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Home » North Pole » Q&A: Polar Bears International Expert Geoff York on his Upcoming North Pole Expedition
Q&A: Polar Bears International Expert Geoff York on his Upcoming North Pole Expedition
April 21, 2017 Nicolas Singh
Join Polar Bears International experts en route to the North Pole with Quark Expeditions to learn more about polar bears in their natural habitat!
This summer, you have a unique opportunity to travel to the North Pole alongside two very special guests from Polar Bears International (PBI). It's an important conservation organization we've been proud to work with over many years, and we're thrilled to welcome PBI's executive director Krista Wright and senior director of conservation Geoff York on board the world's most powerful icebreaker, 50 Years of Victory.
Geoff recently took the time to share in this Q&A for Quark readers just what it is that he and Krista have planned for their North Pole expedition.
Curious to learn more about the challenges facing the Arctic polar bear population and how you can help conserve their fragile polar habitats?
Q: Geoff, can you tell us how you became involved in Arctic conservation and what's driven you to make it your life's work?
Geoff York: Back in the early 1990s, I had the opportunity to go up to Alaska and the U.S. Arctic, where I did some of my first work in fisheries up on the north slope of Alaska. I really just fell in love with the Arctic as a place, for reasons that are somewhat inexplicable (especially to my parents, even to this day!).
I've been doing polar bear fieldwork for decades and still do in the position I'm in now; actually, I just got back from doing capture work out in the Chukchi Sea. Polar Bears International has historically done work in Alaska and Canada, and this was actually year two of our den monitoring work in Svalbard.
Q: What is polar bear "capture work" and what do we learn from it?
Geoff York: When we're out in the field, we're doing capture work to learn more about polar bears and the factors influencing their survival. This is when the bears get a full health check-up with weight, measurements and samples. The work helps us understand how a population is faring and how the bears are responding to a changing Arctic. My colleague Alysa McCall and I did an in-depth live chat about this research in the field that can help you understand why it's so important:
Q: How do you tag polar bears and why?
Geoff York: We're constantly working on new, innovative ways of tagging polar bears. We recognize that right now, some of the best ways we have to gain information on polar bear movement patterns and use of habitat are via tried and tested methods like satellite collars that can be a bit invasive to bears. Looking at ear tags, for example, we're currently looking at adhesives or what they call glue-on tags. They have shorter life spans, but are the types of things that can be applied to different types of bears in less invasive ways. It also gives us more diversity in our research, as all of the collar information comes from females.
That's the type of research that allows us to track polar bears like Polaris, the bear supported by Quark Expeditions in our Polar Bear Tracker program (shown here in Canada's Hudson Bay).
You can follow the journeys of Polaris, the Quark polar bear, and her cub as they travel between Akimiski Island and Flaherty Island in Canada's Hudson Bay.
We need to push change there as best as we can, which means bringing together new technologies and partners. Engineering groups, for example, often think these wildlife technology challenges are really cool and may do some pro bono or volunteer work where there's no financial gain, but there is social and moral gain that makes them happy employees. It's a real win for the companies that get involved in polar conservation and obviously, for our friends the polar bears, as well.
Q: What do people get out of helping polar bears and why should they get involved?
Geoff York: I have seen true, meaningful transformation in people who have gone to the Arctic. Seeing is believing and under the right circumstances and with the right people--it can be transformative.
When I was with the World Wildlife Fund, for example, I brought up Coca-Cola's international CEO along with his family and had him turn around and say, 'I want to do something to make a difference,' and he really did. It was just amazing. If we can take people from a state of unknowing and inaction to being much more knowledgeable about what is going on, they're much more interested in taking action in whatever way they can. You can begin learning right now at home, or wherever you happen to be-- PBI's online Education Center is a great place to get started.
It's also important that people recognize that while Arctic conservation is obviously an issue for Arctic wildlife, it's a critical concern for all of us humans, as well. You can learn more about that in this live chat:
Q: What kinds of activities and initiatives are happening in the Arctic around polar bear conservation?
Climate change is by far the biggest threat to polar bears and most of our outreach focuses on that. But we also work to reduce conflicts between polar bears and people, and to minimize industrial disturbances. We work closely with a lot of the companies who are already conducting their business in the Arctic, and I've found that they're some of our greatest allies. Oil and gas companies have the people on the ground, in these polar bear habitats, with exclusive knowledge of and access to the area. At the regional level, we work with these companies on mitigating their impact on the environment.
And incredible things can happen when organizations who truly care come together. This year, we had a situation where a polar bear mom decided to den right next to an oil and gas facility, in a big snow drift up against a metal bridge that carried vehicles and oil and gas pipelines. The company that ran the facility was just down the road from where she chose to den and they instantly took action. They began to monitor her and brought us in to set up a video camera system, to give them a live feed of that spot so they would know when she came out. We worked with the company's management to restrict traffic during the period that she was in her den.
A female polar bear teaches her cub important Arctic survival skills in its first months out of the den.
It all worked very well. When she came out of the den, they closed the road down and kept it closed for a little over two weeks. All the while, their team were seeing live video of a polar bear mom bringing its cub out for the first time, introducing her baby to the environment! Eventually, they wandered off to the ice like they're supposed to, and the company was able to open the road back up. It was a great success with management, industry and an NGO all working together.
Q: What can passengers expect onboard your North Pole expedition?
Geoff York: "Krista and I will be among the expert guests on board for our North Pole expedition from July 31–Aug 13, 2017, which also includes a fascinating mix of glaciologists, naturalists and Arctic historians. We'll be a part of the educational program, so we'll definitely be giving lectures on who we are and what we do at Polar Bears International, how polar bear research is done, our personal stories as far as what we do in the field of polar bear science, and how PBI is working to make a difference.
We'll take a look at the big picture: what's going on with polar bears around the world, what do we know, what don't we know. We'll talk about the impacts of climate change, particularly in the Barents Sea region because it's one of the areas in which we're seeing change first and fastest. We're already seeing ecosystem-level shifts happening there; everything from pretty significant changes in denning behavior in polar bears to survival of southern species that often came up to that region but would seasonally leave, but now they're not. They're hanging around and competing with the endemic species that were the dominant species there.
An adult polar bear catches an intriguing scent in the frigid Arctic air. Photo credit: Xavier Batllori
We're seeing changes with animals like ringed seals in areas like the western side of Svalbard, where the Norwegian Polar Institute has had study plots going back several decades. They've seen near-complete reproductive failure of ringed seals since 2006, because the lack of snow and ice is pushing the ringed seals into fairly concentrated areas. They typically pup under snow, but now they're pupping on the surface of the ice and those pups are picked off by bears, foxes, and even gulls and predatory birds.
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Outside of the formal lectures, I'm really excited to take this journey with other people who love the polar regions. I'm really interested in the Arctic Basin area, which is a transitory zone that polar bears periodically cross on their way to and from places. It'll be my first time reaching the North Pole and that's going to be incredible, but the parts I'm most excited about are everything in between on our crossing--particularly Franz Josef Land. This is where our Norwegian colleagues are increasingly seeing their collared females go to den instead of on Svalbard, because of changing sea ice.
Quark passengers explore a frigid Champ Island rock beach mysteriously littered with spherical stones of varying sizes in Franz Josef Land.
There are parts of the Russian coast line that I haven't seen, as well. I've covered the Laptev Peninsula but I haven't been in the Kara Sea at all. All of it is just so unique and that's what makes the Arctic really great, especially with a trip like this on a real icebreaker. We're going to go places that hardly anyone gets to see and experience!
For the vast majority of us, there's no better way to learn than seeing and doing for ourselves. It's part of what makes the immersive, in-the-field experience of visiting the polar regions so compelling and memorable.
If you're looking for a truly once in a lifetime opportunity to deepen your knowledge and understanding of the issues facing polar bears in the Arctic, join Geoff York and Krista Wright on North Pole expedition, July 31–Aug 13, 2017
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Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India: A colourfully sari-clad tribal lady cuts grass in Keoladeo Bird sanctuary.
Will global warming make Planet Earth wetter? The jury is so far out on this question that it seems to be taking a permanent lunch break. In India at least, the results have been very mixed, with above-average rains in a few parts of the subcontinent and near-drought conditions in most other parts.
Following lower-than usual rainfall in 2001, the rains of 2002 were near-disastrous across much of northern India (except for the north-east, including Sikkim and Assam). The monsoon started late and ended early, with total rainfall up to 80% below average. And nowhere has this been more acutely felt than in Keoladeo Ghana National Park, a World Heritage-listed bird sanctuary about three hours by rail from New Delhi.
At the start of the monsoon, rains falling on the catchment area for Keoladeo usually flow through the Ajan Bandh, gradually filling up the many lakes that make up most of the Park. But this year, even the catchment area missed out on good rains. "This is an unprecedented situation", says Bholu Khan.
According to Bharat Mausam Vigyan Vibhag (the Indian Meteorological Department), the year 2002 was the first India-wide drought in 15 years. Nearly 30% of the country experienced drought conditions, with a third of this area being classified as under severe drought. Less than 40% of the country experienced normal or above-average rainfall. The worst-affected district in the whole of India was western Rajasthan, with rainfall 71% below average. The Udaipur district has had no monsoon rain at all for four years, and one of the city's famous lakes is dry for the first time that anyone can remember. The next-worst district was eastern Rajasthan (which includes Keoladeo NP), with rains 60% lower than normal.
Perhaps more importantly, the pattern of the 2002 monsoon was highly unusual. It began in Kerala on 29 May (roughly on time, within two or three days), but took over two months to reach the north of the country. As a result, the July rainfall was the lowest ever recorded, causing huge disruptions to planting schedules throughout India. Fortunately, however, the August rains were good, somewhat alleviating an otherwise disastrous situation.
Head of the UN-sponsored Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), RK Pachauri, writing in the Indian Express on 26 July, directly blamed global warming for the low rainfall in India in 2002. ''There is a very strong reason to connect the current drought to larger climate change, since what we are witnessing is a peculiar and sudden variation in climate as predicted by experts studying global warming'', he said.
According to scientist S. Afsar Abbas of the Institute of Physics in Bhubaneswar, global warming is causing the El Niño weather phenomenon to become more severe. This is turn is affecting climates worldwide, making temperatures and rainfall less predictable than in the past. "For people in India, this means erratic monsoon rains", says Abbas.
Some meteorologists disagree with this bleak assessment, saying that this year's erratic weather behaviour is still consistent with a long-term trend. But whatever the case, what seems certain is that global warming is not for the birds – and particular not for those birds which rely on Keoladeo National Park for their annual "R&R" visit.
I was highly privileged to visit Keoladeo in 1995, when the wetlands making up nearly 70% of the Park were a wonderland teeming with water birds. While I didn't get to see the rare Siberian Crane, along with most other visitors I was totally bowled over by the numbers, the variety and the sheer exuberance of the bird life making their homes (either permanent or temporary) there. Not for nothing is Keoladeo sometimes described as the finest bird sanctuary on the planet.
This time (in October 2002), a return visit came as something of a denouement. The train trip from New Delhi to the eastern Rajasthani town of Bharatpur is pleasant enough, as is the bicycle rickshaw ride to the National Park. But for "wetlands" substitute isolated pools of water amidst grassy fields; instead of huge flocks of birds soaring skywards, think of smaller clusters, each doing its own thing rather than forming a giant, interwoven tapestry.
But curiously enough, initial disappointment soon turns to intrigue. The Keolodeo of 2002 is no worse than in other years – just different. There is still a good variety of water-bird life, and in addition a wide variety of wood-birds have now made their homes here. Where cranes once skimmed the waters, ladies in colourful tribal costumes now cut the lush green grass that has attracted herds of antelope and deer.
And the bird life in 2002? Besides the ubiquitous egret, which can feed on the ground in near-dry conditions, scavenger vultures and black-necked cranes can be seen soaring overhead. Pond herons sweep low over the few lakes and pools that have survived (some of these augmented by groundwater pumped from underground). Partridges and long-tailed tree pikes cavort amongst the branches of the woodland trees, while beetles forage on the stunted bushes. A pipe, a warble and a sound like that of a postman's whistle can clearly be heard. And in the background, a continuous nature-muzak pervades the stillness.
My guide to the bird sanctuary is Mr Puran Singh, who is both amiable and highly knowledgeable. In a program that could be a model for similar tourist destinations both in India and overseas, all licensed bicycle rickshaw drivers at Keolodeo National Park receive six months' training in ornithology and wildlife interpretation. The fare is a little higher than for ordinary pedicabs, but it is an amount I am more than happy to pay. In any case, the money is well targeted. "I have four children and one wife at home!" says Mr Singh.
In a good year, Keoladeo is one of the finest heron breeding grounds in the world. The grey heron, night heron and purple heron are among the other species breeding here. Migrant birds, which in 2002 were conspicuous by their absence, include pelicans, geese, ducks, eagles, hawks, shanks, stints, warblers, larks and many others.
The name Keoladeo derives from that of an ancient Shiva temple, sublimely located near a lake in the centre of the park. Lord Shiva, in the form of Pashupati ("Lord of the Animals"), is said to be the protector of wildlife. While there may not be much bird life at Keoladeo this year, other wildlife is in great abundance, and the protecting spirit of the temple can still be felt at a subtle level, pervading all creation.
Until the 18th Century, the town of Bharatpur used to be flooded regularly every monsoon. Then in 1760, an earthen dam (Ajan Dam) was constructed, in an attempt to spare the town from flooding. The depression created by taking soil for the dam was turned into a lake, later known as Keoladeo Lake. In the early 1900s, a system of small dams, and sluice gates, etc., was created to control the level of the water in different sections. This became the hunting preserve of the Maharaja of Bharatpur, and one of the world's finest duck - shooting wetlands. A signboard near Keoladeo Temple still records "bag-brags" for the time; for example: "The Duke of Kent: 367 ducks and 28 partridges".
They say that humans are the only species that will kill an animal that is not immediately needed for food. Fortunately, hunting was finally banned in 1962. Keoladeo Ghana was declared a national park on 10 March 1982, and accepted as a World Heritage Site in December 1985.
One character who is sincerely hoping that the monsoon rains will return to Keoladeo in 2003 is Mr Gaurav Gupta, manager of the brand-new Kadamb Kunj Resort, about 5 km from the entrance to Keoladeo Ghana National Park. The spacious grounds, still under development, include a Kadamb tree (a type of mango), similar to one under which Lord Krishna used to sit. "We want Kadamb Kunj to be a home-away-from-home haven for visitors to the Bird Sanctuary", says Gupta.
One of the distinguishing features of Kadamb Kunj is its outstanding Mughlai-style cuisine, some of the best I've had in India. Also, the accommodations are first-rate. However, one downside is the distance from the park entrance – it could be handy to have faster access, particularly for early morning visits. Those who wish to stay nearer to the Park will find a number of inexpensive hotels located about 2 km from the park entrance.
Back at Keoladeo, nighttime is falling. Across the somewhat depleted wetlands, a brilliant sunset illuminates the water-pools of the sanctuary in a thousand shades of yellow and mauve. These may be hard times for Keoladeo Ghana National Park, but the sheer magic of the place is still undoubtedly there.
Getting There: by rail - the railhead at Bharatpur (from New Delhi, via Mathura) is about 12 km from Keoladeo village. Bicycle rickshaws, motor-rickshaws and taxis are readily available.
Keoladeo National Park: Open throughout the year, but the best months to spot migrant birds are from October to February. Opening hours are from 6 a.m. in summer and 6:30 a.m. in winter (times when many locals take an early morning stroll through the park) to about an hour after sunset.


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Israel's Security and Unintended Consequences
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4806/israel-security
Would General Allen -- or any other general today -- recommend contracting out his country's defenses if it were his country at stake? Of course not.
The Iranian regime remains dedicated to undermining and ultimately destroying the State of Israel. The Islamic State also has Israel in its sights and would certainly use the West Bank as a point from which to attack, if it were open to them.
There can be no two-state solution and no sovereign Palestinian Arab state west of the Jordan, however desirable those things might be. The stark military reality is that Israel cannot withdraw its forces from the West Bank.
Fatah leaders ally themselves with the terrorists of Hamas, and, like Hamas, they continue to reject the every existence of the State of Israel.
If Western leaders actually want to help, they should use all diplomatic and economic means to make it clear to the Palestinians that they will never achieve an independent and sovereign state while they remain set on the destruction of the State of Israel.
When in 1942 American General Douglas MacArthur took command of the defense of Australia against imminent Japanese invasion, one of the plans he rejected was to withdraw and fight behind the Brisbane line, a move that would have given large swathes of territory to the Japanese.
Instead, he adopted a policy of forward defense: advancing northwards out of Australia to attack the Japanese on the island of New Guinea. MacArthur then went on to play a pivotal role in the defeat of the Japanese empire.
At the end of last year, during the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations involving U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, another extremely able and widely respected American General, John Allen, drew up a plan progressively to withdraw Israeli forces from the West Bank and hand over Israel's forward defense to a combination of Palestinian Arab forces, international monitors and technology.
Given the range of existential threats emanating from, or through, the West Bank today, known and unknown threats that will develop tomorrow, and the exceptional geographical vulnerability of the State of Israel, such a proposal is blatantly untenable. No other country would take risks with the lives of its people and the integrity of its territory by contracting out their defenses in this way -- nor should it.
Britain, for example, where no such existential threats exist, even refuses to adopt the EU's Schengen arrangements, which would hand over the security of UK borders to Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Spain, Italy and its other European neighbors. It is a long-standing opt-out that looks wiser by the day as international jihadist aggression against the West increases.
General MacArthur would never have recommended the "Allen Plan." MacArthur, however, was not then under the same political pressure as General Allen. If he had been, he would have repulsed it. In 1934, as Army Chief of Staff, he argued against President Franklin D. Roosevelt's intention to cut drastically the Army's budget with such vehemence that he vomited on the steps of the White House as he was leaving.
Would General Allen – or any other general today – recommend a similar plan to his own president, if it were not Israel's security, but the security of the United States, that was at stake? Of course he would not.
Indeed, U.S. generals unsuccessfully argued the opposite course of action when U.S. President Barack Obama decided on a total withdrawal of US forces from Iraq in 2011, a move that made inevitable the resurgence of large-scale violent jihad.
General Allen is now leading the American and allied forward defensive operations against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq [ISIS]. In the face of what he has defined as a "clear and present danger to the US," he is not recommending withdrawal of American forces back into the continental United States and reliance on Arab forces, peacekeepers and technology to protect U.S. interests. The reverse, in fact, is true.
The reverse is also true for the forward defensive operations of the U.S. and its Western allies against violent jihad in Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Mali, Somalia and elsewhere. All are significant threats to the West, yet none is as immediate and dangerous as the threat to Israel from an undefended West Bank.
Despite the determination of so many in the West erroneously to view the Israel-Palestine conflict as a mere territorial dispute that could be settled if only the so-called "occupation" ended, the forward defensive measures necessary for other Western nations are necessary for Israel as well. The stark military reality is that Israel cannot withdraw its forces from the West Bank -- either now or at any point in the foreseeable future.
For those willing to see with clarity and speak with honesty, that conclusion has been obvious for many years. It is even more obvious, perhaps, for leaders with direct responsibility -- such as General MacArthur had in Australia in 1942 -- than for those who do not have to live with the consequences of their actions -- such as General Allen in Israel in 2013.
Recent events have made this reality even more certain. Through incessant rocket fire and the construction of a sophisticated tunnel system to abduct and massacre Israeli civilians on a large scale, Hamas has just delivered another powerful object lesson in the consequences of IDF withdrawal.
Fatah leaders may take a somewhat different stance for international consumption, but they ally themselves with the proscribed terrorists of Hamas. And, like Hamas, in reality they continue to reject the very existence of the State of Israel. They apparently continue to want only a one-state solution: Arab rule from the river to the sea, with the ethnic cleansing of the Jews that would follow.
They are consistently encouraged in this intent, both wittingly and unwittingly, by Western nations, particularly in Europe. Not least by Sweden's commitment in September to support a unilateral Palestinian state, the UK Parliament's recent vote for the same thing, and similar moves across Europe that are likely in the coming weeks and months.
Especially with such encouragement, there is no possibility that Palestinian Arab political leaders' rejection of the Jewish State will modify in the foreseeable future. The launch pad that an IDF-free West Bank would provide for attacks against Israel is so dangerous it makes even Gaza look about as threatening as Switzerland.
The external threats are at least as serious as those from within the West Bank. Despite the wishful thinking of many Western leaders and the alluring grins from Tehran, the Iranian regime remains dedicated to undermining and ultimately destroying the State of Israel. By funding and fomenting violence, Iran's leadership will continue to exploit the Palestinian Arab populations in both Gaza and the West Bank to these ends.
Those who are currently arguing for Israeli military withdrawal from the West Bank and the establishment of a sovereign state must have missed the war General Allen is fighting against the Islamic State [IS] and their jihadist bedfellows across the border in Syria. The Islamic State also has Israel in its sights and would certainly use the West Bank as a point from which to attack, if it were open to them. In the hands of international monitors and Palestinian Arab forces, the West Bank would be wide open to them.
We have only to look at the reaction to aggression of almost all international peacekeepers over the decades to know they would not last five minutes. And we have only to look at the performance of the battle-hardened Syrian and Iraqi armies when confronted by Islamic State fighters to know how long Palestinian Arab forces would withstand such aggression, whether by infiltration or frontal assault.
Whatever happens to the Islamic State in the future, this resurgent Islamist belligerence is not a flash in the pan. On the contrary, it has been building for decades, and President Obama, UK Prime Minister David Cameron and other world leaders acknowledge it as a generational struggle.
This means that for Israel, as far as the West Bank is concerned, both the enemy within and the enemy without are here to stay. And if the IDF has no choice but to remain in the West Bank to defend Israel, there can be no two state solution and no sovereign Palestinian Arab state west of the Jordan, however desirable those things might be.
Nor can there be a one-state solution with democratic rights for all because that would spell the end of the one and only democratic and Jewish state and the beginning of a new autocracy and the next exodus of the Jews.
For those who do not want that to happen, the harsh reality is continuation of the status quo. But the status quo can be significantly improved, by gradual and progressive increases to PA autonomy in the West Bank, to the point where a state exists in virtually all aspects other than military security. That progress can only be achieved through low-key bilateral negotiations with concessions from both sides. It cannot be achieved by Kerry-like peace processes that demand big sweeping strokes to deliver groundbreaking, legacy-delivering announcements.
Nor can such progress be achieved in the face of a Western world that reflexively condemns every move Israel makes and encourages the Palestinian Arabs to believe that the fantasy of a two-state solution or a one-state solution on their terms can become a reality in the foreseeable future.
As so often in the paradoxical world of geopolitics, the well-meaning actions and words of national leaders and international organizations have unintended consequences. For the Israel-Palestine situation, the unintended consequences of Western actions are to deprive Palestinian Arabs of increased freedom and prosperity and to undermine the security of the only stable, liberal democratic state in the Middle East. If the West actually wants to help, its leaders need to face up to this unpalatable truth rather than continue to delude the Palestinian people as well as themselves.
Instead, Western leaders should use all available diplomatic and economic means to make it clear to the Palestinians that they will never achieve an independent and sovereign state while they remain set on the destruction of the State of Israel and while they continue to brainwash future generations to believe in that goal.
Colonel Richard Kemp spent most his 30-year career in the British Army commanding front-line troops in fighting terrorism and insurgency in hotspots including Iraq, the Balkans, South Asia and Northern Ireland. He was Commander of British Forces in Afghanistan in 2003. From 2002 - 2006 he heading the international terrorism team at the Joint Intelligence Committee of the British Prime Minister's Office.
Follow Richard Kemp on Twitter
Related Topics: Israel, Palestinian Authority
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29 Reader Comments
Menahem Lester • Oct 28, 2014 at 10:44
I well respect Col. Richard Kemp. his actions, his support for Israel on the military and diplomatic fronts and his sentiments in this article.
I am disturbed however, by this: "As so often in the paradoxical world of geopolitics, the well-meaning actions and words of national leaders and international organizations have unintended consequences."
I have doubts about these well-meaning actions: OK, Cameron provided some support for Israel diplomatically, during this latest Gaza War. But the force of the hatred shown against Israel during this summer by many of the MPs and his fellow-ministers swayed his judgement towards embargoing weapons that Israel needed; I remember his speech whilst in Ankara on the way to India comparing Gaza to a prison camp and his ceaseless references to 2-state solution and support for the Palestinian cause, which is a cause-celebre in Britain whilst events or the situations in Nigeria, Sudan, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Northern Cyprus, Pakistan, Qatar, Tibet, Libya, Morocco etc. etc receive scant attention and certainly don't attract demonstrations or great public concern. I fail to see many well-meaning actions in Europe...
zgmdf • Oct 25, 2014 at 23:25
I fully agree with you conclusions, and the folly of European partisanship.
Barry Shereck • Oct 25, 2014 at 22:51
An incredibly perceptive view of the reality of the security situation in Israel that only a talented objective military expert can have. If only the Western leaders were smart enough to face reality and not politics.
Bones • Oct 25, 2014 at 12:00
Gen'l Richard Kemp, in his last paragraph is "right on". There will never be a solution to this problem until Israel's neighbours wake up and accept that that it (Israel) is here to stay. But Israel is a democratic country. The people chose its leaders. The countries surrounding Israel are autocratic, its leaders are in charge by use of force. Their religion rejects all laws made by man, Allah's laws are supreme.
President Abbas is not a stupid person. He may go along with Hamas where it suits his goals (to stay in power). But, privately, he knows very well that, if Israel removed all of its forces from the West Bank that Hamas would move in and take over very quickly.
The real threat to Israel comes from Iran, a country run by zealots. It is also a serious threat to all of the Sunni-led countries in the Mideast. Any serious attempt by Iran to attack Israel will cause the western nations to be drawn into the conflict.
Rest assured that Israel would not be an easy victory. After the smoke has cleared very likely the map of the Middle East would be re-drawn (again.)
Ted S. • Oct 25, 2014 at 09:29
I salute Colonel Kemp for brilliantly arguing what should have been self-evident to Israelis since 1948.
Wallace Brand • Oct 24, 2014 at 23:30
He tells it like it is. It's terrific. Emphasizes the importance of the rules of engagement and the media war.
Patrick • Oct 24, 2014 at 16:16
Colonel Kemp's remarks are absolutely clear and correct. Geostrategic security for Israel mandates a perpetual IDF presence in the West Bank, on Israeli terms. Similarly, any notion of dividing Jerusalem, as so many would like to compel, is strategically fatal for Israel as well as fundamentally antisemitic in concept.
The economic perspective is also true. All that can be done to capitalize a peaceful, growing Palestinian economy should be essayed for the benefit of this community. Parallel measures should be advanced to encourage a civil society based on personal civil rights and democratic rule of law.
Hayim Abramson • Oct 24, 2014 at 03:16
I appreciate the article describing the real needs of Israel.
Against the enemy threats we need to think of our own defenses.
What I do not understand is why the USA proposes such solutions that do not make military sense.
m k barclay • Oct 24, 2014 at 01:37
thank you for the calm clarity about facing reality -- every word rings true -- m
Tina • Oct 23, 2014 at 22:06
Col. Richard Kemp has got it right and he's about the only one who has.
World governments are so hypocritical in their efforts to suck-up to the Islamic world through their need for their oil and their fear of Islam plus their continual appeasing of the Palestinians, that they would sacrifice the Jewish People for their own needs.
Hamas terrorists and other jihadists are not innocent children and should not be treated as such and their actions should be widely condemned by world governments. If that is not done and they are continually appeased then their brutality will gradually engulf us all.
John • Oct 23, 2014 at 17:42
It is obvious that Gen. Allen lives in the left wing cloud of reality. He simply is rubber stamping the Obama/Kerry plan for failure in the Israeli-Palestinian issue. He, like Obama and Kerry, simply does not wish to understand the reality of the Middle East.
rick w dominique • Oct 23, 2014 at 17:31
Israel has survived for eons with or without outside interference and will continue as long as God is their source of victory, you have nothing to fear but fear itself. Prepare yourselves for a pre-emptive strike and it's time to ignore the world at large, they're are not your friends, only sheep in wolves clothing. Do what you must do to survive and GOD be with you. Your Catholic Friends.
Doug Mayfield • Oct 23, 2014 at 17:05
As a free country, Israel has an profound moral right to do absolutely anything necessary, politically, diplomatically, and militarily, to survive and propser. This should include, regardless of casualties, civilian or otherwise, eradicating Hamas, the PA, and all the other nasty murdering tyrants who are doing their damnedest to destroy Israel.
jacob t. chachkes, m.d. • Oct 23, 2014 at 15:22
Generals and presidents and governments are self blinding and perhaps fearful of the religion in the Muslim world. They choose to ignore the militancy of Muslims throughout the region. The Arab/Muslim world has systematically driven Christians and Jews and Baha'i and other minority religions and peoples from all the region! Please review the history of Mohamed' initial military actions to cleanse the Arabian peninsula of those that would not acknowledge his claim to have the word of Allah as Allah's prophet. Read the Qur'an which calls for all people to be followers of Islam. Remember the 'peaceful' conquest of the Mediterranean basin, and the stated intent of a caliphate now. Remember the warning that was ignored when the Marine barracks were blown up in Lebanon.
Aleia Hutcherson • Oct 23, 2014 at 13:27
I always appreciate your honesty & clarity Richard - I just wish that key world leaders (e.g. Obama, Kerry, Cameron, Ban Ki-moon, UNHRC et al) felt the same way. Unfortunately they seem bent on exactly the opposite of what you suggest, and thereby seem intent on destroying Israel. When push comes to shove, they all bully Israel to make compromises it can't afford. I don't see how any written articles are going to change their attitude, although of course I still believe in speaking up. To me, God is the only real "friend" that Israel has, who also has the power to stop the nonsense. Every time we say no to Kerry, we just get more insulting & intimidating remarks from him. Can you get him to listen?!
Boris • Oct 23, 2014 at 12:55
It's duty and responsibility of the Western leaders to understand it isn't just Israel security it's world security to dismantle Hamas and recognition of Israel by all Arabs countries, including Iran! Israel with the brave IDF is a front line for world protection against terrorists! Anybody rejecting common sense must be considered as a propagandist of the cold war, insane.
Danny Leiwy • Oct 23, 2014 at 12:49
As ever, Colonel Kemp is spot on. I very much hope this article has been submitted to the newspapers. Even today, the PA is praising the Palestinian who murdered a 3 month old baby yesterday as a hero, while the EU, amongst others, is on the point of rebuilding Gaza while making no conditions such as disarming Hamas.
It's clear that no such decisions makers care much for the security of the State of Israel or the safety of Israelis.
Ari Zade • Oct 23, 2014 at 12:24
You are a great blessing to the people of Israel and to people worldwide who value the freedoms that democracy confers and the stability that sound military wisdom must also confer. We cannot have the one without the other and Israel is a shining light in that regard. Your own words and wisdom allow more of that light to shine. If only more people would read such writings and listen more closely to the truth revealed therein.
Bonnie • Oct 23, 2014 at 11:39
Excellent article. Honest, accurate. So here's the question. Why do supposedly sane people not get it?
Tom Coplin Bonnie • Oct 23, 2014 at 13:54
Good thoughts Bonnie. The sane people do get it. It's just that Israel's destruction is their foremost plan and having Israel give up the West Bank puts Israel in a perilous position. This is the "sane" people's objective. Let's hope that the IDF remains sane and does not fall into the trap, however, Biblically speaking, they do, at some time, with the promise of peace and protection. It is getting close.
Barry Meislin Bonnie • Oct 23, 2014 at 23:49
"Why do supposedly sane people not get it?"
Simply because such supposedly sane people (and countries) have---no matter what they might claim (or protest too much)---have decided that they have had enough of Israel and that it's time for Israel to go.
It's called "expedience", "weariness", or "morality"---or even "not being allowed to help the Jewish State in spite of itself" (though to be sure, "spite" is the only honest word used here; IOW, "do what I say, not what I do"....).
This, alas, appears to be something even this excellent, common-sensical article by a truly decent man, talented strategist, and true friend of the Jewish State (a modern-day Orde Wingate) does not seem to comprehend.
Israel has been jettisoned.
The only question remaining is whether Israel will be able to escape destruction or whether Israel's enemies will survive their treachery, and Israel's supposedly well-meaning "friends" (offering pious words of support for Israel while fully backing those who are committed to its destruction) survive their perfidy.
Janet Scaruffi • Oct 23, 2014 at 09:29
Israel's security is the security of the world. As it goes so we all go. This is the best written piece I have read. Why are all the world leaders such sheep?
I have visited there and the people are so wonderful and the land so beautiful because of their hard work. They are brilliant peaceful people who have given the world so many gifts, medical, music, books, inventions on and on. I am not Jewish, but I am not mean or stupid that I do not see what is happening. God Bless and keep them.
Hamdy • Oct 23, 2014 at 09:01
I am an Arab and I testify: Palestinians need Israel in West Bank AND Gaza to protect them.
Israel protected King Hussein (Jordan) in 1970 when Israeli jets challenged Syrian tanks that invaded Jordan.
Israel protected President Sadat (Egypt) in 1980 by revealing a plot against him (I was there during Menachem Begin's visit to Alexandria).
Israel protected the sovereignty of the Lebanese government in 1982 when General Sharon reached Beirut and restored law & order.
And the list grows longer by the day.
So, why Palestinians do not "ask" Israeli Defense Force to protect them "in" West bank and Gaza from foreign invaders, from their fellow Arabs and from themselves (fighting Palestinian factions).... remains a mystery.
Andrew H • Oct 23, 2014 at 08:35
The whole thing is a farce. How can one tribe grow Einsteins and dozens of Nobel Prize winning scientists and at the same time wean so many idiotic, unrealistic, self-destructive politicians? You don't even begin to negotiate with sworn enemies who feel you have no right to exist. Israeli leaders need to take a lesson from Egypt. Deal harshly with its enemies and call a spade a spade. Obama is just as much Israel's enemy as he is of Egypt but the Egyptian have made it clear to him; they want none of his guff. Next, Israel should not give a damn about what the sons of Hitler in Europe think. Effective leaders act for the best of their own people not for the image of their country in the eyes of their enemies. Their enemies keep labeling them as "occupiers." Well, it is time for them to ACT like occupiers. When the stone throwers begin to pick up stones, don't use rubber bullets. Shoot to kill. Cleanse the whole territory of Fifth Columnists and enemies of the state. Legislate the death penalty and execute murderers. It is much more effective than housing them in expensive jails and then trading them 100 for 1 when the enemy takes hostages. In short, Israel needs to decide if they want to survive or have another Masada.
Allen Roth • Oct 23, 2014 at 08:26
Colonel Kemp presents a much needed analysis based on facts on the ground. Pressuring Israel to let down its defenses endangers Israelis and emboldens Jihadists who are intent on destroying Israel and the United States.
Gilbert Borman • Oct 23, 2014 at 08:23
I thank the Colonel for his outspoken courage to stare down the hurricane of lies and hate that emerges every time Israel defends herself. He is right the West Bank cannot ever be handed over to the current Palestinian leaders and it may well be that it is always just safer for Israel to keep forces there as long as she wishes to be a free and independent country.
It is pathetic that the received wisdom of the western powers is Israel must sacrifice her security in a time of unprecedented chaos and geopolitical realignment meltdown. Syria and Iraq are failed countries and, with each passing day, it seems less and less likely they will ever be reconstituted to the original borders.
And thanks for the image of MacArthur barfing on the White House steps, I sort of feel the same way right about now....
Shulamith Goodman • Oct 23, 2014 at 06:19
This is the best explanation I have ever seen as to why Israel cannot give the West bank to the Arabs. It is very encouraging to us that a man of Richard Kemp's calibre sees the situation from our point of view. He is to be commended for the clarity with which he puts forth the facts and his opinions. We in Israel very much appreciate his knowledge, understanding and foresight and indeed his friendship.
Robert Haymond • Oct 23, 2014 at 06:00
I appreciate the clarity and quiet logic of Colonel Kemp's analysis, especially as I also reside in Gush Etzion across the Green Line and am especially sensitive, as well as vulnerable, to Arab terrorism.
J J Goldstein Robert Haymond • Oct 23, 2014 at 14:14
Of course the western governments know the truth.
They also know another truth, in that they have in their midst hundreds of thousands of people who could, if inflamed, cause mayhem.
In addition, all the 3 main political parties here have next year's election in mind and the fact that the Muslim vote is important, not only in a lot of marginal constituencies, but also in the inner cities.
The ridiculous vote in Parliament recently was about votes only, not about truth.
FIRST TRANSLATION OF AYATOLLAH KHAMENEI'S BOOK ON HOW TO DESTROY AMERICA
Related Reading: Amir Taheri's "The Ayatollah's Plan for Israel and Palestine"


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← Holiness
Cardinals, popes, and prophets →
Hearing the poor
I have seen the humiliation of my people in Egypt
And I hear their cry when they are cruelly treated by their taskmasters.
I know their suffering.
Exodus 3: 7
Do we, like our God, know the suffering of the poor?
In the US, today is the feast of St. Katherine Drexel, the founder of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, who lived from 1858 to 1955.
Born into the rich Drexel family in Philadelphia, she learned to listen to the poor from her parents, especially her step-mother. Her family used to open the doors of their mansion three times a week to provide food, clothing, and money to the poor. Their parish priest who later became the bishop of Omaha, Nebraska, opened her heart to the plight of native Americans and the injustice they were suffering.
When her father died this three daughters received a large inheritance which all three used to benefit the poor. Katherine used her money to help Native American missions in the West.
But Katherine felt the call to religious life. Her parish priest urged her not to become a contemplative nun as she originally wished but to wait for God's call.
She experienced that call and founded a religious order whose mission is to respond to the needs of Native Americans and African Americans.
Mother Katherine continued to distribute the inheritance she had received but did not use the money for the sisters. They had to depend on alms. But with the inheritance schools and missions were opened, including the establishment of Xavier University in New Orleans, the first Catholic university specifically fro African-Americans.
But not content on providing alms, she also spoke out against segregation and her sisters marched in the civil rights movement that began about the time of her death.
As she once said, "If we live the Gospel, we will be people of justice and our lives will bring good news to the poor."
I vaguely remember that in the late fifties several sisters from her congregation came to ask for support at the parish where I grew up in Darby, just outside of Philadelphia. They asked us to pray for her canonization. I didn't pay too much attention since I didn't know much about her life and her mission. Now I appreciate how she followed our God who hears the cries of the poor.
When she was canonized in 2000, Pope John Paul II said:
May her example help young people in particular to appreciate that no greater treasure can be found in this world than in following Christ with an undivided heart and in using generously the gifts we have received for the service of others and for the building of a more just and fraternal world.
May the example of Mother Katherine Drexel inspire us to hear the cries of the poor and open our hearts and our treasures in solidarity with them.
This entry was posted in lectionary, Lent, poor, saints, United States, women and tagged Motehr Katherine Drexel. Bookmark the permalink.


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Reversing the Obama DOJ's Politicization of Justice with Trump Pardon of D'Souza
In stark contrast to the current Department of Justice (DOJ), the Obama Justice Department was run more as a political shop with Eric Holder serving more as a DNC Counsel. As even NPR stated:
Justice Department traditionalists grimaced when former Attorney General Eric Holder called himself President Obama's "wingman."
A prime example of how this politicization was more than words and ran throughout the Obama DOJ was the treatment of Dinesh D'Souza. As President Trump stated:
Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D'Souza today. He was treated very unfairly by our government!
D'Souza illegally gave $20,000 to a college friend's campaign for Senate, that she lost by 46 points. He is 100% guilty. He was also a major andfinancially successful critic of Obama and progressives. He should have been punished, but the punishment was completely over the top by an Obama DOJ that was trying to silence an Adminstration critic. Obama supporter Alan Dershowitz stated at the time:
The Justice Department's tactics remind Dershowitz of the words of Stalin's secret police chief, Lavrentiy Beria, who said, "Show me the man and I'll find you the crime."
"This is an outrageous prosecution and is certainly a misuse of resources," charged Dershowitz. "It raises the question of why he is being selected for prosecution among the many, many people who commit similar crimes.
"This sounds to me like it is coming from higher places. It is hard for me to believe this did not come out of Washington or at least get the approval of those in Washington."
Former FEC Commissioner David Mason added at the time:
Law enforcement experts tell Newsmax that if the FBI or another federal agency received a tip about a fraudulent act involving just $20,000, the government would likely show little interest in investigating. Mason notes that a violation of $20,000 in contributions is trivial compared to most cases.
"The violation involves a pretty small amount for this type of case," said Mason, who was an FEC commissioner from 1998 to 2008. When small amounts of campaign financing regularities are uncovered the matter is usually resolved at a low level.
The unprecentedented arrest makes even more sense when you realize the U.S. Attorney in charge of the case was Preet Bharara. The same U.S. Attorney who refused to leave his position after President Trump was elected:
A few days ahead of a resignation request from the Department of Justice — part of the routine housecleaning of political appointees that accompanies every administration changeover — Bharara set up a "personal" Twitter account, writing portentously: "Stay tuned . . . " Then, on Saturday, he tweeted: "I did not resign. Moments ago I was fired. Being the US Attorney in SDNY will forever be the greatest honor of my professional life."
Leave it to a Manhattanite to be a drama queen.
The replacement of the nation's 93 U.S. attorneys is standard procedure when a president from a different party takes the White House. Bill Clinton asked for the resignation of all but one U.S. attorney in March 1993 (unlike, Bharara, they complied); George W. Bush had replaced nearly every U.S. attorney by the end of his first year in office; Barack Obama swapped out Bush-era U.S. attorneys for his own — among whom was Bharara. This is not a scandal. Since the executive branch is tasked with enforcing the laws, and since every administration has different (sometimes radically different) enforcement priorities, each administration wants lawyers who will carry out its priorities. . . . The Constitution provides for this. And when an at-will employee refuses to give up his post, the White House obviously has no alternative but to can him.
Bharara was out for retribution against a critic of Obama and progressives to score political points. The political nature of Bharara's prosecution is clear from comparing similar cases. Take the higher profile candidate case involving Democratic Presidential Candidate John Edwards:
D'Souza's conviction was clearly political retribution. Compare attorney Pierce O'Donnell, who gave $26,000 in illegal contributions to 2004 Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and ended up facing only misdemeanor charges .
The judge rightly rejected Bharara's efforts to get D'Souza a seven-year prision term but D'Souza was still confined to a halfway house. AsAndrew McCarthy concludes:
No matter what you think of D'Souza's politics, his treatment was abusive.
President Trump's pardon of Dinesh D'Souza is just.
D'Souza took it a step further to call it Karma:
KARMA IS A BITCH DEPT: @PreetBharara wanted to destroy a fellow Indian American to advance his career. Then he got fired & I got pardoned
— Dinesh D'Souza (@DineshDSouza) May 31, 2018


Last Friday, in Paris-Dauphine, my PhD student Changye Wu showed me a paper of Ceperley and Dewing entitled the penalty method for random walks with uncertain energies. Of which I was unaware of (and which alas pre-dated a recent advance made by Changye). Despite its physics connections, the paper is actually about estimating a Metropolis-Hastings acceptance ratio and correcting the Metropolis-Hastings move for this estimation. While there is no generic solution to this problem, assuming that the logarithm of the acceptance ratio estimate is Gaussian around the true log acceptance ratio (and hence unbiased) leads to a log-normal correction for the acceptance probability.
While commenting on commentaries is formally bound to induce an infinite loop [or l∞p], I remain puzzled by the main point of the paper, which is that setting a structural distribution on a moment function Z(x,θ) plus a prior p(θ) induces a distribution on the pair (x,θ) in a possibly weaker σ-algebra. (The two distributions may actually be incompatible.) Handling this framework requires checking that a posterior exists, which sounds rather unnatural (even though we also have to check properness of the posterior). And the meaning of such a posterior remains unclear, as for instance in this assertion that (4) above is a likelihood, when it does not define a density in x but on the object inside the exponential.
The CRiSM workshop on estimating constants which took place here in Warwick from April 20 till April 22 was quite enjoyable [says most objectively one of the organisers!], with all speakers present to deliver their talks (!) and around sixty participants, including 17 posters. It remains a exciting aspect of the field that so many and so different perspectives are available on the "doubly intractable" problem of estimating a normalising constant. Several talks and posters concentrated on Ising models, which always sound a bit artificial to me, but also are perfect testing grounds for approximations to classical algorithms.
On top of [clearly interesting!] talks associated with papers I had already read [and commented here], I had not previously heard about Pierre Jacob's coupling SMC sequence, which paper is not yet out [no spoiler then!]. Or about Michael Betancourt's adiabatic Monte Carlo and its connection with the normalising constant. Nicolas Chopin talked about the unnormalised Poisson process I discussed a while ago, with this feature that the normalising constant itself becomes an additional parameter. And that integration can be replaced with (likelihood) maximisation. The approach, which is based on a reference distribution (and an artificial logistic regression à la Geyer), reminded me of bridge sampling. And indirectly of path sampling, esp. when Merrilee Hurn gave us a very cool introduction to power posteriors in the following talk. Also mentioning the controlled thermodynamic integration of Chris Oates and co-authors I discussed a while ago. (Too bad that Chris Oates could not make it to this workshop!) And also pointing out that thermodynamic integration could be a feasible alternative to nested sampling.
Back in February 2013 when "Bayesian Model Averaging in Astrophysics: A Review" by Parkinson & Liddle (hereafter PL13) first appeared on the arXiv I was a keen, young(ish) postdoc eager to get stuck into debates about anything and everything 'astro-statistical'. And with its seemingly glaring flaws, PL13 was more grist to the mill. However, despite my best efforts on various forums I couldn't get a decent fight started over the right way to do model averaging (BMA) in astronomy, so out of sheer frustration two months later I made my own soapbox to shout from at Another Astrostatistics Blog. Having seen PL13 reviewed recently here on Xian's Og it feels like the right time to revisit the subject and reflect on where BMA in astronomy is today.
As pointed out to me back in 2013 by Tom Loredo, the act of Bayesian model averaging has been around much longer than its name; indeed an early astronomical example appears in Gregory & Loredo (1992) in which the posterior mean representation of an unknown signal is constructed for an astronomical "light-curve", averaging over a set of constant and periodic candidate models. Nevertheless the wider popularisation of model averaging in astronomy has only recently taken place through a variety of applications in cosmology: e.g. Liddle, Mukherjee, Parkinson & Wang (2006) and Vardanyan, Trotta & Silk (2011).


text:
Bei dem Hareschloß handelt es sich um eine vermutete Turmburg aus dem Hochmittelalter, welche inzwischen verschwunden ist. Es finden sich nur noch Bodenreste bei Zorn in der hessischen Gemeinde Heidenrod. Sie darf nicht verwechselt werden mit der rund einen Kilometer entfernt liegenden Ringwallanlage Alte Schanz.

Anlage
Die Burgstelle befindet sich am auslaufenden Ende eines Bergrückens im Walddistrikt "Eichnert". Vom Bergrücken wurde die Anlage durch einen Halsgraben abgetrennt. Der Zugang war wahrscheinlich über oder durch den Halsgraben gegeben. Mittig oberhalb des Grabens findet sich eine Mulde, die vermutetermaßen einen Gebäudestandort anzeigt.

Expertenseitig wird davon ausgegangen, dass es sich bei der Burg weitestgehend um eine Holzkonstruktion handelte. Bearbeitete Steine, welche auf Mauerwerk hindeuten, finden sich allerdings auch.

Geschichte
Zur Geschichte oder den Besitzern der Anlage ist nichts bekannt. Wahrscheinlich gehörte sie aber nassauischen oder katzenelnbogischen Gefolgsleuten.

Denkmalschutz
Der Bereich der Anlage ist ein Bodendenkmal nach dem Hessischen Denkmalschutzgesetz. Nachforschungen und gezieltes Sammeln von Funden sind genehmigungspflichtig, Zufallsfunde an die Denkmalbehörden zu melden.

Quellen
 Burgen und Schlösser, Ausgabe 2/2007

Bilder

Weblinks
 Informationen beim Heimatverein Zorn

Ehemalige Burganlage im Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis
Archäologischer Fundplatz im Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis
Bodendenkmal in Hessen
Bauwerk in Heidenrod
Kultur (Heidenrod)
Geographie (Heidenrod)
Burg in Europa
Archäologischer Fundplatz in Europa

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


This site allows you to create GIF files—short film sequences made by combining still frames of photographs or images which are often used to convey reactions online. Participants will learn how to create basic GIF files.
To reserve your seat, please call (757) 823-4800. Registered participants will be given priority but walk-ins are welcome.


text:
Leeds United Confirm Departure Of Head Coach Evans | TEAMtalk
Leeds United confirm departure of head coach Evans
Oli Fisher 31 May 2016 7:28 PM
Championship side Leeds United have confirmed the departure of head coach Steve Evans after just seven months in charge at Elland Road.
The former Rotherham boss leaves the Whites having won 14 of his 38 games in charge, drawing 13 and losing 11 with a win percentage of 36.64.
Leeds chairman Massimo Cellino said: "I would like to thank Steve Evans for his efforts as the head coach of Leeds United.
Evans was at ER for a final time today, although (true to form) Cellino didn't tell him in person. All the same, decision made.
— Phil Hay (@PhilHayYEP) May 31, 2016
"Steve completed the job he was brought in to carry out – to keep the team in the Championship – and his hard work here has been greatly appreciated. I wish him and Paul Raynor the very best for the future.
"We have, however, decided that a different approach is required in order to achieve our targets for the new season.
A statement from head coach Steve Evans on leaving #Lufc pic.twitter.com/ehKXyesliZ
— West Yorkshire Sport (@WYSdaily) May 31, 2016
"The Club is now looking to appoint a new head coach to build on the good work of Steve and Paul and deliver the special season which our supporters deserve."
The club site went on to state the following:
"The process to appoint a new head coach is underway and a further announcement will be made here on leedsunited.com in due course."
Garry Monk has emerged as the new odds-on favourite to take the helm at Elland Road.
Leeds Steve Evans
Steve Pearson 01 Feb 2023
Ferdinand savages Merson over worrying Sabitzer to Man Utd claim, with real reason Bayern stint failed stated


A small Torah scroll that was brought out of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp returned home from space with the Atlantis space crew.
To honor the memory of her husband, Ilan Ramon, and the crew of the Columbia space shuttle, Rona Ramon asked Canadian astronaut Steve MacLean to take a Torah scroll aboard the Atlantis space shuttle. She asked Professor Henry Fenichel for his scroll. Fenichel was a survivor of Bergen-Belsen camp.
The scroll was returned to Professor Fenichel at a ceremony at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. Fenichel is a professor of physics in Cincinnati and a child survivor of the Holocaust.
Ilan Ramon originally took the scroll into space on the Columbia space flight. The scroll, belonging to Tel Aviv University Professor Joachim Joseph, a Holocaust survivor, never made it home when the Columbia crashed upon its return to earth. Ramon was the son of an Auschwitz survivor.


text:
Home Sports Women's Basketball And away we go: Lady Bears begin title hunt at home
And away we go: Lady Bears begin title hunt at home
Matt Hellman | Lariat Photographer
No. 42 center Brittney Griner shoots the ball during the game against Missouri on March 2 at the Ferrell Center. The Lady Bears dominated Missouri, 84-57. They'll face No. 16 seed Prarie View A&M Sunday.
By Matt Larsen
As a No. 1 seed for the first time in program history, the Lady Bears will enjoy the comfort of playing the first round of the NCAA Tournament in the friendly confines of the Ferrell Center at 6:40 p.m. Sunday when they take on Prairie View A&M.
Head coach Kim Mulkey just hopes her squad won't feel too comfy.
"My comfort level isn't too good," the 11th-year coach said. "The last NCAA game we hosted here we got beat."
Mulkey acknowledged the perks of avoiding airports and keeping a more normal routine, but refuses to let her team be lulled into a lackadaisical mindset. In 2002, No. 7 seed Drake surprised her No. 2 seed team in the second round at the Ferrell Center.
"It's called the NCAA playoffs," she said. "Playing at home doesn't guarantee you a win, and playing at home doesn't guarantee you anything."
And yet no one can argue that on paper, this year's team sits more poised to challenge for a national championship than any of Mulkey's past teams.
Mulkey has taken eight straight teams to the Big Dance. Since coming to Baylor in 2001, 10 of her 11 teams have qualified for the tournament.
None of those 10 earned a No. 1 seed, though, not even Mulkey's national championship squad in 2005, a No. 2 seed. The Lady Bears' potential road to the Final Four starts in Waco before taking a short jog north to Dallas for the third and fourth rounds.
Baylor travels further for most of its Big 12 road matchups than it would for the first four rounds of the tournament.
Along with a No. 1 seed comes a theoretically easier schedule, too.
In the history of the women's NCAA tourney, just one No. 1 seed has ever been upset in the first round (No. 16 seed Harvard defeated No. 1 seed Stanford 71-67 in 1998).
With Mulkey's approach, she intends to see that her first No. 1-seeded squad doesn't become the second ever to drop its first- round matchup.
No. 32 forward Brooklyn Pope shoots the ball during the game against Missouri on March 2 at the Ferrell Center.
"Let's look at Prairie View first, because really that's the only one I'm worried about [right now]," she said.
Not that she sees limits for this bunch.
Experience, depth and talent come in abundance.
Senior Melissa Jones, sophomore Brittney Griner and freshman Odyssey Sims were named to the seven-member State Farm Coaches' All-Region team. All three will be considered for the All-American squad, and Sims is the only freshman in the country to receive All-Region honors.
Griner comes within a tenth of a point of leading the Big 12 in scoring, at 22.6 points per game, and Jones sits second nationally in assist to turnover ratio (3.1).
Sims leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage at .456.
As for depth, Mulkey frequently touts the strength of bench players like Jordan Madden and Brooklyn Pope who each average more than 15 minutes a game.
The Lady Bears have also avoided big injuries, unlike last year when a stress reactor in Jones' knee significantly limited her team's outside threat.
Then comes experience.
As a senior, Jones is making her fourth trip to the postseason and most of the key contributors were around last year when Baylor advanced to the semifinals before falling to No. 1 seed Connecticut.
"There is no substitute for having a team on the floor that has NCAA [tournament] experience," Mulkey said.
Jones had essentially the same to say about her coach, who was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year.
"She's been to every game you can think of, as far as even playing herself," Jones said.
"Her personality and how intense she is, we feed off that. It's something this team needs to keep going."
Spurred on by its coach's passion, Baylor will first look to go through a Prairie View team that won the SWAC Tournament in coach Toyelle Wilson's first year at the helm.
The Panthers (21-11) feature a trio of scoring threats in freshman Siarra Soliz, senior Dominique Smith and sophomore Latia Williams. They average 13.0, 12.1 and 10.1 a contest.
As for shutting down the trio, Griner expects to stay with the mindset that has landed her second in the country in blocked shots, at 148.
"I'm just trying to be as big as I can in the paint," she said. "They may not drive but I can just try to intimidate them from coming in. I take that little quick step up and make them stay out."
Brittney Griner
Kim Mulkey
Melissa Jones
Odyssey Sims
Prairie View A&M Panthers
Lady Bears head to Stillwater looking for fresh start
Shorthanded Lady Bears fall to Iowa State
Mulkey tests positive, games postponed


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