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Archive for April, 2017
I will appear next week before the special task force investigating the Bank Negara forex losses in 1990s
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Sunday, 30 April 2017
I will appear next week before the special task force investigating the Bank Negara forex losses between 1991 and 1993.
The seven-member task force, headed by Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan, who is former chief secretary to the government, also comprise Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission deputy chief commissioner Datuk Azam Baki, Police Commercial Crimes Department director Datuk Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani, Securities Commission Malaysia chairman Tan Sri Ranjit Ajit Singh, Retirement Fund Inc chief executive officer Datuk Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad, Pemudah co-chairman Tan Sri Saw Choo Boon, and lawyer Datuk Seri Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos.
The task force, which was set up by the Cabinet in mid-February, is living proof of the negligence and irresponsibility of the first degree of the Cabinet Ministers when they could set up a special task force (STF) to conduct a probe into Bank Negara forex losses more than two decades ago but dare not breathe a word on the monstrous 1MDB kleptocratic money-laundering scandal.
For instance, was the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who is directly implicated in the 1MDB kleptocratic scandal, the final authority in approving the 1MDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement" and who overruled the Finance Minister, Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani who was convinced and confident that 1MDB would win the arbitration case in the London International Arbitration Court based on documentary and legal grounds?
Did any of the Cabinet Minister suggest that the Prime Minister should recuse and should not be involved in any further decision-making making process about the 1MDB scandal, as the Prime Minister is directly implicated in the 1MDB scandal?
Read the rest of this entry »
1MDB settlement a high price for Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Saturday, 29 April 2017
IFR Asia 989
April 29, 2017
The 1MDB saga reached a predictable and sickening milestone last Monday when the Malaysian investment fund said it had reached an out-of-court settlement with the Middle Eastern guarantor of two US dollar bonds totalling US$3.5bn.
1MDB's agreement with Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company was predictable, inasmuch as the Malaysian taxpayer will ultimately be on the hook for the fund's debts, and sickening inasmuch as it left billions of dollars still unaccounted for.
1MDB maintains that it paid US$3.5bn to an IPIC unit, Aabar Investments PJS Limited, in return for IPIC acting as guarantor on the US dollar bonds. IPIC claims that money went to an unconnected company registered in the British Virgin Islands with an uncannily similar name.
IPIC denied last week that Aabar (BVI) was its subsidiary. But Malaysia's second finance minister Johari Abdul Ghani last week in somewhat desperate fashion, proffered a letter from the Registrar of Corporate Affairs of the British Virgin Islands confirming that it is (or was).
Can the world of international high finance be reduced to something as utterly farcical and absurd? And when it comes to playing the "Whose Baby?" game, I think I would trust the parent to know, rather than a third-party "verifier" from a faraway land of which the main players in this farce probably know very little. Read the rest of this entry »
As "MO1", Prime Minister Najib should recuse himself from being the final authority in approval of the 1MDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement", and a special Parliament convened to decide on the issue
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Saturday, 29 April 2017
Although Finance Minister II Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani was appointed with the specific task to complete the rationalization and resolution of the 1MDB scandal, he is on public record that he was not involved in the arbitration settlement negotiations and had not been briefed before the "settlement" was concluded.
He said that although he was involved in the decision to take the case to London arbitration as he was confident that 1MDB would win the case because of its strong legal position, the Prime Minister made the decision for the country looking at the "bigger picture", in terms of relationship between Malaysia and Abu Dhabi.
This is not only completely unacceptable but downright unethical and most unfair to Abu Dhabi, suggesting that the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) is so dishonest and unIslamic as to demand double payments for its US$3.5 billion bond guarantee!
It is most improper for the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, as the "M01" cited in the US Department of Justice (DOJ) largest kleptocratic litigation (as admitted by the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan) to be in a conflict-of-interest position to be involved in the 1MDB-IPIC settlement, especially as it involved the Ministry of Finance (Incorporated) Malaysia (MoF Inc) as a party of the IMDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement" guaranteeing that 1MDB would make the payments under the "arbitration settlement" – which is as good as undertaking that the Malaysian taxpayers will finally foot the bill for the 1MDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement". Read the rest of this entry »
1MDB Prosecutors Said to Eye Ex-Goldman Banker's Money Moves
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Friday, 28 April 2017
by Greg Farrell , Andrea Tan , and Keri Geiger
April 28, 2017
U.S. prosecutors investigating Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s role in raising almost $6 billion for Malaysia's 1MDB investment fund are asking questions about money flowing through accounts linked to Tim Leissner, the lead banker behind the transactions, according to people familiar with the matter.
Officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Justice Department have been interviewing bankers familiar with 1Malaysia Development Bhd. about Leissner's network of relationships with politically connected Malaysians, said the people, who asked not to be named because the queries aren't public.
In interviews as recent as last month, the people said, the U.S. officials asked about the association between Leissner, who left Goldman Sachs in February 2016, and Low Taek Jho, who the Justice Department said in July was at the center of a scheme that siphoned more than $3 billion dollars from 1MDB. U.S. investigators are asking in particular whether money was sent from a Leissner-linked account to an entity controlled by someone tied to the Malaysian government, one of the people said. Leissner's attorney, Marc Harris, declined to comment. An official who answered the phone at Low's Hong Kong-based company Jynwel Capital said he wasn't available. Read the rest of this entry »
When was Johari removed by the Cabinet or Prime Minister as the final "gatekeeper" for the resolution of the 1MDB scandal?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Friday, 28 April 2017
Although Finance Minister II Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani has denied contradicting Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak over the arbitration settlement between 1MDB and International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), he has clearly tried to dissociate and distance himself from the settlement.
It is therefore quite unworthy of him to allege that DAP PJ Utara, Tony Pua, was trying to create a wedge between Najib and him.
When news of the 1MDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement" was first reported in the international media exactly a week ago that 1MDB was on the verge of inking a "settlement" with IPIC, Johari was mentioned as part of the "high powered team" leading the negotiations to resolve the dispute, but this was promptly denied by Johari the very next day from Washington, where he was attending a World Bank meeting – that he was not involved in the arbitration settlement negotiations and that he had not yet been briefed on the final outcome of the settlement.
This has come as a surprise to all Malaysians – as all this while, everyone, including Members of Parliament, were under the impression that Johari as Finance Minister II had become the key player in the whole 1MDB imbroglio, in fact the final "gatekeeper" in the resolution of the 1MDB scandal. Read the rest of this entry »
Chequebook diplomacy
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Thursday, 27 April 2017
By Una Galani
27 April 2017
Malaysia will bear most of the burden of 1MDB. Abu Dhabi helped the Southeast Asian nation finance the upstart sovereign fund back in 2012. It subsequently looked like the Gulf emirate would share a large part of the multi-billion dollar fallout relating to the fund, now the focus of money-laundering probes around the world. But Malaysia is throwing its chequebook at the problem, paying up to try to repair relations between the two states before Prime Minister Najib Razak seeks re-election.
A debt settlement agreement announced on Monday addresses most of the lingering financial mess. 1MDB will repay a $1.2 billion loan to IPIC by the end of this year. It will also re-assume responsibility for two bonds, which will cost another $4.8 billion including interest.
The Malaysian investor had initially played hardball with Abu Dhabi. It stopped paying coupons on the notes last year after the pair fell out over a separate $3.5 billion payment that went missing. 1MDB paid that amount to an entity with a similar name to a unit of IPIC, which the latter has claimed it never received. Read the rest of this entry »
The "overkill" campaign to convince Malaysians that 1MDB scandal has finally been resolved with the 1MDB-IPIC "arbitration settlement" boomeranged as many basic questions remain unanswered
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak, Parliament on Thursday, 27 April 2017
After the "arbitration settlement" between 1MDB and Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Corporation (IPIC), the UMNO/BN Government propaganda machinery went into an overdrive to convince Malaysians that the 1MDB international kleptocratic money-laundering scandal had been resolved and settled once and for all.
But the propaganda campaign committed the fatal sin of doing an "overkill", like the claims by the Barisan Nasional strategic communications director, Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan, causing a boomerang as many basic questions about the 1MDB scandal, which had hounded and haunted Malaysians with the infamy and ignominy of a global kleptocracy, remain unanswered.
Examples of such propaganda overkill, which aroused more doubts and questions, are Abdul Rahman's claims that the "arbitration settlement" shows that 1MDB funds did not end up in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's pockets or that the 1MDB funds held in "units" in Singapore exist and will be monetized to pay IPIC – as they do not have such results.
Thanks to Abdul Rahman, these questions have returned to the centre-stage of public concern, together with other questions like "Why Malaysians have now to pay IPIC more than double what was actually borrowed by 1MDB" (asked by DAP MP for PJ Utara), "Where did the money paid by 1MDB go" (asked not only by former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed but also by UMNO MP for Kulim Bandar Baru and Public Accounts Committee member, Datuk Aziz Sheikh Fadzir), "Will taxpayers foot 1MDB's US$1.2b settlement with IPIC" (by PKR MP for Pandan Rafizi Ramli), "Who is buying the 1MDB 'units'?" (by former Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin), my question yesterday "Is Malaysia fast becoming a rogue state in today's international society?" among many others.
Is Najib prepared to convene a special session of Parliament to clear Malaysia's infamy and ignominy of being regarded worldwide as a "global kleptocracy" to give full and detailed answers to all the charges about 1MDB international money-laundering scandal, in particular the nearly year-old United States Department of Justice (DOJ) largest kleptocratic litigation to forfeit over US$1 billion 1MDB-linked assets in the United States, United Kingdom and Switzerland? Read the rest of this entry »
Italians probe Emirati for alleged insider trading in UniCredit
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 26 April 2017
Davide Ghiglione in Milan, Simeon Kerr in Dubai and Caroline Binham in London
Financial Times
Prosecutors looking at involvement of a former managing director of Abu Dhabi's Ipic
Italian prosecutors are investigating a former Emirati sovereign wealth fund official over allegations of insider trading in UniCredit shares in 2010 as the fallout from the Malaysian 1MDB scandal spreads through Abu Dhabi's overseas investment portfolio.
Prosecutors in Milan placed Khadem al-Qubaisi, the jailed former managing director of Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic), under investigation "several months ago," said a person briefed on the probe.
The Italian prosecutor's office confirmed the probe and said it is "currently working to collect the final elements" for the investigation. A spokesman for the office declined to comment further. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Malaysia fast becoming a rogue state in today's international society?
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 26 April 2017
The Information Ministry's Special Affairs Division (Jasa), which has been assigned the special task of exonerating the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak and the Malaysian government of any responsibility for the 1MDB kleptocratic scandal, made a startling statement when its director general, Datuk Mohd Puad Zakashi, said that the arbitration settlement between 1MDB and Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Corporation (IPIC) has "weakened" US Department of Justice (DOJ) civil suits and claims that the 1MDB funds were stolen.
Puad may not have realized it, but his statement was as good as a government admission that the US DOJ has a case to apply for the forfeiture of more than US$1 billion of 1MDB-linked assets, but the Malaysian government believes that the arbitration settlement has weakened the suits from the evidential aspects.
Whether this is so is open to dispute, but it is most startling, to say the least, that the Malaysian government, which has completely denied that there is a 1MDB scandal, both nationally and internationally, suddenly accepting the scenario that DOS had a case to apply for the forfeiture of over US$1 billion of 1MDB-linked assets – subject to the availability of adequate evidential material to prop up the kleptocratic suits.
If the Malaysian government's stand is that there is no 1MDB scandal at all, that all the 1MDB allegations are the "fevered imaginations" of those with ill-intentions to the Najib government, including several foreign nations, then Puad and the Malaysian Government should be consistent in holding that there is simply no case whatsoever for the DOJ lawsuits – and not talking about the "weakening" of DOJ law suits as a result of the 1MDB-IPIC arbitration agreement! Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia to Pay $1.2 Billion to Abu Dhabi Fund Over 1MDB Scandal
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Wednesday, 26 April 2017
By NEIL GOUGH
New York Times
HONG KONG — In 2012, with help from Goldman Sachs, a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund called 1Malaysia Development Berhad sold $3.5 billion worth of bonds backed by an Abu Dhabi government fund to help it purchase power plants.
But behind the scenes, American officials have claimed, nearly $1.45 billion was illegally redirected to Swiss bank accounts and ultimately into the hands of some of the people involved in the deal.
That deal is now part of an international investigation into the Malaysian fund, known as 1MDB, that has plagued Najib Razak, the prime minister of Malaysia. A civil complaint filed by Justice Department officials in the United States said that some of the funds landed in the hands of Mr. Najib's friends and associates as well as officials and executives from Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund.
On Monday, Malaysia and Abu Dhabi moved to clean up one part of the scandal: who would pay back investors who bought the bonds. Read the rest of this entry »
UMNO/BN leaders and strategists expect UMNO, MCA, Gerakan and MIC to lose more seats in 14GE and this is why they are cranking up their campaign of lies, hate and fear, especially the triple lie-hate-fear tactics that if UMNO loses, the Malays will lose political power
The 14th General Election is getting closer and we can detect certain panic in UMNO/BN leadership quarters.
This is because some UMNO/BN leaders and strategists expect UMNO, MCA, Gerakan and MIC to lose more parliamentary seats in the 14th General Election, which is why they are cranking up their campaign of lies, hatred and fear, especially the triple lie-hate-fear tactics that if UMNO loses, the Malays will lose political power in the country.
This is a downright lie, for whatever happens in the 14th General Election, whether UMNO/BN is defeated by the Pakatan Harapan of PKR, Amanah, Pribumi Bersatu and DAP, the Malays will not lose political power in the country, for the following four reasons: Read the rest of this entry »
14th General Election critical test whether Malaysia can be normal democratic country where voters can peacefully and democratically elect the Federal government they want
Posted by Kit in Elections, Parliament, Politics on Sunday, 23 April 2017
This year, Malaysians celebrate the 60th Merdeka Day and 57th Malaysia Day anniversaries, and this is an important milestone to review our national successes and failures.
Despite thirteen General Elections in nearly six decades, Malaysia has yet to become a normal democratic country where voters can change the party or political coalition in government peacefully and democratically through the ballot box like other mature democracies without threats of national catastrophes.
In the past 60 years, there had been six democratic and peaceful changes of government in the United Kingdom, but not a single time in Malaysia.
In Asia, Japan, India, South Korea, Taiwan and even Philippines and Indonesia have more democratic traditions and practices than Malaysia, as the Japanese, Indians, South Koreans, Taiwanese and even Filipinos and Indonesians can use the ballot box to change the party or political coalition in power without any national disaster or calamities.
The case of South Korea should be a salutary reminder of how far we as a nation have fallen short of our expectations when we achieved Merdeka on August 31, 1957. Read the rest of this entry »
Najib responsible for the most heinous fake news any government has concocted with the official version that the global kleptocratic 1MDB scandal does not exist
Posted by Kit in Corruption, Financial Scandals, Najib Razak on Friday, 21 April 2017
In his speech to the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) Asia Media Awards on Wednesday night, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak spoke about the need to combat the "plague of false and fake news" in the social media and foreign newspapers.
He has however conspicuously omitted the plague of false and fake news in the mainstream media in Malaysia, in particular those owned and controlled by UMNO/BN, which have blazed the path of transforming "newspapers" into "lies-papers".
False and fake news, whether in social media, foreign newspapers or in local mainstream media, must be equally combatted, exposed and condemned for they are designed not only to distort truth, but deceive the people about the true facts and situation.
In this connection, the greatest surprise in the Prime Minister's speech at the international media event was his total omission, without any single mention, of the global kleptocratic 1MDB scandal which had haunted and hounded the country and Malaysians for the past two years.
Najib is in fact responsible for the most heinous fake news any government has concocted with the official government version that the global kleptocratic 1MDB scandal does not exist. Read the rest of this entry »
In race for Malay vote, DAP smear campaign hits new lows
By Zulkifli Sulong
The Malaysian Insight
20 Apr 2017
HOUSEWIFE Normah Yusof is used to getting messages promoting halal products on her smartphone but a recent graphic disgusted her.
The Bahasa Malaysia graphic read "Boycott Chinese-DAP products" in red capital letters against a black background. A smaller sub-heading read: "Kasi lunyai semua kedai kedai Cina DAP" (Let's bankrupt Chinese-DAP owned shops).
Political analysts said Normah is a typical target for religious and racial rhetoric, as political parties, such as Umno and PAS, ramp up the psychological war in the run-up to the general election speculated to be this year. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysian PM Najib Razak accuses media of 'fake news', doubts corruption reports
Posted by Kit in Financial Scandals, Media, Najib Razak on Thursday, 20 April 2017
Lindsay Murdoch
The Sydney Morning Herald
Bangkok: For two years Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has shrugged off revelations by foreign journalists that almost $1 billion turned up in his personal bank accounts amid one of the world's biggest ever financial scandals.
Now Mr Najib, preparing to call early elections, has accused journalists of fabricating fake news about Malaysia.
"This tide of fake and false news threatens of turn the truth into a purely subjective matter, with little relation to the actual facts," he told an Asian media awards event in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday evening.
In a country where the mainstream media is tightly controlled by the government and small independent media outlets are under constant threat of closure and legal action, Mr Najib also claimed that free speech is "thriving", pointing to what he called regular criticism of the government, ministers and officials in the local media.
But with freedom, he said, comes responsibility. He quoted the then Manchester Guardian's long-time editor CP Scott who famously declared that "comment is free, but facts are sacred". Read the rest of this entry »
New Straits Times admitting that it has transformed itself from a "newspaper" into a "lies-paper"
It must be a new phenomenon in the world of Malaysian journalism – New Straits Times admitting that it has transformed itself from a "news-paper" into a "lies-paper", without any compunction or sense of journalistic responsibility by claiming that it was only reporting on the "lies" by others in its pages and columns.
It is significant that the New Straits Times response to my speech at the Johor DAP State Leaders Retreat at Kukup, Johor on Saturday about UMNO/BN mainstream media unabashedly transforming themselves from newspapers to "lies-papers" made no attempt to deny that they were publishing "lies" instead of news, except to claim that they were publishing the "lies" spread by others.
Will the New Straits Times similarly oblige DAP and Pakatan Harapan leaders and print whatever "lies" concocted by them about the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, UMNO and Barisan Nasional in the NST pages and columns?
Of course not and this will be the correct decision for journalists must be guided by the canons of journalism, the most fundamental of which is that a newspaper should not degenerate into a "lies-paper"! Read the rest of this entry »
The black swans in Malaysian politics
Posted by Kit in Election, Najib Razak, Pakatan Harapan on Sunday, 16 April 2017
By Liew Chin Tong
The Independent, Singapore
April 16, 2017
I would like to thank Mr Tan Chin Tiong, Director of Yusof Ishak – Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, for the invitation to speak at this excellent institution, of which I was a visiting research fellow in 2006.
I would also like to express my appreciation to my friends Dr. Lee Hock Guan for arranging this visit and Dr. Ooi Kee Beng for chairing the session.
I last spoke here almost nine years ago on 23rd April 2008, a month or so after the great Black Swan back then – the political tsunami on 8th March 2008.
Since then, there has never been a dull moment in Malaysian politics. We have experienced a Black Swan after a Black Swan.
For instance, just a year ago, who would have expected Dr. Mahathir Mohammad to become among Opposition leaders working hard to push UMNO to become the Opposition.
Just as I was giving the final touch for this speech yesterday, there was the news that Prime Minister Najib Razak had appointed his cousin who is also Defense Minister Hishamuddin Hussein to be the Minister with Special Functions in the Prime Minister's Department.
This gives rise to a new Black Swan question: does this mean Najib will step down as Prime Minister before the next general election?
Should that happen, we will have to grapple with a new set of conditions and scenarios. If he doesn't, there is already a new power equation in which Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi is being sidelined, but Zahid may not take it lying down.
To put things in context, let me bring you to late November 2007. Read the rest of this entry »
This first generation immigrant just got into all eight Ivies
by Harry Shukman
The Tab
Read the essay about learning English that won her a place at every single Ivy
Yesterday Cassandra Hsiao heard the news that she made it into not just one but all eight schools of the Ivy League. With offers to study at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Cornell and Penn, she now has to choose which world class institution she'll join in the Class of 2021. A writer, journalist, and one-time rapper (in front of Lin-Manuel Miranda), Cassandra explained how she nailed her applications – and shared her common app essay that helped get her there.
How does it feel to get into every single school in the Ivy League?
I'm still processing it. It's not something you expect when you open these college messages on your portal. I saw a yes and a yes, a congratulations after a congratulations. It's totally surreal. It's still sinking in. I had a moment to myself yesterday where I was just sobbing. I celebrated with my parents. This is quite the honor, to have these fantastic institutions accept me. It's really something.
Your parents must be super proud.
Oh yeah! They're over the moon. They're a huge part of why I was able to accomplish this really. You can't do it without the support of your parents. They believed in me and encouraged me to follow my passions along with my teachers, my friends, mentors, life mentors, industry mentors – these are the people who I really owe a lot to. God opened a lot of doors for me and put these people in my life who were able to see something in me and nourish me. There's no way I would have been able to do this without them. This thing is really a group effort. So thanks to all the people in that group.
What did you focus on in your common app essay?
My parents are immigrants – my mom was born in Malaysia, my dad was born in Taiwan. When I was about five we moved here. English is not their strength and it was interesting to me growing up in a house of immigrants, how we interact with language. Words that don't translate will seep into our own – the way I talk at home is very different from the way I talk outside of home. Sometimes when I was growing up people laughed at me for things I said that sounded completely normal to me but were not to them. So I wrote about that experience.
Read Cassandra's essay in full Read the rest of this entry »
The 14th general elections is going to be dirtiest in nation's history when UMNO/BN mainstream media have unabashedly transformed themselves from newspapers into "lies-papers"
The 14th General elections is going to be dirtiest in the nation's history when UMNO/BN owned or controlled mainstream media have unabashedly transformed themselves from newspapers into "lies-papers".
In the past four months, UMNO/BN mainstream media like Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times, Berita Harian and Star have become "lies-papers" as part of the UMNO/BN campaign to demonise Pakatan Harapan leaders and myself, where I am described as a devil, puaka, even jembalang; that I am anti-Malay, anti-Islam; cause of May 13, 1969 riots; a communist; a stooge of foreign powers; that I dominate Pakatan Harapan and made other leaders like Tun Mahathir, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and Mohamad Sabu as my stooges and puppets – all sorts of evil under the Malaysian sun!
This is not because I have suddenly become No. 1 national security risk, or the greatest threat to UMNO/BN government, but simply because UMNO leaders and propagandists are in a panic mood as they have realised that there is a possibility that they have lost the support of the majority of Malay voters in the country. Read the rest of this entry »
Two ways to remember and honour Karpal – elect DAP-led government for third term in Penang as well as elect Pakatan Harapan to form Federal Government in Putrajaya to Save Malaysia from global kleptocracy, a failed and rogue state
Posted by Kit in Elections, nation building, Pakatan Harapan on Sunday, 16 April 2017
We are here to remember and honour Sdr. Karpal Singh – a giant of a Malaysian who had dedicated his life to a more united, just, equal and democratic Malaysia.
There are two ways to remember and honour Karpal, who left us three years ago with many unfinished national business.
The first is to elect a DAP-led government for the third term in Penang and the second is to elect Pakatan Harapan to form the Federal Government in Putrajaya to Save Malaysia from global kleptocracy and from heading towards a failed and a rogue state.
This year Malaysians will be celebrating our 60th National Day to commemorate the nation's attainment of Independence on August 31, 1957.
I was in Form III in Batu Pahat High School in 1957, I can still remember that on August 31, 1957, we gathered at the school compound where every student was given a bunting of the new national flag and a scroll setting out the Proclamation of Merdeka which was declared by the first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman at the Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur.
We were brimming with hope and confidence of a new future as a new nation. Read the rest of this entry »


text:
March 25, 2009
Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery
– Georgia Tech ends its season with a 23-10 overall record. Tuesday was the first meeting between the two schools.
– The Yellow Jackets are now 2-5 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including a 2-3 record under Head Coach MaChelle Joseph.
– Georgia Tech finished the season 0-4 with the game tied at halftime.
– Deja Foster was Georgia Tech's leading scorer with 15 points. She was averaging 9.1 per game.
– Jacqua Williams, who is the team's active leading scorer with 12 points per game, scored just one point against Oklahoma on 0-9 shooting.
– Oklahoma limited the Yellow Jackets to just 1-13 shooting behind the arc (7.7%).
– Georgia Tech was shooting 30.7% on the season from three-point range.
– Georgia Tech also lost its shooting touch in the second half, converting only 5-29 shots (17.2%).
– Georgia Tech fell in an early hole, allowing a 14-4 run in the first 8:10. During the stretch, the Yellow Jackets shot just 2-11 and missed their first six shots. The Yellow Jackets fought back in the first half, using an 11-4 run from the 9:01-6:04 mark, making the deficit 22-19. Two Sasha Goodlett free throws with 32 seconds left gave Georgia Tech its first lead at 29-28.
– Georgia Tech shared the ball well in the first half, recording 10 assists on 12 made baskets.
– The Yellow Jackets hit the offensive glass early as well, turning eight offensive boards into seven second chance points, compared to Oklahoma's three offensive rebounds to just one Sooner second chance point.
– The second half started the same as the first for Georgia Tech, as the Yellow Jackets made just one of their first 12 shots, allowing Oklahoma to build a double-digit lead at 46-34.

subset: commoncrawl


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Compassion and Giving—in Life and Beyond
Ellen Juul spent her life caring for others as a nurse. But her compassionate giving didn't stop there. To honor a niece who attended Bethel, she left a surprise estate gift that now funds an endowed nursing scholarship in Juul's memory, helping to prepare future nurses for lives of service like hers.
By Michelle Westlund '83, senior content specialist
August 09, 2019 | 11 a.m.
By her sister's description, Ellen Juul was a quiet and unassuming woman, easily overlooked. Yet her actions spoke volumes, both during her lifetime and after her death. Her life of service and compassion touched all those around her, and her generous estate gift will continue her impact for generations to come.
Juul was kind, sweet, and loving, says her sister Mary Alice Ogren, and was devoted to her career as a nurse. Over the course of that career, she worked in a nursing home, where her father set up a scholarship for nurses' aids who worked in entry-level jobs with little hope of advancement. It's clear that his compassion influenced Juul, who continued contributing to the scholarship after his death because she believed in helping those who were disadvantaged as well as preparing skilled nurses. At the time of her death, she worked as a nurse for a client with severe disabilities, providing care in his home. "The profound effect she had on her client and his family is a real testimony to both her love for the Lord and her compassion for 'invisible' people with disabilities," says Ogren.
Juul was also a devoted aunt to Ogren's four children, one of whom is Sarah (Ogren) Steinhoff, a 2012 Bethel graduate who followed in her Aunt Ellen's footsteps by earning a nursing degree. Steinhoff is now pursuing a doctorate in nursing practice in Wisconsin, and "Ellen would have been beside herself with delight!" says Ogren.
Juul was an avid reader who loved the classics, especially British literature. When her niece moved to England, Juul joined her sister's family in visiting. "Ellen was like our personal tour guide with her background and wealth of understanding of the people and places in British history, and her knowledge of the great evangelists of days gone by," says Ogren. "It was a wonderful blessing to see her countenance light up in being able to visit the home of John Milton, and in seeing A Christmas Carol enacted in the exact location where Charles Dickens wrote it!"
In addition to British literature, Juul was a student of the Bible. She loved discussions about Christianity, and "she knew Scripture backwards and forwards, inside and out," says Ogren. "She could bring up just the right text for any occasion or topic."
When Juul died suddenly in April 2018, it was this love of Scripture—and more, the deep faith behind it—that brought comfort to Ogren as she grieved. "The day of her death, I found the devotionals she had read the night before, and the morning prayer book she had read earlier in the day, expressing the sentiments of her heart," says Ogren. "What a blessing for me in grappling with her sudden and unexpected death to walk into her bedroom and see where her heart had been just moments earlier, communing with her Lord."
Another blessing, prepared in advance by Juul, awaited Ogren and her family. In what she left behind, Juul followed the example of her father's giving. She embraced her own passion for serving others through nursing. And she expressed her deep devotion as an aunt. All these qualities came together in Juul's final act of love and generosity—a surprise estate gift to the universities her nieces and nephew attended. "My four children were the light of her life," says Ogren, "and she chose to gift the schools where they attended in order to honor them."
Somehow that quiet and unassuming woman had the last word. Now Juul's legacy lives on in her family, her friends, the many clients she impacted throughout her nursing career—and in the recipients of the endowed scholarship established in her memory. It's a fitting tribute, says Ogren: "To have her name benefit the development of new nurses who are called to serve Christ by ministering to the ill—that would definitely be a tribute to who Ellen was."
Planned Giving at Bethel.
Interested in learning more about endowed scholarships? Contact our development officers to discuss the many creative giving options available.


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There are many things to consider when buying automatic warranty policies with expanded services, such as prices, ease of use and more important than what they will be borne. You can buy a vehicle warranty from the dealer, or from outside sources. What the consumer needs to keep in mind is that automatic warranty policies such as insurance. Insurance is always useful to have situations such as accidents, weather related incidents, such as hail or slippery roads, but what happens when your alternator leaves you stranded? Isn't it fun to know with one phone call, you can arrange a car to be pulled into the garage, get rent and a ride home?
Prices are important factors but should not be the final decision maker. The lowest price insurance is not always the best choice and this applies to expanded guarantees as well. Many unnamed companies appeared almost last night and borrowed from Peter to pay Paul, which meant the premium now went into paying newer claims. This is the practice that the company cannot attend a long time, which means the company will fold, and your warranty will not have value. Buying a warranty from the dealer is also not always the best choice. If the dealer gets out of business and you see the dealer for your warranty and maintenance work then you without a valid warranty. Often there are frauds where the automatic warranty is sold to consumers and then canceled by a dealer for a full refund that consumers will not see. This is not intended to prevent the purchase of automatic warranty, not at all. Continue with the word carefully. There are many companies that maintain expanded guarantee ratings for consumers to verify before they buy, fast internet search will bring up this information.
For many people who are offered an automatic warranty when purchasing new vehicles, the main motivation is the ability to finance into car records, although usually in April the same as their car loans. There are many companies that offer 0% April and a short loan period. For consumers who do not buy vehicles from the showroom floor, but maybe one of the individuals or in terms of the loved dealer, there are often companies that will provide a warranty for higher mileage. There are also many companies that will handle higher-end cars, which are mostly from the price of a lower price automatic warranty, it won't do because they don't want to pay higher repair costs on most luxury cars.


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$75.00 Regular Price
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- • Improves the appearance of dark circles around the eyes
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½ Oz. (15g)


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In Cape Town, South Africa, Nombasa Krune-Dumile, a drug-resistant tuberculosis counselor who has dedicated her life to supporting tuberculosis (TB) patients, says COVID-19 has devastated health systems and upended normal operations of her work.
"Many hospitals are overwhelmed," she says. "Many people are suffering and dying from COVID-19 but also from other diseases."
Nombasa knows this firsthand. Her family has borne the full brunt of HIV, TB – and now COVID-19.
This month, COVID-19 cases in South Africa crossed the 500,000 mark – a potent symbol of a disease that is gaining full speed across Africa. As the pandemic accelerates on the continent, its path is marked not just by the infections and deaths it leaves in its wake but also by how hard it collides with other diseases that have affected millions of people over the last two decades.
Nombasa and her husband, Vuyisa Dumile, were infected with HIV more than a decade ago. Then came TB, which affected both. In the fight against TB, Nombasa was luckier as she was able to beat her first bout of the disease following months of treatment. Her husband wasn't as lucky; the disease came back in a deadlier, drug-resistant form and took years to beat. By the time he emerged from that dark patch of his life, he had lost one lung to the disease and the hearing in one of his ears.
In the last few years though, the two were doing well, working and managing HIV through antiretroviral therapy – until COVID-19 arrived. Both were infected with the virus. And then their children caught it, too.
Nombasa says she thinks she got COVID-19 first, most likely from her job, where she spends her days providing treatment support to people ill with TB. She reckons that she brought the virus home to her husband and kids. After weeks with the virus, the family members beat the disease, but not before her husband spent a week in critical condition in hospital.
But the joy that came with the discharge of her husband from hospital didn't last long as Nombasa's father was soon taken ill. He died 6 July after just days of fighting his illness. He wasn't tested for COVID-19, Nombasa says, but "he had all the typical symptoms: fatigue, poor appetite, high fever, and shortness of breath."
Her father got sick in the Eastern Cape, where the family comes from, and did not get the care he needed, Nombasa adds. "In the Eastern Cape, health facilities are overwhelmed, people don't want to go to the hospital, where many people are dying as they await treatment. People are choosing to die at home."
In South Africa and in other African countries, deaths from COVID-19 and other diseases are on the rise and health systems are being overwhelmed. Recent modelling studies from UNAIDS, WHO and the Stop TB Partnership show deaths from HIV, TB and malaria could as much as double in the coming year as a knock-on effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, wiping out years of progress. A biweekly survey by the Global Fund shows widespread service disruptions to HIV, TB and malaria responses as a result of COVID-19 across 106 of the world's most vulnerable countries, as health workers and resources are diverted to fighting the new virus, lifesaving medicine distributions are interrupted, and fear and stigma keep people from accessing health facilities for treatment.
The Global Fund is working with donors and partners to urgently mobilize an additional US$5 billion to help countries continue to fight COVID-19, mitigate the impact on HIV, TB and malaria, reinforce systems for health and protect health workers like Nombasa.
Front-line health workers, trusted members of local communities, are critical to fighting COVID-19 and preventing a catastrophic setback in other diseases. Weeks after her own fight with COVID-19, Nombasa was back in the trenches, helping people suffering from TB. "We have realized that people are staying away due to fear of COVID-19. They are not keeping up with treatment. We are now reaching out to them in the community."
Nombasa and her family have already paid a heavy price. She has an urgent appeal to governments and global health partners to help community health workers do their work. "Health workers need training and more PPE to protect themselves and their families," she says. "That support is needed now."


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36775 N Deer Trail Dr | Lake Villa IL 60046
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- Offered At Contact Agent
- Bedrooms 4
- Baths 2.5
- Living Space 3,192 SF
- Lot Size 0.32 Acres
- Parking 3 Car Attached


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MCMUD No. 89 is currently in the design phase of a 5-foot wide concrete sidewalk extension along the west side of the recently widened Birnham Woods Drive from Elan Boulevard to the drainage channel crossing just south of Drew Meadows Drive and The Enclave. The total length of the proposed sidewalk is approximately 3,400 linear-feet. The project will connect to the existing ADA ramps at each of the intersections along the western side of Birnham Woods Drive. This new sidewalk will provide connectivity with the surrounding community and safe passage for kids and families to travel to and from nearby schools.
Construction is expected to begin Summer of 2020 and be complete prior to the start of school in the fall.


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The Creeping Jenny Bunched Aquatic Pond Plant, otherwise known as Lysimachia nummularia, is a plant native to the Unites States and is very easy to grow as long as it's maintained with light and water. This is a low-growing plant which features round green and yellow leaves. These oxygenating pond plants are one of the most important components to your pond, as they help clean water, remove algae, produce oxygen and promote clarity. For best results, use 1 bunch per square foot of pond surface. Notice how this plant starts out in the pond and wants to grow all over the outer areas of the pond to fill in empty spaces? This is a nice creeping plant sure to satisfy. There is a golden variety that is nearly the same, just more yellow available on our site, there is some growing in this pic as well.
Minimum quantity for "Creeping Jenny or Lysimachia nummularia Bunched Aquatic Plant" is 6.


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Here is a breakdown of the show:
- Grades from Redskins game
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- Matchups to watch in Week 2
- Predictions for Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh
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Activision-Blizzard shareholders have approved the company's Say-On-Pay proposal by a narrow margin, with 54% voting in favour of the executive pay package. This is more-or-less what happened in 2020, when 57% voted in favour, but a significant drop in support from earlier years: in 2019 the vote was 82% in favour, and in 2018 the figure was 92%.
The Say-On-Pay vote allows shareholders to, well, have a say on what Activision-Blizzard is paying the top suits. Various investment groups have been kicking off over just how much CEO Bobby Kotick is paid, for example, to the extent that Activision made "substantial and sustainable reductions in CEO compensation", including decreasing Kotick's base salary and cash bonus by 50%, making 95% of his total compensation performance-based, and linking it to other corporate objectives.
Investment group CtW wasn't convinced, describing these changes as "smoke and mirrors" rather than meaningful change, while urging other investors to vote against it. CtW argued that Kotick's overall compensation package renders the apparent salary reduction moot.
Activision Blizzard disagreed and, fortunately for the suits, so did enough of the shareholders (though it's worth adding that this was an advisory vote rather than binding.)
So don't worry: Mr Kotick will not be reduced to eating rice and beans, far from it. The Financial Times estimates that following this vote the executive will receive an eye-watering $155 million from these various compensation schemes, roughly the same as he took home last year.
The Activision-Blizzard board would point out in Kotick's defence that he has taken Activision's market value from under $10 million in 2000 to over $70bn today, with a Scrooge-pleasing 8100 percent increase in shareholder return over that same period.
"We are pleased that, based on exceptional shareholder returns and responsiveness, Activision Blizzard shareholders again approved our say-on-pay proposal and reelected our Board directors with an average of 96% of votes," an Activision Blizzard rep said in an email. "The additional time shareholders requested allowed them to thoroughly review the facts about Activision Blizzard's rigorous pay-for-performance compensation practices as well as changes the Board made to our executive compensation based on extensive feedback from shareholders."
Following the vote, CtW executive Michael Varner told GI.biz that the last word on the matter hasn't been spoken: "Activision will be expected to make even further changes in response to a vote where 46% of shareholders expressed discontent, they will not be able to 'rest on their laurels' solely with the changes they made thus far to Mr. Kotick's pay. Also, this marks the sixth time in the past eight years Activision has received less than 70% support for its Say on Pay proposal, and the 2021 vote is the lowest support the company has received on this proposal in its history."


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Form 1. (A Man Reading a Newspaper), 2016
Bronze, cast and gold patinatedGranite
28 x 11 x 11 cm
Edition of 7 plus 1AP
The clarity of the sculpture is one of the results of the artistic explorations and search for the reflection, generic and clear forms. Vigorous play of intertwined volumes, explicit and honest adhesions on the verge of abstraction, redundant information - all these elements transform the sculpture into a symbol. The author chooses to convey the message to the audience via minimalism and symbolism


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Moray MacLennan is celebrating finally becoming chief executive of M&C Saatchi PLC. But he's not at Dukes with a Grey Goose martini in hand. He's standing outside a rented house with a bunch of strangers.
It's New Year's Eve 2020 and a glass on your doorstep is as glamorous as it gets for anyone. Though, this being MacLennan, the house in question is on a grand Victorian terrace in Camden, the crystal goblet is full of Bollinger—2012 vintage—and the strangers are artists and intellectuals.
In a fit of optimism before the second wave of Covid-19—and possibly in anticipation of the enlarged pay cheque ahead—the impeccably connected, Fettes College and Cambridge-educated former army brat moved out of his house in Primrose Hill so it could be renovated. Weeks into the new year, he's still a way off moving back, due to Brexit-induced supply shortages. But it's not Italian cabinets that are the issue.
"I didn't know that plasterboard came from Spain," MacLennan quips. "Marble's not a problem apparently. There's lots of marble around. It's
the plasterboard."
At the end of January, MacLennan presented his vision for the new M&C Saatchi to the City in a bid to put a gruelling 18 months behind him.
The accounting scandal that rocked the company—and its investors—from August 2019 and led to a huge boardroom split at the end of that year meant M&C Saatchi was already struggling before Covid hit.
The company responded by merging eight entities and shutting 14 operations around the world, including its Los Angeles office.
"That's not something which is quick and easy," MacLennan explains. "There are people involved; there are contracts involved; there are clients involved; there is property involved."
At the same time, MacLennan was working on "fixing the finance and financial function"—crucial work as the year-long Financial Conduct Authority probe into the company continues.
As Campaign went to press, M&C Saatchi shares were 92p, down more than 70% on their price before the misstatements become public.
MacLennan—who is largely unscathed by the scandal despite being part of the leadership at the tiller—dismisses City speculation that M&C Saatchi could have gone bust last year as a result of the money owed in shares to the agency's founders around the world. He concedes there were a lot of unknowns: the cash situation; whether client contracts would dry out; and if the economy would grind to a halt. But, he says, the company's recovery was born from that place.
"All those unknowns led to one absolute laser-like focus," MacLennan says. "In my head there were only two things to do: support the people, serve the clients. I know people will be cynical about this, but I'll be eternally grateful that clients didn't take the easy option. Our people did an extraordinary job during that time. And we pulled out of that nosedive."
MacLennan claims M&C Saatchi hasn't lost a major client anywhere ("I wouldn't call Twinings [which reviewed in the UK this month] major") and picked up new accounts, including the UK census, TikTok, Iceland, Kia and Origin.
"There were so many reasons not to appoint us last year," he says, his usual bravado a little chastened. "The headlines made clients' life awkward with their legal or procurement department. So, they didn't thank us for it. Nevertheless, they judged us by the work and the service that we provided."
The global network was also fortunate to have accounts in durable sectors, such as finance and retail, as well as government business in the UK, Australia and the US.
"That has certainly helped," MacLennan says. "The other thing is, it's remarkable the extent to which people accept and they adapt and they get on. It's been extraordinary; the resilience of the people who work within the sector and within our agencies around the world. There has been quite a bit of pain but the only upside of that is we'll come out, genuinely—though it sounds like a cliché—we will come out leaner and stronger."
M&C Saatchi will now be split into five divisions Global and Social Issues; Brand, Experience and Innovation; Performance Media; Passion Marketing; and Connected Creativity. Sitting on top of the divisions will be a global growth platform, built using third-party software but driven by the people within the company, MacLennan says.
Connected Creativity will be the home of the "traditional" ad agency, although MacLennan bristles a little at the idea there is anything of the sort left in the industry. "What's called traditional advertising is probably under 10% of our business," he says. "It's everything from transformational creative ideas, which are still obviously part of the brand, through to personalisation, digital content and data insight."
Shelia Mitchell, a long-term client in the UK in her former role as director of marketing at Public Health England, says the "reinvention of the agency is real". When PHE started working with M&C Saatchi in 2008 what it needed was a "big creative brand idea", she explains. Now, marketers need agencies to be much "faster and more agile" and, under the leadership of chief executive Camilla Kemp and chief creative officer Ben Golik, the agency has delivered. For example, it turned around the "Better health" campaign in little over a month.
New offerings include M&C Saatchi Fluency, which will work with advertisers to get value out of their existing data. A sustainability practice will help brands meet consumer demand for improved environmental, social and corporate governance. And a digital innovation capability will open in the first half of 2021 to develop new products alongside clients. The latter follows research findings that 54% of large companies predict half of their revenues in three years' time will come from products that do not currently exist.
If all of this helps M&C Saatchi get back to delivering anywhere close to £20m in profit each year, it might start looking undervalued. Alex De Groote, a City analyst, says: "If Moray can stabilise the ship, M&C Saatchi could end up being a really good recovery story."
MacLennan has no plans to replace himself as chief executive of M&C Saatchi Worldwide (the network), labelling the former structure where he reported to his predecessor David Kershaw, the PLC's chief executive, as "idiosyncratic".
A new executive board will lead the company, with key people taking responsibility for remits such as commercial, talent or business development, as well as running their own businesses. He is committed to bringing in local entrepreneurs to form the network.
"That new, more rigorous, strategic approach means that I don't need to replace myself," he says.
The founders of M&C Saatchi, Kershaw, Jeremy Sinclair, the chairman, and Bill Muirhead, an executive director [and Lord Saatchi, before he left the business], shared an expansive office high up on the seventh floor of Golden Square before they exited the business at the end of 2020.
MacLennan is – Covid business practices excepting – based on the sixth floor with the rest of the worldwide team. When asked whether he has plans for the hallowed space above him MacLennan jokes, "a jacuzzi", before switching tack. "I was very tempted to go up there but I'm happy on the sixth. We'll use the seventh floor as a communal space for clients and companies within the building to work together. It'll be a great symbol of a new way of working." He pauses, before adding: "Although I reserve the right to move in there myself if I change my mind."
MacLennan will not be drawn on whether the directors who resigned in December 2019 (including independent directors Lord Dobbs, Sir Michael Peat and Lorna Tilbian as well as co-founder Lord Saatchi) did so because the prior regime refused to appoint an independent chairman – a standard City practice – and a co-CEO.
Kershaw, Sinclair and Muirhead stuck around to see the accounting scandal through, while the shares dropped to 30p in April 2020 (and a surprise investor, Vin Murria, a tech entrepreneur, bought a 13% stake).
The three amigos, as the financial press likes to call the co-founders, tuned in to MacLennan's presentation but Kershaw says he does not plan to take one-time WPP chief Sir Martin Sorrell's approach of publicly criticising their former company.
"This may come as a surprise to people," Kershaw says. "But we think once we've left the company, and are shareholders, it's much better to talk the company up than to insult it in public. We will not interfere more than any other shareholder, other than if we can help with new business. And even Moray would have to concede, we have over the years."
In an earlier, cordial conversation with Campaign alongside Kershaw after his promotion was confirmed, MacLennan thanked "David, Bill and Jeremy for their extraordinary service and for creating a wonderful company", prompting Kershaw to interject: "He's always been full of shit."
MacLennan, who first worked with the trio in 1983 when he joined Saatchi & Saatchi and followed them to M&C Saatchi in 1995, continued, undeterred: "Honestly, it isn't about people leaving or taking over. It's been incredibly difficult for 15 months and people are looking forward, they can see the light at the end of the tunnel, as perhaps the rest of society can. And for us, it's doubly needed, given the difficulty. So, I think people are ready and waiting and optimistic."
Kershaw, meanwhile, will have more time to perfect his 6pm martini, the serving of which he has had to take on himself during lockdown. MacLennan cites Kershaw's method as the most useful piece of advice he has received from his former boss.
Sinclair will also be able to provide more unsolicited comms advice to the government – as he has already done during the Covid crisis via his contacts in the Conservative Party.
As a mantra, "meaningful change" is quite a leap from Sinclair's brutal simplicity of thought. Indeed, colour has even found its way into the agency's brand identity for the first time.
But the industry is also much changed since M&C Saatchi was founded 26 years ago. MacLennan doesn't even drink during the working day—it was nothing stronger than spicy tomato juice at The Wolseley lunch where (now) chairman Gareth Davis told him he'd got the job.
MacLennan has been on board the M&C Saatchi boat since the start and stayed, even though he had a decent chunk of equity at the time of its stock market float in 2004. He is unlucky to have taken the helm in choppy waters, and the listed company remains vulnerable if an activist investor gets involved. But the Saatchi brand has righted itself before, and what a great tale it will be if MacLennan can pull it off again.


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§1302. Employer's duty to advise employees as to necessity of notice
A. The employer shall have printed and keep posted at some convenient and conspicuous point in his place of business a notice reading substantially as follows:
"In case of accidental injury or death, an injured employee or any person claiming to be entitled to compensation either as a claimant or as a representative of a person claiming to be entitled to compensation must give notice to (name and address of employer) within thirty days. If notice is not given to the above party within thirty days, no payments will be made under the law for such injury or death. In addition, any fraudulent action by the employer, employee, or any other person for the purpose of obtaining or defeating any benefit or payment of worker's compensation shall subject such person to criminal as well as civil penalties."
B. If the employer fails to keep such a notice posted, the time in which the notice of injury shall be given as provided in R.S. 23:1301 shall be extended to twelve months from the date of injury. The assistant secretary may by rule require inclusion of additional information in the notice required by this Section.
Added by Acts 1983, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 1, §1, eff. July 1, 1983; Acts 1993, No. 928, §1.


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Building Permits (BPER)
Building structure of building permit, category
Building structure refers to the type of building and its characteristics. It includes categories of residential and non-residential buildings.
Building permit refers to the final authorisation to start work on a building project. It is granted by public authorities in response to an application by a principal and based on a specific building plan.
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Executive Committee
Recent Papers
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Load Research Committee
Load Research Online
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Our friends at Fort Collins Utilities (FCU) are proud to host the Fall 2013 Western Load Research Association (WLRA) meeting and conference in Fort Collins, Colorado September 18-20, 2013.
Location: The Fall 2013 WLRA meeting and conference will be at the Hilton Fort Collins: Hilton Fort Collins 425 West Prospect Road Fort Collins, Colorado 80526 (970) 482-2626 http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/groups/personalized/F/FNLCOHF-AWE-20130914/index.jhtml?WT.mc_id=POG
Conference Registration: Please register by August 26, 2013. Conference registration is $500. Conference registration and payment can be completed online at http://loadresearch.com/event/wlra-fall-2013-conference/, or by downloading and sending the registration form and check (payable to Fort Collins Utilities) to: Fort Collins Utilities Attn: Janet McTague PO Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522
Hotel Reservations: You must make your hotel reservations by August 29, 2013 to guarantee room availability and to secure the conference rate of $119 for a Standard Room, or $139 for a King Deluxe Room (plus taxes) per night. Reservations can be made by either of the following ways:
Transportation: The distance from Denver International Airport to the conference hotel is 55 miles. A taxi is $70 each way and rental car rates vary by company. Shuttle service is $66 round trip and can be reserved online at http://greenrideco.hudsonltd.net/res?USERIDENTRY=WLRA&LOGON=GO The conference hotel does not offer complimentary shuttles to or from Denver International Airport. If you arrive at the conference by car, note that parking at the hotel is complimentary. The hotel offers free use of their shuttle service to take guests to and from the downtown area.
Special Evening Event Tour of New Belgium Brewery (and perhaps a sample or two) followed by dinner at the Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant Be our guest on Thursday night as we take you for a behind-the-scenes tour of one of our local breweries, famous for their beer as well as their conservation and load management efforts. Dinner will follow the tour at one of our popular local restaurants known for their legendary margaritas. Youll be free to wander downtown to experience the many unique shops, galleries and music venues and then to jump on the free shuttle back to the hotel at your leisure. Additional guest tickets will be $40.
Call for Papers: Presentations at the conference will continue to demonstrate that load research and load forecasting are great tools for dealing with the newer challenges of the modern electric utility industry. This includes smart grid implementations, demand response, renewable energy, dynamic pricing programs, and time-of-use rates, as well as the traditional regulatory needs. Papers and discussions can focus on innovative new technologies and methodologies or the traditional principles of statistical analysis. WLRA will accept papers on any subject related to load research or load forecasting, including but not limited to, least-cost sampling, end-use research, integrated resource planning, program evaluation, load profiling, innovative rate design, energy efficiency measures, and peak-demand forecasts. WLRA is continuing to expand utility involvement, and special priority consideration will be given to utilities wishing to make presentations. The continued success of the WLRA Conference depends on participation from utility members. It is for this reason that utility presentations are particularly encouraged, but utility-vendor partnership presentations are also welcomed, and vendor presentations will be considered. Presentations need not be extravagant and a presentation can be as short as fifteen (15) minutes If you would like to make a presentation, please fill out the attached "Call for Papers" form and email to Candice Churchwell (email@example.com ), WLRA Co-Chair. Please submit your paper by September 2, 2013.
Expanded Roundtable Discussions The Fall Conference will continue to feature roundtable discussions. If there are topics you would like to discuss during the roundtables, please make sure to note them on your Conference Registration Form or contact Candice Churchwell directly (see contact details below).
Vendor Reception WLRA is pleased to announce that Freeman, Sullivan & Company will be organizing this years vendor reception. The reception will be held in the evening on Wednesday, September 18th. As always, this is a great opportunity for attendees to catch up with colleagues from across the west, network with new providers and experts and enjoy drinks and hors d'oeuvres.
For more information, please contact Conference Host: Bill Switzer 970-221-6700 email@example.com WLRA Co-Chairs: Candice Churchwell 415-777-0707 firstname.lastname@example.com Greg Mandelman 415-973-4778 email@example.com


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Conversion of Earned Leave into Child care Leave as per DOPT- Clarification
Children Education Allowance Scheme - Clarification
Special concessions/facilities to Central Government Employees working in Kashrnir Valley
Child Care Leave to Central Government employees - regarding
Rate of calculating entitlement to Earned Leave (E.L) and Half Pay Leave (HPL).
Modified Assured Career Progression Scheme for the Central Government Civilian Employees - Clarification regarding.
Revision of Stitching Charges.
Family pension to Childless widow
Revised DR to pensioners from Jan2011
Recruitment Rules Group 'C' posts in Pay Band 1 with Grade Pay of Rs. 1800 (pre-revised Group D posts).
Revised RR for Gr D (now Gr.C) posts
Exracts of provisions in FJL 56
Probation in various Central Civil Services.
Special benefits in cases of death and disability in service - payment of disability pension/family pension - relaxation of qualifying service-
CCS(Commutation of Pension) Amndmnt rules 2010.
MACP for Central Government Civil Employees-- clarification regarding
MACP - Frequently Asked Questions and its replies from DOP&T
Guidelines on Air Travel on Tours / LTC.


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Given that I have no desire to see The Butler in large part because Oprah Winfrey is in it, and otherwise because it looks terrible, sappy, cheesy and more, I have not seen it yet. but it's what is winning the day at the Box Office so maybe I should make time for it.
#1 — Lee Daniels' The Butler
Budget: $30 M
Totals: $25 M Weekend Gross and Current Total
Weekend 1
My general rule of thumb is, if Oprah Winfrey is involved I want nothing to do with it. Fair or not, that's my feeling on the matter. General movie goers seem to disagree however, because this, her latest film, seemed to garner the most attention at the box office this weekend.
I don't know what to think though because I didn't hear much about this film until right before it came out and it looks pretty pathetic.
#2 — The Millers
Budget: $37 M
Totals: $17.8 M, Weekend / $69.5 M, Total
Weekend 2
I am disgusted with humankind for the second weekend in a row. In it's second weekend out, The Millers makes number 2 for the second time. And it's on track to be a money maker too on a budget of $37 Million. Come on guys, stop it! You're just encouraging them to make bad films at this point.
#3 — Elysium
Budget: $115 M
Totals: $13.6 M, Weekend / $37.7 M, Foreign / $93.6 M, Worldwide
Weekend 2
Not good as far as the producers are concerned I'm sure. We're still well below budget on the total brought in. And at this rate it's not going to be in theaters for very long. And since it's not a good film at all I'm not weeping, personally.
#4 — Kick-Ass 2
Budget: $28 M
Totals: $13.5 M, Weekend / $6.3 M, Foreign / $19.8 M, Worldwide
Weekend 1
Not great, but on what amounts to a shoestring budget in today's terms, maybe it will go on to make a little money. We'll see. I don't plan to help add to this total myself though. The film looks dreadful.
#5 — Planes
Budget: $50 M
Totals: $13.1 M, Weekend / 7.3 M, Foreign / $52.3 M, Worldwide
Weekend 2
Well, it has not made slightly over the production budget. I suppose I should get out and see this, but I can barely muster enough give-a-care for this film. It's looks completely uninspired.
#6 — Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Budget: $90 M
Totals: $8.3 M, Weekend / $38.9 M, Domestic / $36.2 M, Foreign / $75.1 M, Worldwide
Weekend 2
This is not at all a bad film, certainly better than anything I've listed thus far so it's too bad it's not fairing a little better in my book. The foreign numbers are helping a little, but it doesn't quite seem to be getting the traction it needs. The first film went on to make $226.4 Million, but it also opened with around twice the numbers of this film's opening weekend. I really hope this film makes enough to justify making the next in the series. I'm enjoying it. I'm currently planning to add this series' audio books to my listen list.
Budget: $12 M
Totals: $6.7 M, Weekend and Current Total
Weekend 1
I was hoping for better things from this film, as were the producers I'm sure. But it's always hard for a biopic to get any real traction it seems. And I can't say I don't understand that. I have a keen personal interest in this film but if I did not, I probably wouldn't see it. So I get it.
I will hopefully be seeing this film tonight — or if not tonight, tomorrow night — and I'm hoping I won't hate it.
#8 - 2 Guns
Budget: $61 Million
Totals: $5.6 M, Weekend / $59.2 M, Total
Weekend 3
This film just can't muster up the stuff to get up to even it's production budget. And given some of the problems with this film, I'm not rooting for it either. Oh well.
Other things of note:
The Wolverine is down a couple slots now, but it made it to $335.2 Million, worldwide. Not a bad haul and I would guess that we'll see more from this franchise at this point. Of course there's probably still some hinge on how well the next big X-Men film will be received.


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Inspections and Audits in Vietnam
- Guaranteed on-site inspections anywhere in Vietnam within 48 hours for $309
- Inspection reports are delivered within 24 hours of the inspection and include detailed pictures. You see what our inspector sees.
Quality Control Services in Vietnam
- On-site inspectors provide assessments and troubleshooting as needed throughout the manufacturing process.
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- All manufacturing audits (MA) in Vietnam conform to the internationally recognized ISO 9000 Standards for Quality Management Systems
- Clients are allowed to modify or cancel orders up until 1:00 p.m. (Vietnam time) the day before the scheduled inspection at a Vietnam-based facility.
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AI's highly qualified auditors can conduct Manufacturing, Ethical, Structural, Environmental and C-TPAT audits of your Vietnam suppliers' factories, helping you engage with capable and ethical suppliers. We conduct audits to a number of international standards, our own Best-in-Class protocol or your in-house requirements.
AI Supplier Audits in Vietnam help you:
- Protect your brand against operational and ethical risks
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Get a comprehensive profile of your Vietnam supplier – before you give them your business.
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Inspect your product before it leaves your Vietnam supplier's factory, and prevent quality problems down the line. We guarantee an inspector on-site of any factory in Vietnam within 48 hours, and the inspection report will be delivered to you on the day of the inspection.
Experienced AI product inspectors help you safeguard the quality of your product at every stage of manufacturing:
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Obstacles with Doing Business in Vietnam
The 21st century has great things in store for Vietnam, which has been named one of the Next Eleven Countries. This designation indicates that, due to major investments, Vietnam has the potential to become one of the world's largest economies in the years to come. This has come as a great boon to the country, which has benefited from this participation in the international business community.
This trend of investment has led Western-based countries to relocate production facilities within Vietnami borders. As a result, American, European, and Australian business executives must be able to rely on ethical and dependable on-site inspectors throughout the production process. Finding the right personnel for this essential job can be difficult. Quality assurance is crucial to a company's reputation. Companies should be able to trust that their Vietnam-based facilities are running properly and efficiently in order to maintain their position and rise above their competition.
Inspection Agencies in Vietnam
Companies based in Vietnam can trust that our regionally based, on-site inspection agents are achieving and maintaining appropriate levels of quality control. Every step of production can be regulated through the use of a reliable inspection service. Our inspection services in Vietnam include the assessment of pre-production schedules and plans to ensure timely outcomes and adequate materials.


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BYD's plant pivots to manufacture 5 million masks daily
Chinese battery and automaker BYD is now the world's No.1 face mask producer after a rapid refocusing of its team.
The business created a special task force in late January to respond to the Covid-19 outbreak in China. Within two weeks, the team had managed to complete the R&D and manufacturing of masks and medical-grade hand sanitizers. According to BYD, this was achieved largely by adapting the company's expertise and resources manufacturing batteries and new energy vehicles, and channeling those into producing these critical supplies. At full capacity the company is now able to produce 5 million masks and 300,000 bottles of disinfectants daily, making it the world's largest manufacturer of face masks!
Every future-focused innovator knows that businesses need to be agile, to keep up with change and stay relevant. The global Covid-19 outbreak is testing every organization's agility right now, but this initiative is an inspirational example to share with your team/ Similarly, LVMH announced yesterday that it will be using its fragrance factories to produce hand sanitizer to donate to the French healthcare system. But there's a bigger lesson here too for after the crisis: in a fast-changing world, agile businesses that can leverage their expertise and resources will be well-placed to expand into new areas of opportunity..


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The undisputed middleweight championship of the world will be on the line in the UFC's return to the windy city of Chicago on June 9, as Robert Whittaker defends his crown against Yoel Romero in a highly-anticipated rematch that headlines UFC 225 at United Center.
Tickets for the event, which airs live on Pay-Per-View, go on sale on April 13.
Revisiting their 2017 Fight of the Night battle that earned Australia's Whittaker the 185-pound title, Romero has earned this return bout with a devastating knockout of Luke Rockhold in February, and he's hungry to become Cuba's first UFC champion this June and add to a list of victories that includes the names Chris Weidman, "Jacare" Souza, Lyoto Machida and Derek Brunson. But the 27-year-old Whittaker is not going to give up his belt that easily, and with an eight-fight streak that has seen him defeat Romero, Souza, Brunson and Uriah Hall, the former Ultimate Fighter Smashes winner may be settling in for a long reign at the top.


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- Association of Genetic and Environmental Factors With Autism in a 5-Country Cohort. Bai D, Yip, BHK, Windham, GC, et al. JAMA Psychiatry. 2019 Jul 17.
2. Identification of common genetic risk variants for autism spectrum disorder. Grove J, Ripke, S, Als, TD, et al. Nature Genetics. 2019 Mar;51(3):431-444.
3. Inherited and De Novo Genetic Risk for Autism Impacts Shared Networks. Ruzzo EK, Pérez-Cano L, Jung JY, et al. Cell. 2019 Aug 8;178(4):850-866.e26.
"The first study examined genetic and environmental factors contributing to autism in Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Western Australia and Israel.
Estimates of additive genetic risk ranged from 51 percent in Finland to 87 percent in Israel and estimates of environmental risk ranged from 13 percent in Israel to 35 percent in Finland," said Ed Cook, Earl M. Bane Professor of Psychiatry, Director of the Program for Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at University of Illinois-Chicago College of Medicine.
The second study, by Grove and colleagues, reported the largest genetic study to date, looking for gene changes that are linked with autism. It included more than 18,000 subjects with autism and more than 27,000 control subjects.
"Five statistically significant loci were identified and relationships were found between polygenic scores for ASD and several other conditions, including ADHD and major depression," Cook said.
Finally, Ruzzo and colleagues used a dataset featuring more detailed genetic information via whole genome sequencing looking for new genes that may contribute to autism.
They performed WGS on samples from the Autism Genetic Research Exchange, supported by Autism Speaks, of people with two or more affected siblings with autism spectrum disorder. "They also contrasted the biological effects of genes found in these multiplex families to genes implicated by findings in families with only one child with ASD," Cook said.
Taken together, these three studies represent a shift toward larger datasets, whether through collaboration or through more detailed sequencing available with more sophisticated genetic tests like whole genome sequencing.
"ASD risk remains complex and multifactorial," Cook said.
source: https://www.autismspeaks.org/science-news/top-10-autism-studies


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Irazu Volcanic Naga Jolokia Reserve Crushed Pepper Sauce is made with real Naga Jolokia (Ghost Pepper) and contains no extracts, so you can fully appreciate both the heat and flavour of this slightly sweet and blistering pepper. The estimated Scoville Heat Unit for a whole Naga Jolokia Pepper is around 1,000,000, so Irazu estimates this hot sauce to clock in at around 500,000 due to the high percentage of real Naga Jolokia peppers packed into the bottle.
Ingredients: Ground Naga Jolokia Pepper, Water, Onion, Salt, Lemon Juice, Acidic Acid, Garlic Pulp, Xanthan Gum.


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Once you start school there is a time honored tradition that happens every single year without fail of your entire educational career. Half way between bleary eyed and bright eyed and bushy tailed, sparkled and shined sporting new clothes, new shoes, and loaded down with backpacks filled to overflowing with pens, notebooks, crayons, and markers the kids stand at attention for that first day of school photo op.
You tick off everything in your head… lunch money, gym shoes, backpack check! You hope that nothing has been forgotten. You find the perfect setting. You know the one where shadows won't block their smiling faces. Smile! Stand up straight! Move closer together! They oblige and you capture that moment forever to be compared in years to come with other first days of school. If you are a trucker's wife, you document those smiles with your cell phone then send them to your husband so he can share the moment too.
You can hardly fathom how much they have changed from one year to the next. Time goes by so swiftly! Wasn't it only yesterday when summer vacation began? You say goodbye to carousing half the night and sleeping late, and hello to early mornings. With a hug and kiss they are on their way, and you return to a silent house. And so it begins and you know you will treasure these snapshots forever until next time when I give you another glimpse into the life of a trucker's wife.


text: Koiwai Farm (小岩井農場まきば園 / koiwai nojo makibaen), one of the largest privately-owned farms in Japan, straddles over Shizukuishi Town and Takizawa City in Iwate District, Iwate Prefecture. Dairy products such as milk, butter, and cheese that can be easily purchased at supermarkets are famous, but the origin of where they come from is actually Koiwai Farm in Iwate Prefecture. In this article, we will introduce the charm of the Koiwai Farm, which is very popular as a sightseeing spot, such as playing with animals, visiting Cultural Properties, and fully enjoying farm gourmet food.