| 2020 Vision: If a single speech can shake up the Democratic race, it might happen in Iowa Posted: 01 Nov 2019 12:07 PM PDT  Will any of this year's candidates pull an Obama at the newly named Liberty and Justice Celebration?
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| Vietnam arrests two in UK truck death investigation Posted: 01 Nov 2019 08:31 AM PDT  Vietnam police have arrested two people for trafficking in connection with the death of 39 migrants whose bodies were found in a truck in Britain, many of them feared to be Vietnamese. The move comes after British police arrested four people over the tragedy and are now seeking to question two brothers from Northern Ireland who have links to the road-haulage and shipping business. The victims were initially identified by British police as Chinese, but many are now believed to be Vietnamese after families in central Vietnam said their loved ones had not been heard from.
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| New Threats Put Wildfire Fighters' Health on the Line Posted: 01 Nov 2019 05:25 AM PDT  SANTA ROSA, Calif. -- As fires spread across Northern California last year, Capt. Matt Alba and Strike Team 2253A found themselves wading through a smoldering jungle of plastic and metal in search of bodies.As they worked through charred auto shops and trailers, Alba kept thinking about the poisons they were kicking up and that they did not have a single mask or hazmat suit among them.Wildfire fighting had changed.For generations, firefighters fought mostly in desolate forests, where most of the dangers were fatigue and falling trees. But a confluence of modern factors -- namely America's rapid suburban expansion into the wilderness, combined with the growing ferocity of wildfires -- is posing a host of new health threats to the men and women who fight these blazes.While burning wood poses some threat to lungs, man-made products and the gases and particles they produce when burned are far more dangerous.In the last three years, California has seen a record number of devastating fires, and thousands of firefighters have been exposed to chemicals they had not previously encountered in such high volumes.Unlike urban firefighters dealing with structural blazes, these wildfire responders do not wear heavy gear that filters air or provides clean air because the gear is unwieldy and too limited to allow the kind of multihour, high-exertion efforts demanded on the front lines of these large outdoor infernos.But some think more needs to be done to keep wildland firefighters safe.Alba, who has been with the San Francisco Fire Department for 18 years, spent 11 days working in Paradise, California, last year, in a smog so thick it burned his lungs. As he picked his way through the wreckage, he said, his crew began to fall sick: severe headaches, brutal coughs."I was just thinking about 9/11," he said of the many firefighters who fell ill after the 2001 terrorist attacks. "I asked myself: Is history repeating itself here?"On Thursday, California's fight against fire continued. More than 7,000 firefighters were battling blazes up and down the state, including new wildfires in the heavily populated areas of Riverside and San Bernardino counties, fueled by rushing winds that for days have pushed flames through brush and dry fields and up the sides of homes.The fires began just as winds eased in the north and firefighters wrangling the state's largest active blaze, the Kincade fire, managed to contain more than half of its 76,800-acre footprint for the first time.About 5,800 people remained under a mandatory evacuation order, a small fraction of the 180,000 who had been ordered to leave their homes Sunday. Residents and firefighters were beginning to survey the damage Thursday as many in Northern California and parts of Southern California began to return home.Several studies have examined the health of firefighters who battle structural blazes in urban areas. The largest, a look at 30,000 people by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, acknowledged that urban firefighters may be exposed to carcinogens like formaldehyde, benzene and asbestos, and found that firefighters have higher rates of several types of cancers than the population as a whole.This has led some health advocates to declare an "epidemic" of cancer among urban firefighters and to call for better equipment and health care.Less is known about the health of wildland firefighters. Though that is changing.After the 2017 Tubbs fire that whipped through the Santa Rosa area, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, working with the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation, analyzed blood and urine samples of about 150 firefighters. They found that in their blood many had elevated levels of mercury, as well as perfluoroalkyl substances, human-made chemicals known as PFAS, which have been linked to cancer.Researchers said the chemicals may have come off the buildings, or even the firefighters' gear. PFAS, an increasingly controversial class of chemicals that are used as fire retardants, are often present in firefighter uniforms.The exposure is compounded by dangers that firefighters have faced for years.In Northern California this month, more than 5,000 firefighters and support staff gathered to fight the Kincade fire, turning the Sonoma County fairgrounds into base camp, a sea of white tents and dirt-smudged firefighters taking breaks from their 24-hour shifts.The morning briefing included tips on avoiding exhaustion and falling trees -- and a warning to watch out for the region's abandoned mercury mines. (For decades starting around the 1870s, mercury was pulled from the ground and used to separate gold from other rocks. Many of those mines were never fully cleaned up.)A flyer handed out to firefighters said the mines posed "no health or inhalation hazards" if they were exposed to fire, as they had been capped with soil. But officials at the federal Bureau of Land Management said that was incorrect -- that at least three of the mines had exposed waste that could be dangerous if hit by heat. (Cal Fire, the state firefighting agency, later issued a corrected version of the flyer.)More modern threats come from the growth of the country's wildland-urban interface, a term increasingly used to describe the area where homes and forests meet.As cities have become more expensive, these areas have become increasingly attractive places to settle, and more than 12 million homes were built in this liminal space between 1990 and 2010. With more people in the woods, there are more structures to defend.More than 80 people died in the Camp fire near Paradise last year; most lived in areas that were basically wilderness. Firefighters now have to contend with protecting people who live in areas that some consider uninhabitable and the fallout of homes burning in these isolated locations.At base camp in Sonoma, many said they were aware of these expanding chemical dangers. Cal Fire has a research and development team that is working to develop better gear for firefighters, said Eric Castellanos, a captain with the department.But there is division among firefighters about exactly what should be done to protect them. Alba, the firefighter who was in Paradise, is calling on fire agencies to remove PFAS from their uniforms and for officials to come up with a solution that protects them from noxious threats.But Scott Ross, a firefighter from Shasta County, said he worried that more restrictions -- heavier gear, for example -- would make it harder for them to do their work."This is not a safe job," he said. "You can't make it safe. And the more you try, the more you tie our hands."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| New execution date set for Georgia inmate Posted: 01 Nov 2019 03:04 PM PDT  Georgia officials set a new execution date Friday for a death row inmate two days after he was granted a temporary reprieve because of a legal technicality. Ray Jefferson Cromartie, 52, is scheduled to die by lethal injection Nov. 13 at the state prison in Jackson. Georgia Corrections Commissioner Timothy Ward set the execution for the first date of a seven-day window ordered Friday by a Superior Court judge in Thomas County.
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| A Louisiana woman has been arrested for selling $20 fake doctor's notes to students trying to skip class Posted: 01 Nov 2019 06:55 AM PDT  The woman's master plan unraveled once the physician whose name was being used to sign off on the notes received complaints from the school board.
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| Aniah Blanchard's UFC Fighter Stepdad Says Missing Alabama Teen Is 'Amazing' Posted: 01 Nov 2019 04:12 PM PDT  Aniah Haley Blanchard, 19, was reported missing by her family on Oct 24. The last time she was heard from was by a friend the night before, according to authorities.
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| Troops, armored vehicles enter Syria to protect oil fields from ISIS Posted: 31 Oct 2019 01:06 PM PDT  The Pentagon moved troops and armored vehicles into Syria Thursday to protect oil fields from exploitation by ISIS.
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| Greta Thunberg says meeting with Trump 'would be a waste of time' Posted: 01 Nov 2019 07:58 AM PDT  The Swedish teenage climate activist says she wouldn't want to meet with the president even if given the opportunity.
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| Maskless Merkel braves severe Delhi smog Posted: 01 Nov 2019 12:38 AM PDT  German Chancellor Angela Merkel got a toxic welcome to India on Friday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi treated her to a military parade in New Delhi's severely polluted air. Ignoring medical advice to the choking megacity's 20 million inhabitants, Merkel and Modi reviewed a guard of honour at the presidential palace without pollution masks. The European Union's longest-serving leader is due to step down in 2021.
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| 5 Killed, Several Injured in Shooting at Airbnb Halloween Party in California. Here's What to Know Posted: 01 Nov 2019 04:19 AM PDT  The mass shooting at a Halloween party at an Airbnb in Orinda, Calif. left five people dead and several others injured.
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| Brazil authorities zero in on ship suspected of oil spill Posted: 01 Nov 2019 01:39 PM PDT  After oil mysteriously washed ashore on some 2,100 kilometers (1,300 miles) of Brazil's coastline for two months, authorities on Friday identified a suspect: a Greek-flagged ship belonging to Delta Tankers Ltd. Brazil's government has been striving to investigate the cause of the spill that has hit 286 beaches along the northeast coast and hurt fishing and tourism. The specific source of the oil has remained unclear since it began appearing in early September.
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| China Thinks a Nuclear Submarine Can Sink Half of An Aircraft Carrier Battle Group Posted: 01 Nov 2019 04:00 PM PDT  Beijing is trying to find out how to sink U.S. aircraft carriers. France might know how to stop them.
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| British teenager was suffering from PTSD when she withdrew Cyprus gang rape claim, court hears Posted: 01 Nov 2019 11:26 AM PDT  A British teenager accused of lying about being gang raped in Cyprus may have retracted her claims because she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, her lawyer said at a hearing on Friday. The woman, 19, is charged with public mischief for allegedly inventing the attack at an Ayia Napa hotel on July 17. She maintains she was raped by up to a dozen Israeli tourists, but pressured by Cypriot police to make a retraction statement 10 days later. Prosecutors say the teenager willingly wrote and signed the document. On Friday, chartered consultant psychologist Dr Christine Tizzard gave evidence by videolink from Portsmouth Crown Court. Speaking after the hearing in Larnaca, lawyer Michael Polak, director of the group Justice Abroad - which is assisting the teenager - said she was diagnosed as having underlying PTSD, which was reignited by the alleged attack. Lawyer Michael Polak of Justice Abroad is supporting the teengaer Credit: KATIA CHRISTODOULOU/EPA-EFE/REX "We were pleased with the evidence from Dr Tizzard, which confirms what we have been saying," he said. "She explained in simple words to the court the ways in which PTSD affects someone who is put in a difficult situation... Their fight or flight reflex would kick in and they would do anything to get out of that situation... "We look forward to the rest of the evidence, which we say supports the teenager's case that she was put under enormous pressure to sign the retraction statement." The case was adjourned following the psychologist's evidence and a date for forensic linguist Dr Andrea Nini to give evidence is expected to be set on Monday. He is expected to say it was "highly unlikely" that the retraction statement was written by a native English speaker, supporting the teenager's case that it was dictated to her by a Cypriot police officer. The incident allegedly took place in the resort town of Ayia Napa Credit: Amir MAKAR / AFP Her lawyers want Judge Michalis Papathanasiou to rule the statement is inadmissible as evidence. The teenager was a week into a working holiday before she was due to start university when she alleged she was raped by the group of young Israeli men, but was then herself accused of making it up. She spent more than a month in prison before she was granted bail at the end of August, but cannot leave the island, having surrendered her passport. She could face up to a year in jail and a 1,700 euro (£1,500) fine if she is found guilty. The 12 Israelis arrested over the alleged attack returned home after they were released. The teenager's family have set up a crowdfunding page asking for money for legal costs, which has raised more than £40,000.
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| Smugglers are reportedly cutting holes in Trump’s newly constructed border wall with saws and power tools Posted: 02 Nov 2019 06:51 AM PDT  A commercially available cordless tool that retails for less than $100 can cut through the steel-and-concrete portions of the walls.
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| UPDATE 6-Democrat Warren: Medicare for All would not raise U.S. middle-class taxes 'one penny' Posted: 01 Nov 2019 05:57 AM PDT ![UPDATE 6-Democrat Warren: Medicare for All would not raise U.S. middle-class taxes 'one penny']( "UPDATE 6-Democrat Warren: Medicare for All would not raise U.S. middle-class taxes 'one penny'") NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren on Friday proposed a $20.5 trillion Medicare for All plan that she said would not require raising middle-class taxes "one penny," answering critics who had attacked her for failing to explain how she would pay for the sweeping healthcare system overhaul. The proposal to remake the U.S. healthcare system will face scrutiny from Warren's more moderate Democratic opponents, who have questioned Medicare for All's practicality. Warren's proposal also calls for cuts in defense spending and passing immigration reform to increase tax revenue from newly legal Americans, two steps that would face an uphill battle in Congress.
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| ‘Shut Up About Politics’ Singer John Rich Shows Up on Fox News to Talk About Politics Posted: 02 Nov 2019 02:31 AM PDT  Months after teaming up with the hosts of Fox News midday gabfest The Five to record an extremely lame hit song titled "Shut Up About Politics," country artist John Rich appeared on Fox News to—without a shred of irony—talk about politics.Sitting down Friday with The Daily Briefing host Dana Perino—a Five host featured on the song—Rich was immediately asked to weigh in on former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's recent appearance on The Daily Show. Noting that Clinton took part in a skit in which she told a scary ghost story about losing the 2016 election despite having three million more votes than Donald Trump, Perino added that Clinton and the show "thought that was funny" but not for the same reason Rich might think it's funny.The singer, however, focused instead on how scary he found Clinton's physical appearance."That actually freaked me out a little bit," he declared. "I'm kind of envious of her because if you think about all the money she saves every Halloween, she doesn't have to get a costume."While an on-air graphic blared "Country Star John Rich Talks Politics W/Dana," again without a glint of self-awareness, Rich continued to express how physically frightened he was of the former secretary of state."Well her policies were scary and then when you put her out in the dark with a flashlight and the whole thing you go—that's how I kind of envision how that would have worked out," he added.They would go on to talk about politics and Clinton for a bit longer before moving on to how much fans love their collaborative song.That song, co-written by Fox News political pundit Greg Gutfeld, features the following lyrical refrain:Shut up about politicsAin't nothin' but a big pile of dirty tricksI'm tired of all the fighting and the pitchin' fitsSo shut up about politics.Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| View Photos of Honda's SEMA Lineup Posted: 01 Nov 2019 09:00 AM PDT |
| Police officer retires after far-right group ties revealed Posted: 01 Nov 2019 07:48 AM PDT ![Police officer retires after far-right group ties revealed]( "Police officer retires after far-right group ties revealed") A Connecticut police officer has retired after a civil rights organization raised concerns about his membership in a far-right group known for engaging in violent clashes at political rallies, a town official said Friday. Officer Kevin P. Wilcox retired from the East Hampton Police Department on Oct. 22, according to Town Manager David Cox. Wilcox had been an East Hampton police officer since 1999.
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| House Intel Chair Schiff says impeachment transcripts could come next week Posted: 01 Nov 2019 04:52 PM PDT  Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said Friday that the panels investigating impeachment could begin releasing transcripts of closed-door witness depositions early next week, part of an effort to move the investigation into public view and allow Americans to evaluate the evidence against President Trump.
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| Russia’s Predator Drone Flew Strikes in Syria Posted: 02 Nov 2019 03:00 AM PDT  Russia's Orion drone has completed combat trials in Syria and is now beginning to equip units in Russia for further testing, state media reported on Nov. 1, 2019.
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| Bad news for Boeing: Company says more 737 NGs found to have wing cracks Posted: 01 Nov 2019 04:36 PM PDT  The FAA ordered the inspections in 737 NG's that have flown many thousands of flghts
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| Trump says he knows all about the new Isis leader - but experts insist 'The Scholar' remains a mystery Posted: 01 Nov 2019 03:21 PM PDT  Days after Isis leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was killed in a raid by US special forces at a compound in Syria, Donald Trump tweeted that "we know exactly" who the replacement is as head of the terrorist group.Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi has been named as Baghdadi's successor in an audio message released by the group on Thursday.
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| Iraq’s Top Cleric Warns Iran to Stay Out Posted: 01 Nov 2019 11:00 PM PDT  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- To understand what Iraq's Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani is saying, you have to translate him twice: first from Arabic to English, then from politesse to plain-speak. In the first translation, a key passage from his Friday sermon in the holy city of Karbala went like this: "No person or group, no side with a particular view, no regional or international actor may seize the will of the Iraqi people and impose its will on them."The second translation: "Back off, Khamenei!"That is how it would have sounded to Sistani's audience in Karbala, where it was read out for the ailing octogenarian by an aide; in the streets of Baghdad and other Iraqi cities, where a bloody crackdown on largely peaceful protesters has taken more than 200 lives; in the Iraqi parliament, where lawmakers are negotiating a response to the demonstrations; and in Tehran, where Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has been struggling to respond to the rising anti-Iran sentiment that undergirds uprisings in Iraq and Lebanon.Khamenei has unleashed Iran's proxies in the streets — Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Shiite militias in Iraq — to intimidate the protesters. He has also dispatched his chief enforcer, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps commander Qassem Soleimani, to the Iraqi parliament, to rally Shiite parties behind the feckless Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi.But if anything, these responses will only fan the anger in the streets against Iranian interference in Iraqi and Lebanese politics. Not even Khamenei, who is practiced in the art of ignoring popular resentment, can have failed to notice the anti-Iran slogans echoing through Iraqi cities. Nor will it have escaped his attention that the loudest chanting comes from Iraqi Shiites, a community he expects to favor his Islamic Republic. The Supreme Leader's anxiety was palpable in his tweets on Thursday, when he tried to blame Tehran's usual suspects — "the U.S., the Zionist regime, some Western countries, and the money of some reactionary countries" — for the protests.Sistani's sermon was a riposte, designed to set Khamenei right. Although born in Iran, he is no fan of Khamenei and other hardliners in Tehran, preferring the likes of President Hassan Rouhani.Iraq's Grand Ayatollah has been in a quandary over the protests. Every Iraqi government since 2005 has had his personal imprimatur: His word has united factions among the Shiite majority. Prime Minister Abdul-Mahdi, too, has his blessing. As such, Sistani is complicit in the corruption and ineptitude that have brought the Iraqis into the streets.His early pronouncements on the protests vacillated between bromides against corruption and calls on the protesters to abjure violence. But as the demonstrations have persisted, Sistani has grown progressively more critical of the government, blaming it for the violence.His Friday sermon puts him squarely on the protesters' side. In addition to interfering Iranians, the leaders who have long benefited from his validation came under attack. As the politicians in Baghdad struggle to devise a response that will satisfy angry Iraqis, the so-called sage of Najaf warned that Iraqis have a right to a "referendum on the constitution" to change how they are governed. By invoking the prospect of a referendum, Sistani may have given the protesters a new focus for their energies, and Iraqi politicians a way to break the toxic pattern of inconclusive elections and compromise prime ministers. Much will depend on the reaction of another cleric, Moqtada al-Sadr, who has also taken the protesters' side — even joining them in the streets — and has called for Abdul-Mahdi's removal.Sadr, frequently described as a firebrand, has little in common with the preternaturally placid Sistani. But the prospect of the protests being led by one and backed by the other is certain to rattle turbaned heads in Tehran. And if Sistani and Sadr were to throw their combined weight behind demands for a referendum — and who knows, maybe even inspire emulation by the Lebanese — that might be the stuff of Khamenei's nightmares.To contact the author of this story: Bobby Ghosh at aghosh73@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: James Gibney at jgibney5@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Bobby Ghosh is a columnist and member of the Bloomberg Opinion editorial board. He writes on foreign affairs, with a special focus on the Middle East and the wider Islamic world.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Hong Kong riot police pepper spray 'Airport Uncle' as election protests turn ugly Posted: 02 Nov 2019 07:41 AM PDT  A candidate in Hong Kong's elections who rose to fame for his peaceful defence of protesters was pepper sprayed at point-blank range before being arrested in the latest violent crackdown by police in the city. Police attacked the silver-haired Richard Chan, 48, at close range, grabbing and turning him around as he tried to retreat, only to unleash another round directly into his eyes, before tackling him to the ground to make the arrest. Mr Chan, a first-time candidate running in district council elections later this month, went viral after standing his ground between police and activists during mass airport protests in August, which shut down one of world's busiest transport hubs. The incident earned him the nickname of Airport Uncle. Pictures of Mr Chan's rough treatment is likely to further feed growing hatred for police who have been accused of disproportionate brutality. Two other candidates were also arrested in the latest round of protests on Saturday, which came after protest leader Joshua Wong was banned from standing at the up-coming elections. Chan, a candidate for district council elections, lies on the floor after being pepper-sprayed Credit: MIGUEL CANDELA/EPA Dozens of candidates running for district council seats and hundreds of protesters gathered on Saturday afternoon at Victoria Park in a popular shopping neighbourhood, testing a loophole they said allowed for large-scale election meetings to be held in public. But riot police surrounding the park declared the gathering unlawful, warning they wouldn't hesitate to make arrests and deploy tear gas at the crowd of political hopefuls and their supporters, waving colourful campaign banners. "This is the final chance for us to change Communist China's control in Hong Kong," Dennis Cheung, 30, one of the more than 1,000 candidates standing for 450 open council seats, told the Sunday Telegraph. Police passes a burning barricade to break up thousands of anti-government protesters Credit: THOMAS PETER/REUTERS Mr Cheung, who works in advertising, is also a first-time candidate who vowed to help arrested protesters and educate residents about their rights if elected. "Police are making unreasonable arrests of youngsters," said Martin Ng, 65, a retiree. "I have full confidence Hong Kong people won't tolerate this kind of brutality and suppression." Protesters were galvanised this weekend after prominent activist Joshua Wong became the city's only candidate to be barred from running for a district council seat. Hong Kong is in its fifth month of mass protests, which were originally triggered by a now withdrawn extradition bill Credit: MIGUEL CANDELA/EPA The election officer wrote in her reasoning the concept of "self-determination" that Mr Wong advocates could also refer to the idea of an independent Hong Kong, which was deemed inconsistent with the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law. Mr Wong and his political party, Demosisto, however, deny supporting independence from mainland China. The upcoming district council elections, currently slated for Nov 24, allow registered voters to select neighbourhood representatives responsible for community affairs, such as building awnings in parks or adding new bus routes. While district councillors have no legislative power, the political party that wins the most seats will gain 117 of the 1,200 votes on an election committee that will select the city's next chief executive in 2022.
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| This very good girl was sworn into an Illinois state's attorney's office to provide support for sexual assault victims Posted: 01 Nov 2019 06:56 AM PDT  Hatty, a 2-year-old black Labrador retriever, was brought into the Cook County State's Attorney's Office in Chicago to work as a comfort dog.
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| Low-Yield Nuclear Weapons Won’t End the World Posted: 01 Nov 2019 05:00 PM PDT  A recent video by Princeton University's Program on Science and Global Security, Plan A, suggests that the use of one low-yield non-strategic nuclear weapon, in a NATO-Russia conflict, would lead to the large scale use of strategic nuclear weapons and the death of more than 90 million people. While the video's makers deserve credit for its production quality and very ominous background music, the scenario they offer, while always possible, is highly unlikely.
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| Philadelphia Man Allegedly Confesses to Killing Four Relatives in Shooting at Family Home Posted: 31 Oct 2019 02:32 PM PDT  29-year-old Maurice Louis had bought the shotgun used a day beforehand
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| Finally, some good news for California: Infamous Diablo and Santa Ana winds will die down soon Posted: 01 Nov 2019 08:54 AM PDT  Santa Ana and Diablo winds, the pattern responsible for frequent and strong wind events in California, are forecast to end soon.
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| To Shake Up Trump, Kim Jong Un Gets All Mystical—Then Launches Missiles Posted: 02 Nov 2019 02:09 AM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Korean Central News Agency/APFrom sacred Mount Paektu, the Korean peninsula's highest peak on the North's border with China, to the 10,000 spire-like pinnacles of Mount Kumgang just above the line with South Korea, Kim Jong Un has cast himself of late as the bold, fearless, iconic leader literally daring to ascend the highest peaks in pursuit of power over the divided country.There's nothing remotely subtle about the campaign that has pictured him on a white stallion riding through the early snows of another frigid winter on Mt. Paektu or striding up the slopes of Kumgang.It's all about projecting the image of a hero in a campaign of intimidation aimed at both the U.S. and South Korea in a climactic drive to get President Donald Trump and the South's President Moon Jae-in to yield at last to his demands. North Koreans Think Trump Admin Talks Are 'Sickening.' So Should You.And now Kim had added some very important missile tests to his message. In a sequence that clearly had been pre-scripted as the second act after those daring ascents, North Korean gunners test-fired what the North's Academy of Defense Science proudly described as "super-large multiple rocket launchers."Kim, having already appeared as a fit if somewhat portly outdoorsman, did not have to be standing by to press the button. While that image of the brave warrior dominated the state media, the academy reported "the perfection of the continuous fire system" as "verified through the test-fire to totally destroy with super-power the group target of the enemy and designated target area by surprise strike of the weapon system of super-large multiple rocket launchers."The ferocity of the test, at least as claimed, carried one especially disturbing message. That kind of firepower isn't for use against American or Japanese soil, but could devastate America's largest overseas base at Camp Humphreys, 40 miles south of Seoul, 60 miles below the Demilitarized Zone between the two Koreas.The base, no doubt shielded by all manner of sensors, missiles and other wizardry, has got to be a sitting duck for the North's increasingly advanced weaponry. Most of America's 28,500 troops in Korea, plus families and civilian employees, are now there after the closure of U.S. bases below the DMZ and withdrawal of the central headquarters for U.S. Forces Korea from the historic Yongsan base in Seoul. Nearby Osan Air Base is headquarters for the Seventh Air Force, also an easy target."Megabase in Korea's Danger Zone," is the cover story in this week's Army Times magazine. The North Koreans "said they've been developing these weapons to be able to strike a 'fat target,'" David Maxwell, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, who spent years in Korea as an army officer, is quoted as saying. "We assume that the 'fat target' is Camp Humphreys as well as Osan Air Base."Even as U.S. forces were moving into Humphreys, writes Kyle Rempfer, "North Korea has developed large caliber rockets and ballistic missiles as well as a nuclear capability" within range of the expanded 3,500-acre base. "North Korea's 300-millimeter multiple rocket launchers and new KN-23 short-range ballistic missiles both have an advertised capability to reach Camp Humphreys."Not-to-worry is, nonetheless, the soothing message from Moon and his aides. Echoing Trump's earlier expressions of non-concern about the North's short-range missile tests, South Korea's national security adviser, Chung Eui-yong, said the latest shots, the 12th this year but the first in a month, were not "very grave threats." In fact, he argued, "our missile defense and intercept capabilities" are "absolutely superior."With two months to go before the end-of-year "deadline" set by the North for the U.S. to propose a new deal, however, the testing assumes seriously intimidating overtones. At the top of the North's demands are an end to sanctions and a "peace declaration"– but no real end to its nuclear program, long since sanctified in the North's constitution.As for Moon, Kim has come up with a bargaining tool that demonstrates the futility of any deal with North Korea. He's demanding South Korea demolish or remove an entire tourist resort at the foot of Mount Kumgang, aka Diamond Mountain, heaping scorn on what was once the most visible showcase for promoting North-South rapprochement.North Korea's state media is dressing up the demand with images of Kim, sporty in a white shirt tailored to fit his contours, appearing to conquer Kumgang on foot just as he rode up the slopes of Paektu on a white horse. Whether he got to the top of Paektu on the horse as claimed, the imagery from Kumgang leaves no doubt he trudged only far enough for a photo-op that provided the setting for his message to Moon.Packing 290 pounds on his rotund five-foot seven-inch frame, Kim was not at all fit for the hike. Missing are photographs showing him at the majestic Kuryong waterfall, which tumbles 84 meters down granite cliffs. Only four kilometers up the trail, it's the destination for just about everyone else who's been there.Also further up the trail, a special wooden bench, lovingly painted and repainted a sparkling dark blue, is said to be exactly where Kim Il Sung sat to gaze on Mount Kumgang, some of whose many pinnacles are often lost in the clouds far above. A low-lying chain link fence keeps disrespectful tourists from sitting where the late "Great Leader" once sat. No doubt Kim Jong Un would love to plant his ample posterior on granddad's bench, but he got nowhere near it.Rather than at the falls or on the bench, Kim is seen with imagery selected and edited to give an impression of an indomitable figure conquering the mountain. Shots show him with a stout walking stick standing on a footbridge, smiling with aides in a clearing, edging by large boulders, his coyly smiling wife, Ri Sol Ju, close behind. Viewers don't need to know all these photos were staged where the trail begins.The scenic setting provides the backdrop for a shocking message to South Korea—and the U.S, too. In a devastating setback to South Korea's efforts at reconciliation, Kim declared the facilities built by South Korea's largest construction firm, Hyundai Engineering and Construction, were "ugly" and "unpleasant" to look at. North Korea has demanded South Korea set a date in writing for removal or demolition of all of them, including 10 hotels, sports and entertainment facilities, a duty-free shopping center and dozens of individual structures to accommodate tour groups.Kim's denunciation of the facilities at Kumgang, which also include an 18-hole golf course and a hot springs spa, is a calculated rebuff to President Moon, who still fantasizes about reopening the resort to South Koreans. Seoul has barred them from going there ever since a South Korean woman was shot and killed by a North Korean soldier in July 2008 while wandering outside the tourist area to gaze at the sunrise. Another problem is how to get around sanctions blocking commercial transactions with the North.It was as though Kim wanted to portray himself as a daring sportsman, a larger-than-life character afraid of nothing before getting down to the serious business of dissing the South as punishment for Moon's failure to stand up to U.S demands for the North to give up its nuclear program.As for the U.S., Kim's heroics provided the window-dressing for a series of intimidating messages for his friend President Trump. After the North's state media put out photos showing Kim as a virile figure fit to climb any mountain, subordinates came out almost daily with threats against the U.S. for dithering on a deal."The Korean peninsula is at a critical crossroads," said the country's second ranking leader, Choe Ryong-hae, at a confab of the so-called non-aligned movement in Azerbaijan. The choice was "either moving towards durable peace along with the trend of detente, or facing again a touch-and-go crisis."That warning came after another top leader, Kim Yong Chol, resurgent after having been reported in May to have been executed for the failure of the Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi, said Trump had better not count on his friendship with Kim to keep the North from testing nukes and missiles."The U.S. is seriously mistaken if it has the idea of exploiting the close personal relations" between Trump and Kim, said Kim Yong Chol, vice chairman of the Workers' Party Central Committee, in a statement carried by Pyongyang's official news agency. The U.S., he said, is now "more desperately resorting to the hostile policy" toward North Korea. Those stern words, coming right after Kim's shows on Kumgang and Paektu, left the South Koreans with no convincing response.South Korea's unification ministry called for "creative solutions" to the entire problem of dismantling the resort complex and keeping Kim happy. North Korea turned a cold shoulder to the South's suggestions for "individual" tours that might avoid sanctions.Kim's current observations from the bottom of Kumgang were meant to show how South Koreans desecrated this scenic wonderland when they opened it to tourism in deals made by South Korea's Kim Dae-jung, the country's president from 1998 to 2003."Mt. Kumgang is our land of blood," Kim Jong Un is quoted as saying. "We have our own sovereignty and dignity on the cliffs and trees." Those hideous South-made structures, he said, were "severely damaging the landscape" and "neglecting the management of cultural tourism."While Trump Shrugs, North Korea's Building Better MissilesRead more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Exxon, Chevron Begin Pushing Back Against Warren’s Fracking Ban Posted: 01 Nov 2019 12:53 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- America's two biggest oil companies are starting to push back against the fracking ban touted by the leading candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination, which may become one of the most consequential flashpoints for energy markets during the election campaign.Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. executives spoke out publicly against the proposals for the first time on Friday, saying they would shift profits from crude production from the U.S. to other countries, and may increase prices for consumers while doing nothing to reduce oil demand or greenhouse-gas emissions.It's a line of attack that's likely to feature heavily in debates in the year ahead as the energy industry and Republicans seek to counter the Democratic Party's green wing. To be sure, whoever gets elected next year will find it difficult to end fracking. Presidential powers to enact a ban only extend to federal lands, something that would be certain to face immediate legal challenges. A wider restriction would need to go through Congress."Any efforts to ban fracking or restrict supply will not remove demand for the resource," Neil Hansen, Exxon's vice president of investor relations, said on a conference call with analysts. "If anything it will shift the economic benefit away from the U.S. to another country, and a potentially impact the price of that commodity here and globally."Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, two front-runners in the race to be the Democratic candidate, are keen to stop America's reliance on fossil fuels, and they also want to end what they say is Washington's subservience to corporate interests. They also know how to hit Exxon and Chevron where it hurts. Five years ago, both companies produced little crude from fracking and might have even have benefited from a ban if it led to higher oil prices. But now fracking is the fastest-growing part of their global businesses and a key profit driver.Hydraulic fracturing of shale rock is pushing U.S. oil production to record highs, touching 12.4 million barrels a day in August. Exxon said Friday its output from the Permian Basin in West Texas and New Mexico had boomed by more than 70% in the third quarter from a year earlier. Chevron, a bigger Permian producer, saw its output there climb 35%.That wave of supply has ensured lower gasoline and energy prices for domestic consumers, bolstered economic growth for states such as Texas and North Dakota, and restored the country to ranks of the world's major crude exporters."It's really unlocked an economic huge economic benefit for the country, as well as for the companies involved," Jay Johnson, the boss of Chevron's upstream business, said during the company's earnings conference call.But fracking also has costs, particularly in terms of the climate. Cheap fossil fuels typically mean people use more of them, causing higher emissions. Hansen said that while Exxon shares concerns about climate change, "there are more effective policies" such as a revenue-neutral carbon tax and technology initiatives.To contact the reporter on this story: Kevin Crowley in Houston at kcrowley1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Simon Casey at scasey4@bloomberg.net, Joe CarrollFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| At least 42 killed in Haiti protest violence: UN Posted: 01 Nov 2019 01:31 PM PDT  Port-au-Prince (AFP) - At least 42 people have been killed and dozens injured during anti-government protests in Haiti since mid-September, the UN's human rights body said Friday, adding it was "deeply concerned" by the crisis. The poorest country in the Americas has been roiled for two months by protests, which were triggered by fuel shortages but have turned violent and morphed into a broader campaign against President Jovenel Moise. "We are deeply concerned about the protracted crisis in Haiti, and its impact on the ability of Haitians to access their basic rights to healthcare, food, education and other needs," the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in a statement.
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| Mexican president dismisses report alleging military discontent Posted: 31 Oct 2019 02:31 PM PDT  Lopez Obrador took office late last year pledging to pacify the country with a security policy that deemphasizes armed confrontation, following years of military-led conflict with powerful drug cartels. Asked about a report published on Wednesday by newspaper La Jornada detailing a recent speech by an army general blaming Lopez Obrador for polarizing the country and offending the military's leadership, Lopez Obrador denied any widespread discontent within the ranks. Lopez Obrador's government was rocked two weeks ago when cartel gunmen laid siege to the city of Culiacan, forcing outmatched soldiers to release a son of jailed drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman after he was briefly detained.
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| Oklahoma parole board OKs largest-ever US mass commutation Posted: 01 Nov 2019 02:15 PM PDT ![Oklahoma parole board OKs largest-ever US mass commutation]( "Oklahoma parole board OKs largest-ever US mass commutation") Oklahoma will release more than 400 inmates after a state panel on Friday approved what officials say is the largest single-day mass commutation in U.S. history. The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board unanimously approved the commutations, and Gov. Kevin Stitt said his office would process the recommendations for final approval. The board considered 814 cases and recommended 527 inmates for commutation.
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| Iran, Please Don't Develop a Stealth Fighter Posted: 02 Nov 2019 02:01 AM PDT  It might be nice to have one, but it'll bring nothing but trouble.
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| What links a prison murder, a New York drug trial and the Honduras president? Posted: 01 Nov 2019 03:00 AM PDT  A brazen attack on an inmate and revelations in a US courtroom have piled pressure on Juan Orlando Hernández over his alleged ties to the narco tradeRiot policemen take positions during clashes with students demanding the resignation of President, Juan Orlando Hernández in Tegucigalpa this week. Photograph: Orlando Sierra/AFP via Getty ImagesDespite several attempts against his life – poisoned food, a smuggled grenade – drug trafficker Nery López appeared calm as he spoke to the warden inside a maximum-security prison in western Honduras.He hardly seemed to notice when a guard wearing a ski mask entered the hallway, eyeing López as he reached for the keys on his belt.Moments later, the masked guard stepped aside from a heavy sliding door as a group of men in T-shirts and shorts burst in, one of them firing a handgun at López.A second man drew a long knife, hacking at the fallen trafficker before the gunman drew a second weapon and emptied another cartridge of bullets.Within hours of the 26 October murder, footage of the brazen attack had leaked on to social media, sending a shockwave of fear through the nation.The killing came just days after evidence seized from López helped a New York jury convict a former Honduran politician named Juan Antonio "Tony" Hernández on four counts of drug trafficking and related weapons charges.Tony Hernández is the brother of Honduras's current president, Juan Orlando Hernández – and Lopez's lawyer was quick to accuse the government of complicity in his client's murder."Juan Orlando [Hernández] silenced him," said López's lawyer, Carlos Chajtur. "That door opened on purpose."Nery López is attacked in prison. Photograph: Honduras prison serviceThe murder is the latest embarrassment for the US state department, which continues to ignore the haze of allegations around the Honduran government while pushing the country to cooperate in Donald Trump's regional crackdown on migration.A week before the trial began, the two countries announced an agreement, allowing the US to send asylum seekers from third countries to the violence-torn Central American nation while their claim is processed. Similar deals have been drawn up with Guatemala and El Salvador.So, while US prosecutors in New York described a situation of "state-sponsored drug trafficking", the state department has maintained a business-as-usual approach following Tony Hernández's conviction.A day after the verdict, the top US diplomat in Honduras was photographed smiling with President Hernández at a military parade.The Honduran president also featured in the New York case, when prosecutors accused him of having received millions of dollars from drug traffickers, including a $1m bribe from Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.Prosecutors accused Tony Hernández of conspiring to murder rival traffickers, including a massacre with a bazooka and machine guns that resulted in four deaths.President Hernández, who was re-elected in a fraud-marred vote in 2017 after the supreme court lifted a single-term limit, has denied all accusations of links to drug trafficking and maintained his brother's innocence. "What can you say about a conviction based on the testimonies of confessed murderers?" he said on Twitter after the verdict was announced.Opposition leaders have called for President Hernández to resign, but fear, division and a dearth of leadership have prevented sporadic protests from coalescing into a mass movement.At the time of his capture in June 2018, López was living under an assumed name, after faking his own death a few years earlier by paying bribes to obtain a falsified death certificate and a new identity.An opposition supporter holds signs reading 'Together we will make history. JOH out' and 'Narco-state out' at a protest in Tegucigalpa Photograph: Orlando Sierra/AFP via Getty ImagesHe was considered one of the largest drug traffickers in Honduras, so anti-narcotics agents were intrigued to discover hundreds of pages of records itemizing his business welded in a secret compartment in a vehicle seized in the arrest.One of those agents testified at the trial of Tony Hernández that he had immediately spotted the former legislator's name in the ledgers, which also list payments to a person identified as "JOH" – the initials by which President Juan Orlando Hernández is commonly known.Critics argue that López was murdered to avoid any possibility that he might someday testify in a US court – and to send a message to others who might do the same."The first message is for those who are linked to drug trafficking in Honduras related to Tony Hernández, or Juan Orlando Hernández and their whole group – to show them that they or their family members will be murdered if they continue providing evidence," said Dr Joaquín Mejía, a human rights lawyer who has studied violence in Honduras.
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| PG&E and Southern California Edison have turned off power to minimize fires. It hasn't worked. What will? Posted: 01 Nov 2019 10:59 AM PDT  Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison have cut off power to minimize wildfire risk. Yet the wildfires haven't stopped. What now?
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| Have Kentuckians finally had enough of Mitch McConnell? Posted: 01 Nov 2019 10:40 AM PDT  A recent poll shows that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the president's most stolid defender, is down to an 18 percent job approval rating in Kentucky. Only 37 percent in a recent Public Policy Poll said they would vote for him again next year.
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| For the Best Three-Row Mid-Size Crossovers and SUVs, See These Full Rankings! Posted: 01 Nov 2019 03:21 PM PDT |
| Trump declares himself resident of Florida in move that could help him pay less tax, says report Posted: 31 Oct 2019 05:31 PM PDT  The Queens-born Donald Trump - who has always prided himself as the ultimate New Yorker - is said to be declaring himself a Floridian and possibly doing so for tax reasons.A report said papers filed with the Palm Beach county circuit court, revealed Mr Trump was switching his primary residence from Manhattan to Palm Beach.
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| The Latest: Italy will let rescue ship with 88 migrants dock Posted: 01 Nov 2019 01:42 PM PDT  Italy has assigned a port where 88 migrants stranded for days on a rescue ship can disembark, following a deal to share them out among several European countries. The Italian interior ministry said Friday night the Alan Kurdi, operated by the Germany's Sea-Eye humanitarian group, will dock in Taranto, southern Italy. Sea-Eye rescued the migrants a week earlier and pressed Italy for days to let it disembark the passengers.
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