Daily Archives: January 9, 2015

Artist Jaik Faulk Returns To Portland With 'Back At The Crawdaddy'

Posted: January 9, 2015 at 9:43 pm

local | Arts

OPB | Jan. 9, 2015 1 p.m. | Updated: Jan. 9, 2015 3:44 p.m.

Jaik Faulk's latest show at Nationale, "Back at the Crawdaddy," explores what it means to leave one home and return toanother.

Oregons transplant populationcontinues to grow as our state attracts makers, doers and creative types from all over the country. Leave it to artist Jaik Faulk, then, to buck thetrend.

After studying art at Portland State University and spending 10 years in Portland, Faulk earned his MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute. He returned to his hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana after graduation to be closer to his family, leaving the Portland art communitybehind.

But now Faulk is back in the Rose City at least for a littlewhile.

In December, the painter accepted a month-long residency atFalseFront Studio in NE Portland to explore what it means to move from one home to another. The works he produced during those 30 days are now on display at southeast Portlands Nationale, in an exhibition entitled Back at the Crawdaddy.

The name of Faulks exhibition works on two levels.

For one, it comes from a Keith Richards quote: And the Crawdaddy [a club where the Rolling Stones performed] is where I realised that Mick could actually work a stage about the size of a rug better than anybody in theworld.

The concept of working in a confined space inspiresFaulk.

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Hubble Telescope Captures Best View Ever of the Andromeda Galaxy

Posted: at 12:50 am

SEATTLE The Hubble Space Telescope has captured an amazing new photo of the Andromeda Galaxy. The new mosaic image represents the sharpest and largest mosaic image of the Milky Way's galactic neighbor ever taken, Hubble officials said.

The panoramic image shows striking details of the bright galaxy, which is located about 2.5 million light-years from Earth. While that may seem far away, Hubble usually trains its view on more distant targets. Because Andromeda fills up so much of Hubble's field of view, the telescope was able to capture incredible detail in its survey of the galaxy. Fly through the amazing Andromeda image in a new video as well.

The newly-released image stretches across about 48,000 light-years of the galaxy's disk, according to Hubble officials. In total, the image shows more than 100 million stars in the galaxy. Hubble officials revealed the new photo during a news conference here at the 225th meeting of the American Astronomical Society. [See more amazing Hubble Space Telescope photos]

"Hubble traces densely packed stars extending from the innermost hub of the galaxy, seen at left," Hubble representatives said in a statement. "Moving out from this central galactic bulge, the panorama sweeps from the galaxy's central bulge across lanes of stars and dust to the sparser outer disk."

Scientists can use this image to help them interpret other spiral galaxies like theAndromeda galaxythat might have similar light signatures, but are farther from Earth.

The panorama was created as part of the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) program. This image was created as a mosaic of 7,398 exposures taken over the course of 411 pointings of the telescope, according to Hubble officials.

"Large groups of young blue stars indicate the locations of star clusters and star-forming regions. The stars bunch up in the blue ring-like feature toward the right side of the image," Hubble representatives said in the same statement. "The dark silhouettes trace out complex dust structures. Underlying the entire galaxy is a smooth distribution of cooler red stars that trace Andromeda's evolution over billions of years."

Andromeda and the Milky Way are on the way toward a crash of cosmic proportions. The two galaxies will merge, forming one new galaxy billions of years from now.

You can explore a zoomable version of the new PHAT image directly through Hubble here: http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2015/02/image/a/format/zoom/

Follow Miriam Kramer @mirikramer. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

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Virginia company to help NATO train Afghan troops

Posted: at 12:49 am

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- NATO is to receive advisory and assistance services from a U.S. counterterrorism company in the training of Afghanistan's national security forces.

Virginia-headquartered A-T Solutions said its services -- on the strategic and tactical levels -- would be conducted from the International Security Assistance Force and Resolute Support mission headquarters in Kabul, the Afghan capital.

Resolute Support is the name given by NATO to its training and assistance activities in the country following termination of direct involvement of NATO forces in combat operations against the Taliban. The U.S. component to the program is called Operation Freedom's Sentinel.

A-T Solutions said that under the NATO contract it will develop, design and present field training material and courses to ISAF/RS advisers on advisory skills, cultural awareness, insider threat, security force assistance and other subjects.

The company will also consolidate lessons learned from training operations, which will be presented to allied forces in theater and at predeployment centers.

"We are honored to be working with NATO to support this vitally important mission," said Dennis Kelly, president and CEO of A-T Solutions. "We look forward to working closely with the Resolute Support team and Afghan National Security Forces to deliver effective advisory support and the most comprehensive training programs available to help secure communities in Afghanistan against the terrorist threat."

Information on the contract's period of performance and monetary value were not disclosed.

2015 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

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Poland to seek NATO response to Russia's Baltic exercises

Posted: at 12:49 am

By Wiktor Szary and Pawel Sobczak

WARSAW Thu Jan 8, 2015 4:06pm GMT

Poland's Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak speaks during an interview with Reuters in his office at the Ministry of Defence in Warsaw April 10, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Kacper Pempel

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland expects the NATO alliance to step up its military exercises around the Baltic Sea after a flurry of activity by Russian warships and jet fighters in the area last month, Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak told Reuters in an interview.

"What happened in December was indeed rather unprecedented," Siemoniak said. "We will definitely want the Baltic Sea to be taken into account to a greater extent, and I think that in terms of military exercises planned by NATO, there will be such a reaction," he said. The interview was conducted on Monday but authorised for release by the ministry on Thursday.

The Atlantic alliance has already increased the frequency of air patrols in the region, part of a revival of Cold War tensions sparked by Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and its support for Ukraine's pro-Russian rebels.

Siemoniak said Moscow did not have an exit strategy, and that NATO and the European Union, which has imposed sanctions on Russia together with the United States, should brace themselves for years of conflict.

"We shouldn't talk about lifting the sanctions too soon," he said, adding that they were the most effective tool at the West's disposal.

The French government in November put on hold a contract to supply Mistral warships to Russia after coming under pressure from NATO allies.

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NSA Director on Sony Hack: The Entire World is Watching

Posted: at 12:49 am

TIME Politics National Security NSA Director on Sony Hack: The Entire World is Watching Adm. Michael Rogers, commander of the U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency, testifies during a hearing before the House (Select) Intelligence Committee Nov. 20, 2014 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Alex WongGetty Images The hack against Sony last month was a "game changer" for cybersecurity, the NSA director said on Thursday

National Security Agency Director Admiral Michael Rogers expressed support Thursday for the United States economic sanctions against North Korea in response to the hack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, and called the attack against the movie studio a game changer for cybersecurity.

Sony is important to me because the entire world is watching how we as a nation are going to respond do this, Rogers said Thursday at the International Conference on Cyber Security in New York. If we dont name names here, it will only encourage others to decide, Well this must not be a red line for the United States.'

After naming North Korea responsible for the attack against Sony, the U.S. announced sanctions last week against 10 individuals and three organizations in North Korea, including the states main intelligence agency and its primary arms exporter. The sanctions effectively denied them access to U.S. financial systems.

In his address at the conference, Rogers endorsed the U.S. response to the Sony attack, implying the U.S. government should have a key role in responding to some cyberattacks on private companies. I dont think its realistic for private companies to deal with [cyberattacks] totally by themselves, he said.

Rogers that hacks against private companies may require economic sanctions. Merely because something happens to us in the cyber arena, doesnt mean that our response has to be focused in the cyber arena he said. I was very happy to see what we as a nation state decided to do, referring to the response to North Korea.

He also expressed skepticism about so-called hack backs in which private companies strike back against hackers, saying they risk fratricide by escalating cyber attacks between nation states and institutions.

The NSA was asked to examine malware used in the Sony hack and played a supporting role in determining its origins, Rogers said. The November hack brought down the studios networks and resulted in the leaks of terabytes of files including unreleased films and employee Social Security numbers. President Obama said last month the U.S. would launch a proportional response to the attack.

Rogers said North Korea was responsible for the hack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, reaffirming government claims despite doubts among some cybersecurity experts. I remain very confident: this was North Korea, Rogers said.

The remarks come a day after FBI Director James Comey said North Korea was sloppy in concealing the attack and said he had high confidence the hermit state was responsible.

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Embracing the Second Amendment – 1080p 60fps – Video

Posted: at 12:48 am


Embracing the Second Amendment - 1080p 60fps
"Ready Aim Fire" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

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Mayor Clodfelter NASCAR Hall of Fame Comments – Video

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Mayor Clodfelter NASCAR Hall of Fame Comments
Mayor Dan Clodfelter shares thoughts on NASCAR Hall of Fame loan. For more information: http://charlottenc.gov On Jan. 12, 2015, City Council will consider the second amendment to the NASCAR...

By: City of Charlotte

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Should public schools teach how to use guns? Yes, say South Carolina legislators

Posted: at 12:48 am

Should public school students be instructed on firearms?

Absolutely, says a group of South Carolina legislators. They have filed two bills in the South Carolina legislature mandating gun safety courses and Second Amendment-related curricula in state schools, a move designed to target zero-tolerance policies on guns in schools.

One bill, filed by State Rep. Alan Clemmons, would establish a three-week educational unit, for all grade levels, devoted to the US Constitution, focusing on the Second Amendment.

The proposed bill would also establish a Second Amendment Awareness Day to be held on Dec. 15 each year in all state schools, complete with a poster or essay contest centered on the theme The Right To Bear Arms: One American Right Protecting All Others.

Rep. Clemmons told South Carolina's The Greenville News that he was inspired to create the bill after hearing the story of a student who was arrested at school over a fictional essay he wrote in which he talked about buying a gun to kill a neighbors pet dinosaur.

That sort of zero-tolerance attitude towards guns in schools, Clemmons told a local South Carolina paper, is undermining knowledge of, and respect for, the Second Amendment.In this case, it squelched a students First Amendment rights, in responding to an assignment, to talk about the Second Amendment, Clemmonstold The Greenville News. We are giving short shrift to the one amendment that protects all others.

Gun rights and safety education has traditionally not been the purview of public schools, with incidents like the school shooting at Newtown, Conn., hardening many parents' resolve against firearm-related curricula. But proponents argue that the best way to counter school shootings and inappropriate gun use is education.Nonetheless, the bill is controversial.

For starters, its proposed "Second Amendment Awareness Day" is scheduled for Dec. 15, which happens to be the day after the anniversary of the Sandy Hook school shooting, in which a lone gunman fatally shot 20 students and six adults at a Newtown elementary school. Clemmons has said the date is a coincidence and he is open to other dates.

Another point of contention is a clause requiring new gun- and Second Amendment-related curriculum be either created or approved by the National Rifle Association, a gun advocacy group.

Another bill, proposed in the state Senate by Sen. Lee Bright, would allow South Carolina schools to offer elective courses on gun safety, gun rights, and marksmanship. If passed, the bill would allow schools to bus students off-campus to gun ranges, where they would learn about gun safety as well as how to use guns.

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State Representative rallies for the study of the Right to Bear Arms in the classroom

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The right to bear arms could soon be a three-week mandatory part of your child's schoolwork if one state legislator has his way.

State Representative Alan Clemmons, who represents district 107, wants a stronger emphasis to be placed on the Second Amendment in schools across the state. He prefiled the Second Amendment Education Act ahead of the General Assembly returning to session this month.

"The second amendment applies to every American citizen," said Clemmons. "It is a personal right to bear arms for the sake of defending oneself if the need should arise."

That is a constitutional right Clemmons wants students to study and understand.

"The discussion should be a scholarly discussion about the history of the second amendment, why was it important to our fathers, why was it so important that it was included in the bill of rights., and how the second amendment folds into modern society," Clemmons said of what he thinks should be implemented in the classroom.

The Second Amendment Education Act would require a portion of South Carolina's mandated study of the U.S. Constitution in high school be devoted to study of the Second Amendment. Clemmons advocates for roughly three weeks of study dedicated to the constitutional right.

Rep. Clemmons filed the bill in responsive to Zero Tolerance policies in place at schools across the state to stop students from bringing guns on campus. According to Clemmons, over time those policies have turned into an anti-Second Amendment shut-down.

"That policy in my mind is subjecting the rising generation to the mindset of the instrument, the firearm, is evil regardless of the hand that the firearm is in," explained Clemmons.

Another bill prefiled ahead of legislators return aims at taking children out of the classroom and into the gun range for a semester-long course on firearm safety.

Under the bill filed by Senator Lee Bright, students would be given the option to take the course as an elective.

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Sending your child to college: Will it be one for free speech?

Posted: at 12:48 am

Will any of the 2016 presidential candidates mention the many colleges that widely censor students' free speech? Probably not. But at least a news analyst has followed the lead of FIRE (Foundation for Individual Rights in Education) in its essential crusade to bring an active First Amendment to college campuses.

An op-ed in last month's Wall Street Journal says:

"Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky famously postulated that the test of a free society is the ability to express opinions in the town square without fear of reprisal."

But dig this: "Most American colleges wouldn't pass that test, according to a new report by ... FIRE" ("Unfree Speech on Campus," The Wall Street Journal, Dec. 12).

The op-ed continues: "The foundation reports that 55 percent of the 437 colleges it surveyed (in 2014) maintain 'severely restrictive' policies that 'clearly and substantially prohibit protected speech.' They include 61 private schools and 180 public colleges.

"Incredibly, this represents progress from FIRE's survey seven years ago, when 75 percent of colleges maintained restrictive free speech codes."

If contempt for the First Amendment in much of American higher learning is to continue for another generation or more, what quality of emerging public officials and voters will we have?

But to show the liberation of expressive Americanism that has taken place, The Wall Street Journal emphasizes:

"Perhaps the biggest breakthrough for First Amendment advocates (in 2014) was a Virginia law that bars 'free-speech zones' on public campuses. As FIRE explains, free-speech zones are a common tool that administrators use to restrict demonstrations to remote areas of campus.

"Colorado Mesa University limits free speech to 'the concrete patio adjacent to the west door of the University Center.'"

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