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'Miracle house' owner hopes it will serve as a base for rebuilding Lahaina
August 24, 20235:00 AM ET
By Bill Chappell
The fire that devastated historic Lahaina in western Maui left a red-roofed house relatively unscathed. Its owner says he wants to open the house to the neighborhood to help the rebuilding process.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
MAUI, Hawaii — When an inferno tore through Lahaina on the island of Maui, it reduced a historic and charming town to ash and rubble.
But the fire left a red-roofed house seemingly untouched by the devastation around it.
"Everybody's calling it 'the miracle house,'" Trip Millikin, who owns the home at 271 Front St., told NPR. But that label makes him uncomfortable, he added, citing the flood of emotions that came with learning that while his house was spared, his community was gutted.
"Our hearts are broken from what's happened," he said. "We love our neighborhood and love our friends, and just cannot believe that that world that we knew so well and loved — it's gone forever."
Photos of the wooden house, standing intact while its neighbors were reduced to ashes, quickly became an online fascination. Millikin's friends call it a beacon of hope. To him, the historic house's survival means it has a new role to play.
"As soon as we can, we want to open it to our neighborhood and open it to everybody who worked on it, as a base to help rebuild our part of Lahaina," he said.
Nearly 100-year-old house withstood a historic fire
It's not easy to explain how or why the house survived a fire that obliterated hundreds of structures around it. Millikin points to two big factors: luck, and the metal roof he and his wife, Dora Atwater Millikin, installed during recent renovations.
"I think it's a combination of a commercial-grade corrugated metal roof, the stone [area] around the house, the palms around the house that absorb the heat — and a lot of divine intervention," he said.
The house has roots dating to 1925 — it's believed to have been moved from another location on Maui. After Millikin and his wife bought it in 2021, they finished a restoration project in 2022.
We removed five layers of asphalt that were on the roof," Millikin said. When the new metal roof was installed, he added, it included an air pocket to allow heat to dissipate. At the ground level, they removed all vegetation along the house's dripline and added a stone buffer — a step taken to thwart not fires, but termites.
By intention or not, those changes jibe with wildfire guidance from the Colorado State Forest Service, which stresses the importance of steps such as reducing your home's ability to ignite.
The first priority mentioned on the CSFS checklist: ensuring the roofing material has a Class A fire rating — a designation that includes metal roofs.
Airborne embers are the most common source of wildfire spread, the Colorado agency's Daniel Beveridge told NPR.
Beveridge said there's no way to know for sure exactly what preserved the house on Front Street, but "the metal roof and lack of adjacent flammable material ... certainly limited the means by which the structure could have ignited."
The house sustained minimal damage
When strong winds from Hurricane Dora drove the fire through Lahaina, large embers soared through the air — but they didn't cause a catastrophe at the Millikins' house.
The fires singed one part of the structure, but the only damage there was a warped PVC pipe on a wall. He also found paint blistered by intense heat on a wall near the kitchen.
"What's behind it are the original — I think they're redwood — planks from about 1920. They didn't burn," Millikin said.
A nearby section that holds a propane tank was also left intact.
"Can you imagine if that propane tank caught?" he asked. "The whole place would have gone."
[...]
https://www.npr.org/2023/08/24/1195331310/red-roof-house-fires-lahaina-hawaii
Trump’s drumbeat of lies about the 2020 election keeps getting louder. Here are the facts
BY ROBERT YOON
Updated 8:43 AM CDT, August 27, 2023
WASHINGTON (AP) — With Donald Trump facing felony charges .. https://apnews.com/article/trump-indicted-jan-6-investigation-special-counsel-debb59bb7a4d9f93f7e2dace01feccdc
over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, .. https://apnews.com/article/trump-georgia-election-investigation-grand-jury-willis-d39562cedfc60d64948708de1b011ed3 ..
the former president is flooding the airwaves and his social media platform with distortions, misinformation and unfounded conspiracy theories about his defeat. .. https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-2020-election-lies-georgia-misinformation-4b2269d68dad3024bd5afa711478505a
ALL LINKS:
https://apnews.com/article/trump-2020-election-lies-debunked-4fc26546b07962fdbf9d66e739fbb50d
It’s part of a multiyear effort to undermine public confidence in the American electoral process as he seeks to chart a return to the White House in 2024. There is evidence that his lies are resonating: New polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that 57% of Republicans believe Democrat Joe Biden was not legitimately elected as president.
Here are the facts about Trump’s loss in the last presidential election:
REVIEWS AND RECOUNTS CONFIRM BIDEN’S VICTORY
Biden’s victory over Trump in 2020 was not particularly close.
He won the Electoral College with 306 votes to Trump’s 232, and the popular vote by more than 7 million ballots.
Because the Electoral College ultimately determines the presidency, the race was decided by a few battleground states. Many of those states conducted recounts or thorough reviews of the results, all of which confirmed Biden’s victory.
In Arizona, a six-month review of ballots in the state’s largest county, Maricopa, that was commissioned by Republican state legislators not only affirmed Biden’s victory but determined that he should have won by 306 more votes than the officially certified statewide margin of 10,457.
In Georgia, where Trump was recently indicted for his efforts to overturn the 2020 result there, state officials led by both a Republican governor and secretary of state recertified Biden’s win after conducting three statewide counts. The final official recount narrowed Biden’s victory in the state from just shy of 13,000 votes to just shy of 12,000 votes.
In Michigan, a committee led by Republican state senators concluded there was no widespread or systematic fraud in the state in 2020 after conducting a monthslong investigation. Michigan, where Biden defeated Trump by almost 155,000 votes, or 2.8 percentage points, was less competitive compared with other battleground states, although the result in Wayne County, home of Detroit, was targeted by Trump and his supporters with unfounded voter fraud claims, as were key urban jurisdictions across the country.
In Nevada, the then-secretary of state, Republican Barbara Cegavske, and her office reviewed tens of thousands of allegations of possible voter fraud identified by the Nevada Republican Party but found that almost all were based on incomplete information and a lack of understanding of the state’s voting and registration procedures. For example, Cegavske’s investigation found that of 1,506 alleged instances of ballots being cast in the name of deceased individuals, only 10 warranted further investigation by law enforcement. Similarly, 10 out of 1,778 allegations of double-voting called for further investigation. Biden won Nevada by 33,596 votes, or 2.4 percentage points.
In Pennsylvania, the final certified results had Biden with an 80,555-vote margin over Trump, or 1.2 percentage points. Efforts to overturn Pennsylvania’s election failed in state and federal courts, while no prosecutor, judge or election official in Pennsylvania has raised a concern about widespread fraud. State Republicans continue to attempt their own review of the 2020 results, but that effort has been tied up in the courts and Democrats have called it a “partisan fishing expedition.”
In Wisconsin, a recount slightly improved Biden’s victory over Trump by 87 votes, increasing Biden’s statewide lead to 20,682, or 0.6 percentage points. A nonpartisan audit that concluded a year after the election made recommendations on how to improve future elections in Wisconsin but did not uncover evidence of widespread voter fraud in the state, leading the Republican co-chair of the audit committee to declare that “the election was largely safe and secure.” The state’s Assembly speaker, a Republican, ordered a separate review, which a state judge said found “absolutely no evidence of election fraud.”
AP INVESTIGATION FINDS MINIMAL VOTER FRAUD IN SWING STATES
An exhaustive AP investigation in 2021 found fewer than 475 instances of confirmed voter fraud across six battleground states — nowhere near the magnitude required to sway the outcome of the presidential election.
The review of ballots and records from more than 300 local elections offices found that almost every instance of voter fraud was committed by individuals acting alone and not the result of a massive, coordinated conspiracy to rig the election. The cases involved both registered Democrats and Republicans, and the culprits were almost always caught before the fraudulent ballot was counted.
Some of the cases appeared to be intentional attempts to commit fraud, while others seemed to involve either administrative error or voter confusion, including the case of one Wisconsin man who cast a ballot for Trump but said he was unaware that he was ineligible to vote because he was on parole for a felony conviction.
The AP review also produced no evidence to support Trump’s claims that states tabulated more votes than there are registered voters.
Biden won Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and their 79 Electoral College votes by a combined 311,257 votes out of 25.5 million ballots cast. The disputed ballots represent just 0.15% of his victory margin in those states.
TRUMP’S OWN ADMINISTRATION FOUND NO WIDESPREAD FRAUD
Trump was repeatedly advised by members of his own administration that there was no evidence of widespread fraud.
Nine days after the 2020 election, the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a statement saying, “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history.” The statement was co-written by the groups representing the top elections officials in every state.
Less than three weeks later, then-Attorney General William Barr declared that a Justice Department investigation had not uncovered evidence of the widespread voter fraud that Trump had claimed was at the center of a massive conspiracy to steal the election. Barr, who had directed U.S. attorneys and FBI agents across the country to pursue “substantial allegations” of voting irregularities, said, “To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election.”
The Jan. 6 House committee report details additional instances where administration officials and White House staff refuted Trump’s various allegations of voter fraud.
COURTS HEARD TRUMP’S LEGAL CHALLENGES AND REJECTED THEM
The Trump campaign and its backers pursued numerous legal challenges to the election in court and alleged a variety of voter fraud and misconduct. The cases were heard and roundly rejected by dozens of courts at both state and federal levels, including by judges whom Trump appointed.
One of them, U.S. Circuit Judge Stephanos Bibas, was on a federal panel that declined a request to stop Pennsylvania from certifying its results, saying, “Voters, not lawyers, choose the president. Ballots, not briefs, decide elections.”
The U.S. Supreme Court also rejected several efforts in the weeks after Election Day to overturn the election results in various battleground states that Biden won.
CONSPIRACY THEORIES ABOUT VOTING MACHINES WERE UNFOUNDED
Many of the claims Trump and his team advanced about a stolen election dealt with the equipment voters used to cast their ballots.
At various times, Trump and his legal team falsely alleged that voting machines were built in Venezuela at the direction of President Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013; that machines were designed to delete or flip votes cast for Trump; and that the U.S. Army had seized a computer server in Germany that held secrets to U.S. voting irregularities.
None of those claims was ever substantiated or corroborated. CISA’s joint statement released after the election said, “There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes or was in any way compromised.”
Nonetheless, many of these and other unfounded claims were repeated on Fox News, both by members of the Trump team as well as by some of the network’s on-air personalities. Dominion Voting Systems sued the network for $1.6 billion, claiming the outlet’s airing of these allegations amounted to defamation.
Records of internal communications at Fox News unearthed in the case showed that the network aired the claims even though its biggest stars, including Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson, as well as the company’s chairman, Rupert Murdoch, did not believe they were true.
Dominion and Fox News settled out of court for $787.5 million.
CLAIMS INVOLVING SUITCASES AND BALLOT MULES ARE DEBUNKED
Trump and his supporters also have claimed that a number of other factors contributed to a broader effort to steal the presidential election.
One theory advanced by both Trump and one of his lawyers, Rudy Giuliani, is that “suitcases” full of fraudulent ballots in Georgia cost Trump the election there.
Then-Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen told the Jan. 6 House committee that he personally reviewed the video purported to show the fraud allegation in question. He recounted telling Trump: “It wasn’t a suitcase. It was a bin. That’s what they use when they’re counting ballots. It’s benign.”
State and county officials also had confirmed the containers were regular ballot containers on wheels, which are used in normal ballot processing.
But a week later, Trump publicly repeated the suitcase theory, saying, “There is even security camera footage from Georgia that shows officials telling poll watchers to leave the room before pulling suitcases of ballots out from under the tables and continuing to count for hours.”
Richard Donoghue, the former acting deputy attorney general, told the Jan. 6 committee that, days later, he told Trump that “these allegations about ballots being smuggled in in a suitcase and run through the machine several times, it was not true. … We looked at the video, we interviewed the witnesses.” But Trump continued to repeat the false claim.
Another debunked claim spinning a tale of 2,000 so-called ballot mules was featured in a film that ran in hundreds of theaters last spring. The film alleges that Democrat-aligned individuals were paid to illegally collect and drop ballots in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. But the AP determined that the allegations were based on flawed analysis of cellphone location data and drop box surveillance footage.
___
Associated Press writers Scott Bauer and Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; Christina A. Cassidy in Atlanta; Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; and Ali Swenson in New York contributed to this report.
https://apnews.com/article/trump-2020-election-lies-debunked-4fc26546b07962fdbf9d66e739fbb50d
NO
I wonder if we'll ever know the real reason(s) for that crash...
* The plane went down almost 300km (186 miles) north of Moscow, according to Russian state news agency Tass.
* Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened up an investigation into the crash on charges of air safety rule violation.
* US president Joe Biden has been informed of the crash and said that he was “not surprised” at the news of Prigozhin’s death.
* A building housing Wagner’s offices in St Petersburg lit up its windows after dark in such a way as to display a giant cross in a mark of respect and mourning. Flowers were left and candles lit near the offices early on Thursday.
* The jet showed no sign of problem until a precipitous drop in its final 30 seconds, according to flight-tracking data.
* The Embraer executive jet model that crashed has only ever recorded one accident in over 20 years of service, and that was due to mistakes by the crew rather than mechanical failure, according to website International Aviation HQ. Russia’s TASS news agency said the plane was a Brazilian Embraer jet.
The downed Russian jet carried Wagner’s hierarchy, from Prigozhin’s No. 2 to his bodyguards
By The Associated Press
Updated 9:42 AM CDT, August 24, 2023
The passenger manifest of the plane that went down in Russia is essentially a who’s who of Wagner mercenaries, including its second-in-command, who baptized the group with his nom de guerre, as well as the logistics chief, a fighter wounded by U.S. airstrikes in Syria and at least one possible bodyguard.
And, of course, Yevgeny Prigozhin himself, Wagner’s leader and mutineer, who many believed was a marked man after his short-lived uprising in June against the Russian military.
“The decision to put so many senior-level people on one plane was a poor decision, as key figures should always fly separately,” said Lou Osborn, author of a forthcoming book on the mercenaries. “Prigozhin was feeling overconfident. He might have genuinely been made to feel like he was pardoned.”
DMITRY UTKIN
For a long time, Utkin was believed to be the founder of Wagner, but many analysts now say that was a smokescreen for Prigozhin, who only recently acknowledged his leading role in the mercenary group.
Utkin, a retired special forces officer, a member of the GRU military intelligence service and a veteran of Russia’s wars in Chechnya, was responsible for command and combat training, according to investigations by the Dossier Center and Bellingcat.
Some of the few photos circulating of him indicate he had Nazi-style tattoos, and reports claimed that he loved Nazi symbols. His nom de guerre was Wagner, an apparent reference to German composer Richard Wagner, who was said to be Adolf Hitler’s favorite, and that became the group’s name.
Utkin was seen in a video broadcast from a Kremlin reception in December 2016, definitely linking Wagner to President Vladimir Putin despite his earlier denials that the group had any links to the government.
VALERY CHEKALOV
In all, the other passengers included six of Prigozhin’s lieutenants, along with the three-member flight crew. For company leaders who were called out by the Kremlin as traitors to travel together on a single flight appeared to be an extraordinary breach of security. The purpose of the trip was unknown.
Chekalov served as Wagner’s logistics mastermind. A longtime employee of Concord Holding — another Prigozhin company — he was in charge of managing mercenaries, securing weapons and running the oil, gas and mineral businesses in Syria and Africa, said Osborn, who is an investigator with All Eyes on Wagner, a project focusing on the group.
The U.S. sanctioned Chekalov for his ties to Prigozhin. The Wagner leader’s travel arrangements were among his responsibilities, according to Russian media.
YEVGENY MAKARYAN
Makaryan fought with Wagner in 2018, when he was wounded in Syria after coming under withering U.S. airstrikes that killed dozens of Wagner fighters in what became known as the Battle of Khasham, according to the Dossier Center.
He remained a commander in the group, though little is known about his exact role.
Little is equally known about the other three Wagner fighters on the manifest, who included Alexander Totmin, Sergei Propustin and Nikolai Matuseiev. At least one of the men fought in a unit that became Prigozhin’s source for securing personal bodyguards, according to the Dossier Center. They had been with the organization for years.
The flight crew was little-known but included a pilot, co-pilot and flight attendant.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-wagner-prigozhin-jet-crash-f6cf109ccf19fea4cb87993c8f2d6aaa
See the best photos from Spain’s win over England in Women’s World Cup final
By The Associated Press
Updated 11:03 AM CDT, August 20, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand showcased some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs.
Associated Press photographers covered every match at the month-long tournament, which came to an end with Spain’s 1-0 win over England on Sunday.
Swipe through to see a selection of some of the best images from the final in Sydney.
"I could not copy the titles of photos"
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-best-moments-photo-gallery-e721bdc494429972752473eca1263905
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-best-moments-photo-gallery-e721bdc494429972752473eca1263905
See the best photos from Spain’s win over England in Women’s World Cup final
By The Associated Press
Updated 11:03 AM CDT, August 20, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand showcased some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs.
Associated Press photographers covered every match at the month-long tournament, which came to an end with Spain’s 1-0 win over England on Sunday.
Swipe through to see a selection of some of the best images from the final in Sydney.
"I could not copy the titles of photos"
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-best-moments-photo-gallery-e721bdc494429972752473eca1263905
Women’s World Cup Guide: Results, schedule and how to watch
By The Associated Press
Updated 8:16 AM CDT, August 19, 2023
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-schedule-favorites-e8c1f23647768ddd41238c9c61efc3e3
Women’s World Cup Guide: Results, schedule and how to watch
By The Associated Press
Updated 8:16 AM CDT, August 19, 2023
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-schedule-favorites-e8c1f23647768ddd41238c9c61efc3e3
Select January 6th Committee Final Report and Supporting Materials Collection
https://www.govinfo.gov/collection/january-6th-committee-final-report?path=/GPO/January%206th%20Committee%20Final%20Report%20and%20Supporting%20Materials%20Collection
.
Liz Cheney Torches Trump’s Latest Lie with a Single Tweet
Story by Brett Meiselas •
12h
As reported recently on the MeidasTouch Network, .. https://www.meidastouch.com/news/jack-smith-easily-exposes-latest-trump-and-gop-lie-in-new-motion .. Donald Trump and the GOP propaganda machine invented a new lie last week after Trump was indicted by the Justice Department for his role in trying to overturn the 2020 election. The conspiracy they concocted was that the January 6 Committee destroyed all of its records to harm Trump’s defenses in the federal case filed against him in Washington DC. Yes, it's as absurd as it sounds.
Now, former Republican Congresswoman and Vice Chairwoman of the January 6 Committee, Liz Cheney, is firing back at what just may be Trump and the right’s most absurd lie yet.
On Thursday night, Cheney tweeted, "No surprise Trump doesn’t want you to see the J6 Committee evidence.
Here’s the GPO website with transcripts, documents, exhibits & our meticulously sourced 800+ page final report.
Also links to our hearings. Might be a good time to watch those again."
The post includes a link to the January 6 Committee’s final report and all their supporting materials.
"Select January 6th Committee Final Report and Supporting Materials Collection"
https://www.govinfo.gov/collection/january-6th-committee-final-report?path=/GPO/January%206th%20Committee%20Final%20Report%20and%20Supporting%20Materials%20Collection
[...]
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/liz-cheney-torches-trump-s-latest-lie-with-a-single-tweet/ar-AA1fshXC?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=c67985e7cf63422d9d49693c2b046624&ei=12
.
Justice Department seeks 33 years in prison for ex-Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio in Jan. 6 case
FILE - Proud Boys leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio wears a hat that says The War Boys during a rally in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 26, 2020.
The Justice Department said Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, it is seeking 33 years in prison for Tarrio, convicted of seditious conspiracy
in one of the most serious cases to emerge from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner, File)
By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
Updated 6:09 AM CDT, August 18, 2023
The Justice Department is seeking 33 years in prison for Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys leader convicted of seditious conspiracy .. https://apnews.com/article/jan-6-enrique-tarrio-seditious-conspiracy-trial-f8738f17552cda21eef6d89504da2a0e ..
in one of the most serious cases to emerge from attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to court documents.
The sentence, if imposed, would be by far the longest punishment that has been handed down in the massive prosecution of the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who was convicted of seditious conspiracy in a separate case, has received the longest sentence to date — 18 years. .. https://apnews.com/hub/capitol-siege
Tarrio, who once served as national chairman of the far-right extremist group, and three lieutenants were convicted by a Washington jury in May of conspiring to block the transfer of presidential power in the hopes of keeping Donald Trump in the White House after the Republican president lost the 2020 election.
Tarrio, who was not at the Capitol riot itself, was a top target of what has become the largest Justice Department investigation in American history. He led the neo-fascist group — known for street fights with left-wing activists — when Trump infamously told the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by” during his first debate with Democrat Joe Biden. .. https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-race-and-ethnicity-donald-trump-chris-wallace-0b32339da25fbc9e8b7c7c7066a1db0f
During the monthslong trial, prosecutors argued that the Proud Boys viewed themselves as foot soldiers fighting for Trump as the Republican spread lies that Democrats stole the election from him, and were prepared to go to war to keep their preferred leader in power.
“They unleashed a force on the Capitol that was calculated to exert their political will on elected officials by force and to undo the results of a democratic election,” prosecutors wrote in their filing Thursday. “The foot soldiers of the right aimed to keep their leader in power. They failed. They are not heroes; they are criminals.”
Prosecutors are also asking for a 33-year-sentence for one of Tarrio’s co-defendants, Joseph Biggs of Ormond Beach, Florida, a self-described Proud Boys organizer.
They are asking the judge to impose a 30-year prison term for Zachary Rehl, who was president of the Proud Boys chapter in Philadelphia; 27 years in prison for Ethan Nordean of Auburn, Washington, who was a Proud Boys chapter president; and 20 years for Dominic Pezzola, a Proud Boys member from Rochester, New York. Pezzola was acquitted of seditious conspiracy but convicted of other serious charges.
Tarrio wasn’t in Washington on Jan. 6, because he had been arrested two days earlier in a separate case and ordered out of the capital city. But prosecutors alleged he organized and directed the attack by Proud Boys who stormed the Capitol that day.
Defense attorneys argued there was no conspiracy and no plan to attack the Capitol, and sought to portray the Proud Boys as an unorganized drinking club whose members’ participation in the riot was a spontaneous act fueled by Trump’s election rage. Tarrio’s lawyers tried to argue that Trump was the one to blame for exhorting a crowd outside the White House to “ fight like hell.”
Attorneys for the Proud Boys say prosecutors’ proposed sentences are extreme. Noting that the chaos on Jan. 6 was fueled by Trump’s false election claims, a lawyer for Biggs and Rehl told the judge that “believing the commander in chief and heeding his call should yield some measure of mitigation.”
Like in the case of Rhodes and other Oath Keepers, prosecutors are urging the judge to apply a so-called “terrorism enhancement” — which can lead to a longer prison term — under the argument that the Proud Boys sought to influence the government through “intimidation or coercion.”
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta agreed with prosecutors that the Oath Keepers’ crimes could be punished as “terrorism,” but still sentenced Rhodes and the others to prison terms shorter than what prosecutors were seeking. Prosecutors had asked Mehta to sentence Rhodes to 25 years behind bars.
Tarrio, of Miami, and his co-defendants will be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly in a string of hearings starting later this month in Washington’s federal court.
It’s the same courthouse where Trump pleaded not guilty this month in the case brought by special counsel Jack Smith accusing the Republican of illegally scheming to subvert the will of voters and overturn his loss to Biden. Trump has denied any wrongdoing.
Tarrio and three of his lieutenants were also convicted of two of the same charges Trump faces: obstruction of Congress’ certification of Biden’s victory, and conspiracy to obstruct Congress.
https://apnews.com/article/enrique-tarrio-capitol-riot-proud-boys-sentencing-aa8fd5e8acbc5d173e6e462974014bc7
Environment and Climate Change
Effective April 1, 2023: the Departments of Lands and Environment and Natural Resources have merged into one.
https://www.gov.nt.ca/ecc/en/services/wildfire-update
Out-of-control wildfires in Canada force all 20,000 residents of Yellowknife to flee
Updated August 17, 20233:52 PM ET
By Dustin Jones
Some 20,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in Yellowknife, the capital of Canada's Northwest Territories, and the surrounding areas as the Behchoko/Yellowknife wildfire burns out of control less than 10 miles outside the city. More than 230 active fires are threatening other cities and towns in the region.
The order to evacuate was issued by the minister of municipal and community affairs on Wednesday, forcing Yellowknife and Ingraham Trail residents to flee their homes and businesses by car and plane. Residents of the First Nations communities of N'Dilo and Dettah were also ordered to evacuate. Authorities told residents they have until noon on Friday to evacuate, and that without rain, the inferno could reach the area by the weekend.
The government's status update reads, "These fires remain out-of-control," and as of Tuesday, the fires around Yellowknife could be seen from space.
Airtankers flew missions throughout Wednesday night to combat the blaze, according to the government's department of environment and climate change. Firefighting crews have been doing their best to put out hot spots, while others tried to protect cabins and other structures around Highway 3, the main road west out of Yellowknife. In the city itself, officials are taking protective measures including turning on sprinklers and creating fuel breaks.
Images of the blaze are heartbreaking. Photos and videos appearing across social media platforms show bumper-to-bumper traffic as residents try to flee the area. Others show vehicles traveling along the highway engulfed in smoke, with smoldering trees lining the roads as they drive toward safety.
The government's status update reads,
https://www.gov.nt.ca/ecc/en/services/wildfire-update
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/wildfires-in-the-northwest-territories
"These fires remain out-of-control," and as of Tuesday, the fires around Yellowknife could be seen from space.
Airtankers flew missions throughout Wednesday night to combat the blaze, according to the government's department of environment and climate change. Firefighting crews have been doing their best to put out hot spots, while others tried to protect cabins and other structures around Highway 3, the main road west out of Yellowknife. In the city itself, officials are taking protective measures including turning on sprinklers and creating fuel breaks.
Images of the blaze are heartbreaking. Photos and videos appearing across social media platforms show bumper-to-bumper traffic as residents try to flee the area. Others show vehicles traveling along the highway engulfed in smoke, with smoldering trees lining the roads as they drive toward safety.
'Hoping for the best but prepared for the worst'
Kimberly Benito is an international student from the Philippines studying online at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology while living in Yellowknife for a year. She said it was her first time seeing a wildfire in person.
"For the past week, I would look out the window and see how orange/smoky the skies are and that's really scary," Benito told NPR.
"Hoping for the best but prepared for the worst," Benito posted to her Instagram story Wednesday while packing a box of her belongings.
She took Highway 3 out of the city to Behchoko, approximately 65 miles northwest. The traffic was stop-and-go for about an hour and a half because authorities had to escort cars through hazardous areas, she said. Before leaving town she stocked up on gas, filling up her tank as well as two Jerry cans, because she had heard that gas stations along the way were backed up.
"What kept us entertained during the traffic/stops was to see that most of the cars with us had their pets with them," Benito said. "It was heartwarming to see Canadians treat their pets like family."
She too had a furry friend in the car, her dachshund puppy named Bruno.
Benito drove overnight and had almost reached Edmonton — 900 miles from Yellowknife — by Thursday afternoon on her way to Calgary, which is another 180 miles away.
Evacuation flights available
The evacuation order says those who cannot leave by car can register for evacuation flights, as well as those who are immunocompromised or have high-risk health conditions. Those flights were to start taking off at 1 p.m. today, the order reads, and passengers can only take one carry-on item.
Officials are discouraging evacuation attempts by boat to nearby islands, saying the air quality will decline as the fires grow closer.
Municipal Affairs Minister Shane Thompson declared a state of emergency Tuesday to allow the territory to acquire and deploy desperately needed resources to fight the fires.
"We find ourselves in a crisis situation and our government is using every tool available to assist," Thompson said in a press release Tuesday.
Yellowknife is the traditional land of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, but was founded as a gold mining town in 1934, according to the city website. It became the capital of the Northwestern Territories in 1967, and now is known as a cultural, economic and government services hub for the Northwestern Territories. It's also a great place to see the Northern Lights.
The city got back into mining after diamonds were discovered in the area in 1991, and has since opened three mines within a short flight of the city. In 2016, the world's largest new diamond mine, Gahcho Kuéopene, opened up approximately 175 miles northeast from Yellowknife, just south of the Arctic Circle, according to the mine's majority owner, the De Beers Group.
https://www.npr.org/2023/08/17/1194388692/wildfire-yellowknife-canada-evacuation
Raging wildfires and extreme weather are devastating communities across the globe
Across the globe, raging wildfires and extreme weather are taking a toll as the people on fire-ravaged Hawaiian island of Maui begin to grapple with the death and destruction.
A general view shows the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
By The Associated Press
Updated 2:14 PM CDT, August 17, 2023
An out-of-control wildfire on the Spanish Canary island of Tenerife has burned thousands of acres .. https://apnews.com/article/spain-wildfires-tenerife-62c6c843d82adc325bdf5b92033afced .. and nearly 8,000 people were evacuated or confined. Regional President Fernando Clavijo said 250 firefighters and members of the Spanish army are tackling flames on the key tourist destination. Clavijo said the fire, which occurred in extremely hot temperatures, had a nearly 30-kilometer-long (19-mile) perimeter.
Here’s what else is happening related to extreme weather and the climate right now:
—-In Canada, residents of the Northwest Territories’ capital began fleeing an approaching wildfire Thursday .. https://apnews.com/article/canada-wildfires-northwest-territories-ca509a053f45f3797b93286f94d6b198 .. in long convoys while air evacuations were underway — the latest chapter in Canada’s worst fire season. The fire was within 16 kilometers (10 miles) of the northern edge of Yellowknife. Although some rain was forecast for the region, first responders were taking no chances.
—-In Hawaii, the governor vowed to block land grabs by developers seeking to exploit residents who were burned out by the fires that leveled the historic Maui town of Lahaina, report Bobby Caina Calvan, Jennifer Sinco Kelleher and Christopher Webber.
With it’s floods, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions and wildfires, Hawaii is increasingly under siege .. https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-wildfires-recovery-maui-lahaina-land-c8cfcacd2e63bdcd66ec13f2963cea8e .. from disasters, especially wildfires, report Seth Borenstein, Mary Katherine Wildeman and Bobby Caina Calvan. And as residents reel from the most recent one, many are dealing with mental health issues, reports Claire Rush.
—-In Northern California, wind-whipped wildfires near the California-Oregon border forced evacuations Wednesday after gusty winds from a thunderstorm sent a lightning-sparked wildfire racing through Klamath National Forest.
—-In the Baja California region, Hurricane Hilary formed off Mexico’s Pacific coast Thursday, and forecasters said it could bring heavy rain to the U.S. Southwest by the weekend.
QUOTABLE:
“My intention from start to finish is to make sure that no one is victimized from a land grab.” — Hawaii Gov. Josh Green in the aftermath of deadly and destructive Maui wildfires. “People are right now traumatized. Please do not approach them with an offer to buy their land.
https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-spain-wildfires-hurricane-mexico-extreme-weather-b0db40cd74f5341abbcd98d84448b6c3
Raging wildfires and extreme weather are devastating communities across the globe
Across the globe, raging wildfires and extreme weather are taking a toll as the people on fire-ravaged Hawaiian island of Maui begin to grapple with the death and destruction.
A general view shows the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
By The Associated Press
Updated 2:14 PM CDT, August 17, 2023
An out-of-control wildfire on the Spanish Canary island of Tenerife has burned thousands of acres .. https://apnews.com/article/spain-wildfires-tenerife-62c6c843d82adc325bdf5b92033afced .. and nearly 8,000 people were evacuated or confined. Regional President Fernando Clavijo said 250 firefighters and members of the Spanish army are tackling flames on the key tourist destination. Clavijo said the fire, which occurred in extremely hot temperatures, had a nearly 30-kilometer-long (19-mile) perimeter.
Here’s what else is happening related to extreme weather and the climate right now:
—-In Canada, residents of the Northwest Territories’ capital began fleeing an approaching wildfire Thursday .. https://apnews.com/article/canada-wildfires-northwest-territories-ca509a053f45f3797b93286f94d6b198 .. in long convoys while air evacuations were underway — the latest chapter in Canada’s worst fire season. The fire was within 16 kilometers (10 miles) of the northern edge of Yellowknife. Although some rain was forecast for the region, first responders were taking no chances.
—-In Hawaii, the governor vowed to block land grabs by developers seeking to exploit residents who were burned out by the fires that leveled the historic Maui town of Lahaina, report Bobby Caina Calvan, Jennifer Sinco Kelleher and Christopher Webber.
With it’s floods, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions and wildfires, Hawaii is increasingly under siege .. https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-wildfires-recovery-maui-lahaina-land-c8cfcacd2e63bdcd66ec13f2963cea8e .. from disasters, especially wildfires, report Seth Borenstein, Mary Katherine Wildeman and Bobby Caina Calvan. And as residents reel from the most recent one, many are dealing with mental health issues, reports Claire Rush.
—-In Northern California, wind-whipped wildfires near the California-Oregon border forced evacuations Wednesday after gusty winds from a thunderstorm sent a lightning-sparked wildfire racing through Klamath National Forest.
—-In the Baja California region, Hurricane Hilary formed off Mexico’s Pacific coast Thursday, and forecasters said it could bring heavy rain to the U.S. Southwest by the weekend.
QUOTABLE:
“My intention from start to finish is to make sure that no one is victimized from a land grab.” — Hawaii Gov. Josh Green in the aftermath of deadly and destructive Maui wildfires. “People are right now traumatized. Please do not approach them with an offer to buy their land.
https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-spain-wildfires-hurricane-mexico-extreme-weather-b0db40cd74f5341abbcd98d84448b6c3
'Much bigger than Watergate': John Dean weighs in on Trump's Georgia indictment - CNN
Women’s World Cup
https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup
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AP PHOTOS: Women’s World Cup highlights
By The Associated Press
Updated 9:01 AM CDT, August 12, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is showcasing some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs.
Associated Press photographers are covering every match at the month-long tournament, including wins by Australia, England, Spain and Sweden to advance to the semifinals.
Spain’s Esther Gonzalez, left, and Netherlands’ Damaris Egurrola compete to head the ball during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Netherlands’ Stefanie Van der Gragt celebrates after scoring her team’s first goal during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
A Japanese supporter poses for a photo ahead of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Cornaga)
Sweden’s Filippa Angeldal, second right, celebrates after scoring her side’s second goal off a penalty kick during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Japan’s Hinata Miyazawa, center, reacts at the end of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. Sweden won 2-1. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
France’s goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin, left, is replaced by France’s goalkeeper Solene Durand during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
Australia’s Sam Kerr celebrates after scoring during a penalty shootout during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
France players sit and stand on the pitch in dejection at the end of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
England’s Alessia Russo, center, is celebrated after she scored her side’s second goal during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between England and Colombia at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
AP PHOTOS: Women’s World Cup highlights
By The Associated Press
Updated 9:01 AM CDT, August 12, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is showcasing some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs. Associated Press photographers are covering every match at the month-long tournament, including wins by Australia, England, Spain and Sweden to advance to the semifinals.
Spain’s Esther Gonzalez, left, and Netherlands’ Damaris Egurrola compete to head the ball during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Netherlands’ Stefanie Van der Gragt celebrates after scoring her team’s first goal during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
A Japanese supporter poses for a photo ahead of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Cornaga)
Sweden’s Filippa Angeldal, second right, celebrates after scoring her side’s second goal off a penalty kick during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Japan’s Hinata Miyazawa, center, reacts at the end of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Japan and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. Sweden won 2-1. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
France’s goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin, left, is replaced by France’s goalkeeper Solene Durand during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
Australia’s Sam Kerr celebrates after scoring during a penalty shootout during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
France players sit and stand on the pitch in dejection at the end of the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Australia and France in Brisbane, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)
England’s Alessia Russo, center, is celebrated after she scored her side’s second goal during the Women’s World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between England and Colombia at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia, Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)
Why is this indictment different from all other indictments?
The Fulton County charges aren't just Trump's latest legal threat — they might be his biggest challenge to date
Rafi Schwartz
August 15, 2023
links:
https://theweek.com/donald-trump/1025809/trump-georgia-indictment-charges-rico
After more than a year of investigation, and months of telegraphing what, in retrospect, seems like an inevitable outcome, a grand jury in Fulton County, Georgia on Monday night handed up a massive criminal indictment against former President Donald Trump and more than a dozen co-conspirators, alleging they engaged in a "criminal enterprise" to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election in Trump's favor.
Over the course of the 98-page document, .. https://int.nyt.com/data/documenttools/georgia-indictment-trump/daed97d37562a76f/full.pdf .. Trump and his co-conspirators are accused of racketeering, conspiracy to commit forgery, perjury, illegally breaching voting equipment and other charges, with the former president himself facing 13 felony counts related to his push to "unlawfully change the outcome of the election" which he'd lost.
The Georgia indictment completes what had widely been expected to be a quadrangle of criminal charges against the former president, alongside charges stemming from his alleged hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election, mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and broader election subversion in the wake of his 2020 loss. But the Georgia charges — bringing Trump's grand total to 91 — stand apart from their predecessors in terms of both scale and specificity, marking a "key departure from special counsel Jack Smith's charges against Trump for election subversion," according to CNN. So what makes this latest indictment so different from Trump's previous charges, and where could this all lead as we draw closer to the upcoming presidential election?
What are the commentators saying?
The Fulton County indictment "may be the last of the Trump indictments, but it was the big one," The Associated Press said. Thanks to Georgia's unique anti-racketeering statutes, District Attorney Fani Willis was able to craft "a wide-ranging narrative by citing and charging other players in the alleged wrongdoing, even those out of state," as compared to Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith's more narrowly focused indictment. Willis' indictment is "far more encompassing and detailed than Smith's ongoing federal investigation" agreed the Washington Post, while noting that Willis has "declined to say if she has had contact with Smith" in the lead-up to Monday's charges. Unlike a "conspiracy" charge, the RICO statutes behind this latest indictment mean Willis is "painting this picture of people winking and nodding and working toward this end goal of overthrowing the election, but without some kind of expressed agreement," Georgia State University law professor Anthony Michael Kreis explained in The Conversation. Moreover, the expansive nature of RICO charges creates a "big incentive for people who are listed as co-defendants to cooperate with the state and to provide evidence, in order to escape punishment and secure favorable deals," Kreis continued, concluding that "this is probably the biggest risk to Trump, and the likelihood that he would be convicted in Fulton County rests with this."
Conversely, the sprawling nature of the RICO charges could make things more difficult when it comes time to bring the case to trial. "'Less is more' is the gold standard that Jack Smith used in the recent Jan. 6 indictment of just one defendant, Donald Trump," former federal prosecutor Gene Rossi told Bloomberg. The more defendants there are, as in the case of Fulton County, "they all have their own schedules and their calendars. It's like herding cats."
Crucially, while Trump is expected to "employ a similar defense in both the earlier federal indictment and the Fulton County case" — that of simply having exercised his first amendment right to speak out against what he legitimately viewed as election fraud — "it's not clear that defense will work" in this case, AP said. No matter how benign some of the 161 acts alleged by prosecutors to have made up the overall conspiracy to overturn the election results may seem when taken alone, "the indictment argues they were all steps in what it calls 'a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump,'" AP continued. In other words, the alleged crime is less about the sprawling web of individual actions, as it is about their cumulative effect and the motivation behind them.
What's next?
Speaking Monday evening after the charges were announced, Willis gave Trump and his 18 co-conspirators until Aug. 25 to "voluntarily" turn themselves in, and said that she would recommend their trial be set sometime in the coming six months. Accordingly, "there stands to be some crossover in evidence – especially in the form of witness testimony – that may pose challenges" for Willis and Smith's "dueling" trial timelines, CNN said, noting that "once one of the cases goes to trial, any witness that testifies in that case will be locked in for their testimony in the other – or otherwise facing the risk of perjury." Moreover, if Trump is actually convicted in Georgia, he will nevertheless be unable to issue himself a pardon — or ask for one from anyone else — should he be elected president regardless. Not only are federal pardons inapplicable on state charges, but unlike other states, Georgia does not allow the governor to directly pardon convicted people. While there is a complicated state pardon process, it involves an appointed board of members and can only be applied years after from the initial conviction and sentencing.
"Unless someone tells me differently, we are following our normal practices," Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat said, when asked about how Trump's arraignment and booking would proceed. That means Trump will be "subject to a mug shot that could be made public and a surrender at the county jail where squalid conditions and an inmate death recently sparked a Justice Department investigation," according to The Washington Post.
Ultimately, this latest indictment comes amidst the quickening pace of the Republican presidential primary race, and the 2024 presidential election at large. In that context, "a fourth Trump indictment is unlikely to be any more ruinous to his political career than the previous three – at least, in the Republican primary," CNN asserted, noting that none of the former president's rivals have been able to "take advantage of Trump's political liabilities without alienating vast numbers of his supporters." Crucially, however, the likelihood that Trump's trial in Georgia may be televised, at least in part, means that "there is a difference between indictments and actually sitting there in a courtroom in a trial and how that impacts voters," Marc Short, former chief of staff to Trump's Vice President Mike Pence, told CNN's Jake Tapper this week.
Trump and 18 allies charged in Fulton County grand jury indictment: Highlights
Trump was charged with felony racketeering and numerous conspiracy charges in the 41-count indictment, which named 19 defendants.
Updated Aug. 15, 2023, 5:01 PM CDT
By NBC News
02:38
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/live-blog/trump-georgia-indictment-rcna98900
The latest news in the Fulton County probe of the 2020 election:
*A Georgia grand jury indicted former President Donald Trump late Monday, .. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-indicted-georgia-racketeering-rcna74912 .. charging him with felony racketeering and numerous conspiracy counts as part of a sweeping investigation into the effort by him and his allies to overturn the 2020 election.
*The 41-count indictment also names lawyers Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Kenneth Chesebro, Jenna Ellis and Ray Smith and several other people.
*Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis enlisted a special grand jury last year that heard testimony from 75 witnesses. .. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/grand-jury-georgia-trump-election-probe-completes-final-report-judge-s-rcna64891
*Among the best-known moments .. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-begs-georgia-secretary-state-overturn-election-results-remarkable-hourlong-n1252692 .. in the pressure campaign against Georgia officials was a call in which Trump asked Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to "find" the votes he needed to beat Joe Biden.
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Undoubtedly!
Homemade UFO car invades the streets of Thailand
KameraOne
Thu, 10 August 2023 at 5:00 pm GMT-5
A remarkable DIY creation captured the attention of tourists in Pattaya, Thailand, as a silver hat-shaped car resembling a UFO cruised alongside other vehicles. Built by the inventive Uncle Noo, the eye-catching spacecraft, equipped with flickering lights, amused onlookers and tourists alike. The whimsical creation is part of Uncle Noo's mission to spread smiles and create a lively atmosphere for visitors.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/homemade-ufo-car-invades-streets-220000321.html
A ‘once every 7.5 million years’ event is currently unfolding in Antarctica:
‘To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough’
"Heat is the number one killer of all natural disasters"
Story by Laurelle Stelle •
4h
Currently winter in Antarctica
© Provided by The Cool Down
In the past eight years, sea ice in Antarctica has reached a new record low four times, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. ..
"Antarctic sea ice levels dive in 'five-sigma event', as experts flag worsening consequences for planet"
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-24/antarctic-sea-ice-levels-nosedive-five-sigma-event/102635204
The first three times, ice levels that have dropped in the summer have rebounded in the winter.
But this year — during what is currently winter in Antarctica — scientists have confirmed that the ice is not re-forming, leaving long stretches of the Antarctic coastline bare.
What’s happening?
According to physical oceanographer Edward Doddridge, this is the first time an event like this has been observed, the ABC reports — and it’s extremely unlikely to have happened on its own.
“To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough,” Doddridge told the ABC. “This is a five-sigma event. … Which means that if nothing had changed, we’d expect to see a winter like this about once every 7.5 million years. … There are people saying it could be natural variability … but it’s very unlikely.”
According to Doddridge and others, the most likely cause is human activity. People create air pollution through activities like burning fuel, and that pollution traps heat on our planet, heating up the atmosphere and the ocean. Some combination of warmer water and higher-energy weather patterns is likely what’s melting the ice, scientists told the ABC.
video
https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/weather/scientists-no-quick-fix-for-antarctic-sea-ice-loss/vi-AA1eZHMY?ocid=msedgdhp&t=47
Why does the loss of Antarctic ice matter?
Polar ice is a major factor in the Earth’s “albedo,” which is the amount of light reflected from the surface instead of being absorbed. When there’s more ice, the planet’s albedo is higher, and the sun doesn’t warm it as quickly. When ice melts, the planet starts absorbing more heat.
This also creates “ice-albedo feedback,” the ABC says — a vicious cycle in which melting ice makes the ocean heat up faster, causing even more ice to melt. If too much of the polar ice is lost, it could reach a tipping point that will lead to the Earth heating up much more quickly.
Petra Heil, a sea ice physicist from the Australian Antarctic Division, told the ABC, “We might end up in a new state. That would be quite concerning to the sustainability of human conditions on Earth, I suspect.”
A much hotter environment has frightening implications for human health. It could also destroy the fish we rely on for food, the farmland where we grow crops, and the rainforests we need for oxygen.
What can be done about the vanishing ice?
The best hope for the planet is to stop the runaway air pollution causing our planet to heat up. However, it needs to happen quickly.
“I think a lot of people have the time line too long out, saying this won’t affect them,” Heil told the ABC. “I’m pretty convinced that this is something my generation will experience.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/a-once-every-7-5-million-years-event-is-currently-unfolding-in-antarctica-to-say-unprecedented-isn-t-strong-enough/ar-AA1f6rP5?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=1c80635c69214932b661f5618582413b&ei=13
A ‘once every 7.5 million years’ event is currently unfolding in Antarctica:
‘To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough’
Story by Laurelle Stelle •
4h
Currently winter in Antarctica
© Provided by The Cool Down
In the past eight years, sea ice in Antarctica has reached a new record low four times, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. ..
"Antarctic sea ice levels dive in 'five-sigma event', as experts flag worsening consequences for planet"
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-24/antarctic-sea-ice-levels-nosedive-five-sigma-event/102635204
The first three times, ice levels that have dropped in the summer have rebounded in the winter.
But this year — during what is currently winter in Antarctica — scientists have confirmed that the ice is not re-forming, leaving long stretches of the Antarctic coastline bare.
What’s happening?
According to physical oceanographer Edward Doddridge, this is the first time an event like this has been observed, the ABC reports — and it’s extremely unlikely to have happened on its own.
“To say unprecedented isn’t strong enough,” Doddridge told the ABC. “This is a five-sigma event. … Which means that if nothing had changed, we’d expect to see a winter like this about once every 7.5 million years. … There are people saying it could be natural variability … but it’s very unlikely.”
According to Doddridge and others, the most likely cause is human activity. People create air pollution through activities like burning fuel, and that pollution traps heat on our planet, heating up the atmosphere and the ocean. Some combination of warmer water and higher-energy weather patterns is likely what’s melting the ice, scientists told the ABC.
video
https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/weather/scientists-no-quick-fix-for-antarctic-sea-ice-loss/vi-AA1eZHMY?ocid=msedgdhp&t=47
Why does the loss of Antarctic ice matter?
Polar ice is a major factor in the Earth’s “albedo,” which is the amount of light reflected from the surface instead of being absorbed. When there’s more ice, the planet’s albedo is higher, and the sun doesn’t warm it as quickly. When ice melts, the planet starts absorbing more heat.
This also creates “ice-albedo feedback,” the ABC says — a vicious cycle in which melting ice makes the ocean heat up faster, causing even more ice to melt. If too much of the polar ice is lost, it could reach a tipping point that will lead to the Earth heating up much more quickly.
Petra Heil, a sea ice physicist from the Australian Antarctic Division, told the ABC, “We might end up in a new state. That would be quite concerning to the sustainability of human conditions on Earth, I suspect.”
A much hotter environment has frightening implications for human health. It could also destroy the fish we rely on for food, the farmland where we grow crops, and the rainforests we need for oxygen.
What can be done about the vanishing ice?
The best hope for the planet is to stop the runaway air pollution causing our planet to heat up. However, it needs to happen quickly.
“I think a lot of people have the time line too long out, saying this won’t affect them,” Heil told the ABC. “I’m pretty convinced that this is something my generation will experience.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/a-once-every-7-5-million-years-event-is-currently-unfolding-in-antarctica-to-say-unprecedented-isn-t-strong-enough/ar-AA1f6rP5?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=1c80635c69214932b661f5618582413b&ei=13
Judge schedules Friday hearing on protective order in election subversion case against Trump
By Tierney Sneed
Published 6:03 PM EDT, Tue August 8, 2023
01:22
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/08/politics/trump-protective-order-hearing/index.html
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan scheduled a hearing for Friday at 10 a.m. ET on the scope of a protective order – the rules imposed for the handling of evidence – in the special counsel’s election subversion case against former President Donald Trump.
''Security increases for judge assigned to Donald Trump’s January 6 criminal case''
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/07/politics/security-judge-tanya-chutkan-trump-january-6/index.html
This would be the first hearing before Chutkan, a judge who has already come under criticism from Trump supporters and received increased security.
Her move to schedule it for Friday morning comes after Trump’s attorneys – pointing to his busy legal calendar, which includes a Thursday court hearing in Florida in the separate classified documents case – had asked for the elections case hearing in Washington, DC, to be scheduled early next week. The Trump side had said that they had “lost” Friday as an option, but it’s unclear from the filing what they meant by that.
Chuktan previously indicated she would like to hold the hearing on the evidence rules by Friday. Special counsel Jack Smith’s team said they were available at any time Wednesday, Thursday or Friday.
Trump is not required to be present at the Friday hearing in DC, Chutkan said.
Prosecutors in a criminal case can seek a protective order from a court to prevent defendants from speaking publicly about sensitive and confidential information produced during discovery in the case.
The government usually asks for such orders to ensure other individuals involved in a case – like witnesses – won’t be potentially subjected to undue pressure by defendants in a case. Such orders also often hew to federal rules that limit what can be made public from a grand jury proceeding and under what circumstances that information can be disclosed. Requests for the orders are routine, and judges typically issue them in both criminal and civil cases.
Unlike protective orders, which tend to be narrow in scope, a gag order prevents a defendant from talking publicly about a pending case. These orders are seen more often in high-profile cases but are still less common than protective orders due to the constitutional concerns surrounding them.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/08/politics/trump-protective-order-hearing/index.html
AP PHOTOS: Women’s World Cup highlights
By The Associated Press
Updated 8:49 AM CDT, August 3, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is showcasing some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs.
Associated Press photographers are covering every match at the month-long tournament, including Morocco’s win over Colombia that sent them to the knockout rounds and Germany’s tie with South Korea that eliminated the No. 2-ranked team in the world.
Morocco’s head coach Reynald Pedros, left, and his players celebrate after the Women’s World Cup Group H soccer match between Morocco and Colombia in Perth, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gary Day)
Sweden’s Caroline Seger, right, and Argentina’s Camila Ares Gomez compete for the ball during the Women’s World Cup Group G soccer match between Argentina and Sweden in Hamilton, New Zealand, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Cornaga)
Panama players celebrate in the stands after the Women’s World Cup Group F soccer match between France and Panama at the Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Australia, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
United States’ Alex Morgan, center, reacts after missing a shot during the second half of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Group E soccer match between Portugal and the United States at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
United States players from left, Crystal Dunn, Lindsey Horan, Megan Rapinoe, Lynn Williams and Alana Cook walk out onto the pitch ahead of the Women’s World Cup Group E soccer match between Portugal and the United States at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Morocco’s Hanane Ait El Haj, right, watches as Colombia’s Manuela Vanegas, down, challenges Morocco’s Sakina Ouzraoui during the Women’s World Cup Group H soccer match between Morocco and Colombia in Perth, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gary Day)
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-best-moments-photo-gallery-8ea74dc47eea332e766bb66c60a4ec3e
AP PHOTOS: Women’s World Cup highlights
By The Associated Press
Updated 8:49 AM CDT, August 3, 2023
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand is showcasing some of the best soccer on the planet — and some of the best photographs.
Associated Press photographers are covering every match at the month-long tournament, including Morocco’s win over Colombia that sent them to the knockout rounds and Germany’s tie with South Korea that eliminated the No. 2-ranked team in the world.
Morocco’s head coach Reynald Pedros, left, and his players celebrate after the Women’s World Cup Group H soccer match between Morocco and Colombia in Perth, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gary Day)
Sweden’s Caroline Seger, right, and Argentina’s Camila Ares Gomez compete for the ball during the Women’s World Cup Group G soccer match between Argentina and Sweden in Hamilton, New Zealand, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Cornaga)
Panama players celebrate in the stands after the Women’s World Cup Group F soccer match between France and Panama at the Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Australia, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
United States’ Alex Morgan, center, reacts after missing a shot during the second half of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Group E soccer match between Portugal and the United States at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
United States players from left, Crystal Dunn, Lindsey Horan, Megan Rapinoe, Lynn Williams and Alana Cook walk out onto the pitch ahead of the Women’s World Cup Group E soccer match between Portugal and the United States at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Morocco’s Hanane Ait El Haj, right, watches as Colombia’s Manuela Vanegas, down, challenges Morocco’s Sakina Ouzraoui during the Women’s World Cup Group H soccer match between Morocco and Colombia in Perth, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gary Day)
https://apnews.com/article/womens-world-cup-best-moments-photo-gallery-8ea74dc47eea332e766bb66c60a4ec3e
New Trump Fund-Raising E-mail Asks Supporters to Serve Prison Time for Him
By Andy Borowitz
August 2, 2023
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—A new fund-raising e-mail from Donald J. Trump is offering donors the “unique chance” to serve prison time for the former President.
“Jack So-Called Smith and the Biden Justice Department want to put Your Favorite President Behind Bars!” the appeal, which was sent to millions of Trump supporters, reads. “For a Limited Time Only, You Can Go in My Place!!!”
According to a campaign spokesman, Trump donors are lining up in substantial numbers to serve time in prison for him. “This offer is doing even better than the Trump N.F.T.s,” the campaign worker said.
The success of the appeal, however, has raised concern that the demand for Trump prison slots could overwhelm supply. “Hopefully, there will be some more indictments soon,” the spokesman said.
https://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/new-trump-fund-raising-e-mail-asks-supporters-to-serve-prison-time-for-him
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