| The Latest: European powers concerned about Iran nuke deal Posted: 02 Jul 2019 10:27 AM PDT  European powers that have been trying to preserve the nuclear deal with Iran are underlining their concern at Tehran exceeding its stockpile limit for low-enriched uranium and their demand that it comply in full with the accord.
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| Hong Kong on Edge After Historic Night of Vandalism and Tear Gas Posted: 02 Jul 2019 02:43 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong began picking up after historic protests left the legislature ransacked, the streets littered with spent tear gas canisters and the city's Beijing-backed leader promising to push back against further unrest.Authorities announced that the central government complex in Admiralty would reopen Wednesday, but the legislative building will require a lengthier cleanup after demonstrators pulled down portraits, spray-painted slogans and draped a Union Jack-emblazoned colonial flag across the body president's desk. Chief Executive Carrie Lam condemned the "extreme use of violence and vandalism" and defended the police's decision to leave the Legislative Council to a small, but destructive group of protesters.Most of the violence ended early Tuesday after the last crowds of mask- and helmet-wearing demonstrators fled the area to escape hundreds of riot police firing tear gas. The defacement of the only democratically elected legislature under Beijing control came on the anniversary of the former British colony's return to Chinese rule.Lam's government sparked the political crisis by pushing legislation that would allow extraditions to China, a move that alarmed locals and multinational companies. The clashes have embarrassed the government in Beijing, which continues to back her."The government's handling of the extradition bill issue has reinvigorated what was an ailing pro-democracy movement," said Steve Vickers, former head of the Royal Hong Kong Police's Criminal Intelligence Bureau and chief executive officer of risk consultant Steve Vickers & Associates. "A government crackdown and large-scale arrests of the extreme elements is likely and may result in further, but smaller demonstrations."The Hang Seng Index rose 1.2% as the city's market reopened after a holiday, catching up with a global rally on trade talk optimism. The Hong Kong dollar briefly traded in the stronger half of its band against the greenback for the first time since September, rising as much as 0.19% to 7.7987.The Chinese government on Tuesday denounced protesters who stormed the legislature as "extremists" and said it supported Hong Kong in punishing anyone responsible for the damage, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing a spokesman from the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council. State media rebuked the vandalism, using the chaos to bolster China's views about the dangers of democracy.Lam, who has seen her popularity plunge to record lows amid weeks of unprecedented protests, seized on the destruction to call for a return to order. She drew a contrast with a largely peaceful protest march Monday that attracted one of the largest crowds ever -- between 190,000 and 550,000 people -- with the occupation of the legislature."This is something that we should seriously condemn because nothing is more important than the rule of law in Hong Kong," she said. "I hope community at large will agree with us that, with these violent acts that we have seen, it is right for us to condemn it and hope society will return to normal as soon as possible."Lam's response to the unrest was criticized as dismissive by opposition lawmakers, who demanded a meeting with the chief executive. Eddie Chu, a member of the Legislative Council, said Lam hadn't said what her administration would do to address the underlying political problems."Ninety-nine percent is about the condemnation of the protesters, but very little time was left for how the government is going to resolve this crisis," he told Bloomberg Television outside the legislature Tuesday. "In the coming weeks, we will see a very large hit back from the Beijing side and it turn into a security issue."Hong Kong Police Commissioner Stephen Lo said Tuesday that police retreated out of fear for the safety of bystanders and themselves after protesters backed them into the building, tampered with the electrical boxes and threw "toxic powder" at officers. As of 4 p.m., there was no indication from police that any protesters had been arrested.Legislative Council President Andrew Leung said the remaining two meetings of the legislature before its summer recess in July had been called off after extensive damage, effectively canceling the remainder of this year's session."The police are now gathering evidence in the complex," he said. "The repair and the rebuilding of the LegCo complex is expected to take a long time."At her early morning news conference, Lam denied that her government hasn't responded to the people's demands, pointing to a mid-June announcement that the extradition bill would be suspended. But some protesters have vowed to fight until she withdraws the bill completely and resigns.Opposition lawmaker Claudia Mo said pan-democratic politicians didn't approve of the ransacking, but that Lam had twisted the events to cast the protesters in a bad light."Of course, we do not endorse vandalism, we don't condone violence, but we hope everyone, not just in Hong Kong but in the whole wide world will try to understand the Hong Kong youngsters, the desperation exhibited behind the so-called violent act," she told reporters. "Carrie Lam is trying to turn the table and trying to shift public opinion, focusing on our youngsters."(Updates with reopening of government offices in second paragraph.)\--With assistance from Fion Li, Bill Faries, Larry Liebert, Dominic Lau, Jon Herskovitz, Qi Ding and Will Davies.To contact the reporters on this story: Natalie Lung in Hong Kong at flung6@bloomberg.net;David Tweed in Hong Kong at dtweed@bloomberg.net;Kari Lindberg in Hong Kong at klindberg13@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Karen LeighFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| US officials inaugurated 'fake' archaeology project: senior Palestinian Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:44 AM PDT  A senior Palestinian official Monday condemned the participation of US envoys in an event linked to Israeli settlers and scoffed at their account that it was for a new archaeology project. US ambassador to Israel David Friedman and White House adviser Jason Greenblatt were among US officials attending the event organised by the City of David Foundation on Sunday night in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. Palestinians and anti-occupation activists see it as another attempt by Israel to cement its control over predominantly Palestinian east Jerusalem.
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| Man who claimed to have protected students during school shooting revealed to be a hoax Posted: 02 Jul 2019 11:08 AM PDT  A man who gained media attention after claiming he saved students from a mass shooting while working as a substitute teacher never worked at the school, officials say.David Briscoe had spoken to numerous news organisations in the wake of the May 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting in Texas, which left 10 people dead and thirteen others wounded.He recounted stories of barricading children from an English class into their room, telling them to find cover and muffle their screams to avoid detection.However, an investigation by the Texas Tribune has revealed his supposed heroics are likely a fiction.Local police told the news website the shooting had been confined to art classrooms and there were no English classes being held in the vicinity. Meanwhile, school district officials said they had no record of his employment and are confident no one of the name David Briscoe was on campus at the time of the attack."We are extremely disappointed that an individual that has never been a part of our school community would represent themselves as a survivor of the mass violence tragedy that our community endured," said Leigh Wall, the superintendent of Santa Fe Independent School District said."This situation illustrates how easily misinformation can be created and circulated, especially when the amount of detailed information available is limited due to the still ongoing investigation."In the wake of the shooting, Mr Briscoe appears to have contacted several media outlets to claim he was involved in the tragedy.The Wall Street Journal, CNN and Time went on to use his account of events in their coverage. All have since removed his comments from their stories and published corrections."It was simultaneous," Mr Briscoe had told CNN. "I barricaded the door with desks and tables and shut the lights."Honestly, it felt like hours before we got out of the school, but one of my students said it was 30 to 45 minutes."His story went into grisly detail, including claims he heard the sound of what he supposed was a child getting shot, followed by "groaning".He went on to contact the Tribune in April this year, asking reporter Alexandra Samuels if she would consider a follow-up story relating to a string of recent suicides by mass shooting survivors.In a subsequent phone call, Mr Briscoe reportedly told Ms Samuels he had given up teaching and moved out of Texas as a result of the trauma he suffered.He claimed he had given a speech on his experience at a high school in Orlando, Florida, an event the principal of the school said never took place.Later asked if he could help fact-check some of his claims, Mr Biscoe claimed one of his employees had been impersonating him during the interview and on social media, denying he had given an interview. The Twitter account he used to first contact the Tribune has since been deactivated.Dimitrios Pagourtzis, at the time a 17-year-old Santa Fe High School student, has been charged with 10 counts of murder in connection to the shootings. He is currently awaiting trial.
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| Australian man dies 10 days after eating gecko at party Posted: 02 Jul 2019 10:00 AM PDT  An Australian family is still grieving over the unexpected loss of their father, who fell gravely ill after allegedly eating a gecko on a dare.
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| Democrats, Beware of Andrew Yang’s Insane Vision for America Posted: 02 Jul 2019 01:39 AM PDT  Photo illustration by Sarah Rogers/The Daily Beast/Photos GettyAfter a surprising surge to make his way to the debate stage, Andrew Yang didn't make much of an impression there in just three minutes of speaking time as leading Democrats with a lot in common tried to make the most of their distinctions. But Yang was only there at all because he raised money and registered in the polls by packing the policies of elite technocrats in a coating of Clintonesque pain-feeling paternalism. He's already made the list for the next Democratic debate, and his rise is an early warning about how, no matter how bad our politics may see right now, they could be far worse if parties and voters don't police themselves and defend their values.Andrew Yang, Upstart Democratic Presidential Candidate, Comes Out Against CircumcisionYang cut his teeth in test prep, an industry that sorts students based on abilities for a nifty profit. That sorting, of course, privileges the wealthy who have more access to the resources the prep industry offers. He became a millionaire when he sold his company, Manhattan Prep, to Kaplan, the test prep industry leader, and founded Venture for America, "to create economic opportunity in American cities by mobilizing the next generation of entrepreneurs and equipping them with the skills and resources they need to create jobs"—that is, to hack the rust belt with venture funding. Now, Yang is running for president to fulfill the tech oligarchs' dream of a universal basic income intended to pacify the poor as a substitute for actually dealing with income inequality. It is politics as philanthropy, that smacks of a 19th-century noblesse oblige.This is a brand of politics intended to neuter a muscular liberalism based on moral guidelines and defined as an attempt to civilize the economy and empower people. It is an approach not only opposed to the democratic socialism of Bernie Sanders, but to the core philosophies of the Democratic Party. Yang's prescription stands against the notion that the state, through policies and legislation, needs to play a more muscular role in social and economic life. Instead, he is providing a Silicon Valley venture capitalist's vision, one that acknowledges inequality and injustice, but then seeks to treat only its symptoms rather than its cause: Just give money to the poor, and let them figure it out. Perhaps unsurprisingly, his approach—shorn of emotion, passion or sensitivity—has drawn never Trumpers, libertarians and members of the alt-right to his "Yang Gang." His campaign picked up momentum from appearances with Tucker Carlson on Fox and Joe Rogan on his podcast, as he's called for—along with a $12,000 a year "Freedom Dividend" for every adult American—a massive reduction of the federal workforce, a 10-percent slice of the military budget for a "Legion of Builders and Destroyers" that would be able to overrule state and local governments to get new stuff built, and, of course an outside consultant who'd supposedly make all of this work. If this sounds crazy that's because it is crazy. It's the "disruption" tech companies keep peddling and that consumers keep ending up with buyer's remorse about, but for our entire nation. Yang's politics masquerades as a new form of liberalism but they are something entirely different, as he aims to gut the federal government while handing unfettered power to tech executives and real estate developers, with a measly $1,000 a month for the rest of us as this happens.Democrats, and the Democratic Party, need to make themselves clear: This is not the future that liberals want. Read 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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| Can China Track and Shoot Down the F-22? Posted: 01 Jul 2019 07:00 PM PDT  The laws of physics essentially dictate that a tactical fighter-sized stealth aircraft must be optimized to defeat higher-frequency bands such the C, X, Ku and the top part of the S bands. State-run Chinese media is claiming that the People's Liberation Army has been able to track the U.S. Air Force's Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor stealth fighters over the East China Sea. While the Chinese report might be easily dismissed as propaganda—it is not beyond the realm of possibility. In fact—it's very possible that China can track the Raptor. Stealth is not a cloak of invisibility, after all. Stealth technology simply delays detection and tracking.(This first appeared in 2016.)First off, if a Raptor is carrying external fuel tanks—as it often does during "ferry missions"—it is not in a stealth configuration. Moreover, the aircraft is often fitted with a Luneburg lens device on its ventral side during peacetime operations that enhances its cross section on radar.That being said, even combat-configured F-22s are not invisible to enemy radar, contrary to popular belief. Neither is any other tactical fighter-sized stealth aircraft with empennage surfaces such as tailfins—the F-35, PAK-FA, J-20 or J-31. That's just basic physics.
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| Mexico buses home dozens of asylum seekers returned by US Posted: 02 Jul 2019 03:00 PM PDT  In a statement, the Foreign Relations Department described it as the beginning of a "temporary program of voluntary return" for migrants in northern Mexico who wish to go home. It said 69 people — 40 Hondurans, 22 Guatemalans and seven Salvadorans — were involved, and 66 of those were returnees under the U.S. program. Officials said the bus left Ciudad Juarez at 9 a.m. and that all aboard wanted to be repatriated to their native countries in Central America's Northern Triangle, the source of a surge of migration in recent months, many of them families with children.
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| CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-UN calls for independent probe into Venezuelan navy captain's death Posted: 01 Jul 2019 10:51 AM PDT ![CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-UN calls for independent probe into Venezuelan navy captain's death]( "CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-UN calls for independent probe into Venezuelan navy captain's death") CARACAS/GENEVA, July 1 (Reuters) - Venezuelan authorities must conduct an independent and transparent investigation into the death in custody of a navy captain amid allegations of torture, U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on Monday. President Nicolas Maduro's government over the weekend confirmed the death on June 29 of Rafael Acosta, arrested eight days earlier for alleged participation in a coup plot, without providing details on the cause of death or commenting on the torture accusations. Human rights organizations and political leaders have accused Maduro's government of torturing Acosta to death and refusing to clarify the circumstances.
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| Pence's abrupt travel cancellation sparks speculation Posted: 02 Jul 2019 10:29 AM PDT  Pence was previously scheduled to travel to Manchester, N.H.
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| Iran's Guards kill two militants in northwestern region - Fars Posted: 02 Jul 2019 09:27 AM PDT ![Iran's Guards kill two militants in northwestern region - Fars]( "Iran's Guards kill two militants in northwestern region - Fars") Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards killed two members of an "anti-revolutionary terrorist" group in a security operation in the northwest of the country, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Tuesday. Fars did not identify the group but clashes are common in the area with Iranian Kurdish militant groups based in Iraq and the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), which has links to Turkey's militant Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK).
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| Plane crash in Texas kills 10 people: officials Posted: 30 Jun 2019 08:39 PM PDT  A small twin-engine passenger plane crashed in Texas in the United States on Sunday, killing 10 people, officials said. "The Dallas County Medical Examiner has confirmed 10 fatalities and no survivors," a spokeswoman for the town of Addison told AFP. The plane was heading for St. Petersburg, Florida and was carrying two flight crew and eight passengers, Vice Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Bruce Landsberg said.
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| View Photos of the 2020 Audi S8 Posted: 01 Jul 2019 09:01 PM PDT |
| A Canadian political cartoonist's drawing of Donald Trump went viral. Two days later, he was fired Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:34 AM PDT  A Canadian political cartoonist said he was let go from his freelance contract two days after his cartoon featuring President Donald Trump went viral.
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| Church steps in to host LGBT+ prom after library cancels in face of backlash Posted: 02 Jul 2019 03:26 AM PDT  When the Storybook Pride Prom for Jacksonville, Florida's LGBT\+ teens was cancelled after online conservative backlash, a local church made sure the story had a happy ending.The Willowbranch Library in Jacksonville originally organised the event, where 14 to 18-year-olds were invited to come in costume as their favourite book character, with a dress code of "casual, formal, or in drag – whatever makes you feel great. Be you!"Over 100 teens planned to attend.But when the event caught the attention of a conservative blogger, who encouraged her nearly 700,000 Facebook followers to call the library to complain, the Jacksonville Public Library cancelled the event on 24 June due to fears for the teens' safety – to the outrage of many local parents and community members.Ultimately, the kids got their dance. The Buckman Bridge Unitarian Universalist Church in Jacksonville stepped in and held the prom on Friday, the same night as the original event at the neighbourhood's library."It was the right thing to do," Grace Repass, the church's past president, said in a statement to The Washington Post."The LGBTQIA+ youth in our community deserve to have their prom and we wanted to support them."Ms Repass said the decision to host the prom was swift and unanimously supported by the church's board, and that the event featured "Happy teens, grateful parents, and a lot of community support"."We see our church as a safe place for people who are figuring out who they are," she said."Our Unitarian Universalist values call us to respect the inherent worth and dignity of every person. So, it's a matter of integrity-to act in alignment with who we say we are."About 50 volunteers, LGBT+ veterans, private security, and the Jacksonville sheriff's office were on hand to protect the kids, News4Jax reported.Willowbranch Library originally announced the prom on Facebook on 4 June.But on 21 June, blogger Elizabeth Johnson, who goes by "Activist Mommy", encouraged her followers to "express your disgust that this perversion is taking place in a taxpayer funded library!" and listed the branch's phone number.Ms Johnson's Facebook page frequently criticises drag queens and LGBT+ people, and she has encouraged her followers to call libraries that host storytime events where drag performers read to children. She could not immediately be reached for comment.That call to action was echoed by a Florida group called Biblical Concepts Ministries, whose stated mission is "educating, motivating, and activating the body of Christ in civil and community service and public policy in order to defend our religious freedoms."The group blasted out an "emergency alert" email to pastors and supporters urging them to contact the mayor and city council to complain about the "inappropriate insanity".The group's founder, Raymond Johnson, told News4Jax that "we're absolutely opposed to anything like this".The Biblical Concepts Ministries declared victory on Facebook over the cancellation on 24 June, calling it a "Perverted Drag Queen Prom for Children".In a Facebook statement on the cancellation, the Jacksonville Public Library said that it "promotes inclusivity and acceptance of all people, regardless of sexual orientation", but that after hearing of physical threats to the young participants, it decided to cancel.That decision prompted protests of its own from patrons upset that the library had capitulated to pressure from anti-LGBT+ activists. Some parents even suggested that the library director, Tim Rogers, resign.Chris Boivin, spokesman for Jacksonville Public Libraries, told The Washington Post via email that Mr Rogers "now understands how the cancellation impacted the teens who were planning to attend as well as the greater LGBTQ community. This has been a humbling and learning experience."But Mr Boivin stood by the decision to cancel the event."As a small, non-activist organisation, we had never dealt with this kind of thing before," he wrote."With one week to go before holding a brand-new event for teens, we felt out of our element and unprepared to ensure the kids' safety and sense of security."We had the teens' well-being and safety in mind when we cancelled, and nothing else. We did not realise how the cancellation would impact the LGBTQ community, and for that, we are very sorry."BeBe Deluxe, a drag queen who was scheduled to appear at the prom, wrote on Instagram after the cancellation that such events were important because, "trans kids need to see themselves represented in healthy trans adults"."Gay kids need to see happy gay adults. Straight kids need to learn to help make the world better for everybody."One parent critical of Mr Rogers, Michelle Leipuner, said that he had "caved" to online pressure and that the children had not been in danger.Ms Leipuner said she called the library and the mayor's office to complain and participated in a protest against Mr Rogers last week.Ms Leipuner's 14-year-old son is gay, and she has a 17-year-old daughter who is transgender, she told The Washington Post, and the cancellation felt intensely personal to her.She had been excited for her son to attend the prom, because it presented an "opportunity for him to go and meet people like him, different from him". She called its cancellation a "slap in the face".She praised the Buckman Bridge Unitarian Universalist Church's last-minute intervention, as it gave her son the opportunity to celebrate pride with his fellow LGBTQ teens."He was the belle of the ball," she said. "He had a gorgeous gold dress on. He was beautiful."Washington Post
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| The Latest: Boy drowns after mom tried to drown him in 2008 Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:18 PM PDT  More than a decade after a woman was prosecuted in Montana for trying to drown her baby son in a river, she's accused of killing the now 12-year-old by drowning him in an irrigation ditch in California. Officials in Tulare County, California, said Monday that an autopsy found Jackson Telnas died Saturday of drowning. Deputies responded to a 911 call reporting Sherri Telnas was acting strangely and had taken her sons to a cornfield across from their rural home in central California.
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| 15+ All-American Jell-O Shots For Your Fourth Of July Party Posted: 01 Jul 2019 10:21 AM PDT |
| As U.S. Forces Gather Near Iran (Think F-22s and F-35s), Russia Jams Their GPS Posted: 01 Jul 2019 11:53 AM PDT  Russian forces have been jamming GPS systems in the Middle East. The electronic-warfare campaign could affect U.S. forces gathering in the region in advance of potential strikes on Iran."Since last spring, pilots flying through the Middle East, specifically around Syria, have noted that their GPS systems have displayed the wrong location or stopped working entirely," The Times of Israel reported in late June 2019.> The signal that has been disrupting satellite navigation for planes flying through Israeli airspace in recent weeks originates inside a Russian air base inside Syria, according to data collected by a U.S.-based researcher.> > This interference to the Global Positioning System reception does not appear to be specifically directed at Israel, but rather the Jewish state is likely collateral damage in an effort by Moscow both to protect its troops from drone attacks and to assert its dominance in the field of electronic warfare, Todd Humphreys, a professor at the University of Texas, told The Times of Israel.Israeli sources "are increasingly convinced" that three weeks of GPS disruptions for civilian flights are a side effect of Russian jamming and spoofing in Syria, Breaking Defense reported. "Moscow is trying to interfere with both Western airplanes — including cutting-edge stealthy F-22s and F-35s — and improvised terrorist drones."
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| UPDATE 4-Taiwan's president to visit U.S. in July, angering China Posted: 30 Jun 2019 08:16 PM PDT ![UPDATE 4-Taiwan's president to visit U.S. in July, angering China]( "UPDATE 4-Taiwan's president to visit U.S. in July, angering China") Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will spend four nights in the United States in July while visiting Caribbean diplomatic allies, her government said on Monday, angering China, which urged Washington not to allow her to visit. China says self-ruled Taiwan is merely a Chinese province with no right to state-to-state relations, calling it the most sensitive and important issue in ties with the United States, which has no formal ties with Taipei, but is its chief diplomatic backer and supplier of arms.
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| Recorder found in Texas plane crash; some victims identified Posted: 01 Jul 2019 07:34 PM PDT  Federal investigators said Monday that they have started analyzing the cockpit voice recorder from a small plane that struck a hangar after taking off from a suburban Dallas airport, and local officials have released the names of six of the 10 people killed in the fiery crash. Two crew members and eight passengers died when the Beechcraft BE-350 King Air crashed into the unoccupied building Sunday morning at Addison Municipal Airport, north of Dallas. Clay Jenkins, the top Dallas County official who presides over the board of commissioners, said Monday evening that the medical examiner's office confirmed 52-year-old Brian Mark Ellard, 58-year-old Stephen Lee Thelen, 28-year-old Matthew Palmer, 15-year-old Alice Maritato and 13-year-old Dylan Maritato were among those killed.
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| World watches China's reaction to Hong Kong protests as fears of military involvement grow Posted: 01 Jul 2019 11:04 AM PDT  The storming of Hong Kong's legislative building on Monday was a severe escalation of recent demonstrations, which will give Beijing reason to consider using stronger force – perhaps even calling on the military in a move that would be reminiscent of the bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square three decades ago. Over the last few weeks, Hong Kong police have fired tear gas, rubber bullets and bean bag rounds on protesters who have been asking city leaders to withdraw an extradition bill that would send suspects to face trial in mainland China where the Communist Party controls the courts. Those crowd-control measures, against protests that had largely been peaceful, quickly turned the public against the police, but left mainland China out of the fray. But now that demonstrators have successfully stormed government buildings, Beijing could have found itself justification for greater physical force to disperse demonstrators. Hong Kong police have clearly been well prepared - armed with riot shields, batons and protective vests - in comparison to the pro-democracy Umbrella Movement in 2014, the last time protesters took the streets. And Beijing is likely to give Hong Kong authorities one more chance to get a grip on the situation. Hong Kong protests: riot police baton charge and fire tear gas to clear demonstrations at parliament, in pictures "The Hong Kong police is still one of the most effective and efficient police forces in the world and it is perfectly capable of dealing with the situation," said Steve Tsang, director of the University of London's SOAS China Institute. Bringing in the Chinese military would be a "last resort." Beijing may also have been deterred from taking a stronger line so far to avoid awkward questions from the press when President Xi Jinping met US president Donald Trump at the G20 in Japan over the weekend. With that out the way, Beijing is freer to take a hard line. "Xi's meeting with Trump was an enormous deterrence against allowing things to get really ugly in Hong Kong, and with that having now been removed, the risk of Beijing allowing more drastic actions taken is significantly higher," said Mr Tsang. The resignation of Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam – who proposed the extradition bill that kicked the protests off – would be one way to close this chapter and move on, fulfilling one of the protesters' main demands. But it would have to be done without appearing to have the backing of Beijing, or risk making Mr Xi appear weak, having caved into protester demands. Authorities could also consider slapping rioting charges against protesters, which carry a jail sentence of up to ten years. But that carries risks for Beijing. Protesters out in the streets now could easily be in and out of prison for the next several years, and may bring more support to their cause. Joshua Wong, who was imprisoned for his role in the 2014 student protests, remained a key figure even behind bars and galvanised supporters in the latest unrest after his recent release. From a propaganda standpoint, China will likely continue with the same line it's used for weeks – blaming unrest in Hong Kong on foreign interference and deflect responsibility. Beijing will not publicly entertain the idea that perhaps the frustrations are in response to Communist Party policies that haven't sat well in Hong Kong. A state media editorial on Monday said that unrest is being spurred by "those who are using these grievances and disturbances as a means to serve their own agendas and put pressure on China."
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| A win for public safety or a government ploy? California set to require background check for ammo sales Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:41 AM PDT  Already, California has some of the toughest gun laws in the United States. There's another hurdle for gun owners coming on July 1.
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| Police in Hampton, Va., arrest mom of missing toddler; child believed dead Posted: 02 Jul 2019 08:36 AM PDT  Police have arrested the mother of a missing 2-year-old in Hampton, Va., and charged her with three county of felony child neglect, police said.
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| Senator Warren asks former FDA chief Gottlieb to resign from Pfizer board Posted: 02 Jul 2019 11:15 AM PDT ![Senator Warren asks former FDA chief Gottlieb to resign from Pfizer board]( "Senator Warren asks former FDA chief Gottlieb to resign from Pfizer board") U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren urged former U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb to immediately step down from Pfizer Inc's board, three months after his departure from the health regulator. Gottlieb, who won bipartisan support for his efforts to curb use of flavored e-cigarettes by youths, stepped down from the FDA in April, a role he had held since May 2017.
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| Secret Service agent who served president dies in tragic accident Posted: 02 Jul 2019 10:14 AM PDT  Special Agent Stephanie Hancock died Saturday after her body was recovered around 9:30 pm, approximately six hours after she was last seen when her kayak capsized in a Maryland river. The veteran U.S. Secret Service agent, who had last served on a Presidential Protective Detail, was with her boyfriend at the time of the accident and, according to officials, he attempted to rescue her to no avail.
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| The Story of an Air Force Defector to Iran Posted: 01 Jul 2019 05:11 AM PDT  Witt was a member of the aircrew of an RC-135 Rivet Joint surveillance aircraft forward deployed from RAF Mildenhall in Great Britain.Former Tech. Sgt. Monica Elfriede Witt, a former U.S. Air Force counterintelligence specialist who had defected to Iran and who was charged with espionage on Feb. 13, 2019, served as an airborne crypto linguist on board a RC-135 during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Military Times revealed.She earned the Air Medal as a result. The citation says she had "distinguished herself by meritorious achievement while participating in sustained aerial flight from March 29 to April 18."In March 2003, then-Staff Sgt. Witt was serving as an airborne crypto linguist with the 95th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron, 398th Air Expeditionary Group, out of Naval Support Activity Souda Bay, Crete.The U.S. invaded Iraq on March 20, followed by three weeks of major combat operations.
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| Trump aide lashes out at N.Korea nuclear freeze idea Posted: 01 Jul 2019 07:11 AM PDT  US National Security Advisor John Bolton lashed out Monday at a report that Washington might settle for a nuclear freeze with North Korea, calling it a "reprehensible attempt" to box in President Donald Trump. The unsourced report in the New York Times said officials hope the nuclear freeze idea might create a foundation for a new round of negotiations. The development came after Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met in the Demilitarized Zone Sunday and agreed to resume working-level talks within weeks on the North's nuclear program.
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| US duty free magnates fund controversial Israeli settlements Posted: 01 Jul 2019 12:49 PM PDT  When travelers shop at dozens of duty free stores at airports worldwide, they may be paying for more than a bottle of vodka or a box of chocolates. The Falic family of Florida, owners of the ubiquitous chain of Duty Free Americas shops, funds a generous and sometimes controversial philanthropic empire in Israel that runs through the corridors of power and stretches deep into the occupied West Bank. An Associated Press investigation shows that the family has donated at least $5.6 million to settler groups in the West Bank and east Jerusalem over the past decade, funding synagogues, schools and social services along with far-right causes considered extreme even in Israel.
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| Oregon Democrats demand investigation into Republican state senator who threatened to kill a police officer Posted: 01 Jul 2019 09:53 AM PDT  Democrats in Oregon are demanding that a Republican state senator who threatened police be investigated.A memo from an outside law firm retained by Oregon's state legislature recommended that Brian Boquist, who made national news when he threatened state police last week, be barred from the courthouse until those threats were investigated. According to the Associated Press, several staff members recorded in the memo that they were "fearful and scared to come to work.""This member threatened to kill an Oregon state trooper," said senator Shemia Fagan, a Democrat. "If that's not unacceptable, then what is unacceptable?"A formal complaint has also been filed against Mr Boquist, which will be heard at a special committee meeting in July. At a news conference last week, senate minority leader Herman Baertschiger refused to characterise Mr Boquist's comments as inappropriate, saying his words were simply "unhelpful".The saga began last month when Republicans in Oregon's senate walked out to avoid voting on a proposed cap and trade bill to reduce the state's fossil fuel emissions, in an effort to battle climate change. In response, Oregon governor Kate Brown ordered the state police to round up the eleven fugitive senators, who were thought to have fled to neighbouring Idaho.Boquist, one of the hiding republicans, told reporters that his message for the state police was to "send bachelors and come heavily armed." He later clarified that he was indeed threatening harm, after a reporter cited his comments as "thinly veiled" threats."Nothing thinly veiled," senator Boquist wrote in an email to an Oregon newspaper. "I have been in political coup attempts. I have been held hostage overseas. I have been jailed politically overseas...Not going to be arrested as a political prisoner in Oregon period."The Republicans did eventually return after a week away, but legislature was this time delayed by Democrats, whose requests for senator Boquist to be barred from the floor due to his threats were denied.Senator Sara Gelser, a Democrat, said Saturday that she would not appear in the chamber if Mr Boquist was present. Citing her disappointment in state senate leadership, she entered the courthouse only after the Republican left the building on Sunday.A separate memo from the state's interim human resources director said only the full senate can take action against one of its members. Ms Gelser maintains that leadership was more focused on pushing through policy bills before the legislative session ended at midnight on Sunday night than attending to safety concerns. "There has to be a point at which we are willing to ... have a rocky floor session if that's what it takes to make things better," she said. "People deserve to be safe."Mr Boquist told the Associated Press that he had not spoken to Ms Gelser about the matter. He said he was unaware of the formal complaint until seeing news reports on the situation.
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| United to offer cult-favorite stroopwafel and other snack choices on all domestic flights Posted: 01 Jul 2019 10:29 AM PDT  Stroopwafel fans, you're in luck!
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| Special Report: How Poland became a front in the cold war between U.S. and China Posted: 02 Jul 2019 04:10 AM PDT  Washington and Warsaw are now allies - nor Russia, Poland's Soviet-era master. It was China. The businessman was Chinese, a salesman for the world's largest maker of telecom networking gear, Huawei Technologies Co Ltd. And the alleged Polish traitor, detained the same day, wasn't a soldier but a senior cybersecurity specialist.
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| Virginia Beach worker charged; won't return to crime scene Posted: 02 Jul 2019 07:30 AM PDT  A survivor of the mass shooting in Virginia Beach who doesn't want to return to his workplace has been arrested on a "disturbing the peace" charge. Jonathan McIvor is accused of raising his voice and showing hostility when his supervisors asked why he won't return to work in the building where a city employee killed 12 people. The Virginian-Pilot reports that chief technology officer Darrell Riddick and acting operations manager Jamie Weaver filed the complaint.
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| Gateway Bronco Will Build The Ford Bronco Of Your Dreams Posted: 01 Jul 2019 01:23 PM PDT  These are for people who seriously love Broncos. The Ford Bronco has become a favorite for off-roaders and car collectors alike. While you can hunt down a vintage model and attempt to restore or restomod it yourself, Gateway Bronco will pump up the build to a level you'll barely believe. With three build options, the result is a Bronco that will turn heads and perform like a true champion.Choosing the Gateway Bronco Fuelie Edition will give you a solid off-roader. While it has the classic looks of a Ford Bronco, it packs some modern amenities. The main attraction is a Coyote 5.0-liter V8 engine, which has proven to be a solid and potent powerplant. You get to choose either a 4-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, plus a removable hardtop or bikini top. The leather interior follows the original look of the Bronco, but unique noise reduction makes the ride even more comfortable, so you can actually hear music or your passengers while going down the highway. Wilwood four-wheel disc brakes and HydroBoost also provide modern stopping performance. You get a 3-year warranty with this option.If you're looking for more, the Gateway Bronco Coyote Edition is the next level. It adds to the mix with a 6-speed transmission sourced from the Raptor, plus both noise and vibration reduction that's patent pending, so you're not going to find it anywhere else. The interior gains real Porsche leather, couching you in luxury.Finally, there's the Gateway Bronco Modern Day Warrior. A Shelby supercharger boosts the Coyote V8 to the next level, while Brembo disc brakes, a 4-link suspension, and Fox Racing shocks balance that power out. If you'd rather, Gateway Bronco offers a twin turbo option. Custom aluminum billet wheels come with each Modern Day Warrior, adding some subtle flair to the SUV.Really, there are two ways to get that classic Ford Bronco of your dreams. Using Gateway Bronco means a professional build that will surely appreciate well over time. With interest in the Ford Bronco spiking, now is an excellent time to jump on board as prices continue to rise. More Cars 12K Mile Midship: 1987 Ferrari Testarossa Candy Apple Green: 1989 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Pro Mod Make Your Own Magic In The Need For Speed 2013 Mustang Camera Car Nissan Celebrate 50 Years Of The Z Sports Car
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| Why the Glock 42 Is One Tough (But Small) Gun Posted: 30 Jun 2019 06:00 PM PDT  In the right hands, the Glock 42 pistol could conceivably become as deadly as its larger caliber brethren. The smallest Glock, it is also suitable for whom concealability is a major purchase factor. While not for everyone, the combination of Glock's pistol platform and John Browning's small automatic caliber is still a compelling choice for users who combine both skill and discretion.A combination of the successful Glock pistol design and a caliber invented by armsman John Moses Browning, the Glock 42 is certainly worth taking a look at.The pistol combines the Austrian gun manufacturer's gun operating system with the .380 ACP pistol cartridge. The result is both a pistol for concealed carriers who desire a low recoil pistol and the smallest pistol in Glock's lineup.(This first appeared in early June.)Austrian gun manufacturer Glock has taken a tree-like approach to its pistol lineup, with the original Glock 17 9-millimeter pistol the trunk each major caliber it forays into a branch. The company will typically introduce the full-sized Glock in a new caliber, then quickly follow with compact, sub-compact, and competition-sized pistols to round out the caliber offering.Unlike other branches, like the .45 ACP and the .40 Smith & Wesson, the .380 ACP branch of the Glock tree is the smallest of them all, consisting of a single pistol: the Glock 42. The smallest and least powerful of all calibers the company has endorsed, the nature of the .380 ACP round makes it only suitable for a modern subcompact design.
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| Democrats decry 'inhumane conditions' at migrant detention camps Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:49 PM PDT  Democratic members of Congress toured a migrant detention facility in Clint, Texas, and blasted the Trump administration for the conditions they found.
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| Hungary passes controversial science sector reform bill Posted: 02 Jul 2019 03:57 AM PDT  The Hungarian parliament passed a bill Tuesday enabling the takeover of research institutes by Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government, which is accused by critics of seeking to control key institutions and sectors. The bill, approved by 131 of lawmakers in the 199-seat assembly, gives Orban's nationalist, anti-migration government control of a vast network of research institutes currently run by the two-century old Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA). Orban's critics say that since coming to power in 2010 he has tightened his control over most key institutions in Hungary, including public media, the judiciary and the education sector.
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| The Latest: 4 family members among Texas plane crash victims Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:24 PM PDT  Church officials say two teenagers who attended Dallas-area Roman Catholic schools were among the 10 people killed in a fiery Texas plane crash along with their mother and stepfather. The Catholic Diocese of Dallas said Monday that 15-year-old Alice Maritato and 13-year-old Dylan Maritato were killed in the crash Sunday at Addison Municipal Airport in suburban Dallas along with their mother, Ornella Ellard, and stepfather, Brian Ellard.
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| UFOs: Where your state ranks for unexplained sightings Posted: 02 Jul 2019 02:42 PM PDT  The five states with the most UFO sightings per capita are in the north, a new report says. The least frequent sightings of UFOs come from the south.
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| 2019 Mazda 3 Recalled for Faulty Lug Nuts That Could Cause Wheels to Fall Off Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:20 AM PDT  Almost 25,000 of the cars are being recalled; no accidents or injuries have been reported as a result of the problem.
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| View Photos of the 2020 BMW X6 Posted: 02 Jul 2019 03:01 PM PDT |
| Officer accused of raping 16-year-old homeless girl in city's outreach program Posted: 01 Jul 2019 02:50 AM PDT  The teen says the officer told her she had warrants, but said he would not arrest her in exchange for sexual favors.
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| Trump lashes out at New York's attorney general and defends his shuttered family foundation Posted: 01 Jul 2019 11:42 AM PDT  President Trump lashed out at New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday, saying he uses the state attorney general "as a bludgeoning tool for his own purposes."
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