What Does Takata’s Bankruptcy Mean for Car Owners? – Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Posted on by

6/27/2017 9:31AM Recommended for you Barron's Bounce: NCR Climbs Amid Amazon Angst 6/26/2017 3:29PM Film Clip: 'The Big Sick' 6/21/2017 1:42PM Film Clip: 'The Beguiled' 6/21/2017 1:26PM Documentary Clip: 'My Journey Through French Cinema' 6/21/2017 2:01PM Five Beach Towns Where You Can Afford to Buy a House 6/27/2017 12:00PM Inside Derailed NYC Subway Train 6/27/2017 1:18PM Anxiety Disorder: Is There an Escape? 4/28/2017 6:13PM How the iPhone Was Born: Inside Stories of Missteps and Triumphs 6/25/2017 9:00AM Mexico's Mescal Producers Struggle to Meet Rising Demand 6/26/2017 6:59AM A North Carolina Couple's Modern Duplex 6/22/2017 10:00AM Opinion Journal: Trumps Supreme Court Takes Shape 6/26/2017 2:21PM How The iPhone Was Born: Inside Stories of Missteps and Triumphs 6/25/2017 9:00AM

On the iPhones 10th birthday, former Apple executives Scott Forstall, Tony Fadell and Greg Christie recount the arduous process of turning Steve Jobss vision into one of the best-selling products ever made.

Once the stuff of science fiction, facial-scanning cameras are becoming a part of daily life in China, where they're used for marketing, surveillance and social control. Video: Paolo Bosonin. Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

Can Republican senators regroup and pass a health-care bill this week? WSJ's Gerald F. Seib explains what it will take to assuage several GOP holdouts. Photo: AP/Getty

Stocks moving after a mention in Barron's include the checkout specialist, a cost-cutting insurer and a Canadian short candidate. Ben Levisohn and Jack Hough discuss.

A recent WSJ/NBC News poll finds public perceptions on Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential campaign is complicated. WSJ's Gerald F. Seib explains what this means for President Trump. Photo: Getty

IBM and games developer Ubisoft are experimenting with speech recognition to enhance one of the first social virtual reality video games: Star Trek: Bridge Crew. The game makes use of IBM's supercomputer Watson. Image:Ubisoft Composite:Mark Kelly

Daniel Libeskind, founder and principal architect of Studio Libeskind, discusses his projects around the world and the future of cities in a conversation with WSJ's Dennis Berman.

Are you saving the most money you can when you shop online? Moneyish's Catey Hill gives tips on how to maximize your savings.

See the rest here:

What Does Takata's Bankruptcy Mean for Car Owners? - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

Companies Join Forces to Combat Mesothelioma – MesotheliomaHelp.org (blog)

Posted on by

In November, MesotheliomaHelp reported on the encouraging results with the experimental cancer drug known as CRS-207 in its ongoing Phase 1b trial. Now Aduro Biotech, the maker of CRS-207, is joining forces with Merck, the pharmaceutical company that markets the immunotherapy drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab), to determine whether the combination of the two medications is effective in the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Pleural mesothelioma is the signature cancer of asbestos that attacks the linings of the lungs. Although recent breakthroughs in treatment have improved the life expectancy for some patients, the prognosis for patients is poor with survival often less than 18 months. New, effective treatments are critical to bring hope to the mesothelioma community.

According to a May 17 press release from Aduro Biotech announcing the collaboration, based on the results of the companys Phase 1 mesothelioma trial, and those of other studies that have shown positive results with the combination therapy, the companies are moving forward with the Phase 2 trial.

Data from our ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial of CRS-207 with standard chemotherapy as frontline treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma have been very encouraging, said Natalie Sacks, M.D., chief medical officer at Aduro. we look forward to initiating a Phase 2 trial to evaluate the CRS-207/pembrolizumab combination in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma who have failed prior treatment.

The Phase 2 trial is currently recruiting patients with a goal to enroll 35 mesothelioma patients whose cancer has continued to progress despite undergoing one or two prior anti-cancer therapies. The trial, that has an estimated completion date of March 2019, is an extension of a collaboration between the two companies testing the same combination of drugs in gastric cancers.

According to Aduro Biotech, CRS-207 is a Listeria-based vaccine that has been engineered to stimulate an immune response to mesothelin, which is over-expressed in many cancers, including mesothelioma. According to one study, more than half of the mesothelioma patients at diagnosis had significantly elevated levels of mesothelin in their blood.

Keytruda, an immunotherapy drug from Merck that awakens the immune system to effectively fight off cancer cells, has been approved in the U.S. for use in melanoma and lung cancer patients after a prior round of chemotherapy failed to stop progression of the disease. Keytruda works by targeting the cellular pathway known as PD-1/PD-L1 (proteins found on the bodys immune cells and some cancer cells). Most recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted accelerated approval to Keytruda as a treatment based solely on the genetic mutations of a cancer and not on the type of cancer.

The CRS-207/pembrolizumab mesothelioma trial will take place at various centers across the U.S. Currently, the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL and University of Chicago Medical Center are recruiting patients. Mesothelioma patients should talk to their oncologist to determine if this trial might be right for them.

To find out more about the collaborative trial using CRS-207 and Keytruda see ClinicalTrials.gov.

Originally posted here:

Companies Join Forces to Combat Mesothelioma - MesotheliomaHelp.org (blog)

Using Robotics for Mesothelioma Surgery – Asbestos.com (blog)

Posted on by

Robotics has changed the world of thoracic surgery for the better taking it to a whole new level.

It gives you the ability to do a more accurate, safer surgery, no matter what you are doing in the chest.

Minimally invasive robotics is performed with the da Vinci Surgical System. It involves two little hands, about eight millimeters long, controlled remotely by a surgeon at a computer board. It improves precision and maneuverability. A tiny camera provides a more magnified, three-dimensional view.

We do it well at Florida Hospital Celebration Health, which is home to the Global Robotics Institute, and we probably do more of these procedures than anyone in the world today.

Robotics is a fascinating topic when it comes to pleural mesothelioma. We recently had a mesothelioma patient come from England, where they arent doing major surgery for mesothelioma anymore. With the help of robotics here, he is back home today and doing well.

Robotics can play a few different roles with mesothelioma:

The robot in this scenario is a surgical tool rather than a platform, and its role is evolving still. This is not like taking out a prostate. You arent going to use the robot to resect a lung, and its not designed for that. It will, however, decrease the risk of complications.

Those three areas have been a problem with extrapleural pneumonectomy, an aggressive surgery for mesothelioma, and the robot can help immensely in all three of those areas.

One of the reasons major surgery has failed overall for mesothelioma is the inability to identify and pick the right candidates for surgery. The robot is really opening a new vista into understanding who should have this surgery, and who should not. Too many times, it has been done on the wrong patients.

The problem is that until you get into the chest, youre not totally sure what you will find, even after all the scans and other tests youve done. Too many times a surgeon will open the chest, and then realize this was not a good surgical candidate.

After a multidisciplinary workup and after youve determined the patient is a reasonable candidate for surgery, the robot comes into play in the operating room. Heres how:

By using the robot, you really reduce blood loss, and the complications that come with so much blood loss, which is one of the biggest problems typically. It leads to increased mortality and morbidity.

With the robot, you lose about one-tenth of the blood. Its a night-and-day difference when it comes to recovery.

At any point, if you see something you dont like, and you determine this is not a good candidate, you pull out and no real damage is done.

Without the robot and the camera, a surgeon may open the chest and realize this was not a good candidate. But its too late. Youve burned your bridges. There is no stopping then.

A surgeon will move forward with this huge operation that the patient may not survive, or the surgery does nothing but hurt the patients quality of life.

The robot can prevent these mistakes from happening. And they happen all the time without a robot.

If youre in there with the robot and you see the disease already has gone across the pleura and into the chest wall, that patient should not be having surgery. You stop.

Thats not something you should find after youve gone into the chest with traditional surgery. By then, its too late.

Its all about timing with the robot.

So now you know its resectable; the blood loss is under control; and youve taken the tumor cells out of the tough to reach spaces.

You take the robot out and open the chest by connecting those three small incisions, and its a straight-forward operation taking out the lung, pericardium and anything else you need. Its a relatively easy surgery to do.

With robotics, it is absolutely critical for a patient to go to a center doing a high volume of robotic surgeries like we do at Celebration Health. Robotics cant be done properly by a center that is just dabbling in it. You want experience, and lots of it.

Mesothelioma is such a horrible disease. The only role I see for aggressive surgery is for a patient who can go all the way. If the patient cant go all the way, then dont go at all. Thats important. Otherwise, you are doing more harm than good.

The key point in all this is knowing exactly who will benefit from surgery, and who will not. You need the robot for that.

The nonsurgical therapy that is out there, chemotherapy and radiation, just doesnt work really well. Robotics is about tweaking the surgery to help some of these patients do well.

When I worked at the University of Arizona Health Network, we did the worlds first robotic surgery for mesothelioma in January 2013. That patient is still alive and doing well today.

It makes me feel there is something to all this.

Dr. Farid Gharagozloo is the medical director of cardiothoracic surgery at Florida Hospital Celebration Health. While at the University of Arizona in 2013, he became the first surgeon in the world to successfully use robotics to perform an extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP), the most aggressive treatment available for mesothelioma. Others now have followed his lead.

See the original post:

Using Robotics for Mesothelioma Surgery - Asbestos.com (blog)

There is a strong economic case to preserve future of traditional fishing – Alfred Sant – Malta Independent Online

Posted on by

Former Prime Minister Alfred Sant told the European Parliament that there is a strong economic case, and not just a social and a cultural one, to preserve and enhance future traditional fishing in the same way that this is being done for fish stocks. Explaining his vote in favour of the report "Status of fish stocks and socio-economic situation of the fishing sector in the Mediterranean" at the European Parliament, the Maltese MEP said we can no longer ignore the fact that institutionally and economically, the position of traditional fishermen was not sufficiently taken into account when conservation policies were being drafted. In part this happened because the legitimate interests of these fishermen were not adequately represented and assessed, in the face of a fast growing and politically effective modern industrial sector.

This has got to be corrected. Fortunately, there is a growing awareness among traditional fishermen even in the remoter areas that they need to mobilise more effectively. For even now, there are some who consider traditional fishing as an economically non-viable activity which must be tolerated till it dies out on its own.

I voted for this resolution because it makes a serious effort to consider traditional and artisanal fishing as an integral part of the fisheries sector in the Mediterranean, giving members of this community the prominence they deserve, while relating it in a realistic way to the effective management of fish stocks. remarked the Maltese MEP.

The Report dealt with the dramatic decline ofMediterranean fish stocks - more than 90% of those assessed are overexploited, with some on the verge of collapse. It stresses the need to improve stock assessment (data collection, availability and analysis; suggesting a common database) as well as control and surveillance, and to strengthen cooperation among Mediterranean countries (EU and non-EU), particularly in view of tackling illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. The Report refers to preferential treatment for small and artisanal fisheries as well as the need for a guarantee for a basic income for fishermen during "biological rest periods". The report also refers specifically to talks on the problem of poor data as regards to fishing and the need to further involve fishermen in the decision-making process. It also deals with the third country factor and the impact that fishermen from non-EU countries have on fishing in the Mediterranean.

The Resolution was approved with 558 votes in favour, 43 against, and 35 abstentions.

See the original post:

There is a strong economic case to preserve future of traditional fishing - Alfred Sant - Malta Independent Online

‘Distractions’ like Hindi imposition are ‘essence’ of Narendra Modi government, says CPM – Firstpost

Posted on by

Chennai: CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury alleged on Monday that the "distractions", including the latest "imposition" of Hindi in states where the language was not widely spoken, were the "essence" of the three-year rule of the Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre.

CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury. PTI

Flaying the Centre for "not honouring" the promises made to the people, he said here, "Everyday, you will have some sort of a distraction brought in (by the government).

"The latest one is that of language imposition. All the senior ministers are suddenly talking about Hindi being the national language and that it should be promoted. These distractions are the essence of the three-year rule of the Modi government."

The Left leader was speaking at a seminar, jointly organised by the Students' Federation of India and the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers' Association.

Recalling that the people of Tamil Nadu had a "big history" of fighting "caste-based oppression", he said they needed to carry it forward to strengthen the "idea of India" and stop the country from being reduced to the "narrow confines" of the "Hindi, Hindu and Hindutva" slogan.

"That is the larger battle we are facing today," said Yechury.

"The promises made to our farmers are not being honoured. Nothing of what was told to the people of this country is being honoured by this government," he alleged.

Noting that the imposition of a language was an "imposition of a certain ideological condition", the Rajya Sabha member said, "That ideological condition is a prerequisite project for converting the secular, democratic republic of India into their (BJP's) version of a Hindu Rashtra.

"That is why, I think the seminar you have organised against the imposition of Hindi and the excavation project in Keezhadi (near Madurai in Tamil Nadu) must be seen as a path towards the larger battle which is taking place in the country right now."

Here is the original post:

'Distractions' like Hindi imposition are 'essence' of Narendra Modi government, says CPM - Firstpost

In Pictures: ‘Political oppression’ Hong Kong activists call for release of Nobel winner Liu Xiaobo – Hong Kong Free Press

Posted on by

Two protests were stagedoutside Beijings office in Hong Kong on Tuesday in support of Chinese activist and Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo.

Around 20 people joined a march led by political parties Demosisto and the League of Social Democrats to demand Lius unconditional release.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

Two hours later, around 30 people from the Democratic Party, the Civic Party andthe Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China also held a march from Western Police Station to the China Liaison Office.

Photo: Supplied.

Liuwas sentenced to 11 years in 2008 afterwriting a manifesto called Charter 08 calling for democratic reform in China. Hewas released on medical parole on Mondayafter being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer.

Chinese authorities said Liu is being treated byeight renowned Chinese oncologists in a hospital inthe northeastern city of Shenyang.

The one-party state kills people without a weapon. Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

On Tuesday, protesters held placards sayingThe one-party state kills people without weapons and Political oppression is unacceptable.

Lawmaker Long Hair Leung Kwok-hung called the Chinese government shameless for putting Liu under surveillance even ashe is receiving medical treatment.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

Liu should be freed. He should enjoy the same rights as everyone, including the freedom to getmedical treatment and see hisfamily, Leung said.

He expressed sadness over the news and said he hoped thediagnosis was wrong,as he had hoped to see Liu when he has servedhis time.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

Some protesters wore masks of Lius face and carried signs that said: We are all Liu Xiaobo.

See also:How Chinese intellectual Liu Xiaobo spoke up for change, only to be jailed by Beijing

Demosisto activist Joshua Wong said Liu was only transferred from one prison to another. He asked all lawmakers and activists to demand Chinese President Xi Jinping release Liu during the leaders visit to Hong Kong this week.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

It istime for Hong Kong people to ask for democratisation [of] Hong Kong and mainland China, he added.

The group also urged Beijingtofree Lius wife, Liu Xia, who has beenunder house arrestsince 2010.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

The China Liaison Office did not send a representative to take the petition letter from the group.

Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

In response, protestersposted pictures of Liu Xiaobo and Liu Xia on the offices wall, with messages calling for their release and criticising Beijing for its political and unjust imprisonment of Liu.

Release Liu Xiaobo and Liu Xia unconditionally now. Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

Police officers blocked off part of the sidewalk with tape and took personal information of protesters as they turned up to the rally.

See also: 12 reactions from NGOs, China and the intl community as Beijing releases Nobel winner Liu Xiaobo

The Charter 08 is not criminal. Shame on political prosecution. Photo: HKFP/Catherine Lai.

The international community has united in a chorus of condemnation in response to the news. NGO Human Rights Watch called for Lius immediate release, while Amnesty International Hong Kongsaid the diagnosis adds injury to insult to Liu.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee invited Liu to visit Oslo to receive his Nobel Peace Prize. It said it strongly regrets that it took serious illness before Chinese authorities were willing to release him from jail.

Comments

See the rest here:

In Pictures: 'Political oppression' Hong Kong activists call for release of Nobel winner Liu Xiaobo - Hong Kong Free Press

PopPolitics: ‘The Force’ Author Don Winslow on the ‘Insanity’ of Trump’s Return to a War on Drugs (Listen) – Variety

Posted on by

Don Winslows new epic novel The Force centers on NYPD detective sergeant Denny Malone, who leads an elite unit, waging a war on drugs, gangs and guns. Malone is both effective and corrupt, the kind of figure that raises moral questions of when the ends justify the means.

Fox already has snatched up the rights to the novel, published last week, with James Mangold directing and David Mamet adapting the book into a screenplay.

In an interview with Varietys PopPolitics on SiriusXM, Winslow talks about how his own experience, working as a private detective in New York in the 70s, inspired this latest work, as well as how hes long had the idea of centering one of his novels in the city.

The French Connection I can remember to this moment sitting in a big theater on Broadway in Times Square watching that film, and thinking, Man, this is so exciting, and gritty and vivid. Wouldnt it be great if some day I could make my living telling stories like this?' Winslow says.

The Force is set in the present day, against a backdrop of politically charged issues over police use of force and the war on drugs.

Winslow is particularly outspoken about the Trump administrations approach to the drug war, having taken out a full-page ad in the New York Times on Monday in which he says that the president wants to drag us back into one of the most catastrophic social policies in this nations history.

What Mr. Trump and Mr. Sessions have vocalized lately is a return to the worst days of the war on drugs, in terms of maximum sentences, arresting again for marijuana, and pushing for heavy sentences there, Winslow says. You would think that 50 years of futility, 50 years of policies that have only made things worse, you try something different.

Listen below:

Winslow talks about his process of researching The Force, including interviews and conversations with cops, combing through court records and studying policing textbooks. After his success in writing on the Mexican drug war in novels such as The Cartel, Winslow as said that cops are harder to penetrate that drug cartels.

They are more insular. Its a more protective kind of society, he says. I cant tell you how many cops told me, I only talk to other cops. Only other cops can understand me. And both professionally and personally, they have a longstanding habit of keeping things close, keeping things tight. Drug traffickers, particularly the ones you interview in prison, dont have a lot to lose, and are more amenable to talking and telling stories.

But Winslow says that once he established trust with NYPD officers, then you could believe everything that they said. You could go deep with them in ways you never could with drug traffickers.

Listen below:

Coal Culture

Michael Bonfiglio, director of the documentary From the Ashes, talks about the making of his project, which features interviews with displaced coal miners and others who are grappling with the health and environmental impacts of the 19th century energy source.

While President Trump decided to pull out of the Paris climate accords because of his belief that it would harm coal industry jobs, From the Ashes shows how the industry is still unlikely to see a rebound in jobs, given the mechanization of the business.

The coal industry is not a huge employer, and replacing the jobs that the coal industry provides is not an undaunting task at all, Bonfiglio says.

From the Ashes debuted on National Geographic on Sunday, but is available for free on streaming sites like YouTube, Hulu and Amazon until next Monday.

Listen below:

PopPolitics, hosted by Varietys Ted Johnson, airs from 2-3 p.m. ET/11-noon PT on SiriusXMs political channel POTUS. It also is available on demand.

Link:

PopPolitics: 'The Force' Author Don Winslow on the 'Insanity' of Trump's Return to a War on Drugs (Listen) - Variety

Gregory County finding success in war on drugs – Daily Republic

Posted on by

Judge Bobbi Rank has sat behind the bench in Gregory, Tripp, Todd and Bennett counties since her appointment in October. She joins the Sixth Judicial Circuit at an interesting time, as charges of possession and ingestion of Schedule I and II drugs, which include methamphetamine, plummet in one of her counties and skyrocket in another.

In Gregory County, 22 charges of possession or ingestion of Schedule I and II drugs were filed in 2015, according to the Unified Judicial System. The next year, only 20 charges were filed.

But so far this year, there have only been four charges filed, according to UJS.

At that rate, Gregory County would see an estimated 8.44 drug charges, a nearly 62 percent reduction in only two years.

"Anytime we've got less drug crimes, that's beneficial to society," Rank said.

Scott Anshutz, Mayor of Gregory, the largest town in Gregory County with about 1,300 people, credited the decline to county and city law enforcement, even though every officer in Gregory's three-person department was hired in 2016.

"The newer generation versus us older guys probably know what to look for," Anshutz said.

The three officers are 31 years old or younger, according to Gregory Chief of Police Travis DeBuhr, and two had no prior law enforcement experience. But DeBuhr said his officers have been quick to learn, and they know what to look for.

"I think just working with the other departments and putting the hard work into it is the only way you can really get it done, especially with the new guys, trying to get them caught up on it," DeBuhr said.

The reduction in drug crimes is even more impressive compared to the state average. In South Dakota, possession and ingestion charges rose more than 25 percent from 2015 to 2016, from 7,898 to 9,906. With 4,751 charges filed so far this year, the state is on pace to break 10,000 total charges.

But despite the reduction in one county, Rank said drug crimes still make up the bulk of her caseload. In Tripp County, Schedule I and II drug charges rose 178 percent in 2016, topping out at 64 charges. It's on pace to drop back down, but this year may still outpace the 2015 total.

The greatest rise in Rank's counties comes in Bennett. There were 12 charges filed in that county in 2015, but they more than doubled the next year and have continued to grow exponentially. So far in 2017, there have already been 34 charges filed, putting the county on pace to file more than 70 possession and ingestion charges, which would be a nearly 498 percent increase in two years.

Rank doesn't know why drug crime is increasing there, but she said judges across the state are staying busy with drug charges, and she was prepared to handle any situation after applying to take now-retired Judge Kathleen Trandahl's place.

"I think when you apply to be a judge, you just, you know as part of your application that you can take any sort of case," Rank said.

But even with drug crimes and a murder case in the area, Rank, who grew up near Winner, is happy to bring her family back to Tripp County.

Read more:

Gregory County finding success in war on drugs - Daily Republic

Gambling | Wex Legal Dictionary / Encyclopedia | LII / Legal …

Posted on by

Gambling, though widespread in the United States, is subject to legislation at both the state and federal level that bans it from certain areas, limits the means and types of gambling, and otherwise regulates the activity.

Congress has used its power under the Commerce Clause to regulate interstate gambling, international gambling, and relations between the United States and Native American territories. For example, it has passed laws prohibiting the unauthorized transportation of lottery tickets between states, outlawing sports betting with certain exceptions, and regulating the extent to which gambling may exist on Native American land.

Each state determines what kind of gambling it allows within its borders, where the gambling can be located, and who may gamble. Each state has enacted different laws pertaining to these topics. The states also have differing legal gambling ages, with some states requiring the same minimum age for all types of gambling, while for others, it depends on the activity. For example, in New Jersey, an 18-year-old can buy a lottery ticket or bet on a horse race, but cannot enter a casino until age 21. Presumably, the age 21 restriction is due to the sale of alcohol in that location.

A standard strategy for avoiding laws that prohibit, constrain, or aggressively tax gambling is to locate the activity just outside the jurisdiction that enforces them, in a more "gambling friendly" legal environment. Gambling establishments often exist near state borders and on ships that cruise outside territorial waters. Gambling activity has also exploded in recent years in Native American territory. Internet-based gambling takes this strategy and extends it to a new level of penetration, for it threatens to bring gambling directly into homes and businesses in localities where a physical gambling establishment could not conduct the same activity.

In the 1990s, when the World Wide Web was growing rapidly in popularity, online gambling appeared to represent an end-run around government control and prohibition. A site operator needed only to establish the business in a friendly offshore jurisdiction such as the Bahamas and begin taking bets. Anyone with access to a web browser could find the site and place wagers by credit card. Confronted with this blatant challenge to American policies, the Department of Justice and Congress explored the applicability of current law and the desirability of new regulation for online gambling.

In exploring whether an offshore Internet gambling business taking bets from Americans violated federal law, attention was focused on the Wire Act, 18 U.S.C. 1084 (2000). The operator of a wagering business is at risk of being fined and imprisoned under the Wire Act if the operator knowingly uses a "wire communication facility" to transmit information related to wagering on "any sporting event or contest." 18 U.S.C. 1084(a). An exception exists if that act is legal in both the source and destination locations of the transmission. 1084(b). The Wire Acts definition of wire communication facility appears to embrace the nation's entire telecommunications infrastructure, and therefore probably applies to online gambling. See 1081.

The Department of Justice maintains that, under the Wire Act, all Internet gambling by bettors in the United States is illegal. U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary Hearing on Establishing Consistent Enforcement Policies in the Context of Online Wagers, 110th Cong., Nov. 14, 2007 (testimony of Catherine Hanaway, U.S. Attorney (E.D. Mo.), Dept. of Justice). The Fifth Circuit disagreed, ruling that the Wire Act applies only to sports betting, not other types of gambling. In re MasterCard Intl Inc., 313 F.3d 257 (5th Cir. 2002).

In 2006, Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which made it illegal for wagering businesses to knowingly accept payment in connection with unlawful Internet gambling (though it does not itself make Internet gambling illegal). 109 Pub. L. 109-347, Title VIII (Oct. 13, 2006) (codified at 31 U.S.C. 5301, 536167). It also authorizes the Federal Reserve System to create regulations that prohibit financial transaction providers (banks, credit card companies, etc.) from accepting those payments. See 31 U.S.C. 5363(4). This Act, along with threats of prosecution under the Wire Act from the Department of Justice, has caused several Internet gambling businesses to withdraw from the U.S. market.

In response, House Representatives introduced multiple bills in 2007 to soften federal Internet gambling law. If passed, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act and the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act would license, regulate, and tax Internet gambling businesses rather than prohibit them from taking bets from the United States. Alternatively, the Skill Game Protection Act would clarify the Wire Act to exempt certain games such as poker and chess.

In addition to federal measures, some states have enacted legislation to prohibit some types of Internet gambling. In 2006, Washington State amended its Code to make knowingly transmitting or receiving gambling information over the Internet a felony. See Wash. Rev. Code 9.46.240 (2006). Other states with similar prohibitions have made it a misdemeanor instead. See e.g., 720 ILCS 5/28-1 (2007).

States have not been particularly active in enforcing these laws, possibly due to a conflict with the dormant Commerce Clause doctrine. That doctrine theorizes that state law applying to commerce outside the states borders is unconstitutional because that power lies with federal, not state, government. In particular, federal preemption has obstructed states attempts to regulate gambling activity on Indian reservations within state borders. See Missouri ex rel. Nixon v. Coeur DAlene Tribe, 164 F.3d 1102 (8th Cir. 1999). The federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, 25 U.S.C. 29 (2000), governs gambling activity on Indian reservations, but the extent to which it and other federal gambling laws preempt state action in the Internet arena is uncertain.

See the original post:

Gambling | Wex Legal Dictionary / Encyclopedia | LII / Legal ...

Zelda Breath of the Wild guide: Gambling – Polygon

Posted on by

After you complete the Take Back the Sea side quest (which is as simple as just killing a bunch of bokoblins on a nearby beach) and restore Lurelin Village, youll find a house in the northeast of the town where you can gamble your rupees for a quick buck.

Travel to the Yah Rin shrine and head down into Lurelin Village. Keep heading roughly northeast as you follow the paths through town. Youre looking for a house with the door open you can see it when you look northeast from the Lurelin Village inn.

Bear in mind that this is by no means a get rich quick scheme. When you walk into the house, talk to Cloyne. Hell explain the rules of the game to you you pay 10, 50 or 100 rupees for a one-in-three chance to win money. Buying in at 10 or 50 rupees gives you the chance to double your money. Paying 100 rupees, on the other hand, will triple it.

After you buy in, all you have to do is go pick a treasure chest. Theres no way to game the system here youre just at the mercy of chance. Two of the chests contain a single rupee, and the third has either double or triple what you paid in.

See original here:

Zelda Breath of the Wild guide: Gambling - Polygon

Gambling: ‘My wife found out we’d no money in the bank and my Da called me for a showdown – on way to the house I … – Belfast Telegraph

Posted on by

Gambling: 'My wife found out we'd no money in the bank and my Da called me for a showdown - on way to the house I stopped to do a bet'

BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

He's a straight-talking and committed ambulance officer who's dedicated the last 14 years of his career to trying to save members of the public, but John McPoland has admitted that his own life was almost shattered by a gambling addiction that started with a schoolboy bet on the Grand National and almost ended in a family meltdown.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/gambling-my-wife-found-out-wed-no-money-in-the-bank-and-my-da-called-me-for-a-showdown-on-way-to-the-house-i-stopped-to-do-a-bet-35868615.html

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/article35868614.ece/72fe4/AUTOCROP/h342/2017-06-27_new_32372690_I3.JPG

He's a straight-talking and committed ambulance officer who's dedicated the last 14 years of his career to trying to save members of the public, but John McPoland has admitted that his own life was almost shattered by a gambling addiction that started with a schoolboy bet on the Grand National and almost ended in a family meltdown.

John, who's the high-profile media and communications manager for the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, opened his heart last night about his obsession in a frank, no-holds-barred interview with BBC Radio Ulster presenter Vinny Hurrell.

For John, who's used to talking to the media about accidents and modern-day crises faced by the Ambulance Service, it was a sometimes painful reflection on the darker days in his own past.

And he said that without the intervention of his parents, his wife and close friends, his life could have completely fallen apart.

John said he discovered gambling at the age of 16, adding: "I placed my first bet on the Grand National in 1974 or 1975. It was 2/6 or twelve-and-a-half pence. And it won. I can't deny that I idolised money and I thought this was a dead easy way to get money. I went down every Saturday to the bookies and then it was every day.

"In school I became a bookie. I remember when the FA Cup Final was on me and this other boy couldn't see Man United losing against Southampton."

So confident were the two boys, that he offered generous odds against a Southampton win, but John's pal took cold feet and pulled out of the betting partnership.

John said: "Southampton beat United 1-0 and I didn't have a penny to pay anyone. I owed 13.50."

His answer - perhaps inevitably - was to go to the bookies and a bet won him 26, which allowed him to settle his debts.

"I thought I was king for the day," said John. The next day he was taking more bets from his schoolmates.

John said he "scraped through" his examinations at school without working too hard and gained a place at St Joseph's Training College.

But that's where things started to go from bad to worse. "I met boys from the country who loved their oul drink and gambling," said John. He was soon joining card schools and he started missing classes before "his day of reckoning" came after gambling "took over too much" of his life.

He failed his exams and was told he would have to leave college. Which he knew would disappoint his parents.

John explained: "People said I was my father's blue-eye, but I don't really accept that because there were nine of us and I was in the middle. But I could see the hurt in his eyes."

John took a job as a bricklayer on a building site before he got a job in an office in the Housing Executive in 1979 where he stayed for 11 years - "the worst years of my life".

The problems revolved around John's workload - there was too little of it, he said, adding: "After three days my line manager came to me and said: 'Slow down; you have just done a month's work'."

John said he had to learn how to spread out a few days' work over a month. "And I became conditioned like everyone else to doing that."

But John, who was in his 20s, said that his idle hands made for the devil's work - his gambling.

He went into work in the mornings and got the newspaper to decide on his horse racing bets for the day.

"At lunchtime I went round to the bookies and I couldn't wait to go back round there. It impacted on everything in my life, including my sport and my work as a youth leader."

Ironically, he was also volunteering with the Samaritans, but he was unable to help himself.

"Gambling was a bit like a cancer. It eats into every aspect of your life. But I couldn't see it," said John, who'd got married but was struggling to pay off his mortgage.

He tried to keep his gambling problems from his wife, but he said she eventually discovered the truth.

"It all blew up. She found out we didn't have the money in the bank that we were supposed to have and she went and told my Da.

"He summoned me up to the house and on the way I stopped off at the bookies to have a bet."

John tried to soft-soap his father by saying that he didn't have a problem and that he only liked "a wee bet".

But he said that in reality there were nights he couldn't sleep, thinking about what he had done to people close to him and to others from whom he was borrowing money.

"It was a nightmare. The only way out for me, as a gambler, was to gamble sensibly and win," he said, acknowledging that was what all gamblers told themselves about the "elusive win". However, John's father finally told him that he wasn't going to let him destroy his wife's life, and his son vowed to do something about his gambling.

He told Hurrell: "I thought that would be the end of it, but he was too wise. He had already made contact with a group and he put me in touch with them.

"I had to go in to phone the guy there and then.

"He was waiting for the call and that was the first night that I sat talking to someone who knew what I was going through.

"I'm not ashamed to admit it - I cried like a baby."

And that was the beginning of the end of John's gambling.

"It was 1987 when I got married. It was 1988 when I had my last bet," said John, who added that he still lived with the problem every day.

He also said he was deeply concerned about the high numbers of young people who are taking their own lives here.

"Down through the years I have listened to people who have come to our group and they talk about how close they were to suicide and everything else.

"They need to know there are people there to help them."

In his own youth, sport was important to John, who played Gaelic football in west Belfast and was once on the bench for the Antrim county side in a game against Cavan at Breffni Park, where he thought he was about to hit the big time.

"The manager said 'John get stripped' and I got up, but there was another John who got stripped and he got playing," added John, who was mercilessly ribbed by his colleagues among the substitutes, including his own brother.

His late father Hugh was once a referee and chairman of the GAA in Antrim and John's proudest moment came when his father presented him with clubman and player of the year awards for his club.

John said: "They're the only trophies I have from my Gaelic football career that I still have and they are very dear to me because my father is no longer with us and he was a massive influence on my life.

"He instilled in us a lot of values and it broke my heart sometimes, the way I let him down." Long after John had beaten his gambling demons and when his father was dying in 2004, he asked him quietly: "Daddy you know the way you've always looked after me here, promise me you'll look after me when you're up there."

The response wasn't what John had been expecting.

"He just turned his head round and he said to me: 'What the f*** have you done now?'"

Belfast Telegraph

Continued here:

Gambling: 'My wife found out we'd no money in the bank and my Da called me for a showdown - on way to the house I ... - Belfast Telegraph

China jails top casino exec over gambling crimes – CNNMoney

Posted on by

A Shanghai court on Monday sentenced Jason O'Connor, the head of Crown Resorts' international unit for high-rolling gamblers, to 10 months in prison on gambling charges, the company said.

The outcome ends months of uncertainty for the big Australian casino operator. Chinese authorities detained the group of Crown employees last October in a major roundup that spooked Asia's gambling industry.

Wealthy Chinese gamblers have proved highly lucrative for Crown and other operators in the region, which have sought to lure them to their overseas destinations. But that approach appears to have fallen foul of President Xi Jinping's sweeping clampdown on corruption, which has targeted gambling as a way for corrupt officials to launder money.

Related: China has a worrying habit of making business leaders disappear

O'Connor was among a group of 19 current or former Crown employees who were convicted in court on Monday. Sixteen of them received prison sentences similar to O'Connor's, according to a company statement. They were also fined a total of 8.62 million yuan ($1.26 million), which Crown said it would pay for them.

The prison sentences are backdated, which means O'Connor and the others have already served more than eight months.

Gambling is illegal in China, except in the territory of Macau. Promoting gambling in mainland China is not allowed, but foreign casinos can promote their resorts in a more general way.

Related: Japan opens door to potential $30 billion casino industry

Chinese "VIP" gamblers brought in big bucks for Crown. More than a third of revenue generated by the company's Australian resorts for the year ended June 2016 came from international visitors, most of them from mainland China, according to the company's latest annual report.

But it reported a decline in sales and profit in the second half of last year due to a 45% plunge in revenue from high-rolling gamers.

The detentions prompted Crown to rethink its business. Since October, it has closed several offices across Asia and offloaded its stake in a Macau casino operator.

CNNMoney (Hong Kong) First published June 26, 2017: 5:47 AM ET

Read the original:

China jails top casino exec over gambling crimes - CNNMoney

JUST IN: Austin police offer new details in illegal gambling case – Austin American-Statesman

Posted on by

Austin police is expected Tuesday afternoon tobrief the public on an illegal gambling operation that happened earlier this year.

In January, Austin police began an investigation into several illegal gambling operations throughout the Austin area, according to a news release. Austin police have identified 53-year-old Chong Pak as their primary suspect in the case, who they believe was the owner ofthe illegal game room operation, the release said.

After police maintained surveillance on Pak and his associates for three months, they conducted a search of Paks home at the 1200 block of Augusta Bend in Hutto, police said.

In the home, police said they found:

Pak was arrestedand charged with money laundering and engaging in organized crime, the release said. If convicted, Pak could face up to life in prison and a $10,000 fine, the release said.

The case remains open, police said.

Austin police will provide more information at a news briefing today at 3 p.m. Check back on this story for more details.

See the original post:

JUST IN: Austin police offer new details in illegal gambling case - Austin American-Statesman

K&C – Hanley Ramirez keeps bailing; sports gambling may become legal 6-27-17 – WEEI.com

Posted on by

Keeps Kirk and Callahan. With Kirk made ahead and Gerry Callahan. On Sports Radio WEEI. What city offered you the chance to come FaceBook live him trying to bench to twenty on a different senate would you look here's what did you Maxima today we need pictures. A mock me for being a hard road that's the ultimate models that I've seen him it's like that you'd like to lose yells and sell renting. You are hero. Honesty Brewster can glare. UV is. Play a land yesterday on the show. Much and not too mossy for Perkins Jerry jurors all pumped up send somebody over there the agents and the guys over there to a FaceBook live. Some weight lifting for some reason I know where and. I was shocked to see the headline a WEEI dot com. But Nancy calls people losers for watching the video that. An Italian. As a sports. If I don't I don't Roemer is good at what he does I guess I should be given credit but that's the good wasting good Internet. Blues Stansky said personal bench lifting record cold people losers for watching video good headline I think that's I think that sums it up I'd be proud of is it that slow I iced my dad now if you're watching it after the fact and war pride tweeted out here causes of FaceBook like video of this. I would watch at the back is fine. If you were taking time that he did it click on FaceBook live to watch it live. Yet that's there's a different territory where I would call you a loser you're one of the couple hundred people watching it. Live in time yesterday the couple thousand of watch it since then that's great go watch it sharing your friends. I'm all for. The live viewing on the taking time ID or watching a I want to say middle aged or not there yet but approaching middle aged radio host lift weights. Wide viewing were closing in on 25000. Views. Yes the I actually think that Dallas watching it live is almost better as a legacy. Once you know it when you watch it. On the video yard you know. Beat him that's true name I want I want I wouldn't I wouldn't. You know cast any aspersions on people watched. Oh monster's. Pick they would like that there. Set your own personal bench press record is colder Seve called manager article to your all losers for watching this Alex W com that's what a waste and one of the good headline in this is that this this. This is a viewing tonight inflated ego or might. Lack the self esteem I have a Google alert set up for my name so the email can blame box and I don't I don't either do let me ask you. Google alert for your name wanna see with being out there isn't. You know Chris another works it's simple I once an upper Chris Curtis lot of nice things being said about. My wife wasn't as real as the 2000 mountain. Here here's what's that the by product this Hampshire Jerry's gonna love this part of it tomorrow. There are some people who are saying they are the first people's. That it's not a league G. Personal record because I was helped too much by Scott the great a trader at their new about that chart a chance Curtis in the video she can check my if you check my mentions yesterday in new York and all applicable saying not. Not true Max was clean law that's number one. Number two was bad form I dad formed at the count your form is bad you'd you'd you've got to get better reform effort to count I think some foresee a point of view. Yeah Fuller matters as long as you easily. I guess they do the enthusiast I would like to reply to these people out I'd like to learn more about it we can't do that right now but also the part of it is what it can just. And Jerry's part of this group of people think I could've done more I did one. I did one in quite add background but it was close what is the actual character of the actual grunt or. Where was that Mike I know right up close and jobs boom. Kurt Curtis an excellent job of the video and sound cute well well it came out and he did how people were shocked how good to be a six person crew really did it. I could have done one more and that was Jerry's criticism. And that was many People's Court as evidence as the media. And it was my Weis criticisms she gets home and she hears the show taking the kids. The grocery stores like. It really let them or their videotape that stage you I did. Ocalan we see it if you watch it my son. My wife says oh well knowing knowing none of the reaction not only Jerry said well all of the comments work. Another one why. What did you do another one nation. Warm behalf she wasn't happy I did it she was not happy deaconess they had built up to for months now I'd been planning this out mentally I wanna get to this number and my goal for the year. And it's and accomplishing it. I can't enjoy because he's 82 put on social media and my wife is now embarrassed by it she says that the these guys last night joy says it at that they'll wake. What you think like. Could another one. That wasn't at all I built up to forever and I left I should really should have been a good day yesterday should have been a very enjoyable experience and Alvin no way to. Because I left one out there and these guys are role. I'm Ike and they're not happy I'm gonna go back to what was the dead the challenge. Just do one lied yes you did it so what order they want. They wanted to woods Jerry wanted to wait too easy. If this was a personal debates feel a bed I'd it's the most I've never tried that wait for some that look the at all suspicious. I think you've done this several times and an anonymous notes when Russia. Or urine tests we can do that and see what you really amp to. That. That part of his good name for your next forced my achievement could do. I look like the guy story it's not my height that I think of the the duty to the video. Kim glared looks like a giant next to me wore Oleg did you expect this year. Outs Ollie six X has experienced this opera. Answered as so yes I wanted to give you two in the same frame is working to work. He really did say let's see what let's can I say the votes here to say it was legit once he would that get less so but there was SP Callahan. One of the great. Mock a Twitter account so there did you Opel questions a great presents at which it yet it's too early Jerry account new great. Terry cited cal Perry with a tweet things out that he can't we tweet ever is county's most. So it's a diligent but there was some push back on. So should I should have been happy with yesterday John the end results I don't feel as good really got to take it to the next level to fifty. That's that's what did you pop that's an excellent arm never again not I end and he knew Jim now because he's got room Jim experience are going to be annoyed overtime goal tonight. I let. These morons and in my own space and now it's it's ruined that's yours thinks your reward should have been a nice moment yesterday elected gym class and with great products come up. Note shoving up yesterday. Over there so Jared back tomorrow I assume I'm sure a mock before iris in his Twitter reaction to it. And so on mentally prepared for that at some point tomorrow the videos up at the cork in Cali it would work out and watch the video. Which Dick approaching 25000. Is number. Yeah out 125000 Chris. It's only get started there's going to be spike. Sees wanna know it is all right there's a buzz in the buzz in the building that is a great. Roemer has a gift for me he really does that's that's is give your all losers for wired is a great quote I did say on the idea is right into the camera Ural loser for watching him they watched it live I still. I feel that 6177797937. Phone number text as well. You're annoyance with my weightlifting socket 37937. As for a quick a Red Sox thought we even talked Red Sox I don't. Why the Red Sox not putting him there Ramirez on the DL and saying. Come back when you are gonna complain about shoulders or knees or. Anything else seems like even a waste of time they already have you know Josh rightly it's grannies on the DO Devin Marie aero you Marty gets down. Just bottom of the barrel often suppliers in your pocket right now him Ramirez John is a bottom of the barrel offensive player. He has been. All average is here he doesn't wanna play first base he's not a very good offensive player you've she's on the backs up close and personal ads and that'll interest did. In make music that serious for saudis the royals last week laughing with seller operates in a two run game late awful if he was hand there are mirrors of last year. Both final eighty some odd games where he played an IE it was I'll pull the numbers here a second but it was 300 batting average. I double as your home runs. Over OPS of a thousand he was awesome in the final eighty gains of the last half last year he was awesome he sucks right now. So this idea that you need is that middle lineup he's not producing anyway I would take Sam Travis or pick your other first baseman in there. Award at DH Ing day in and day out when he's giving you nothing annie's ease bang out of games last minute anyway. Why not just call one is bull crap and say okay gold rest your shoulders go rest your knees and come back pretty healthy so we ought last minute bailouts the lineup how does that make sense. Yeah I mean if if if it. Becomes more of a pattern because he played three or four straight games before last night right yes so. If this happens when you start Friday's obviously if this if this keeps happening OK am with you there but. He's always been a better second half player's career and first not a lot of guys are considered about but he's one. You. Have just. Holes opened an airline accurately do for a team that's in first place they're not consistent offensively at all so like much like we said about Pablo. Where well you got to him audience is yet no alternatives that's kinda where you are with him. 24 it was batting average ten home runs 29 RBIs. Oh on base of 341. What does he slugging your arm and it just that that the totals well. Finally so oral sex doesn't fit. So it's pretty sad and yes slightly below average of the the guy was supposed to replace David Ortiz he's not coming clothes do not replacing David or tee and and I thought John Farrell had an interesting quote last night about Mitch Moreland thesis I did yes yes there's gonna get to the net more of a god you have yes so. Just the good message that he seems to be sending it certainly sounded to me like this was meant. As a message for hand. You know because. The quote was basically he showed his teammates need you the quote. I ordered a second is that something to the effect you know Mitch while is playing there injury which we know. And because here's the quote. He the way he's the way he's gone about it and sizzle fizzle condition he's in. Is a strong message the remainder of the team Ferrell set on Monday night yet that is clearly. A shot at him Ramirez who at times is at one and one or two cases. Back out some shoulder late. Last night was because of the neat he got hit by a pitch in the neat he stayed in the game. So yeah ice down to come back the next day you're playing its first place Minnesota Twins team you were located go up to the game and then a right prior to game time was like 530 S Olazabal for 430 yesterday. He bags out for the third time league this year in the hours prior to game time says he can't play. More on this plane three broken tail. He is showing more power numbers then. Him Ramirez has. With a broken toe and he keeps playing for broken toe and John Ferrell lauded his first baseman last night. I think the way he's going about it given the physical condition reason is that there's a strong message for the remainder of this team. Yeah exactly and the what I don't get. Given the way he's hitting right now is why you don't call handling on his bull crap because the longer you let him play through this and he's an air quotes here in studio. These injuries job. You are just. Belonging the fact these wanna take advantage of that this is what kids do when you give a kid any sort of leeway. They take advantage of that and this is Tammy right now because they don't call monitor because he knows John Ferrell is not gonna rip him publicly because John probably does think. But the shoulders might be an issue okay goal wrest the new school better second half player you got two weeks or so until a week or sort of the all star break. Goal at fifty Ted Kennedy aide radio right now and come back after the break go get healthy come back and go back got a games last minute. A real would have hurt the team that's picked when he has helped the team because you sent a message to handle it okay your hurt. Go get yourself a couple of weeks when you come back we expect he'd be in the lineup every single day. And it there's one thing about the culture of baseball that is. Not forget that's too strong word but if there's something that in baseball is not appreciated is the last minute scratch you know we saw this. Last year were the rod got a game in Detroit where he pulled himself. Not nearly giving the team enough time to get Henry Owens up and all that. I we've seen Carl Everett and Darren Lewis were gone back now fifteen years but they got basically into a brawl in the clubhouse before a game over that over somebody beside me couldn't play was a J. D. Drew wood on day of gains be a last minute scratch my head was I don't that's the yeah I mean JD was more likely to be scratches brother there was their eyes I thought it was JD who who would just give the manager fits because there was ease couldn't play. Last minute I think yes he Daschle ever like he'd you know his his hamstring so open and so. He would be a last minute thing coaches and managers hate that because. Especially the Red Sox since Francona they've always had this thing they like to tell guys the night before a year get in and day out tomorrow hey you're gonna plated mark Macon prepare for it. And that's something that Farrell has carried over. And when him lead pulls stuff like this now you're sort of you're asking someone who wasn't prepared to play to suddenly step and I. Understand it's not fair but I understand having separate rules for certain players right the guy got to manage but he's also producing David okay you deal with the excellent point John. Hanley is not producing. And whether whether it's the bad it is against the royals were laughing with sour president to run game late was on the swings this guy takes I was there Sunday. And it's not the first time this year he swings at a first pitch of Wales and a page doesn't look close doesn't seem. Locked in the way nannies be locked in having a big god Bobble head night for Manny to say which one about Manny. Manny Ramirez in the back in the batter's box up against that one a bank it's rare. You know he he was locked in as anybody. Or tees if he's bitching about his contract the complaining about an injury or manager he was locked into the batter's box. Hanley doesn't look like he gives a crap at times yet that. The message you are sending is we're OK with this behavior. Odd people on about it for gusting to 41 slugging 747. That makes cents. Yes OPS percent and yet the that's my thing with Hanley is he's trying to short circuit the process of being David Ortiz like he. Knew that David Ortiz is gone after replace him and you know what his numbers last year were not quite Ortiz leveled a close enough where he did that again you can total of attack. The problem is. The numbers came first court season and all the other stuff the personality of the smile the big pot be the persona. All of that stuff back came second. And Haley seems to be trying to put all that first some going to be the guy who laughs and jokes and everybody in the middle of the game because my stature in baseball I can get away with back. And you you cite no. No you know as one of his former teammates it's a no no no pot but there are allowing him right now to get away yet made by not putting on the DL on San okay. Fix whatever shoulder it's hurt or goal restaurant TLC after the all star break we saying his world came with his behavior and John Farrell can. Alluded to last night by getting its willing credit. But you're not really doing Hanley careless. We get called out by his manager. I've been reading he's being did talk to behind the scenes maybe you know they need to do lynch him on a day when he's healthy say you know what now where we're good we're gonna go to guys that we have you know that would send a strong message to me. Dan. TO or whatever setting. Long term the use the shoulders all year both he both he and they have been since or is now and he's not. Really hurt you know now I feel good physically keeps on Bradford goes good physically. I think he does do you wanna play first base he wants to decide when and where he's going to play. And keep letting the guys not performing do that I don't understand what kind of message we're sending to your team. I'm speaking of the Boston Red Sox begin rob Bradford just posts a story on the Red Sox target. I've heard this name brought up but I'm sure we're there yet with the Red Sox and where they are for giving up big prospects for this player will get that push your phone calls. But it's a mossy and for Kirk injure. Scourge and Callahan with Kirk made ahead and Gerry Callahan won Sports Radio WEEI. Yeah of the do do bird these are more. It is there's. I just there's no improvement third. Well we're really. Tall burden is there. He considered the greatest ever. 100%. I mean it. You know you've always got two sides' arguments usually when when people are talking Marbury this is out tomorrow. How good are you would your stats. You know. That would you look I don't own film and then there is that people who always when a validated by wins and championships. When he's got both. And there I don't I don't think you can argue who you can compared to say you're not the best volatile. Thought I was his former teammate Darrelle Revis talking about Tom Brady last night on the NFL's top 100 players in 2017. Coming in at number one once again. Tom Brady Revis talking about him and certainly earned it office play last year meeting get the MVP because in play enough I understand Matt Ryan. I did plenty things Atlanta guard of the MVP but I think it's pretty clear that Tom Brady was the best player. In the league last year from the rankings NFL I'd dot com NFL network. They go with your guy TV twelve who might be here next year at least some people right now is number one player in the national football what's amazing to me it's. He's been the best quarterback and a thoughts out of your use her for the last ten years you know I mean that. 08 team obviously will dollar or seventeen I should say about the records for get hurt no way. And it's taken so long for the public at large to recognize which is a strange to me I mean it's. Objectively so obvious. That he has been the best player in football for a long long time and only now at age forty I mean tell me another athlete of the outside of Barry Bonds. Tell me another athlete who is the best in his sport at age forty. I'm not sure mean Lance Armstrong I don't what how old now is it like he was we asked all his adult stuff we know that right now but he's doping stuff that was well before Ford doesn't exist and it's why Brady's is seen towards that women wanna heavyweight title fight forty Sammy and it's just. Is there's nobody made you Ortiz last it was close he's probably the best he might have been the best as the eight hitter in the Jan. But it's just amazing in that sport where. You know kickers can barely hold on into their forties and here you go with the quarterback. Who's not only still playing but he is the best player in the league that is unprecedented in the history that only showed the forty year old quarterback's right they sure far be sure warn. Mood a couple of their guys and their numbers are just it's it it's a it's like as a down stock it's like one of the stock chart you look at just going down down down. Whereas Brady is coming off a huge Capote with. Any of these years and for his age. I think that's. That's part of the reason why is not been. Given the credit I think that the credit is not come from. The fact the patriots dislike number one Johnny said why's he not gotten credit being the best quarterback only people at the patriots that's really helps. I do think there was this Peyton Manning mystique. In the league it wasn't until. Hey you know the numbers then and actually got an hours ago with them. But it wasn't until Kerry Byrne a cold hard football facts really sort of pointing out okay look at Brady's doing. Vs Manning in categories OK besides winning. Anyway go look at the on completion perceive that it did touchdown interception ratio is look at all these different numbers in the numbers started to advance in football. That was a big part of it but up until then. It was on management and Brady Brady's game manager John for the first person is Greg issue could say he has but he's. He's really changed his career from the game manager two with three or she said dial as the numbers and that plays into the people slow to react to Brady is well lease on a national debt and what was interesting about me. Ending from the opposite perspective was he goes out at the end of his career and finally becomes a guy. Whose teams win you know like it by the end of his career he's beating Brady regularly in the playoffs he wins the Super Bowl he gets another symbol gets crushed but at least gets there. And so Manning sort of reversed that narrative on him but he wasn't a winning player he became that by the end of his career. And Brady has done the same thing while continuing to win the whole way. Now you have to recognize the greatness of is he the most accurate passer in NFL history and I don't mean completion percentage is I don't know he could he's going to be up higher malice anyway but in terms of watching him. Is there a more accurate especially intermediate passer. Ever in the most insane stat along those lines he has 300 or more touchdowns than interceptions in his career. Yeah and that's what organize and raise him from a guy like Manning I'm sure Manning's numbers probably. 150 short that yeah me. Any smarter this year and it it's as the league has gotten. Let's call more hip to the dance numbers and that touchdown interception ratio is more important than just the overall touched on number Manning is being lauded for these huge touchdown numbers. He also a big numbers depict Brett Favre same way. Brady then came along you didn't have Blake 39 touchdown for receptions he's so he's out of touch on numbers and he wasn't turning the ball over yet so it Brady's 304 what's Manning Chris we have that. What is number 280. You were so now that can't be right. No I I I I would guess that Manning had a lot more interceptions Brady meets him actually honestly feel like time line at about ten Oreo total interceptions of Manning has 251. Tom Brady has 152 visions of that's the hundred now Manning had so many touchdowns again that. But a hundred more interceptions. Tells embraced us to war we think at least high level years and although you know again. All this will ratchet up at some point this summer the future of Tom Brady which is taken a slight pay it is here on sports talk radio that is coming because it's the drop will thing. Eagle on LA times soon and your guy Brady just got named the best. Player in the league at the this age of 39 month and pick the guy he replaced entitlement touchdowns interceptions I loved watching Bledsoe from and we all pre season. But back foot he had an arrow slither on in 9000 miles an hour. But I've got his numbers 251 touchdowns 206 interceptions scorers there's barely won one. And that's the the complete opposite of any unit with a million different coordinators in a million different set of offensive skill set players and better as he's gotten. Older his career were for a long time in it was far away. That Manning had the better players than Brady. When it came to the surrounding cast. Cola causes players so Marvin Harrison or Reggie Wayne I mean Brady didn't have anybody like that and preaching Ozzie also played inside vs Brady play out Dallas Clark and and we look those debates are over I mean unless you are trade wing goal or Greg Doyle. You're no longer advocating for Peyton Manning being the best quarterback of all time that's out the window favre's out the window. It is Tom Brady the question is how one goes at this level and you mentioned the age thing going for and it's one of the reasons why. There is at least say a some portion of patriot fans who after next year. If he has that quality what what did I don't like down here for Brady's at this point at her I mean I think I literally think the only thing that will stop in his injury being that. That because grapples waiting behind him as good as Brady's been. There's some portion of fans who are. Seen this is Brady's last season getting sick in the call you we take an MB here on the bishop and a bad or fatal. One or ten more years of rating and that's it you can't plan on him being here it's at least fifty you you can't any of but you also given what heed the season has had. I don't I go boy has a year like this next year already handed the keys to Jimmy gee I guess we can't. We gotta get this guy twenty million die I don't pay a rumpled more than Brady we got to keep these guys around a year from new paper Timor's socket. Just give Brady's money you're thrust your top and this is I admittedly do not watch as one of these events last night that I knew was happening. Thank them because of Twitter I knew of our balls on wrestling yeah last night apparently in the mellow yelled something and Alitalia something races and Alonso got booed thank you Twitter. Hoping to get to the entire show radio station in the country and play that census. That supposedly. The let me open doesn't count. You had an NBA three on three last night which I watched a lot more than I care to admit I'm going to be in two if they ever forgot racial lines that tape delayed I was gallon. I get this cal game I've watched almost two full gains when I was watching a Kwame Brown a and the 33. Headed monster that team come back to win I saw Ricky Davis Ricky Davis and Rashard Lewis or arbitrary date they were good back and forward Jason Williams blew out his knee and fortunately I think CD's of the non contact injury out of and they cities might be your case play well open looked off it did look jump obligates shop but it's all these. It's like it's. It's great pick Earl mid two thousands NBA guys Mike Beebe and Mike James there was guys Celtic point guard edit a cup of coffee was pretty good. On the announcing crew was pretty good I'd I was. I was in the three and three NB a that I'll watch it. But I'd at these these prolific than to cause a Twitter this and other wanted to watch it live at Newbury was ranked number one here's your top ten. But at the top 100 players 2017 Brady one Von Miller to. Julio Jones three Antonio Brown for clue Mac five air Roger six. As he Hugh Elliot seven O'Dell Beckham junior eight. Levy on bell mine and and Matt Ryan whose name quarterback. He get a good number ten in the rankings does that Lauder died as a little. Six. Yeah I'd I was surprised Roger had an out right to be honest with you mean Bryant had a predict here for a winner last year. And why and how about Roger Warren is out what didn't and while they they got there. I was surprised that he was below but this is. It's a good sign for Brady turns forty in August being the top player in the league is all you need Lenovo Brady when it goes it's gonna go like. That's what happened all. OK Max Kellerman the clippers coming it is I'm I don't know honestly a year that's what I'm telling you is Brady will not have a slow decline you'll have an immediate it'll be over what. Niece Katie avocado ice cream and there's he's going to be pliable yeah it was a decline completely said he thought yet. He's not getting any tomatoes that sticky so we'll come back get your break in the mid day guys are here they are pumped up big ol' Lou and Christian your W media. Which occurred minutes. Jerry Kelly fox Sports Radio WEEI. Call it what day this is not going to be for those of us who. What data is already those of us wanna gamble on things legal. John I have long had his conversations with. You're real friend my only what you stand Barbary she wrote the great pulled tooling with kings got. About fan you'll draft kings and not gambling not not gambling but it leads to conversations of gambling and why can't we is. Red blooded Americans in 2017. Why can't we gamble leak what we have to go to offshore web sites in places like Antigua and the Caribbean and have to wait six weeks for your pay out liking you walk in what you can over in London. Now lab broke through William Hill. Walking off the street place a bet get a plight. And enjoy your games well. We might be a step closer to that while we were talking the US Supreme Court which have been busy these last couple days. Are they gave the thumbs up at least initially to New Jersey sports betting they grant the New Jersey a petition middle aside the case on merits they've bought this thing for you. Long long long long. Long time it's not over yet does give you merits briefs there's going to be the whole. Out as if the amicus briefs I think it is Amadeus advocates priest read all about through to flee Gately. Things the league's response brief the new Jersey's ever response in October. But it now goes from a certification stage two we merits stage. New round of briefing to get to argue in front the Supreme Court Supreme Court is going to hear the argument from New Jersey that they wanna be able to have sports betting. There at Monmouth park in William Hill. And we want this for a long long time guys like me John this is a good day when it comes to legalizing gambling in this country now can you sum up the arguments for and against what is the argument not ninety seconds now the argument against is that the league. The NFL. They can't find a way to make money on yet so they are saying no no no there's no stopping those Little League is so I didn't even know the league's gonna fight against the league is the one fighting humanity ingredients and up behind a well. Details now finds an NFL is really play the NBA you know Adam silver wants it carried that they don't want it better for the NHL. It's the NCAA it's the NFL those humanities don't want this they say biggest fights there. We don't want any world but it's a step in the right direction. For guys like me degenerate gambling and again it's like Revere that's I got I hope so we got to go. Thoughts to Kirk's family. Going through. A tough couple years and a tough couple of days here with the passing. Of his dad six weeks ago and his mom last Thursday or thoughts and prayers out to Kirk. And his entire family we are back to Margaret tomorrow I back to zero Jerry's back tomorrow as well and made big guys are next year Sports Radio W media it's four and you know it was.

View original post here:

K&C - Hanley Ramirez keeps bailing; sports gambling may become legal 6-27-17 - WEEI.com

What veterinarians wished you knew before euthanizing your pet – Today.com

Posted on by

share

pin

email

At 14 years old, Barky, our family dog, had survived cancer and blood disease thanks to a combination of heroic veterinary efforts and just plain good luck. Then, she developed congestive heart failure.

Congestive heart failure is a terrible condition. The dog's heart can't pump blood through the body very well. It leads to coughing, exhaustion, a swollen belly and eventually, the dog's lungs will fill with fluid, and she will essentially feel as if she is drowning in her own body.

Barky at the author's parents' house in Rhode Island

We didn't want Barky to experience a terrifying, painful death. We thought it was kinder for the veterinarian to end her life before that happened peacefully, at home, surrounded by the people who love her.

My family and I were devastated to lose Barky, devastated to think of her dying, and unsure about whether we were making the right choice. Should we wait? Had we already waited too long?

This is the price we pay for loving animals, and for living with animals: being responsible sometimes for deciding when and how to end their lives.

But how do we know how and when to do it, so that we have done right by our pets, and honored their places in our family? TODAY reached out to veterinarians for guidance to help answer some of our deepest and, frankly, sobbiest questions about pet euthanasia.

Generally, the veterinarian will give your pet two shots. The first is a sedative.

"This provides for a gentle transition from consciousness to unconsciousness, and the only sensation a pet will experience following this injection is falling into a deeper and deeper sleep," explained Dr. Shea Cox, a hospice and palliative care specialist with Bridge Veterinary Services in Northern California.

This period will likely last between five and 10 minutes, with the pet falling into a deeper and deeper sleep, "at which time they become no longer aware," said Cox.

When the family is ready, the veterinarian will then administer the second injection. The most common drug used during that stage is pentobarbital, another anesthetic that will cause the pet's heart to slow and then stop.

The injection is given either intravenously, which will bring on death in seconds, or directly into the abdomen, which may take up to 15 minutes and "is more gentle and slow," said Cox but in either case, the pet, having been sedated, will not be aware of this part of the process.

The only discomfort the pet should experience throughout is a possible pinch when the first injection is given. This is in keeping, Cox said, with the true meaning of the word "euthanasia," coming "from the Greek word euthanatos, which means 'good death.'"

People often ask Dr. Dani McVety, founder of the home-based veterinary hospice and euthanasia service Lap of Love, when is the "right" time for euthanasia. She prefers the term "best," instead.

McVety feels this word better encompasses the truth, that there is usually no 100 percent, objectively correct time for euthanasia. Rather, "we, together, are making the best decision that we could make," she said.

Barky was very loving and patient even when some people insisted in dressing her up like a babushka.

Deciding when to end a pet's life involves the owner and their veterinarian weighing a number of factors: the animal's current quality of life, what type of disease he or she may be suffering from and how it is likely to progress. Another consideration is what the family is able to endure; if they want every possible second with their pet and will undergo expensive or uncertain treatments, or if they want to forestall their pet's suffering.

If the pet has a condition like congestive heart failure, or untreatable brain cancer a disease that will, unchecked, lead to a painful death the recommendation may be for euthanasia sooner instead of later.

Even then, by and large, your pet won't tell you for sure that it's time; don't expect a clear-as-day sign to let you know. "Theres a subjective period of time in which euthanasia is a good decision," said McVety.

It's important that you and your vet can have open, honest conversations about euthanasia, to help guide this hard part of the process.

"In general, I also tell people to trust their instincts. They know their pets better than anyone," said Dr. Lisa Lippman, a house-call veterinarian in New York City. "Are they eating? Do they get up to greet you like normal? No matter what any veterinarian says, they know their pet best."

It's normal for your pet to have good and bad days, toward the end. Texas veterinarian Dr. Fiona McCord, founder of Compassionate Care Pet Services, stresses that owners shouldn't feel as if they have done something wrong if the euthanasia takes place on a day their pet is feeling well.

"I would much rather somebody plan we had a good day, went to the park, came home, had the ice cream sandwiches and we let that pet go than to say, 'OK, lets play it day by day,' and suddenly I get a call, 'My dog is in distress, can you come today?'" she said. "Its OK to be a good day. There is no perfect time. Nobody will ever know the perfect time."

Some veterinarians specialize in at-home euthanasia, or incorporate that into their practice. Being at home means not having to get a sick pet into the car, not having to bring them to the veterinarian's office, which may be associated with anxiety or pain.

"Allowing a pets final moments to be spent in their familiar home setting, surrounded by the comforts and smells they have known all their life, is a final gift we can give," said Cox.

The price varies widely among veterinarians and clinics. Some vets may not charge at all for euthanasia, only for cremation services. Lap of Love's Tampa Bay location charges $250 for the euthanasia itself, with additional costs for cremation. Other veterinarians have quoted prices of double and even triple that amount. You'll have to ask your vet about prices.

When the procedure cannot be done in your home, your veterinarian may have a back entrance and quiet room set aside for euthanasia, so that you and your pet can avoid the loud waiting room. In that case, Dr. Michael Dix of the Jacksonville Veterinary Hospital in Oregon suggests bringing along "their favorite toy, bed or blanket with the pet when the actual euthanasia is taking place."

"It is also nice for people to give special things to their pet as the time nears," Dix said. "This may be a special treat, like ice cream or hot dogs. Not too much, though, as they can get uncomfortable."

The most important thing is to help your pet feel calm and not increase their stress, says Dr. Katy Nelson, a veterinarian with Belle Haven Animal Medical Centre in Alexandria, Virginia, and host of "The Pet Show With Dr. Katy."

For example, if your pet wears a collar, leave it on until they have passed, since "taking it off can be excitatory," Nelson said.

And stay with your pet through the process and to the end. "While it may be hard, it would be harder knowing that the last face that your precious one saw was that of a stranger," said Nelson. "Theyve always been there for you in life. Be there for them in death."

You may feel comforted by being able to celebrate and honor your pet at the different stages of this process.

For example, perhaps you have sufficient opportunity to prepare, create and then go out and fulfill a bucket list of experiences for your pet. Or revisit their favorite places, and give them their favorite foods.

Then on the day of, you can try to have people and things around you that will foster a peaceful and meaningful experience. McCord recalls an elderly Labrador retriever whose owner invited several friends to come to her house to be there for the dog's euthanasia.

The group had flowers, lit candles and sang. The owner's friends "read a couple of really awesome poems. They did a little prayer," said McCord. "This then allows that person to deal with this death in whatever way is appropriate for them."

Your veterinarian may cry with you. In fact, it's common enough for this to happen that there's a kind of rule of thumb that the vet should ensure not to cry harder than the pet's owner.

For McVety, even with the sadness, what she mainly feels is that it is "an honor" to be part of a family's life during this time.

Cox shares this perspective. "While it is true that the nature of the appointment is a situation of sadness and loss, there is no other time in my relationship with that pet and family that is more impactful and meaningful than those moments we spend together," she said. "To be able to make a final journey as meaningful as the life lived is not just a gift to the pet and family, but a gift to me."

You have a lot of options as to what you want to do with your pet's body after euthanasia.

Your veterinarian can tell you about pet cremation services available in your area. You will generally have to specify if you want your pet cremated alone, and for their ashes to be returned to you.

There are countless urns and other specialty memorials you can buy for containing your pet's ashes. A chain of pet funeral homes called The Pet Loss Center is currently expanding through Texas and Florida; other similar operations may be opening in your city. In some jurisdictions it is legal to bury your pet in your backyard, and in some others, you can even make arrangements for you and your pet to be (eventually) buried together in a cemetery.

But before all that, many veterinarians will allow you to spend time alone with your deceased pet in the room at their animal hospital if that's where the euthanasia occurred, or in your home before the veterinarian takes away their body. McCord said she's even had pet owners ask for their pet's body to be left at home overnight.

"Thats OK; we dont have to push bodies away or hide them or cover them up the minute they passed," she said.

McVety recommends saving a lock of your pet's fur, and keeping their collar, especially if you have other animals at home. They will smell these tokens, and it will help them grieve, too.

"They dont grieve in a human way, so we cant expect them to act the same way that we do. But they get the circle of life better than we do," she said. "They understand this. Were the ones that have a problem with it. So even watching your pet and how they get through the process is, I think, such a great example for us humans on how we can continue moving forward in life in a moment-by-moment basis."

Be sure, finally, to give yourself time and space to grieve. Consider joining a pet loss support group. A pet's death can be as traumatic and difficult as the loss of a human family member.

"It is not a sign of weakness to love a pet," Nelson said. "And its certainly not a sign of weakness to mourn their loss."

Barky was spoiled rotten until her last day.

It was about five years ago now that I flew to Rhode Island where my parents live, and where they had taken such good care of our beloved dog to see Barky one last time.

Barky's final day was bright and sunny. We spent hours outside with her in her favorite spot in the yard, so she could keep a good eye on all invading squirrels. Her face was white with age, her fur was warm from the sun. We gave Barky as many biscuits as she wanted to eat.

When the vet arrived that afternoon, my parents and I sat with Barky on the couch where she'd napped so many hundreds of times that there were dog-sized white spots worn into the otherwise tan leather. My brother and his wife, who were living in Turkey at the time, joined us by Skype.

After a long time of saying goodbye, while my family and me cried into Barky's fur, the veterinarian administered the shots. We hugged her and told her we loved her as she left us. Maybe there are things we might have done differently today, given the chance. We did our best.

My mom claims to still hear Barky walking around the house from time to time. I still think of her daily. Sometimes I sit my other pets down and tell them about their Auntie Barky.

They never really pay attention, but it makes me feel better to say it.

Follow this link:

What veterinarians wished you knew before euthanizing your pet - Today.com

Benefits cheat who said she was ‘virtually unable to walk’ was drummer in marching band – Derby Telegraph

Posted on by

Comments(4)

A benefits cheat rom Derby who said she "was virtually unable to walk" was caught out - when it was discovered she was a drummer in a marching band.

Rhona Vessey told the Department of Work and Pensions "could only walk 20 metres without getting out of breath" and "felt anxious if people looked at her" when she was out.

The 50-year-old, of Little Eaton, also said she often "could not carry a shopping bag" because of her physical impairments.

But, following a tip-off from a member of the public, investigators carried out undercover surveillance on Vessey and on three occasions watched as she banged a drum with the marching band.

Handing her a 10-week community order, District Judge Jonathan Taaffe said: "This is not a victimless crime because there is no bottomless pit of money that people can fraudulently claim from.

"You claimed benefits you were not entitled to and the reality is that society and the courts take a serious view on crimes like this.

"You made the claim and then participated in marching activities with others."

Lynn Bickley, prosecuting at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court said Vessey submitted a benefits claim on October 3, 2014 and continued receiving money, which totalled 6,251.04, until October 26 the following year.

Our reporter with the case details:

She said: "We says this was a claim that was dishonest from the outset.

"She made the claim saying she was virtually unable to walk, needed attention to her leg three times during the day and prolonged attention during the night.

"In her claim she said she could only walk between 20 and 50 metres without getting out of breath.

"She said often she could not go outside her front door, or go to shops and supermarkets on her own.

"She said she could often not use shopping bags and felt anxious if people looked at her when she was outside.

"But information was received that she was a member of a marching band and regularly took part in lengthy and complex marching routines."

Miss Bickley said investigators for the DWP went to spy on Vessey, of Church Lane, to see if the allegations were founded.

She said: "The result of the surveillance was that on three occasions she was observed marching in the band with a drum strapped to her shoulder and there were no limitations on her mobility."

Vessey was interviewed and claimed her claim was genuine and that her condition was getting worse.

But she later pleaded guilty to one count of fraud and the court was told she is currently paying back the money she illegally claimed.

Judge Taaffe ordered that she pay 85 costs, an 85 victim surcharge and handed her a 10 week curfew, confining her to her address between 7pm and 7am each day.

Peter Jones, for Vessey, said his client had lost her husband "relatively recently" and is currently jointly claiming employment support allowance with her new partner.

He said: "This is a lady that feels great shame that she before the court."

He said she understood that it was wrong for her to not reveal she was playing in a marching band.

The rest is here:

Benefits cheat who said she was 'virtually unable to walk' was drummer in marching band - Derby Telegraph

Congress Proposes Outlawing Drugs Before Knowing What They Are – Observer

Posted on by

Sens. Chuck Grassley and Dianne Feinstein recentlyintroduced the Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues (SITSA) Act of 2017. This act would create a Schedule A classification, banning importing new synthetic drugs deemed substantially similar to existing illegal drugs before testing their safety. If passed, the SITSA Act will be another step down the unfruitful path of prohibition.

Prohibiting a drug causes more problems than it solves. When a substance is banned, people can no longer rely on the government to enforce contracts for the sale and transport of the substance. This means that the only way to protect property and selling rights is through violence. Drugs dont cause violent crimeprohibition does.

Two years after Colorado legalized marijuana, the stateexperienced a 12.8 percent decrease in homicide rates. Colorado prosecutors charged 11,000 people with marijuana-related crimes in 2011 and charged only 2,100 people for marijuana crimes from January to October of 2015. It seems obvious that the number of charges would decrease when the drug became legal. What is less obvious, though, is the time, energy, and money saved when police arent wasting time on victimless crimes.

Prohibition often makes drugs stronger and more dangerous. In 1971, just before President Richard Nixon started the official War on Drugs, overdose deaths rates in the United States were slightly above one in 100,000. By 2008, this number jumped to 12 in 100,000.

If possession of a substance is a federal crime, many dealers and users cease using the drug in low concentrations. The more potent the drug, the more worthwhile the risk, versus potential profit. This is why we saw aspike in hard alcohol consumption during prohibition while beer and wine consumption dropped significantlyand why all these consumption rates returned to normal after the 21st Amendment was ratified. The War on Drugs makes drugs deadlier.

The SITSA Act is an attempt by Congress to ban substances before the government can even identify them. Substances could be banned for a predicted physiological effect on the human body. Grassley and Feinstein want to restrict drugs that they think might have an adverse effect on human health with no substantiated evidence.

The governments role is not that of an overprotective babysitter or frightened parent. Americans should be able to decide for themselves what substances to use if no federal testing has found them to be harmful.

This is reminiscent of the hilariously frightening pass it to see whats in it Obamacare debacle. Government officials want the power to ban substances without even knowing what they are. Dont worry, though, the government will figure out how harmful the drug is after its off-limits for an indefinite amount of time. Federal regulation has stopped U.S. scientists from researching medical uses for marijuana, MDMA, LSD and other illicit substances. Prematurely banning the transport of new drugs will keep them unavailable for private medical testing.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the man who just asked Congress to let him prosecute medical marijuana companies, claims the U.S. is in the throes of a historic epidemic of drug use. He predicts more violent crime and a huge public safety risk if medical marijuana operations arent shut down. Sessions doesnt understand that the danger, violence, and public health crises caused by drugs is not in their use but in their prohibition.

Portugal faced a similar situation in the late 1980s. At first, the country tried a rigorous conservative approach to drug use including social vilification and harsh legal penalties. It didnt work. By 1999, almost one percent of the population was addicted to heroin.

In 2001, the country decided to tackle the problem in a different way. Portugal decriminalized all drugs and focused on harm reduction measures. Since then, drug-induced deaths, AIDS diagnoses, and overall drug use have fallen significantly.

The U.S. government is actively harming its citizens with its predatory drug policy. The SITSA Act insults Americans, implying that the government knows what we should and shouldnt put into our bodies without any research to back up its claims. To curb the drug problems in America, we need to realize that prohibition invariably makes things worse.

Dylan Moore is currently a Young Voices Advocate.

More:

Congress Proposes Outlawing Drugs Before Knowing What They Are - Observer

The Continuing Scourge of Tenant Harassment: If You Don’t Like It, Move. – The Nonprofit Quarterly (registration)

Posted on by

June 12, 2017; Curbed New York

Tenancy at will is the property owners state of nature. Back in the Middle Ages, the landlord was literally the lord of the land. Landed nobility were the owners, employers, and civil magistrates. Todays landlord, schooled by the libertarian, free market philosophies of Adam Smith, John Locke, and Ayn Rand, uses the mantra, If you dont like it, move. Landlord harassment is todays way of making tenants dislike staying enough that they decide to move.

The website Curbed offers a story entitled New Yorks 10 worst landlords targeted by housing advocates to expose the predatory practices that are designed to force out rent stabilized tenants so that the investors can bring in tenants who are willing and able to pay a higher rent.

Techniques like making illegal rent increases, threats to call immigration or childrens services, seizing tenants belongings, adding fees for basic services in lieu of rent increases, and carrying out phony, sloppy, annoying, dangerous construction are all part of the harassment toolkit. While the ten worst landlords story focuses on the most egregious violators, the use of harassment techniques to force out rent-stabilized tenants is widespread, especially in communities undergoing rapid increase in property values due to gentrification.

Where tenants have acquired, usually by political action, some tenure rights, it is harder for landlords to exercise absolute authority. In New York City, for instance, where there are some restrictions on rent and some legal protections in court, tenants are less likely to be evicted cheaply and efficiently in order to make room for other (more lucrative) customers. Just last week, the New York Supreme Court upheld an initiative by Governor Cuomo that protects rent-regulated tenants from overcharges, harassment and intimidation by unscrupulous landlords. Governor Cuomo called the decision a victory for the more than 2 million rent-regulated tenants in the state.

Landlord harassment is not just a NYC problem. Passive aggressive disregard of tenant complaints may have been a factor in the Grenfell Towers tragedy. Feargus OSullivan writes in CityLab,

Redeveloping or remodeling public projects also means that boroughs and developers can squeeze out extra revenue by adding homes for the private marketaffordable homes that, while cheaper than market rates, still generate some income. In order to maximize these profits, theres pressure to remove as many poorer public housing tenants as possible, to make more room for market-rate apartments. Homes that previously had public tenants in them are left unfilled, while public tenants can be offered a flat fee to clear out and never return (in some cases without fully understanding that the money offered bars their right to return.)

Back in the U.S., private owners of federally subsidized properties already use non-legal harassment to remove undesirable tenants who are protected by the just cause provisions in the HUD lease. This month, tenants in a small senior property in Ohio were denied additional handicapped parking spaces and told by managements attorney that they were free to break their leases to move to a property with more handicapped spaces. After a meeting with the out-of-town owners of the property, tenants were surprised to find personal financial documents affixed to their unit doors, open for all to see. These tactics were initiated after tenants requested a meeting with the out-of-town owners to discuss handicapped spaces, slow response to a plumbing crisis over the Easter weekend, and verbal harassment by the on-site property manager.

If the U.S. Congress adopts President Trumps budget proposals, which would raise rents for subsidized tenants, more harassment may be on the way. There could be an incentive to rent to higher-income households by forcing out the oldest, most disabled, and least-self-sufficient tenants to make room. Tenants currently protected by just cause provisions in the HUD model lease could be harassed into moving voluntarily.

Where tenants have strong social networks, family members and social service providers can sometimes offset harassment. Just being present in the building during working hours can be a deterrent to abusive behavior. Accompanying a tenant to meetings to be a witness/advocate can help. Sometimes, however, low-level social service providers are themselves harassed by property managers when they try to be advocates. It is not unusual for property managers to complain to social agency employers when home service workers speak up for their clients.Spencer Wells

Since his retirement in 2013, Spencer volunteers as the Community Manager of the Rental Housing Information Network in Ohio. RHINO is an on line community of activists (service providers, public policy/program managers, tenant leaders and rental housing advocates) working on rental housing issues in Ohio. During his professional career, Spencer was a VISTA volunteer, a community worker at Garden Valley Neighborhood House, lead organizer and executive director of the Cleveland Tenants Organization, and tenant outreach director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO). Spencer served as a volunteer on several successful political campaigns in Ohio and on many non profit Boards of Trustees. In addition to managing RHINO network, Spencer has a big garden and small woodlot where he lives with his wife Janet and two spoiled cats.

Read the original here:

The Continuing Scourge of Tenant Harassment: If You Don't Like It, Move. - The Nonprofit Quarterly (registration)

Republicans, inspired by Ayn Rand, and Democrats, sticking up for trees, join forces to kill billboard bill – The Progressive Pulse

Posted on by

A fter an hour-long debate last night that contained references to both Ayn Rand and The Twilight Zone, HB 581, aka the billboard bill, failed by a 49-66 vote.

Thirty Republicans and 36 Democrats voted against the measure; 43 Republicans and six Democrats voted for it.The bill was sponsored by Harnett County Republican David Lewis.

This is the worst billboard bill Ive seen since Ive been here, said Rep. Chuck McGrady, a four-term Republican from Henderson County. Its a corporate welfare bill.

Even after slogging through several committees, the bill was packed with perks for the billboard industry. Although outdoor advertisements couldnt be built where they are currently prohibited the Town of Cary and parts of Durham, for example it otherwise stripped local governments of their control over where billboards could be built.

The measure consolidated power within existing, large billboard companies, making it difficult for smaller ventures to enter the market and compete. A billboard permit would become as coveted as a yellow taxicab medallion in New York City.

Rep. Grier Martin, a Wake County Democrat, proposed an amendment that would have broken up the large companies monopoly, but it failed.

In the first of the evenings two mentions of Ayn Rand, Rep. Jay Adams paraphrased from Atlas Shrugged, noting that the bill used government regulations to prop up a failing industry. Todays free market, it seems, does not favor billboards, especially ones that dont blink every six seconds.

HB 581 allowed billboard companies to replace conventional signs with digital billboards. These arenot merely upgrades, said Rep. Ted Davis, a Republican from New Hanover County, who would probably like to keep his districts beaches from looking like a carnival. Going from a static billboard to an electronic one would have a major impact on our state in terms of visual clutter.

Im getting more confused, said Rep. Jeff Collins, a Nash County Republican who supported the bill. Am I in the House of Representatives or The Twilight Zone? (As if occasionally, they arent one and the same.) What industry do we not let keep up with the times?

The bill removed protections for redbud and dogwood trees, which under current law, cant be cut down to make room for billboards.Lewis, the bill sponsor, had included that language, he said, because municipalities were using redbuds and dogwoods as a tactic like a pawn in a chess game, apparently to block the construction of billboards.

Rep. Brian Turner, a Buncombe County Democrat, tried to convince his fellow lawmakers to pass an amendment to protect the trees. He argued that the flower of the dogwood tree is the official state flower. The amendment failed.

Although appeals to nature didnt sway lawmakers, the giveaways to the billboard industry were too unpalatable for many Republicans, albeit a minority of them. Thirty-six Democrats pushed the bill across the finish line.

Environmental groups saw the bills failure as a rare mark in the win column.

Tonights vote is a victory for North Carolinians who appreciate our states scenic beauty, said Molly Diggins, state director of the Sierra Club, one of many environmental groups that opposed the bill. It also shows respect for local governments and the wishes of their constituents.

.

View original post here:

Republicans, inspired by Ayn Rand, and Democrats, sticking up for trees, join forces to kill billboard bill - The Progressive Pulse

No One Is Pissing Off Local Wrestling Crowds Like The "Progressive Liberal" – Deadspin

Posted on by

To some degree, the politics of The Progressive Liberal Dan Richards align with those of the real Dan Richards. Given that this is pro wrestling, a big red sign displaying Is this a work? is always flashing, but Richards claims he leans hard left. Its not much of a stretch, he says on the phone. When he tells me that Democrats should be as ballsy and unapologetic about their beliefs as the Republicans are about theirs, it could be either the character or man talking, and it still makes sense.

Regardless of how much Richards plays up the left-wing politics to crowds in Kentucky and nearby states, it works. Look no further than the videos to see that those crowds despise him. Theres a kid in the crowd telling him to shut up, and relentless jeers, or Trump masks worn by attendees. And even the occasional death threat, according to Tennessee-based wrestler and booker Beau James, who met Richards in 2003 and has served as something like a mentor. As James and Richards tell it, at a 2016 show in West Virginia, where Richards spoke about taking everyones guns, a patron displayed a pistol in a holster on his right hip and started rubbing it.

Another time, one fan threatened that if that fucking liberal showed up at a different show, hed bring his gun.

The heat is real:

Richards came up with the germ for the Progressive Liberal in 2015, with Donald Trump a few months into his presidential campaign. James, who vouches for Richardss authenticity, says, he is what you see on the TV. He serves as a barometer for Richards, figuring out how to get under the crowds skin without cutting too close. Appalachia has real problems, like many parts of the country: A lack of jobs, drug addiction, poverty. Ridiculing those topics will anger people in ways that go beyond riling up a crowd before a bout. We could use national politics, James says. We dont touch local politics.

The details really make the gimmick, and theyre not as obvious as the Not My President shirt. Its the way the Progressive Liberal says Appalachia, pronouncing the third syllable with a hard A as in ate, instead of the flat A preferred by locals. The audience immediately understands that hes not from here. Richards was originally billed out of Richmond, Virginia, his actual hometown. But he and James realized that when performing in Kentucky, which has a Richmond of its own, the crowd would become confused. So his origin became Washington, D.C.

The industry has always been replete with guys working effete liberal gimmicks, but this is the perfect place and time, and Dan Richards has built a sustainable meal ticket, at least within the limited scope of the indie circuit. Test your mental constitution and imagine for a minute if Hillary had won; this character would still be popular and paying customers would still project their frustrations onto him, for a different reason. For the time being, its an absolutely foolproof heel. And hell always be the heel. As Richards points out in our conversation, he could face the scummiest, most vile opponent, who cheats to win in the most obvious ways and with outside interference, and the people will still refuse to support the Progressive Liberal.

This gimmick has an expiration date, because they all do, but for the time being, the Progressive Liberal is something as fresh as it is seemingly obvious, with a lot of potential to go wideror be copied elsewhere. From what Ive seen so far, people who identified as left-leaning find Richards amusing, and so do self-identifying conservatives and Trump supporters. Their reasons for enjoying the character are vastly dissimilar, but they are all able to get something out of it. The holy grail of wrestling is to straddle the line between face and heel, to be someone the crowds love to hate. In the fair grounds and school gyms of Appalachia, Dan Richards may have found a shortcut.

Original post:

No One Is Pissing Off Local Wrestling Crowds Like The "Progressive Liberal" - Deadspin