot off of Highway 361 on Mustang Island near Packery Channel

Contact: Jace Tunnell, Coastal Bays Foundation, 361-244-8665, jace.tunnell@texasadoptabeach.orgAdriana Reza, Coastal Bays Foundation, 361-882-3439, cbbf@baysfoundation.org

3) North Corpus Christi Beach - Nueces CountyCheck-in: Texas State Aquarium, 2710 North Shoreline Blvd.

Contact: Melanie Kudra, 361-881-1319, melanie.kudra@texasadoptabeach.org

4) Cole Park (Kid's Place) - Nueces CountyCheck-in: 1526 Ocean Drive

Contact: Katie Galan, 361-290-2461, katie.galan@texasadoptabeach.org

5) Padre Island National Seashore - Kleberg CountyCheck-in: Malaquite Visitors Center, 20420 Park Road 22

Contact: Chuck Lassiter, 361-949-8068 or 8069, chuck.lassiter@texasadoptabeach.orgDustin Baker, 361-949-8068 or 8069, dustin.baker@texasadoptabeach.org

The Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach program began in the fall of 1986 when 2,800 volunteers picked up 124 tons of trash.

Since then, more than 540,000 volunteers have removed 9,700 tons of trash from Texas beaches. Each volunteer will be given data cards, gloves, pencils, and trash bags.

All volunteers are advised to wear closed-toe shoes, bring sunscreen and plenty of drinking water. The Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach cleanups are held rain or shine!Texans who are not able to attend the cleanup can help keep our beaches clean by making a tax-deductible donation online at http://www.TexasAdoptABeach.org.

There are several different Adopt-A-Beach sponsorship levels ranging from $25 to $25,000, allowing both individuals and corporations to contribute to this major cleanup effort.

To learn more about the Adopt-A-Beach program, visit TexasAdoptABeach.org and follow us on Facebookor Twitter.

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Island Beach State Park wants to save the dunes with your old Christmas tree – NJBIZ

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Curbs across New Jersey will be peppered with discarded Christmas trees starting Thursday, but an Ocean County park has a better idea.

Island Beach State Park will accept donated Christmas trees on Jan. 4 and use them to improve dune health.

Donated trees help build dunes by capturing sand that is pushed by northeasterly winds, according to a New Jersey State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites Facebook post. Beaches up and down the east coast utilize discarded trees for dune restoration, like in Alabama and Virginia.

Almost 69,000 trees are cut each year in New Jersey, according to the Department of Agricultureso theres likely plenty of households to draw from.

New Jerseyans can drop off their tree, free of lights and decorations, at the A23 parking lot from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Jan. 4. The A23 parking lot is 8.5 miles into Island Beach State Park.

Staff will be on site to assist in stacking trees in the southeast corner of the parking lot.

For more information, call IBSP at (732) 793-1315.

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Island Beach State Park wants to save the dunes with your old Christmas tree - NJBIZ

Delray Beach police investigating woman’s body found on beach – WPBF West Palm Beach

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Delray Beach police investigating woman's body found on beach

Updated: 11:23 AM EST Dec 26, 2019

Delray Beach police are conducting a death investigation along Atlantic Avenue and S. Ocean Boulevard. Around 5 a.m. Thursday, a beach cleanup crew found a person in the surf. According to police, the body belonged to a female described as middle-aged. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say at this point, she does not appear to have any obvious signs of trauma on her. The medical examiner will perform an autopsy. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Sala at 561-243-7867.

Delray Beach police are conducting a death investigation along Atlantic Avenue and S. Ocean Boulevard.

Around 5 a.m. Thursday, a beach cleanup crew found a person in the surf. According to police, the body belonged to a female described as middle-aged. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police say at this point, she does not appear to have any obvious signs of trauma on her. The medical examiner will perform an autopsy.

Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Sala at 561-243-7867.

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Delray Beach police investigating woman's body found on beach - WPBF West Palm Beach

Death on a Portland beach: What led to an attack on a young father, what losses followed – OregonLive

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The weather was sweltering unusually hot for June in Portland and Samuel Fast Buffalo Horse just wanted to cool off and watch the sunset. So he drove with friends to a spot with a better view of the skyline: Northeast Portlands Broughton Beach on the southern bank of the Columbia River.

At first, it was a beautiful evening. But as the sun dipped low toward the rivers silver curve, a large fight broke out. The sound of a single gunshot tore through the twilight. Crowds on the busy beach scattered.

Fast Buffalo Horse, 27, had been shot dead in the sand in front of multiple witnesses.

What catalyzed an eruption of violence that ended with the fatal shooting of the Portland man at the popular beach spot on Northeast Marine Drive has been unclear, until now. Initial police reports described the incident as a fight between a large group of people, culminating in a gunshot. But witness accounts paint a picture of mob-like violence that began with an attack on Fast Buffalo Horses girlfriend, Cante Morgan.

Video taken by a bystander and later aired on television shows a large swarm of people shoving each other and arguing. Just seconds before the shooting, about six people can be seen kicking and punching a victim on the ground, later identified by police as Fast Buffalo Horse.

The shooter and several others fled the area after the gunfire, Portland police said. But multiple witnesses remained at the beach, including Morgan.

The person I love was dying in front of me and holding my hand, Morgan told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

A beachgoer with a background in medicine performed CPR on Fast Buffalo Horse until police arrived, Morgan said. Emergency responders also tried to save him, but the young father flatlined, lying in the spot where both he and Morgan had been assaulted.

It was like a mob mentality, she said of the fight.

Despite the large number of witnesses to the killing, Portland Police Bureau did not make any related arrests for more than six months. In early December, three people were indicted in the June 12 death of Fast Buffalo Horse.

Michael Annello Perkins, 17, is accused of second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and rioting, according to the Multnomah County District Attorneys office. Two men, 44-year-old Fernando Gonzales and his 19-year-old son, Tremayne Coleman, are also accused of rioting and third-degree assault.

Since the arrests, prosecutors and detectives have declined to comment about the case or to answer most questions from The Oregonian/OregonLive about the incident or the police investigation.

The indictments have brought little peace to loved ones who still mourn Fast Buffalo Horse. They say multiple other people were involved in the public assault, an account confirmed by the video. And Perkins, a juvenile, may face only eight years in custody if he is tried and convicted of murder in juvenile court.

The police and district attorney have only accounted for three of six or seven people who were involved, Morgan said. There is no true justice for this situation. We never get Sam back.

A FATHER, FRIEND MOURNED

Now, Fast Buffalo Horses daughter, 7, must grow up without a father. Her mother, 27-year-old MoNique Harvey of Portland, misses her first love and his parental support. Its a nightmare that doesnt feel real, she said.

And Morgan, who thought of Fast Buffalo Horse as her life partner, feels like he might walk up the stairs to their shared apartment at any moment. Sometimes, unthinking, she instinctively reaches for her phone to text him.

They still speak of Fast Buffalo Horse in present tense, recounting a 6-foot-5 friendly giant with a goofy, peaceful nature. They recall his devotion to his friends, how he always stood for justice, for what was right, and for his own freedom even at the expense of jobs or relationships, Harvey said.

Hes a very persistent, very justified person, Harvey said. He always stood for being a free spirit he was never tied down by anything.

She recalls how he held her as birthing contractions shook her body during a harried taxi ride from Gresham to Hillsboro. How he later clutched her hand, in total awe of their child at her birth.

Later, Fast Buffalo Horse met Morgan. He would often remind her of his motto: Simply be a good human and try to be good to one another.

Harvey and Morgan recall his struggle with deep depression, occasional substance use and his periodic homelessness, but how he had been pulling it together to care for his daughter and loved ones. How he was building a life with Morgan.

And how Morgan feels he had saved her life that day at the beach.

JUST A DRINK

It was just a drink, Morgan says.

She tossed it, in a rash moment, at a car she said was speeding toward her in the parking lot. A little tipsy, and intoxicated by a long, beautiful day of swimming and soaking in the sun, she didnt think the drink would hit.

But it flew through the drivers window and landed, sparking the violence that left Fast Buffalo Horse dead.

The Oregonian/OregonLive interviewed Morgan and Gustavo Montoya, who both accompanied Fast Buffalo Horse and Montoyas girlfriend to the beach and later testified as witnesses before a grand jury in the murder case. A detective and eight other people, presumably mostly eyewitnesses, also testified about what happened that evening.

The heat had attracted throngs to Broughton Beach, and when the two couples drove up, cars lined the lots, Morgan said. A large crowd had gathered.

It was a huge parking lot party, Morgan said

Montoya said their group of four had been at the beach for about 15 minutes just long enough for him to take a dip in the river when he heard a commotion in the parking lot.

Morgan, who had gone back to the parking lot with Montoyas girlfriend, had thrown her drink at the speeding car, she said. It screeched to halt when the drink hit, and a group of people began yelling and chasing the two women, who ran down a trail toward where Fast Buffalo Horse and Montoya were on the beach, Morgan said.

Montoya said he rushed to get his girlfriend away from a group of women attacking her and Morgan and lost track of Fast Buffalo Horse.

I look up and see the girls trying to get away and getting swarmed, Montoya said.

Morgan remembers being hit, kicked and shoved to the ground by a large group of girls and young women, when Fast Buffalo Horse ran up the beach and intervened.

He was just trying to help me get away from all these girls, Morgan said.

But he was quickly surrounded by a large group of men, she said, who pushed him down the beach and surrounded him, pummeling him with kicks and punches. In the video footage, a stream of people can be seen running from a trail above to join the fray surrounding Fast Buffalo Horse.

I was running trying to help him get on his feet because he was on the ground, Morgan said. She tried with her body to block the punches and kicks raining down on her boyfriend, but someone picked her up and threw her to the ground, knocking the wind out of her, she said.

Thats when Morgan heard the shot. At first, she thought someone had fired it to scatter the attackers. But Fast Buffalo Horse was lying in the sand, bleeding from a wound to his abdomen.

Just the day before, Fast Buffalo Horse had watched his daughter graduate from her Portland kindergarten school, Harvey said. It was a happy moment between the three Morgan, Fast Buffalo Horse and Harvey. What co-parenting should feel like, Harvey said.

Samuel Fast Buffalo Horse (left) celebrates his daughter's graduation from kindergarten on June 11, 2019 -- the day before he was killed. (Courtesy of MoNique Harvey)

NEW LAW COULD REDUCE SENTENCE

Prosecutors allege that Perkins, Coleman and Gonzales are three of the men who surrounded Fast Buffalo Horse and that Perkins used a firearm, court documents show. The three have all been charged with rioting, meaning that each participated with five or more other people in the incident, including each other. That means at least three people who were involved in the attack have not yet been charged.

Portland police confirmed Monday that the investigation is still active.

Multnomah County Sheriff's Office

Fernando Gonzales, left, and Tremayne Coleman are pictured in Multnomah County booking photos. A photo of Michael Annello Perkins wasn't immediately available.

On Jan. 1, Oregons Measure 11 law stops automatically applying to juvenile defendants like Perkins who are charged with serious crimes. Prosecutions of defendants under 18 will now start in Juvenile Court. Prosecutors can argue to move suspects ages 15 to 17 to circuit court and treat them as adults.

A juvenile court judge makes the call, based on a variety of factors, including the defendants level of maturity and likelihood of rehabilitation.

Brent Weisberg, spokesman for the Multnomah County District Attorneys office, declined to say whether the DA will petition to move Perkins to circuit court.

The decision when considering whether to have a juveniles case prosecuted in circuit court will be made upon review of the facts of the case and other factors, including consulting with the victim and/or their family members, Weisberg said.

If moved to adult court and found guilty of murder, Perkins could face a presumptive life sentence but have the chance to seek parole in 15 years, earlier than the current law.

If Perkins stays in juvenile court and is convicted, he would not be held past his 25th birthday and could be released any time before then.

Perkins, who was on parole at the time of the shooting, has been in Oregon Youth Authority custody since November.

He was first committed to the youth facility in June of 2018 on charges of third-degree attempted assault, third-degree assault and second-degree attempted robbery, Oregon Youth Authority spokesman Benjamin Chambers said.

Members of Fast Buffalo Horses immediate family declined to comment for this story.

---

On the day of Fast Buffalo Horses death, Harvey was driving to Broughton Beach with her daughter when she was blocked at the entrance by a large police presence.

She turned around to drive home, not thinking much of it. Later, as an ambulance flew past her on the road, she wondered who was inside and if the person would be OK. She didnt yet know that Fast Buffalo Horse was likely the passenger.

Harvey met and fell in love with Fast Buffalo Horse as a 17-year-old during a summer school program. Their eight-year on-and-off relationship was rocky but deep, Harvey said. Her parents disapproved, and she would often run away from her home in Cornelius to be with him in Portland, couch-surfing in friends houses.

Photo courtesy of Fast Buffalo Horse's family

Samuel C. Fast Buffalo Horse and MoNique Harvey. Fast Buffalo Horse, 27, was a father. He was fatally shot after a large group of strangers attacked him at North Portland's Broughton Beach.

I just knew I wanted to be with him, so I didn't really care where we were as long as I was with him, she said.

At 19, she became pregnant and the couple moved into their first apartment. Fast Buffalo Horse worked as a wildland firefighter, shipping out remote places for long periods of time. He continued firefighting for the next five years, Harvey said. The couple eventually split in 2016.

Fast Buffalo Horse spent much of his childhood in Chiloquin, she said. The area is a hub for the Klamath, Modoc and Yahooskin tribes. He was a Klamath Modoc but also carried Blackfoot Sioux blood, Harvey said.

Harvey consoles herself that Fast Buffalo Horse was surrounded by good things as he died. His new love was there, holding his hand.

He was looking at good stuff medicine, Harvey said. Water is medicine, so he was laying by that, seeing the sunset, Harvey said.

The day after his death, Harvey returned to the beach. She stretched out in the sand and looked out toward the water and the horizon, trying to imagine what he might have seen as he died. Maybe he saw the sunset. Maybe something peaceful, she hopes.

-- Emily Goodykoontz; 503-221-6652; egoodykoontz@oregonian.com; @SharkasaurusX

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Death on a Portland beach: What led to an attack on a young father, what losses followed - OregonLive

Top stories from 2019, No. 6: Carolina Beach resident claims lifeguards and thongs in violation of town code – Port City Daily

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Should the Town of Carolina Beach be citing females wearing bathing suits that do not fully cover their backside? Well, one resident thinks so, but town leaders have different opinions. (Port City Daily/File)

Editors Note: Over the summer Carolina Beach took up the debate on what to do with its public nudity law which did include the word buttocks eventually, the wording was changed and beachgoers were welcome to wear whatever type of bathing suit they want.

CAROLINA BEACH Should women be allowed to wear what they want to the beach, even if it means showing a bit more skin? In Carolina Beach, one resident has taken particular offense to what they claim are public nudity violations all over the beach, including by female lifeguards.

Thongs on the beach have been outright banned in neighboring Kure Beach but in Carolina Beach, the town ordinance isnt that clear.

The towns public nudity ordinance states, It shall be unlawful for any person to appear on any public beach, any public street or in any public park in a state of dress or undress so as to expose to the view of others the human male or female pubic area, pubic hair, anus, vulva or buttocks with less than a fully opaque covering.

Related:Feeling cheeky this summer? Best to rethink your bathing suit options before heading to Kure Beach

The mentioning of buttocks in the public nudity ordinance, in theory, could mean that thong bathing suits are forbidden. But local leaders are now saying they want to look into the towns code and possibly bring it into the 21st Century.

Town Councilman JoDan Garza responded to questions about the issue and said that he thinks that as times progress, bathing suits will inevitably change.

[It] appears it might be time to update the town code. As times are progressing, so are bathing suits. Overall, Im pretty cool with all types of bathing suits, so long as genitalia arent exposed. I dont consider buttocks genitalia, Garza said.

Mayor of Carolina Beach Joe Benson had a similar reaction to the towns laws and said he hopes to have town staff take a look at the code and see how it can be updated to match the societal norms of the times.

What needs to happen is staff needs to come to us with something that is 21st-century and relevant to the times, give us the first wack at it, we then take that to public comment with the understanding that enforcement relies on people having a firm understanding of the ordinance, Benson said. Our society is not static, it evolves. I am not advocating for distasteful but staff needs to put together some recommendations, bring it to us on council, and we get public input.

Benson was also quick to point out that as times change so does beach attire and what is considered appropriate.

Take a look at what 100 years ago what men and women wore on the beach it is an evolution as to how the standards are determined. This is very subjective territory, he said.

Its not just about the subjectiveness though, enforcement of such an ordinance could be problematic. Like any law on the books, the police are responsible for enforcement, however, with limited resources available, what police can reasonably be expected to enforce is debatable.

But that didnt stop the complaining resident to request the Chief of Police Chris Spivey enforce the ordinance.

I would request that your department start patrolling regularly and enforcing this ordinance on those that are demanding to expose themselves illegally and indecently to the public who are just trying to enjoy a day on the beach, the resident wrote.

He went further to even claim that the towns female lifeguards were in violation of the town laws.

Unfortunately, your first stop needs to be with the female lifeguards who are wearing indecent swimsuits with half of their buttocks exposed they are in clear violation and this needs to be addressed and corrected immediately, the concerned resident wrote.

The ultimate concern of the resident is with the family-friendly appearance of the beach town and it losing that appeal saying, if we give an inch they will take a mile and thongs become the norm only to run our families away.

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Top stories from 2019, No. 6: Carolina Beach resident claims lifeguards and thongs in violation of town code - Port City Daily

2019 in review, top stories from the year: No. 9, Feeling Cheeky in Kure Beach? [Free Read] – Port City Daily

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Editors note: This story was one of the top-read in 2019 when it was discovered that a seemingly archaic law was actually passed in 2010. The law is still in effect, but the attention to the topic did have an effect on neighboring Carolina Beach.

KURE BEACH Suns out, buns out might be a summertime slogan but in the beach town of Kure Beach that mindset could get you slapped with a misdemeanor. Thats because in the Town of Kure Beach, wearing a thong bathing suit (or similar attire) is a crime.

While it might seem like the law is a holdover from a time long since past, it has been less than a decade since the town adopted the ordinance. First passed in 2010, town code states: Nudity, thong bathing suits or other similar attire is prohibited.

What is the punishment for the crime? A first offense will cost you $25, while a second offense will go on your record as a misdemeanor.

So what is similar attire? Who gets to decide when bathing suits cross the line? These are questions that remain unanswered by the town.

Time and time again the Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the First Amendment protects freedom of expression, including what people can be told to wear (or not wear).

When it comes to showing some skin at the beach, the State of North Carolinas Supreme Court actually addressed the issue in 1998 in the case ofState v. Fly.

The courts opinion on an indecent exposure case directly identified visitors to beaches wearing thongs as not in violation of indecent exposure laws.

However, given the posture of this case, we think it wise to note our agreement with the conclusion of the majority below that buttocks are not private parts within the meaning of the statute. To hold that buttocks are private parts would make criminals of all North Carolinians who appear in public wearing thong or g-string bikinis or other such skimpy attire during our torrid summer months. Our beaches, lakes, and resort areas are often teeming with such scantily clad vacationers. We simply do not believe that our legislature sought to discourage a practice so commonly engaged in by so many of our people when it enacted N.C.G.S. 14190.9. To make such attire criminal by an overly expansive reading of the term private parts was not, we are convinced, the intent of our legislature, according to thedecision written by then Chief Justice Mitchell.

But according to one interpretation of another court case, towns can, in theory, ban thongs.

The state supreme court inState v. Tenore, 280 N.C. 238 (1972), construed G.S. 14-190.9 as it was then written to allow cities and counties to enact ordinances that prohibited lewd conduct not banned by the state statute.The county ordinance challenged inTenorewas ruled preempted, however, since it banned conduct identical to that covered by the state statute. Thus,Tenoreindicates that local governments could require people in public places to cover their buttocks, according to aUNC School of Government post.

When asked about the law, Mayor of Kure Beach Craig Bloszinsky responded in an email and requested his response be printed in its entirety, it has only been edited for formatting. below.

At Kure Beach we recognize that people have many choices on beaches, depending on rules for wardrobe, drinking, smoking, littering, tents, rentals, handicap wheelchairs and access, parking cost and more. Most beaches have a different combination of rules or ordinances. Certainly, I dont believe that you think all of these are first amendment options? Kure Beach is not a beach of large motels and condominiums, it is by and large a family town with many local weekly rentals which are often rented by entire families. Our Police Officers enforce our ordinances in a respectful manner and we have had no citizen complaints on beach wardrobe. If the families that live and/or provide rentals in Kure Beach wish to change any ordinances we have a Council Process for that consideration. If a persons priority is to wear or see the minimum swimsuit coverage on the beach, they have other beach choices, he said.

When asked if it was the role of government to create laws dictating how people should dress, with the potential interpretation that the law is inherently biased against women, he did not respond.

Other members of the towns leadership declined to answer Port City Dailys questions and the Police Chief, who was also copied on the email, did not respond to the questions.

Port City Daily has reached out to the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina for their opinion on the law. The ACLU acknowledged the request and has sent it to their legal department for further review when a response is received Port City Daily will publish it

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2019 in review, top stories from the year: No. 9, Feeling Cheeky in Kure Beach? [Free Read] - Port City Daily

Man’s body found on the beach in Longboat Key – WTSP.com

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LONGBOAT KEY, Fla Update: Longboat Key Police have identified the body found on Christmas Eve. 59-year-old Octavio Utrera was found dead along the shoreline. Officers say there were no signs of physical trauma or foul play.

Original story:Part of the beach on Longboat Key is blocked off by crime tape this Christmas Eve.

According to our news partners WWSB, a mans body was found along the shoreline near Sands Point Road.

Its not clear at this point where the body came from. Detectives with the Longboat Key Police Department are trying to figure out if it washed ashore and how long the man has been dead.

Investigators are also trying to identify the man and determine how he died.

This is a developing story. Stay with 10News for updates.

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Rapper Vic Mensa Wants To Open Cannabis Dispensary, Cultivation Facility Focused On Equity In Bronzeville Or Hyde Park – Block Club Chicago

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CHICAGO As Chicago gears up for the sale of recreational marijuana Jan. 1, rapper Vic Mensa wants to see legal weed be more than just an opportunity for lawmakers to balance the budget.

Mensa sees it as a chance for elected officials to right the wrongs the war on drugs has had on black and brown lives across Chicago and Illinois. But for that to happen, black and brown people need to be at the table, not just as employees but as entrepreneurs learning the skills to eventually open their own dispensaries.

Thats why hes partnering with his friend, poet and activist Malcolm London, to open a dispensary and cultivation facility near Bronzeville or Hyde Park.

As part of the plan, Mensa, a Hyde Park native, and London want to bring a dispensary with a greenhouse facility to the area as a way to teach neighbors how to start their own weed business.

RELATED: Weed Will Be Sold In Chicago Jan. 1 As Black Caucus Attempt To Stall Pot Sales Fails

Our goal is to break into the industry and use that to bring people along with us by passing along the skill set to people in the community to build their own businesses, Mensa said.

Beyond the cultivation of cannabis, Mensa wants the site to serve as an indoor urban garden where kids can learn to grow produce that will be sold at farmers markets. Mensa, whose nonprofit Save Money Save Life works to address gun violence and other issues in underserved communities, hopes teaching children to plant, cultivate and harvest food will improve access to fresh foods on the South and West sides.

We all know the impact that the war on drugs and the criminalization of marijuana has had on our black and brown communities on the South Side and West Side, Mensa said. Ive had countless friends and family members ensnared in a cycle of litigation, probation, incarceration and parole that oftentimes started with a weed charge and developed into a monkey on their back that has followed them around for the rest of their life.

With this, we aim to integrate the community in a way where we are teaching cultivation skills, urban farming to kids and up cycling into teaching adults how to run their own growth.

London said they want to provide entrepreneurial guidance to people who have been incarcerated because of marijuana convictions.

We want to work with and work for those who are directly impacted, London said. We want to provide tangible skills, a pathway of economic development, financial literacy and teach folks how to be viable in this business.

As public opinion and laws shift around cannabis, Mensa said its imperative that young black people be part of the process.

You look at the industry nationwide, it is largely devoid of the people who have suffered the most from the criminalization of this plant, he said.

Now that theres a change, Mensa said the state has an opportunity to fulfill its promise on the social-equity component of the new law.

Mensa said that while immediate license holders for recreational marijuana are white, he is hopeful the state will make good on the promises and have a truly inclusive process that includes the black community in the next round of licenses.

Mensa and London arent the only ones concerned about a lack of diversity in weed ownership.

Earlier this month, the Aldermanic Black Caucus pushed to delay recreational sales until July 1 because of a lack of minority representation in the lottery system that saw all white owners selected. Despite their efforts, that move ultimately failed in a heated City Council meeting last week.

And Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th) has said he wont approve any dispensaries in his ward unless license holders have a minority partner.

London said he was proud of the Black Caucus for taking a stand.

The Black Caucus concern is the same concerns that I have, London said. Historically, when there is an incredible opportunity, there is never equal access. And so for an industry that has this much potential you get skeptical of who has the power to do and be successful.

Im proud of any politician trying to make sure [this] does what it is intended to do, which is to serve the black and brown folks from disadvantaged communities.

Despite the current situation, London is hopeful black and brown people will have a genuine, equal opportunity in securing a licensestatewide.

Mensas first goal is to bring the greenhouse, urban farming and entrepreneurial education component to the South Side and is preparing to apply for a license now. Longterm, he aims to expand this model to other locations in the state and nation to empower black and brown people disenfranchised by the criminalization of marijuana.

In May 2020, the state will issue 75 dispensary licenses to new applicants, including social-equity applicants.

Above all, I want to see black people be given a real shot and have a real opportunity to build something from the trauma that weve experienced surrounding marijuana, Mensa said.

We are just young artists trying to make a change in the world, specifically at this moment, make a change in this industry, he said. The goal is to teach people how to fish.

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Rapper Vic Mensa Wants To Open Cannabis Dispensary, Cultivation Facility Focused On Equity In Bronzeville Or Hyde Park - Block Club Chicago

Here’s how to introduce the boomer in your life to weed – Mashable

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Your boomer relatives may be more chill than you think.

Recreational marijuana is legal in 11 states, and medically legal in 33. This month, Michigan opened its first legal dispensaries, and Illinois is set to do the same in January.

As weed becomes less taboo, older Americans who grew up in an era of cannabis prohibition are showing more interest in using it; a 2018 study in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence Journal found that since 2006, the number of baby boomers who have used marijuana doubled. In 2015, the Pew Research Center reported that 38 percent percent of Republican boomers and 66 percent of Democrat boomers support weed legalization. Another Pew Research Center poll taken this year saw that number jump 49 percent of Republican boomers and 81 percent of Democrat boomers now favor legalization.

But even if generational approval is on the rise, there's still stigma associated with cannabis use. Boomers support for legalized weed peaked in the 1970s, the Pew Research Center noted in its 2015 report, but took a nosedive when the federally-led "War On Drugs" ramped up in the '80s. Decades of anti-weed public service announcements only contributed to the stigma.

Which is why your relatives or any older person in your life might be interested in trying cannabis products, but need a well-informed Youth to encourage them to do so. Here's how to introduce them to the good kush. They'll probably dank thank you for it.

In addition to having a good time, weed is clinically proven to have medical benefits. If your relatives complain about an ailment they're dealing with, bring up the clinically proven ways marijuana has been used to treat a variety of issues.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine searched through more than 10,000 studies published since 1999 for a more conclusive list of what cannabis can and can't treat. The 2017 review found "substantial evidence" that weed is effective in alleviating chronic pain, and "conclusive evidence" that it can help treat chemotherapy-related nausea and vomiting. It also found "moderate evidence" that weed was helpful for improving "short-term sleep outcomes" in people dealing with sleep apnea, fibromyalgia, chronic pain, and multiple sclerosis.

That being said, many claims about the benefits of marijuana for people who don't have the issues listed above are largely anecdotal. All the more reason to get your parents to try it for themselves!

Weed has been lambasted as a "gateway drug" for generations. The National Institute on Drug Abuse suggests that getting cozy with Mary Jane is "likely to precede use of other licit and illicit substances" and lead to the "development of addiction to other substances."

The review from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found "limited" to "moderate" evidence of a correlation between marijuana use and use of other drugs. But like Vox notes, correlation doesn't mean causation. Weed also tends to be cheaper and more accessible than harder drugs, which is why people prone to drug use might start with it.

Despite Joe Biden's claims that toking leads to use of harder drugs, the National Drug Institute on Drug Abuse does acknowledge that most people who smoke weed "do not go on to use other 'harder' substances."

Hitting a gravity bong probably won't end well for a first-time weed user. To gradually introduce someone to the joys of toking, start with more gentle products.

Starting with a balanced ratio of THC to CBD may increase the chances of a better high. For some, the effects of THC, the component in weed responsible for the signature "high" feeling, can be overwhelming on its own. CBD, a non-psychoactive component found in cannabis, may help minimize paranoia and anxiety that come with highs. In a 2012 study in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, participants who were given a dose of CBD before they were administered a dose of pure THC experienced less cognitive impairment and paranoia than participants who were given just THC. To ward off weed freak outs, try looking for products that incorporate both THC and CBD.

Ratio-wise, it's always smarter to start small and work your way up. Rather than convincing your uncle to hotbox your childhood bedroom with an absurdly high-THC vape pen, ease him into it with a 1:1 or 2:1 product.

Trying weed may also be more appealing with the right delivery method. A sleek all-in-one vape is less intimidating than a complicated dab rig.

You may also have luck getting your relatives to try weed if you cater to a specific need. Some brands incorporate specific terpenes and THC to CBD ratios to achieve different targets, like pain relief or sleep.

Granted, vaping also poses a risk. An investigation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded that the respiratory issues and deaths from the ongoing vape crisis stemmed from Vitamin E oil, a cutting agent used in black market vape cartridges to cheapen the product without thinning it. If you do start your family members on vaping, make sure to avoid anything bought off the street and only buy from licensed dispensaries. A number of cannabis companies have assured customers that their products do not contain Vitamin E oil.

Luckily, if you don't want to risk it, you can try a few other delivery methods.

If inhaling makes your relatives nervous, you can also start them on tinctures.

Dropped and absorbed under the tongue, tinctures tend to be easier to achieve specific doses than vapes. Because it's directly absorbed into the bloodstream, the cannabis potency does't change by being processed through the digestive system and liver. And unlike edibles, which do go through the gut and liver, the THC in tinctures won't be metabolized into a more potent molecule that can make feeling high more unpleasant.

Most tinctures come with droppers so users can take a precise dose. Your boomer relatives might be more comfortable trying cannabis if they feel like they're in control of how much they're consuming.

Many weed-infused chocolates and gummies come pre-measured with 5 to 10 mg of THC which is considered by many states to be a single dose. If your boomer family members do choose to try edibles, remind them to wait for the first dose to kick in before snacking on a second. This can take hours and isn't the same for everyone.

Taking an edible may feel more natural than vaping or taking tinctures. Your homemade space cakes will probably be too intense for a first-timer, but the dosed edibles sold in dispensaries all over the country are carefully regulated.

Getting baked should feel like a good time.

Everyone remembers their first bad high, and experiencing one can turn someone off from the joys of weed forever. Marijuana won't send users into Reefer Madness-like mania, but it can make them feel paranoid and anxious. Reduce the risk by making sure everyone's comfortable, stocking up on snacks, and queueing up a fun stoner movie.

Just like with consuming alcohol, make sure nobody's planning to drive home until they're 100 percent sober. Avoid mixing weed with any other substances.

And of course, don't pressure anyone into trying it or get someone high without their consent.

It's only a matter of time before it's socially acceptable to light up a joint at family gatherings the way we down beers and pop champagne. If your older family members are really resistant to trying it, you can always take a classic walk with the cousins and try again next year.

The information contained in this article is not a substitute for, or alternative to informationfrom a healthcare practitioner. Please consult a healthcare professional before using any productand check your local laws before making any purchasing decisions.

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Here's how to introduce the boomer in your life to weed - Mashable

John Flora supports victims of the justice system and their families – InsiderNJ

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(Picture caption: John Flora at a recent ADOS meeting.)

Those not home for holidays:

Flora supports victims of the justice system and their families

Whatever the holiday you celebrate this time of year, what we all look forward to is spending time with our loved ones. Our bonds are strengthened by our customs and traditions that make up our family. We enjoy the togetherness. We enjoy one another.

With such a happy time upon us, there is an epidemic wrecking havoc on families this holiday season.The racial disparity among black and white prisoners in this state is the highest in the nation. This means a lot of empty chairs at tables. The American Descendants of Slavery (ADOS), in theirBlack Agenda, describe mass incarceration as the new Jim Crow facing black men, specifically ADOS men in the United States.

Luckily in our state, we have a leader willing to tackle subjects such as these, said NJ Democratic Primary Congressional Candidate John Flora, (NJ-10) referring toGovernor Phil Murphys latest push to restore voting rights to those on probation and parole. Why not treat these men and women with decency and respect?

Dignity and respect are things that John Flora has found rarely gathering focus in our nation today, especially to those incarcerated in prison.A recent article cited millionaire Mike Bloomberg is currently using prison labor to support his run for US President in 2020.

We owe this group who have been harshly punished for crimes that would garner a lesser penalty had the accused been white, explained Flora, We shouldnt be looking at prisoners as a cheap labor force but as an opportunity to create self-improvement through education and apprentice work programs. We should also be looking at why they are there.

John Flora stands with Bernie Sanders when it comes to thelegalization of marijuana. Along with full legalization within the first 100 days of office, Flora wants to see the vacation and expungement of all past marijuana-related convictions for all. He also feels that the revenue obtained from legal marijuana is reinvested in communities that were damaged by the War on Drugs.

We need to rebuild families in this state and in this country, said Flora a teacher and married father of two, Especially during the holidays, we see the importance of family and having everyone together. Everyone should be able to have peace on earth and good will.

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John Flora supports victims of the justice system and their families - InsiderNJ

Bolivias free territory of Chapare has ousted the coup regime and is bracing for a bloody re-invasion – The Grayzone

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Spending time with the union members of Chapare, who run society in a collective fashion, offers special insights into the resistance to the coup. They succeeded in expelling the police, but now fear a bloodbath in retaliation.By Ollie Vargas

Cochabamba, Bolivia Known as Bolivias Chapare region, the Tropico of Cochabamba is a sanctuary for elected President Evo Morales most dedicated base of support. Since the November 10 coup, it has effectively become a self-governing territory where the military junta is absent.

The police and military were sent in full retreat from this area the coup began and were told they would only be welcomed back if the they get on their knees and apologize to the community.

In this 12,000 square kilometer swath of land, hundreds of unions have flourished over the years. I spent several days with the union rank and file, witnessing how they run society in a collective fashion, and how they have organized ferocious resistance to a right-wing coup government that threatens to destroy them.

Despite the resilience on display here, there is also a sense of dread. Union leaders told me that if the state decides to militarize the region, as it has threatened, a bloodbath is practically inevitable. If the violent crackdown arrives, it could unravel a social structure they have been steadily constructing for decades.

Chapare has always had a high degree of self-governance, owing to the needs of the community. When the neoliberal Bolivian governments of the 1980s closed down a large number of state mines in Potosi and Oruro, many rural workers relocalized to this tropical region to grow coca and other crops.

The presence of former mine workers, who were part of the revolutionary struggles of Bolivias miners union, infused the indigenous campesino communities with a radical proletarian tradition.

Relocalization was far from a smooth process, however. The US was stepping up its so-called war on drugs at the time, using it as a pretext to intervene militarily in Latin America. The DEA teamed up with the Bolivian military to declare war on the campesinos, and attempt to eradicate coca.

The commanders in that effort were DEA agents; Bolivian troops served as foot soldiers at their disposal. The DEA was given so much power it could determine who could enter and exit the area.

It was during the struggles against the presence of the US that Evo Morales rose to the top of the union structures in Chapare. And in facing down the DEA and the Bolivian military, an extraordinary level of organization was developed.

Today, there are six union federations in the region, and within each federation there are numerous centrals, ranging from a few up to 30. Within each central there are then several unions, up to 10, depending on the size of the community. And each union has anywhere from roughly 100 to 200 members.

The unions are based geographically, so each small neighborhood is a union. Entire families are incorporated into unions based on their parcel of land that is affiliated. The total number of unions in Chapare is in the hundreds, although it is hard to give a specific figure because the number and size vary greatly based on the location.

Due to the weak presence of the state, the unions organize most aspects of daily life in the area. They establish plans for infrastructure projects, manage land and social disputes in the community, set up local media outlets, and, of course, organize the campesinos political activities.

In 2006, then-President Evo Morales initiated a sweeping land reform effort, bringing large territories into the hands of workers, and freeing union members from exploitative relationships with their former landlords.

The unions wont give up these victories easily.

Since the coup, that union-based resistance of Chapare has taken on the role of policing.

On November 10, as it became clear that the coup had overwhelmed Evos elected government, the police preemptively fled the area, escaping to the nearby city of Cochabamba.

Coup officials knew that social organization was so solid in Chapare that they would never be able to contain the resistance. And they were right. After the coup took hold, almost every police station in the region came under attack from the local population.

Israel, a local journalist at a union-run station called Radio Kawsachun Coca, explained, The people were so enraged, no one could stop them.

Israel was echoed shortly after by Senobio Carlos, the mayor of Puerto Villaroel. We never told the police and military to leave; they fled, Carlos said. In fact, there was one military base where soldiers hadnt managed to leave before protesters had blocked off all exits. I personally went there and told them that I would guarantee their safety if they join the community and dont turn their guns on us.

Carlos said he was branded a traitor by his own community for attempting to negotiate with the soldiers, who were whimpering for mercy. Since then, the communitys position has hardened. Union leaders now say that the police are entirely unnecessary, and can only return if they get on their knees and ask for forgiveness.

With the coups security forces expelled from the area, the workers established what they call the union police, under the command of the community. I met them while they were standing guard at a union meeting, and found them without any weapons, other than a few sticks. They were drawn from and fully accountable to the community.

Everyone I spoke to in the Chapare appeared content without the states police in the area. One council member, Limbert, from the local town of Ivirgarzama, said, Were even safer now without the police. They used to charge truck drivers illegal tolls; theyd ambush people who were walking home at night and steal their phones. Now we dont have that; anyone can walk around safely in the Tropic.

Still, a few military bases have remained intact in the region. Inside, local teenagers are performing their military service.

As the coup unfolded, a local journalist named Sabina recounted, the parents of those young men surrounded the military base and pleaded with their children not to side with the coup.

Since then, troops have been active, but agreed to only stay within their base. All other military units have fled.

Though the police havent been able to re-enter the region, the coup government has tried to punish the residents of Chapare for expelling it. The junta has cut off all services to the public bank, Banco Union, which across most of this region is the only national bank with ATMs.

Whats more, the coup regimes interior minister, Arturo Murillo, has threatened to deny all of Chapare the right to vote in any upcoming elections unless its residents allow the police to reenter.

The police loyal to Murillo, whose nickname is El Bolas (meaning the one with balls, in reference to his macho posturing and violent attitude), have announced that they are preparing to enter, jointly with the armed forces, into the Tropic of Cochabamba, in order to establish the rule of law in this area. They have not yet explained exactly how they would do so, but the only possible way would be by military invasion and occupation.

The police cant come back, people wont accept it, said Segundina Orellana. When I asked her what could be done to combat a potential invasion, she said that the region would rise up, and hoped that it would push the rest of the country to do so as well.

It is not hard to see why the community wont countenance the return of the police. On November 15, union members from this region were marching towards the city of Cochabamba, and were shot at by officers, some from helicopters. Nine were killed that day, in what is now known as the Sacaba massacre.

Chapare is one of the most demonized regions of the country. Mainstream Bolivian media outlets routinely portray its population as a collection of narco-terrorists, pumping out evidence-free claims, like the myth that Colombian militants fromFARC are controlling protests.

The reality is entirely the opposite, as the production of coca has actually beenreduced under Evos rule, while it has skyrocketed in US-allied countries like Peru and Colombia.

Bolivias unions themselves play a role in ensuring that production is controlled and destined for traditional use. In fact, most so-called cocaleros (coca farmers) also produce fruits, rice, cheese, and other agricultural products.

Their community benefited from the flood of public infrastructure projects and investments in public services under Evo Morales. But that is all gone now. Yet they are still here, as determined as ever in their commitment to the elected presidents party Movement Toward Socialism (MAS).

While opposition media outlets and Western-backed pro-regime change NGOs claim residents here are acting under obligation from union leaders, the reality is quite the opposite. In fact, the members are usually more radical than their bosses.

I went to numerous union meetings with a federation leader named Julian Cruz, and watched as he was forced by his rank-and-file to explain why he was not a traitor for negotiating a peace deal with the coup regime.

The participatory nature of this movement is remarkable. Julian explained to me how he has to attend every single meeting of every union central within his federation, and that if he doesnt, union members members will take him out to the jungle and tie me to a tree for 24 hours as a punishment for lack of transparency.

Not many unions in the United States or North America as a whole can count on that level of grassroots engagement.

Watching the medias campaign against the campesinos from Chapare, it feels like the demonization is a prelude to bloodshed.

Media reporting of the Sacaba massacre was instructive, as the national press falsely framed the killing as a case of crossfire. Coup supporters point to this one-sided coverage as proof that it was not a slaughter, but rather an armed clash with narco-terrorist cocaleros.

The lack of evidence that the protesters were unarmed, and that not a single police officer died, is of little consequence to a media dead-set on waging an information war.

The media say were armed terrorists, but in reality we havent got anything to defend ourselves with if the military does attack, explained a young campesino named Eleuterio Zurita, who has offered protection for journalists. The point of an attack would be to break the union organization weve got here, so I hope the world can support us and show the truth.

The self-governing nature of Chapare has arisen out of the practical need for sustenance and self-defense, not a devotion to anarchistic ideology. All the unions here are currently holding emergency meetings, not to discuss the administration of local affairs, but to lay out a strategy about how to confront the coup nationally, and thereby take back state power.

At every meeting I have attended, union members have passed a resolution committing to contributing grassroots donations to the MAS campaign, not to be used here, but instead by MAS chapters in other parts of the country where the party is not as strong.

This is how MAS has thrived since its earliest days. So it would be difficult to imagine the party putting forward a ticket without a representative of this organizing tradition.

The coming days and weeks will determine whether this radical space of resistance will be drowned in blood by the Bolivian junta. If it survives, it will be the base from which the left resurrects its national project.

Editors note: This article was updated after publication to better explain the complex union structure in Chapare.

Ollie Vargas is a Bolivian journalist and writer. He has contributed to teleSUR, Morning Star, and other media outlets.

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Bolivias free territory of Chapare has ousted the coup regime and is bracing for a bloody re-invasion - The Grayzone

Duterte Says Philippines Willing To Accept Rohingya Muslim Refugees – International Business Times

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KEY POINTS

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte emphatically expressed his willingness to accept persecuted Rohingya Muslims into the Philippines to begin their lives anew. He also pressed upon Malaysia and Indonesia whose populace is largely Muslim to do the same.

Duterte was in Cotabato City to make a speech and pass out Certificates of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) to various groups. The citys population is about 75 percent Muslim compared to about 25 percent of the population of the southern region of Mindanao,where most of the countrys Muslims live. Of the total Philippines'predominately Catholicpopulation, Muslims make up about 6 percent.

In the speech Duterte said, I am prepared. I have communicated my desire that if the Rohingya in Burma want to migrate, I will accept them.

The Rohingya Muslims are an ethnic Muslim minority who have suffered greatly at the hands of the Buddhist majority in Myanmar (formerly Burma) including incidents of gang rape of women and massacres by the military that have resulted in about 10,000 deaths.

They have been refused citizenship in Myanmar rendering them a stateless group. Most of the approximately one million Rohingyas have escaped to other countries with most of the refugees ending up in Bangladesh living in squalid conditions.

In his speech, Duterte pointed out that the Rohingya people are not accepted in Burma because of their religion saying, Theyre from Sri Lanka, then they migrated (to Burma) ... but they are unwanted because the people there are Buddhists ... They (Rohingya people) are Muslims so theyre being executed. So, they became boat people and went to Australia. When they got there, Australia pushed them back (to Myanmar).

The president expressed his solidarity with the Rohingya Muslims and willingness to accept them in the Philippines when he added, We have big lands. The people there are pitiful, the Muslims. Lets take them in. Mindanao is big, there are fields where they can farm . . . Lets teach them how to survive. We will accept the Rohingya refugees.

This is not the first time that Duterte has commented about helping the refugees. In a February speech before a convention of municipal mayors in Manila, he made them an offer of Filipino citizenship.He said, Those who really have nowhere else to go, I will accept them. I will make them Filipinos.

In yet another speech from April of 2018 Duterte said he was willing to provide sanctuary for Rohingya fleeing what he called genocide in the "Rakhine State". While the term may accurately describe the events in southwest Myanmar, he apologized to State Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi over his use of the term.

Once a victim of persecution from a former Myanmar regime and a 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi is acting like a ruthless dictator herself by refusing to condemn the powerful military or acknowledge accounts of their atrocities. This has led to some criticism by human rights activists. Duterte is also accused of some human rights abuses over his war on drugs that he may eventually have to face after his six-year term ends in 2002.

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Liberal argument in India needs an overhaul, says T.M. Krishna – The Hindu

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The biggest problem of liberals in the country is creating a dominant narrative condescending of faith, religions and rituals. There needs to be an overhaul of the liberal idea and it needs to be rooted in cultural ideas, said Carnatic musician T.M. Krishna, who delivered the third U.R. Ananthamurthy Memorial Lecture in the city on Sunday.

He said faith is essentially a hope for a better tomorrow. It needs challenging and questioning, yes. But we need to renegotiate faith and rebuild rituals. Of course it will be problematic as we need to handle the question of caste. But we should not discard the goodness of humanity, he said, giving instances of the dilemmas he faces on singing certain regressive lyrics of many composers.

Delivering the speech as an open letter to the late Ananthamurthy, Mr. Krishna said India as a country had failed to inculcate the culture of democracy over the last seven decades. The greatest danger of the present regime is that it may have changed the social fabric of our society and the way we think. Politicians will keep it going if it works and it will be normalised. We are very precariously poised and we need to recognise that, he said.

The Constitution is itself our samskara and not western as some people want us to believe. Civilisationally, India has never been of one religion, language or rule. We need to take ideas like secularism and fraternity to the people, he said. But who understands secularism? The preamble should have been sung as songs. Why did we not institute Sarvadharma Prarthana in every school? he posed. Critiquing the private education system, which he was also a part of, he said it had essentially created a segregated schooling system on class, caste and religious lines, and it was hard to expect children who go through it to understand egalitarian values suddenly.

But he expressed hope in the youth taking part in protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. While showing us what is precious, they have showed us we need to be on the streets and not in our homes, he said.

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Liberal argument in India needs an overhaul, says T.M. Krishna - The Hindu