Washington-Liberty QB Andrew Bolfek throws 6 TDs to win Player of the Week – WTOP

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Washington-Liberty High School quarterback Andrew Bolfek completed 20 of 36 passes for a school record 409 yards and six touchdowns, each longer than 20 yards, as the Generals beat Langley, 41-21, to earn Player of the Week.

TheDC Touchdown Cluband WTOP are partnering all high school football season to honor a Player of the Week and help choose a DMV Game of the Week, presented byThe St. James. Read about this weeks Player of the Week below andvote in our Game of the Week pollat the bottom of the article.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Andrew Bolfek, Washington-Liberty High School, Arlington, Va.

Washington-Liberty football coach Josh Shapiro has known Andrew Bolfek since Bolfek was in preschool; Shapiro has a daughter the same age.

And Shapiro knew that Bolfek was a solid athlete. As a sophomore last fall, he was the starting quarterback on the junior varsity. Bolfek moved up to varsity this season, but Shapiro said that Bolfek now only slightly resembles the player he used to know. Since last fall, Shapiro said, Bolfek has grown nearly five inches, to 6 feet 2, and the increased size has made a difference in Bolfeks performance.

This past Friday, Bolfek completed 20 of 36 passes for a school record 409 yards and six touchdowns, each longer than 20 yards, as the Generals beat Langley, 41-21. For his efforts, Bolfek was named the Military Bowl DC Touchdown Club High School Football Player of the Week.

Its incredible how well hes doing considering how much he has grown, Shapiro said. A lot of times, you sacrifice coordination when you have that kind of growth spurt. Im in shock seeing this kid play so well.

Bolfek had entered the Langley game with just six touchdown passes in the seasons first seven games with a season-high of just 200 yards passing in a game, though Shapiro said that was the result of things beyond Bolfeks control.

I call the offense and were normally run heavy, Shapiro said, adding that the Generals offensive line improved its pass protection against Langley. But after this week, rest assured, we might come out slinging it.

Others receiving Player of the Week consideration were:

ANNE ARUNDEL:

South River WR-DB Sean Leonard caught two touchdown passes, intercepted a pass on defense, and recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown as the Seahawks remained undefeated with a 47-9 win over Old Mill.

FREDERICK:

Linganore RB Xander McClure rushed 19 times for 238 yards and two touchdowns and returned a kickoff 88 yards for another score as the Lancers beat Tuscarora (Md.), 54-15.

HOWARD:

Glenelg RB Kyle Dry rushed 22 times for 147 yards and a touchdown as the Gladiators beat Wilde Lake, 35-16.

LOUDOUN:

Tuscarora (Va.) QB Ethan Gick passed for 118 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 135 yards and another score as the Huskies beat Loudoun County, 42-7.

MONTGOMERY:

Richard Montgomery RB TKai Ayoola rushed 42 times for 297 yards and two touchdowns as the Rockets beat Rockville, 15-12.

PRINCE GEORGES:

Wise QB Jayden Sauray completed all six of his passes for 179 yards and three touchdowns as the Pumas beat Parkdale, 51-0.

PRINCE WILLIAM:

Freedom-Woodbridge QB Quest Powell completed 20 of 27 passes for 324 yards and five touchdowns as the Eagles beat Potomac (Va.), 63-8.

SOUTHERN MARYLAND:

Huntingtown WR Anthony Smith had touchdown catches of 70 and 25 yards as the Hurricanes beat Northern, 17-13.

WCAC:

Gonzaga WR Aaron Turner caught three passes for 139 yards and a touchdown, rushed twice for 12 yards and a touchdown and returned a kickoff 78 yards for a third score as the Eagles beat Bishop McNamara, 49-21.

VOTE FOR THE GAME OF THE WEEK

Vote now for the WTOP DMV High School Football Game of the Week, presented byThe St. James. Poll closes at noon Thursday.

Like WTOP on Facebook and follow @WTOP on Twitter to engage in conversation about this article and others.

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Washington-Liberty QB Andrew Bolfek throws 6 TDs to win Player of the Week - WTOP

In the region: No. 6 UVa field hockey tops No. 17 Liberty – Lynchburg News and Advance

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CHARLOTTESVILLE Laura Janssen scored her first goal of the season with a little over three minutes remaining in the game and the No. 6 Virginia field hockey team (14-3) topped No. 17 Liberty 1-0 on Monday night.

UVa has now won six games in a row, with each game being decided by one goal.

Virginia (14-3) held the edge in shots, 14-6, and corners, 8-4.

Daniella Rhodes tallied Libertys only two shots on goal.

Goalie Allison Schaefer made two saves for the Flames (9-6). UVas Lauren Hausheer had one save, and another save was credited to the team.

UVa will return to action on Friday against another ranked opponent, taking on No. 20 Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Virginia Techs Lawrence ties for 2nd

GREENSBORO, N.C. Virginia Techs Mark Lawrence Jr. tied for second place in the UNC Greensboro/Grandover Collegiate tournament Monday.

Lawrence had an even-par 216 in the three-round, two-day tournament. He finished three strokes behind medalist Nick Lyerly of UNCG.

Virginia Tech was fourth out of 11 schools in the team battle with an 894. UNCG won with an 876.

Radford reaped the third seed in the Big South tournament and will host a quarterfinal game Saturday.

The defending Big South tournament champion Highlanders (13-5, 7-3) tied Gardner-Webb for third place but earned the No. 3 seed because of their regular-season win over Gardner-Webb.

Radford will host sixth-seeded Longwood (6-8-2, 4-4-2) at 7 p.m. Saturday.

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In the region: No. 6 UVa field hockey tops No. 17 Liberty - Lynchburg News and Advance

TSA: Man Tried To Bring Loaded Gun On Plane At Newark Liberty International Airport – CBS Pittsburgh

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NEWARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) Port Authority police at New Jerseys Newark Liberty International Airport have arrested a man who they say was trying to board a plane with a loaded handgun.

Transportation Security Administration agents saw the .22-caliber pistol in the mans carry-on bag when it went through an X-ray machine at a security checkpoint in Terminal C Monday morning. The gun was loaded with four bullets.

The TSA says it was the eleventh time this year that its agents have spotted guns at the airports checkpoints. Last year, there were 14 guns caught at Newark Libertys checkpoints a record.

The Morris Plain residents name was not released.

Its legal to travel with a firearm in checked baggage if it is properly packed unloaded and in a hard-sided case, separate from ammunition. For more information on traveling with guns, click here. Travelers with concealed firearm arm permits are not allowed to bring guns on airplanes. A typical first offense for bringing a handgun into an airport checkpoint is $4,100. For more information about possible penalties, click here.

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TSA: Man Tried To Bring Loaded Gun On Plane At Newark Liberty International Airport - CBS Pittsburgh

If You Had Bought One Liberty Properties (NYSE:OLP) Shares Five Years Ago Youd Have Made 23% – Simply Wall St

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If you buy and hold a stock for many years, youd hope to be making a profit. But more than that, you probably want to see it rise more than the market average. But One Liberty Properties, Inc. (NYSE:OLP) has fallen short of that second goal, with a share price rise of 23% over five years, which is below the market return. But if you include dividends then the return is market-beating. Zooming in, the stock is up a respectable 8.8% in the last year.

See our latest analysis for One Liberty Properties

To quote Buffett, Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

Over half a decade, One Liberty Properties managed to grow its earnings per share at 0.6% a year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 4.2% per year, over the same period. So its fair to assume the market has a higher opinion of the business than it did five years ago. And thats hardly shocking given the track record of growth.

The companys earnings per share (over time) are depicted in the image below.

This free interactive report on One Liberty Propertiess earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for One Liberty Properties the TSR over the last 5 years was 73%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

One Liberty Propertiess TSR for the year was broadly in line with the market average, at 16%. That gain looks pretty satisfying, and it is even better than the five-year TSR of 12% per year. Even if the share price growth slows down from here, theres a good chance that this is business worth watching in the long term. If you would like to research One Liberty Properties in more detail then you might want to take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in the company.

But note: One Liberty Properties may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.

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If You Had Bought One Liberty Properties (NYSE:OLP) Shares Five Years Ago Youd Have Made 23% - Simply Wall St

LTE: The Il-liberty of Protest – The Daily Northwestern

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Ryan AbbottOctober 28, 2019

In regard to Miss Changs response on October 21st, 2019:

Miss Chang attempts to justify her intellectual intolerance with false and misleading claims on Mr. Sessions credibility. She notes that one news outlet ranked Mr. Sessions as a heavy conservative out of 55 senators 12 years ago alluding that it makes Mr. Sessions as a conservative extremist.

It does not: Mr. Sessions core beliefs are held by a majority of every type of conservative, according to 2017 data from the Pew Research Center. It would be quite fair to say his beliefs are that of the average conservative. This is troubling, since Miss Chang writes that even if Sessions does hold the views of the average conservative students should not simply accept this as the reality of conservative thought.

Translation: reject conservatism whether Mr. Sessions is radical or not. Or: (protest) all conservatism, which is the conflicting title of her response. In another contradiction, Miss Chang states that there are 1) both many alternative options for conservative speakers (naming none) and 2) whether most conservatives are not hateful or intolerant at all cannot be confirmed or denied.

Accordingly, whether most Leftists are hateful or intolerant cannot be confirmed or denied either.

Mr. Sessions is your fellow American. Does he not deserve any meaningful interaction at all?

How can any college student so vehemently resist an opportunity to have his/her core beliefs challenged? A baseless refusal to grant Mr. Sessions intellectual credibility ignorantly dismisses the views of millions of fellow Americans. Conservatives exist who have not actively oppressed others. Living with this sizeable subpopulation of the US will be less divisive if you do not assume their epistemology is based in hatred.

Finally, Miss Chang nonsensically states that a letter urging her to engage with Mr. Sessions instead of protesting his appearance is somehow an attempt to subdue (her) First Amendment right to assemble. It isnt, but confronted with the reality of Mr. Sessions views, Miss Chang does exactly as I predicted: declares a crisis, refuses to interact meaningfully, and falsely associates blind hatred with Mr. Sessions beliefs. Protesting Mr. Sessions confronts nothing but an imaginary and quite vapid avatar of intolerance. If anyone wishes to truly confront him, that involves speaking directly with him. I implore Miss Chang again to consider attending Mr. Sessions speech. If you arent challenging his beliefs, you arent challenging your own you accomplish nothing but the affirmation of your own bigotry.

Ryan Abbott, McCormick Junior

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Liberty Apartments in south Cape still set to open in April – Southeast Missourian

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Carpenter Eddie Dowd of Park Hills, Missouri, nails a truss Monday at the future site of Liberty Apartments in the 1100 block of Walnut Street in Cape Girardeau. Double Diamond Construction & Development of Crystal City, Missouri, is the general contractor for the project.

BEN MATTHEWS

Despite an unusually rainy spring and summer, developers of a low-income housing project in Cape Girardeau say construction is on track for the projects on-time completion in the spring.

Liberty Apartments, an eight-building, 40-unit apartment complex in south Cape Girardeau, is slated to open in April.

Groundbreaking for the $4.5 million project took place six months ago.

For a while, we thought wed have to push the opening back to June, but the contractor has been able to catch up, so were still looking at a completion date sometime in April, depending on winter weather, said Melissa Stickel, executive director of the Community Partnership of Southeast Missouri.

The Community Partnership, formerly known as Community Caring Council, is developing the project along with Chad Hartle of RCH Development and Cape Area Community Housing Development Corp.

RCH Development of Jackson will manage the apartment complex and manages similar apartment developments in several other communities.

Double Diamond Construction & Development of Crystal City, Missouri, is the projects general contractor.

Carpenter Beau Missey of Potosi, Missouri, center right, nails sheetrock to a truss Monday at the future site of Liberty Apartments in Cape Girardeau.

BEN MATTHEWS

Stickel said her office has received a lot of calls from people interested in renting an apartment at the complex, but it will be a few months before housing applications will be accepted.

We will likely start looking for a property manager early in the year and will probably begin taking applications soon after that, she said.

The complex, in the 1100 block of Walnut Street east of West End Boulevard, consists of seven one-story brick apartment buildings and a community center. Each 865-square-foot apartment will include living, dining and kitchen areas, two bedrooms, a bathroom and laundry facilities. The apartments are expected to rent for around $475 or $500 per month, Stickel said. Some of the units will be ADA accessible.

According to the projects plans, the community center will feature an open area for large gatherings as well as a learning center and an exercise area.

The Missouri Housing Development Commission, the Raymond James Tax Credit Fund and Banterra Bank are providing financing for the project.

Carpenter Jason Inman of Festus, Missouri, left, marks a measurement on a truss Monday at the future site of Liberty Apartments in Cape Girardeau.

BEN MATTHEWS

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Intrepid Theatre returns with ‘The Thousandth Night’ at Liberty Station – The San Diego Union-Tribune

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Its been a while since weve heard much from Intrepid Theatre, the small but mighty San Diego company that has been an award-winning artistic marvel over the past few years, but has pulled back from regular producing of late.

Now, Intrepid resurfaces with The Thousandth Night a piece the troupe has taken out on the fringe-festival circuit (winning plaudits as most innovative production and best of fringe at the Boulder International Fringe Festival in Colorado), and plans to remount in New York after its local staging.

The accomplished San Diego theater artist Jason Heil (and admirably immersive actor) directs the Point Loma staging of this Carol Wolf work about an actor whos arrested in Nazi-occupied Paris for performing subversive material, and must take on the task of playing 38 characters from The Arabian Nights as a way to escape his fate.

Intrepid co-founder Sean Yael-Cox stars in the show, which runs for only two weekends beginning Friday, Oct. 25.

When: 8 p.m. Fridays; 4 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through Nov. 3.

Where: Intrepid Theatre at White Box Live Arts, 2590 Truxtun Road No. 205, Arts District Liberty Station, Point Loma.

Tickets: $30 ($20 for students, seniors and military).

Online: intrepidtheatre.org

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Intrepid Theatre returns with 'The Thousandth Night' at Liberty Station - The San Diego Union-Tribune

Rutgers won its 2nd game this year by defeating Liberty | What did visiting recruits think? – NJ.com

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Its been a tough stretch for Rutgers. One of the toughest stretches in program history, to be exact. But how has the product on the field affected recruiting?

Rutgers appears content to go into the early signing period with the 10 players currently committed, leaving around five slots for its next appointed head coach to take to (traditional) signing day. However, the staff must still keep potential targets warm and recruit committed players as their pledges are verbal and non-binding.

There havent been many high-profile recruits at games this year, partly because of Rutgers performance and partly because its intentionally building a small class, recruits have their own games to attend and most desired seniors are already committed somewhere.

The Irvington (N.J.) high school contingent -- which boasts three potential national recruits and other FBS-caliber players -- was a late scratch as the team had a game against Barringer, providing a blow to the star power on Rutgers visitors list. However, we caught up with others who made the trip for their thoughts about Rutgers on the heels of its 44-34 win over Liberty -- the programs first win since opening weekend.

Union (N.J.) wide receiver Ahmirr Robinson is having one of the best seasons of any wide receiver in the state. Hes committed to Rutgers and has frequented home games this year despite the teams struggles and is proud to be awarded a win.

I think the game was a well-needed spark for the team and the coaches, and the team rallying around their play-makers stood out to me the most, he said. The atmosphere was great, it made me feel that regardless of (how the season has gone )everyone was behind the team and coaches.

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Weequahic (Newark, N.J.) athlete Donovan Wadley, brother of Arkum Wadley who starred at Iowa, also came away impressed.

What stood out the most was how they just fought and kept their heads in the game. It was a good game, he said. Rutgers just wanted it more and they came out on top. They played with heart. It shows me that they have potential and they could bounce back from any situation.

West Side (Newark, N.J.) safety Shua Sutton is one of the most underrated seniors in North Jersey, however, Rutgers has picked up the scent.

I thought highly of the game, Sutton said. "The offense was moving the ball. The defense did a great job. There were a few mistakes, but overall Rutgers did a great job and got a great win.

What stood out the most is how good they treated the recruits and how the players stayed in the game and kept their heads high. As of now, Rutgers is one of my top schools and I hope everything goes well.

Paramus (N.J.) athlete Kyle Jacob is also underrated though being tracked by the Scarlet Knights. He was encouraged most by how Rutgers continued to fight through the back-and-forth game.

The atmosphere was great. Being on the field watching the guys warmup was awesome, Jacob said. They played hard and made plays against Liberty and it was great to see. I think what stood out most was how the players throughout the whole game stayed focus and played their hardest, doing what their coaches told them to do.

Class of 2022 DePaul (Wayne, N.J.) linebacker Thomas McGuire was one of the few players from the Big Six (of the Super Football Conference) to make the trip.

I thought it was great to watch Rutgers compete and win against Liberty. The game was also a great opportunity to talk and meet all the coaches. The culture stood out to me the most. I feel Rutgers has a brotherhood and amazing culture, McGuire said. I like Rutgers a lot and hope in three years to stay home and put on for the state.

Canadian linebacker Dawson Pierre is hopeful to attend Rutgers next season following his stint at Vanier College in Montreal, Quebec. He also gave Saturdays visit high marks.

Going to the Rutgers-Liberty game was a great experience. I think it was a great performance by Rutgers and a great team win. (The) offense and defense played a great game. The atmosphere was what really stood out the most for me, Pierre said. "The crowd, the ambiance and to see how much fun the guys were having.

Everything was awesome! Currently, Rutgers is my No. 1 choice. I would really love to play for Rutgers next season and I am looking forward to making it happen.

Many visitors who confirmed theyd attend never made it to Piscataway Saturday. However, those who did got a pleasant surprise. It remains to be seen if interim head coach Nunzio Campanile -- who got his first win as a college head coach Saturday -- and staff can build on this momentum.

I enjoyed the energy of the game and being on the sidelines, said Donovan Catholic (Toms River, N.J.) class of 2022 defensive tackle Dominick Brogna. Watching them warm-up and run out really got me fired up. I was excited to be there as they got a team win along with coach Nunzios first win as head coach.

Can Rutgers find a way to be competitive against the brutal schedule ahead, starting with Illinois which recently beat Wisconsin in the biggest upset of the year?

And it doesnt get any easier from there.

In fact, it gets much, much harder as Ohio State, Michigan State and Penn State round out Rutgers schedule down the stretch.

But, at least the coaches and players got to enjoy one more win in front of recruits before heading down the murderers row of Big Ten play.

Get Rutgers Sports Insider text messages from reporters: Cut through the clutter of social media and communicate directly with the Rutgers beat writers. Plus, exclusive news and analysis every day. Sign up now.

Todderick Hunt may be reached at thunt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TodderickHunt. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.

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Visit the Statue of Liberty, feel her unifying message | Opinion – NJ.com

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Editors note: Monday, Oct. 28, marks the 133rd anniversary of the Statue of Libertys dedication by President Grover Cleveland.

By Nicholas Garrison

Recent arguments over immigration policy have stirred debate over the purpose and meaning of the Statue of Liberty. This has me asking: When is the last time anyone visited her? For even the most jaded, being there is to be awestruck. Her simple, transcendent message is easy to grasp hope for a better world, for all.

I wish everyone would visit the Statue of Liberty and feel the power of her unifying message.

She beckons us from her tiny, floating garden in the middle of the Hudson River, rising symbolically atop a fort built to defend a young nation. One cant just go to Liberty Island one must cross over to her by ferry a pilgrimage. As we approach, facing the sun, Liberty Enlightening the World is spectacular. Ashore she emerges from the trees, and her scale seems impossible. Everywhere the fort is flecked with her patina. Inside she is tiny; gleaming copper sheets are held fast by a giddy framework where the rivets seem to have rivets. Its not hard to see and feel a relentless energy in her softly folded construction, reinforcing the very ideas of freedom and liberty. She is amazing.

Ones thoughts go from the idea of her, to her construction, back to the idea of her: What compelled thousands of private citizens, oceans and cultures apart, to band together and overcome ridiculous obstacles of engineering, logistics and fundraising to achieve such a feat? Not ego or profit. Not tribal pride. Not even, really, the end of a terrible civil war. It was simply the impulse of a human heart to build a physical symbol as grand as the foundational idea of hope and opportunity America had come to represent for the world.

Her message endures. When I first started thinking about the design for a new museum for the Statue of Liberty, the parks superintendent, David Lusinger, told me that still today, there are visitors that get on their knees and kiss the ground she stands on. This vision would not leave me. During construction, workers and tradespeople from every background and political leaning worked together with obvious pride and dedication to the project, often bringing their children to the jobsite. One particularly nasty day I asked the construction superintendent, Larry Sidoti, if his crew was getting discouraged. Not at all he beamed, we love her.

These feelings are contagious on the island.

Adding to the statues spell, Liberty Island is magical on its own. Conceived as a formal garden around the star-shaped fort, it contains wide pedestrian walks and bosques of trees shading rolling lawns. An esplanade along the waters edge is both a promenade for voices from around the world and a lookout for New York Harbor. Breezes fan spectacular panoramic views of New Yorks skyline across the Hudson to where the twin towers once stood, and we are reminded just how powerful this message of hope and opportunity is, and how lucky we are to live here.

Tasked with conceiving the first new building on this small island, it was not lost on me that I was on sacred ground and that every square inch of it mattered. Like everyone else, I was smitten with my surroundings, and I dedicated myself to do the best work I could in the service of her. The effort to rescue the original torch from its dark location inside the fort and persist so that it was given pride of place in the new museum in full daylight overlooking New York Harbor, was a labor of true love.

As the exhibits make clear, we have always contested the idea of what liberty means to each of us as individuals, but the power of the Statue of Liberty to inspire us to be the best we can be is indisputable. We have never been perfect, but her dream is: a monumental dream of hope for a better world.

Go and feel inspired again.

Nicholas Garrison, a partner at the New York architecture firm FxCollaborative, is the architect of the newly opened Statue of Liberty Museum.

Submit letters to the editor and guest columns for The Jersey Journal to jjletters@jjournal.com.

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Visit the Statue of Liberty, feel her unifying message | Opinion - NJ.com

The Two Black Women Helping To Reclaim & Encourage Natural Psychedelics Use In Oakland – Okayplayer

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Photos courtesy of those interviewed.

One of Mac Dres most beloved lyrics is from a song titled Weekend.

The shrooms I consume are making me laugh/ Im high as the eye on a fucking giraffe, he raps on the track Weekend. The song appeared on 2006s 16 wit dre, a mix album that was released two-and-a-half years after Dres death on November 1, 2004.

The Oakland-born Dre was a fan of magic mushrooms and MDMA; he even devoted a song to the pair titled Shrooms and E-Pills.

So, its likely that he wouldve celebrated the news of Oakland decriminalizing psilocybin (the scientific name for magic or psychedelic mushrooms).In June 2019, Oakland City Council passed a local ordinance to decriminalize certain natural psychedelicslike mushrooms, ayahuasca, peyote and DMT. (Synthetic psychedelics like LSD and MDMA are still illegal, and psychedelic mushrooms and other natural hallucinogens are technically still illegal under California state law and federal law. The ordinance also doesnt legalize the sale or distribution of psychedelic mushrooms.) Approved a month prior to Denvers voter-led ballot initiative to decriminalize psilocybin, Oaklands resolution is a continuation of Californias progressive drug reform history. The state became the first in the country to legalize medical marijuana in 1996.

These are not drugs. These are healing plants We just think they should never have been made illegal to begin with, Carlos Plazola, founder of Decriminalize Nature Oakland (DNO), an advocacy group dedicated to making natural medicine accessible to Oakland, told the Guardian.

Inspired by his own experiences using psychedelic mushrooms to heal from childhood trauma, Plazola created the DNO.

This is getting the word out about the healing power, Plazola said. Many people in communities of color and communities of trauma are not getting access.

For generations, communities of color utilized natural psychedelics for medicinal purposes. Rooted in spiritual-based healing, the practices of plant-based medicine became whitewashed by Americas counterculture movement of the 1960s. Despite this, black people have continued to experiment with psychedelics. The creation of hyphy music a subgenre of rap music that came about in the Bay Area in the late 90s and rose to prominence in the mid-2000s was a byproduct of rappers using MDMA, with the late Mac Dre at the forefront of that experimentation. Countless Dre songs, like Weekend and Shrooms and E-Pills, found him referencing not only MDMA but psychedelic mushrooms. While he was alive, Dre had also coined a term not just for ecstasy but for the euphoric effects people felt from taking it thizz. Dres Thizzle Dance practically served as an explainer for the term as the rapper (alongside Chuck Beez) broke down what thizz is all about: letting your body move as fluidly and erratically as it wants. In 2012, eight years after Dres death, Thizz Entertainment his record label was implicated in a nationwide ecstasy ring. (Court records revealed that most of the people arrested in the operation had no connection to the label.)

Aware of the regions previously established relationship with usage of psychedelics and the fear of being criminalized, Plazola wants to transform the headquarters of the DNO into a consciousness community, a co-working space where people can also reflect on their psychedelic journeys and learn about natural psychedelics. Helping him with this aretwo Black women: co-founder Nicolle Greenheart and community outreach and education activist Amber Senter.

Okayplayer spoke with Greenheart and Senter about being involved with DNO, the importance of people of color reclaiming and experimenting with psychedelics and more.

Greenheart: Denver;s strategy was focused on psilocybin through a voter-centered route. DNO ensured the resolution included all plant medicine because individuals should have autonomy over what plants they use to heal. We wanted to make sure people had that choice, because there is a wealth of plants. Going the council route resulted in the consultation of professionals in the psychedelic space scientists, therapists, and input from community leaders before the resolution was presented to council.

Carlos Plazola previously worked for city council and knew how to navigate and lobby. So it was helpful to have an individual with expertise in Oakland politics. Despite the creation of our resolution being predominantly white in terms of contributions, we received support from the indigenous community, and crafted a diverse team of advocates to discuss legislation with city council members. When we presented at The Public Safety Community, we intentionality chose diverse speakers men, women, and people of color so city council witnessed the diversity of voices in the psychedelic movement.

Greenheart: Since childhood, Ive suffered from depression and underwent the traditional routes of treatment such as psycho-therapy and antidepressants, which negatively impacted my health. After that experience I asked myself, How am I going to heal myself naturally? I tried meditation, yoga, homeopathic treatments, crystals, but I was always looking for community.

I attended an all-day retreat and was intrigued by a ceremonial practice of microdosing huachuma (San Pedro cactus) to align with your higher self and open your heart chakra. Once I found out the healing plant was a psychedelic, I began a one-and-a-half year long research study on psychedelics and attended local community-centered events in the Bay Area. But I noticed I was the only Black person in the room. I questioned the lack of my community in these spaces, because we need this medicine just as much as anybody else. It gave me a new motivation to create space for establishing community for Black people in psychedelic spaces. The integration of plant-based medicine in Black communities is an offering of help and support because Ive experienced how powerful and life transforming it is.

Senter: Theres an insignificant lack of awareness and education on how medicinal plants can help Black communities. Black voices in psychedelics are obscured by those in positions of power, and I wanted to ensure my voice was heard in these political efforts to decriminalize ISA genetic plants in Oakland. From my own experience dealing with lupus (a chronic auto-immune disorder), psychedelic mushrooms have been helpful for me. Disorders such as Multiple Sclerosis and Scholar Derma are rampant in Black women and women of color communities. I reached out to Carlos and told him I wanted to be involved, because as an advocate of women of color in the cannabis spaces through Supernova Women, I know the benefits of plant-based medicine for our communities.

Greenheart: Im familiar with her work and the challenges of getting communities of color to engage with psychedelics in the clinical and/or therapeutic route. I previously held a stereotypical perception of psychedelics as a recreational hippie drug for white people. It wasnt until I started researching the medicinal purposes of psychedelics that I wanted to destigmatize psychedelics in the Black community and advocate its healing purposes. Specifically, to treat the trauma expressed by members within our community while promoting responsible usage. I want to model how to be a safe and responsible user without going the clinical route. There is a place for the therapeutic model and for individuals who want to participate within a community-based environment, while receiving support and being safe.

Senter: Im from Chicago, so theres a regional difference in reception of natural plant medicines compared to Oakland. Indigenous and Latinx communities have been very open and welcoming to the decriminalization of natural psychedelics. I expected resistance from the Black Church, but attendees have understood that God made these plants for healing purposes.

Greenheart: There needs to be collaboration between hip-hop and psychedelics. Whether the merger is a conference we need people to join in. Were a small team with limited capacity, so we need to hear from local artists to participate in this movement alongside us. Were in infancy, so everybody is waiting to see what happens.

__

Taylor Crumpton has written for Pitchfork, PAPER, Teen Vogue, Marie Claire, and more. You can follow her@taylorcrumpton

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The Two Black Women Helping To Reclaim & Encourage Natural Psychedelics Use In Oakland - Okayplayer

Shirola: U.S. government should ease legal barriers to research and treatment with psychedelics – Daily Northwestern

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Wesley Shirola, ColumnistOctober 22, 2019

This is the fourth column in Failed Policy, a series examining the history of drugs and drug policy in the United States since its founding.

When many of us think of psychedelics, we think of the 1960s, especially its music. Indeed, psychedelic rock, with its characteristic mix of electric guitars, synthesizers and sitars, was largely intended to simulate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. Psychedelics had been around for many decades, however, before their connection to the American counterculture led to their classification as illegal.

In 1938, Swiss chemist and Sandoz employee Albert Hofmann was trying to synthesize a stimulant when he instead created lysergic acid diethylamide, or LSD. Not the stimulant that he had hoped for, Hofmann set aside LSD for five years until he re-examined it and accidentally absorbed a small dose through his fingertips in the process. He experienced a drastic shift in consciousness and eventually decided that the drug would be useful for psychotherapy.

From the 1940s through the early 1960s, research breakthroughs into LSD and psilocybin, another psychedelic, were rapid. Scientists began to better appreciate the brains neurochemistry and how therapists might effectively treat mental illness using psychedelics. An astonishing 40,000 patients were treated with LSD and traditional psychotherapy between 1950 and 1965, and more than a thousand research papers on them were published.

By the mid-1960s, though, an increasing number of young Americans were using LSD, and the drug found its way into college campuses and music festivals. As is common with many things popular among young people, stories soon emerged of psychosis and murder as a result of bad trips. Supposedly as a result of these drugs, young Americans no longer believed in authorities and the central institutions at the heart of American society; they most definitely didnt want to enlist and head to Vietnam. Sure enough, by 1966 LSD was illegal in the U.S. Psilocybin was banned in America a few years later.

Today, over half a century since LSD was banned, psychedelics are making a comeback as researchers rediscover their powerful therapeutic effects. Partly as a result of the slow, yet widespread, decriminalization of marijuana in the United States as policy makers realized that pot did not bring the moral and social destruction that many had predicted and in fact is beneficial therapeutically detractors have opened their minds to the idea that other currently illegal drugs may be therapeutically effective as well.

In 2008, a team from Johns Hopkins University reported in the Journal of Psychopharmacology that the mystical experiences provoked by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months after initial administration. Furthermore, compared to methylphenidate a stimulant more commonly known as Ritalin the psilocybin treatment produced statistically significant increases in positive attitudes, mood, social effects and behavior.

Another study published in the same journal in 2010 found that the psychedelic MDMA was more effective than a placebo in easing the symptoms of treatment-resistant PTSD. Additionally, the researchers wrote that the MDMA-assisted psychotherapy can be administered to patients with PTSD safely and may be beneficial in patients resistant or tolerant to other treatments.

In early 2015, Rick Doblin of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies and a co-author of the 2010 paper announced that he was hopeful that MDMA would be available as a prescription by 2021. While this now seems unlikely seeing that 2021 is less than two years away, Doblin has stayed at the forefront of establishing psychedelics as legitimate and effective treatments for mental illness.

Since the 1960s when LSD was made illegal, and up until today, the FDA and DEA have been stringent in their approval of clinical studies into psychedelics. While these agencies have increasingly been more receptive over the past decade, the approval process is still horrendous. Earlier this year, The Economist reported that it took Peter Hendricks, a researcher at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, six or seven years to get approval for his trials on the impact of psilocybin on cocaine addiction.

Acquiring funding has also been difficult. Due to the drugs illegality, the U.S. government is loath to distribute money for research into psychedelics. As a result, researchers have had to rely on private donors and philanthropists for much of their funding. Other countries are not much more willing in this regard.

The U.S. government must stand down and loosen these legal barriers to research and treatment with psychedelics. Scientists have realized the powerful therapeutic effects that these drugs hold largely since they were first synthesized. It is time for the U.S. government to realize the same. The longer it holds out and maintains bureaucratic hurdles, the longer it indirectly harms thousands of patients both in the U.S. and across the world each year.

Wesley Shirola is a Weinberg junior. He can be contacted at wesleyshirola2021@u.northwestern.edu. If you would like to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to opinion@dailynorthwestern.com. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.

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Molecule Catalyst and UTM to crowdfund psychedelics research with blockchain – Decrypt

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The University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM) is financing a study into the psychedelic psilocybin with the help of decentralized fundraising platform Molecule Catalyst, in the first attempt to fund a clinical trial into psychedelics using decentralized finance.

According to a recent post on the Molecule blog, the effort will be a joint collaboration between Molecule Catalyst, Rotem Petranker and Thomas Anderson, directors at the University of Toronto Mississauga Psychedelic Studies Research Program (PSRP).

Through its partnership with Molecule Catalyst, UTM hope to raise an undisclosed sum to fund its planned psilocybin clinical trials.

Molecule uses blockchain technology to provide an incentive-based market for scientific research. Through Molecule Catalyst, research groups will be able to raise funds for the study of rare diseases, ageing & longevity and psychedelics, among other fields.

Be the first to get Decrypt Members. A new type of account built on blockchain.

To provide an incentive to investors, Molecule uses smart contracts to make the chemical intellectual property resulting from successful products easily tradeable on the Ethereum blockchain. In this way, funders receive a stake in the projects they supportallowing investors of all sizes to help fund potentially pioneering research and benefit from its success. Molecule uses the dollar-backed stablecoin DAI to overcome market instability.

UTM's psilocybin study is the first fund-raising project to be hosted by Molecule Catalyst, which ultimately aims to create a Web 3.0 marketplace and exchange for chemical IP.

The UTM study will investigate the effects of microdosing a psychedelic compound known as psilocybin on a variety of cognitive indicators.

Besides examining psilocybin's effect on creativity, mood and focus, the study will also measure its influence on social connection, self-efficacy and mindfulness.

Overall, UTM hopes that the data produced will help to guide global psychedelics research, by setting a new precedent that can be used to direct impactful psychedelics research.

Previously, psilocybin has been shown to effective in treating a wide variety of mental disorders, ranging from anxiety and depression, to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).However, due to its potential to be abused as a psychedelic drug, the psychoactive substance has been shelved as a potential therapeutic by most pharmaceutical research groups.

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Molecule Catalyst and UTM to crowdfund psychedelics research with blockchain - Decrypt

Hedge Funds Piled Into National Storage Affiliates Trust (NSA) At The Right Time – Yahoo Finance

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Does National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA) represent a good buying opportunity at the moment? Lets quickly check the hedge fund interest towards the company. Hedge fund firms constantly search out bright intellectuals and highly-experienced employees and throw away millions of dollars on satellite photos and other research activities, so it is no wonder why they tend to generate millions in profits each year. It is also true that some hedge fund players fail inconceivably on some occasions, but net net their stock picks have been generating superior risk-adjusted returns on average over the years.

National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA) was in 18 hedge funds' portfolios at the end of the second quarter of 2019. NSA has experienced an increase in enthusiasm from smart money lately. There were 16 hedge funds in our database with NSA positions at the end of the previous quarter. Our calculations also showed that NSA isn't among the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds (see the video below). Video: Click the image to watch our video about the top 5 most popular hedge fund stocks.

5 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds

According to most investors, hedge funds are seen as worthless, outdated investment vehicles of years past. While there are more than 8000 funds in operation at present, We choose to focus on the leaders of this group, around 750 funds. It is estimated that this group of investors command most of all hedge funds' total capital, and by watching their first-class equity investments, Insider Monkey has come up with various investment strategies that have historically outperformed the broader indices. Insider Monkey's flagship hedge fund strategy outrun the S&P 500 index by around 5 percentage points per year since its inception in May 2014. We were able to generate large returns even by identifying short candidates. Our portfolio of short stocks lost 25.7% since February 2017 (through September 30th) even thoughthe market was up more than 33% during the same period. We just shared a list of 10 short targetsin our latest quarterly update .

Unlike former hedge manager, Dr. Steve Sjuggerud, who is convinced Dow will soar past 40000, our long-short investment strategy doesn't rely on bull markets to deliver double digit returns. We only rely on hedge fund buy/sell signals. Let's analyze the recent hedge fund action encompassing National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA).

Heading into the third quarter of 2019, a total of 18 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long this stock, a change of 13% from the previous quarter. The graph below displays the number of hedge funds with bullish position in NSA over the last 16 quarters. With the smart money's capital changing hands, there exists an "upper tier" of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes considerably (or already accumulated large positions).

No of Hedge Funds with NSA Positions

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Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Renaissance Technologies has the most valuable position in National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA), worth close to $44.2 million, accounting for less than 0.1%% of its total 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Millennium Management, led by Israel Englander, holding a $20 million position; less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other professional money managers that are bullish include Paul Marshall and Ian Wace's Marshall Wace LLP, David Harding's Winton Capital Management and Jonathan Barrett and Paul Segal's Luminus Management.

As industrywide interest jumped, some big names have been driving this bullishness. Luminus Management, managed by Jonathan Barrett and Paul Segal, established the largest position in National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA). Luminus Management had $9.7 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Benjamin A. Smith's Laurion Capital Management also initiated a $0.9 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Matthew Tewksbury's Stevens Capital Management, Richard Driehaus's Driehaus Capital, and Michael Gelband's ExodusPoint Capital.

Let's go over hedge fund activity in other stocks - not necessarily in the same industry as National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA) but similarly valued. We will take a look at Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:PBH), Silicon Motion Technology Corporation (NASDAQ:SIMO), SSR Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:SSRM), and Newmark Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NMRK). This group of stocks' market valuations match NSA's market valuation.

[table] Ticker, No of HFs with positions, Total Value of HF Positions (x1000), Change in HF Position PBH,15,66050,2 SIMO,12,141488,-1 SSRM,16,139260,3 NMRK,16,102144,-8 Average,14.75,112236,-1 [/table]

View table hereif you experience formatting issues.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 14.75 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $112 million. That figure was $132 million in NSA's case. SSR Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:SSRM) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Silicon Motion Technology Corporation (NASDAQ:SIMO) is the least popular one with only 12 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks National Storage Affiliates Trust (NYSE:NSA) is more popular among hedge funds. Our calculations showed that top 20 most popular stocks among hedge funds returned 24.4% in 2019 through September 30th and outperformed the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by 4 percentage points. Hedge funds were also right about betting on NSA as the stock returned 16.4% during Q3 and outperformed the market by an even larger margin. Hedge funds were clearly right about piling into this stock relative to other stocks with similar market capitalizations.

Disclosure: None. This article was originally published at Insider Monkey.

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Hedge Funds Piled Into National Storage Affiliates Trust (NSA) At The Right Time - Yahoo Finance

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NSA: ‘We know we need to do some work’ on declassifying threat intel – CyberScoop

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Written by Shannon Vavra Oct 24, 2019 | CYBERSCOOP

One of the National Security Agencys newly minted Cybersecurity Directorates goals is to quickly share information on adversarial threats with the private sector but the process for doing that needs to be refined, the directorates leader said Thursday.

The process in place today is where we know we need to do some work, Anne Neuberger said while speaking at CyberTalks, produced by CyberScoop. When we find indications of a threat, we see planning to execute a particular operation, or we see the operation being executed. [But] because we learn about it in a classified way, we treat it as classified.

Part of the difficulty the NSA faces is that adversaries often run operations and then discard their compromised infrastructure, making a protracted declassification process nearly useless since indicators of compromise pretty much they have a ticking time clock for how useful they are, Neuberger said.

The new directorate, which started operations earlier this month, is measuring success by examining how well it is able to prevent attacks moving forward.

Have we used threat intelligence, have we used security guidelines, have we worked with the network owner? are the questions the NSA needs to be asking itself moving forward, Neuberger said.

Its not clear what specific metrics the NSA will use to determine whether the new directorate is successful, but Neuberger said the unit will be asking government partners whether it has made a difference in their security.

Inevitably, deciding who will talk with the private sector about nation-state threats NSA or the Department of Homeland Security will involve the DHSsCybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, given that the intelligence agencys authorities dont pertain to critical infrastructure, CISA Director Chris Krebs told reporters at CyberTalks.

By its very nature, Title 50 organizations should not be really researching and understanding how American critical infrastructure works. Thats my job working with Treasury [Department], working with [the Department of] Energy, Krebs said. Title 50 is the part of U.S. Code that covers intelligence agencies.

It may make sense for the NSA to take point and work directly with the private sector if the agency has interest in a specific threat, Krebs said.

But on critical infrastructure and threats to U.S. elections, Krebs thinks DHS should take the reins.

In the traditional critical infrastructure spaces, we would look to take the lead based on our relationships, based on our understanding of how to work with those folks, Krebs said. Since we have the relationship with the state and local election officials we think its probably most effective right now that we help harness various [intelligence] pieces and then put it in the hands of the network defenders in the local election jurisdictions.

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Meet Tom Drake, the NSA Whistleblower Cheney Wanted to ‘Fry’ – The American Conservative

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Thomas Drake. Credit: Adam Berry/Getty Images

Find and fry the leaker or leakers. Burn them. We have to make an example of them.

Vice President Dick Cheney issued that edict after whistleblower Thomas Drake, a former senior executive at the NSA, revealed the unconstitutional mass surveillance regime that had been instituted after 9/11, Drake himself said in a recent interview with The American Conservative.

The constant drumbeat of demands to reveal the names of whistleblowers who filed a complaint against President Trump gives Drake horrible flashbacks, he says. And while Republicans endlessly repeat that the American people have a right to know their identities, Drake doesnt agree.

The identity of the whistleblower is irrelevant, he says. The focus should be on the message, not the messenger. The information that was provided doesnt require the whistleblower to come before Congress. (Congress has been issuing subpoenas to first-hand witnesses to substantiate the complaint.)

I have major concerns for the safety of the whistleblower, Drake continues. The president of the United States hasnt minced words in terms of his perspective. If you call out the behavior of a presidenttheyre going to counterattack. Mine happened behind closed doors. The counterattack on the Ukraine whistleblower is occurring in full view of the public.

Drake says safety concerns are all the more salient because the president is fully exposed here. He has enormous power.

Drake recalls how in his case he was warned by senior leadership at the NSA: They were looking for leakers to Congress. The warning was crystal clear: you cooperate with them at your peril.

The way the Trump administration is responding tells you that the whistleblowers disclosures hit close to homejust like mine did, Drake says. The degree to which the government responds to a whistleblower complaint is the degree to which the whistleblowers disclosures are accurate.

Drake knows what its like to become a target of the state. He earned Cheneys wrath when he was working as a senior level official at the National Security Agency (NSA) after September 11, 2001. Alarmed by the NSAs warrantless surveillance of Americans, Drake reported it to the Inspectors General and to congressional committees. In 2007, after a reporter for the Baltimore Sun published articles on the waste, fraud, and abuse at the NSA, FBI agents, guns blazing, raided the homes of the people who had worked on the Inspector General report and took their computers, books, and papers. In 2010, Barack Obamas administration indicted Drake under the Espionage Act. Members of Congress, he says, were calling him a traitor.

They wanted me to be sent to prison in an orange jumpsuit. I was facing 35 years. The prosecutors were saying that I was worse than a spy, he says, pointing out how Trump has used the similar language to describe the Ukraine whistleblower.

After the leak, Drake was unable to find work in the intelligence community. To support his family, he worked at an Apple store. Eventually all 10 felony charges against him were dropped and a plea deal struck on the eve of the trial. Drake was sentenced to community service and probation. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett refused to impose a fine, calling the governments decision to drag Drake and his family through four years of hell only to drop all felony charges at the last minute unconscionable.

Because he experienced the heavy personal toll of living as a whistleblower, Drake says he has concern for the blowback todays whistleblowers will face.

Your entire life gets blown up and theres no going back to the way it was before, he says. If theres an actual vote for impeachment, then the whistleblowers life will never be the same.

Historically, whistleblowers have a love/hate relationship particularly with those in power, says Drake. If youre in power you dont like them at all.

Weird things happen when you become president, Drake says. I saw what happens to people when they have power: it does affect you, believing you affect the lives of others. Its incredibly tempting to abuse power; its seductiveness is overwhelming.

Drake sounds like an idealist when he talks about the presidents duties under the Constitution, though its striking the amount of personal courage it takes to report government wrongdoing. He lost his job; he almost lost his freedom.

The media took a long time to cover Drakes case favorably. At first they accepted the Obama administrations narrative that Drake was a spy who must have done something awful, he says. But thanks in part to Jane Mayers reporting at the New Yorker, journalists slowly began to question whether he was really an enemy of the state. Drake went on to win the Ridenhour Truth Telling Prize while still facing felony charges.

The whistleblowers on Ukraine havent been subjected to the hell Drake endured because their complaint is public and highly politicized, says Drake. Trumps such a lightning rod.

Still, he says, its appalling that some reports wax poetic and yearn for the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Just like his predecessors, Drake charges, Trump has been utterly unfaithful to the constitution.

Barbara Boland isThe American Conservatives foreign policy and national security reporter. Follow her on Twitter@BBatDC.

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EXCLUSIVE Last Punched Tape Crypto Key Rolls off the NSAs Machines – Computer Business Review

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After decades in use, last paper tape crypto key punched

The USs National Security Agency (NSA) has ended production of punched paper tape cryptographic keys after over 50 years use; making its final shift to an electronic cryptographic key production and distribution architecture.

An agency spokesman confirmed to Computer Business Review that the last NSA punched tape key had rolled off its machines on October 2, 2019. Such keys were used to encrypt military and other communications, and needed to be physically entered into devices that could store the key, then shipped around the world.

The technology, which uses paper-mylar-paper tape rolls punched with holes to store cryptographic keys (a hole represents a binary 1, and the absence of a hole a binary 0) remains in use in the UK, particularly by the Ministry of Defence.

The NSA only confirmed the end of the programme and declined to provide an image of the now obsolete kit.

Neal Ziring, technical director of the NSAs Capabilities Directorate, told us earlier this year that the signals intelligence agency produced millions of the physical crypto keys per year during the 1980s but was now down to the hundreds annually.

He joked of the last production run: Well probably have a party.

Such cryptographic keys (used for symmetric algorithms widely deployed by the military) are physically shipped around the country in tamper-proof canisters.

Ziring attributed the longevity of the technology, despite digital alternatives, to slow military equipment replacement cycles: Once the military gets a tactical radio or something that they like, they tend to use it for a long while.

Weve been working with our military partners to get them off key tape for, oh jeez, well over a decade; probably longer.

Physical keys remain in widespread use in the UK. In 2018 the UK Key Production Authority, which sits under the NCSC, processed[pdf] 3,800 orders for key material; or 145,000 physical keys for 170 customers across government.

Richard Flitton, managing director ofL3 TRL; a Tewkesbury-based specialist in advanced electronic security systems, earlier told Computer Business Review that ongoing use of the technology was a security issue.

He said: Theres two issues here: one is that youve got to distribute the key, so youve got to physically move the things around the country or even overseas. If youre moving things theyre vulnerable to being intercepted or compromised. Then secondly theres the cost and logistical burden of doing all that.

The authority has a huge challenge to produce all those keys and then its got a challenge to distribute and install them all. I wont describe what happens. But if Joe Public knew, you would think this was all a bit 1960s really.

As Ziring explained earlier, digital cryptographic key management rendered comsec accounting and logistics a lot more straightforward.

In terms of how that works: A base or a depot would have an outpost of the key management system there are various form factors for that right on base.

If theyre trying to put keys into some military aircraft; theyd have fill devices in the hanger, you fill up the key fill device from the KMS, you take it around the airplanes youre talking about walking a couple hundred meters Its not like trying to ship it [a punched tape key] from Maryland out to a base from the other side of the world.

Such tape can either be used as a one-time key, roughly equivalent to a one-time pad to directly encipher a message (this was long ago phased out) or used to store a crypto variable; the key for a symmetric algorithm.

A blog by the NSA itself described the technology: Each 5,000 foot roll of Paper-Mylar-Paper-tape moving through the production line at one foot per second represented the raw material on which the COMSEC key would be punched and printed.

Keeping the punch and print operations moving with the necessary speed and precision presented a serious engineering challenge. Borrowing from the technology of magnetic tape drives, the development team came up with vacuum wells which were incorporated into the system to physically regulate the flow of the tape.

The software development engineer and crypto software programmers of such punch, verification, print (PVP) systems in the 1970s had to write the main system software for the DEC PDP-11 computer that would import cryptologic key and oversee the entire tape production process entirely in assembly language.

This task was daunting and would be considered the equivalent of travelling from Baltimore to Los Angeles on hands and knees by todays programmers.

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EXCLUSIVE Last Punched Tape Crypto Key Rolls off the NSAs Machines - Computer Business Review

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Is This a Room Dramatizes the Interrogation of NSA Leaker Reality Winner – TheaterMania.com

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If the FBI comes to your house, don't let them snoop around until they show you a warrant and for God's sake, don't talk to them until you have a lawyer present. That is the most useful lesson from director Tina Satter's Is This a Room, now playing at Vineyard Theatre. But this white-knuckle thriller based on true recent events contains more complicated observations about fear, intimidation, and how power mostly exerts itself in silence.

Satter uses as her script the verbatim transcript of the recording FBI agents Justin Garrick (Pete Simpson) and R. Wallace Taylor (T.L. Thompson) took the afternoon of June 3, 2017, shortly before the FBI arrested NSA contractor Reality Winner (Emily Davis). Winner was an Air Force veteran and specialist in Farsi, Dari, and Pashto. After leaving the military, she took a job as a translator with Pluribus, an organization that contracts with the NSA. Through her top-secret security clearance, she was able to access classified documents at work, including one that was leaked to online news source The Intercept revealing attempts by Russian intelligence to directly interfere with polling places during the 2016 election. In 2018, Winner pleaded guilty to leaking the document and was sentenced to five years, three months in federal prison the longest term ever to be given to someone for releasing government information to the media.

Winner's case raises unsettling questions about how the security state fits into our republic: Why is so much information gathered with our tax dollars withheld from us? Are leakers like Winner American patriots or threats to national security? Is it right that worker bees like Winner languish in prison while well-lawyered national security threats like Michael Flynn and Rudy Giuliani walk free? Is This a Room deals with none of these questions, but it does grippingly dramatize the moment when the cudgel of the state knocked down Reality Winner's door.

From the moment agents approach her, Winner knows she's in trouble. Small talk meant to keep the situation casual (but breathlessly delivered by all cast members) only seems to make things more awkward. Sattler reads a level of danger hidden beneath the anodyne chitchat of the transcript, and she brings that to her nerve-racking staging. The agents loom around her, invade her personal space, and breathe down her neck. Simpson and Thompson enact a classic good cop-bad cop routine, which is rendered no less effective for its transparency. The presence of an unnamed third male (Becca Blackwell) makes it clear that Winner is completely outnumbered.

All of this seems designed to undermine the government's narrative that Winner's confession (delivered without counsel and before any Miranda rights were read) was given freely. While the agents repeatedly state that this conversation is "voluntary," their menacing body language tells an entirely different story. Most damning is the presence of Winner's cat and dog, adorably fashioned by puppet designer Amanda Villalobos. Based on the vaguely threatening way Blackwell handles them alone, we understand that there will be consequences if Winner doesn't comply.

Davis plays Winner like she has just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Her childlike voice betrays guilt and fear from the earliest moments, and it only gets worse from there until she is standing with her hands over her crotch and her eyes downcast, like a little girl who has just wet herself. It's an interpretation of this Air Force veteran and powerlifter who regularly worked out within the testosterone-soaked walls of a CrossFit gym that I found hard to swallow. Did Reality Winner really crumple so completely?

While I intellectually bristled at Satter and Davis's infantilizing interpretation of Winner, that was only after I left the theater, and after I stopped feeling the real anxiety that Is This a Room conjures: Sattler's powerful blocking comes into sharp relief on Parker Lutz's unadorned platform set. The audience is seated in traverse, with the bulk of us staring at a singular line of brave souls seated opposite. Enver Chakartash faithfully re-creates the actual outfit Winner was wearing the day of her arrest, as captured by this snapshot. It leaves her exposed and vulnerable in the face of the handguns and (in Blackwell's case) body armor worn by the agents.

Lee Kinney and Sanae Yamada's aggressive sound design introduces disorienting alien noises to the theater, while Yamada's original music maintains an air of tension. Lighting designer Thomas Dunn has developed a clear convention for the redacted parts of the transcript: A magenta pulse for single words, a short blackout for full sentences. We are left briefly to contemplate in the dark how there are still aspects of this story that our government seeks to hide from us.

All of this created a feeling of anxiety that I've rarely encountered since I was a child being called on the carpet by some adult. Perhaps we are trained from an early age to revert to this red-eared state: From the all-seeing eye of Santa to the awesome surveillance apparatus of the NSA, our culture seems designed to infantilize us before authority. Through sharp design and gripping performances, Satter shows how even the strongest of us become weeping children in the face of the awesome power of the federal government. Does that sound like the land of the free to you?

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The Key Facts On National Storage Affiliates Trust ($NSA) (2019-10-28) Urgence News – Urgence News

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2019-10-28 (URGENCE NEWS) | Welcome! Today I did some analysis on National Storage Affiliates Trust based on how it has behaved over the past few trading sessions. First of all, please note that this is technical analysis only (ie. analyzing how NSA is trading, not digging into the company fundamentals), and therefore you should not rely only on this to guide you on whether you should buy or sell NSA take it with a grain of salt only, and pay attention to the disclaimer below. With that said, many traders find value in technical analysis and others even swear by it, so if that is you, I hope my analysis will be of use to you. Lets get to it

First things first: during its last day of trading, NSA opened at 35.48, got to a maximum price of 35.48 and dropped to as low as 34.72 before finishing the session at 34.76. In total there were 399000 shares traded, which is enough to conduct our analysis.

VOLUME ANALYSIS: Generally, the higher the volume indicators are, the better you need liquidity to trade, after all. All of the volume indicators are as follows (click here for an explanation on volume)

VOLATILITY INDICATORS: These are what tell you how much the stock has really been moving around. We have calculated all of them (click here for an explanation on volatility)

Now for the most important indicator of all, the trend. Is the stock bullish or bearish? Is it going up or down? Various trend indicators can give us a good indication (click here for an explanation on trend)

Now for momentum. Relative strength is what you want to pay attention to here (click here for an explanation on momentum)

And for the final and simplest part: the return. No complicated calculations needed here!

THE VERDICT: For today (2019-10-28), our analysis of technical indicators for National Storage Affiliates Trust ($NSA) indicates the following (thanks to Trading View for the widget):

The verdict above will consider all these technical indicators and consider which are strong and weak, and then put them all together to come up with a conclusion stating whether NSA is strong or weak. Again this is not a reliable indication of whether National Storage Affiliates Trust is a good investment! None of these indicators consider the company fundamentals. All of this data is based on how it trades only.

What tools do we think are useful for NSA investors? We have identified a handful of great services and software products that we feel comfortable recommending. The first (and main) thing you should take a look at is the Beat The Market Analyzer software, but we also recommend 3 other products. These are Dividend Stocks (an excellent resource to find stocks that may pay far better than NSA), Microcap Millionaires (the best site online for profiting off micro-cap stocks) and Trading Code (an extremely powerful system for profiting off trading). These recommendations are valid for NSA investors as of 2019-10-28.

DISCLAIMER: We are not registered investment advisers and the above analysis should be taken at face value only. We strongly advise against buying or selling National Storage Affiliates Trust ($NSA) based solely on our analysis above, and are not responsible for any losses that you may incur if you choose make any investment decisions based on the above.

Mailing address: Rua do Cisne 1059, Campo Limpo Paulista, So Paulo 13234-432Phone number: (11) 3953-7297Email: julio@urgence.tv

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The Key Facts On National Storage Affiliates Trust ($NSA) (2019-10-28) Urgence News - Urgence News

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28 EU MPs on private visit to J&K tomorrow, briefed by NSA and PM – National Herald

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A delegation of 28 MPs of the European Parliament were briefed on the situation in Kashmir on Monday in New Delhi by the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and the Prime Minister. The delegation, on a private visit, is expected to fly to Kashmir on Tuesday. It is not clear though whether they will be allowed to meet the incarcerated political leaders including the three former chief ministers of Jammu & Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah.

The visit comes barely a week after a scathing hearing on Kashmir at the US House of Representatives, followed by the request of six US Senators for permission to visit Kashmir and see the ground realities for themselves.

The private visit of the EU delegation appears to be part of Government of Indias campaign to reassure the international community that there is no violation of human rights in J & K, that by and large the situation on the ground has remained peaceful and normal and that people in J & K by and large have accepted the revocation of Article 370 and Article 35A.

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28 EU MPs on private visit to J&K tomorrow, briefed by NSA and PM - National Herald

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Healthy ageing talks and courses for the elderly by NSA – The New Paper

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There is something for everyone at the Active Ageing Nuggets event organised by the National Silver Academy (NSA).

Seniors can pick up valuable knowledge and tips on how to age well through the dozens of talks and specially curated educational videos.

Interesting topics include dementia, traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, financial literacy planning for retirement, caregiving and IT skills.

There will also be health and nutrition talks, as well as sharing of tips on how to reduce diabetes and hypertension and the signs and symptoms to look out for. The elderly can also sign up for some NSA courses after the talks.

Held at Heartbeat @ Bedok Atrium, Level 1, the Active Ageing Nuggets will take place from 11am to 8pm on Nov 1 and 2. Admission is free and no registration is required. Seats for the talks are on a first-come-first-served basis. Participants can also enjoy movie screenings with family and friends.

NSA is a network of post-secondary education institutions and community-based organisations offering a wide range of learning opportunities subsidised for those aged 50 years and above.

Most courses are SkillsFuture credit eligible too. Course topics cover both work skills and life skills in fields as varied as health and wellness, business and finance, IT, the humanities and arts.

Visit http://www.nsa.org.sg for the full list of courses or call 6478 5029 for more information. For details on the Active Ageing Nuggets event schedule, please visit http://www.c3a.org.sg/event_NSA_Bedok.

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Healthy ageing talks and courses for the elderly by NSA - The New Paper

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