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Industrial automation spurs economic growth – The Herald

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Industrial Automation is the past, present and future of industrial development, not only in the country but also on global scale.There is an increased reliance on automated systems and evidence of a steady boost in productivity, efficiency and business to client interactions.

Industrial automation is undeniably the key to explosive growth through technology; with adaptive systems which can measure, control and monitor all aspects of human existence and interaction.

There has been steady progress towards fully automated factories with the use of intelligent robots, sophisticated machines, online customer interactions and transactions.

With the development of such automated systems, the fundamental question is whether manufacturing will still require people.And the answer is a resounding, yes.

Automated machines need people to design, programme and maintain them; which is where the highly competitive degree programmes offered by the Harare Institute of Technology become relevant.

The Department of Industrial & Manufacturing has a diverse range of skills and capabilities to respond to the issues of Industrial Automation.

Over the 12 years of the departments existence, several projects within the arena of Industrial Automation have been developed, and more than 150 graduates have been armed with the acumen of the field.

They have been viable arsenal in transforming and sustaining the automation, beverage and cement industries in Harare, Mashonaland West, Bulawayo and Manicaland Provinces.

This year, the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering will host the second International Conference on the 25th and 26th of October.

The conference provides a platform where experts from around the globe will showcase their world class research and practice in Industrial Automation (visit http://www.iconiazim.co.zw for more details).

There are a number of advantages that Industrial Automation could give such as:

Lower energy consumption

Faster development of products

Faster customer response and direct sales

Better process flexibility

Easier and faster methods of getting work done

The cost of retrofitting Zimbabwean factories to becoming more automated is a challenge that can eventually be addressed by legislative incentives.

This will aid the momentum of adopting industrial automation growth.

While automation is slowly making its mark across the continent, its uptake is likely to be slow given the various energy challenges faced.

However, it cannot be denied that Industrial Automation gives a leading edge, with competitive advantages such as faster production and cost savings.

Eng Rujeko Masike is the chairperson of the Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering Department at the Harare Institute of Technology. You can contact her on [emailprotected]

For feedback, and for further details on our programmes,

Visit our website on http://www.hit.ac.zw

Email to [emailprotected] http://www.hit.ac.zw/webmail/src/compose.php?send_to=communications%40hit.ac.zw

Like us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/HarareInstituteofTechnology

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Industrial automation spurs economic growth - The Herald

‘Modern-Day Slavery’: Many Southern States Have Prison Inmates … – The National Memo (blog)

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

When activist Sam Sinyangwe was awaiting a meeting with the governors office at the Louisiana state capitol building in Baton Rouge, he noticed something odd.A black man in a dark-blue jumpsuit was printing papers while a correctional guardwith a badge and gunstood watching over him. The pair stood out against the white, middle-aged legislators populating the building.

Sinyangwe said he did not know exactly what he was looking at, until he saw another black man in the same dark-blue outfit serving food at the capitol buildings cafeteria. This time, Sinyangwe noticed that the man had a patch on his chest labeling him a prisoner of the Louisiana State Department of Corrections, complete with an identification number.

Sinyangwe realized that the server, the man printing papers and the other people working in the lunch line were all prisoners.

Inmates working at the capitol building in Baton Rouge is a common sight. Prisoners work in the Louisiana governors mansion and inmates clean up after Louisiana State University football games as well. But the labor practice of having inmates work in state government buildings extends beyond Louisiana; at least six other states in the U.S. allow for this practice: Arkansas, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Georgia.

The inmates allowed to work in the capitol or at the governors mansion are fairly low in number and are carefully screened. According to NOLA.com, about 20 to 25 people work daily in the capitol, and 15 to 18 other inmates work as groundskeepers outside the building. The inmates may not be serving a sentence for a sex crime or a violent offense like murder and must have a history of good behavior while incarcerated and display good work ethic. Furthermore, only inmates at the Dixon Correctional Institute (a men-only facility) can work at the capitol, as it is only 30 miles away.

A similar process occurs in Georgia, where inmates must receive a referral from the Board of Pardons of Parole or the Classification Committee within a state prison. Working at the governors mansion in Georgia is contingent upon an inmates criminal history, their behavior while incarcerated and their release date, among other factors.

The inmates perform janitorial tasks such as cleaning the floors or the offices of state legislators. In the Louisiana capitol, inmates also perform small tasks for legislators like grabbing lunch for them.

While inmates working in state government buildings are dutifully screened, they are not much better paid than prisoners with other jobs. In Louisiana, inmates in the capitol are paid between 2 and 20 cents per hour. They could opt for earning good-time credit toward early release, but only if they qualify. And with a normal workday of at least 12 hoursfrom 5 in the morning to at least 5 in the afternoon, barring legislative sessions when inmates work more than 12 hoursthe prisoners make between 24 cents and $2.40 a day. Inmates working in the governors mansion in Missouri recently got a small pay raise to $1.25 an hour to make about $10 per day. With the previous arrangement, prisoners earned $9 a day. In Arkansas, the prisoners are not paid at all.

History of the practice

The practice of using prison inmates as laborers stretches back to the end of the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation. As more black people were freed from slavery, the plantation economy of the South began to falter with the loss of their primary form of labor. The result was the establishment of vagrancy laws, which specifically targeted black communities, in an effort to incarcerate more black people and force them to work once again.

Even the name given to prisoners who work as servants in governors mansions and capitol buildings in some statestrusteeis the same title that was given to prisoners who worked as overseers on infamous prison plantations such as Angola and Parchman. Prison plantations began replacing the convict lease system in the 1920s as a way for prisoners, an overwhelming majority of whom were black men, to work. Back then, it was considered a privilege to be an overseer on a plantation, and the same narrative goes for inmates working in governors mansions today.

All of this, it looks very familiar: having black laborers toiling in the fields under the eye of overseers and having a white governor served by people drawn from that same forced labor pool, said Carl Takei, a staff attorney at the National Prison Project of the ACLU.

Since then, prisoners have been used as underpaid and unpaid laborers, from private companies to state government buildings. The legal loophole that allows this practice to continue is the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. While the 13th Amendment is best known for abolishing slavery, a clause in the amendment stipulates for the continued legality of slavery within the criminal justice system.

The clause reads: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

If somebody is being subjected to forced labor as part of their sentence in a criminal proceeding, then that is outside the scope of the 13th Amendment, Takei said.

Modern-day slavery?

Hillary Clinton made waves for a passage in her 1996 book It Takes A Villagewhen a Twitter userposted photosof a passage in the memoir where Clinton talks about the prisoners who worked in the governors mansion. The passage quickly spread through social media, with many people criticizing Clinton and calling the practice a form of modern-day slavery.

Both Sinyangwe and Takei agree that the current system is exploitative in that inmates who work are barely paid.

When you lock people up and force them to work without providing them a fair wage, thats called slavery, Takei said.

Despite scrutiny from criminal justice advocates, many corrections departments in states that still use this practice have justified it on the grounds that having inmates work reduces recidivism rates and is more beneficial to them overall.

Joseph Nix, director of executive security at the governors mansion in Mississippi, told the Los Angeles Times in 1988 that the inmates tend to make the best workers.

George Lombardi, the Missouri Department of Corrections director, defended the departments work release program, in which one of the jobs includes working at the governors mansion. About 700 of the 30,000 inmates in the states prison system are part of the work release program.

Lombardi told Missourinet the program instills great work ethic, pride, self-esteem and compassion in offenders.

It really cuts to the core philosophy of our department, which is in addition to the time you have to serve, you have another obligation to help your community if possible, Lombardi said. So we present you with opportunities to do that in the form of work release and/or our restorative justice efforts that we have throughout the system.

Paula Earls, executive director of the governors mansion in Missouri, told the Los Angeles Timesin 1998that there have been no problems with inmates and touted the benefits of having inmates work at the mansion.

Were their last leg before they get out to society, she said. I treat them like staff. I appreciate the work they do. They are ready to go back out and make something of themselves and we hope we help with that.

Sinyangwe said these justifications for using inmate labor share similarities with the justifications people used for slaverythat it helped civilize black slaves and increased their work ethic.

When you read the history books about the Antebellum South, those are the same arguments being used, he said. So Im not persuaded by them. I dont think theyre original or new.

Arguments that inmate labor can prepare prisoners for integrating into the outside world once they are released also lose weight because of how difficult it is for former prisoners even to get a job to begin with. The hiring practice of asking applicants to indicate their criminal history on job applications has a harmful effect on ex-convicts, as they are less likely to get called back. These results skew along racial lines, as a study by Harvard sociologist Devah Pager found that only 5 percent of black men with a criminal conviction hear back from potential employers. The research also showed that black men with no criminal convictions are less likely to get hired than white men with criminal convictions14 percent for black men with no record compared to 17 percent of white men with a criminal record.

Wendy Sawyer, a policy analyst at the Prison Policy Initiative, said a larger issue than recidivism are the economic and racial barriers inmates face once they are released.

Everyones upset about recidivism rates, and its all about trying to keep people out once theyre out, she said. But then we make it as impossible as we can for that to work for people.We set up all these barriers that make it difficult for people to get their lives back together.

Arguments about recidivism and psychological benefits aside, another factor driving this practice is its cost-cutting benefits for the state. Because inmates are severely underpaid or not paid at all for their work, the state saves money on every prisoner working in the capitol or the governors mansion by not having to shell out the minimum wage to compensate them. This was the case in Louisiana when inmates began working in the capitol in 1990, as the state was experiencing a financial crisis. Inmates working at the governors mansion were also employed as a cost-saving measure.

Takei said these arguments made to justify the practice do not excuse the fact that it is a deeply exploitative system.

The fact that performing particular tasks may be part of a rehabilitation strategy doesnt excuse the fact that the people in these positions are denied a fair wage and the labor protections they would be entitled to if they were performing the same work on the outside, he said.

Sawyer noted that the greater underlying problem is that the prison system in the U.S. is hardly rehabilitative. Its really just punitive, she said. Its just people sitting there, kind of locked out of society.

Remembering the big picture

While the practice of using inmate labor in capitol buildings and governors mansions largely stays under the radar, it speaks to a larger issue in the prison labor system. As a whole, inmates who work while incarcerated, whether for a private company, for the state or even within the prison, make little to no money. This is despite the fact that in federal prisons, 100 percent of able-bodied inmates are required to work, according to the Prison Policy Initiative. In addition, the average rate of minimum wage for inmates paid by the state is 93 cents, while the average maximum wage is $4.73.

Takei said prisoners working in the governors mansion or the capitol building are caught between a rock and a hard place.

If your choice is between getting paid zero dollars an hour or being paid 25 cents an hour, oftentimes youll choose 25 cents an hour because you need that money, he said.

Sinyangwe said that at the very least, prisoners who are working should get paid a minimum wage for their labor. He noted that reducing recidivism rates could be better accomplished if prisoners earned an adequate wage and could either save the money or spend the money while incarcerated on services like calling family members or buying commissary items. He added that in states like Louisianaone of the poorest states in the countryfamilies of inmates are often financially struggling and shoulder many of the costs their family member incurs while in prison.

I think it would be incredibly impactful to reduce the recidivism rates by making sure that when people get out of jail, they actually have money to actually start a life, he said. That they are not forced to go back into the informal economy or committing crimes just to make a living.

Takei echoed this sentiment. I doubt that if you talk to any of the people who are working as servants in the governors mansion that they would object to the idea of actually being paid a fair wage for their work, he said.

Takei acknowledged that reforming the prison labor system would be difficult, given the precedent set by the 13th Amendment that legalizes this form of modern-day slavery. A number of courts around the country have also affirmed that prisoners arenot protected by the Fair Labor Standards Act or the National Labor Relations Act.

There is also the complacency of state legislators and governors who interact with these inmates every day, but have not taken any action to better their circumstances.

These were the legislators who had the power to change those dynamics, and yet who are benefiting by preserving them, Sinyangwe said.

Sawyer added that the issue has become a missed opportunity for progressives in particular to draw more attention to a practice that is essentially hiding in plain sight.

Theyre in the state buildings. Theyre in our places of government, she said. And were accepting that thats how this countrys going to be.Our state governments are going to benefit from that kind of labor. It feels like kind of a passive acceptance.

Since witnessing the inmates working in the Baton Rouge capitol building, Sam Sinyangwe said he has been looking at methods of reform, whether that involves administrative regulation, a legislative change or even a constitutional amendment to revise the loophole in the 13th Amendment. But he has not lost sight of the broader goal: ending mass incarceration.

What I would like to see, one, is that we are moving to end mass incarceration, he said, to repeal the policies and the draconian sentencing laws that got us to this place.

Celisa Calacal is a junior writing fellow for AlterNet. She is a senior journalism major and legal studies minor at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York. Previously she worked at ThinkProgress and served as an editor for Ithaca Colleges student newspaper.Follow her at @celisa_mia.

This article was made possible by the readers and supporters of AlterNet.

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'Modern-Day Slavery': Many Southern States Have Prison Inmates ... - The National Memo (blog)

DGP issues alert amid call for police association – The Hindu

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

The Hindu

DGP issues alert amid call for police association
The Hindu
According to police sources, abolition of the orderly system is another long-pending demand. The allegation is that hundreds of policemen and vehicles are deployed to attend to the personal work of senior police officers at their residences. It is a ...

and more »

DGP issues alert amid call for police association - The Hindu

Global payments giants in cash transfer deal for refugees – The Star, Kenya

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Mastercard and Western Union have partnered to develop a digital platform for refugees to access funds within their settlements.

The model, the two said in a statement, will allow refugees do digital transactions amongst themselves, their host countries and donors, creating more transparency and long-term empowerment.

The new digital infrastructure model will focus on solutions that might include the delivery of mobile money, digital vouchers, prepaid cards, and track other goods and services, head of customer relationship management at Western Union Maureen Sigliano said. The goal is to drive personal empowerment, stimulate growth and promote social cohesion among the worlds refugee populations, while driving better governance and transparency.

KaKuma Refugee camp in northern Kenya, which currently hosts more than 162,000 refugees, has one bank branch and five bank agents, according to a report by the two firms titled Smart Communities: Using Digital Technology to create Sustainable Refugee Economies.

Mastercard and Western Union have developed a blueprint that would combine digital access to remittances, banking, education, healthcare and other basic needs in a way that can be tracked.

Our plans to reinvent the existing model can help the worlds refugee populations achieve self-sufficiency faster, while also contributing to the economic growth of their host communities, executive vice president of public-private partnerships at Mastercard Tara Nathan said.

The blueprint will help in laying the groundwork for a set of multipurpose transactional tools that refugees and residents can access, which are optimized to work in low infrastructure areas.

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Global payments giants in cash transfer deal for refugees - The Star, Kenya

Acclaimed Filmmaker Gauri Shinde Reveals The Real Meaning Of Empowerment – VERVE

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Columns

Text by Gauri Shinde

We are afraid to show our weaknesses, in order to appear perfect. But, once you stop being scared of revealing yourself truly, you make real connections. It becomes kind of empowering. When you share things fearlessly there is this sense of feeling powerful internally. And that to me is real power.

These are some early influences, which, I think, perhaps subconsciously inspired me.

My mom, making various spices and packing masala packets in a small office at the back of our house a venture that started small and then went on to become an export business. Working hard, earning her money, and all the while taking care of our home and family. And very importantly, always being free with her expressions whether she felt weak, vulnerable or happy.

My childhood domestic help, working tirelessly in many homes, all day, everyday, but with a smile on her face. Earning just enough to educate her children, even though she received none herself. She would cry as easily as she could laugh and, that for me, as I can now see it, was the beauty of it all.

The fun and fearless Maria (Julie Andrews) from The Sound of Music Living life on her own terms in a conservative and difficult world. Outwardly strong and yet so vulnerable from the inside which is what made her so real and so relatable. Even the hard-hearted Captain couldnt help but love and respect her at the same time.

These early memories of real women, no, powerful women, unafraid to show their vulnerability gave me my first understanding of what it means to be empowered. When I saw my mother, aunts and grandmoms, all women with guts and gumption, working, earning and looking after their families, it showed me that the power of freedom doesnt suddenly appear one day. Nor does it happen by chance, but it is through example, experience and continual practice that it quietly and strongly grows.

In tangible terms, my sense of power came to me when I started working and earning a salary. Financial independence is a big deal, a very big deal especially for women. We are not taught, clearly, that this is a key ingredient to living freely and with dignity. If I did not earn my living at an early age or did not have savings, I would not feel the confidence I did, while negotiating my personal life and career in a male-dominated world. And the acceptance by me of my vulnerabilities and treating them as my strengths empowered me to write the stories I do, in my filmsor else they wouldnt ring so true.

It is important and should have always been important to portray women on screen in a light that doesnt defile them nor put them on a pedestal either, thus constantly stereotyping them either as lesser objects or goddesses. Instead, why cant a woman be treated as a companion, as a partner, as an equal? More importantly, as a human being with the good, the bad and the ugly, like any other guy!

But no, from the very beginning, little girls are taught to feel weaker or lesser than boys, both overtly and subtly, and are indoctrinated into being accommodating, not just in India, but the world over. In turn men and society at large begin to expect this docility from women and, sadly, this behavioural conditioning continues into adulthood, for both sexes. So, when a male director is demanding or loud hes called eccentric or passionate but an assertive woman without even being loud, in the same or any authoritative role, is more often than not called difficult or even crazy!

To change this skewed power balance and to give women their natural due, the change in perception has to start at birth to our very reaction to the birth of a girl. We have to change the fairy tales and the gender-specific toys and the traditions that chip away at the inherent power of the girl child. Most fairy tales end with her being rescued by a prince; we need to change the story! Why cant the girl rescue the boy sometimes? Why cant our happily-ever-after be about an equal world for both sexes?

Power to me means the freedom to make choices. It equips me to make better decisions, for myself and those around me, gives me the ability to take control of my life. And, most importantly, it puts me in the assuring position of being able to say No to the things I dont need or want. To be who I am, with my accomplishments and my flaws, my vulnerabilites, my fears and my fearlessness. that, to me, is true empowerment.

Continued here:

Acclaimed Filmmaker Gauri Shinde Reveals The Real Meaning Of Empowerment - VERVE

New Political Party Offers Empowerment – Scoop.co.nz (press release)

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Sunday, 25 June 2017, 7:25 pm Press Release: Kia Koe

New Political Party Offers Empowerment June 23 2017 Kia Koe Party Press Release Tags: Politics, voting and policies.

Newly launched political party Kia Koe offers empowerment through online submissions.

Best possible parliamentary democracy Empowering people by inclusion in policy development Role of law and justice is constantly reconsidered and reapproved Question and re-approve the various roles of Government re services and expenditure. Limit the role of government to only those functions necessary

As a newly fledged political platform, Kia Koe makes itself available to everyone including minors over the age of 12 while those under 16 are limited in what they can vote for. Nz.kiakoe.org provides a better approach for politics using four of six categories Information (Facts), Financial Info, Environment, Education, Health and Spiritual. Kia Koe is highly transparent, especially in all aspects of accounting. It has easy to use tools to enable the members in their choices. Kia Koes concept originator Chris Kernot says when people sign up for Kia Koe (which means 'You choose.') they can comment using the four categories for a more rounded outcome. This way it enables an effective parallel thinking process that helps commenting and most importantly policy decision making and ranking be more productive, focused, and mindfully involved, Kernot offers. Before you comment you must read all prior comments. I see that as essential in order to add a new view. By reading, embracing, including and refining views, policies take shape in Kia Koe. By ranking how important a policy is to you, it rises in the list. Kia Koe members can then rate their personal reaction to the policy from do not support to strongly support. By including a view called The Other Side of the Coin, members can consider both negative and positive views producing more balanced options or scenarios. This is creating opportunities for policy development at grass roots level across all sectors of society. It ensures current generations are responsible for the ownership of their own political direction. We are setting up platforms for our future custodians, our children, concludes Kernot. nz.kiakoe.org

Scoop Media

Its true that New Zealand scores well on many international rankings of openness... Those findings are all important, and welcome. But we cannot ignore the fact that there are still serious problems.

For a start, those international surveys, while often complimentary, have also pinpointed major weaknesses: political donations are badly regulated, for instance, and appointments to government boards frequently go to those with strong political connections. More>>

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New Political Party Offers Empowerment - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

Palamanui-sponsored event offers direction, empowerment to local women – West Hawaii Today

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

West Hawaii Today

Palamanui-sponsored event offers direction, empowerment to local women
West Hawaii Today
And, after all, the primary goal of the day was to provide nuanced advice to guide each individual woman toward the next step in her personal evolution, whatever that step may be. I liked the entrepreneurship class, Brunette said. I've thought about ...

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Palamanui-sponsored event offers direction, empowerment to local women - West Hawaii Today

Indian Technology Workers Worry About a Job Threat: Technology – New York Times

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

But the global tech industry is increasingly relying on automation, robotics, big data analytics, machine learning and consulting technologies that threaten to bypass and even replace Indian workers. For example, automated processes may soon replace the kind of work Mr. Choudhari was performing for foreign clients, which involved maintaining software by occasionally plugging in simple code and analyzing data.

What were seeing is an acceleration in shedding for jobs in India and an adding of jobs onshore, said Sandra Notardonato, an analyst and research vice president for Gartner, a research and advisory company. Even if these companies dont have huge net losses, theres a person who will suffer, and thats a person with a limited skill set in India.

Such job losses could be politically damaging to the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who won an electoral mandate in 2014 on the promise of development and employment for a bulging youth population. In January, near the three-year mark of his administration, an economic survey reported that job creation had stalled.

So far, the scale of the impact is not clear. T. V. Mohandas Pai, a longtime industry figure, estimates the cuts will encompass up to 2 percent of the work force by September, mainly from culling underperformers. A 2015 study released by the National Association of Software and Services Companies, the Indian technology industry trade group known as Nasscom, and McKinsey India found that 50 to 70 percent of workers skills would be irrelevant by 2020.

Of course, new technologies will create new jobs. The impact of automation and artificial intelligence still is not clear, and they could open up new areas that simply shift tech work rather than eliminate it.

But some in the Indian tech industry worry that many of the new jobs will be created outside India, in places like the United States, in part because President Trump has pledged to tighten visa laws that allowed many Indian nationals to go to that country to work. The subject is likely to pop up on Monday, when Mr. Modi is scheduled to visit the White House.

The Indian government has rushed to reassure the public that job losses will be minimal. Ravi Shankar Prasad, the Indian minister who oversees the technology industry, recently denied that major layoffs were occurring even as he encouraged the industry to speed up development.

The question of slackness in jobs is absolutely factually incorrect, he said. Obviously, those who dont perform will have to go.

Some tech employees who recently lost jobs disputed that they were underperformers.

It is not something that only the employee is responsible, Mr. Choudhari said of upgrading his skills. Employers, he said, are also responsible.

For India, where household income by one measure is one-twelfth that in the United States, such jobs have long been seen as a steppingstone. Small-town and rural youths who aspire to join the urban middle class enroll in four-year university engineering programs and graduate by the hundreds of thousands per year, many with the dream of a lifetime career at one of Indias outsourcing companies.

Competition is already fierce. Ashwin Kotnala graduated this year with a bachelors degree in technology from Graphic Era University, a private university in Dehradun in northern India. She has applied for more than 20 positions but has yet to get one.

Everyone wants to work with IT firms because of a good salary, Ms. Kotnala, 22, said. Ive not got placed, but if I get placed in I.T. company, then Ill do better and make my parents proud.

Finding a job can be even harder for experienced workers who need to refresh their skills.

Dinesh Shende, a 38-year-old developer at Tech Mahindra who said he was forced to resign in February, looked for work for months. Born to farmer parents in a village in Maharashtra, he earned about $37,000 a year.

Now employers say reskilling is needed it is your responsibility, he said. We are ready to reskill ourselves. But will the next company employ us?

He found a new job last week, at a start-up in Bangalore, meaning he would have to move and leave his wife and children behind in Pune. He declined to say whether he would take a pay cut.

The next employer will try to take benefit of the situation, Mr. Shende said. To other job searchers, he advised: Keep trying, keep trying, keep trying.

Tech Mahindra representatives did not respond to multiple requests for comment by either phone or email. With its profitability declining, the company has been reshuffling its operations and work force.

As you know, the talent factors are changing, the technology is changing, consumers are changing, C. P. Gurnani, Tech Mahindras chief executive, told investors in a May conference call, and we need to make sure that our people are changing with the time.

In some places, tech workers are showing early signs of organizing, which industry leaders say could lead to unions and then to government interference, which could hurt competitiveness. In Pune, 47 workers from Tech Mahindra and other India-focused employers, including the local arms of Cognizant Technology Solutions of the United States and Vodafone of Britain, have signed petitions alleging forced resignations and baseless firings to the local labor commissioner.

Cognizant said the allegations were totally unfounded, while Vodafone did not respond to requests for comment. R. Chandrashekhar, president of Nasscom, the industry group, said in May that the industry would remain a net hirer but that automation would eliminate some types of jobs.

Many of those who have lost their jobs have not given up.

Mr. Choudhari graduated in 1997 with a degree in engineering. He took out a loan for his apartment in 2006, payments that hell have to meet for 10 more years. With two months pay and a bonus for 10 years of service giving him about $3,200 upon leaving, he does not know how hell make them. So far, he has managed to secure just one unsuccessful job interview.

Basically Im from a poor family, he said. This is a profession where I thought I could do something good.

A version of this article appears in print on June 26, 2017, on Page B2 of the New York edition with the headline: Tech Jobs Cut in India. A Reason? Technology.

Originally posted here:

Indian Technology Workers Worry About a Job Threat: Technology - New York Times

Cities vie to become hubs of self-driving technology – USA TODAY

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

USA TODAY NETWORK Published 12:08 a.m. ET June 25, 2017 | Updated 13 hours ago

Are Detroit and the Silicon Valley the hotbeds for driverless car development? Not necessarily, says Brent Snavely of the Detroit Free Press. Video by Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY

A self-driving Uber car drives down River Road on Pittsburgh's north side.(Photo: Gene J. Puskar, AP)

The stakes are enormous. Last year, Goldman Sachs projected the market for advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous vehicles would grow from about $3 billion in 2015 to $96 billion in 2025 and $290 billion in 2035.

In some cities, automakers, suppliers and technology companies are clustering to test their self-driving vehicles. In others, governors and mayors are beckoning the industry by changing laws or touting other inducements.

I think its about being a part of the race, said Alex Fischer, CEO of the Columbus Partnership, a group of top CEOs that helped the Ohio city beat out tech hubs such as Austin, Pittsburgh and San Francisco to win federal grant money through the government's Smart City Challenge.

States get ready for the self-driving car revolution

Regulators scramble to stay ahead of self-driving cars

Cities are taking different paths to success. In Detroit, for instance, major corporations form the backbone for the emerging technology. In others such as Boston, Pittsburgh and Austin universities with cutting-edge research have spawned talented engineers and start-up companies.

Hereare the nation's hot spots that have emerged as leaders in the race to self-driving cars:

Austin Mayor Steve Adler likes to refer to Texas' capital city as the Kitty Hawk of driverless cars, referencing the site of the Wright Brothers' firstflight in 1903.

That's because Google's self-driving car unit, Waymo, quietly chose Austin for the first fully-autonomous test drive in 2015. Now Austin officials want more.

"We are trying to do everything we can to help promote and advancethe future of this technology," Adler said."We think its the wave of the future. We think it is going to help our city."

The city and the state have put political differences aside to embrace partnerships and legislation designed to attract testing and investment.Austin is a part of a statewide consortium that includes the University of Texas and Texas A&M University to create a network of proving grounds and testing areas.

Brent Snavely, Detroit Free Press

In October, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced policies intended to put the city at the forefront.

"Boston is ready to lead the charge on self-driving vehicles," Walsh said in a statement.

Area technology companies are already at work. NuTonomy, a company that emerged from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2013, is working with French automaker PSA Groupe on a self-driving car.

Brent Snavely, Detroit Free Press

In October, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced policies intended to put the city at the forefront.

"Boston is ready to lead the charge on self-driving vehicles," Walsh said in a statement.

Brent Snavely, Detroit Free Press

Columbus leaders are tickled their city was chosen for $50 million in federal and private funding over seven other finalists.Key to Columbus win was the buy-in of the citys major employers, who have come to view their home citys preparation for autonomous vehicles as part of the companies preparation for profits in the next century.

It combined investments from top local companies, the state of Ohio and Ohio State University to pool more than $400 million for autonomous and electric vehicles.

There are a select group of cities that are going to be a part of the race. And Columbus is in the race, and it always will be," Fischer said. "Some are going to win on certain projects, Columbus will win on others, and collectively the country will win.

Chrissie Thompson, Cincinnati Enquirer

A former industrial site 30 miles southwest of downtown Detroit where Rosie the Riveter worked during World War II is where the Motor City is planting one of its most significant flags in the battle to capture a significant role in the future of self-driving cars.

It is slated to become Michigan's newest testing ground for autonomous and connected vehicles.

What were going to create is ... a lifelike proving ground so we can really exercise these (driverless) vehicles, said John Maddox, CEO of The American Center for Mobility, which is expected to open late this year. No one will have the full scope of what we will have.

General Motors CEO Mary Barra emphasized the company's commitment to maintaining the state's leadership when she announced in December that the automaker will build and test autonomous Chevrolet Bolts in metro Detroit.

Ford Motor Vice Chairman Bill Ford said last year Detroit can be and should be ground zero, for the future of mobility.

Brent Snavely and Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press

Nashville was chosen as one of 10 global cities for an autonomous vehicles initiative launched last year by Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Aspen Institute.

It certainly doesn't hurt that Nissan's U.S. headquarters is outside the city in Smyrnaand that the Japanese automaker was among the first to predict when it would field self-driving cars for sale 2020.

The citys newly appointed transportation director, Erin Hafkenschiel, wants to see shared electric autonomous vehicles in Nashville that would operate similar to Uber or Lyft. That would help alleviate congestion problems in tandem with major investments in mass transit, sidewalks and bikeways, she said.

The city has been upgrading its traffic signals to be compatible with autonomous vehicles.

Lizzy Alfs, The Tennessean

Northern Nevada has been at the forefront of self-driving car testing since 2011, when it became the first state to adopt legislation authorizing self-driving car testing.

Google was lured to Nevada by the state's dry weather and its wide-open spaces when it ran into early resistance from California. Plus, Tesla's Gigafactory, a massive 5-million-square-foot factory that began pumping out batteries for its electric cars, is on Reno's outskirts. Tesla has been aggressive in developing self-driving vehicles.

Six years ago, we envisioned people buying self-driving cars, said Bruce Breslow, director of the Nevada Department of Business & Industry. Now it looks like the first major push is going to be in fleets for self-driving cars whether it be a taxicab fleet, a transportation network company like Uber or Lyftor even self-driving trucks.

Jason Hildalgo,Reno Gazette-Journal

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey touts a hands-off regulatory environment in aneffort to lure autonomous vehicle testing to his state, and the tactic has led to some high-profile wins.

In December, Uber joined companies such asWaymo and Ford, which were already testing self-driving cars in the state. Uber promptly trucked its self-driving cars to Arizona in December following a registration dispute in California over not having the correct permits.

In April, Waymo announcedit would begin taking applications from Phoenix-area residents who want to be among the hundreds of riders testingan expanded fleet of Chrysler Pacifica plug-in hybrid minivans outfitted with Waymo's myriad autonomous car sensors.

Ryan Randazzo, Arizona Republic

With talented professionals in the autonomous vehicle space at Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania's second-largest city quickly emerged as an attractive base for the world's leading self-driving car companies.

Uber, which recruited many of CMU's self-driving car experts, has located a major R&D facility in Pittsburgh. And Uber made a splash in September when it became the first major American company to offer urban rides to consumers in partially self-driving vehicles, choosing the confusing, pedestrian-filled, bridge-laden streets of Pittsburgh for the pilot program.

But Uber's relationship with the city has soured. Mayor Bill Peduto has publicly assailed Uber for refusing to back the city's application for a federal cities innovation grant and for making a stingy contribution to a philanthropic initiative.

That spat aside, Uber has shown no signs of easing off the accelerator in Pennsylvania. Competitors are fast on its heels. In February, Ford announced it would invest $1 billion over five years in Pittsburgh-based autonomous car start-up Argo AI.

Nathan Bomey, USA TODAY

With Silicon Valley at the heart of developing self-driving cars, California has become a top testing ground.

Google has been letting its high-tech, self-driving cars wheel around the area south of San Francisco for several years. Now, about 30 companies from traditional automakers to upstart tech companies have taken out the paperwork to test self-driving cars in the Golden State.

Silicon Valley is the right place to be doing a lot of this work, says Greg Larson, chief of the Office of Traffic Operation Research for the California DOT. Instead of building a car with a computer, this is building a computer and putting a car around it.

Marco della Cava, USA TODAY

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Cities vie to become hubs of self-driving technology - USA TODAY

Will California’s New Travel Ban To Named States Affect Government Technology Partnerships? – Government Technology (blog)

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Back in January 2017, a new law went into effect in California that banned state government employees and officials from using tax dollars to travel to states with laws it deemed discriminatory in regards to LGBT rights starting with Kansas, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee.

On Thursday, June 22, 2017, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced that the list had doubled. The ban on state-funded and state-sponsored travel now includes Alabama, Kentucky, South Dakota and Texas.

In making the announcement, CA Attorney General Becerra said, "Our country has made great strides in dismantling prejudicial laws that have deprived too many of our fellow Americans of their precious rights. Sadly, that is not the case in all parts of our nation, even in the 21st century.I am announcing today that I am adding four states to the list of states where California-funded or sponsored travel will be restricted on account of the discriminatory nature of laws enacted by those states.

According to the press release: AB 1887 prohibits state-funded and state-sponsored travel to states with laws that authorize or require discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression or against same-sex couples or their families. The California legislation went into effect on January 1, 2017. This restriction applies to state agencies, departments, boards, authorities, and commissions, including an agency, department, board, authority, or commission of the University of California, the Board of Regents of the University of California, and the California State University.

Negative Reactions From Banned States

The reaction from the affected states was swift and predictably negative. According to the Louisville Courier-Journal.com:

In Kentucky, the ban has to do with a religious freedom law signed by Gov. Matt Bevin.

Woody Maglinger, press secretary for Bevin's office, called the California Attorney General's actions hypocritical in a statement emailed to the Courier-Journal.

"It is fascinating that the very same West Coast liberals who rail against the presidents executive order, that protects our nation from foreign terrorists, have now contrived their own travel ban aimed at punishing states who dont fall in lockstep with their far-left political ideology," the statement said.

According to the San Jose Mercury News:

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott responded to the news with a biting rebuke in a statement playing to his states noisy economic rivalry with the Golden State.

California may be able to stop their state employees, but they cant stop all the businesses that are fleeing over taxation and regulation and relocating to Texas, Abbott spokesman John Wittman told CBS Dallas.

While the motivations behind the move are understandable, the ban could be tricky to implement and, potentially, trigger political retribution, said Jack Pitney, a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College.

California is not held in high esteem in much of the country, Pitney said. One could see legislatures in other states supporting some kind of retaliatory action. It would be quite popular with the Republican electorate.

The Houston Chronicle reported: (Texas Governor) Abbott aides and legislative leaders dissed the California move as hollow, saying that if that if the Golden State is so concerned about discrimination and human rights outside its borders, Gov.Jerry Brownshould not have recently visited China.

Immediate Impact Is Unclear

Trying to gauge the immediate nationwide impact of the travel ban is difficult. As the Courier-Journal article points out, It's unclear what practical effect California's travel ban will have. The state law contains exemptions for some trips, such as travel needed to enforce California law and to honor contracts made before 2017. Travel to conferences or out-of-state training are examples of trips that could be blocked. Becerra's office couldn't provide information about how often state employees have visited the newly banned states.

ESPN.com reported that the California ban won't stop Alabama from hosting Fresno State, since the contract was already in place. However, Cal wont schedule future Kansas, North Carolina, Mississippi, Tennessee trips due to LGBT discrimination laws in each state

SFGate.com reported that CA States travel ban may trip up intercollegiate athletic teams including recruiting trips and other aspects of cross-state travel.

When Californias ban took effect in January, the Cal athletic department issued a statement saying: Our intent is to support our student-athletes in their right to participate in NCAA postseason competition should they be assigned to a restricted state.

But its not clear how they could do that, short of raising private donations to support not only travel costs, but also salaries for coaches and staff, and potentially insurance.

Meanwhile, Cal had been in preliminary talks for a mens basketball series with the University of Kansas in January, when the travel ban that included Kansas took effect.

Cal got back to us and told us the state ban would prevent it, said Jim Marchiony, a spokesman for KU athletics.

Will State and Local Government Technology Partnerships Be Impacted?

Many are wondering: will this travel ban affect technology partnerships, conferences, cybersecurity efforts and/or other cooperative government and private sector arrangements?

Sadly, I think it will impact public-private partnerships in several ways. Initially, this impact may be minor, but it could grow substantially depending on a variety of factors such as whether other states retaliate.

For example, the National Association of State CIOs (NASCIO) is scheduled to meet in Austin, Texas, this October, 2017. Will California state officials be able to attend? I certainly hope our respected government technology colleagues will be allowed to be there and offer their presentations and respected input. If not, California's leadership and influence in areas ranging from autonomous vehicles to smart cities to artificial intelligence to procurement reform will be negatively affected.

Similar topics will arise if leaders from California Universities cannot present their research findings at conferencesand events around the country in the named states.

Another question is whether other states and/or countries retaliate in some, such as forbidding their government staff from traveling to events or meetings in California. Numerous national (and global) technology and cybersecurity events are held in California.

Could events like the RSA Conference in San Francisco, which is the largest cybersecurity conference in the world, be impacted in 2018? Could non-government organizations organize boycotts of technology or other conferences in California? Is this the beginning of a new chapter in US culture wars between conservative and liberal states? Will future historians via these recent actions as a cultural turning point?

Answer: I certainly hope not. Perhaps some court will overturn this CA travel ban, in the same way that courts have stopped President Trumps Executive Orders on travel to the USA from certain overseas countries. This negative rhetoric is bound to flow over into other areas of government cooperation between state and local governments. But only time will tell for sure.

My Perspective

No doubt, most states have instituted out-of-state travel bans at some point. In Michigan government, state employees faced out-of-state travel restrictions for budget reasons during several years of furlough days such as in 2009. However, those bans focused on budget savings and included all out-of-state travel and not just specific states that passed laws that Michigan legislators disagreed with.

With the LA Times, my personal view is that that this government travel ban in California is ill-conceived. The LA Times ended their opinion piece like this:

Boycotts have a long and venerable history of success:Californians can look back with pride on the table-grape boycott of the 1960s that led to better working conditions for farmhands. Like that campaign, the best boycotts do more than rattle sabers. They are well-targeted and have a meaningful effect. They dont carry a list of exemptions and exceptions, and they stand a good chance of bringing about change with a low risk of retaliation and unintended consequences. Californias well-intended boycott on behalf of LGBTQ rights meets none of these standards.

I respectfully understand that the CA legislators are trying to make a point, but they cannot change the laws in other states by implementing these government employee travel bans to named states. These travel bans are more likely to inflame cross-state tensions even further, especially if even more states are added to the California list.

Regardless of whether you support the new laws in these eight states for religious liberties or whether you believe these laws are unfairly discriminatory, this travel ban is still a bad idea in my opinion. It may lead to a coalition of states that oppose California laws and take action, while other states may join with California.

If this trend continues, partnerships and cooperative relationships between a myriad of public and private institutions across the country will be negatively impacted. The situation could get much worse if other states counter with their own travel bans to California, as State Rep. Dustin Burrows of Texas says he would like to do.

Final Thoughts

In March 2016, I wrote an article entitled: Could the election be hacked? I was mocked in a few social media channels by some industry colleagues who said I was being an alarmist by raising the hacking issue at that time for the upcoming 2016 Presidential election.

No doubt, these two issues are very different, but I feel the same level of concern about the potential for this CA travel ban situation to escalate and impact state government business and mutual cooperation in business and technology areas nationwide.

I truly hope that California will back down and lift their travel ban to these states before the situation moves in an untold number of negative directions to the detriment of our entire nation.

Note: This blog contains my personal viewpoint on this CA travel ban issue. These views expressed may or may not be consistent with the opinions of Government Technology Magazine or eRepublic leadership.

NFL uses eye-tracking technology to improve game presentation – NBCSports.com

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

The NFL has decided to take steps aimed at improving the TV presentation of its games, with specific focus on pace. To do that, the league actually went to the homes of fans to replicat[e] the game experience.

Thats what NFL COO Tod Leiweke told thesecond annual Geek Wire Sports Tech Conference at CenturyLink Field, via Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times.

Were really starting to study how people are watching games, Leiweke said. And were doing it in really, really interesting ways.

Among other things, the league is using eye-tracking technology in fan homes to monitor the things they follow during the games, along with what they do during commercial breaks. The study has contributed to a decision to reduce the total number of commercial breaks from five per quarter to four.

They want a pace of play that doesnt involve us chopping things up, Leiweke said. [Y]oure going to see, next [season] really working hard to tighten up that game presentation and present the game with more of that pace.

Its all part of an effort to deal with any ever-changing present that continues to raise questions about the future, given the explosion of options that consumers now have when it comes to the many different ways to spend their time considerably more than the days when the options were to watch one of three channels on TV, read a book or a magazine, or stare off into space like David Puddy.

Anyone who thinks they know exactly whats going to happen is not telling you the truth, Leiweke said. Because its very, very hard to tell, in this rapidly changing world, what this is all going to look like in 2025.

Its very, very to tell what its all going to look like in 2017. For those who watch NFL games, its apparently going to start looking a lot different.

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NFL uses eye-tracking technology to improve game presentation - NBCSports.com

New Leader for Office of Technology Development – BU Today

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Mike Pratt has been promoted to managing director of the Office of Technology Development after being interim managing director since August 2015. Photo by Jackie Ricciardi

Talk about taking one for the team. In 2008, BU researcher Ed Damiano needed a couple of healthy adults as controls for the first human clinical trials of the bionic pancreas for people with type 1 diabetes that hed been working on for several years. Mike Pratt volunteered. He spent 27 hours in a bed at Massachusetts General Hospital with IVs attached to both arms. An administrator with the Office of Technology Development (OTD) for 17 years, Pratt says he was inspired by the College of Engineering biomedical engineering professors research missionto improve the lives of children with the disease. I believed in Eds work, he says.

Now, after leading OTD as interim managing director since August 2015, Pratt (Questrom13) has been named to the position. As University leaders have undertaken a critical review of OTD over the past year, Pratt has been instrumental in refocusing the offices goals: to provide prompt, informed service to faculty inventors/creators while protecting and licensing their creations through clear, transparent, and efficient processes, Gloria Waters, vice president and associate provost for research, writes in a letter announcing Pratts promotion. Waters commends Pratts vision for further enhancing BUs ability to interact with industry in order to promote the institutional goal of widespread dissemination/use for societal benefit.

For Pratt, who holds a BA in physics from the College of the Holy Cross and an MBA from the Questrom School of Business, his job at OTD is an opportunity to connect people from two different worldsacademia and industry. Its an important responsibility to try and commercialize these technologies so more people can benefit from all the hard work that goes into research and discovery, he says. People connecting with people to solve common problems: thats tech transfer to me.

Getting a discovery to market can take yearsif it gets there at alland Pratt says his goal is for OTD to help faculty navigate the paperwork, and the inevitable obstacles, as smoothly as possible. Were not a gatekeeper, he says. Were an enabler. We want people to view tech transfer not as an administrative burden, but as an office that helped them through this difficult process and didnt hold them back.

OTD should enable faculty to fulfill their own visions for collaborating with industry, he says. We want to empower faculty to make good choices, but we also need to draft legal agreements that protect the institution from downstream liabilities.

Pratt joined OTD in May 2000 as a licensing associate responsible for inventions that came out of research in the physical sciences. Over the years, he has held a series of different roles, each with increasing responsibility: director of corporate business development, director of translational research and corporate relations, executive director of business development. Before coming to BU, he was the global support manager at NESLAB Instruments, Inc., of Portsmouth, N.H.

In 2015, Pratts office helped Damiano navigate a mountain of licensing and intellectual property agreements to start Beta Bionics, Inc., as a public benefit corporation.The companys mission is to serve the type 1 diabetes community by getting Damianos bionic pancreas through final clinical trials and the regulatory process and into commercialization.

Thats BU empowering Ed to pursue his dream the way he wants to pursue it, Pratt says. If we were just trying to make money, someone would have said to Ed, Dont do it that way.

Damiano credits Pratt with guiding him and his Beta Bionics partners through an incredibly complex licensing deal involving many stakeholders, under an absurdly short timeline, and through the 2015 holiday season.

It was on a Friday night in mid November 2015 that Damiano let Pratt know that he had to complete the licensing paperwork for Beta Bionics before the end of the year. We went to Eds house that Saturday, says Pratt. We said, If were going to get this done, wed better start right now.

Pratt and his team accomplished in six weeks what most academic institutions wouldnt be able to do in six months, Damiano says. Boston University is extremely fortunate to have Mikes dedication, talent, and commitment to lead its Office of Technology Development.

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New Leader for Office of Technology Development - BU Today

CSIRO behind breakthrough technology to help combat illegal fishing trade – ABC Online

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Posted June 26, 2017 09:16:26

Australian scientists have developed world-first surveillance technology to combat the global illegal fishing trade.

Source: CSIRO

The CSIRO, in collaboration with Indonesian authorities, have created a notification system that will collect satellite data from the anti-collision devices on most boats.

The system will flag vessels that have a pattern of suspicious behaviour, and send reports to the authorities when those boats pull into port.

One tell-tale sign that a boat may be engaged in illegal behaviour is moving abnormally through shipping lanes.

Lead research scientist at the CSIRO, Chris Wilcox, said that could include moving faster or slower than usual.

"One of the other things we look for is indicators a vessel is trying to avoid surveillance," he said.

"If they turn off their transmitter for instance, or if they change their vessel name while they're at sea, we flag those as suspicious also."

Illegal fishing is the third most lucrative black market in the world - behind gun running and drug trafficking.

"It's a major issue in terms of major crime and it's linked to lots of other things, like people smuggling and drugs," Dr Wilcox said.

"If you want to do something at sea you would use a fishing vessel because they're the cheapest and most seaworthy.

"Half of Australia's barramundi comes from Asia. We import the majority of our seafood, so the level of illegality in them is really very relevant for people in Australia."

Some estimate about a third of the seafood in Australian markets is mislabelled and potentially caught illegally.

The project team is in discussions with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation to distribute the new system to member countries.

"We've had quite strong interest from national governments here in Australia and in the US, and from regional and global bodies," Dr Wilcox said.

"In our region here in the Pacific and Indian oceans, there's been quite strong interest."

The technology will be launched at the Our Oceans conference in Malta in October.

Topics: illegal-fishing, law-crime-and-justice, science-and-technology, australia

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CSIRO behind breakthrough technology to help combat illegal fishing trade - ABC Online

Pride Parade looks back at progress, forward to call for action – Chicago Sun-Times

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

LGBTQ people and allies lined the route of the the 48th annual Pride Parade, which took form Sunday as both a celebration of LGBTQ progress and a political call for action.

For Jessica Harding, a 35-year-old Chicago resident, the parade meant both. She and her wife, Lindsay Harding, came with their 3-month-old baby, Jacoby, whom Jessica Harding adopted this week. Lindsay Harding gave birth to Jacoby through reciprocal in vitro fertilization, so he is Jessica Hardings biological child but was carried by her partner.

It was a long and expensive process, so were here to celebrate but also understand that other families arent as lucky as we are, Jessica Harding said. Were here to show that [LGBTQ people] can have families too, there is a way, and there are people wholl support you.

Linsday (left) and Jessica Harding celebrate their first pride with their 3-month-old son, Jacoby. | Jacob Wittich/Sun-Times

The parade stepped off about noon from Montrose and Broadway with Mayor Rahm Emanuel leading the way alongside one of his daughters. Its route wound throughout the Uptown and Lake View neighborhoods before ending at Diversey and Sheridan.

While weve gone a very long distance, we have a lot of freedoms and liberties that . . . are under attack, so its more important than ever this march to reassert our common values, Emanuel said before the parade.

Parade marshal Lea DeLaria, a downstate Belleville native most known for her role as Big Boo in television series Orange is the New Black, was moved to tears by the crowds cheers as her car drove along the parade route.

Its a joy to be celebrating this kind of event in my home state, DeLaria said. Its exciting to see us all come together as a disenfranchised group of people to say, I matter.

While other cities have chosen to incorporate themes of resistance inspired by the countrys political climate, Chicagos Pride organizers maintained the traditional parade format, taking the theme, Viva la Vida / Stand Up, Stand Proud.

Roger Bottorff, a 65-year-old Kankakee native who first attended the parade in 1979, said he was relieved the parade did not fully embrace a resistance theme.

Back then, the parades were more community-based and political protests, but this is more representative of what the parade has become, Bottorff said. Im not against the resist program, but this is a Pride Parade, not an anti-president parade.

Bottorff came to the parade with his husband, Larry Dehrke, whom he married in 2014, when same-sex marriage became legal in Illinois.

Larry Dehrke (left) with his husband Roger Bottorff at the Chicago Pride Parade. | Jacob Wittich/Sun-Times

We had pro-gay marriage groups who would participate in the parade back in the day, and I never believed it was going to happen, Bottorff said. Whats wonderful today is to come out here and reflect on how much we have accomplished.

Still, some parade participants walked with signs reading Resist and chanted slogan protesting President Donald Trumps administration.

Kofi Ademola, of Black Lives Matter-Chicago, marched with the Trans Liberation Collective to oppose police presence in the parade and call for a more inclusive Pride celebration.

Were hoping that a more radical Pride can emerge just like in the spirit of Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, who kicked off the Stonewall Riots and fought for trans liberation and inclusion, across the intersections of poverty and everything else in oppression that affects people of color, Ademola said.

Adrienne Little came from Merrillville, Indiana, with her fiancee to celebrate the Pride Parade. | Jacob Wittich/Sun-Times

For Adrienne Little, a 37-year-old woman from Merrillville, Indiana, the parade was a time to celebrate with her fiancee.

Im here to represent gay love, Little said. It means a lot to see so many people here who agree that I should have the same rights to a high-quality life as anyone else.

Democratic gubernatorial candidates J.B. Pritzker, Chris Kennedy, State Sen. Daniel Biss, D-Evanston, and Ald. Ameya Pawar (47th) all participated in the parade. They spoke at a pre-parade party to recognize the LGBTQ community and speak on the the states ongoing budget crisis.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, who also participated in the parade, said it was a day to stop and celebrate love and then get back and fight some more.

Ana Melendez (left) and Jorden Rodriguez came to the Chicago Pride Parade for their first time Sunday. | Jacob Wittich/Sun-Times

Jorden Rodriguez, a transgender 16-year-old boy from Des Plaines, came to the parade for the first time and said he was amazed by its accepting environment.

This is where I can be myself, and no one is trying to stop me from being myself, Rodriquez said. I am so happy to see people who are like me.

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Pride Parade looks back at progress, forward to call for action - Chicago Sun-Times

Firefighters make progress on fast-moving Santa Clarita blaze; 14 Freeway is reopened – Los Angeles Times

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

A car crash sparked a fire in Santa Clarita that quickly spread to 750 acres Sunday afternoon and triggered mandatory evacuations in some neighborhoods, authorities said.

At 7 p.m. Sunday the fire was 50% contained, said Cpt. Keith Mora, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

The blaze broke out about 1 p.m. near the intersection of the 14 Freeway and Placerita Canyon Road when a motorist drove her car into a tree, according to the county fire department.

The fast-moving fire jumped the freeway, sending up a towering plume of gray smoke that was visible for miles. About 76 homes in the area lost power Sunday afternoon.

The driver of the crashed vehicle was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, said Joey Marrone, a spokesman with the fire department.

A firefighter injured in the blaze was also hospitalized, Marrone said.

At Golden Oak Ranch, an 890-acre filming location constructed by Disney and ABC studios, the fire burned a structure that had been used as a prop house, said L.A. County Sheriff's Department spokesman Christopher Craft.

U.S. Forest Service firefighters stopped the blaze from burning other structures in the faux business district and suburban street used for filming movies and television.

Near another flank of the fire, an NBC Los Angeles news van suddenly caught fire while a photographer was outside the vehicle. The photographer was unharmed, and the news station issued a statement saying the fire in the van was unrelated to the Placerita fire.

The 14 Freeway had been closed on both sides, creating long traffic pileups in both directions. It was reopened by Sunday evening.

Rudy Montanez, 61, said the gridlock was forcing his family to miss a friends 85th birthday party, complete with mariachi band, in Northridge.

He, his wife and three hungry grandchildren were stuck for three hours.

Last year, a brush fire had stranded some family members on a freeway for six hours, Montanez said.

Its not as scary as last time, said his granddaughter, Cherish.

Gamal Habib, 63, was caught in the same jam. He made a U-turn on the 14 Freeway and drove in the opposite direction to escape, he said.

They didnt do a good job of signaling that they had closed an entrance, Habib said.

Los Angeles County Fire Department

(Los Angeles County Fire Department)

More than 400 firefighters, four helicopter crews and two air tankers were battling the blaze Sunday.

As the fire spread, The Gentle Barn, an educational nonprofit in Santa Clarita, tweeted a call for neighbors with trucks and trailers to help evacuate horses and other livestock.

In emergency situations, people often stay in their homes because theyre afraid of what might happen to their animals, said Ellie Laks, the organizations founder.

By the time the winds had died down and firefighters were beginning to contain the fire, no one had taken the volunteers offer.

Thats a good fire, Laks said. Hopefully the rest of the fire season will be like that.

By 7:30 pm, Laks had returned to the organizations six-acre property, where horses cantered as if nothing had happened and a peacock stood atop a gazebo, fanning its turquoise feathers.

Santa Clarita on Sunday was experiencing dry conditions and temperatures up to 109 degrees, said Todd Hall, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

Slightly cooler temperatures and wetter conditions are expected on Monday, Hall said.

Another fire broke out Sunday afternoon near the intersection of the 170 Freeway and Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood, said Brian Humphrey, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Its possible that someone in a nearby homeless encampment in the area could have caused the fire, Humphrey said. No structures or people were harmed, but authorities briefly closed a ramp leading to the 170 Freeway.

This post will be updated with more information as it becomes available.

frank.shyong@latimes.com

joy.resmovits@latimes.com

maya.lau@latimes.com

UPDATES:

8:40 p.m.: This story was updated with details about damage at Golden Oak Ranch, a filming location, and more details from the scene.

6:41 p.m.: This story was updated to reflect new figures about containment and fire acreage.

5:55 p.m.: This story was updated with new information about the size of the fire, information about a burning news van and more details from the scene.

4:45 p.m.: This story was updated with new information about weather conditions.

4:28 p.m.: This story was updated with new information from the scene.

4:00 p.m.: This story was updated new information from fire officials.

8:30 pm.: This story was updated with new information from fire officials and from witnesses.

This article was originally posted at 3:25 p.m.

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Firefighters make progress on fast-moving Santa Clarita blaze; 14 Freeway is reopened - Los Angeles Times

New Mexico ethics commission remains work in progress – Washington Times

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - The New Mexico legislature approved the creation of an independent ethics commission during this years legislative session, but there are many unanswered questions about how it will work.

Lawmakers approved the framework for an ethics commission during the 60-day session that ended in March, with the assumption that its powers and procedures would defined later.

Some groups are pushing lawmakers to start talking about the details in interim legislative committee hearings this summer and fall, the Albuquerque Journal reported (http://bit.ly/2rGbkUv ) Thursday.

It is unlikely the Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee will recommend legislation when it meets in coming months, said Rep. Gail Chasey, D-Albuquerque.

I think we will probably spend some time on it, Chasey said. But the ethics commission doesnt go to voters until next year.

As currently proposed, the seven-member independent ethics commission would review complaints against elected officials and certain government employees.

Other details about the commissions day-to-day operations would have to be determined by the Legislature in 2019, if statewide voters approve a constitutional amendment creating the commission in the November 2018 general election.

The commission would have the ability to subpoena records and compel witness testimony, Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, said.

But it is not clear whether the commission would be able to initiate investigations after receiving complaints or if it could do so on its own.

New Mexico is one of eight states without an ethics commission, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

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New Mexico ethics commission remains work in progress - Washington Times

Orioles replicating spring training schedule for closer Zach Britton … – Baltimore Sun (blog)

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

Theres a deliberate method to the Orioles' efforts to return closer Zach Britton from his forearm strain back to full health, with the schedule laid out for him over a three-week period closely mirroring how hed typically get ready in spring training.

Zach was trying to push it forward and maybe take an extra [outing], Showalter said. But if you do that, it takes away from the replication of spring training. Everythings designed for him to try to join us on [July 5], which would be a normal spring training for him. Hes feeling good. Last night was the first night he really felt like he really turned it loose without any conviction about is this going to hurt or is that going to hurt, and pitched in a game without thinking about it.

Britton had his third rehabilitation outing Saturday for Low-A Delmarva, sitting 94-95 mph and walking a batter but facing the minimum in a big win for the Shorebirds. His next outing is Monday at Double-A Bowie, then he has two days off before pitching Thursday for Bowie and Friday for High-A Frederick. Brittons final outing will be at Triple-A Norfolk before he joins the team in Milwaukee for a planned July 5 return.

That Britton is having a spring-training replica in June is of interest because his actual spring training was accelerated this year. He had an early case of soreness in his oblique area that shut him down for a few weeks and delayed his normal progression, and the team had to cram a few extra outings in to get him ready for Opening Day.

Once he returned, he wasnt himself, battling the forearm problem that landed him on the disabled list twice. He allowed one run in nine appearances with five saves, but had to battle control troubles and didnt have many of the clean outings that were so prevalent in last years record-setting season.

But Britton is progressing well and looked healthy Saturday, according to a scout. And he set a good example at Delmarva while he was there.

Theyre having a [pitcher fielding practice] session they have about every third day with the pitchers there, Showalter said. [Director of player development] Brian [Graham] didnt want to let him join it because he was pitching that night, and Zach somehow tagged his way into it. He said, I feel horrible. Im here trying to set an example and Im standing on the side while theyre doing PFPs. So he got out there and led the drill.

Davis progressing: First baseman Chris Davis (oblique) will remain in Florida to rehab at the clubs facility in Sarasota after the Orioles leave Tampa Bay, and is seeing improvement after a pair of platelet-rich plasma injections.

Hes sleeping now and hes not having that every-action pain, when hes trying to pick something up or reach for something in everyday life, Showalter said. He made some progress with that."

It remains unclear how long Davis will be out, but the early estimate after he suffered the injury two weeks ago was at least a month.

Around the horn: Outfielder Mark Trumbo had a hit changed to an error from Friday nights game, taking two RBIs off his tally. Infielder Ryan Flaherty (shoulder) is doing everything but throwing, and Showalter said he might stay with the team, as his progress has been more marked over the past few days. Outfielder Joey Rickard is making his second start against a right-handed pitcher in a row. The Orioles entire lineup is right-handed against right Jake Odorizzi on Sunday.

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Orioles replicating spring training schedule for closer Zach Britton ... - Baltimore Sun (blog)

Progress in a Sweep for the Mets, and in a Win for a Shaky Pitcher – New York Times

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

I feel different, Montero said. I have more confidence in my pitching. It worked well today.

But the win came with drawbacks for the Mets. Michael Conforto, the teams best hitter this season, left the game in the sixth inning with a bruised left hand after he had been hit by a pitch. The Mets announced that Confortos X-ray showed no break.

Conforto, batting in the fifth inning, was hit on the hand by a high 92-mile-per-hour fastball from Giants starter Matt Moore and fell to the ground, grabbing his hand. Collins and the Mets head athletic trainer, Ray Ramirez, checked on Conforto, who stayed in the game but kept flexing his hand. He was back out in left field in the bottom half of the fifth but was replaced by Brandon Nimmo in the next inning.

I want to be back in there as soon as possible, Conforto said. But well see. Its pretty stiff right now.

Even without Conforto and Yoenis Cespedes, who was given the day off the Mets found enough firepower to overwhelm the Giants dreadful pitching.

Rene Rivera, the backup catcher, smashed two home runs in a game for the first time. First baseman Lucas Duda padded the Mets margin with a run-scoring double in the fifth inning.

Right fielder Jay Bruce put the game all but out of reach with a two-run homer in the eighth inning. It was the 20th of the season for Bruce, who reached that number for the ninth time in his 10 major league seasons.

An inning after Bruces home run, Curtis Granderson hit his third homer in the past five games. That gave the Mets 46 home runs in June a team record for any calendar month.

Montero, by then, was watching from the dugout as his teammates closed out his successful start.

Earlier in the day, Wheeler, who was put on the disabled list late last week with tendinitis in his right biceps, threw a full bullpen session. The Mets hoped Wheeler would miss only one start, but if he is not ready, Collins said, it will be good to have an improved Montero.

I hope this is what were going to see from now on, he said, adding later, Hopefully, this is a huge wake-up call that he can pitch in this league.

A version of this article appears in print on June 26, 2017, on Page D2 of the New York edition with the headline: The Mets Find Progress, And Hope for Montero, In a Sweep of the Giants.

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Progress in a Sweep for the Mets, and in a Win for a Shaky Pitcher - New York Times

Are you ready when disaster strikes? These Minnesota doomsday preppers are – Charleston Express

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

By Richard ChinMinneapolis Star Tribune

COLUMBIA HEIGHTS, Minn. The tiny house that Bryan Korbel is building in his Columbia Heights, Minn., driveway will have all the comforts of a 260-square-foot home.

There'll be a shower with an on-demand water heater, a microwave oven, stove, composting toilet, satellite dish and power provided by solar panels. It's being built on a trailer, so it can be towed anywhere.

Korbel's self-sufficient micro-cottage isn't being built out of a Thoreau-esque desire to simplify or to achieve a chic Dwell magazine minimalist aesthetic.

He's building it for the end of the world.

When all hell breaks loose war, natural disaster, a breakdown in civil society Korbel will hitch his house on wheels to a 1972 Ford F100 pickup. (That's before the advent of computerized car systems, which Korbel says will be fried by the electromagnetic pulse created by a nuclear blast.)

He'll haul the structure and his family to a patch of land he has north of Hinckley, Minn., stopping to get supplies he's cached along the way in PVC tubes buried underground. He's prepared, he believes, to ride out anything that man or nature might throw at him.

Korbel, 53, is a prepper, of course, that breed of person who stockpiles food, toilet paper and ammunition to last not days, but months just in case.

Preppers see themselves as prudent, sensible ants in a world of feckless grasshoppers, even while they recognize that others consider them paranoid conspiracy theorists and doomsday prophets.

"My wife gave me the nickname Mad Max," Korbel said. "My brother, he thinks it's nuts. He's lazy. I already know he's going to be knocking on my door."

Predictions that the end is near are as old as Noah. More modern manifestations have included people who felt the need to build home fallout shelters during the Cold War and pessimists who feared the worst from a Y2K collapse. Events such as 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina have continued to fuel fears.

The latest bad news: This year, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists decided to reset its famous Doomsday Clock "a universally recognized indicator of the world's vulnerability to catastrophe " from three minutes to only two-and-a-half minutes before midnight.

The scientific worrywarts cited tensions between the U.S. and Russia, North Korean nuclear tests, climate change, a rise in "strident nationalism" and "intemperate statements" from President Donald Trump and even "lethal autonomous weapons systems" yeah, killer robots among the looming existential threats to humanity.

According to the Bulletin scientists, in the 70-year history of the Doomsday Clock, the last time things have been this bad for the planet was 1953, just after the U.S. and the Soviet Union developed the first hydrogen bombs. At that time, the scientists deemed we were only two minutes to apocalypse.

Selling peace of mind

No wonder Costco is selling $3,399.99 packages of freeze-dried and dehydrated emergency foods that promise 31,500 total servings, enough to feed four people for a year, with a shelf life of up to 25 years. The food shipment arrives on a pallet that is "black-wrapped for security and privacy."

Or you could buy end-of-the-world supplies from a specialty retailer such as Safecastle.com.

Safecastle was started by Prior Lake resident Vic Rantala after 9/11 because he saw a niche for an online source of affordable, quality, long-term stored food.

The company has since branched out to sell surveillance robots, radiation detectors, folding "bug-out" bicycles intended for paratroopers and a 35-piece pet survival kit designed for a "CATastrophe."

"We sell stuff nobody else sells," Rantala said.

You can even buy an underground fallout shelter that costs more than $100,000.

"We early on developed a relationship with a steel plate shelter builder in Louisiana," Rantala said. "Our builder has done seven-figure bunkers for people."

He said his best-seller is something homier: canned, cooked bacon with a shelf life of more than 10 years.

Rantala, 59, said his background has included service in the Army, intelligence work for the government and communications and consulting for corporations. But selling prepping gear has become "kind of like a life's mission."

The shelters he's sold have saved lives in tornadoes, he said. Some of the food he's sold to preppers ended up being eaten when the disaster turned out to be a job loss.

"We sell peace of mind to people," Rantala said.

Even though he sold the company a couple of years ago, he continues to work for it. He said sales are close to $50 million a year.

He estimates that as many as "10 percent of the population are into prepping these days," although he admits figures can be fuzzy because preppers are notoriously secretive about their preparations.

"Sometimes you don't even tell your family members," he said. "It can be a little bit of an obsession, I have to admit."

Nuts or narrative

"It's good to have something stored away," said Peter Behrens, a psychologist who recently retired as a professor at Penn State University in Lehigh Valley, Pa. "Some 72 hours' worth of food is great."

But he said prepping can turn into a "non-substance pathology," similar to hoarding and excessive gambling, when taken to the extreme.

"A lot of people get into this as a pastime," he said. But he said, "It's a slippery slope to becoming irrational and aggressive."

Behrens said prepping is cause for concern if a person starts hoarding firearms and ammunition and if more than 10 percent of a person's income is devoted to prepping. And he warns that prepping can be similar to being in a cult if a person gives up long-standing relationships with friends and family members to associate only with other preppers.

"This is a situation that revolves around anxiety," he said. "It doesn't match with rational behavior."

But Richard G. Mitchell, who studied survivalists as a sociology professor at Oregon State University, said preppers are people who may just want to resist a humdrum life of comfort and consumption. They want to create a personal narrative of themselves as the rugged individual who's going to survive disaster.

"They want a place where they feel meaningful," he said. "Survivalism is a storytelling process. There's a certain satisfaction to that."

He added, "These are people who are hobbyists. They're amused by the process. They're entertained by it. They're proud of it. They're nuts in the sense that they've not accepted the status quo."

Knowing he'll survive

Korbel has stored enough beans, lentils, rice, pasta and soup to feed his wife and their two sons still living at home for a year and a half. He's prepared to grow his own vegetables, mill his own grain and vacuum-seal the foods he's preserving.

"These are good for 50 years," Korbel said, showing off the homemade pemmican balls he's made of beef, peanut butter and nuts.

He stores a couple hundred gallons of water and enough gasoline to fill his truck tank three times. He's got gas masks that he bought at Fleet Farm, and suits to protect against a chemical attack that he bought online. There are weather radios, two-way radios and first aid kits on every level of his house. The upper floor has escape ladders.

He lives about 4.5 miles from the center of Minneapolis, a little too close in case a nuclear bomb goes off in the city center. Ten miles would be better, he said. But his wife is happy living in Columbia Heights, and the mortgage is almost paid off.

"Yeah, there'd be severe burns, structures coming down. But still survivable," he said.

Among the things that worry him are tornadoes, civil unrest, racial tensions, terrorists, conflict with Russia, a government that "goes rogue."

"I wouldn't consider myself a conspiracy theorist. But I do think about it a lot," he said. "If a comet lands on me, I'm not going to worry about it.

"My worst fear would be a financial breakdown" and a collapse of the monetary system, he said. "You've got people bartering in gold, silver, jewels." Or ammunition.

Korbel has set aside some of that as well, along with handguns, rifles and shotguns.

"I also have compound bows. My boys, they've trained in compound bows. My wife is trained in that," he said.

"You need to defend your property and yourself," he said. But he said, "I'm not prepping for a war. I'm not trying to hide anything. I'm not trying to overthrow the government. I don't want to get shot. I don't want to shoot anyone."

Korbel is a Metro Transit driver and an Army veteran who used to work as a carpenter, a contractor and a semitrailer truck driver. He's been married 25 years, and his wife is a nurse.

"He likes to be our protector," Betsy Korbel said. "There's a lot worse things to be doing."

Korbel said he's been a prepper about 12 years. Last year, he estimates, he spent about $7,000 on the activity.

"When I turn 80, I might turn around and look at this stuff and I might say, 'OK, maybe I bought too much,'" he said.

But he said he pays for prepping with side income he gets from recycling metals from old laptops and wires and driving for a food delivery service.

"I love it," Korbel said of his preoccupation with preparing. "It's something I enjoy."

"I know I'm going to be able to survive," he said.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency.

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Are you ready when disaster strikes? These Minnesota doomsday preppers are - Charleston Express

The three myths of populism – Kathimerini

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Danzig

We still need time for the dust to settle before the outcome of the fight between populism and its opponents becomes apparent.

The tsunami of populism appears to have ebbed after Brexit and the election of Donald Trump, but there is still a long road ahead. The unseating of established political forces came fast and lasted a long time.

I recently listened to an excellent American thinker explaining what populism is and how it can be overcome. He was right in saying that its not enough for it to be defeated electorally.

Its imperative that the fight be won with reason, to convince the public that there truly is another way.

The power of populism is based on three myths:

-The myth of the people as victims. This has held since the first moments of the Greek crisis.

-The myth of the enemies of the masses. And there were convenient enemies right from the early days of the crisis as well, both foreign and domestic.

-The myth of the leader taking on the powerful as if they were some kind of monster to blame for the plight of the people. Alexis Tsipras responded to this sentiment by using them as scapegoats and its amazing that to this day you hear the phrase Hes trying but hes faced with beasts.

Populism is based on blaming the other for all the suffering a beleaguered society is experiencing. We Greeks have this entrenched in our DNA. We remember and always want to believe that were the ones being attacked but then we easily forget whos helped us.

For the fight to be won, three things are needed: Someone who can be the face of anti-populism who can convince people that they are not a relic of the past and who can tap not only into the mind but also the desires of every voter.

Anti-populist politicians must be reborn to have a shot in an unequal fight. Its also important to take full advantage of technology and means of communication.

Until recently, the advance of communication technology clearly favored populists. French President Emmanuel Macron has shown that with a little thought, the same tools, particularly social media, can be used as the weapons of responsible forces.

The American thinker ended on an excellent point, saying those who believe in liberal principals and rationalism must keep a clear mind and a stiff upper lip. There is really no other way to deal with the forces of populism.

As weve said, its not defeat at the polls thats important. What is important is that the battle of arguments is won and that there can be an ideological shift in Greek society.

In Greece, populism exists not just in places youd expect but also in political parties that supposedly represent the liberal, pro-European direction of the country.

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The three myths of populism - Kathimerini

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