Daily Archives: April 11, 2020

The majority of the United Kingdoms missile technology was developed in tandem with the United States, and is thus compatible with American weapons platforms. Here are two missiles that show just how close the United States and the United Kingdoms missile tech really is.

Trident D-5

Perhaps the most well-known missile in the United Kingdoms arsenal is the Trident D-5. The Trident D-5 missile is in service with both the United States and the United Kingdom, where it is used to equip American Ohio-class submarines, and British Vanguard-class subs. Its maximum range is 12,000 kilometers, or about 7,500 miles and carries a nuclear payload.

The Trident family of missiles was originally developed in the late 1980s at the tail-end of the Cold War. It entered service with the United States in 1990 and with the United Kingdom in 1994. Although each missile is capable of carrying up to twelve re-entry vehicles, the New START treaty caps this number at eight.

Trident missiles have been steadily improved nearly as soon as they entered service. In 1994, an earth penetrating version was developed that could eliminate hardened, underground targets. In 1998, Tridents were given an optionally-equipped air burst fuse, presumably for non-tactical scenarios where maximum destructive power would be ideal.

Though the Trident missile system was intended to be retired by the United States in the late 2020s, 300 Tridents are currently being upgraded, which will allow them to remain in service with both the United States and the United Kingdom until at least 2042.

Nuclear missiles get a lot of attention. Heres something conventionally explosive:

Spear 3

In the aftermath of NATOs 1999 involvement in Kosovo, a missile capability gap was observed. United Kingdom forces struggled at times to carry out strikes against mobile and time-sensitive targets. The Spear 3 was developed to fill this gap.

The Spear 3 is an air-launched cruise missile that can target air defense units, ballistic missile launchers, fast moving and maneuvering vehicles, main battle tanks, naval vessels, and armored personnel carriers.

The Spear 3 also has stand-off capabilities, and is intended to be launched at ground targets at safe distance away from advanced anti-aircraft and air defense systems, especially those used by Russia. To that end, the Spear 3 has wings that deploy after launch, giving the missile a 140 plus kilometer range, or nearly 90 miles.

It is domestically-designed in the UK and specifically intended for use with the American F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter. The F-35 can carry the Spear 3 internally in the weapons bay, or under the wings on two external hard points, though carrying missiles outside the weapons bay would greatly degrade the F-35s stealth characteristics.

One of the considerations that was prioritized during the design process was missile robustness. The missile is insensitive to external factors that could cause its trajectory to deviate or the missile to explode, like bullet strikes or extreme heat or cold. It can be deployed against many targets and be specifically tailored to achieve its desired effect based on mission-specific details in real-time.

Special Relationship

There is no denying the U.S.-UK Special Relationship, which is very apparent when looking at the missile development and interoperability between the two countries. Trident missiles equip American and British submarines, and the UK developed munitions specifically for their American-bought stealth fighter-jetsa friendship for the ages.

Caleb Larson is a Defense Writer with The National Interest. He holds a Master of Public Policy and covers U.S. and Russian security, European defense issues, and German politics and culture.

Image: Wikipedia.

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The U.S. and U.K. Have a Special (Missile) Relationship - The National Interest

A screenshot from electronic court in Sacramento

By Nancy Martinez

What will be the long-lasting effects of COVID-19 on the national criminal justice system?

The COVID-19 pandemic has momentarily transformed Californias criminal justice system; some argue that this change is exactly what is needed for the 21st century, while others argue that it violates the right to confront ones accuser.

As of April 1, the Sacramento Superior Court began live-streaming some criminal court proceedings through the live stream application, Zoom. The San Francisco Superior Court will also begin live streaming some proceedings. These decisions come after several published statements on the courts websites declaring court closures until mid-April.

Court closures have resulted in extended periods for motions to be filed. While this is currently affecting the timeframe individuals are kept in jail, this has also initially affected civil jury trials, such as eviction trials. Dean Preston, Supervisor of San Franciscos Fifth District, discussed via a thread of tweets on March 14 that the San Francisco Superior Court had exempted the continuation of eviction cases while all other civil jury tries were continued for 90 days.

Individuals who were in the process of being evicted from their homes were required to present themselves in court to defend their case.

While these orders have changed since March 14, as the pandemic worsens, this clearly shows the impact COVID-19 has had on court trials and the responses courts have had to unprecedented change.

To avoid further delaying court matters, multiple California courts have endorsed the use of conferencing tools such as Zoom to live stream court hearings.

Though some technological obstacles may arise during these streams, the Superior Court of Sacramento has found the technique to be successful and plans on expanding technology-based solutions to other areas, as reported in a news release on April 3.

COVID-19 has enforced a sudden change that some believe was already coming. As the turn of the 21st century brought an explosion of technological advances, the criminal justice system and its processes remained unchanged.

The criminal justice system has seen little change in the traditional trial process. In the last 20 years, efficiency may have increased as technology has allowed for a swifter court process. However, drastic changes have been surprisingly unseen.

As many people online predict that the world will never return to the ways before COVID-19, it is reasonable to conclude that the criminal justice system will not be exempted from these predictions. This sudden heavy reliance on technology has begun instilling an idea of an electronic future that does not require in-person interactions.

The success of new technological techniques will allow future courts to be able to consider other methods that can alleviate the inconveniences of crowded courtrooms, trauma on witnesses from facing defendants, and communication struggles.

On the other hand, a remote court system can affect the benefits of in-person interactions that include a defendants right to confront their accuser, accurate and clear communication between the defendant and their attorney, and attention retention of all members of the court.

Despite the advantages and disadvantages of a remotely-sustained court system, the question of whether the criminal justice system will remain unchanged after COVID-19 seems insignificant after considering the reactions courts have had to the introduction of streaming services.

To deny a predicted long-lasting effect of COVID-19 on the criminal justice system is to deny the development of a rapidly changing world at the hands of technology. Society is now comprehending how to adjust a justice system that is struggling to defend the human rights of individuals affected by the justice system.

In the coming months, the long-lasting effects of an electronic court system will be determined as courts across the United States devote their efforts to remotely assist their communities.

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Transitioning into the Electronic Court System - The Peoples Vanguard of Davis

**As House Insists on Probe

The House of Representatives, yesterday vowed to dig into the expenditure of the Social Intervention Funds as a palliative for Nigerians who are depressed by the effect of the COVID 19 pandemic, the refusal of the Presidency to cooperate with them, notwithstanding.

The House, in a statement issued by its Spokesman, Rep. Benjamin Kalu(APC-Abia), also rejected allegations by an online newspaper and the Special Advisor to the President on National Social Investment Programs (NSIPs), Mrs. Maryam Uwais that the House attempted to compromise operations of the programme.

We are aware that Madam Uwais has on certain occasions, including a TV interview on ChannelsTVs Sunrise Daily programme, cited Section 14 of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act as providing an exemption by which the FG can refuse to reveal details of the NSIPs to the National Assembly. This suggests a deliberate attempt by Madam Uwais to conceal information pertaining to the financial activities of NSIP from the elected representatives of Nigerians as we especially recall that she blatantly ignored a letter of enquiry from the House Committee on Public Account addressed to her in her capacity as Special Assistant to the President on NSIP dated August 6, 2019 with reference number HR/SCO5/52/XX/400 requesting a brief of the activities (including income and expenditure profile) of her office from the year 2014 to 2018, he stated.

The Spokesman stated further that While stating categorically that the operations of the NSIP do not fall under the exemptions contemplated in Section 14 of the FOI Act, it is instructive to note that Sections 88 and 89 of the Constitution vests exclusive powers of oversight on the legislative arm of government, which also applies to any and all forms of government intervention programs, including the NSIP which is a disbursement of the nations funds appropriated by the National Assembly in the first place. The powers of the National Assembly to investigate or request any information from the executive are vested by the Constitution and are not subject to the stipulation of the FOI Act, he stated on behalf of the House .

He warned that We must remember that the doctrine of checks and balances is an essential element of our constitutional democracy and once it is discarded our democracy becomes wobbly. Therefore, the 9th House of Representatives frowns at any fake news or publication that seeks to cast aspersions on its intentions and commitment to the people of Nigeria in its exercise of constitutional duties, stressing that the Peoples Parliament and in the spirit and letter of Sections 14, 88 and 89 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (the Constitution), our priority remains to employ all legislative interventions to ensure the welfare of Nigerians in the face of the Covid-19 crisis and the economic hardship it has wrought on the poor and vulnerable among us.

He described as misleading and slanderous, publications of Madam Maryam Uwais MFR and Sahara Reporters both published on April 8, 2020 regarding the implementation of the National Social Investment Programs (NSIPs), the National Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, including the development of the National Social Register (NSR).

He said insinuations in the above mentioned publications that the 9th House of Representatives labeled the NSIPs as a failure and a scam are incorrect and untrue. So also are the insinuations that the 9th House of Representatives has sought to compromise the NSR and input the names of undeserving Nigerians as beneficiaries of the programs.

According to him, the 9th House of Representatives under the leadership of the Speaker Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila acting upon complaints from Nigerians in 360 federal constituencies regarding the inadequate spread of the NSIPs, and also concerns that the NSR is outdated and does not reflect an accurate representation of the poor and vulnerable in Nigeria, intervened through a cordial interaction with the Honourable Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq with the sole aim of ensuring and enhancing the delivery of service as well as the equitable distribution of the programs to the Nigerians most in need of them during this period of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He disclosed that Part of our concerns expressed at this meeting, was the need to review and improve the outdated NSR as well as the methodology deployed in identifying the poor and vulnerable in the various communities in view of the complaints from several constituencies that they have not benefited from the programs. An outcome of this meeting was an understanding per the Speakers proposition that a legislative framework is needed to maximize the efficiency of the NSIPs.

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COVID 19: Presidency rejects reps summons over palliative funds - Vanguard

(Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Doing so will save countless lives, and in the process, they may show us by example how to begin, finally, to dismantle mass incarceration for good.

By Sharon Dolovich

Most of Americas 2.3 million prisoners cannot practice social distancing. They are packed into overcrowded facilities, living, sleeping and bathing within feet sometimes inches of each other. Whats more, they lack basics including soap, warm water and clean towels, let alone hand sanitizer. Unless radical action is taken, many thousands of people inside staff and prisoners alike will needlessly die.

The radical action required the only one that can prevent massive unnecessary loss of life is reducing the population of jails and prisons. Efforts in this direction have begun in many jurisdictions. But the steps taken so far are not nearly enough, not by a long shot. All public officials with release authority including sheriffs, prosecutors, judges, corrections officials, parole boards, and governors need to step up and immediately find ways to release as many people as they can before the virus strikes. In doing so, they have the opportunity both to save thousands of lives and begin the long overdue process of ending the costly, inhumane and counterproductive project of mass incarceration.

In the 1970s, the size of the American prisoner population was roughly on par with other Western democracies. Yet starting in the 1980s, the U.S. became the worlds biggest jailer, jamming incarcerated people into dormitories and doubling them up in small cells in open disregard for their health and wellbeing.

There was a time, beginning in the mid-1970s, when federal courts confronting dirty, decrepit and crowded prisons and jails readily found conditions unconstitutional and ordered states and municipalities to reduce their prisoner populations. But when President Clinton joined with Congress to enact the Prison Litigation Reform Act, the power of the federal courts to issue such orders was drastically curtailed.

In the mid-1980s, 43% of the national jail population and 27% of the prison population were housed in facilities with court-ordered population caps. By 2006, these numbers had dropped to 11% and 2% respectively, undermining a key check on overcrowding.

Today, harsh conditions and often grossly inadequate health care leave many prisoners medically compromised. In California prisons alone, an estimated 17,000 people 14% of the states prison population suffer from chronic diseases including cancer, end-stage liver disease, acute asthma, diabetes, hypertension, and kidney conditions requiring dialysis.

Long before COVID-19 arrived, some jurisdictions had made moves towards decarceration. The federal prison population is down 20% from its historic 2014 high of almost 220,000. From 2006 to 2016, New Yorks prison system shed 10% of its population. In 2016, the New Jersey Department of Corrections held 37% fewer people than it did at its height in 1999. Some local jurisdictions have gone still further. Thanks to bail reform and other strategies, the population of Chicagos Cook County Jail has dropped by more than half since 2005. In Rikers Island, the population is down more than two-thirds from a decade ago. Still, these facilities are outliers, and, as the fast-growing number of confirmed cases in both institutions makes crystal clear, even they remain too crowded and too full of people in the highest risk groups to avoid the devastating effects of the virus.

But crisis is opportunity. As the COVID-19 threat has grown, something is happening that was unthinkable just six weeks ago: government officials are letting people out. UCLA School of Law has created a public database to track coronavirus-driven policy changes all over the country, and it shows conscientious officials rediscovering decarceral powers they had forgotten they had. Officials in Fort Worth, Texas have suspended arrests for minor offenses. The jail in Oakland, California sent home 314 low-level offenders. The New Jersey Supreme Court ordered the release of anyone in jail on a probation violation or for a minor offense. In West Virginia, prison officials are releasing parole violators and extending weekend furloughs and are actively looking for other levels to pull. Corrections commissioners in Iowa, North Dakota, Rhode Island and other states are seeking to expedite parole releases and to shift people to community placement.

Some officials are driven by fear that prisoners with COVID-19-induced respiratory distress will be sent to local hospitals and monopolize scarce ventilators. But whatever the motive, no one is racing to release anyone dangerous. Nor need they do so to quell this crisis.

For decades, we have incarcerated hundreds of thousands of people who pose little public safety risk. Many people in custody right now committed nonviolent crimes. Many, after decades in prison for serious crimes, are fully ready to be law-abiding and productive citizens. Many more are elderly and sick and need medical or hospice care, not bars and handcuffs.

COVID-19 is already moving through prisons and jails across the country, and confirmed cases are growing exponentially. In Rikers, 374 staff and 273 residents have now tested positive. At Oakdale, a low-security federal prison in southwest Louisiana, at least five prisoners have already died. These numbers, along with all reported positive cases and COVID-19-induced deaths inside, are almost certainly undercounts. In every facility, once the virus takes hold, it will spread quickly. Untold numbers of people will die, effectively sentencing them to the death penalty, whatever their crime.

Every public official with the power to decarcerate should exercise that power now, to the fullest extent. If they do, they will save countless lives, including those of staff. And in the process, they may show us by example how to begin, finally, to dismantle mass incarceration for good.

Sharon Dolovich is a professor of law and director of the UCLA Prison Law and Policy Program. She is currently spearheading the UCLA COVID-19 Behind Bars Data Project, which is keeping track of developments related to COVID-19 in prisons and jails nationwide. Article originally appeared in the Appeal.

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Guest Commentary: Every Public Official with the Power to Decarcerate Must Exercise That Power Now - The Peoples Vanguard of Davis

Opinion

By Abdulai Braima

Dear Guru Oswald Hanciles,

I think your curious attempt to clean up Sylvia and present her in the bright light of her ethnic pedigree is a disservice to what you profess to represent as well as to the Creole people in whose brilliant image you want to define Sylvia.

In the first place, there is nothing inversely or overtly relevant about your unwarranted tumbling into the derogative diction of slave-catcher/seller historicity of OUR (Creoles and non-Creole) collective past with reference to Sylvia Blyden and her mischief!

And, CERTAINLY, Sylvia is not one of the stellar representatives of a glorious line of a people who were/are not just known to be very brainy but who were/are verifiable champions of the fight to instil morality in, especially, public life!

On the contrary, it is my candid opinion that your strenuous attempt to decorate Sylvia and instal her in the hall of fame to which the phalanx of commendable creole notables rightly belong is a disingenuous disservice to our great national patriots, both living and dead.

In some of your writings you sound like a fair-minded dude. I would advise you to stick to your global call for trillion dollar slave trade reparation and your even more plausible advocacy on climate change. Your attempt to launder your ghastly Tolongbo comrades and sell them off as gold is a dead lead sinker! For you might be the only APC elite who does not know that TOLONGBOISM is not about Creole history or Mende-Themne/etc interest. It is about tethered Human Cows eating every blade of stolen grass in their sight. It is about thieves STEALING from every tribe in every region! Simple!

So your syllogisms coated in such utterly divisive ethnic slave-seller phraseology is sadly self-debasing and ultimately deluding!

In actuality, your lengthy preamble not withstanding, you have failed on the most vital counts on which the theme of your post really rested. No, it is not unity. The under-current thrust here is an attempt to showcase why you think Sylvias divisive rants against the current government should be accepted as a call to peace and unity.

I dont know if any other person has, but I directly accused Sylvia of the showboating you referenced. If somebody else saw her that way then that would be a welcomed addition to my candid conclusion.

And speaking of contextualisation I wonder why you didnt reference the shifty statements that provoked the showboating characterisation of your unity champion. WHERE is the unity in any of Sylvias sarcastic jibes?

Okay, let me draw your attention to the context: Sylvia scribbled a nonsensical post in which she tried to disparage Rtd. Brig Kellie Conteh, Hon. Dr. Alpha Wurie and President Julius Maada Bio by patronisingly (even flippantly) describing these three respectable and respected gentlemen as non medical persons leading the fight against the Covid-19 menace.

Her unnecessary emphasis on the non-medicality of our leaders in this battle was a calculated art of mischief that has nothing like Creole heritage and smells nothing of unity in its input or implications. So I challenged her to produce the equivalent TOLONGBO MEDICAL-LADEN leadership line-up during our fight against Ebola and I even went further to educate her on the wrong-headed premise built into her piece suggesting that national leadership should be predicated upon medical qualifications.

Bro, your attempt to sanitise Sylvia may understandably be a pandering to past or present political (or perhaps ethnic) proximity but it certainly has ZERO to do with the trans-Atlantic slave trade era. If anything, her attitude (if not her conduct) is a typical manifestation of the mindless cash-flushed Slave Catchers and the sneaky Uncle Tom House Niggers both of whom may come from different ethnic backgrounds but all of whom belong to the same nation-selling category! Dont you realise that Sylvias butt of attacks has been constantly directed at someone who is a woman who also happens to be APC and who is even more Creole than Sylvia claims to be?

Mayor Aki-Sawyer is miles above Sylvia Blyden in every category that spells decency!

And NO, Sylvia Blyden has not resisted...being overtly or obliquely cowered into silence by the descendants of the slave-catchers and slave-sellers; on the contrary, Sylvia has actively participated, at the highest level, in silencing the descendants of the slaves as well as the descendants of the Slave-sellers.

By pitching her tent with crooks in the Tolongbo camp who banded together to plunder our land, Sylvia actively helped to defile our national institutions and deprive our people.

In your own words, the APC is a party that practised State-sanctioned terrorism. Knowing that you have been inside or around the APC for decades, I can take your word for that.

But the question is: When did you realise that the APC is a terrorist outfit? After the bludgeoning of Bank Governor Sam Bangura? After the murder and burning of love rival Mustapha? After the cold blooded slaughter of Major S.O. Williams? After criminally selling off our rutile resources for 99 years and plundering everything else in sight including a highly lucrative iron-ore mine or after the daylight rape of our national constitution with disdain?

Oswald, do you really want to play the political lawyer to absolve Sylvia and create a saint out of this broken-pen EBK-trusted SEA, from acts that led to sinking our nation? Really? You need an undiluted pipe of pouring bleach!

My brother, Sylvia Blydens sainthood can only receive a crown from those who worshiped in the same den of the APC DEBUL... perhaps in the self same pew in a State House that fed its ranks on Ebola cheques and hard Hajj cash.

What is so Creole about that shameful level of sacrilegious robbery?

Bo do ya unu lef dem Creole out of unu Tolongbo dabaru saful! True true Creole man (or woman) nor mix pan Ojukokoro business.

Nar so me see ahn; en Nar so Ih be!

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Cautioning Oswald over Sylvia - The Patriotic Vanguard

CAN President, Dr Samson Ayokunle***Urges govt to be transparent, inclusive in the distribution of COVID-19 palliativesBy Luminous Jannamike, Abuja

As the Christian world over celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Sunday, the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, has directed churches across the country to make relief packages available to the poor.

This directive is in the light of the lockdown ordered by various governments to stem the spread of Coronavirus, COVID-19, pandemic in Nigeria.

CAN President, Rev. Dr Samson Ayokunle, in a special Easter message titled: We Shall Have Victory at Last, said: I bring Easter greetings to all Christians in Nigeria and all over the globe.

There is no other time the hope of victory over circumstances of life which Easter brings is more relevant to humans than now when we are forced to celebrate Easter for the first time in over one hundred years in lockdown.

The Coronavirus disruptions of human activities, however, cannot deter us from our joy and victory over all evils which Christs unique resurrection from the dead has brought to us.

Beloved and fellow Nigerians, we shall see the end of all evils challenging us in the name of Jesus including COVID-19.

Let all local churches remember to make relief packages available to the poor among them at this time. This is the time we would know the true church of Christ and those that are just commercial outfits.

Ayokunle commended the Federal and State governments for rising strongly to confront the COVID-19 pandemic but urged them to be transparent and inclusive in the distribution of palliatives to the poor and vulnerable in the society.

He also called on them not to be deterred in confronting the pandemic headlong until normalcy is restored across the nation.

The CAN President said: We further urge the governments to be transparent and inclusive of all regions and religious persuasions in the identification of the poor to which pandemic relief materials and payments are being made available.

Even after the government has explained the mode by which they identified the beneficiaries, many Nigerians, including the National Assemblys members are still really not convinced that the poor around us are the beneficiaries.

We know the government cannot touch every poor in the society for lack of enough resources, but the equal selection of the poor per state with the balance in religious persuasions would have done better justice.

We shall continue to pray for the government for right and inclusive decisions always for our general good.

I am fully persuaded that very soon, coronavirus will become history and we shall all have victory over it.

Let us intensify prayers for a quick recovery for as many that are recuperating from its attacks.

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Easter: CAN tasks churches on charity to the poor - Vanguard

There are fears of a second wave of Covid-19 pandemic, if lockdown ends too soon.

Folks have been clapping, praying and hoping for a swift recovery for Boris Johnson, on Thursday the Prime Minister came out of ICU without having been on a ventilator. Johnsons lively spirit and leadership is being missed. The cabinet operates on an C18th convention of collective responsibility, the system of confidential free and frank discussion before reaching a decision for which they are collectively accountable. Dominic Raab, First Minister of State, is temporarily deputising for the PM, if Raab were to fall ill then Chancellor Rishi Sunak would step in.The Labour opposition led by newly elected Leader Keir Starmer, economists, industry, institutions, businesses of all shapes and sizes are braying for government to declare their plan to end the lockdown, thus providing an exit strategy. The benefit of the lockdown is only just beginning to show and such calls to end the lockdown may be premature. However, one can sympathise that people cannot plan their business life and financial future when the situation is still open-ended. And the governments caution is understandable as UK have not yet reached the Covid peak and deaths are still rising. The fear looms that if the lockdown ends too soon the second wave could be as fatal as the first, thus Raab announced the lockdown will continue.

When the time comes to phase out the lockdown it will hopefully include surveillance, early detection, testing, contact tracing, a decreasing rate of transmission and case fatality rate. Liam Fox MP and former Brexit Minister recommends categorising the population according to the risk they pose to themselves and to others, then to keep the high risks, the elderly and those with underlying health issues under lockdown until a vaccine is available. The rest of the population could be categorised into sub-groups, for instance, those who have had antibody or antigen tests, who could return to work. This combined with the recently improved NHS facilities would make the pandemic (and the economy) more manageable posits Dr Fox.

Regarding the phasing patterns some say construction should be the first to resume, others say financial services, others claim businesses with less than 50 employees should be in the vanguard, tourism, mass public and sporting events will be the last to return to normal. Although a YouGov poll found that 91% of citizenry supported an extended lockdown, it will be very difficult to dribble out the restrictions without a mass exodus. The only permanent way out of future episodes of lockdown is a vaccine or mass antibody testing.

In other news the board of Imagination Technologies Group, the British chip designer company who make GPUs for Apple and Samsung, that was acquired by Canyon Bridge Capital Partners in 2017 for 550million, feared they were to be usurped by Canyons main investor, the state-owned $30billion China Reform Holdings. The possibility of the intellectual property rights and profits being relocated to China was shocking, and the possible threat to national security was flagged to GCHQ and the National Cyber Security Centre. David Davis MP and former Brexit Secretary intervened insisting on a government investigation. Oliver Dowden MP, Secretary for Digital-Culture-Media and Sport has replied saying his officials are working to understand the facts, and the National Security and Investment Bill will give the government extra powers to scrutinise foreign investment, Dowden plans to update Davis promptly. In 2017 President Trump blocked the by-out by Canyon Bridge Capital of Lattice Semiconductor in Portland, Oregon, citing national security concerns; Trumps administration has successfully implemented technology blockades from US to China. The question is why did Davis have to bring this to the attention of the Digital Secretary in the first place. It is understood that this debacle will encourage the UK government review on Huawei 5G.

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No exit in sight for UK as lockdown continues - The Sunday Guardian

File Photo: An arrested suspect

The coronavirus pandemic that has crippled big-box retailers and other small businesses worldwide may be making a dent in illicit business, too.

In Chicago, one of Americasmost violent cities, drug arrests have plummeted 42% in the weeks since the city shut down, compared with the same period last year. Part of that decrease, some criminal lawyers say, is that drug dealers have no choice but to wait out the economic slump.

The feedback Im getting is that they arent able to move, to sell anything anywhere, said Joseph Lopez, a criminal lawyer in Chicago who represents reputed drug dealers.

Overall, Chicagos crime declined 10% after the pandemic struck, a trend playing out globally as cities report stunning crime drops in the weeks since measures were put into place to slow the spread of the virus. Even among regions that have the highest levels of violence outside a war zone, fewer people are being killed and fewer robberies are taking place.

Still, law enforcement officials worry about a surge ofunreported domestic violence, and what happens when restrictions lift or go on too long.

Its rare for a city to see a double-digit drop in crime, even over a much longer period. DuringNew York Citys 1990s crime decline, one of the biggest turnarounds in American history, crime dropped about 40% over three years. That makes the drop-offs occurring now in a period of just a couple of weeks even more seismic.

Across Latin America, crime is down to levels unseen in decades.

Killings are down, and the gangsters arent harassing so much, Eduardo Perdomo, a 47-year-old construction worker, said while getting off a bus in San Salvador. I think theyre afraid of catching the virus, and they arent going out.

El Salvador reportedan average of two killings a day last month, down from a peak of 600 a day a few years ago.

Much of the decrease has taken place because of tougher security policies and gang truces. But the imposition of near-total limits on movement is likely driving it down further, according to analysts and national statistics.

In Peru, where crime levels fell 84% last month, Lima mortician Ral Gonzlez usually has as many as 15 bodies a day many are homicide victims. This week he napped on a bench after six hours without a client.

There are almost no killings or car accidents these days, Gonzlez said.

In South Africa, police reported a stunning decline during their first week of lockdown measures. Police Minister Bheki Cele said reported rapes were down from 700 to 101 over the same period last year. Serious assault cases plummeted from 2,673 to 456, and murders fell from 326 to 94.

The U.S. virus epicenter in New York saw major crimes murder, rape, robbery, burglary, assault, grand larceny and car theft decrease by 12% from February to March. In Los Angeles, 2020 key crimes statistics were consistent with last years figures until the week of March 15, when they dropped by 30%.

Theres a lot fewer opportunities for criminals to take advantage of, said Joe Giacalone, a former New York Police Department sergeant who now teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Most burglars, they wait for you to leave the house.

Policing has also changed in the face of the pandemic. Officers are increasingly getting sick; the NYPD, the countrys largest department with more than 36,000 officers,has more than 7,000 officers outand more than 2,000 diagnosed with COVID-19.

And U.S. authorities say theyre issuing citations instead of making low-level arrests, policing social distancing and putting detectives into patrol cars which could, in turn, bring down crime rates.

While departments are unlikely to announce theyve backed off policing certain crimes, thats going to be the case, said Bowling Green State University criminologist Philip Stinson.

In many respects, over the next weeks, theyre really in survival mode, he said.

But while narcotics arrests are down, drug sales continue, with dealers likely forced to change their strategies, said Rodney Phillips, a former gang member in Chicago who now works as a conflict mediator in the city.

These guys already face poverty and death in these areas, he said. They might be selling more online now. But they arent going to give up just because of the coronavirus.

A Maryland man accused of operating a Darknet store selling prescription opioids boasted on his vendor page: Even with Corona Virus the shop is running at full speed.

He told an undercover FBI agent he was just waiting for a shipment because this corona virus (sic) is (expletive) up inventory, according to court documents.

Other crimes, however, may be fueled by shutdown orders.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said the citys aggravated assaults were up 10% in the last three weeks, and half of those were domestic violence, a significantly higher proportion than normal. Calls to Missouris child abuse and neglect hotline dropped by half as the virus first struck the state. Advocates said the calls arent made because the kids arent in school.

And Chicago did see a spike in gun violence this week, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, which reported 60 shootings 19 fatal between Sunday and Thursday.

San Jose, California, Police Chief Eddie Garcia hopes the downward trend will continue after the pandemic is over. But his officers are preparing for the worst.

The longer were in a lockdown, he said, the more were playing with fire.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with health problems, it can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia. More than 1.5 million cases have been diagnosed worldwide.

[Associated Press]

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Lockdown: Crime drops around the world as COVID-19 keeps people inside - Vanguard

The inter-service rivalry between the United States Army and the United States Navy is one that is typically expressed on the football field and dates back to the 1890 but when it comes to actual military operates the services have shown that they can work quite well together.

This was reaffirmed last month when the U.S. Navy Expeditionary Landing Base ship USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3), which was assigned to the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVENT), conducted joint naval and air integration operations in the Arabian Gulf with U.S. Army AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters. The helicopters were assigned to U.S. Army Central Command's (USARCENT) Task Force Saber.

The operations were designed to enhance the capabilities of U.S. forces to respond to surface threats. It involved the Puller performing as a landing base platform for the Army's helicopters, whilst Cyclone-class Patrol Coastal (PC) ships were able to select simulated targets for the choppers to engage. The joint operations exercise was further supported by the U.S. Navy's guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton (DDG 60).

"The integration of U.S. Army air weapons teams with other joint fires into the maritime environment greatly enhances our ability to expand reconnaissance and attack capability," said Capt. Peter Mirisola, commander of the Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 50, and Combined Task Force (CTF) 55. "The Apaches, in coordination with our surface ships, allow us to hold an adversary at high risk at extended ranges. Combined with other joint fires, these aircraft significantly increase the precision lethality of our joint maritime forces."

The Army's Apache AH-64E is a twin-engine, four-bladed, multi-mission attack helicopter and its origins date back to the post-Vietnam Era. It remains one of the world's premier attack helicopters, as it is designed as a highly stable aerial weapons-delivery platform that is capable of destroying an array of mobile armored targets on land or sea. It is armed with a 30mm automatic gun, aerial rockets and AGM-114 Hellfire missiles.

The Navy's Cyclone-class Patrol Coastal comprise America's naval vanguard in the Persian Gulf, and are the only U.S. warships that permanently operate off the Iranian coast.

The exercises are important for training, as the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy have conducted similar integration operations with Special Operations assets in region in the past. This included U.S. naval forces working with Army MH-6M Little Bird helicopters during Operation Earnest Will from 1987 to 1988, during the Tanker War phase of the then ongoing Iran-Iraq War.

This cooperative exercise highlighted how the Army and Navy can come together in the volatile Gulf region.

"Working with USARCENT forces represents another key capability in our ongoing integration of naval and air assets across our joint and coalition force to ensure maritime superiority," said Vice Adm. Jim Malloy, commander, USNAVCENT/U.S. 5th Fleet. "This kind of cross-domain integration allows us to maintain highly lethal and effective defensive capabilities, regardless of what platforms are operating in theater."

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer who has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers and websites. He is the author of several books on military headgear including A Gallery of Military Headdress, which is available on Amazon.com.

Read more:

Why Are U.S. Army Attack Helicopters Landing on U.S. Navy Warship? - The National Interest