April 22, 2018
The US is losing an unassailable $600 billion trade case
With their growing surpluses on American trades, China, Japan and the European Union are defying U.S. trade policies — and getting away with it.
China says it is "locked and loaded" to "fight to the end" on its trade issues with the U.S.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's upcoming visit to Washington should be used to make an example-setting deal for a new architecture of fair and reciprocal trade.
Dr. Michael Ivanovitch | @msiglobal9
CNBC.com
Before coming to Florida last week to talk trade, plan out East Asian security and play a round of golf, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe kicked off in Tokyo a series of meetings with China's visiting State Councillor Wang Yi.
The meetings were set to strengthen the Sino-Japanese "strategic relationship of mutual benefit," to expand a $300 billion bilateral trade and to increase further the flow of 7.3 million Chinese visitors to Japan.
Abe also welcomed the impending visit to Japan of China's Premier Li Keqiang to (a) set up a trilateral free trade area with China and South Korea, (b) conclude the agreement on an East Asian Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, (c) join China's erstwhile shunned Belt and Road infrastructure projects, (d) promote multilateral trade and (e) fight trade protectionism.
Clear messages, aren't they?
And then, while in Florida, Abe insisted on keeping the U.S.-Japan trade in a broad multilateral framework, fearing that President Donald Trump's preference for a bilateral deal would make a big dent in Japan's $68.8 billion trade surplus on American trades.
China should golf instead of spoiling for a fight
Promising to Trump an "honest trade relationship," Abe asked him to include Pyongyang's short- and medium-range missiles in the forthcoming disarmament negotiations, and to get back to Japan the people North Koreans allegedly abducted.
I wonder whether he also told Trump that Japan's high-ranking officials from foreign, defense and other government agencies were conducting consultations in Sendai, Japan last Thursday and Friday with their Chinese counterparts on contested maritime borders in the South China Sea. That comes close on the heels of a similar meeting in Shanghai last December, showing that a Sino-Japanese "strategic relationship of mutual benefit" may be heating up while Tokyo feels secure under the U.S. defense umbrella and enjoys full access to American markets.
China is not interested in the bourgeois game of golfing. No, Beijing says it is "locked and loaded" to retaliate and "fight to the end" in what it sees as an unfolding "trade war" with America.
That is an interesting negotiating posture for a country that ran a $375 billion trade surplus with the U.S. last year. And this year could be much worse. The American trade deficit with China in January and February was running at an annual rate of $391.2 billion — a 20 percent increase over the same period of 2017.
In spite of that, there is nothing in China's official statements to indicate that Beijing intends to bring those surpluses down. One can only see a belligerent defiance, promises to open up, to cling to multilateral trade and to pursue a "win-win cooperation."
Will Washington settle for that? Or is Trump ready to make good on his promise to give China a pass on trade for help with North Korean nukes?
Merkel for a Mar-a-Lago weekend
If true, that would be a huge mistake. There are no trade offs here. Beijing will not sell North Korea down the river in exchange for Trump's leniency on large, and growing, trade deficits with China. And neither will China suffocate Pyongyang for Washington's favors, whatever those might be.
Pyongyang said it is suspending nuclear and ballistic missile tests on a site that had reportedly become unusable. It also claims that no further tests are necessary — presumably for now. What will follow — if all goes well — is a long negotiating process where China will support North Korea's demands for iron-clad security guarantees and the dismantling of the sanctions regime in exchange for gradual measures of nuclear disarmament.
There are no ultimatums for quick fixes here. There is only a devilishly difficult, long and uncertain high-stakes bargaining among actors deeply suspicious of each other's sincerity and intentions.
But let's get back to the trade issue. Even on a heroic assumption that the expected U.S.-North Korean summit, midwifed by China, is a resounding success, Washington still could not ignore the size and the pace of increase of its trade deficit with Beijing.
The European Union, for its part, is also threatening retaliations in spite of a $151.4 billion trade surplus with the U.S. last year.
The silver lining is that German Chancellor Angela Merkel knows better. She dispatched her vice chancellor to Washington last week to talk trade and prepare the ground for her one-day visit to the White House on Friday, April 27.
Trump would do well to show more understanding for EU trades and more warmth for Merkel. About one-fifth of American exports go to the EU. In January and February, the U.S. sales to the EU were growing at an annual rate of 9 percent — while falling 1.5 percent to China. Over the same period, American exports to Germany soared 12 percent.
Germany may not oblige its estranged cousin Trump with Chevys on its autobahns, but show more courtesy and extend Merkel's Friday visit for a Mar-a-Lago weekend, and you might see a flood of sun-starved Germans to Florida. Also, keep in mind that Germans believe "alte Liebe rostet nicht" – old love does not rust.
Investment thoughts
China, Japan and the EU are defying Trump's trade policies — and are getting away with it. Last year, on Trump's watch, they ran a combined $595.4 billion surplus on their American trades — a 5.8 percent increase from 2016.
And things are now getting worse. With the U.S. domestic demand revving up a bit, America's trade gap this year could be much wider. In January and February, the U.S. trade deficit with those three large economic systems, accounting for about 40 percent of world's demand and output, was running at an annual rate of $612.3 billion, a 3 percent increase from the same period of 2017.
What can Washington do?
First, stop threatening. But do make sure that everybody understands the U.S. won't be the dumping ground of the world, with systematic losses of wealth, jobs and proprietary technology.
Second, make a deal with Germany to cut U.S. trade deficits by boosting American exports to the EU while replacing a significant part of imports with products generated by European companies in their U.S. production facilities.
Japan would follow suit by stepping up supplies from its U.S.-based manufacturing outlets. But whether Tokyo will open up its markets to American goods and services will depend on Washington's implementation of rules of reciprocity.
Third, watching all this, China would understand that it has to cooperate, provided Washington stops linking strategic security issues with what Beijing should normally do as a responsible world trader.
Remember, the Chinese realize that no trade concession on their part can wish away acute U.S.-China questions, such as Taiwan, contested maritime borders in the South China Sea, the sequels to the Korean War and "strategically competitive" issues in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.
Talk reciprocal nickels and dimes with Beijing, and make sure that the people we call our friends and allies are following the same approach. The U.S. can't have monumental trade issues with China while its closest allies are flocking to Beijing for lucrative "golden era" relationships. If that continues, Washington will be left holding the bag.
The Chinese are in an untenable situation where they live off their main trade partners while advocating globalization, multilateralism and the empty shell of "win-win cooperation." If they continue on that path, they will discredit China's remarkable achievements accomplished over decades of hard and smart work to save, produce and sell to willing buyers around the world.
Commentary by Michael Ivanovitch, an independent analyst focusing on world economy, geopolitics and investment strategy. He served as a senior economist at the OECD in Paris, international economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and taught economics at Columbia Business School.
Monday, April 23, 2018
TSB apologises after customers complain of online banking 'data breach' Some customers say they can view other people’s accounts through app after bank completes technology upgrade - Independent
April 23, 2018
TSB apologises after customers complain of online banking 'data breach'
Some customers say they can view other people’s accounts through app after bank completes technology upgrade
Ben Chapman @b_c_chapman
The bank said it was 'working as hard and as fast as we can to get these up and running' PA
TSB has apologised to customers who could not access their accounts through the company’s app and online banking service on Sunday night and Monday morning.
A number of customers complained of a "data breach" and said that they were able to view other people’s account information through the app.
The problems came after TSB carried out planned upgrade work to its technology over the weekend. The bank had warned that some services would not be available from 4pm on Friday to 6pm on Sunday but customers found that problems persisted beyond this, leaving them locked out of their accounts.
Major companies pull advertising from Facebook over data breach
One customer told the BBC that he had been credited with a large sum of money that was not his once he managed to get back into the app.
“My balance, because of my overdraft, is in minus, but my balance was showing at £13,000,” said Laim McKenzie, from Paisley in Scotland.
In a statement on Monday morning, TSB said that there were still “intermittent issues” with its mobile and online banking services and that it was “working as hard and as fast as we can to get these up and running”.
TSB customers will be able to access accounts using an eye scanner
UK retail banks’ reputation improves but RBS, TSB and HSBC lag
Questions of Cash: 'Our TSB dividends seem to have disappeared'
Don't blunt our sharp teeth, warns TSB boss Paul Pester
The announcement came after TSB's social media team faced a series of complaints from customers on Sunday evening.
Craig Malcom tweeted: “TSB I currently have access to £20k+ of other peoples money.
“I suggest somebody answers the phones as iv been on hold for 45 minutes!
“This is a MASSIVE breach of data protection! If i have access to their account they could have to mine as well!”
bex
@Bec_701
.@TSB so go to my app and have someone else’s accounts there!!!! Serious dpa breach! Want to speak to someone now and a half an hour wait!! What would the FCA say about this!!! Might just inform them a bank is giving away other people’s account numbers
4:06 AM - Apr 23, 2018
Another Twitter user called Bex wrote: “@TSB so go to my app and have someone else's accounts there!!!! Serious dpa (Data Protection Act) breach!”
“Want to speak to someone now and a half an hour wait!! What would the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) say about this!!! Might just inform them a bank is giving away other people's account numbers.”
The problems apparently stemmed from a switch to a new online banking system. TSB had rented the technology behind its app and online banking from Lloyds Banking Group since the two companies split. Over the weekend, TSB moved customers to a new platform which experienced some teething problems.
TSB apologises after customers complain of online banking 'data breach'
Some customers say they can view other people’s accounts through app after bank completes technology upgrade
Ben Chapman @b_c_chapman
The bank said it was 'working as hard and as fast as we can to get these up and running' PA
TSB has apologised to customers who could not access their accounts through the company’s app and online banking service on Sunday night and Monday morning.
A number of customers complained of a "data breach" and said that they were able to view other people’s account information through the app.
The problems came after TSB carried out planned upgrade work to its technology over the weekend. The bank had warned that some services would not be available from 4pm on Friday to 6pm on Sunday but customers found that problems persisted beyond this, leaving them locked out of their accounts.
Major companies pull advertising from Facebook over data breach
One customer told the BBC that he had been credited with a large sum of money that was not his once he managed to get back into the app.
“My balance, because of my overdraft, is in minus, but my balance was showing at £13,000,” said Laim McKenzie, from Paisley in Scotland.
In a statement on Monday morning, TSB said that there were still “intermittent issues” with its mobile and online banking services and that it was “working as hard and as fast as we can to get these up and running”.
TSB customers will be able to access accounts using an eye scanner
UK retail banks’ reputation improves but RBS, TSB and HSBC lag
Questions of Cash: 'Our TSB dividends seem to have disappeared'
Don't blunt our sharp teeth, warns TSB boss Paul Pester
The announcement came after TSB's social media team faced a series of complaints from customers on Sunday evening.
Craig Malcom tweeted: “TSB I currently have access to £20k+ of other peoples money.
“I suggest somebody answers the phones as iv been on hold for 45 minutes!
“This is a MASSIVE breach of data protection! If i have access to their account they could have to mine as well!”
bex
@Bec_701
.@TSB so go to my app and have someone else’s accounts there!!!! Serious dpa breach! Want to speak to someone now and a half an hour wait!! What would the FCA say about this!!! Might just inform them a bank is giving away other people’s account numbers
4:06 AM - Apr 23, 2018
Another Twitter user called Bex wrote: “@TSB so go to my app and have someone else's accounts there!!!! Serious dpa (Data Protection Act) breach!”
“Want to speak to someone now and a half an hour wait!! What would the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) say about this!!! Might just inform them a bank is giving away other people's account numbers.”
The problems apparently stemmed from a switch to a new online banking system. TSB had rented the technology behind its app and online banking from Lloyds Banking Group since the two companies split. Over the weekend, TSB moved customers to a new platform which experienced some teething problems.
Millennial millionaire: The 8 steps I took to make my first million - CNBC News
Millennial millionaire: The 8 steps I took to make my first million
Bryan M. Kuderna, Contributor 4:12 PM ET Fri, 16 Feb 2018
Since releasing my 2015 book "Millennial Millionaire," I have enjoyed speaking alongside icons of the business world and sharing my advice on all things related to money. As fun as this journey has been, I realized there never was a chance to look in the rear-view mirror, a habit this usually forward-thinking millennial happens to frown upon.
Then, during a recent radio interview with Forbes host Gregg Stebben, he put me on the spot by simply asking, "How did you do it?"
So enough of the grandiose wisdom of macroeconomics and high-flying business heroes. Here are the eight steps a twenty-something took to make his first million!
Graduate college fast
I entered college in 2005 at The University of Tampa. Despite attending four different colleges, I met my goal of graduating in four years from The College of New Jersey in 2009 with a BS in Finance and a minor in Economics.
Walking into a career in insurance and investment advising three days after graduation gave me a huge head start on my peers and, of course, it eliminated the need for more student loans.
Be an entrepreneur
The subtitle to my book, "A Guide to Becoming a Millionaire by 30," has provoked the hardest question I've been asked over the past two years: Is there a prerequisite? The honest truth is yes, and the prerequisite is capital. Without an advanced degree, the most common way I've seen to generate a high early income is sales and/or entrepreneurship.
Only three days after graduating from college, I jumped headlong into a position as a financial sales representative. The first two years were a real struggle, long hours and low income based 100 percent on commission. Coming from a family that relied on a steady paycheck (my dad worked for the army and my mom was a paralegal), this volatility caused a lot of friction on the home front. My parents couldn't understand my working crazy hours, studying for so many licenses, and then hardly getting by.
But I believed the hard work would pay off and began building my own practice right out of the gate.
Here's how this college grad saved $47,000 Here's how this college grad saved $47,000
Live at home
Recognizing that capital is the precursor to wealth, a financial plan becomes feasible by either earning more or saving more. A combination of the two provides the best odds. You might land a great job out of school only to watch much of your early earnings go to rent and living expenses. I lived at home until age 25, which made a nice income seem enormous.
For the first six months of my career I did nothing but put money in the bank. This allowed me to zero out my credit cards every single month. One of my proudest achievements is never paying a penny of interest while collecting some nice rewards along the way.
By age 24, my income, generated by financial advising, began to surpass that of most of my peers. From there it snowballed almost month by month as I accumulated more clients and bigger accounts. I parlayed these earnings into the same investments and financial planning strategies I teach my clients and watched my wealth grow. I added book royalties and speaking gigs on top of my day-to-day job as a CFP.
With some real estate thrown in during the second half of my 20's, I made my million during my 29th year!
The definitive guide to retirement savings plans The definitive guide to retirement savings plans
Fund the 401(k) to the match
After my first year of employment, I was eligible for a 3 percent company match on my 401(k) contributions. I immediately began investing 3 percent of my compensation to the Roth 401(k) option, allocated to 100 percent equities. This quickly went from 3 percent to the IRS maximum after the next three steps were met.
Buy individual disability insurance
Knowing that income is the engine which makes any financial plan run, I purchased the maximum amount of "True Own Occupation" disability insurance with options to increase throughout my career. I've since added a second individual policy and maxed out our Group Long-Term Disability. This makes me feel invincible.
Tony Robbins shares why being a millennial homeowner isn't the smartest move Here's how Tony Robbins suggests millennials approach buying homes
Buy real estate
With capital at my disposal and the leverage of a conventional mortgage, I bought my first property at age 25. Such a large purchase was a frightening progression, but, like anything else in life, you adapt and continue moving forward. Two more properties have since been added, which yield additional rental cash flow while paying off my mortgages.
Open a brokerage account
Once I settled into home ownership and restored my "rainy day fund" to adequate levels, I searched for greater return on my money. A moderately allocated, tax-sensitive ETF account allowed for growth opportunity without sacrificing much liquidity. Any extra, un-earmarked funds quickly find their way here.
By no means are these steps direct recommendations for the masses; they're a biographical sketch of my 20's. Your goal might be $100k, $1 million, or even $1 billion. But I hope a look behind the curtain at a CFP and fellow millennial might help you make the most of your early years.
Bryan M. Kuderna is a CFP, Life Underwriter Training Council Fellow, and Investment Adviser Representative with Kuderna Financial Team, a New Jersey based financial services firm. He is the author of the best-selling book, "Millennial Millionaire: A Guide to Become a Millionaire by 30."
Bryan M. Kuderna, Contributor 4:12 PM ET Fri, 16 Feb 2018
Since releasing my 2015 book "Millennial Millionaire," I have enjoyed speaking alongside icons of the business world and sharing my advice on all things related to money. As fun as this journey has been, I realized there never was a chance to look in the rear-view mirror, a habit this usually forward-thinking millennial happens to frown upon.
Then, during a recent radio interview with Forbes host Gregg Stebben, he put me on the spot by simply asking, "How did you do it?"
So enough of the grandiose wisdom of macroeconomics and high-flying business heroes. Here are the eight steps a twenty-something took to make his first million!
Graduate college fast
I entered college in 2005 at The University of Tampa. Despite attending four different colleges, I met my goal of graduating in four years from The College of New Jersey in 2009 with a BS in Finance and a minor in Economics.
Walking into a career in insurance and investment advising three days after graduation gave me a huge head start on my peers and, of course, it eliminated the need for more student loans.
Be an entrepreneur
The subtitle to my book, "A Guide to Becoming a Millionaire by 30," has provoked the hardest question I've been asked over the past two years: Is there a prerequisite? The honest truth is yes, and the prerequisite is capital. Without an advanced degree, the most common way I've seen to generate a high early income is sales and/or entrepreneurship.
Only three days after graduating from college, I jumped headlong into a position as a financial sales representative. The first two years were a real struggle, long hours and low income based 100 percent on commission. Coming from a family that relied on a steady paycheck (my dad worked for the army and my mom was a paralegal), this volatility caused a lot of friction on the home front. My parents couldn't understand my working crazy hours, studying for so many licenses, and then hardly getting by.
But I believed the hard work would pay off and began building my own practice right out of the gate.
Here's how this college grad saved $47,000 Here's how this college grad saved $47,000
Live at home
Recognizing that capital is the precursor to wealth, a financial plan becomes feasible by either earning more or saving more. A combination of the two provides the best odds. You might land a great job out of school only to watch much of your early earnings go to rent and living expenses. I lived at home until age 25, which made a nice income seem enormous.
For the first six months of my career I did nothing but put money in the bank. This allowed me to zero out my credit cards every single month. One of my proudest achievements is never paying a penny of interest while collecting some nice rewards along the way.
By age 24, my income, generated by financial advising, began to surpass that of most of my peers. From there it snowballed almost month by month as I accumulated more clients and bigger accounts. I parlayed these earnings into the same investments and financial planning strategies I teach my clients and watched my wealth grow. I added book royalties and speaking gigs on top of my day-to-day job as a CFP.
With some real estate thrown in during the second half of my 20's, I made my million during my 29th year!
The definitive guide to retirement savings plans The definitive guide to retirement savings plans
Fund the 401(k) to the match
After my first year of employment, I was eligible for a 3 percent company match on my 401(k) contributions. I immediately began investing 3 percent of my compensation to the Roth 401(k) option, allocated to 100 percent equities. This quickly went from 3 percent to the IRS maximum after the next three steps were met.
Buy individual disability insurance
Knowing that income is the engine which makes any financial plan run, I purchased the maximum amount of "True Own Occupation" disability insurance with options to increase throughout my career. I've since added a second individual policy and maxed out our Group Long-Term Disability. This makes me feel invincible.
Tony Robbins shares why being a millennial homeowner isn't the smartest move Here's how Tony Robbins suggests millennials approach buying homes
Buy real estate
With capital at my disposal and the leverage of a conventional mortgage, I bought my first property at age 25. Such a large purchase was a frightening progression, but, like anything else in life, you adapt and continue moving forward. Two more properties have since been added, which yield additional rental cash flow while paying off my mortgages.
Open a brokerage account
Once I settled into home ownership and restored my "rainy day fund" to adequate levels, I searched for greater return on my money. A moderately allocated, tax-sensitive ETF account allowed for growth opportunity without sacrificing much liquidity. Any extra, un-earmarked funds quickly find their way here.
By no means are these steps direct recommendations for the masses; they're a biographical sketch of my 20's. Your goal might be $100k, $1 million, or even $1 billion. But I hope a look behind the curtain at a CFP and fellow millennial might help you make the most of your early years.
Bryan M. Kuderna is a CFP, Life Underwriter Training Council Fellow, and Investment Adviser Representative with Kuderna Financial Team, a New Jersey based financial services firm. He is the author of the best-selling book, "Millennial Millionaire: A Guide to Become a Millionaire by 30."
Banking royal commission: AMP advice led to loss of quarter of super account - Guardian ( source : Australian Associated Press )
Banking royal commission: AMP advice led to loss of quarter of super account
AMP says advice at odds with customer’s interests and man has not been compensated
Gareth Hutchens and Michael McGowan
Mon 23 Apr 2018 16.38 AEST Last modified on Mon 23 Apr 2018 17.38 AEST
An AMP financial adviser told a man to consolidate his superannuation benefits into a single fund, which caused the loss of 25% of his super. Photograph: Scott Barbour/Getty Images
A man lost 25% of the balance of a superannuation account after being advised by an AMP financial adviser to consolidate his super benefits into a single AMP-owned fund.
AMP admits the advice was detrimental to the man’s financial interests but says he has not been compensated, nor even contacted about the issue.
The fourth week of public hearings for the banking royal commission began on Monday, with AMP back in the witness box.
• Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noon
AMP’s former chief executive Craig Meller was stood down immediately after a company executive admitted in the royal commission last week that the company had repeatedly lied to the regulator about charging customers fees for no service.
On Monday the law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan said it was considering a possible class action against AMP, looking to hear from shareholders who have seen the company’s stock plummet in the last week.
AMP shares lost more than $1bn in market value last week after the damning evidence presented to the financial services royal commission.
On Monday, AMP’s head of compliance, Sarah Britt, appeared as a witness at the royal commission to respond to questions about the behaviour of a former AMP financial planner.
Rowena Orr, the senior counsel assisting the royal commission, asked Britt about a financial adviser called “Mr E”, for legal reasons, who advised a husband and wife couple to rollover their non-AMP super accounts into a single AMP-owned fund, My North Super, in 2016.
The husband was advised to rollover and consolidate his super benefits from two non-AMP funds, TAL Super and MLC MasterKey Superannuation.
The husband had $68,000 in TAL Super and $73,000 in MLC Super, and was advised to put the balance into My North Super.
In doing so, he had to pay TAL Super an exit fee of $16,189, meaning he lost roughly 25% of his TAL Super balance ($68,000).
A document tendered to the royal commission showed the husband was informed he would lose $16,000 in exit fees because he had not met certain TAL Super conditions but he was told his super benefits would be invested in My North Super’s “Xenith Model portfolio”, which would “provide you better performance so that you could earn more”.
But the financial adviser made no attempt to compare the likely returns from remaining in the TAL Super with the likely returns from moving to My North Super.
Orr asked Britt: “So the advice to the husband from Mr E was to sacrifice close to 25% of the balance of the fund so it could be transferred to My North Super?”
Britt replied: “Yes”
Orr said: “Would you agree that unless the TAL’s funds returns had been, or were likely to remain very significantly lower than the likely My North Super returns, it could not have been in this client’s interest to lose a quarter of their superannuation fund?”
Britt replied: “Yes, that’s right. So unless there were significant benefits that would outweigh the exit fee, um, then yes, correct.”
Orr then asked: “And were there significant benefits that outweighed the exit fee?”
Britt said: “Based on the documents I’ve seen … I couldn’t identify what those benefits were.”
The royal commission heard Mr E was first audited by AMP in September 2016, two months before he advised the husband and wife couple.
Australia was conned by financial regulators. And now we'll pay the price
Lindsay David
Read more
That audit resulted in a C rating, meaning the adviser met all of AMP’s major quality advice principles while some areas of improvement were identified.
He was audited again in March 2017 and given an “E” rating – the worst rating possible – because he failed to meet the minimum standards required for providing advice, but he was not sacked.
The licensee that employed the adviser did not want to sack him, saying he was relatively new and junior. AMP agreed to continue using him, with some restrictions in place. But the adviser’s employer sacked him in August 2017.
The husband and wife client of Mr E have still not received compensation, nor been contacted by AMP to be told they received bad advice.
Britt said that was because the case has been moved into their “remediation program” with every other client on Mr E’s book, along with clients from other advisers.
Britt said AMP had remediated clients of 14 advisers so far. She said she didn’t know how many advisers were subject to AMP’s remediation program.
Britt said AMP blamed Mr E and his employer for giving bad advice.
Orr asked: “Does AMP accept any responsibility for the provision of inappropriate advice by Mr E, its authorised representative?”
Britt did not answer the question directly, saying the adviser had been picked up by AMP’s risk controls.
“In that sense, we would say that we’ve discharged our monitoring and supervision obligations with respect to this adviser,” she said.
Orr asked: “So do you maintain that there was no failing in AMP’s systems and processes?”
Britt replied: “We would maintain that we have a robust system of detecting and if necessary terminating advisers who are providing deficient advice.”
She admitted AMP had made no changes to its processes as a result of Mr E’s conduct.
With Australian Associated Press
AMP says advice at odds with customer’s interests and man has not been compensated
Gareth Hutchens and Michael McGowan
Mon 23 Apr 2018 16.38 AEST Last modified on Mon 23 Apr 2018 17.38 AEST
An AMP financial adviser told a man to consolidate his superannuation benefits into a single fund, which caused the loss of 25% of his super. Photograph: Scott Barbour/Getty Images
A man lost 25% of the balance of a superannuation account after being advised by an AMP financial adviser to consolidate his super benefits into a single AMP-owned fund.
AMP admits the advice was detrimental to the man’s financial interests but says he has not been compensated, nor even contacted about the issue.
The fourth week of public hearings for the banking royal commission began on Monday, with AMP back in the witness box.
• Sign up to receive the top stories in Australia every day at noon
AMP’s former chief executive Craig Meller was stood down immediately after a company executive admitted in the royal commission last week that the company had repeatedly lied to the regulator about charging customers fees for no service.
On Monday the law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan said it was considering a possible class action against AMP, looking to hear from shareholders who have seen the company’s stock plummet in the last week.
AMP shares lost more than $1bn in market value last week after the damning evidence presented to the financial services royal commission.
On Monday, AMP’s head of compliance, Sarah Britt, appeared as a witness at the royal commission to respond to questions about the behaviour of a former AMP financial planner.
Rowena Orr, the senior counsel assisting the royal commission, asked Britt about a financial adviser called “Mr E”, for legal reasons, who advised a husband and wife couple to rollover their non-AMP super accounts into a single AMP-owned fund, My North Super, in 2016.
The husband was advised to rollover and consolidate his super benefits from two non-AMP funds, TAL Super and MLC MasterKey Superannuation.
The husband had $68,000 in TAL Super and $73,000 in MLC Super, and was advised to put the balance into My North Super.
In doing so, he had to pay TAL Super an exit fee of $16,189, meaning he lost roughly 25% of his TAL Super balance ($68,000).
A document tendered to the royal commission showed the husband was informed he would lose $16,000 in exit fees because he had not met certain TAL Super conditions but he was told his super benefits would be invested in My North Super’s “Xenith Model portfolio”, which would “provide you better performance so that you could earn more”.
But the financial adviser made no attempt to compare the likely returns from remaining in the TAL Super with the likely returns from moving to My North Super.
Orr asked Britt: “So the advice to the husband from Mr E was to sacrifice close to 25% of the balance of the fund so it could be transferred to My North Super?”
Britt replied: “Yes”
Orr said: “Would you agree that unless the TAL’s funds returns had been, or were likely to remain very significantly lower than the likely My North Super returns, it could not have been in this client’s interest to lose a quarter of their superannuation fund?”
Britt replied: “Yes, that’s right. So unless there were significant benefits that would outweigh the exit fee, um, then yes, correct.”
Orr then asked: “And were there significant benefits that outweighed the exit fee?”
Britt said: “Based on the documents I’ve seen … I couldn’t identify what those benefits were.”
The royal commission heard Mr E was first audited by AMP in September 2016, two months before he advised the husband and wife couple.
Australia was conned by financial regulators. And now we'll pay the price
Lindsay David
Read more
That audit resulted in a C rating, meaning the adviser met all of AMP’s major quality advice principles while some areas of improvement were identified.
He was audited again in March 2017 and given an “E” rating – the worst rating possible – because he failed to meet the minimum standards required for providing advice, but he was not sacked.
The licensee that employed the adviser did not want to sack him, saying he was relatively new and junior. AMP agreed to continue using him, with some restrictions in place. But the adviser’s employer sacked him in August 2017.
The husband and wife client of Mr E have still not received compensation, nor been contacted by AMP to be told they received bad advice.
Britt said that was because the case has been moved into their “remediation program” with every other client on Mr E’s book, along with clients from other advisers.
Britt said AMP had remediated clients of 14 advisers so far. She said she didn’t know how many advisers were subject to AMP’s remediation program.
Britt said AMP blamed Mr E and his employer for giving bad advice.
Orr asked: “Does AMP accept any responsibility for the provision of inappropriate advice by Mr E, its authorised representative?”
Britt did not answer the question directly, saying the adviser had been picked up by AMP’s risk controls.
“In that sense, we would say that we’ve discharged our monitoring and supervision obligations with respect to this adviser,” she said.
Orr asked: “So do you maintain that there was no failing in AMP’s systems and processes?”
Britt replied: “We would maintain that we have a robust system of detecting and if necessary terminating advisers who are providing deficient advice.”
She admitted AMP had made no changes to its processes as a result of Mr E’s conduct.
With Australian Associated Press
Maverick to Maverick, Macron Seeks Common Ground With Trump - Bloomberg
Maverick to Maverick, Macron Seeks Common Ground With Trump
By Helene Fouquet
April 23, 2018, 5:28 PM GMT+10
Europe looks to Macron to sway Trump on trade, Iran deal
French leader plotted tactics with Merkel before visit
French President Emmanuel Macron lands in Washington Monday aiming to use his rapport with Donald Trump to take the edge off the latter’s “America First” foreign policy, for Europe at least.
As 40-year-old Macron arrives for the first state visit of Trump’s presidency, the U.S. leader is threatening to upend the global trading system with tariffs on China, maybe Europe too, and to ditch the Iran nuclear accord, a key plank of western policy for containing military tensions in the Middle East.
Macron has been building bridges with Trump for a year. Now he’s looking for something in return.
“Both of us are probably mavericks,” the French president said in a Fox News interview taped in Paris on Friday and broadcast Sunday. “We have a very special relationship.”
While Macron has had more success than most in getting through to Trump, his record of securing policy concessions is patchy. He pointed to this month’s missile strikes against Syria as a victory for French diplomacy, but he failed to keep the U.S. in the Paris climate accord and his aides last week played down expectations that he might persuade Trump to change course on other issues.
“This visit will promote the narrative that the two men have a good relationship, but it may not make much of a difference,” said Jeremy Shapiro, research director at the European Council on Foreign Relations in London. “A personal relationship is great, but Trump doesn’t remember it once you’ve left the room.”
State Dinner
On the first night, the two leaders will have dinner with their wives at George Washington’s estate in Mount Vernon, Virginia, overlooking the Potomac River. Macron will present his host with an oak tree from a forest where U.S. troops fought to defend France during World War I.
Tuesday night will be a state dinner at the White House at which Brigitte Macron may wear a gown by Louis Vuitton, her designer of choice. The rest of the guest list has been closely guarded so far, though LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault may make the cut as the only French business leader to have shaken Trump’s hand. On the final day of his trip Macron will address a joint session of Congress -- in English -- and meet students at George Washington University.
“He has been one of the few Europeans who has pulled off the trick of building a close and strong working relationship with President Trump while also not shying away from criticism,” said Jeff Rathke, deputy director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington and a former State Department official. “We’ll probably see some of that.”
Doing Business
Macron’s chance to turn the bonhomie into policy substance comes during extended talks on Tuesday.
French officials say they’ve been briefed by their White House counterparts that Trump still hasn’t decided whether he’ll stick with the Iran nuclear deal. The agreement was the signature foreign-policy achievement of Barack Obama’s presidency and perhaps the most intense U.S. diplomatic push since the aftermath of World War I. Trump, 71, is a long-time critic of the accord.
Macron said he hopes Trump upholds the agreement because it serves as a hedge against a “North Korean type of situation,” of prolonged threats between nuclear powers.
“I think the U.S. today has a very strong role to play for peace in different regions of the world, and especially the Mideast,” Macron said in his Fox News interview.
Read more about how Trump wants to reshape the Iran Nuclear deal here
Trump’s experience sending his forces into combat alongside their French allies this month may strengthen Macron’s chances of making progress on other issues, analysts said. France’s position as the EU’s foremost military power gives Macron an advantage over Chancellor Angela Merkel, who’s derided by the Trump administration for Germany’s reluctance to join military action, its low defense spending, and its trade surplus with the U.S.
Read more about Trump’s relationship with Macron here
Trade will be Macron’s other challenge. He was in Berlin last week to coordinate his arguments with Merkel before the German leader visits the White House on Friday.
European manufacturers are already worried about the knock-on effects of Trump’s trade policy, with the blacklisting of Russian aluminum producer Rusal threatening to crimp supplies to companies such as carmakers further down the production chain. On the broader concern of China’s trade surplus, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin hinted Saturday that he sees a chance for the U.S. to reach a settlement and said he’s considering a trip to Beijing.
Macron and Merkel will both argue that unilateral moves on trade policy are destructive, as they try to persuade Trump not to sabotage the World Trade Organization’s rules-based trading system. Trump wants the Europeans to ease the barriers to U.S. exporters seeking access to their markets.
“I hope he will not implement these new tariffs and he will decide for an exemption for the European Union,” Macron said on Fox. “You cannot make a trade war with your ally.”
— With assistance by Toluse Olorunnipa, Jonathan Tirone, and Ben Brody
By Helene Fouquet
April 23, 2018, 5:28 PM GMT+10
Europe looks to Macron to sway Trump on trade, Iran deal
French leader plotted tactics with Merkel before visit
French President Emmanuel Macron lands in Washington Monday aiming to use his rapport with Donald Trump to take the edge off the latter’s “America First” foreign policy, for Europe at least.
As 40-year-old Macron arrives for the first state visit of Trump’s presidency, the U.S. leader is threatening to upend the global trading system with tariffs on China, maybe Europe too, and to ditch the Iran nuclear accord, a key plank of western policy for containing military tensions in the Middle East.
Macron has been building bridges with Trump for a year. Now he’s looking for something in return.
“Both of us are probably mavericks,” the French president said in a Fox News interview taped in Paris on Friday and broadcast Sunday. “We have a very special relationship.”
While Macron has had more success than most in getting through to Trump, his record of securing policy concessions is patchy. He pointed to this month’s missile strikes against Syria as a victory for French diplomacy, but he failed to keep the U.S. in the Paris climate accord and his aides last week played down expectations that he might persuade Trump to change course on other issues.
“This visit will promote the narrative that the two men have a good relationship, but it may not make much of a difference,” said Jeremy Shapiro, research director at the European Council on Foreign Relations in London. “A personal relationship is great, but Trump doesn’t remember it once you’ve left the room.”
State Dinner
On the first night, the two leaders will have dinner with their wives at George Washington’s estate in Mount Vernon, Virginia, overlooking the Potomac River. Macron will present his host with an oak tree from a forest where U.S. troops fought to defend France during World War I.
Tuesday night will be a state dinner at the White House at which Brigitte Macron may wear a gown by Louis Vuitton, her designer of choice. The rest of the guest list has been closely guarded so far, though LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault may make the cut as the only French business leader to have shaken Trump’s hand. On the final day of his trip Macron will address a joint session of Congress -- in English -- and meet students at George Washington University.
“He has been one of the few Europeans who has pulled off the trick of building a close and strong working relationship with President Trump while also not shying away from criticism,” said Jeff Rathke, deputy director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington and a former State Department official. “We’ll probably see some of that.”
Doing Business
Macron’s chance to turn the bonhomie into policy substance comes during extended talks on Tuesday.
French officials say they’ve been briefed by their White House counterparts that Trump still hasn’t decided whether he’ll stick with the Iran nuclear deal. The agreement was the signature foreign-policy achievement of Barack Obama’s presidency and perhaps the most intense U.S. diplomatic push since the aftermath of World War I. Trump, 71, is a long-time critic of the accord.
Macron said he hopes Trump upholds the agreement because it serves as a hedge against a “North Korean type of situation,” of prolonged threats between nuclear powers.
“I think the U.S. today has a very strong role to play for peace in different regions of the world, and especially the Mideast,” Macron said in his Fox News interview.
Read more about how Trump wants to reshape the Iran Nuclear deal here
Trump’s experience sending his forces into combat alongside their French allies this month may strengthen Macron’s chances of making progress on other issues, analysts said. France’s position as the EU’s foremost military power gives Macron an advantage over Chancellor Angela Merkel, who’s derided by the Trump administration for Germany’s reluctance to join military action, its low defense spending, and its trade surplus with the U.S.
Read more about Trump’s relationship with Macron here
Trade will be Macron’s other challenge. He was in Berlin last week to coordinate his arguments with Merkel before the German leader visits the White House on Friday.
European manufacturers are already worried about the knock-on effects of Trump’s trade policy, with the blacklisting of Russian aluminum producer Rusal threatening to crimp supplies to companies such as carmakers further down the production chain. On the broader concern of China’s trade surplus, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin hinted Saturday that he sees a chance for the U.S. to reach a settlement and said he’s considering a trip to Beijing.
Macron and Merkel will both argue that unilateral moves on trade policy are destructive, as they try to persuade Trump not to sabotage the World Trade Organization’s rules-based trading system. Trump wants the Europeans to ease the barriers to U.S. exporters seeking access to their markets.
“I hope he will not implement these new tariffs and he will decide for an exemption for the European Union,” Macron said on Fox. “You cannot make a trade war with your ally.”
— With assistance by Toluse Olorunnipa, Jonathan Tirone, and Ben Brody
Coca-Cola announces its first-ever alcoholic drink - CNBC News
Coca-Cola announces its first-ever alcoholic drink
3:50 PM ET Wed, 7 March 2018 | 01:22
Coca-Cola is launching the first alcoholic drink in its history with a canned liquor product in Japan.
The drinks giant will experiment with a canned beverage called Chu-Hi, made up of distilled Japanese drink shochu, sparkling water and flavoring.
"This is unique in our history. Coca-Cola has always focused entirely on non-alcoholic beverages, and this is a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market," said Jorge Garduno, president of Coca-Cola's Japan business unit, in a post on the company's website.
Japan is a fiercely competitive market, Garduno added, with Coca-Cola launching 100 products a year in the country. "Experimentation is almost like a day-to-day ritual here. You can't fall behind the rapid product cycle in Japan," he said.
The Coke ON app being used in Japan. The app allows consumers to collect points and exchange them for drinks.
Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Coke ON app being used in Japan. The app allows consumers to collect points and exchange them for drinks.
The company's sodas only made up about 25 percent of product sales by volume in Japan in 2016, while tea made up 27 percent of Japan's overall beverage consumption in the same year.
Coca-Cola also owns Georgia Coffee in Japan, which it claims is the world's highest-grossing canned coffee drink, making more than $1 billion in annual sales. The country has a Food for Specified Health Uses (FOSHU) government certification, in light of its ageing population and fiber-fortified drink Coca-Cola Plus was FOSHU-approved in 2017.
Having certain drinks at particular times of day is more of an entrenched ritual in Japan than in other part of the world, said Khalil Younes, EVP of marketing and new businesses for Coca-Cola Japan, in a blog post. People might drink green tea with sushi, but opt for oolong tea with fattier Chinese food, for example.
Because of the nature of the Japanese drinks market, it's unlikely Chu-Hi drinks will launch in other countries, Garduno said. "While many markets are becoming more like Japan, I think the culture here is still very unique and special, so many products that are born here will stay here."
3:50 PM ET Wed, 7 March 2018 | 01:22
Coca-Cola is launching the first alcoholic drink in its history with a canned liquor product in Japan.
The drinks giant will experiment with a canned beverage called Chu-Hi, made up of distilled Japanese drink shochu, sparkling water and flavoring.
"This is unique in our history. Coca-Cola has always focused entirely on non-alcoholic beverages, and this is a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market," said Jorge Garduno, president of Coca-Cola's Japan business unit, in a post on the company's website.
Japan is a fiercely competitive market, Garduno added, with Coca-Cola launching 100 products a year in the country. "Experimentation is almost like a day-to-day ritual here. You can't fall behind the rapid product cycle in Japan," he said.
The Coke ON app being used in Japan. The app allows consumers to collect points and exchange them for drinks.
Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Coke ON app being used in Japan. The app allows consumers to collect points and exchange them for drinks.
The company's sodas only made up about 25 percent of product sales by volume in Japan in 2016, while tea made up 27 percent of Japan's overall beverage consumption in the same year.
Coca-Cola also owns Georgia Coffee in Japan, which it claims is the world's highest-grossing canned coffee drink, making more than $1 billion in annual sales. The country has a Food for Specified Health Uses (FOSHU) government certification, in light of its ageing population and fiber-fortified drink Coca-Cola Plus was FOSHU-approved in 2017.
Having certain drinks at particular times of day is more of an entrenched ritual in Japan than in other part of the world, said Khalil Younes, EVP of marketing and new businesses for Coca-Cola Japan, in a blog post. People might drink green tea with sushi, but opt for oolong tea with fattier Chinese food, for example.
Because of the nature of the Japanese drinks market, it's unlikely Chu-Hi drinks will launch in other countries, Garduno said. "While many markets are becoming more like Japan, I think the culture here is still very unique and special, so many products that are born here will stay here."
South Korea turns off loudspeaker broadcasts into North - BBC News
April 23, 2018
South Korea turns off loudspeaker broadcasts into North
South Korea's speakers were blasting pop music and propaganda over the border
South Korea has stopped broadcasting propaganda via loudspeakers along the border with North Korea, ahead of top-level talks later this week.
The South has dozens of loudspeakers along the border area, which blast everything from K-pop music to critical news reports of the North.
The broadcasts can be heard by the North's troops stationed along the border and civilians in the area.
Seoul said turning them off would help set the tone for Friday's talks.
North Korea has its own system of speakers along the border, playing reports critical of Seoul and its allies.
It's not yet known whether it will follow suit and silence them too.
What do North and South Korea shout across the border?
South Korea said the speakers, which play propaganda over the border at high volume, were turned off in the early hours of Monday morning.
The broadcasts are designed to sow doubt among North Korean soldiers about the official message on the South
The move aimed to "ease the military tension between the two Koreas and develop a peaceful summit atmosphere," spokesman Choi Hoi-hyun told reporters.
"We hope this decision will lead both Koreas to stop mutual criticism and propaganda against each other and also contribute in creating peace and a new beginning."
North Korea announced at the weekend that it was suspending nuclear tests and closing an atomic test site. The surprise announcement came as the country prepares for historic talks with South Korea and the US.
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in has called it "a significant decision towards total denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula".
Pyongyang's leader Kim Jong-un is due to meet Mr Moon next Friday at the truce village of Panmunjom, marking the first inter-Korean summit in over a decade.
Mr Kim is also due to meet US President Donald Trump by June. It will be the first ever meeting between two sitting leaders of North Korea and the US.
South Korea's propaganda broadcasts have been running on and off since the Korean War. The idea is to persuade North Korean soldiers to doubt what they are told by their leaders.
Their use has been increased and decreased over the years, following the diplomatic mood on the peninsula.
In 2004, the broadcasts were stopped as part of a deal negotiated between both countries.
But in 2015, after two South Korean soldiers were severely injured by North Korean-planted mines in the demilitarised zone (DMZ), the South turned its speakers back on. It was later halted again in 2015 and re-started in 2016 in response to the North testing a hydrogen bomb.
South Korea did not say whether it planned to restart the broadcasts once the summits are over.
South Korea turns off loudspeaker broadcasts into North
South Korea's speakers were blasting pop music and propaganda over the border
South Korea has stopped broadcasting propaganda via loudspeakers along the border with North Korea, ahead of top-level talks later this week.
The South has dozens of loudspeakers along the border area, which blast everything from K-pop music to critical news reports of the North.
The broadcasts can be heard by the North's troops stationed along the border and civilians in the area.
Seoul said turning them off would help set the tone for Friday's talks.
North Korea has its own system of speakers along the border, playing reports critical of Seoul and its allies.
It's not yet known whether it will follow suit and silence them too.
What do North and South Korea shout across the border?
South Korea said the speakers, which play propaganda over the border at high volume, were turned off in the early hours of Monday morning.
The broadcasts are designed to sow doubt among North Korean soldiers about the official message on the South
The move aimed to "ease the military tension between the two Koreas and develop a peaceful summit atmosphere," spokesman Choi Hoi-hyun told reporters.
"We hope this decision will lead both Koreas to stop mutual criticism and propaganda against each other and also contribute in creating peace and a new beginning."
North Korea announced at the weekend that it was suspending nuclear tests and closing an atomic test site. The surprise announcement came as the country prepares for historic talks with South Korea and the US.
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in has called it "a significant decision towards total denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula".
Pyongyang's leader Kim Jong-un is due to meet Mr Moon next Friday at the truce village of Panmunjom, marking the first inter-Korean summit in over a decade.
Mr Kim is also due to meet US President Donald Trump by June. It will be the first ever meeting between two sitting leaders of North Korea and the US.
South Korea's propaganda broadcasts have been running on and off since the Korean War. The idea is to persuade North Korean soldiers to doubt what they are told by their leaders.
Their use has been increased and decreased over the years, following the diplomatic mood on the peninsula.
In 2004, the broadcasts were stopped as part of a deal negotiated between both countries.
But in 2015, after two South Korean soldiers were severely injured by North Korean-planted mines in the demilitarised zone (DMZ), the South turned its speakers back on. It was later halted again in 2015 and re-started in 2016 in response to the North testing a hydrogen bomb.
South Korea did not say whether it planned to restart the broadcasts once the summits are over.
North Korea bus crash kills 32 Chinese tourists - BBC News
April 23, 2018
North Korea bus crash kills 32 Chinese tourists
The bus crash killed 32 Chinese people and four North Koreans
A tour bus has crashed in North Korea, killing 36 people including 32 Chinese nationals, Chinese officials say.
The crash, which also killed four North Koreans, happened in North Hwanghae province on Sunday night.
Chinese state media footage showed the blue tour bus completely flipped over, with part of its body broken.
Experts estimate that Chinese tourists make up 80% of foreign tourists to North Korea - providing an important source of currency for Pyongyang.
China is also the secretive regime's main political ally and largest trading partner.
Earlier, Chinese state broadcaster CGTN tweeted that more than 30 Chinese nationals had been killed after the bus plunged off a bridge - however, the post was later deleted.
There are no official tourist numbers for North Korea, but it is estimated that about 100,000 foreigners visit the country each year.
Tourists are subjected to tight restrictions - most visitors must be escorted at all times outside their hotels by guides employed by the government.
North Korea bus crash kills 32 Chinese tourists
The bus crash killed 32 Chinese people and four North Koreans
A tour bus has crashed in North Korea, killing 36 people including 32 Chinese nationals, Chinese officials say.
The crash, which also killed four North Koreans, happened in North Hwanghae province on Sunday night.
Chinese state media footage showed the blue tour bus completely flipped over, with part of its body broken.
Experts estimate that Chinese tourists make up 80% of foreign tourists to North Korea - providing an important source of currency for Pyongyang.
China is also the secretive regime's main political ally and largest trading partner.
Earlier, Chinese state broadcaster CGTN tweeted that more than 30 Chinese nationals had been killed after the bus plunged off a bridge - however, the post was later deleted.
There are no official tourist numbers for North Korea, but it is estimated that about 100,000 foreigners visit the country each year.
Tourists are subjected to tight restrictions - most visitors must be escorted at all times outside their hotels by guides employed by the government.
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Will Kim Jong Un Give Up North Korea's Nukes? History Says No - Bloomberg
Will Kim Jong Un Give Up North Korea's Nukes? History Says No
By Andy Sharp and Kanga Kong
April 16, 2018, 2:00 AM GMT+10
Kim dynasty has pursued nuclear weapons for more than 50 years
Giving up arsenal would represent fundamental identity shift
Kim Jong Un: Nuke-Wielding Madman or Astute Dictator?
If U.S. President Donald Trump presses Kim Jong Un to give up his nuclear arsenal when they meet, he’ll be asking the North Korean leader to surrender more than a half century’s labor.
North Korea has as many as 60 nuclear weapons, an achievement spanning three generations of Kims. They’ve repeatedly chosen the bomb as the best guarantee of survival despite decades of negotiations, international sanctions and threats of war.
Kim Jong Un looks at a metal casing with two bulges in North Korea.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
Nuclear weapons have also become central to the regime’s identity -- and its propaganda efforts. North Korea’s status as a “nuclear state” is enshrined in its constitution, and Kim recently built monuments to commemorate last year’s tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the U.S.
That history is why arms-control experts urge caution as Kim expresses a willingness to discuss “denuclearization” during an unprecedented summit with Trump in May or June. Giving up nuclear weapons is more than just a tactical choice: It would signal a fundamental change in how one of the world’s longest ruling dynasties maintains power.
“Without the bomb, North Korea is Albania,” said Ralph Cossa, president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Pacific Forum. “No one would take it seriously. It could still threaten Seoul, but certainly not much beyond the peninsula.”
Here are some key moments in North Korea’s nuclear quest.
1950s: U.S. Nukes Arrive
The threat of nuclear war loomed over the Korean Peninsula from the conflict’s start in 1950, five years after U.S. subdued neighboring Japan with a pair of atomic blasts. While the 1953 armistice ended hostilities, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower later deployed nuclear weapons to South Korea. Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s founder, sought a nuclear weapon from the Soviet Union.
1960s: Soviet Help
Eisenhower’s move fueled a regional scramble for nuclear technology, with the superpowers aiding less-developed states. Soviet physicists and engineers helped Kim Il Sung build the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center in the 1960s, which would produce the fissile material for North Korea’s first bomb tests decades later.
A satellite image showing Yongbyon nuclear complex in 1994.Source: AFP via Getty Images
1970s: Self-Reliance
A confluence of events -- severe drought, surging oil prices and U.S.-Soviet non-proliferation talks -- encouraged Kim Il Sung to accelerate domestic reactor development in the 1970s. The power plants fit with his guiding philosophy of Juche -- often translated as “self-reliance” -- as sources of both electricity and waste that could be processed into weapons-grade plutonium.
Construction site for nuclear reactors in Kumho, North Korea, in 2002.Source: Getty Images
1980s: Peace Hopes
North Korea raised hopes that it may abandon nuclear weapons after the Soviets convinced it to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1985. Those expectations soon faded after U.S. intelligence analysts viewing satellite photos of the expanded Yongbyon complex concluded that Kim Il Sung was in the early stages of building a bomb.
1990s: U.S. Nukes Leave
U.S. President George H.W. Bush recalled nuclear weapons from South Korea and other sites as the Cold War ended, creating new space for talks. Bill Clinton’s administration signed an agreement with North Korea in 1994 that would see Pyongyang freeze work on its nuclear weapons program in return for reactors that couldn’t be used for proliferation. The deal broke down after the regime launched a missile over Japan in 1998 (North Korea says it carried a satellite).
Missiles on display at the North Korean People’s forces’ 60th anniversary parade in Pyongyang in 1992.Source: AFP via Getty Images
2000s: Axis of Evil
President George W. Bush placed North Korea alongside Iran and Iraq in his “Axis of Evil.” Kim Jong Il -- the founder’s son -- eventually agreed to abandon “all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs.” But talks on implementing the deal broke down and Pyongyang resumed weapons tests, detonating its first atomic bomb in 2006. Kim Jong Il walked away from talks for good in 2009 and tested his second bomb soon after.
A North Korea missile is seen before its launch in 2009.Source: KCNA via AP
2010s: The Dictator’s Fall
President Barack Obama’s moves to help to oust Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, who had surrendered his nuclear weapons, reaffirmed North Korea’s resolve to accelerate its program. Kim Jong Un, who took power two months after Qaddafi’s death, stepped up bomb and missile testing, and declared in November he could strike the U.S. with a nuclear weapon. Trump, meanwhile, tightened sanctions and threatened “fire and fury” to stop him.
Kim Jong-Un inspecting the successful test-fire of the intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-14 in 2017.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
Now: Unprecedented Meeting
Kim opened the door to talks with South Korea in an annual New Year’s Day speech, and a few months later Trump made a surprise decision to meet him -- a request U.S. presidents had denied for decades. Many analysts are skeptical that Trump can convince Kim to finally give up his nuclear weapons and forge a new identity.
Kim Jong-Un, left, inspects a ground-to-ground medium long-range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
“They don’t want to see all their impressive achievements go down the drain,” said Andrei Lankov, a historian at Kookmin University in Seoul who once studied in Pyongyang. “If they surrender nuclear weapons, they will sign their own death warrant.”
By Andy Sharp and Kanga Kong
April 16, 2018, 2:00 AM GMT+10
Kim dynasty has pursued nuclear weapons for more than 50 years
Giving up arsenal would represent fundamental identity shift
Kim Jong Un: Nuke-Wielding Madman or Astute Dictator?
If U.S. President Donald Trump presses Kim Jong Un to give up his nuclear arsenal when they meet, he’ll be asking the North Korean leader to surrender more than a half century’s labor.
North Korea has as many as 60 nuclear weapons, an achievement spanning three generations of Kims. They’ve repeatedly chosen the bomb as the best guarantee of survival despite decades of negotiations, international sanctions and threats of war.
Kim Jong Un looks at a metal casing with two bulges in North Korea.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
Nuclear weapons have also become central to the regime’s identity -- and its propaganda efforts. North Korea’s status as a “nuclear state” is enshrined in its constitution, and Kim recently built monuments to commemorate last year’s tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the U.S.
That history is why arms-control experts urge caution as Kim expresses a willingness to discuss “denuclearization” during an unprecedented summit with Trump in May or June. Giving up nuclear weapons is more than just a tactical choice: It would signal a fundamental change in how one of the world’s longest ruling dynasties maintains power.
“Without the bomb, North Korea is Albania,” said Ralph Cossa, president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Pacific Forum. “No one would take it seriously. It could still threaten Seoul, but certainly not much beyond the peninsula.”
Here are some key moments in North Korea’s nuclear quest.
1950s: U.S. Nukes Arrive
The threat of nuclear war loomed over the Korean Peninsula from the conflict’s start in 1950, five years after U.S. subdued neighboring Japan with a pair of atomic blasts. While the 1953 armistice ended hostilities, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower later deployed nuclear weapons to South Korea. Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s founder, sought a nuclear weapon from the Soviet Union.
1960s: Soviet Help
Eisenhower’s move fueled a regional scramble for nuclear technology, with the superpowers aiding less-developed states. Soviet physicists and engineers helped Kim Il Sung build the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center in the 1960s, which would produce the fissile material for North Korea’s first bomb tests decades later.
A satellite image showing Yongbyon nuclear complex in 1994.Source: AFP via Getty Images
1970s: Self-Reliance
A confluence of events -- severe drought, surging oil prices and U.S.-Soviet non-proliferation talks -- encouraged Kim Il Sung to accelerate domestic reactor development in the 1970s. The power plants fit with his guiding philosophy of Juche -- often translated as “self-reliance” -- as sources of both electricity and waste that could be processed into weapons-grade plutonium.
Construction site for nuclear reactors in Kumho, North Korea, in 2002.Source: Getty Images
1980s: Peace Hopes
North Korea raised hopes that it may abandon nuclear weapons after the Soviets convinced it to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1985. Those expectations soon faded after U.S. intelligence analysts viewing satellite photos of the expanded Yongbyon complex concluded that Kim Il Sung was in the early stages of building a bomb.
1990s: U.S. Nukes Leave
U.S. President George H.W. Bush recalled nuclear weapons from South Korea and other sites as the Cold War ended, creating new space for talks. Bill Clinton’s administration signed an agreement with North Korea in 1994 that would see Pyongyang freeze work on its nuclear weapons program in return for reactors that couldn’t be used for proliferation. The deal broke down after the regime launched a missile over Japan in 1998 (North Korea says it carried a satellite).
Missiles on display at the North Korean People’s forces’ 60th anniversary parade in Pyongyang in 1992.Source: AFP via Getty Images
2000s: Axis of Evil
President George W. Bush placed North Korea alongside Iran and Iraq in his “Axis of Evil.” Kim Jong Il -- the founder’s son -- eventually agreed to abandon “all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs.” But talks on implementing the deal broke down and Pyongyang resumed weapons tests, detonating its first atomic bomb in 2006. Kim Jong Il walked away from talks for good in 2009 and tested his second bomb soon after.
A North Korea missile is seen before its launch in 2009.Source: KCNA via AP
2010s: The Dictator’s Fall
President Barack Obama’s moves to help to oust Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, who had surrendered his nuclear weapons, reaffirmed North Korea’s resolve to accelerate its program. Kim Jong Un, who took power two months after Qaddafi’s death, stepped up bomb and missile testing, and declared in November he could strike the U.S. with a nuclear weapon. Trump, meanwhile, tightened sanctions and threatened “fire and fury” to stop him.
Kim Jong-Un inspecting the successful test-fire of the intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-14 in 2017.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
Now: Unprecedented Meeting
Kim opened the door to talks with South Korea in an annual New Year’s Day speech, and a few months later Trump made a surprise decision to meet him -- a request U.S. presidents had denied for decades. Many analysts are skeptical that Trump can convince Kim to finally give up his nuclear weapons and forge a new identity.
Kim Jong-Un, left, inspects a ground-to-ground medium long-range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12.Source: KCNA/AFP via Getty Images
“They don’t want to see all their impressive achievements go down the drain,” said Andrei Lankov, a historian at Kookmin University in Seoul who once studied in Pyongyang. “If they surrender nuclear weapons, they will sign their own death warrant.”
Singapore’s prime minister schools Trump on how trade actually works - Real Talk
Singapore’s prime minister schools Trump on how trade actually works
Gwynn Guilford
April 20, 2018
The prime minister of Singapore is really not cool with Donald Trump’s tariffs. In a Washington Post op-ed this week, Lee Hsien Loong condemned Trump’s trade barriers as “not the correct solution.” His key point:
As economists have pointed out, when assessing economic relationships, what matters is not a country’s bilateral trade balance with a specific trading partner but its overall trade balance with the rest of the world. Furthermore, the cause of a country’s trade deficit lies at home. A trade deficit is the result of a country consuming more than it produces, and it is neither caused nor cured by trade restrictions.
That last sentence of Lee’s really nails Trump’s embarrassingly shabby command of economics (the boldface is ours). A country like the US consumes most of what it produces. The extra stuff it makes, it exports; the extra stuff it wants, it buys from abroad. So when it runs a trade deficit—that is, imports more than it exports—that country is, by definition, producing less than it’s consuming.
Policies that influence the factors causing a country to produce more than it consumes will, therefore, also alter the trade deficit. Protectionist measures that make imports more expensive, however, will not address the fundamental issue. This is why Trump’s trade barriers—to say nothing of a trade war—are doomed to failure, as we’ve explored before. And, as Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz points out, that’s why renegotiating bilateral trade deals won’t shrink the deficit either.
That said, the truth about the US trade deficit is more complicated than Lee’s explanation suggests—as the prime minister almost certainly knows.
Because the US dollar is the preferred currency in which central banks hold their foreign reserves, overseas investors can buy as much in US assets as they please. And that is a huge reason behind the US’s chronic trade deficit.
To understand why, let’s go back to trade balances for a moment. A country pays for its imports with what it earns from the exports it sells. To buy more imports than exports, it must borrow from abroad to pay for those goods. This means the US trade deficit also signals that it’s borrowing from foreigners. On the flip side, when a country runs a trade surplus—as Singapore does—it’s lending to the rest of the world.
Now, borrowing from abroad is not inherently bad. Whether it’s wise depends on what the country spends that borrowed money on. The thing is, the US doesn’t need that extra capital. Because America has no shortage of funds to invest, that excess debt goes to pay for things that don’t sustain long-term growth—consumer goods, for instance.
So why does America keep borrowing more than it should? Because countries that run chronic trade surpluses—again, like Singapore—take the money they could have spent buying US exports or investing in their own economy, and instead swap it into dollars to buy American assets (in particular, government bonds).
This is bad for the US. It makes the dollar artificially expensive and, therefore, US exports less competitive than they should be. That, in turn, forces America to either borrow even more, or accept unemployment in its export-focused sectors (notably, manufacturing).
As for Singapore, Lee’s right that the cause of Singapore’s trade surplus does indeed lie at home: with his own exploitative policies.
The government policy of buying excessive sums of foreign assets is generally called “currency manipulation.” As it happens, Singapore topped the charts of 2017 currency manipulators, according to recent research by economist Joseph Gagnon (though it wasn’t necessarily US assets that Singapore was buying).
Bear in mind, too, that Singapore is tiny. This means its government is plowing a mammoth share of its wealth into other countries’ assets.
As a result, it consistently runs one of the world’s biggest current account surpluses (which is essentially the same thing as a trade surplus), in proportion to the size of its economy.
As Gagnon explains, “Singapore’s manipulation derives primarily from its public pension system, which collects high payroll taxes from workers and invests them entirely overseas through a sovereign wealth fund to back future pension obligations.” Were this money instead managed by private investors, it’s unlikely that Singapore would invest such a vast share of savings abroad, he notes.
In other words, the Singapore government effectively takes wages its workers could have spent buying other countries’ goods and instead loans them to foreign consumers to pay for Singaporean exports.
So does Lee have a leg to stand on here? No, not really.
Sure, no one wants a trade war. But if Trump suddenly started emulating Lee’s lead in exporting 41% of its GDP in savings, the loss of American demand would shatter the global economy entirely.
Gwynn Guilford
April 20, 2018
The prime minister of Singapore is really not cool with Donald Trump’s tariffs. In a Washington Post op-ed this week, Lee Hsien Loong condemned Trump’s trade barriers as “not the correct solution.” His key point:
As economists have pointed out, when assessing economic relationships, what matters is not a country’s bilateral trade balance with a specific trading partner but its overall trade balance with the rest of the world. Furthermore, the cause of a country’s trade deficit lies at home. A trade deficit is the result of a country consuming more than it produces, and it is neither caused nor cured by trade restrictions.
That last sentence of Lee’s really nails Trump’s embarrassingly shabby command of economics (the boldface is ours). A country like the US consumes most of what it produces. The extra stuff it makes, it exports; the extra stuff it wants, it buys from abroad. So when it runs a trade deficit—that is, imports more than it exports—that country is, by definition, producing less than it’s consuming.
Policies that influence the factors causing a country to produce more than it consumes will, therefore, also alter the trade deficit. Protectionist measures that make imports more expensive, however, will not address the fundamental issue. This is why Trump’s trade barriers—to say nothing of a trade war—are doomed to failure, as we’ve explored before. And, as Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz points out, that’s why renegotiating bilateral trade deals won’t shrink the deficit either.
That said, the truth about the US trade deficit is more complicated than Lee’s explanation suggests—as the prime minister almost certainly knows.
Because the US dollar is the preferred currency in which central banks hold their foreign reserves, overseas investors can buy as much in US assets as they please. And that is a huge reason behind the US’s chronic trade deficit.
To understand why, let’s go back to trade balances for a moment. A country pays for its imports with what it earns from the exports it sells. To buy more imports than exports, it must borrow from abroad to pay for those goods. This means the US trade deficit also signals that it’s borrowing from foreigners. On the flip side, when a country runs a trade surplus—as Singapore does—it’s lending to the rest of the world.
Now, borrowing from abroad is not inherently bad. Whether it’s wise depends on what the country spends that borrowed money on. The thing is, the US doesn’t need that extra capital. Because America has no shortage of funds to invest, that excess debt goes to pay for things that don’t sustain long-term growth—consumer goods, for instance.
So why does America keep borrowing more than it should? Because countries that run chronic trade surpluses—again, like Singapore—take the money they could have spent buying US exports or investing in their own economy, and instead swap it into dollars to buy American assets (in particular, government bonds).
This is bad for the US. It makes the dollar artificially expensive and, therefore, US exports less competitive than they should be. That, in turn, forces America to either borrow even more, or accept unemployment in its export-focused sectors (notably, manufacturing).
As for Singapore, Lee’s right that the cause of Singapore’s trade surplus does indeed lie at home: with his own exploitative policies.
The government policy of buying excessive sums of foreign assets is generally called “currency manipulation.” As it happens, Singapore topped the charts of 2017 currency manipulators, according to recent research by economist Joseph Gagnon (though it wasn’t necessarily US assets that Singapore was buying).
Bear in mind, too, that Singapore is tiny. This means its government is plowing a mammoth share of its wealth into other countries’ assets.
As a result, it consistently runs one of the world’s biggest current account surpluses (which is essentially the same thing as a trade surplus), in proportion to the size of its economy.
As Gagnon explains, “Singapore’s manipulation derives primarily from its public pension system, which collects high payroll taxes from workers and invests them entirely overseas through a sovereign wealth fund to back future pension obligations.” Were this money instead managed by private investors, it’s unlikely that Singapore would invest such a vast share of savings abroad, he notes.
In other words, the Singapore government effectively takes wages its workers could have spent buying other countries’ goods and instead loans them to foreign consumers to pay for Singaporean exports.
So does Lee have a leg to stand on here? No, not really.
Sure, no one wants a trade war. But if Trump suddenly started emulating Lee’s lead in exporting 41% of its GDP in savings, the loss of American demand would shatter the global economy entirely.
Majority of people believe UK government should fine Facebook after data scandal, - Independent
April 22, 2018
Majority of people believe UK government should fine Facebook after data scandal, poll reveals
According to the exclusive polling for The Independent, 60 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that Facebook should be fined by the government over the revelations
Ashley Cowburn Political Correspondent @ashcowburn
Cross-party pressure grows for Rudd to resign over Windrush scandal
As a black woman, I hate the term 'people of colour'
Benjamin Zephaniah tells Theresa May to 'fix up' amid Windrush scandal
James Cameron has Avengers fatigue: 'There are other stories to tell'
Facebook should be fined by the UK government to punish the technology giant for failing to protect people’s data, according to a majority of those polled by The Independent.
It follows the scandal that engulfed the social media company last month over allegations by a whistleblower that the British consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica had improperly accessed user information.
It led to a public apology over the “breach of trust” from the Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, including in several full-page advertisements in both British and American newspapers.
Facebook stops users from benefitting from new data protection
Russia considers Facebook ban over data law violations
Facebook to ask everyone to agree to tracking to keep using it
Facebook admits it tracks users around the internet for ads
But according to the exclusive polling by BMG for The Independent, 60 per cent of respondents either "strongly" supported or "somewhat" supported the statement that Facebook should now be fined by the government over the revelations.
The statement asked: “Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has acknowledged his company failed to properly to protect people’s data, amid claims details of millions of users were compromised. To what extent would you support or oppose Facebook being fined in the UK government as a result.”
Just 10 per cent of those polled opposed sanctioning the company while 21 per cent said neither support or oppose and a further nine per cent replied, “don’t know”. Similar results were reflected across all age groups.
Facebook stops users from benefitting from new data protection
The survey by the pollsters, BMG, also comes after Mr Zuckerberg was summoned to give evidence to a parliamentary committee on how the social network’s partners gather user data.
In a letter to Mr Zuckerberg, Damian Collins, the chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee in the Commons, said: “It is now time to hear from a senior Facebook executive with the sufficient authority to give an accurate account of this catastrophic failure of process.
“Accordingly we are sure you will understand the need for a representative from right at the top of the organisation to address concerns. Given your commitment at the start of the New Year to “fixing” Facebook, I hope that this representative will be you.”
It was a request rejected by the Facebook CEO, with the company instead offering to send a senior deputy to the hearing that will take place next week.
Culture secretary Matt Hancock has previously suggested that under the Data Protection Bill — currently making its way through Parliament — would allow the government to fine social media companies for up to four per cent of their global turnover if they fail to “play by the rules”.
He told a Westminster gathering in March: "This means Facebook, if it breaks the rules, could face bills of up to £1.1bn from May. And the Bill also means that people will have the right to move all their data wholesale from one social network to another. So from May, if people lose trust in a social media platform, they can move to another one at the click of a button and this will concentrate minds.
“After this week's revelations I think it's time that social media platforms come clean with what data they really hold on people and I want to see rules in place to allow people to have control over their own data. So we're going to require much more transparency on how data is held by the big platforms and transparency over how advertising spend is used on them.”
Majority of people believe UK government should fine Facebook after data scandal, poll reveals
According to the exclusive polling for The Independent, 60 per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that Facebook should be fined by the government over the revelations
Ashley Cowburn Political Correspondent @ashcowburn
Cross-party pressure grows for Rudd to resign over Windrush scandal
As a black woman, I hate the term 'people of colour'
Benjamin Zephaniah tells Theresa May to 'fix up' amid Windrush scandal
James Cameron has Avengers fatigue: 'There are other stories to tell'
Facebook should be fined by the UK government to punish the technology giant for failing to protect people’s data, according to a majority of those polled by The Independent.
It follows the scandal that engulfed the social media company last month over allegations by a whistleblower that the British consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica had improperly accessed user information.
It led to a public apology over the “breach of trust” from the Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, including in several full-page advertisements in both British and American newspapers.
Facebook stops users from benefitting from new data protection
Russia considers Facebook ban over data law violations
Facebook to ask everyone to agree to tracking to keep using it
Facebook admits it tracks users around the internet for ads
But according to the exclusive polling by BMG for The Independent, 60 per cent of respondents either "strongly" supported or "somewhat" supported the statement that Facebook should now be fined by the government over the revelations.
The statement asked: “Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has acknowledged his company failed to properly to protect people’s data, amid claims details of millions of users were compromised. To what extent would you support or oppose Facebook being fined in the UK government as a result.”
Just 10 per cent of those polled opposed sanctioning the company while 21 per cent said neither support or oppose and a further nine per cent replied, “don’t know”. Similar results were reflected across all age groups.
Facebook stops users from benefitting from new data protection
The survey by the pollsters, BMG, also comes after Mr Zuckerberg was summoned to give evidence to a parliamentary committee on how the social network’s partners gather user data.
In a letter to Mr Zuckerberg, Damian Collins, the chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee in the Commons, said: “It is now time to hear from a senior Facebook executive with the sufficient authority to give an accurate account of this catastrophic failure of process.
“Accordingly we are sure you will understand the need for a representative from right at the top of the organisation to address concerns. Given your commitment at the start of the New Year to “fixing” Facebook, I hope that this representative will be you.”
It was a request rejected by the Facebook CEO, with the company instead offering to send a senior deputy to the hearing that will take place next week.
Culture secretary Matt Hancock has previously suggested that under the Data Protection Bill — currently making its way through Parliament — would allow the government to fine social media companies for up to four per cent of their global turnover if they fail to “play by the rules”.
He told a Westminster gathering in March: "This means Facebook, if it breaks the rules, could face bills of up to £1.1bn from May. And the Bill also means that people will have the right to move all their data wholesale from one social network to another. So from May, if people lose trust in a social media platform, they can move to another one at the click of a button and this will concentrate minds.
“After this week's revelations I think it's time that social media platforms come clean with what data they really hold on people and I want to see rules in place to allow people to have control over their own data. So we're going to require much more transparency on how data is held by the big platforms and transparency over how advertising spend is used on them.”
Fake Uber drivers are out there: Here's how to avoid becoming their victim - NBC News
Fake Uber drivers are out there: Here's how to avoid becoming their victim
Apr. 16, 2018 at 10:17 PMJeff Rossen and Conor Ferguson
TODAY
More from TODAY.com
The sweet reason why a bus driver braids this 11-year-old's hair each morning
Last year, Carla Westlund was sexually assaulted by a man posing as an Uber driver. Similar incidents have been reported across the country.
Get Jeff Rossen's new book, "Rossen to the Rescue," here.
To show just how easy it is for Uber imposters to target you, TODAY national investigative correspondent Jeff Rossen parked outside popular bars and restaurants in the Los Angeles area late at night, in a car with a fake Uber logo. Cameras in the car captured the revealing results.
Here’s how to make sure your rental home is safe from carbon monoxide and fire
How can you avoid becoming a victim of an Uber imposter? Follow these important tips:
Before you get in the car, use the Uber app to check the license plate. Make sure it matches the actual car.
Check to make sure the person behind the wheel looks like your driver's photo in the app.
Don't give away your name. Instead, ask the driver who they are picking up.
If you're traveling alone, Uber encourages you to ride in the back seat instead of the front. That way, in an emergency, you can exit on either side of the car. They say this also gives both you and your driver more personal space.
Uber also suggests that you share trip details with a friend. You can do this easily by tapping the "share status" option on the Uber home screen once your fare has begun.
Apr. 16, 2018 at 10:17 PMJeff Rossen and Conor Ferguson
TODAY
More from TODAY.com
The sweet reason why a bus driver braids this 11-year-old's hair each morning
Last year, Carla Westlund was sexually assaulted by a man posing as an Uber driver. Similar incidents have been reported across the country.
Get Jeff Rossen's new book, "Rossen to the Rescue," here.
To show just how easy it is for Uber imposters to target you, TODAY national investigative correspondent Jeff Rossen parked outside popular bars and restaurants in the Los Angeles area late at night, in a car with a fake Uber logo. Cameras in the car captured the revealing results.
Here’s how to make sure your rental home is safe from carbon monoxide and fire
How can you avoid becoming a victim of an Uber imposter? Follow these important tips:
Before you get in the car, use the Uber app to check the license plate. Make sure it matches the actual car.
Check to make sure the person behind the wheel looks like your driver's photo in the app.
Don't give away your name. Instead, ask the driver who they are picking up.
If you're traveling alone, Uber encourages you to ride in the back seat instead of the front. That way, in an emergency, you can exit on either side of the car. They say this also gives both you and your driver more personal space.
Uber also suggests that you share trip details with a friend. You can do this easily by tapping the "share status" option on the Uber home screen once your fare has begun.
Could Donald Trump's lone ranger approach provide the silver bullet? - Guardian
Could Donald Trump's lone ranger approach provide the silver bullet?
Larry Elliott
The president’s rejection of multilateralism is risky but our 70-year-old rule-based system is far from perfect
Sun 22 Apr 2018 20.30 AEST
float of donald trump riding a horse and carrying a betsy ross flag
A float made by Trump supporters in Virginia during the presidential campaign in 2016. Photograph: Heather Rousseau/AP
Donald Trump is playing with fire. That thought permeated last week’s spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington.
The US president’s go-it-alone approach – especially in the field of trade – has certainly shaken things up. It is not just the threat of tariffs, nor that the US has brought the dispute settlement system at the World Trade Organisation to a standstill.
Rather, it is a concern that Trump is rejecting the multilateral system that has been in operation for more than 70 years and risks sending the world spinning back to the 1930s. This is not entirely accurate. After some hard bargaining the US has agreed to fund an increase in the World Bank’s capital that will allow it to lend more.
But everyone knew what Christine Lagarde, the IMF’s managing director, meant when she said last week that international cooperation since the second world war had helped to reduce poverty and deliver more progress than at any time in history. The rules-based system needs to be cherished not attacked.
Business Today: sign up for a morning shot of financial news
Read more
This argument is fine as far as it goes, but as Richard Kozul-Wright, the chief economist at Unctad (the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) pointed out, the multilateral system operating in 2018 is by no means the one envisaged by its original architects in the 1940s.
The Bretton Woods conference in 1944 that set up the IMF and the World Bank was dominated by the US and the UK, with the former having far more clout over the eventual outcome. Harry Dexter White, the US representative did not always see eye to eye with his UK counterpart Maynard Keynes but they were in broad agreement on three basic ideas. The first was that full employment was the main economic goal. The second was that the lesson from the Great Depression was that finance had to be controlled. The third was that the new institutions would not be in the business of prescribing one-size-fits all remedies but would instead create an environment that would allow countries to fashion policies for themselves in line with their own cultural preferences.
All this has changed in the past seven decades. The prevailing orthodoxy at the IMF is that curbing inflation is more important than full employment, which is why it is recommending – on the scantiest of evidence – that the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England should be raising interest rates.
A messianic belief in free movement of capital for all countries, even those with the most immature financial systems, prevailed in the years leading up to the crisis of 2008, and was in large part responsible for it. Financial markets remain vulnerable: risk has migrated from banks to other parts of the system.
What’s more, the idea that countries that run into trouble should be allowed policy space has long since disappeared. There is a basic structural adjustment template when the IMF arrives in town: squeeze the domestic economy in order to get costs down, privatise in order to make industries more efficient, and devalue the currency to foster export-led growth.
But it is not just a question of returning to the original 1944 blueprint. Other changes are needed.
The WTO provides a rules-based system for international trade, but there is no rules-based system for debt restructuring. Plans for a sovereign-debt bankruptcy mechanism were floated in the late 1990s and early 2000s but pressure from Wall Street, which stood to lose money-making opportunities, killed off the idea.
This did not seem to matter that much at the time, because two rounds of debt relief culminating in the 2005 Gleneagles agreement seemed to sort out the debt problem. One of the features of last week’s meeting, however, was a belated recognition that debt is back. The IMF said 40% of low income countries are currently at high risk of or already in debt distress, a doubling in the past five years. Jim Yong Kim, the World bank’s president, said he was watching the situation “very, very closely” and he is right to do so. Many countries have borrowed heavily in US dollars in the world’s capital markets at a time when American interest rates are being ratcheted up.
Another fundamental weakness of the international system, highlighted by the trade tension between the US and China, is that it lacks a way of dealing fairly with current account imbalances. The IMF can force a deficit country that asks for help to import less and export more, but it has no sway over surplus countries. Attempts by Keynes to ensure both creditor and debtor nations had to make adjustments were thwarted by the US at Bretton Woods, a time when it was the world’s leading creditor nation. Trump, judging by his actions, would be a lot keener on a system that enshrined reciprocal action.
Finally, the governance of the Bretton Woods institutions fails to reflect the changes to the global economy seen since 1944. Despite some modest tweaks in recent years, voting power is still vested in the developed countries that set up the IMF and the World Bank. Every managing director of the Fund has been a European, every president of the Bank an American. The US retains a veto over all important decisions at both institutions.
There is a difference between multilateralism as a concept and multilateralism as it has been practised for the past few decades. The current state of affairs is not perfect, far from it in fact. If Trump facilitates a long overdue assessment of what a properly functioning international system might resemble, that’s to be welcomed. It would look quite different.
Larry Elliott
The president’s rejection of multilateralism is risky but our 70-year-old rule-based system is far from perfect
Sun 22 Apr 2018 20.30 AEST
float of donald trump riding a horse and carrying a betsy ross flag
A float made by Trump supporters in Virginia during the presidential campaign in 2016. Photograph: Heather Rousseau/AP
Donald Trump is playing with fire. That thought permeated last week’s spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington.
The US president’s go-it-alone approach – especially in the field of trade – has certainly shaken things up. It is not just the threat of tariffs, nor that the US has brought the dispute settlement system at the World Trade Organisation to a standstill.
Rather, it is a concern that Trump is rejecting the multilateral system that has been in operation for more than 70 years and risks sending the world spinning back to the 1930s. This is not entirely accurate. After some hard bargaining the US has agreed to fund an increase in the World Bank’s capital that will allow it to lend more.
But everyone knew what Christine Lagarde, the IMF’s managing director, meant when she said last week that international cooperation since the second world war had helped to reduce poverty and deliver more progress than at any time in history. The rules-based system needs to be cherished not attacked.
Business Today: sign up for a morning shot of financial news
Read more
This argument is fine as far as it goes, but as Richard Kozul-Wright, the chief economist at Unctad (the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) pointed out, the multilateral system operating in 2018 is by no means the one envisaged by its original architects in the 1940s.
The Bretton Woods conference in 1944 that set up the IMF and the World Bank was dominated by the US and the UK, with the former having far more clout over the eventual outcome. Harry Dexter White, the US representative did not always see eye to eye with his UK counterpart Maynard Keynes but they were in broad agreement on three basic ideas. The first was that full employment was the main economic goal. The second was that the lesson from the Great Depression was that finance had to be controlled. The third was that the new institutions would not be in the business of prescribing one-size-fits all remedies but would instead create an environment that would allow countries to fashion policies for themselves in line with their own cultural preferences.
All this has changed in the past seven decades. The prevailing orthodoxy at the IMF is that curbing inflation is more important than full employment, which is why it is recommending – on the scantiest of evidence – that the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England should be raising interest rates.
A messianic belief in free movement of capital for all countries, even those with the most immature financial systems, prevailed in the years leading up to the crisis of 2008, and was in large part responsible for it. Financial markets remain vulnerable: risk has migrated from banks to other parts of the system.
What’s more, the idea that countries that run into trouble should be allowed policy space has long since disappeared. There is a basic structural adjustment template when the IMF arrives in town: squeeze the domestic economy in order to get costs down, privatise in order to make industries more efficient, and devalue the currency to foster export-led growth.
But it is not just a question of returning to the original 1944 blueprint. Other changes are needed.
The WTO provides a rules-based system for international trade, but there is no rules-based system for debt restructuring. Plans for a sovereign-debt bankruptcy mechanism were floated in the late 1990s and early 2000s but pressure from Wall Street, which stood to lose money-making opportunities, killed off the idea.
This did not seem to matter that much at the time, because two rounds of debt relief culminating in the 2005 Gleneagles agreement seemed to sort out the debt problem. One of the features of last week’s meeting, however, was a belated recognition that debt is back. The IMF said 40% of low income countries are currently at high risk of or already in debt distress, a doubling in the past five years. Jim Yong Kim, the World bank’s president, said he was watching the situation “very, very closely” and he is right to do so. Many countries have borrowed heavily in US dollars in the world’s capital markets at a time when American interest rates are being ratcheted up.
Another fundamental weakness of the international system, highlighted by the trade tension between the US and China, is that it lacks a way of dealing fairly with current account imbalances. The IMF can force a deficit country that asks for help to import less and export more, but it has no sway over surplus countries. Attempts by Keynes to ensure both creditor and debtor nations had to make adjustments were thwarted by the US at Bretton Woods, a time when it was the world’s leading creditor nation. Trump, judging by his actions, would be a lot keener on a system that enshrined reciprocal action.
Finally, the governance of the Bretton Woods institutions fails to reflect the changes to the global economy seen since 1944. Despite some modest tweaks in recent years, voting power is still vested in the developed countries that set up the IMF and the World Bank. Every managing director of the Fund has been a European, every president of the Bank an American. The US retains a veto over all important decisions at both institutions.
There is a difference between multilateralism as a concept and multilateralism as it has been practised for the past few decades. The current state of affairs is not perfect, far from it in fact. If Trump facilitates a long overdue assessment of what a properly functioning international system might resemble, that’s to be welcomed. It would look quite different.
Romney fails to win GOP nomination for senate, heads to primary in November- Reuters
APRIL 22, 2018 / 2:53 PM / UPDATED 18 MINUTES AGO
Romney fails to win GOP nomination for senate, heads to primary in November
Rich McKay
(Reuters) - Mitt Romney’s restart of his political career hit a roadblock Saturday. The 2012 Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor failed to win the Utah Republican Party’s nomination, which means he must face 11 challengers in a June primary for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch.
Romney needed at least 60 percent of the votes from delegates at the Utah GOP convention Saturday to head to the November election unopposed, but he earned only 49.12 percent, CNN and other media reported.
Romney was considered the political favorite by political observers and U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed Romney in February.
The president said on Twitter in February that Romney “will make a great Senator and worthy successor to @OrrinHatch, and has my full support and endorsement!”
But Romney and the president have not always been political allies.
Romney excoriated Trump in the 2016 presidential campaign and said he was a “fraud” who was “playing the American public for suckers.” Trump responded that Romney had “choked like a dog” in his 2012 campaign against President Barack Obama.
Despite the criticism, Trump briefly considered making Romney his Secretary of State.
FILE PHOTO - Former U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks at the Utah County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner, in Provo, Utah, U.S. February 16, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart
Romney said in February that he generally approves of Trump’s agenda, but would call out the president if needed.
“I’m with the president’s domestic policy agenda of low taxes, low regulation, smaller government, pushing back against the bureaucrats,” Romney said. “I’m not always with the president on what he might say or do, and if that happens I’ll call them like I see them, the way I have in the past.”
Romney was criticized by some delegates for being a latecomer to the state, moving to Utah relatively recently, CNN reported.
Romney’s campaign could not be reached for comment early Sunday.
Reporting by Rich McKay; Editing by Stephen Coates
Romney fails to win GOP nomination for senate, heads to primary in November
Rich McKay
(Reuters) - Mitt Romney’s restart of his political career hit a roadblock Saturday. The 2012 Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts governor failed to win the Utah Republican Party’s nomination, which means he must face 11 challengers in a June primary for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch.
Romney needed at least 60 percent of the votes from delegates at the Utah GOP convention Saturday to head to the November election unopposed, but he earned only 49.12 percent, CNN and other media reported.
Romney was considered the political favorite by political observers and U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed Romney in February.
The president said on Twitter in February that Romney “will make a great Senator and worthy successor to @OrrinHatch, and has my full support and endorsement!”
But Romney and the president have not always been political allies.
Romney excoriated Trump in the 2016 presidential campaign and said he was a “fraud” who was “playing the American public for suckers.” Trump responded that Romney had “choked like a dog” in his 2012 campaign against President Barack Obama.
Despite the criticism, Trump briefly considered making Romney his Secretary of State.
FILE PHOTO - Former U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks at the Utah County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner, in Provo, Utah, U.S. February 16, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart
Romney said in February that he generally approves of Trump’s agenda, but would call out the president if needed.
“I’m with the president’s domestic policy agenda of low taxes, low regulation, smaller government, pushing back against the bureaucrats,” Romney said. “I’m not always with the president on what he might say or do, and if that happens I’ll call them like I see them, the way I have in the past.”
Romney was criticized by some delegates for being a latecomer to the state, moving to Utah relatively recently, CNN reported.
Romney’s campaign could not be reached for comment early Sunday.
Reporting by Rich McKay; Editing by Stephen Coates
Baltimore banning plastic foam containers with new law - Telegraph
April 20, 2018, 4:16 PM
Baltimore banning plastic foam containers with new law
BALTIMORE -- Carryout food and drink containers made from plastic foam are no longer welcome in the city of Baltimore. Mayor Catherine Pugh signed a bill Thursday giving businesses 18 months to stop using containers made from polystyrene foam.
It also prohibits restaurants and other food vendors from using cups, plates, dishes, bowls and trays or any similar items made from this material. After that, businesses will face $1,000 fines for violations.
The City Council unanimously passed the bill last month after it was introduced by Councilman John Bullock. Versions that previously failed had offered businesses just three months to phase out the containers.
Students' efforts contributed to the success of the bill, CBS Baltimore station WJZ-TV reports.
"We talk about the chemicals getting into the food, especially hazardous for our children, who are the most vulnerable," Pugh said.
But there was also an environmental concern with cups and containers ending up in Baltimore waterways and the city's Inner Harbor.
Baltimore banning plastic foam containers with new law
BALTIMORE -- Carryout food and drink containers made from plastic foam are no longer welcome in the city of Baltimore. Mayor Catherine Pugh signed a bill Thursday giving businesses 18 months to stop using containers made from polystyrene foam.
It also prohibits restaurants and other food vendors from using cups, plates, dishes, bowls and trays or any similar items made from this material. After that, businesses will face $1,000 fines for violations.
The City Council unanimously passed the bill last month after it was introduced by Councilman John Bullock. Versions that previously failed had offered businesses just three months to phase out the containers.
Students' efforts contributed to the success of the bill, CBS Baltimore station WJZ-TV reports.
"We talk about the chemicals getting into the food, especially hazardous for our children, who are the most vulnerable," Pugh said.
But there was also an environmental concern with cups and containers ending up in Baltimore waterways and the city's Inner Harbor.
By RACHEL GILLETT/BUSINESS INSIDER July 17, 2017 - TIME ( Business Insider )
By RACHEL GILLETT/BUSINESS INSIDER July 17, 2017
Don’t have the time or money to get a bachelor’s degree?
Don’t fret. There are plenty of high-paying jobs that require only a two-year associate degree, postsecondary non-degree certificate, or even just a high-school diploma.
According to the latest data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, these are the 25 highest-paying jobs that you don’t need a four-year degree to pursue.
Each has a median annual salary of at least $68,000.
25. Aerospace engineering and operations technicians
They operate and maintain equipment used in developing, testing, and producing new aircraft and spacecraft.
Median annual wage (2016): $68,020
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 3,200
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
24. Magnetic-resonance-imaging technologists
They monitor patient safety and comfort and view images of areas being scanned to ensure quality of pictures.
Median annual wage (2016): $68,420
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 9,800
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
23. Gaming managers
They plan, direct, or coordinate gaming operations in a casino.
Median annual wage (2016): $69,180
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 800
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
22. Diagnostic medical sonographers
They use special imaging equipment that directs sound waves into a patient’s body to assess and diagnose various medical conditions.
Median annual wage (2016): $69,650
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 27,500
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
21. Ship engineers
They supervise and coordinate activities of crew engaged in operating and maintaining engines, boilers, deck machinery, and electrical, sanitary, and refrigeration equipment aboard ship.
Median annual wage (2016): $70,570
Education required: Postsecondary non-degree award
Projected job openings (through 2024): 3,500
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
20. Postmasters and mail superintendents
They plan, direct, or coordinate operational, administrative, management, and supportive services of a US post office, or coordinate activities of workers engaged in postal and related work in an assigned post office.
Median annual wage (2016): $71,670
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 3,800
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
19. Transportation inspectors
They inspect equipment or goods in connection with the safe transport of cargo or people.
Median annual wage (2016): $72,220
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 7,100
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
18. Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels
They command or supervise operations of ships and water vessels, such as tugboats and ferryboats.
Median annual wage (2016): $72,680
Education required: Postsecondary non-degree award (Required to hold license issued by US Coast Guard.)
Projected job openings (through 2024): 17,200
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
17. Dental hygienists
They clean teeth, examine patients for oral diseases like gingivitis, and provide other preventative dental care.
Median annual wage (2016): $72,910
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 70,300
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
16. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
They directly supervise and coordinate activities of sales workers other than retail sales workers.
Median annual wage (2016): $73,150
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 69,900
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
15. Funeral-service managers
They plan, direct, or coordinate the services or resources of funeral homes.
Median annual wage (2016): $73,830
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 7,400
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: None
14. Nuclear medicine technologists
They use a scanner to create images of various areas of a patient’s body. They prepare radioactive drugs and administer them to patients undergoing the scans.
Median annual wage (2016): $74,350
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 4,200
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
13. First-line supervisors of fire fighting and prevention workers
They directly supervise and coordinate activities of workers engaged in fire fighting and fire prevention and control.
Median annual wage (2016): $74,540
Education required: Postsecondary non-degree award
Projected job openings (through 2024): 33,400
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
12. Power-plant operators
They control, operate, or maintain machinery to generate electric power. Includes auxiliary equipment operators.
Median annual wage (2016): $74,690
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 14,100
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training
11. Powerhouse, substation, and relay electrical and electronics repairers
They inspect, test, repair, or maintain electrical equipment in generating stations, substations, and in-service relays.
Median annual wage (2016): $75,670
Education required: Postsecondary non-degree award
Projected job openings (through 2024): 3,900
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training
10. Commercial pilots
They pilot and navigate the flight of fixed-wing aircraft on nonscheduled air-carrier routes or helicopters. Requires commercial-pilot certificate.
Median annual wage (2016): $77,200
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 15,100
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
9. Detectives and criminal investigators
They conduct investigations related to suspected violations of federal, state, or local laws to prevent or solve crimes.
Median annual wage (2016): $78,120
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 28,300
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
8. Elevator installers and repairers
They assemble, install, repair, or maintain electric or hydraulic freight or passenger elevators, escalators, or dumbwaiters.
Median annual wage (2016): $78,890
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 5,900
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Apprenticeship
7. Nuclear technicians
They assist physicists, engineers, and other professionals in nuclear research and nuclear production.
Median annual wage (2016): $79,140
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 2,800
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
6. Radiation therapists
They check equipment, observe patients’ reactions to treatment, and document sessions.
Median annual wage (2016): $80,160
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 6,200
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: None
5. Power distributors and dispatchers
They coordinate, regulate, or distribute electricity or steam.
Median annual wage (2016): $81,900
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 3,900
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training
4. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
They directly supervise and coordinate activities of members of a police force.
Median annual wage (2016): $84,840
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 43,000
Work experience: Less than five years
On-the-job training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
3. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
They coordinate transportation, storage, or distribution activities in accordance with organizational policies and applicable government laws or regulations.
Median annual wage (2016): $89,190
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 27,100
Work experience: Five years or more
On-the-job training: None
2. Nuclear-power-reactor operators
They operate or control nuclear reactors, move control rods, start and stop equipment, monitor and adjust controls, record data in logs, and implement emergency procedures when needed.
Median annual wage (2016): $91,170
Education required: High-school diploma or equivalent
Projected job openings (through 2024): 2,600
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training
1. Air-traffic controller
They monitor and direct the movement of aircraft. Median annual wages of air-traffic controllers are the highest of any occupation in which workers typically do not need a bachelor’s degree.
Median annual wage (2016): $122,410
Education required: Associate’s degree
Projected job openings (through 2024): 7,500
Work experience: None
On-the-job training: Long-term on-the-job training
This story originally appeared on Business Insider.
A school in Florida couldn't stage a walkout against gun violence because of a school shooting - Independent
A school in Florida couldn't stage a walkout against gun violence because of a school shooting
Posted April 22, 2018
by Greg Evans in news
UPVOTE
Friday marked the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre where 15 people lost their lives.
As a mark of respect, high school students across the United States staged a nationwide walkout.
However, one school was unable to show their solidarity because someone started shooting a gun.
RoboKast
@RoboKast
School shooting at my school, this crap is terrifying.... Praying for everyone. There was actually a scheduled walkout today. It becomes super real when it's your school.
11:46 PM - Apr 20, 2018
Around 8:40 am that morning, a 19-year-old reportedly fired a gun at the Forest High School in Ocala, Florida.
A 17-year-old was hit in the ankle by a bullet, but CNN reports that they are in a good condition at a hospital.
Minutes after the shooting began, school resource officer, deputy Jimmy Long, was able to take the shooter into custody with no resistance.
The shooter has since been identified as Sky Bouche by the Ocala Star Banner, a former student who spoke about a history of violence and mental illness in his family.
Bouche claimed that he didn't see the boy who he shot through a door, with a sawn-off shotgun, and soon put his weapon down and surrendered after seeing a girl in a hallway.
He reportedly purchased the unlicensed gun just a week after the Parkland massacre in February.
The teenager added that his reasoning for the shooting was "pretty much" the only way he could relieve himself of his traumatic life at home.
In a stark and calm interview with the Marion County jail he said:
My first memory is violence and conflict. That’s my first memory. And no one will believe me.
That’s one of the reasons people don’t think I’m serious.
He added that he did not feel any emotion for what had happened and that he only experienced adrenaline which was later replaced by a "disgusting feeling".
Pretty much all I’m feeling at this time is an adrenaline rush.
It’s not anger, it’s not hatred, it’s just an adrenaline rush, I’m about to do something.
I spend most of my time in the room alone...so I’m getting this rush.
He has been charged with terrorism, aggravated assault with a firearm, culpable negligence, carrying a concealed and unlicensed firearm, possessing a firearm on school property, possession of a short-barreled shotgun, interfering with school function and armed trespass on school property.
Just a day before the school had confirmed on Twitter that students were welcome to take part in a 'civic demonstration.'
Forest High School
@FHS_WildcatLife
Tomorrow we will be participating in the student led civic demonstration. This voluntary event will take place during CAT period with an announcement releasing students that wish to participate. Any student not wanting to participate will remain in their CAT period class.
12:50 AM - Apr 20, 2018
However, as a result of the shooting, not only was their walkout cancelled, all walkouts in Marion County were cancelled.
Parkland survivor Ryan Servaites lamented what had happened and vowed to carry on fighting for stricter gun control. He told CNN:
The fact that it happened on this day, in a way, reinforces what we are trying to get across.
This happens. It is an issue. We see more people dying. Children are being hurt.
We won't stop. This is why. It is, in a way, the world slapping us in the face, but we just have to look at it as a wake-up call.
Servaites' sentiments were echoed by 16-year-old Grace Goldstein, who took part in a walkout at Stuyvesant High School, New York. She said:
We're very glad that no lives were lost.
We're incredibly grateful for that. Our reaction was, of course, this is how our country works.
The person who was shot today is on the list of the people who we're fighting for.
Posted April 22, 2018
by Greg Evans in news
UPVOTE
Friday marked the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre where 15 people lost their lives.
As a mark of respect, high school students across the United States staged a nationwide walkout.
However, one school was unable to show their solidarity because someone started shooting a gun.
RoboKast
@RoboKast
School shooting at my school, this crap is terrifying.... Praying for everyone. There was actually a scheduled walkout today. It becomes super real when it's your school.
11:46 PM - Apr 20, 2018
Around 8:40 am that morning, a 19-year-old reportedly fired a gun at the Forest High School in Ocala, Florida.
A 17-year-old was hit in the ankle by a bullet, but CNN reports that they are in a good condition at a hospital.
Minutes after the shooting began, school resource officer, deputy Jimmy Long, was able to take the shooter into custody with no resistance.
The shooter has since been identified as Sky Bouche by the Ocala Star Banner, a former student who spoke about a history of violence and mental illness in his family.
Bouche claimed that he didn't see the boy who he shot through a door, with a sawn-off shotgun, and soon put his weapon down and surrendered after seeing a girl in a hallway.
He reportedly purchased the unlicensed gun just a week after the Parkland massacre in February.
The teenager added that his reasoning for the shooting was "pretty much" the only way he could relieve himself of his traumatic life at home.
In a stark and calm interview with the Marion County jail he said:
My first memory is violence and conflict. That’s my first memory. And no one will believe me.
That’s one of the reasons people don’t think I’m serious.
He added that he did not feel any emotion for what had happened and that he only experienced adrenaline which was later replaced by a "disgusting feeling".
Pretty much all I’m feeling at this time is an adrenaline rush.
It’s not anger, it’s not hatred, it’s just an adrenaline rush, I’m about to do something.
I spend most of my time in the room alone...so I’m getting this rush.
He has been charged with terrorism, aggravated assault with a firearm, culpable negligence, carrying a concealed and unlicensed firearm, possessing a firearm on school property, possession of a short-barreled shotgun, interfering with school function and armed trespass on school property.
Just a day before the school had confirmed on Twitter that students were welcome to take part in a 'civic demonstration.'
Forest High School
@FHS_WildcatLife
Tomorrow we will be participating in the student led civic demonstration. This voluntary event will take place during CAT period with an announcement releasing students that wish to participate. Any student not wanting to participate will remain in their CAT period class.
12:50 AM - Apr 20, 2018
However, as a result of the shooting, not only was their walkout cancelled, all walkouts in Marion County were cancelled.
Parkland survivor Ryan Servaites lamented what had happened and vowed to carry on fighting for stricter gun control. He told CNN:
The fact that it happened on this day, in a way, reinforces what we are trying to get across.
This happens. It is an issue. We see more people dying. Children are being hurt.
We won't stop. This is why. It is, in a way, the world slapping us in the face, but we just have to look at it as a wake-up call.
Servaites' sentiments were echoed by 16-year-old Grace Goldstein, who took part in a walkout at Stuyvesant High School, New York. She said:
We're very glad that no lives were lost.
We're incredibly grateful for that. Our reaction was, of course, this is how our country works.
The person who was shot today is on the list of the people who we're fighting for.
Dozens dead in bombing at Kabul voter registration centre - Guardian
Dozens dead in bombing at Kabul voter registration centre
Islamic State claims responsibility for suicide attack on ID cards queue that killed at least 31 people
Agencies in Kabul
Sun 22 Apr 2018 20.01 AEST First published on Sun 22 Apr 2018 19.52 AEST
The voter registration centre after the attack. Photograph: Rahmat Gul/AP
A suicide bomber has killed at least 31 people and wounded dozens outside a voter registration centre in Kabul, the health ministry said, in the latest attack on election preparations.
The public health ministry spokesman Wahid Majro said another 54 people were wounded in Sunday’s attack. Gen Daud Amin, the Kabul police chief, said the suicide bomber targeted civilians who had gathered to receive national identification cards.
“It happened at the entrance gate of the centre. It was a suicide attack,” Amin told AFP.
The large explosion echoed across the city, shattering windows miles away from the attack site and damaging several nearby vehicles. Police blocked all roads to the blast site, with only ambulances allowed in. Local TV stations broadcast live footage of hundreds of distraught people gathered at nearby hospitals seeking information about loved ones.
Family of Afghan man tortured by CIA demands US reveal location of his body
Read more
The Islamic State group claimed responsibility in a statement carried by its Aamaq news agency, saying it had targeted Shia “apostates”. Isis is opposed to the country holding democratic elections.
A witness to the attack named Akbar told Tolo TV: “Now we know the government cannot provide us security. We have to get armed and protect ourselves.”
Earlier, the interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish put the death toll at nine and 56 wounded. He could not immediately be reached for an update.
Afghan officials often give conflicting tolls in the wake of attacks and routinely understate the figures.
The recent assaults underscore growing concerns about security in the run-up to legislative elections scheduled for 20 October, which are seen as a test run for next year’s presidential poll.
Advertisement
Over the next two months, authorities hope to register up to 14 million adults at more than 7,000 polling centres for the parliamentary and district council elections.
Officials have been pushing people to register amid fears a low turnout will undermine the credibility of the polls.
Last week, militants killed three police officers responsible for guarding voter registration centres in two Afghan provinces, according to authorities.
Meanwhile, at least five people were killed when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in the northern Baghlan province on Sunday. Zabihullah Shuja, spokesman for the provincial police chief, said four other people were wounded in the blast in Puli Khomri, the capital of the province.
The Taliban routinely target security forces and government officials with roadside bombs, which often end up killing civilians.
In the northern Balkh province, a district police chief died of his wounds after being shot on Saturday during a gun battle with insurgents, according to Sher Jan Durrani, spokesman for the provincial police chief. He said around a dozen insurgents were also killed in the battle, which is still going on.
Durrani identified the killed commander as Halim Khanjar, police chief for the Char Bolak district. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the killing.
The Afghan capital is braced for the Taliban’s launch of its customary spring offensive.
The Taliban are under pressure to take up President Ashraf Ghani’s peace offer made in February, but so far the group has given only a muted response.
Some western and Afghan officials expect 2018 to be a particularly bloody year.
Gen John Nicholson, the top US and Nato commander in Afghanistan, told Tolo TV last month that he expected the Taliban to carry out more suicide attacks this fighting season.
Associated Press and Agence France-Press contributed to this report
Islamic State claims responsibility for suicide attack on ID cards queue that killed at least 31 people
Agencies in Kabul
Sun 22 Apr 2018 20.01 AEST First published on Sun 22 Apr 2018 19.52 AEST
The voter registration centre after the attack. Photograph: Rahmat Gul/AP
A suicide bomber has killed at least 31 people and wounded dozens outside a voter registration centre in Kabul, the health ministry said, in the latest attack on election preparations.
The public health ministry spokesman Wahid Majro said another 54 people were wounded in Sunday’s attack. Gen Daud Amin, the Kabul police chief, said the suicide bomber targeted civilians who had gathered to receive national identification cards.
“It happened at the entrance gate of the centre. It was a suicide attack,” Amin told AFP.
The large explosion echoed across the city, shattering windows miles away from the attack site and damaging several nearby vehicles. Police blocked all roads to the blast site, with only ambulances allowed in. Local TV stations broadcast live footage of hundreds of distraught people gathered at nearby hospitals seeking information about loved ones.
Family of Afghan man tortured by CIA demands US reveal location of his body
Read more
The Islamic State group claimed responsibility in a statement carried by its Aamaq news agency, saying it had targeted Shia “apostates”. Isis is opposed to the country holding democratic elections.
A witness to the attack named Akbar told Tolo TV: “Now we know the government cannot provide us security. We have to get armed and protect ourselves.”
Earlier, the interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish put the death toll at nine and 56 wounded. He could not immediately be reached for an update.
Afghan officials often give conflicting tolls in the wake of attacks and routinely understate the figures.
The recent assaults underscore growing concerns about security in the run-up to legislative elections scheduled for 20 October, which are seen as a test run for next year’s presidential poll.
Advertisement
Over the next two months, authorities hope to register up to 14 million adults at more than 7,000 polling centres for the parliamentary and district council elections.
Officials have been pushing people to register amid fears a low turnout will undermine the credibility of the polls.
Last week, militants killed three police officers responsible for guarding voter registration centres in two Afghan provinces, according to authorities.
Meanwhile, at least five people were killed when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in the northern Baghlan province on Sunday. Zabihullah Shuja, spokesman for the provincial police chief, said four other people were wounded in the blast in Puli Khomri, the capital of the province.
The Taliban routinely target security forces and government officials with roadside bombs, which often end up killing civilians.
In the northern Balkh province, a district police chief died of his wounds after being shot on Saturday during a gun battle with insurgents, according to Sher Jan Durrani, spokesman for the provincial police chief. He said around a dozen insurgents were also killed in the battle, which is still going on.
Durrani identified the killed commander as Halim Khanjar, police chief for the Char Bolak district. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the killing.
The Afghan capital is braced for the Taliban’s launch of its customary spring offensive.
The Taliban are under pressure to take up President Ashraf Ghani’s peace offer made in February, but so far the group has given only a muted response.
Some western and Afghan officials expect 2018 to be a particularly bloody year.
Gen John Nicholson, the top US and Nato commander in Afghanistan, told Tolo TV last month that he expected the Taliban to carry out more suicide attacks this fighting season.
Associated Press and Agence France-Press contributed to this report
Taiwan accuses China of 'sabre rattling' as naval drill begins - BBC News
Taiwan accuses China of 'sabre rattling' as naval drill begins
18 April 2018
Taiwan started its own drill (pictured) on Tuesday
China is conducting live-fire military exercises in the Taiwan Strait amid growing tension in the region.
The one-day drill follows Chinese warnings against independence moves by the self-governing island. Taiwan began a similar exercise earlier this week.
Officials in Taipei accused Beijing of "sabre rattling" and played down the significance of the exercises, pointing out that they take place regularly.
China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and has threatened to invade.
Relations with the mainland have grown more tense since Taiwan elected a pro-independence president in 2016.
What's behind the China-Taiwan divide?
Xi Jinping attends massive naval display
Taiwan - the flashpoint island
Taiwan's defence ministry responded to the exercise by accusing Beijing of exaggerating its importance to intimidate the island.
"That's why we say it's verbal intimidation and sabre rattling," a spokesman said.
A Chinese official made it clear the military drill was meant to warn Taiwan against moving towards independence.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office director Liu Jieyi said on Monday that the drill was "to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our motherland".
China said it will thwart any Taiwanese separatist attempts
As recently as March, Chinese President Xi Jinping took aim at Taiwanese independence aspirations, saying "total unity" was the "collective hope of all Chinese people" and any attempts to divide it were "doomed to fail".
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen is currently in Swaziland, one of the island's few remaining diplomatic allies.
Most countries around the globe do not recognise Taiwan as a country and China has put pressure on those few that do to change their alliance to Beijing.
The split between Taiwan and China dates back to 1949 when at the end of the Chinese civil war, the defeated nationalists fled to the island, while the communists took control of the mainland.
18 April 2018
Taiwan started its own drill (pictured) on Tuesday
China is conducting live-fire military exercises in the Taiwan Strait amid growing tension in the region.
The one-day drill follows Chinese warnings against independence moves by the self-governing island. Taiwan began a similar exercise earlier this week.
Officials in Taipei accused Beijing of "sabre rattling" and played down the significance of the exercises, pointing out that they take place regularly.
China sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and has threatened to invade.
Relations with the mainland have grown more tense since Taiwan elected a pro-independence president in 2016.
What's behind the China-Taiwan divide?
Xi Jinping attends massive naval display
Taiwan - the flashpoint island
Taiwan's defence ministry responded to the exercise by accusing Beijing of exaggerating its importance to intimidate the island.
"That's why we say it's verbal intimidation and sabre rattling," a spokesman said.
A Chinese official made it clear the military drill was meant to warn Taiwan against moving towards independence.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office director Liu Jieyi said on Monday that the drill was "to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our motherland".
China said it will thwart any Taiwanese separatist attempts
As recently as March, Chinese President Xi Jinping took aim at Taiwanese independence aspirations, saying "total unity" was the "collective hope of all Chinese people" and any attempts to divide it were "doomed to fail".
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen is currently in Swaziland, one of the island's few remaining diplomatic allies.
Most countries around the globe do not recognise Taiwan as a country and China has put pressure on those few that do to change their alliance to Beijing.
The split between Taiwan and China dates back to 1949 when at the end of the Chinese civil war, the defeated nationalists fled to the island, while the communists took control of the mainland.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
