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ACLU Sues DC Metro After It Rejects Ad With Text Of 1st Amendment – NPR

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

The ACLU and three other plaintiffs have filed a lawsuit against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, alleging its advertising guidelines are unconstitutional. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP hide caption

The ACLU and three other plaintiffs have filed a lawsuit against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, alleging its advertising guidelines are unconstitutional.

The four plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority are from across the political spectrum: the American Civil Liberties Union, a health care group called Carafem that provides abortions, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and conservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos.

What they have in common is that the transit agency known as WMATA has rejected their advertisements, saying the ads ran counter to its guidelines. They have now banded together, saying the guidelines introduced in 2015 violate their First Amendment right to free speech.

In fact, the ACLU's rejected advertisement displays the text of the First Amendment in English, Arabic and Spanish, with the ACLU's logo and the slogan "We the People."

The ACLU says WMATA has violated its right to free speech by rejecting an advertisement showing the text of the First Amendment in three languages. ACLU hide caption

WMATA did not explain in writing why it rejected the ACLU's ad, according to the complaint. Outfront Media, which manages the system's advertising, initially told the ACLU that it was rejected because it "does not take any issue oriented advertising." Outfront later stated that "you'll need to dramatically change your creative in order to resubmit," the complaint says.

"In its zeal to avoid hosting offensive and hateful speech, the government has eliminated speech that makes us think, including the text of the First Amendment itself," said ACLU senior staff attorney Lee Rowland. "The ACLU could not more strongly disagree with the values that Milo Yiannopoulos espouses, but we can't allow the government to pick and choose which viewpoints are acceptable."

The D.C. metro system changed its advertising policy in 2015. According to the ACLU, it happened "following controversy surrounding a set of anti-Muslim advertisement." The ACLU, Carafem and PETA had previously advertised with Metro.

The guidelines on commercial advertising, which are published on WMATA's website, say medical messages are allowed "only from government health organizations, or if the substance of the message is currently accepted by the American Medical Associated and/or the Food and Drug Administration."

It also blocks ads "intended to influence members of the public regarding an issue on which there are varying opinions," those "that support or oppose an industry position or industry goal without any commercial benefit to the advertiser" and those "that are intended to influence public policy."

In a statement about the lawsuit to NPR, WMATA pointed to its change in policy and said it "intends to vigorously defend its commercial advertising guidelines, which are reasonable and viewpoint neutral."

The lawsuit says WMATA rejected advertisements from PETA (counterclockwise from top), Carafem, Milo Yiannoloulos and the ACLU. ACLU hide caption

The Carafem advertisement says it sells the FDA-approved mifeprex/misoprostol regimen used to end pregnancy at up to 10 weeks. The "10-week-after pill," it reads, "for abortion up to 10 weeks."

WMATA rejected multiple PETA ads, including one saying "I'm ME, not MEAT. See the Individual. Go Vegan," next to a photo of a pig. The plaintiffs argue that "WMATA has accepted and displayed many advertisements that are intended to influence riders to buy, do and believe things that are at odds with PETA's viewpoint on humans' proper relationship with animals."

WMATA initially accepted advertisements for a book by conservative commentator Milo Yiannopoulos but took them down after receiving complaints, saying they violate the guidelines, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit claims that WMATA's rejection of the ads from the ACLU, Carafem and Milo Yiannopoulos was not because the ads themselves violated the guidelines. Instead, it says the ads were rejected for reasons outside of their content "such as the identity of the advertiser, the advertiser's known or presumed viewpoints, or the advertiser's line of business."

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ACLU Sues DC Metro After It Rejects Ad With Text Of 1st Amendment - NPR

DC’s transit agency rejected ads touting the First Amendment (really) – Ars Technica

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Enlarge / Issue ads like this one from 2012 used to be commonplace in the DC metro.

The American Civil Liberties Union on Wednesday sued the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the government agency thatoperates the capital region's subway system and its primary bus network. The ACLU argues that the transit agency's policies for accepting advertisements on its subway stations, trains, and buses violate the First Amendment by discriminating against controversial and non-mainstream viewpoints.

The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are ideologically diverse: the ACLU itself, an abortion provider, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and alt-right-Internet-troll-to-the-point-Twitter-actually-banned-him Milo Yiannopoulos.

The inclusion of an alt-right figure like Yiannopoulos helps to demonstrate the ACLU's point that WMATA's policy squelches free-speech rights across the political spectrum. But Yiannopoulos' inclusionhas also raised the hackles of some on the political left, who see associating with the controversial authoras beyond the pale. Chase Strangio, an ACLU attorney who has represented whistleblower Chelsea Manning, posted a statement calling Yiannopoulos "vile" and attacking the ACLU for defending his First Amendment rights.

But the ACLU has a long history of defending the First Amendment rights of groups far outside the mainstream, including Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan.As such, the organizationhasn't backed down from its defense of Yiannopoulos. "Protecting the First Amendment rights of all of these speakers is crucial to the ability of civil rights movements to make the change we need to make," the group argued in a Wednesday blog post.

The controversy began in 2015, when anti-Muslim activist Pam Geller tried to place ads depicting a cartoon of the prophet Muhammad on DC subways. That put WMATA in a difficult position, because some Muslim extremists have threatened violence against anyone who publishes Muhammad cartoons.

In an apparent effort to duck the controversy, WMATA announced that it was suspending "issue oriented" advertising across the board.

Of course, the big problem here is that it's not so clear what counts as an "issue oriented" ad. For example, military contractors have long taken out lavish ads touting their latest fighter planes. Arethey merely advertising commercial products or are they trying to influencepolicy decisions about what hardware to buy?

The ACLU believes that the "no issue ads" standard is unworkable and unconstitutional, and it assembled a group of plaintiffs to illustrate the point:

A couple of things are obvious from this list. First, while Yiannopoulos'participation in the lawsuit has gotten the most attention, the ACLU isn't only defending the rights of right-wing provocateurs like Yiannopoulos and Geller. Groups defending left-wing causes like animal rights and abortion rights have also been affected.

Second, while WMATA might have thought "issue ads" were a clear and value-neutral category, in practice it has turned out to be unworkably vague. Rules that allow companies to hawk fighter jets and hamburgers, but ban anti-war and animal rights groups from advertising, is the opposite of viewpoint-neutral. The WMATA's guidelines give the agency unfettered discretion to decide which positions are too controversial to appear in ads, and that seems hard to square with the First Amendment.

The ACLU is generally viewed as a liberal group, but itsabsolutist stance on the First Amendment doesn't fit well with everyone on the political left. A growing contingent of left-wing thinkers have come to see "hate speech" as a serious problem and free speech absolutism as an obstacle to addressing it.

Controversy has become more common over the last eightmonths as the ACLU has attracted a wave of new supporters alarmed by the Trump presidency. Many people donated to the ACLU in the expectation that the group would oppose Trump administration policiesand the group has done plenty of that. But not all of the ACLU's new donors understood the depths of the ACLU's commitment to free speech rights.

"Especially for many of our new members, they may be surprised by the ACLU's robust First Amendment positions," ACLU staff attorney Lee Rowland said in February. "But it's certainly not new."

Over time, defending the free speech rights of right-wing extremists has become something of a trademark for the group. For example, in 2012 the ACLU sued the state of Georgia defending the right of the KKK to "adopt a highway" in the state. In 2010, the group defended the free speech rights of Fred Phelps, the infamous pastor who pickets the funerals of LGBTsoldiers with anti-gay messages.

The ACLU has been doing this kind of thing for almost 100 years now, and it's not likely to stop any time soon. Individualswho don't want their donations supporting the rights of people who engage in "hate speech" mightbe wise toresearch organizations ahead of time.

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DC's transit agency rejected ads touting the First Amendment (really) - Ars Technica

Jeffrey Lord: ‘CNN caved on the First Amendment’ when it fired him – Fox News

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Conservative commentator Jeffrey Lord spoke out about being fired from CNN, saying "CNN caved" when they let him go on Thursday.

"I want to make something very clear. I have nothing but respect, affection and love for CNN. I think the world of CNN," Lord told The Associated Press. "I think they're terrific people and serious people."

Lord was given the boot after he tweeted a Nazi salute at a critic.

A network spokesperson called the Nazi salute "indefensible" in a statement, confirming that Lord was no longer with the network hours after Lord tweeted the Nazi slogan "Sieg Heil!" at the head of a liberal advocacy group, Media Matters for America.

Lord called himself a "First Amendment fundamentalist" and said CNN's decision was disappointing.

"From my perspective CNN caved on the First Amendment of all things. I disagree. I respectfully disagree."

He said his "Sieg Heil!" tweet was not an endorsement of Nazism or fascist tactics, but was meant to mock Media Matters and its use of boycotts.

He declined to get into specifics of how he was fired, saying he wanted to keep that a private conversation.

Lord may think CNN made the wrong move in letting him go, but many people on Twitter felt the network was right in saying "good riddance."

Lord is a former Reagan administration staffer who is currently a columnist for the conservative magazine The American Spectator. He was brought on to CNN in 2015 as one of the first fully pro-Trump commentators after the then-candidate first entered the GOP primary race. The network has since added pro-Trump contributors following the election.

Caving to bullies, caving to people who use fascist and Nazi-style tactics to try and remove people from the air is unacceptable, Lord toldEntertainment Weeklyafter his dismissal.

I mocked this guy. Mocking Nazis is OK. Thats a good thing, not a bad thing. A writer has only a handful of tools in his writers box, and mockery is one of them. To suggest that this is anything other than that, to my way of thinking, is caving in. And Im not going to cave.

The Anne Frank Centertweeteda rebuke of Lords use of the phrase.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Jeffrey Lord: 'CNN caved on the First Amendment' when it fired him - Fox News

Symposium: A path through the thicket the First Amendment right of association – SCOTUSblog (blog)

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Daniel P. Tokaji is the Charles W. Ebersold and Florence Whitcomb Ebersold Professor of Constitutional Law at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

A constitutional standard for partisan gerrymandering is the holy grail of election law. For decades, scholars and jurists have struggled to find a manageable standard for claims of excessive partisanship in drawing district lines. Most of these efforts have focused on the equal protection clause. But as Justice Anthony Kennedy suggested in Vieth v. Jubelirer, the First Amendment provides a firmer doctrinal basis for challenging partisan gerrymandering. An established line of precedent understands voting as a form of expressive association protected by the First Amendment. These cases offer a nuanced standard that would avoid the undesirable result of rendering any consideration of partisan consequences unconstitutional.

The right of expressive association

There is an obvious difficulty in relying on the First Amendment in partisan-gerrymandering cases: The Supreme Court has never considered voting a form of protected speech. It has, however, long recognized that voting is a form of protected association, at least in certain contexts. Before getting to those cases, its helpful to examine the roots of the right of expressive association.

The original associational-rights cases involved groups like the NAACP and the Communist Party that were extremely unpopular one might even say persecuted in many parts of the country. In NAACP v. Alabama ex rel. Patterson, for example, the Supreme Court invalidated a requirement that the NAACP disclose its membership list. Justice John Marshall Harlan IIs opinion for the court remarked that the freedom to engage in association for the advancement of beliefs and ideas is an inseparable aspect of the liberty assured by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which embraces freedom of speech. In other words, expressive association is a necessary corollary of free speech.

The right of expressive association is closely linked to the First Amendments prohibition on content and viewpoint discrimination. As Justice Antonin Scalia put it in one of his last dissenting opinions, the First Amendment is a kind of Equal Protection Clause for ideas. It prohibits the government from abusing its authority to suppress disfavored points of view. Most importantly, it restricts the dominant political groups authority to diminish the voices of those who might challenge their grip on power.

Thus, in the first generation of association cases, disfavored groups like the NAACP and the Communist Party relied on the First Amendment to prohibit the government from taking adverse action against them and their members. These cases rest partly on the individual liberty interest identified in NAACP v. Alabama. But theyre also grounded in a larger vision of how democracy should function.

A leading example is the line of patronage cases that began with Elrod v. Burns, in which the Supreme Court struck down the practice of firing public employees who werent members of the Democratic Party, which controlled Cook County, Illinois. After describing the harm to individual employees, the plurality turned to systemic concerns arising from this practice: It is not only belief and association which are restricted where political patronage is the practice, wrote Justice William Brennan. The free functioning of the electoral process also suffers. Discrimination against non-party members tended to starve political opposition, thus tip[ping] the electoral process in favor of the incumbent party. In other words, party-based discrimination distorts the political process, entrenching the dominant party in power while subordinating its chief rival.

Voting as association

Partisan gerrymandering effects a comparable systemic harm, albeit through a different mechanism. By manipulating district lines, the dominant party can entrench itself in power even when the political winds shift. The increasingly sophisticated technology that line-drawers have at their disposal exacerbates the problem. It allows the dominant party to capture a large percentage of seats while ensuring that its majority will hold in both bad times and good.

Thats true not only in Wisconsin, from which Gill v. Whitford emerges, but in other states that would be competitive but for gerrymandering. Take my own state of Ohio. Although Ohio is a consummate purple state in presidential elections, Republican mapmakers drew lines there in 2011 that give their party a supermajority of districts three-quarters of the states congressional delegation and roughly two-thirds of its state legislative districts. These districts were drawn with the goal of creating a firewall that would ensure Republican control even in a strong Democratic year. And theyve been a spectacular success, ensuring Republican control of the Ohio state legislature throughout the current decade. Because they diminish the power of the non-dominant party in a manner thats both substantial and enduring, excessive partisan gerrymanders violate the right of expressive association.

Still, one might argue that compelled disclosure and patronage are very different from redistricting. In the original association cases, particular individuals were harmed discouraged from or punished for affiliating with disfavored groups. Moreover, those cases dont directly involve voting. Its a leap, one might argue, to hold that the right of association is implicated when voters, candidates and parties associate through the electoral process.

As it turns out, the Supreme Court made this leap long ago. For almost a half-century, the court has recognized that voting is a form of association protected by the First Amendment. The first voting-as-association case was Williams v. Rhodes, which challenged Ohios ballot-access requirements for new political parties like George Wallaces American Independent Party. Justice Hugo Blacks opinion for the court relied on both the First Amendment right of association and equal protection to strike down this requirement. Ohios onerous rules for adding new parties to the ballot gave the two old, established parties a decided advantage plac[ing] substantially unequal burdens on both the right to vote and the right to associate. In Williams, the Supreme Court thus stressed the risk of dominant parties using voting rules to entrench themselves in power, thereby harming non-dominant parties and their supporters.

Several years later, in Anderson v. Celebrezze, the Supreme Court again relied on the right of association to invalidate another ballot-access rule in Ohio, this time one that would have kept John Anderson from running as an independent presidential candidate in 1980. Justice John Paul Stevens opinion for the majority recognized that theres no litmus-paper test to separate valid and invalid restrictions on voting and association. Rather, the court should weigh the character and magnitude of the burden on voting and association against the states asserted interests. Although reasonable, nondiscriminatory restrictions can usually be justified by important regulatory interests, a stronger justification is required for more serious burdens, including ones that discriminate against outsider candidates and their supporters.

A subsequent case involving write-in voting in Hawaii, Burdick v. Takushi, reaffirmed Andersons flexible standard while clarifying that strict scrutiny applies only if the burden on voting and association is severe. Other cases like Tashjian v. Republican Party of Connecticut and Washington State Grange v. Washington Republican Party apply this standard to electoral rules that burden the associational rights of major parties and their adherents. The Anderson-Burdick balancing test is now used in constitutional challenges to a wide variety of election laws, including ballot access, blanket primaries and even voter ID. Whats not commonly recognized is that this legal standard originated in voting-as-association cases.

Applying the voting-as-association standard

Its true that the Supreme Court hasnt yet applied the Anderson-Burdick standard to partisan gerrymandering. In fact, the court has been maddeningly unclear about what legal standard should apply in these cases. But for several reasons, the standard emerging from the voting-as-association cases provides the best fit for evaluating partisan gerrymandering claims.

The first is that the First Amendment right of association best captures the type of injury alleged, specifically the lasting harm to non-dominant political parties and their adherents arising from the dominant partys self-entrenchment. Expressive-association cases have long focused on such harms, not only to the non-dominant party but to our political system. By contrast, equal protection law doesnt accord any special status to political party affiliation. Unlike race or sex, party affiliation isnt a protected class under the equal protection clause.

The second advantage of relying on the established voting-as-association standard is that it focuses on effects rather than intent. Recall that the Anderson-Burdick standard requires courts to weigh the character and magnitude of the burden on voting and association against the states asserted interests. An intent to harm the non-dominant party may be relevant, but it isnt required. Thats a good thing, because intent is notoriously hard to prove or disprove, especially in redistricting cases. The Shaw v. Reno line of racial-gerrymandering cases exemplifies this difficulty. Under those cases, the pivotal question is whether race was the predominant factor in drawing a particular district. Twenty-four years after Shaw, the Supreme Court is still struggling to explain what this means. An effect-based test is preferable. Though Anderson-Burdick is hardly a bright-line rule, its balancing standard has proven manageable in other voting contexts and can be adapted to partisan-gerrymandering claims.

This brings me to a third advantage of relying on the voting-as-association cases to assess partisan gerrymandering claims: It provides a nuanced legal standard. The Anderson-Burdick balancing approach would allow lower courts to sort through the evidence, striking down the most egregious and unjustified partisan gerrymanders without categorically prohibiting any consideration of party affiliation when drawing districts. Of course, partisan-gerrymandering claims demand hard judgments. There are no bright lines here. But the legal standard that the Supreme Court has long used in voting-as-association cases provides the best fit for partisan-gerrymandering cases like Gill v. Whitford.

Posted in Gill v. Whitford, Summer symposium on Gill v. Whitford, Featured, Merits Cases

Recommended Citation: Daniel Tokaji, Symposium: A path through the thicket the First Amendment right of association, SCOTUSblog (Aug. 10, 2017, 2:12 PM), http://www.scotusblog.com/2017/08/symposium-path-thicket-first-amendment-right-association/

Jeffrey Lord Speaks Out on Firing: ‘CNN Caved on the First Amendment’ – Mediaite

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Hours after he tweeted out Sieg Heil! during a Twitter fight with Media Matters president Angelo Carusone, political commentator Jeffrey Lord found himself fired by CNN. Commenting on the network severing ties with the pro-Trump pundit, a CNN spokesperson stated that Nazi salutes are indefensible.

Following CNNs announcement of his termination, Lord spoke with the Associated Press. While he expressed his affection and love for CNN, noting that theyre terrific people and serious people, he said he felt the outlet was doing a disservice to free speech.

He called himself a First Amendment fundamentalist and called CNNs decision disappointing. From my perspective CNN caved on the First Amendment of all things. I disagree. I respectfully disagree.

Those remarks somewhat echo what he said to CNN senior media correspondent Brian Stelter shortly after he was canned, as he claimed in that conversation that CNN was caving to bullies.

Lord further told the AP that he had received a tidal wave of support from conservatives following his firing. One of those conservatives is White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, who called the American Spectator columnist last night to encourage him to keep fighting.

[image via screengrab]

Follow Justin Baragona on Twitter: @justinbaragona

Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com

Jeffrey Lord Speaks Out on Firing: 'CNN Caved on the First Amendment' - Mediaite

After landmark First Amendment ruling, more Loudouners share their stories of social media censoring – Loudoun Times-Mirror

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

What do a local government contractor, a conservative activist in Sterling, gay rights leaders in Lovettsville, a Purcellville politician and members of a left-leaning political action group have in common?

All have been blocked from an elected officials social media account for challenging their policy positions.

Following a federal court ruling last month that said Chairwoman Phyllis (D-At Large) violated Lansdowne resident Brian Davisons First Amendment rights by blocking him temporarily from her Facebook page, residents from Loudoun and around the country have come forward with more stories about how they were censored from the social media pages of their elected officials.

For a politician to just say outright you're no longer allowed to post in this public forum that I've created, I think that does definitely cross a boundary, said conservative activist Rick Canton of Sterling.

Canton says he was blocked from Del. Kathleen Murphys (D) Twitter account in 2013 after he challenged her position on gun rights. He also says he was initially blocked from State Sen. Jennifer Wextons (D) Twitter account but later reinstated after challenging her on the same issue.

Jonathan and David Weintraub LGBTQ activists from Lovettsville -- claim they were preemptively blocked from Del. Dave LaRocks (R) Facebook page before they could even interact with him on the page. They believe LaRock banned them because of their liberal reputation on equal rights issues.

When it comes to being criticized and disagreed with and presented with information that might be inconvenient for [politicians], they should not be able to block that from happening in a public forum, David Weintraub said. And when they put up an official Facebook page that says, I am the delegate of the 33rd District, that's a public forum, its not a personal page.

Purcellville Town Councilwoman Karen Jimmerson says she has been blocked from State Sen. Dick Blacks (R) Twitter and Facebook accounts, as well as LaRocks Twitter page, though the delegate later reinstated her.

But Jimmerson finds herself in a unique and some would say hypocritical spot. She admitted she has blocked people from her social media page, which she maintains is a campaign page. Jimmerson said the users were banned because their comments were extremely vile postings that were personal in nature as opposed to focused on the subject being debated.

In addition to Jimmerson, Chairwoman Randall, Sens. Wexton and Black and Del. Murphy, Congresswoman Barbara Comstock (R) and state Del. Tag Greason (R) have also blocked citizens from social media pages.

A tide-turning decision, but confusion ensues

U.S. District Judge James C. Cacheris decision in Davisons case against Chairwoman Randall and the Board of Supervisors has already shown regional and national implications.

Lawyers from the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, which recently filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and his social media team, say the president suppressed dissent by blocking critics from his Twitter account. They said they plan to point to the Davison decision to help their case.

Some elected officials, like State Sen. Wexton and Del. LaRock, also appear to be taking steps to unblock constituents from their social media pages.

But mixed rulings on the issue from different judges from the same federal court has caused some confusion, as has debate over what are personal, campaign and official social media accounts.

A separate ruling on a free speech suit Davison brought against members of the Loudoun County School Board from a different judge in the same federal court said members of the School Board did not violate Davisons right to free speech for blocking him from their pages.

In a 20-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga noted the issue was not clear as a legal matter whether the Facebook pages in question were limited or public forums.

Senator Wextons office said after the court clarified that public officials cannot block constituents, she unblocked accounts regardless of how they previously behaved.

Wexton's office said its social media policy has been to not block constituents as long as their messages did not become threatening or unnecessarily aggressive.

Delegate LaRock said that in the last few days he and his office have published a disclaimer on his Facebook page reserving their right to delete user comments that include profanity, name-calling, threats, personal attacks, or other inappropriate comments or material.

LaRock said members of the GOP caucus have also met to discuss the Davison decision, but they do not think the ruling will affect their social media accounts that are considered personal and treated as personal.

The western Loudoun delegate maintains his social media accounts are campaign accounts and not official government business. Altogether, he thinks he has banned roughly a half dozen people over the last six months, though he says he is open to unblocking them.

The only time I would delete a comment is if it is something that's out of context, or is just an unfounded accusation that is not really in any way connected with an inquiry for information, which I generally consider to be intentionally disruptive, LaRock said.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia this week sent a letter to all members of the states congressional delegation asking them to stop blocking people from their official and unofficial social media accounts used for official purposes simply because they oppose what they are saying.

The ACLU said many of the complaints they received from constituents around the commonwealth did not distinguish the elected officials accounts between official and political.

But with the rulings coming out of federal court in Alexandria, Alan Gernhardt, head of the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council, said they plan to talk about the recent decisions at a meeting later this month.

Were trying to stay aware of it, and were trying to watch things. I think we will try to address it sometime in the future, but we dont really have specific guidelines on social media right now, Gernhardt said.

Related coverage:

-"Loudoun resident files civil rights suits against county officials over social media censorship" -"Federal judge sides with Loudoun commonwealths attorney in First Amendment suit" -"Loudoun County chairwoman, Lansdowne resident meet in federal court" -"U.S. District judge rules Randall violated Lansdowne residents First Amendment right" -"Federal court dismisses Lansdowne residents free speech suit against Loudoun County School Board" -"Loudoun County residents First Amendment case may benefit free-speech groups suit against Trump"

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After landmark First Amendment ruling, more Loudouners share their stories of social media censoring - Loudoun Times-Mirror

Debian-Based Tails 3.1 Anonymous OS Debuts with Tor Browser 7.0.4, Linux 4.9.30 – LXer (press release)

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Tails, the amnesic incognito live system, also known as the anonymous live operating system, has been updated today to version 3.1, a point release that fixes many security issues and updates important components.

Tails 3.1 is here with the latest Tor Browser 7.0.4 anonymous web browser and the Linux 4.9.30-2+deb9u3 LTS kernel, which is also used by default in Debian Stretch. The new release was synced with the upstream repositories of the Debian GNU/Linux 9.1 "Stretch" operating system.

Among other noteworthy changes implemented in Tails 3.1, we can mention a fix for a bug that lets the Mozilla Thunderbird email and news client erase its temporary directory, which might contain previously opened attachments, as well as updated "Tor is ready" and time synchronization notifications translations.

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Debian-Based Tails 3.1 Anonymous OS Debuts with Tor Browser 7.0.4, Linux 4.9.30 - LXer (press release)

Nvidia CEO: Cryptocurrencies Are ‘Here to Stay’ – CoinDesk

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Nvidia is riding high on the boom in cryptocurrency mining, according to the graphics card (GPU) manufacturer.

Revealedyesterday, the California-based company'ssecond-quarter earnings wereup 56 percent year over year, with its GPU division taking in $1.9 billion during the second quarter a rise of 59 percent compared to the same period in 2016.

Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang struck a bullish tone about the prospects for selling to would-be miners, tellingVentureBeat:

"Cryptocurrency and blockchain are here to stay. Over time, it will become quite large. It is very clear that new currencies will come to market. Its clear the GPU is fantastic at cryptography. The GPU is really quite well positioned."

The firm's CFO, Colette Kress, echoed the remarks in statements, citing rising values in the global cryptocurrency market as a primary driver for GPU sales.

"Our PC OEM revenue includes GPUs designed for mainstream desktops, notebooks, and cryptocurrency mining," she said. "The recent rise in crypto coin prices resulted in increased demand in OEM GPU sales."

Huang's comments stand in contrast to those from rival GPU maker AMD, however. Last month, CEO Lisa Suindicated that the company doesn't see a long-term future for sales in the miningmarket. That aside, she indicatedthat hercompany would "continue to watch the developments" in the space.

Recent months have seen growing demand for GPUs from cryptocurrency miners, who usethe cards to add new transaction blocks to a blockchain and receive newly minted coins as reward. GPUs are used to mine cryptocurrencies like ethereumand litecointhat use the "scrypt" hashing algorithm. Bitcoin, by contrast, is chiefly mined today using dedicatedhardware called ASICs.

Jen-Hsun Huang image via Flickr/BagoGames (Creative Commons)

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is an independent media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. Have breaking news or a story tip to send to our journalists? Contact us at [emailprotected].

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Nvidia CEO: Cryptocurrencies Are 'Here to Stay' - CoinDesk

Nvidia is more bullish on cryptocurrency than AMD

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Nvidia Corp. Chief Executive Jensen Huang summed up the chip makers view of cryptocurrencies in a single phrase Thursday: rock n roll.

Thats how Huang described his companys ability to ride out what he sees as a blossoming market for his companys graphics cards in mining the digital currency.

Crypto is here to stay, and the market will grow to be quite large, Huang said Thursday on the companys second-quarter call with analysts. Its not likely to go away any time soon. There will be more currencies to come, they will come from different nationsWe stay very close to the market, and understand the dynamics very well.

Dont miss: Intel earnings have message for Nvidia and AMD: Bring it on

Nvidia NVDA, -6.07% detailed quarterly results Thursday that beat expectations handily for sales and earnings, but the stock plunged more than 6.5% in after-hours trading following an already punishing day during the regular session. The companys shares are still up more than 50% this year, against the S&P 500 indexs SPX, +0.14% gains of 8.9%, as investors bet on Nvidias artificial-intelligence efforts to pay off in server and autonomous-driving sales.

Huang seemed to think crytpocurrency mining could add another long-term growth area to Nvidias bull case Thursday, and hinted at products developed specifically for those efforts, telling analysts on the call that the company offers the coin miners a special coin-mining SKU that is optimized for mining.

When asked whether the CEOs comment confirmed the rumored development of specific cryptocurrency products, an Nvidia spokesman declined to comment.

Analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights and Strategy told MarketWatch that he didnt believe that Huang was suggesting new cryptocurrency products, but rather offerings that partners in the sales channel were developing with Nvidia chips. Moorhead pointed out that there is at least one card based on Nvidias Pascal architecture that is manufactured by Asustek Computer Inc. 2357, -1.90% and marketed to cryptocurrency miners.

That is a similar approach to how Nvidia rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. AMD, +0.39% is approaching crypto mining, but Nvidia sounds much more optimistic on the long-term prospects for customers seeking to mine digital currencies.

Some of our partners are also offering mining-specific cards that have a different feature set, such that were really segmenting the market between gaming and mining, Su said on her companys earnings call last month. But its important to say we didnt have cryptocurrency in our forecast, and were not looking at it as a long-term growth driver.

AMD also beat earnings expectations thanks to a boom in cryptocurrency mining that uses graphics-processing units. The development of new digital currencies beyond Bitcoin over the past few months, particularly on the Ethereum blockchain, have seemed to drive sales of the two companies GPUs.

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Nvidia is more bullish on cryptocurrency than AMD

Cryptocurrency service forced to halt ICO after raising $186M in one hour – TNW

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Initial coin offerings (ICO) are hot these days. But despite all the excitement and willingness from the masses to invest their money into cryptocurrency, it appears it remains as risky a venture as ever and Filecoin has given us even more reasons to doubt the trend.

Theblockchain-powered data storage service has resorted to temporarily suspending its ICO after the overwhelming inflow of cash caused its systems to partially break down, Finance Magnates reports.

The startup, which offers users a chance to exchange its own cryptocurrency for other currencies like US dollars, Bitcoin and Ether, raised $186 million in under one hour and proceeded to report having received investments totalling at over $250 million.

The sale was paused at approximately 11:10PM on August 10 and continues to be suspended 18 hours later at the time of writing.

Filecoin has provided a series of updates, the latest one of which says that the ICO will resume with notice.

For context, Filecoin is hardly the only blockchain-powered startup to go through a dicey ICO.

Back in June, decentralized messaging app Status raised over $60 million in an ICO, causing its systems to collapse and the Ethereum network to overload. As a result, the company had to deliver the promised coins to their users with a slight delay.

Read next: Medium's new Claps reaction button lets you applaud authors you love

$126 Billion: The Cryptocurrency Market Just Set a New All-Time High – CoinDesk

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

The total value of all cryptocurrencies set a new all-time high today, rising above $126 billion for the first time in history, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

The new benchmark was set at 8:00 UTC and comes just four days after the crypto asset class set aprevious recordabove $116 billion.

At press time, the price increase appears to be driven by a new influx of capital into bitcoin, the markets oldest and perhaps best understood asset. Over the last seven days, the value of one bitcoin is up more than 20%, rising to over $3,500 from $2,854 last Friday.

During that time, the total value of its coin supply also rose, climbing in value to $57 billion from $47 billion a week ago.

Strong gains have also been seen in the top-10 cryptocurrencies by market cap.

Neo (formerly Antshares), a well-publicized project out of China saw its market capitalization pass $1 billion for the first time. Over the past seven days, it has seen its market capitalization rise to $1.7 billion, up from $550 million, as its price per coin climbed to $34, up from roughly $10 seven days ago.

Elsewhere, IOTA also rose to $1.7 billion, up from $1.1 billion, while ether, the native cryptocurrency on the ethereum blockchain, increased its total market cap to $28 billion, up from $21 billion aweek ago.

But that's not to say all cryptocurrencies have seen such big movementsduring the period.

Bitcoin cash, the cryptocurrency created in last week's bitcoin fork, added little new value to its market, inching up to $5.4 billion, from $5.1 billion a week ago.

Hot air balloons image via Shutterstock

Bitcoin surges to fresh record above $3500, beats gold amid the global market sell-off – CNBC

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Bitcoin's gains followed an uneventful split last week into bitcoin and bitcoin cash, an upgrade proposal supported by a minority of developers. This week, an overwhelming majority of developers signaled their support for a more popular upgrade called Segregated Witness, or SegWit.

"With SegWit locked in, and an effective split between two camps with differing visions for the asset (BTC and BCH), it is now experiencing a relief rally," said Chris Burniske, author of the upcoming book, "Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor's Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond."

"A greater number of entities, including institutions, are waking up to bitcoin's merits as a currency that is uncorrelated to the traditional capital markets," he said.

Many digital currency enthusiasts believe bitcoin will one day become "digital gold" amid the rise of other cryptocurrencies. The supply of bitcoin is limited to 21 million, but demand for the digital currency remains high as it's typically the way for new investors to participate in the growing, larger world of cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin already trades at nearly three times the price of gold.

Some Wall Street analysts have also published research in the last several weeks noting how bitcoin could rise several thousand dollars if even a small percentage of holdings in gold, stocks and bonds flowed into the digital currency.

U.S. stocks remain close to their all-time highs, and many strategists expect a deeper pullback soon due to seasonal factors and overextended prices. The S&P 500 closed below its 50-day moving average Thursday for the first time since July 6, led by declines in technology stocks.

Stocks were slightly higher Friday, but the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) remained 0.8 percent lower for the week, tracking for its worst week since the end of June. The S&P 500 was on pace for a decline of about 1.3 percent for the week, its worst in at least four months.

That said, there's no guarantee the digital currency can keep climbing even if it's survived this summer's controversy over the best way to upgrade the bitcoin network. The second phase of Segregated Witness is set to take place in November and could result in yet another split in the digital currency.

"Every day sees new buyers entering the market, and as the price rises, owners of Bitcoin only become more bullish," Ari Paul, CIO of cryptocurrency investment firm BlockTower Capital, told CNBC in an email. "This trend may continue until there's an exogenous shock to entice new sellers."

Another digital currency, ethereum, was little changed around $300 Friday, according to CoinDesk.

The bitcoin offshoot, bitcoin cash, traded 13 percent higher near $330, according to CoinMarketCap.

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Bitcoin surges to fresh record above $3500, beats gold amid the global market sell-off - CNBC

The Bitcoin Price Just Inched Up to Set Another All-Time High – CoinDesk

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

The average price of bitcoin across global exchanges today reached $3,550 on the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index, setting yet another new all-time high.

The uptick coincides with a palpable improvement in public sentiment about the world's first cryptographic asset, with bitcoin recently receiving positive mentions from leading asset managers and gaining increasing exposure in western media.

At press time, bitcoin was trading at $3,550, a figure that has appreciated nearly 50% over the last month of trading. Data from the CoinDesk BPI indicates the price of bitcoin was just $2,423 on June 12.

Yet, the strongest growth has been seen in the last week,following a fork of the bitcoin blockchain that resulted in the creation of a new cryptocurrency, bitcoin cash.

Perhaps most notably, bitcoin is up nearly 25% on the week since the split, rising from $2,871 seven days prior, while bitcoin cash, the new blockchain, has climbed just 17%, rising to $340 from $290 one week ago.

The interplay between the two currencies will no doubt be one to watch, as it could change attitudes toward blockchain forks and provide an illustration of how cryptocurrency markets will respond to technical changes in the future.

Bitcoin image via Shutterstock

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Square founder Jack Dorsey talks bitcoin and says blockchain is the ‘next big unlock’ – The Verge

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

If youve been hearing or reading a lot about blockchain but you still arent entirely certain how to define it, youre not alone. Its something that Jack Dorsey, the chief executive officer and chairman of Square (and CEO of Twitter), describes as the next big unlock, something that, he notes, is normally applied to accounting terms but has the potential to be applied to so much more.

In an interview earlier this week at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, I had the chance to ask Dorsey about Squares business, the future of banking, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, and more.

Blockchain is often defined as a ledger that enables secure, encrypted transactions. Some financial and technical experts have described it as analogous to the early days of the internet: its a framework or backbone for transactions, while the various use cases for it are analogous to apps on the internet as we know them today.

But Dorsey also went beyond that interpretation of it, adding that the ability to distribute and decentralize the ledger enables proof of work, and proof of one entity, in an untrusted network. Even if theres a hostile entity or a mistrust in the network, Dorsey said, we can still account for value creation and the transfer of values as well.

There are so many problems we can help solve [with blockchain] that are not just related to finance, but finance is an obvious one, he added.

There are so many problems we can help solve that are not just related to finance.

However, the availability of blockchain technology doesnt necessarily mean that everyone should jump on the blockchain bandwagon. I think there are going to be a bunch of people who say, Blockchain, lets go apply it everywhere and Lets try to solve every single problem with it, Dorsey said, in the same way that we try to solve every problem with machine learning and data science and deep learning and artificial intelligence. And I think we need to be more thoughtful. What are people struggling with? How does the technology help them progress or does it distract them?

Dorsey also spoke about bitcoin, which Square has accepted as a form of payment since the fall of 2014. Dorsey also admitted he has personally invested in Bitcoin, though he didnt share how many bitcoins he holds.

He said one of the most surprising things hes experienced recently is when friends and family, who arent as close to the technology industry, have been asking about bitcoin specifically, how to invest in the cryptocurrency.

Im from St. Louis, Missouri, and I have a lot of friends and family who are not into technology, Dorsey said. Over the holidays, one of the things I kept getting asked by people I know is, You work in technology, you work in finance, how do I buy bitcoin? I asked, Why do you want to buy bitcoin? And they said, Well I heard its a fast easy way to make money... someone said its like digital gold.

Dorsey went on to discuss the benefits of and potential problems with investing in a digital asset that is decentralized, deflationary, and in general, unlike any other traditional stock market securities. The full video is below. Its a long discussion, but its a rare in-depth conversation with an entrepreneur who has firmly established himself as a disruptor in more than one industry.

Watch Square CEO Jack Dorsey in Conversation with The Verges Senior Technology Editor Lauren Goode. Hes talking about why he started the digital payments company, his approach to innovation in financial services and his vision for the future of commerce. Please submit your questions during the live program in the comments below. #CHMLive

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Square founder Jack Dorsey talks bitcoin and says blockchain is the 'next big unlock' - The Verge

Russia Is Secretly Plotting to Expand Bitcoin Mining Industry to Take on China – TheStreet.com

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Russia is planning to expand its bitcoin-mining industry to rival China as the world's largest mining market, according to Bloomberg reports.

Bitcoin consultants warn that if Russia looks at regulating Bitcoin, this could potentially affect the price and widespread support for Bitcoin within the investing community. It is also important to note that Russia does not see Bitcoin as a currency but as a digital asset.

Another huge announcement involves Bitcoin company Russian Miner Coin (RMC), which is hoping to is raise $100 million in an initial coin offering (ICO) and in turn promising buyers a right to 18% of the company's mining revenue.

Michael Parsons, a bitcoin entrepreneur at the UK Digital Currency Association, explains the Russian authorities have been trying over the years to ban bitcoin. But this view softened over the last year or so, hence movements from RMC and others. That's, in part, a result of a shift in how Bitcoin is viewed.

"Earlier this year, Elvira Nabiullina, governor of the Russian Central Bank, explained that she views bitcoin as a digital asset rather than a virtual currency, and this is how Bitcoin should be thought about with regards to future regulation," Parsons said.

It is expected Russia will rival China -- but how exactly will Russian Bitcoin mining impact the space?

"By moving into Bitcoin mining, Russia would support the mining decentralization of Bitcoin, providing an additional significant Bitcoin mining participation to balance the mining by other large groups and mining pools especially the large bitcoin mining farms concentrated in China," Parsons said.

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"Then, by accumulating bitcoin through its own mining, Russia may also consider bitcoin to be recognized as a potential reserve digital currency," he added. "And, if Russia looked at regulating bitcoin, this could potentially affect the price and support for bitcoin."

Currencies have a geopolitical impact.

"As cryptocurrencies create a new asset class that does not depend on any government, it makes sense for governments to try to enter that space," said a Bitcoin expertwho requested anonymity. "Currency and payment systems have a geopolitical impact. For instance, at end of 2014 Visa and Mastercard suspended operations in Crimea following U.S. sanctions."

The source explained that BCash can be seen as a Chinese version of Bitcoin, and RMC a Russian version of Bitcoin.

The Bank of England has also studied a national blockchain. Promoting local champions is also a good strategy to develop skills and competencies that may become critical in the future.

"Governments can also invest into large industry players through venture capital funds and influence the industry through regulation," the source added. "The European Union fourth AML directive defines new rules for crypto currency custodians."

In the beginning, RMC is expected to rely on Bitfury chips. Bitfury is a company that manufactures mining equipment and also operates its own mining operations, was founded by Valery Vavilov, a Russian-speaking native of Latvia.

"In the case of RMC, the partnership with Bitfury, a large and well established Bitcoin miner operating in 18 countries, is significant," the source said. "RMC will be able to get to market much faster by using BitFury data centers and technology, while developing its own homemade mining equipment. It is not clear why Bitfury is selling these profitable Bitcoin mining assets."

For those looking to keep track of Bitcoin's price trajectory, Russia will inevitably be an essential piece of the puzzle.

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Is NVIDIA Too Dependent on Bitcoin? – Investopedia

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Investopedia

Is NVIDIA Too Dependent on Bitcoin?
Investopedia
All summer, shares of the semiconductor maker have been rising with the price of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin and, to a lesser extent, Ethereum. The boom in the price of the digital currency has brought more people into the market who are using high-end ...
Wall Street Fears Nvidia Is Too Dependent on BitcoinFortune

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Is NVIDIA Too Dependent on Bitcoin? - Investopedia

$5000 Bitcoin? 3 Reasons to Buyand to Stay Away – Fortune

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Bitcoin has gone on bull runs before but nothing like this: Prices this week shot through the $3,500 mark as the mainstream media hailed digital currency as a new asset class. Then it got another boost as the blue chip brokerage house, Fidelity, allowed its customers to create bitcoin accounts.

Now, some people are calling for it go even higher. As Quartz reports , a Standpoint Research analyst has called a target of $5000 for bitcoin by 2018. This raises the question of whether ordinary investors should put a smidgen of their savings, or even their retirement accounts, into buying bitcoin. (Keep in mind you don't have to buy a whole bitcoin. Since it's digital, you can buy a hundred millionth of onethis tiny unit is called a Satoshi after bitcoin's creator.)

There are strong arguments to buyand also strong ones to stay the heck away. Here are three of each.

Major investors and the financial industry is taking it seriously

Since its creation in 2008, Bitcoin's biggest boosters have been computer geeks and libertarians. But recently, they've been joined by a growing number of mainstream investors and entrepreneurs who see bitcoinand other digital currenciesas a legitimate asset class such as stocks, bonds, or commodities.

In 2017 alone, famous names like Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital have bet on hedge funds that are investing hundreds of millions of dollars into digital currency funds. Meanwhile, the financial infrastructure to support bitcoin and other digital currency is maturing rapidly: Coinbase's GDAX exchange has supported margin trading since March, while the Commodity Future Trading Commission just gave the green light for firms to sell digital currency options and other derivatives.

There is only a limited amount of bitcoin

One reason to buy bitcoins are a valuable asset is that only 21 million of them will ever come into the worldand most of them are already here. As those familiar with bitcoin know, the number of coins created by the mining process drops by half every few years. Right now, around 80% of all bitcoins are already mined and no new ones will appear after the year 2040. This scarcity could continue to drive up demand, especially if (as has been rumored ), central banks decide to start buying them as foreign currency reserves.

Some see bitcoin as the new gold

So-called gold bugs like to own the precious metal because it is an asset whose value is not controlled by governments. Even if a country is ravaged by war or its profligate central bank prints too much money, the value of gold (unlike the national currency) will remain. Bitcoin has many of the same qualities. It exists on a decentralized computer network that transcends national borders, and there is no Federal Reserve-like authority that can devalue it.

This isn't a definitive reason to buy bitcoin any more than it is to buy gold. But an analyst cited by Quartz predicts the gold bugs will become bitcoin bugs instead, which means a lot of money flowing into the digital currency.

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Bitcoin's core users are still criminals and fringe figures

For years, stores like Overstock and Subway have accepted bitcoin as payment alongside cash and credit cards. But despite the promise of true believers that bitcoin could replace cash one day, there is no evidence this will happen. The reality is bitcoin is too slow compared to visa or debit cards, and transaction fees are rising. Right now, you can pay a fee and wait ten minutes for your bitcoin transaction to clearor swipe a credit card to pay instantly and get a cash reward.

Because of these limitations, bitcoin's core use remains what's it's always been: paying for drugs or extortion fees on the Internet. For instance, the cyber-criminals who launched a recent wave of " ransomware " attacks known as WannaCry asked for payment in bitcoin .

Ordinary consumers, meanwhile, are not using it as a payment method. That doesn't mean its not valuable as an investmentjust that, in the real world, it's even less useful than gold.

Bitcoin is extremely volatile

Over its nearly decade-long history, bitcoin has been prone to spectacular crashes. In 2013, for instance, the currency went on a run to over $1,100 only to tank to $700 a few months later, and then bottom out near $200 in early 2015. There is no reason this couldn't happen again.

While investors may drool at $5,000 bitcoin, they better be equally ready to kick themselves if it tumbles back to $2,000 or lower this year. This goes double for the many other so-called alt-currencies (other digital currencies some people buy as a proxy investment for bitcoin.)

Bitcoin only exists on computers

This may sound obvious but, as a form of money, bitcoin might be the most intangible stuff in history. Even paper money or securities can be presented to a central bank or company in the hopes someone will redeem them. No such possibility with bitcoin. Digital currency is just a piece of code out there on the Internet (or in special digital storage vaults to prevent hackers from stealing it), and there is no country or company you can ask to honor it.

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$5000 Bitcoin? 3 Reasons to Buyand to Stay Away - Fortune

Comets golfers finish third in match – YourGV.com

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

With a handful of its younger players competing, some in their first varsity competition, the Halifax County High School golf team placed third Tuesday in a four-team nine-hole match at The Briery Country Club in Keysville.

Randolph-Henry High School won the match by a wide margin, topping runner-up Central High School by 10 strokes at 158-168. Halifax County High School placed third with a team total of 181 and William Campbell High School rounded out the field with a team total of 197.

Khalil Richardson led the Comets with a round of 44. Will Abdi was next in line with a round of 45 and Ashley Day and Ashton Hinshaw both turned in a round of 46.

Gabriel Brankley and Jaxon Lloyd also competed, with both turning in a round of 56. Their scores did not count toward the Comets team total as the four best scores from among the six players are counted toward the team total.

We took some players to get them experience in matches, said Comets Head Coach David Graham.

It was a great effort by this team that played today. The kids played much better than their scores indicate.

The focus, Graham said, is getting the players to eliminate the big numbers when they have a bad hole.

We must eliminate the big numbers, noted Graham.

That is what is hurting our scores now. Gabriel and Jaxon are freshman, and this was their first time out. I know they were a little nervous, but they did a good job hanging in there. Khalil, Will, Ashley, and Ashton held their own. Once we can stop the big numbers on a few holes, we should be fine.

We are working on a few swing changes, so that will take some time, Graham added.

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Comets golfers finish third in match - YourGV.com

The deadly comets that NASA says could one day hit Earth with devastating effects – Express.co.uk

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

Getty

Space boffins used data from Nasa's WISE spacecraft to determine the nucleus sizes of comets, and estimate the number out there.

Some comets in the distant parts of the solar system, between 186 billion miles (300 billionkms) away from the sun, known as the Oort Cloud, can be up to 60 miles across.

However, they may only pass the sun every 200 years or so, making them harder to study.

Comets are made up of materials, including rock and ice, left over from the formation of the universe, and it was previously thought there were less than there actually are.

If anything of a few miles or more across hit the Earth, it could destroy the entire planet, wiping out all life.

The findings published in the Astronomical Journal, also found more comets than thought are leaving the Oort Cloud and passing the sun.

A Nasa spokesman said: "NASA's WISE spacecraft, scanning the entire sky at infrared wavelengths, has delivered new insights about these distant wanderers.

"Scientists found that there are about seven times more long-period comets measuring at least 0.6 miles (1km) across than had been predicted previously.

"Researchers also observed that in eight months, three to five times as many long-period comets passed by the Sun than had been predicted."

James Bauer, lead author of the study and now a research professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, said: "The number of comets speaks to the amount of material left over from the solar system's formation.

"We now know that there are more relatively large chunks of ancient material coming from the Oort Cloud than we thought."

The Oort Cloud is too distant to be seen by current telescopes, but is thought to be a spherical distribution of small icy bodies at the outermost edge of the solar system.

The density of comets within it is low, so the odds of comets colliding within it are rare.

Long-period comets that WISE observed probably got kicked out of the Oort Cloud millions of years ago.

Amy Mainzer, study co-author based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, said: "Our study is a rare look at objects perturbed out of the Oort Cloud.

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A meteor captured above the erupting Klyuchevskaya Sopka volcano

"They are the most pristine examples of what the solar system was like when it formed."

Astronomers already had broader estimates of how many long-period and Jupiter family comets are in our solar system, but had no good way of measuring the sizes of long-period comets.

That is because a comet has a "coma," a cloud of gas and dust that appears hazy in images and obscures the cometary nucleus.

But by using the WISE data showing the infrared glow of this coma, scientists were able to "subtract" the coma from the overall comet and estimate the nucleus sizes of these comets.

The spokesman added: "The existence of so many more long-period comets than predicted suggests that more of them have likely impacted planets, delivering icy materials from the outer reaches of the solar system.

"Researchers also found clustering in the orbits of the long-period comets they studied, suggesting there could have been larger bodies that broke apart to form these groups.

"The results will be important for assessing the likelihood of comets impacting our solar system's planets, including Earth."

Ms Mainzer added: "Comets travel much faster than asteroids, and some of them are very big.

Scientists found that there are about seven times more long-period comets measuring at least 0.6 miles (1km) across than had been predicted previously.

NASA spokesman

"Studies like this will help us define what kind of hazard long-period comets may pose."

Last year research published in the Royal Astronomical Society journal of Astronomy and Geophysics warned there were hundreds of comets in the far reaches of the solar system measuring 60 miles plus and even as long as 160 miles, known as centaurs.

Scientists behind the study said much had taken place into locating as many near-earth asteroids, which vary from tens of metres to many miles wide, as possible.

However, little has been done to plan for the threat of the centaurs the research team claimed.

Professor Bill Napier, co-author of the report from the University of Buckingham, said: "In the last three decades we have invested a lot of effort in tracking and analysing the risk of a collision between the Earth and an asteroid.

"Our work suggests we need to look beyond our immediate neighbourhood too, and look out beyond the orbit of Jupiter to find Centaurs.

If a Centaur deviated towards the Earth's atmosphere, it would be expected to break up, showering the planet with huge chunks of rock and ice that could each devastate a continent and send tsunamis across the seas.

A 10-mile comet or asteroid which struck the Yukon peninsula in Mexico 65million years ago is thought to have wiped out most of the dinosaurs, so if a 60-mile comet hit is it is unlikely anything could survive.

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A meteor streaked across the sky of Russias Ural Mountains

In September 2015 former journalist turned pseudo scientist Graham Hancock published book Magicians of the Gods which warned a 20-mile long fragment of a larger comet was still in the solar system and could strike Earth in just 15 years.

His book claimed that it was part of a bigger comet that struck between 11,600 and 12,800 years ago, wiping out civilisations.

Then, this April, a study by the University of Edinburghs School of Engineering published in the University of the Aegean's International Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology, appeared to have vindicated his claims of the comet strike 13,000 years ago that caused a mini ice age.

Much of Mr Hancock's claims stemmed from evidence found during a dig at an ancient site in Turkey known as Gobekli Tepe, near the border with Syria.

It is more than two times older than Stonehenge, but was a much more skilled construction with astronomical carvings, which Mr Hancock said also told of the ancient comet strike.

The University of Edinburgh's study said the carvings at Gobekli Tepe do show a comet strike, in 10,950BC.

Dr Martin Sweatman of Edinburgh University said: "One of the pillars at Gobekli Tepe seems to have served as a memorial to this devastating event probably the worst day in history since the end of the Ice Age."

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The deadly comets that NASA says could one day hit Earth with devastating effects - Express.co.uk

Comets tabbed third in SEK preseason poll – Chanute Tribune

Posted on August 11, 2017 by Danzig

St. Paul Indians picked to win TRL 8-Man Division

ANDREW TOWNE

Sports editor

PITTSBURG The common theme around the SEK Football Coaches and Media Luncheon was excitement and that preseason polls dont mean a thing.

Just ask the Fort Scott Tigers.

They were picked to win the SEK League in 2016 but ended up third, and this year, the Tigers are once again favored to win the league. However, Fort Scott Head Coach Bob Campbell was quick to remind everyone that in the Pittsburg State Universitys Plaster Center about 2016.

Meanwhile, for the Chanute Blue Comets, they were picked third behind Fort Scott and Labette County High School.

Like Coach Campbell said, at the end of the day, its just words on a piece of paper, Chanute Coach Chris Shields said. Its not going to matter because you have to go out and play the game.

Independence, Coffeyville and Parsons rounded out the six-team SEK League.

The Comets return 10 players who started at least a game for the Blue Comets a year ago on offense alone, and the coaches around the league recognized the improvement and rewarded Chanute with the high pre-season ranking.

It is a testament to the kids we have coming back and the amount of work they put in, Shields said. We still have to go out and perform on Friday nights.

Shields credits the hard work the student-athletes put in over the summer, and has him extremely excited about the upcoming season.

We had a great summer. We were pleased with the percentage of turn out-wise. Our kids were pretty consistent over the course of the summer, Shields said. We asked a lot more of kids this summer. We hosted a 7-on-7 league at our place on Wednesday nights. We traveled to a couple tournaments and went to several team camps.

Shields hopes that pays off once the season kicks off at 7 pm on Sept. 1 in Iola.

Last year we were a bunch of freshmen and sophomores. This year we are going to be juniors and sophomores, he concluded. I know everyone says this, but Im extremely excited about the upcoming season. We cant wait for Monday to get here.

Practice starts around the league on Monday, Aug. 14 with Chanute hitting the field at 3:30 pm before moving to two-a-day practices on Tuesday.

St. Paul favorites in Three Rivers Leagues 8-man division

Despite the loss of five seniors off a team that finished 9-2 and reached the second round of the 8-Man Division I playoffs, the St. Paul Indians are right back as favorites to win the 8-man division of the Three Rivers League.

Pleasanton was second, and Chetopa was picked third. Colony-Crest, Marmaton Vally and the Altoona-Midway Jets rounded out the six-team division.

SEK League (First place votes)

1. Fort Scott (4) 24

2. Labette County (2) 19

3. Chanute 18

4. Independence 13

5. Coffeyville 10

6. Parsons 6

TRL 8-Man Division

1. St. Paul (4) 20

2. Pleasanton (1) 17

3. Chetopa 12

4. Colony-Crest 11

5. Marmaton Valley 10

6. Altoona-Midway 5

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Comets tabbed third in SEK preseason poll - Chanute Tribune

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