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Philippine Drug War Killings Reach Level of Crime Against Humanity, Amnesty International Says [FEATURE]
by psmith, July 10, 2019, 03:52pm, (Issue #1074)
Three years into the administration of Philippines strongman President Rodrigo Duterte and despite rising international condemnation, Duterte's bloody war on poor drug users continues unabated, with a pattern of unlawful executions under the guise of police sting operations, the human rights group Amnesty International said in a report released Monday.
Rodrigo Duterte's Philippines drug war is drawing the ire of Amnesty International. (Creative Commons)
The report, "'They Just Kill:' Ongoing Extrajudicial Executions and Other Violations in the Philippines' 'War on Drugs,' comes as the United Nations Human Rights Council is expected to vote on a resolution later this week calling for an investigation into the Philippines killings. Amnesty is calling on the council to approve that resolution.
"Three years on, President Duterte's "war on drugs" continues to be nothing but a large-scale murdering enterprise for which the poor continue to pay the highest price," said Nicholas Bequelin, Amnesty's Regional Director for East and Southeast Asia. "It is time for the United Nations, starting with its Human Rights Council, to act decisively to hold President Duterte and his government accountable."
[Update: The Human Rights Council adopted the resolution on July 11.]
Philippines police accept responsibility for more than 6,000 killings, saying they came in raids in which armed suspects fought back against police, but the actual number of killings, many conducted by shadowy vigilante groups suspected of links to the police may be twice or three times that figure. Opposition legislators said in February 2018 the death toll had reached 20,000.
Amnesty said the true number may never be known because "deliberate obfuscation and misinformation" from authorities makes it impossible to get an accurate tally of the killings, which targeted poor and marginalized communities that lack the means to challenge police misconduct and abuses.
It's not just the number of killings that is in doubt, but the circumstances surrounding them. While police typically claimed self-defense, witness and other information developed by Amnesty suggests a pattern of "extrajudicial executions," a polite way of saying murders by police. The claim that police were only defending themselves "doesn't meet the feeblest standards of credibility," Amnesty concluded.
A Filipino forensic expert interviewed by Amnesty said that police reports of "buy-bust" operations she had examined did not meet the minimum standards of plausibility: "It's so consistent, it's a script. In fact, when you see the report, it looks like a template," she said.
As Amnesty reported:
In an all-too-typical case, police claimed Jovan Magtanong, a 30-year-old father of three, fired at them, and that they recovered a .38 caliber pistol and baggies of illegal drugs from the scene of the incident. Witnesses said he was sleeping alongside his children when officers knocked on his house door asking for another man. Jovan's family said he did not own a gun and had not used drugs for over a year.
"They killed him like an animal," a family member told Amnesty.
Amnesty's latest report builds on an January 2017 investigation showing police had systematically targeted mostly poor and defenseless people across the country, planting "evidence," recruiting paid killers, stealing from the people they kill, and fabricating official reports. That report centered on metro Manila, then the epicenter of the killings, but the new report follows the pattern of killings to Bulacan province in Luzon, the new hotbed of drug war atrocities.
Amnesty examined 27 killings there during 20 incidents, 18 of which were official police operations. Based on witness accounts and other information, it concluded that half were extrajudicial executions. Amnesty said it couldn't develop enough information to qualify the other deaths, but said they pointed broadly to previous patterns of executions.
Amnesty also highlighted the role of "watch lists" of people in communities suspected of using or selling drugs. The "watch lists" are compiled by local officials under pressure to show results in the war on drugs by collecting the names of suspected drug users and sellers. "These lists effectively serve as guides for police of people to arrest or kill," Amnesty said. Amnesty "views these lists as unreliable, illegitimate, and unjustifiable," the group said.
"The Duterte administration has created a deadly numbers game where officials must manufacture lists and monitor them, regardless of whether the individuals on it actually use or sell drugs. This insatiable and vicious system rewards blind compliance and murder," said Nicholas Bequelin.
And the police act with impunity. Of all the killings acknowledged by the police, only one, the murder of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos in August 2017, which generated global media attention, actually saw police officers punished. But the man in charge of the police there, Senior Superintendent Chito Bersaluna, suffered only a period of "administrative leave" and is now working the drug war in Bulacan.
"The transfer of senior police officials to regions where killings then surged is an alarming indicator of impunity," said Bequelin. "The Duterte administration's continuing efforts to deny and deflect responsibility are nothing short of mendacious."
The achingly callous attitude of Philippines drug warriors toward their fellow citizens was made clear last week when Ronald Dela Rosa, now a senator but earlier the metro Manila police chief and lead conductor of Duterte's drug war, defended the killing of a three-year-old girl in a drug raid near Manila.
"Shit happens," he said as he accused the girl's father of using her as a human shield.
"It is not safe to be poor in President Duterte's Philippines," said Bequelin. "All it takes to be murdered is an unproven accusation that someone uses, buys, or sells drugs. Everywhere we went to investigate drug-related killings ordinary people were terrified. Fear has now spread deep into the social fabric of society."
Duterte and his henchmen have reacted to the International Criminal Court by leaving it, and have stonewalled attempts by domestic watchdogs to investigate their drug war crimes. Now it's time for the UN to step up.
Chronicle AM: AR, MT 2020 Pot Initiatives Get Underway, Amnesty Int'l. on Philippines Drug War, More... (7/8/19)
Marijuana legalization initiative campaigns are gearing up in Arkansas and Montana, a Missouri legislative committee will study asset forfeiture and racial profiling, Amnesty International calls the Philippines drug war a crime against humanity, and more.
2020 is already shaping up to be a big year for marijuana legalization initiatives. (Creative Commons)
Arkansas 2020 Legalization Initiative Campaign Getting Underway. The Arkansas True Grass Ballot Question Committee is gearing up to once again try to get a legalization initiative on the state ballot. The group came up short on signatures in 2016, but is back again with the Recreational Marijuana Amendment of 2020, which would legalize it for adults 21 and over, as well as expunge arrest records and free any currently serving marijuana prisoners. The initiative is currently being finalized and will shortly go to the secretary of state's office to be cleared for circulation.
Montana 2020 Legalization Initiative Campaign Getting Underway, and Another Could Follow. A group calling itself MontanaCan has filed a legalization initiative, the Marijuana Regulation Act, or Ballot Issue No. 5, with the secretary of state's office. The measure is now being reviewed by the state's Legislative Services Division before being cleared for circulation. Meanwhile, another group, Coalition 406, is also working on a legalization initiative for 2020, but hasn't filed yet with the secretary of state's office.
Ohio Hemp Bill Stalled. A bill to allow the cultivation and sale of hemp, Senate Bill 57, is stalled in the House because of tussles over CBD. Under state law, CBD remains illegal and under the purview of the state Medical Marijuana Control Program. House leaders say it may be the fall before the bill moves again.
Missouri Legislative Committee to Hold Hearings on Asset Forfeiture, Racial Profiling. State Rep. Shamed Dogan (R-Wildwood) announced Monday that his Special Committee on Criminal Justice will hold public hearings in July and August to thoroughly examine the issues of racial profiling and civil asset forfeiture. Dogan, who chairs the committee, said the committee will hold public hearings July 24 in St. Louis and August 1 in Kansas City. He said the hearings will focus on examining the 2018 Vehicle Stops Report, which showed the largest racial disparity yet in traffic stops, as well as rising civil asset forfeiture seizures.
Amnesty International Calls for Urgent Investigation into Philippines' Deadly War on Drugs. The wave of police killings triggered by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's murderous anti-drugs campaign continues to rage on, destroying lives and devastating communities, a report by Amnesty International revealed Monday. The UN must immediately open an investigation into gross human rights violations and possible crimes against humanity committed as part of the "war on drugs," the human rights group said. "Three years on, President Duterte's 'war on drugs' continues to be nothing but a large-scale murdering enterprise for which the poor continue to pay the highest price," said Nicholas Bequelin, Amnesty International's Regional Director for East and Southeast Asia. "It is time for the United Nations, starting with its Human Rights Council, to act decisively to hold President Duterte and his government accountable."
Sri Lanka Supreme Court Stays Execution of Drug Defendants. The nation's Supreme Court last Friday stayed the death penalty for four persons convicted of drug offenses until at least October 30. If imposed, the death sentences would be the first carried out in the country in 43 years. President Maithripala Sirisena had signed the death warrants last month, ending a moratorium on capital punishment.
Chronicle AM: Call for UN Query on Philippines Drug War Deaths, TX Hemp-Pot Conundrum, More... (7/5/19)
There's good news on two fronts in the drug war in South and Southeast Asia, a new Texas hemp law is screwing up marijuana possession prosecutions, and more.
Rodrigo Duterte's Philippines drug war is once again in the human rights crosshairs. (Creative Commons)
Texas Hemp Legalization Screws with Marijuana Prosecutions. The legislature's passage of a law legalizing hemp this year is having unintended consequences. The new law changed the definition of marijuana, and prosecutors and crime labs don't have the resources to test if a substance is marijuana or legal hemp. That has led prosecutors across the state to drop hundreds of pot possession cases and to say they won't pursue new ones without further testing. "In order to follow the Law as now enacted by the Texas Legislature and the Office of the Governor, the jurisdictions… will not accept criminal charges for Misdemeanor Possession of Marijuana (4 oz. and under) without a lab test result proving that the evidence seized has a THC concentration over .3%," wrote the district attorneys from Harris, Fort Bend, Bexar and Nueces counties in a new joint policy released Wednesday.
Wisconsin Governor Cuts Funding for Welfare Drug Testing. What a difference a governor makes! Under Republican Scott Walker, the state instituted a food stamp drug testing program, but now, under Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, that program is seeing its funding cut. In budget moves this week, Evers not only slashed the drug testing funding, he also canceled plans for a new prison.
Two Dozen Countries Call for UN Investigation of Philippines Drug War Killings. More than two dozen countries formally called Thursday for a UN investigation into thousands of killings in the bloody war on drugs led by Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte. The government admits to some 6,000 deaths, but activists put the tool as high as 27,000. A draft resolution submitted by Iceland and supported mainly by West European countries urges the government to halt extrajudicial executions and calls on the UN Human Rights Council to address the crisis.
Philippines Drug Warrior on Death of Child Killed by Police in Drug Raid: "Shit Happens." Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, a senator who once led the drug crackdown that has resulted in thousands of deaths, pooh-poohed the killing of a three-year-old girl by police during a drug sting, saying the world is not perfect, and "shit happens." Lawyers and activists rejected dela Rosa's stance: "This is not 'shit happens'. This happens when gov't dispenses justice from guns instead of courts," Jose Manuel Diokno, a lawyer who has mounted legal challenges to Duterte's crackdown, wrote on Twitter.
Sri Lanka Supreme Court Delays Executions of Drug Convicts. The Supreme Court has delayed the executions of four people set to be hung for drug offenses. They would have been the first death sentences carried out in the country since 1976. President Maithripala Sirasena ended a 43-year moratorium on the death penalty earlier this year when he signed the death sentences for the four. Now the killings are on indefinite hold, with a court hearing set for October.
Chronicle AM: MJ Banking Headed for House Vote, UN Experts Call for Philippines Probe, More... (6/10/19)
The full House could soon get its first chance to vote on a marijuana banking bill, New Yorkers still want to legalize marijuana, a group of UN human rights experts calls for a probe into the Philippine drug war, and more.
Phillipines President Durterte's bloody drug war is drawing renewed human rights concerns. (Creative Commons)
Bipartisan Marijuana Banking Bill Quietly Advances in House as Floor Vote Approaches. The SAFE Banking Act, HR 1595, now has an open path to a House floor vote after the House Financial Services Committee, which earlier approved the bill, issued a formal report on the legislation last week. The bill was then set to go before the House Judiciary Committee, but that panel opted to advance it last week without a report, in order to clear the path to a House floor vote.
New York Poll Has Strong Support for Marijuana Legalization. With the clock ticking down on lawmakers in Albany, a new Sienna poll could give some added momentum to the push to legalize marijuana this session. The poll had support at 55%, with 40% opposed, mirroring myriad other recent polls.
Arizona Governor Signs Bill Lowering Patient Card Costs. Gov. Doug Ducey (R) last Friday signed into law Senate Bill 1494, which will cut the cost of a medical marijuana patient card in half by making patients pay the $150 fee once every two years instead of once a year. The bill also requires medical marijuana facilities to test their products.
Colombian Constitutional Court Throws Out President's Ban on Public Pot Smoking, Drinking. The Constitutional Court has overruled a ban on public alcohol and marijuana consumption favored by President Ivan Duque as part of his hardline anti-drug policies. Under the ruling, police can no longer confiscate drugs considered to be for personal consumption, and people are again allowed to smoke pot and drink beer in public. But Duque appears to be ready to disobey the court, saying police would continue to confiscate drugs and impose penalties on people carrying or using drugs in public spaces. This isn't over.
UN Experts Call for Human Rights Probe of Philippines Drug War. A group of 11 United Nations human rights experts called Friday for the UN's Human Rights Council to start an independent probe into rights violations in the Philippines, including illegal killings in President Rodrigo Duterte's bloody crackdown on drugs. "We have recorded a staggering number of unlawful deaths and police killings in the context of the so-called war on drugs, as well as killings of human rights defenders," they said in a statement. "We are extremely concerned over the high number of killings which are being carried out across the country in an apparent climate of official, institutional impunity," they added. To actually get the inquiry going would require a resolution supported by a majority of the council's 47 members.
Chronicle AM: TX CBD Expansion Bill Advances, New Zealand to Vote on Marijuana Legalization, More... (5/7/19)
A man who has done 39 years in federal prison for pot gets out tomorrow and faces an uncertain future, Arizona activists lay plans for a 2020 legalization initiative, so does the New Zealand government, and more.
A CBD expansion bill advances in the Texas House.
Nation's Longest-Serving Marijuana Prisoner to Be Freed Tomorrow. A Cuban national who has served more than 39 years in federal prison on marijuana trafficking charges is set to be freed Wednesday -- but then faces possible deportation. Antonio "Tony" Bascaro had been trained in aviation by the CIA as it worked with rightist Cuban exiles to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro and later turned his skills to marijuana smuggling. He's hoping his time aiding the CIA will help him avoid deportation.
Arizona 2020 Marijuana Legalization Initiative Campaign Gearing Up. Marijuana activists are gearing up with another initiative effort after one in 2016 narrowly failed. Strategies 360, which is running the campaign, says it plans to launch signature-gathering in July. The group has a 12-month window to gather 237,645 valid voter signatures to qualify for the November 2020 ballot.
Texas House Passes CBD Medical Marijuana Expansion Bill. The House voted Monday to advance HB 1365, which would add Alzheimer's, Crohn's disease, muscular dystrophy, post-traumatic stress disorder, autism and a bevy of other illnesses to an existing state program that currently applies only to people with intractable epilepsy who meet certain requirements. The bill would also increase the number of dispensaries the state can authorize from three to 12, as well as authorizing marijuana testing facilities. The state's medical marijuana law allows only for the use of CBD. The bill still needs one final House housekeeping vote before heading to the Senate.
Justice Department Fights Compassionate Release of Terminally Ill Inmate Because He's Not Dying Fast Enough. A federal drug prisoner with terminal brain cancer has won early compassionate release under a provision of the First Step Act, but only after the Bureau of Prisons twice denied it and federal prosecutors argued against it. Steve Brittner, 55, who is wheelchair-bound, was diagnosed with the cancer in January 2018 and his oncologist described his prognosis as "poor," recommending he begin hospice care in November 2018. But prosecutors argued he wasn't dying fast enough to qualify for early release. "This is a very telling case," said Families Against Mandatory Minimums president Kevin Ring. "On one hand, the First Step Act's reforms to compassionate release worked as intended and this family prevailed. On the other hand, it blows my mind that the Justice Department and BOP still fought tooth and nail to keep a low-level drug offender who is dying of brain cancer and bound to a wheelchair away from his family for the final weeks of his life. They'll say they were just doing their jobs, but their job is to do justice."
Brazil Police Kill Eight in Rio Drug Raid as Police Killings Jump Dramatically Under Bolsonaro. At least eight people were killed Monday in a police raid aimed at drug trafficker in a favela in Rio de Janeiro. The raid triggered a massive shootout between police and suspected gang members. Police said all the dead were gang members. It's only the latest of hundreds of killings by police since Rio Governor Wilson Witzel, an ally of President Jair Bolsonaro, took over on January 1. Since then 434 people have been killed by Rio police, an 18% increase from last year and the highest figure recorded since state records began in 1998.
New Zealand to Vote on Marijuana Legalization Next Year. The three political parties that make up the country's governing coalition announced Tuesday that they had agreed on the basic elements of a binding referendum on marijuana legalization to be held during the 2020 elections. "Officials are now empowered to draft the legislation with stakeholder input, and the Electoral Commission will draft the referendum question to appear on the ballot," Justice Minister Andrew Little said.. "The voters' choice will be binding because all of the parties that make up the current Government have committed to abide by the outcome. We hope and expect the National Party will also commit to respecting the voters' decision," he said, referring to the leading opposition party that is not part of the governing coalition.
Chronicle AM: Trump VA Rejects Vets' MedMJ Bills, Philippines Drug War Called Out, More... (5/2/19)
The Trump VA rejects medical marijuana bills for veterans, DC's mayor unveils a bill to allow for taxed and regulated marijuana sales, the Louisiana legislature is moving on medical marijuana issues, the Philippines is in the hotseat as global harm reductionists gather, and more.
sending a message to Duterte (Steve Forrest/HRI/Workers' Photos)
Alaska Regulators Approve Draft Changes for Onsite Consumption. The Marijuana Control Board has given initial approval to draft changes in the state's recently-approved onsite consumption regulations. The new draft would allow stores to seek an edibles-only endorsement, which would allow for onsite consumption without the business having to build a separate building for smoking marijuana.
Colorado Marijuana Delivery Bill Heads to Governor's Desk. The legislature gave final approval Wednesday to HB 19-1234, which would allow deliveries for medical marijuana patients beginning in 2020 and for recreational users beginning in 2021. The bill now heads to the desk of Gov. Jared Polis (D).
Connecticut Legislative Panel Advances Marijuana Tax Proposal. The Finance Committee voted Wednesday to approve a measure setting taxes for a system of legal, regulated marijuana commerce. The tax proposal will be merged in coming weeks with an overall bill to legalize and regulate marijuana. The General Law and Judiciary committees have previously approved legalization in bills that focused on regulatory and legal aspects.
DC Mayor Unveils Legal Marijuana Sales Bill. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) on Thursday announced legislation that would legalize and regulate marijuana sales in the District, potentially setting up a confrontation with the federal government. The city approved the legalization of possession and cultivation in 2014, but has been blocked from full-on legalization by a federal budget provision that bars the city from enacting or enforcing full legalization. The mayor doesn't want to wait for Congress to remove that anti-marijuana language. The bill is the Safe Cannabis Sales Act and would impose a 17% sales tax on marijuana products, allow for expanded marijuana production in the city, and would allow regulators to okay onsite consumption at pot shops and hookah lounges.
Seattle Mayor Calls for Nationwide Evaluation of Marijuana Legalization. Mayor Jenny Durkin (D) wants a nationwide review of marijuana legalization and prohibition, she said Wednesday. "We need to have a real evaluation nationwide," she said. "We need to make sure we do it in a way that decriminalizes people, doesn't have a criminal justice intervention when its not appropriate, and focus those criminal justice resources on those things that are real threats to communities," she continued. She added that states need a "unifying force" to ensure consistency in state laws.
Trump Administration Opposes Bills Easing Medical Marijuana Access for Veterans. In testimony before the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Health, officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs said the agency opposes three bills aimed at easing medical marijuana access for vets. The bills are the Veterans Equal Access Act (HR 1647), the VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act (HR 712) and the Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act (HR 2191).
Louisiana Bill Allowing Vaped Medical Marijuana Advances. A bill that would allow medical marijuana patients to vape their medicine was approved by the House Health and Welfare Committee Wednesday. HB 368 would also do away with the list of qualifying conditions and allow physicians to recommend it for any debilitating medical condition. It now heads for a House floor vote.
Louisiana Bill to Ease Access to CBD Advances. A bill that would ease access to CBD products by removing low-THC hemp from the state criminal code passed the House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice Wednesday. HB 138 now heads for a House floor vote.
Arizona Governor Signs Kratom Regulation Bill. Gov. Doug Ducey (R) on Tuesday signed into law the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, HB 2550. The bill prohibits the sale of kratom to minors and creates requirements for product labels. Selling kratom products in violation of this law would be a class two misdemeanor.
Human Rights Advocates, Harm Reductionists Rally Against Philippine Drug War. Attendees at the 26th Harm Reduction International Conference in Porto, Portugal, gathered to send a message to the government of the Philippines: Stop the killings carried out in the country'' bloody anti-drug campaign. "The Philippine government's barbaric campaign against the drug trade is severely harming the health and security of its communities. The evidence that punitive drug policies don't work is irrefutable. People around the world have sent a clear message to the government today -- stop the killings and invest in the health and human rights of your people," Naomi Burke-Shyne, Harm Reduction International executive director, said.
Philippines Rejects Call from Ex-New Zealand Prime Minister to Decriminalize Drug Possession. The Malacanang palace on Thursday rejected a call from former New Zealand prime minister, former UN Development Program administrator, and current member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy Helen Clark for the country to decriminalize drug possession. "The suggestion of former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark to decriminalize the use of drugs as an alternative to the drug war, similar to the proposal by the European Union made two years ago, had already been thumbed down by the President," said a presidential spokesman. "The other countries' experiences in addressing illegal substances while educational relative to their method of solving their own drug menace, decriminalizing the use of drugs in the Philippines will not only aggravate but multiply the problem. Take out the criminal liability of those involved and you induce and encourage others to be a part of the dreaded evil," he added.
Chronicle AM: No Cannabis Lounges for Oregon This Year; Drug Eradication Clashes in Peru, Mexico, More... (4/15/19)
A set of Michigan bills would do some post-legalization cleanup, a decriminalization bill advances in Missouri, an Oklahoma bill protecting patient rights is signed by the governor, drug crop growers clash with authorities in Mexico and Peru, and more.
Peruvian coca farmers clashed with police and eradicators last Friday, leaving two dead. (deamuseum.org)
Michigan Bills Would Cut Sentences for People Jailed for Possession. State Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit) has filed a package of bills that would reduce prison, parole, and probation sentences for people jailed for marijuana possession. SB 262 through SB 265 are now before the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee. "After the passage of Proposal 1, it's time we rethink drug sentencing laws in Michigan, so let's start with marijuana offenses, since those are no longer considered crimes under current law," Santana said.
Missouri Decriminalization Bill Advances. The House Special Committee on Criminal Justice last Thursday unanimously approved HB 1095, which would decriminalize the possession of up to 10 grams of marijuana. The measure would also make possession of less than 35 grams from a felony to a Class D misdemeanor. The measure now heads for a House floor vote.
Oregon Social Consumption Bill Dies. A bill that would have allowed marijuana consumption lounges, SB 639, was among hundreds of bills that died in the legislature after failing to move out of committee by April 9. The bill's failure is a blow to the state's legal marijuana industry, which is faced with chronic oversupply.
Oklahoma Governor Signs Patient Protection Bill. Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) has signed into law HB 2612, the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana and Patient Protection Act. The measure protects patients' rights to possess firearms under state law and allows the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority to hire its own investigators to probe alleged violations. The law will go into effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns, which will be at the end of May.
Washington Senate Approves Allowing Medical Marijuana in School. The state Senate on Saturday overwhelmingly approved SB 5442, which would allow parents to administer medical marijuana to their children at school, on the school bus, and at after-school activities. The bill limits the kind of marijuana used to infused products and extracts.
Mexico Poppy Farmers Detain Soldiers in Eradication Protest. Residents of a rural town in Guerrero state said they detained 40 soldiers last week to demand they halt opium poppy eradication efforts. The farmers said they set up roadblocks to prevent soldiers from leaving the region and called on the state and federal governments to provide assistance to local farmers so they aren't forced to grow opium. The farmers said the state government had promised in November that their poppy crops would not be destroyed and alternative means of support would be provided, but neither happened.
Peru Clashes Over Coca Eradication Leave Two Farmers Dead. Two coca growers were killed in clashes with a large eradication team last Friday. The team, which consisted of 72 police officers and158 civilian eradicators, had arrived in the area near the Bolivian border to destroy illegal coca fields, but reported that they were attacked by people wielding machetes and sticks as they set up camp. But the mayor of the town of San Gaban said witnesses told him police fired indiscriminately. "They were shooting right and left. That's why we have this bloodshed," the mayor said.
Chronicle AM: Supreme Court Slaps Down Asset Forfeiture, No More No-Knocks in Houston, More... (2/20/19)
by psmith, February 20, 2019, 06:00pm
The Supreme Court reins in civil asset forfeiture, Denver joins cities participating in LEAD, Houston ends undercover no-knock raids in the wake of a fatal encounter, and more.
The US Supreme Court (Creative Commons)
Maryland General Assembly Creates Legalization Working Group. In a sign that marijuana legalization isn't going to happen this year, the General Assembly has created a working group to study the issue. The bipartisan group will make recommendations in December that could be used to help guide bills during the 2020 legislative session.
South Carolina Poll Has Half Supporting Medical Marijuana, Nearly a Quarter for Legalization. A new poll from political strategist Robert Cahaly has support for marijuana legalization at 22.8%, with another 49.7% saying they supported legalizing marijuana "for people suffering illness and with a doctor's approval."
Ohio Hemp Bill Filed. Lawmakers have filed a bill to legalize hemp production in the state, SB 77. The bill would align state law with the framework of the 2018 farm bill, which legalized hemp nationwide.
New Mexico Senate Passes Bill to Allow Medical Marijuana in Schools. A bill that allows medical marijuana to be given to students at public schools passed the Senate on Monday. SB 204 now heads to the House Human Services Committee.
U.S. Supreme Court Unanimously Reins in Civil Asset Forfeiture. In a victory for proponents of civil asset forfeiture reform, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today in Timbs v. Indiana that the Eighth Amendment's Excessive Fines Clause applies to states, thereby prohibiting state and local governments from collecting excessive fines, fees and forfeitures. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote the majority opinion. "The protection against excessive fines guards against abuses of government's punitive or criminal law-enforcement authority," Ginsburg wrote.
Denver Signs on to Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion. City officials unveiled a Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) pilot program on Tuesday. The program is designed to connect people accused of low-level drug crimes with support services rather than arresting them. LEAD programs operate in a number of other cities, including Philadelphia, Portland, and Seattle. The pilot program is funded through 2020 by a $561,000 grant paid for out of the state's marijuana tax cash fund.
Houston Ends No-Knock Raids in Wake of Fatal Encounter. With few exceptions, Houston undercover officers will no longer conduct no-knock raids. The move comes after four police officers were wounded and a Houston couple killed in a raid that was based on a police officer's lies. "The no-knock warrants are going to go away like leaded gasoline in this city," Chief Art Acevedo announced during a town hall meeting Monday.
Chronicle AM: Baltimore to End Pot Possession Arrests, Deadly Houston Drug Raid, More... (1/29/19)
by psmith, January 29, 2019, 04:37pm
The attorney general-to-be puts his vow to not go after legal businesses in writing, Baltimore ends pot possession arrests, a Houston drug raid turns violent and deadly, and more.
Possessing a bud or two won't get you arrested in Baltimore anymore. (Creative Commons)
Attorney General Nominee Puts Pledge to Leave Legal Pot Alone in Writing. The man nominated as the next US attorney general, William Barr, has now put his pledge earlier this month to not "go after" state-compliant legal marijuana operations in writing. Responding to written questions from senators, Barr wrote: "As discussed at my hearing, I do not intend to go after parties who have complied with state law in reliance on the Cole Memorandum." That memorandum, crafted in the Obama era, provided some security for legal marijuana businesses but was rescinded by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions last year.
Minnesota GOP Senate Leader Just Says No to Legal Marijuana Bills. Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka said Monday that bills aiming to legalize marijuana had no chance of passing his chamber. "Legalizing marijuana is...not something I would consider a priority issue," he said. Democrats control the House, but Republicans hold a two-seat majority in the Senate.
Baltimore To Stop Prosecuting Marijuana Possession, Vacate 5,000 Convictions. State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced Tuesday that the city will stop prosecuting pot possession cases and will move to vacate some 5,000 marijuana-related convictions. "Is the enforcement and prosecution of marijuana possession making us safer as a city? The answer is emphatically no," she said. More than 95% of those arrested for simple possession in the city have been black.
Second Florida Bill to End Ban on Smoking Medical Marijuana Filed. State Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) has filed SB 182, which would end the state's ban on smoking medical marijuana. A similar bill, SB 372, was filed earlier this month by Sen. Gary Farmer (D-Fort Lauderdale). The ban has also been challenged in the courts, and GOP Gov. Ron De Santis has said that he will drop the state's appeal in the case if lawmakers don't eliminate the ban.
Houston Drug Raid Leaves Two Suspects Dead, Four Officers Shot. A forced entry raid of a house where heroin sales were suspected resulted in four police officers shot and wounded and two people in the house shot dead by police. Police came under fire as soon as they knocked down the door and attempted to enter the residence. Investigators found no heroin, but they found marijuana and a white powder believed to be cocaine or fentanyl, Police Chief Art Acevedo said at a news conference.
The Year in Drugs II: Good, Bad, and Ugly Global Drug Policy in 2018 [FEATURE]
(See our Top Domestic Drug Stories of 2018 piece here.)
It's been a year we couldn't wait to put behind us, but as 2018 comes to an end, we can look back on some advances on the international drug policy front, as well as continued brutal and regressive responses from some quarters. Here are 10 of the global drug policy stories that shaped the year, for better or worse:
Iranian drug executions have come to a screeching halt in one of the good news stories of 2018. (handsoffcain.info)
1. Drug Death Penalty Reforms Cause Massive Drop in Executions
Early this year, it became official: Iran had reformed its death penalty statutes to radically reduce the number of people facing execution for drug offenses, and it had done so retroactively, saving the lives of thousands already on death row. By mid-year, it was clear that the move was having an impact, as human rights observers reported a 99% reduction in drug executions, with only one person being executed for drugs as of June, compared to more than a hundred during the same period in 2017.
2. Canada Becomes the First G8 Country to Legalize Marijuana
Justin Trudeau pledged that he was elected prime minister, his government would legalize marijuana. It didn't happen as fast as he would have liked, but the Liberals' legalization bill passed parliament in June and went into effect on October 17. So far, the sky has not fallen.
3. Medical Marijuana Earns Growing Acceptance
The year began with Thailand announcing a plan to allow medical marijuana and ended with Thailand approving it and becoming the first Southeast Asian country to do so. But in the meantime, Israeli pharmacies began selling medical marijuana in April, Zimbabwe legalized it in May, and Portugal and Luxembourg followed suit in June. In November, Great Britain joined the club, and Greece issued its first medical marijuana production licenses. Late in the year, in South Korea, the National Assembly approved an amendment to the country's drug laws that will pave the way for the use of medical marijuana by prescription, and New Zealand also approved it in December Not a bad year for medical marijuana.
4. The Philippines Drug War Continues, But Pressures Mount…
The bloody drug war of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte continued apace in 2018, with a death toll now put at 12, 000 (20,000 by some estimates), but Duterte has come under increasing pressure both domestically and internationally. In February, both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch aimed broadsides at the Philippines even as the International Criminal Court began "preliminary examinations" of whether there is sufficient evidence to bring a case before the court. In March, activists called out drug war human rights abuses at the embassy in Washington, DC. By July, an unbowed Duterte was vowing to continue a "relentless and chilling" drug war even as national human rights groups said he was using it as a cover for assassinating political opponents. In September, he unleashed an attack on a second drug war critic, Senator Antonio Trillanes, after last year imprisoning critic Senator Leila de Lima on trumped up drug charges. She is still imprisoned.
5.. ...and the Rot Spreads in the Region
Following the lead of the Philippines, other countries in the region have also embraced drug war thuggery and human rights abuses. In May, the Bangladeshi opposition warned of a wave of police killings of drug suspects, and within weeks, more than a hundred were killed and 20,000 arrested, even as evidence emerged that the crackdown was being used to hide political assassinations. The situation was fraught enough that the UN human rights head and even the US State Department expressed concern. Drug war killings were also reported in Indonesia, although there were mixed signals about moves toward reforms there, and Sri Lanka vowed to begin hanging drug dealers. Paradoxically though, a Malaysian court's imposition of a death sentence on a man for providing cannabis oil to patients now appears to have resulted in a moratorium on the death sentence and could end the death penalty in its entirety in the county.
6. The US President Aligns Himself With Global Drug War Authoritarians
President Donald Trump was a baleful presence on the global drug policy stage this past year, sympathizing with drug war authoritarians such as Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte and Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, as well as drug death penalty countries such as China and Singapore. He said early in the year he wants to execute all drug dealers and admires the Singapore approach (mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking), a statement that moved more than 150 organizations to condemn his call. At year's end, he was singing a similar tune with a ghoulish call for more Chinese drug executions. In between, he went to the United Nations to try to gin up a reinvigorated global drug war.
coca leaves drying by highway
7. South Africa Legalizes Marijuana
In a case brought by three marijuana users, the country's Constitutional Court ruled that the private possession, cultivation, and consumption of marijuana is legal. "It will not be a criminal offense for an adult person to use or be in possession of cannabis in private for his or her personal consumption," Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo wrote in his ruling. It will, however, remain illegal to use cannabis in public and to sell and supply it. The ruling did not set allowable quantities, with the court saying parliament had two years to come up with a new law that reflected the ruling.
8. Glimmers of Hope in Mexico
then-President Felipe Calderon unleashed the latest chapter of the country's drug wars, bringing violence to levels not seen before in the country, Mexico is showing signs it is ready for change. The death toll from prohibition-related violence is higher than ever, and that is impelling a psh for change, most notably with the election of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who is very open to finding exits from the drug war, whether it's legalized opium production in Guerrero, granting amnesty for non-violent drug trafficking offenders, or legalizing marijuana. And speaking of legalizing marijuana, the Mexican Supreme Court in November struck down the ban on marijuana possession, cultivation, and use. Now, Lopez Obrador's governing MORENA Party has filed a bill to legalize marijuana sales. Tackling the violence, may be a bit more difficult.
9. Colombia Sees a Record Coca Crop as US Cocaine Deaths Rise
Efforts to reduce coca cultivation and cocaine production in the country after the peace agreement with the FARC rebels have not gone well, and that's causing rising worry in Washington. In June, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime reported that 2017 production was at an all-time high, prompting expressions of concern from the drug czar's office and support from President Trump for new rightist Colombian President Ivan Duque's "head-on fight against drug trafficking." That could include a renewed resort to aerial fumigation, even drones, as well as forced eradication of coca crops, leading to renewed conflict in cultivation zones. Meanwhile, cocaine is now the third leading cause of drug overdose deaths, trailing only fentanyl and heroin.
Vienna International Centre, home to the UN drug agencies
10. Historic UN Cannabis Review Hits Last-Minute Procedural Delay
In June and again in November, the Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD) of the World Health Organization (WHO) met to consider the evidence on cannabis (marijuana) and its placement in the UN drug scheduling system, which determines whether or what level of control the UN drug conventions mandate that countries maintain for the substance. The conventions specify that substances should receive such an evaluation before being scheduled, but that never happened for marijuana. Observers believe the process should lead to marijuana being moved to a less restrictive schedule than it is in currently -- if the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) votes to adopt such a recommendation from ECDD.
That didn't happen when, earlier this month, WHO voted to delay release of ECDD's recommendations until January, for unexplained reasons. That may mean they get taken up at the main annual CND meeting in Vienna in March, rather than December's intersessional. The delay seems unusual, and probably political, but its intent is unclear.
The next few months may tell. In the meanwhile, ECDD says that CBD shouldn't be scheduled at all. But that didn't stop the US FDA from saying that treaties require it be scheduled, even though they also think it shouldn't be.


The velocity of Java software flaws continues to trend in the wrong direction, Waratek founder says.
The Dublin, Ireland and Atlanta-based Waratek revealed security threats still exist despite Oracle's latest Critical Patch Update. The CPU provided fixes for the Meltdown and Spectre chip flaws and Java vulnerabilities.


text:
Threats to our survival
Lies and Half-Truths
Botched Pandemic
Voter Suppression
Talking to Friends and Family
Engaging with Trumpers and Trolls
Key Senate Races
House Races
Free References
I don't love Joe Biden…
but I'm voting for him anyway
Why? Because voting for President is not a love-fest. It's not like choosing what to watch on Netflix. It's not even like voting whether or not to legalize marijuana in your state.
Sometimes we get to use our vote as if we were at a beauty contest: we cast our vote for whoever we like best, and hope they "win." That's voting as a love-fest. Voting for President is not like that.
In fact, voting for President is more like making your next move in a chess match. You have a limited number of possible moves you can make, and this one move is probably not going to win you the game. But if you are strategic enough about it, this next move may bring you one step closer to winning the game.
And that's why I'm voting for Joe Biden. He is not going to win us the game we all have to win – which is about our very survival on this planet. He's simply too entrenched in the status quo to take the steps that absolutely have to be taken, like ending our reliance on fossil fuels, eliminating nuclear weapons, redressing the grotesque imbalance between rich and poor, re-prioritizing our entire economy.
Joe Biden sold out long ago to the insurance industry. That's why he won't support Medicare for All. He's also been bought by the fossil fuel industry. That's why he won't support the Green New Deal. And he's hand and glove with the military-industrial complex, which is why he will never entertain eliminating nuclear weapons or even reducing the bloated military budget.
But this is not about voting for what I want or even for the things that have to happen for our survival. That's not what's on the ballot. What's on the ballot is choosing between Joe Biden and Donald Trump as our next President. Sure, there's also Howie Hawkins, Jo Jorgensen and no doubt other candidates from other parties. But I'm not going to kid myself into thinking this is a beauty contest.
There are only two candidates on the ballot who have even the remotest chance of winning this election. I could vote for Howie Hawkins if I wanted to feel all proud and righteous that I voted for someone I believe in. But he will not be the next President of the United States. That is a choice between Biden and Trump.
So if I was going to vote for Howie Hawkins, or for some other candidate who will not be President, I might as well not vote at all. It amounts to the same thing, since the only real choice is between Biden and Trump, and if I'm not choosing one or the other, I'm not actually choosing who will be the next President.
And that's why I'm voting for Joe Biden. Not because I like him more than Howie Hawkins or because I think he will make a great President. I'm voting for Joe Biden because he can't possibly be a worse President than Donald Trump! And those are the only two choices we have in this election.
If this were a beauty contest or a love-fest, I would vote differently. Or maybe I wouldn't even vote at all. But this is a chess match, and the stakes could not be higher. Joe Biden is not going to get us to where we need to be, but he's the best move we've got right now. So I'm going to take it.
Timmon Wallis
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I met Jade whilst helping out at Dream Dress Bridal in Bredbury (an amazing experience if you have yet to find your 'dream dress') but i also found out a little later that i had worked with one of Jades bridesmaids too! This lady was super relaxed and super organised, a day filled with peaches & cream the wedding morning was full of atmosphere and enthusiastic bridesmaids – a perfect wedding day to remember… Here's Jades trip down memory lane.
Alan's quiet, less confident than I am although he is without doubt the most caring , hard working and loyal man I know. During the ten years weve been together I've always been the organised one, taking charge whenever necessary, Alan's much more laid back. So when it came to the planning of the wedding I had very fixed ideas about how I wanted the day to be.
We got engaged on the beach in Egypt back in 2009. The plan was for a 2012 wedding. Although in 2010 a little surprise in the form of our daughter Isabella came along. Wedding plans went on hold.
After buying our house in January 2014 we felt the time was right to set a date for our wedding. We decided on a spring wedding in March 2015.
We set out looking for venues and fell in love with the first venue we went to visit. The Cottons hotel, knutsford. It was the perfect size , modern , quirky and set in the lovely Cheshire countryside. The staff were so helpful from day one and it just felt right for us to get married there.
I knew I wanted plenty of bridesmaids as we both have sisters and I couldn't choose between my best friends so decided I'd have them all! 8 in total. Each of them were thrilled to be asked. Although with so many bridesmaids to clothe I knew finding a dress to suit everyone would be difficult. I found a local dress maker so that the girls could each choose a dress style they preferred and have it made exactely to their measurements. After much deliberating we finally agreed on the colour dusky pink, we wanted something that said spring wedding and also kept in with out vintage theme.
I set about looking for my dress. I knew straight away I wanted a fishtail style dress with a sweetheart neckline to enhance what little cleavage I had, much to my mother's and sisters disapproval. They had envisioned I wore a big princess meringue style dress . Needless to say , their were plenty of disagreements before I found my dream dress ironically at dream dress bridal in Bredbury 5 minutes from where I live. I opted for a Diane Harbridge fishtail dress with sweetheart neckline and lace, just how I pictured it. It was there I met Clare. I'd already heard about Clare's work and knew she was the woman I wanted doing my hair and make up on my big day.
We knew two sisters who had recently started up a venue decorating company called 'I do' so got in touch with them to decorate our venue. Holly and Natalie of I do are so talented at what they do and could not do enough to help me in creating the vison I had of how I wanted the venue to look. We loved the photo booth idea so hired one of those from them too. It went down great with the guests.
After going to many weddings and having spent hours entertaining ourselves whilst the newly weds have their pictures taken we knew we wanted to invest most of our wedding budget into the entertainment for the day to keep all the guests happy and give them a day to remember. We hired a magician named Nick Rushton who was absolutely astonishing. We also had a roulette table to keep the boys happy , a DJ and a Robbie Williams tribute act as myself my sister and Mum are huge fans, a photographer of course, Adrian of Will Hey Photography . A sweet cart as anyone who knows Alan knows what a sweet tooth he has, and a nanny to see to the children for the day.
Everything was falling into place as the date became closer. I wanted very simple flowers and a very simple cake. I decided on ivory roses for my bridesmaids with the flower girls having a vintage pink rose Posey with an added butterfly detail and a mixture of ivory and vintage pink roses in my bouquet with added pearl detail. The cake I chose was again a simple 3 tier ivory design. Both the cake and flowers were made by suppliers who operated from home, keeping my costs down too .
On the eve of the wedding I stayed at the Cottons with two of my bridesmaids. I had a relaxing afternoon in the gym and spa before heading off for a drink with the first love of my life , my dad.
The morning of the wedding I woke around 6 and despite having a belly full of butterfly's managed to consume some breakfast. Clare arrived around 9 along with my other bridesmaids. We all got ready in the bridal suite at the hotel, wearing pur personalised dressing gowns drinking champagne. Clare did five of the bridesmaids make up as well as my make up and hair. All the girs were so pleased with their looks and when it came to my turn it was as if Clare had read my mind. I wanted a very natural look but with big hair. She did me a big curly up do with extensions to extend the hair even more. It looked sensational , exactly as id imagined it. She was great at keeping me calm as the nerves started to kick in and put me into my dress before I left to make that very important walk down the aisle.
The day went without a hitch exactly as I had planned it . It goes so incredibly quick just as everyone had told me .
My advice to any bride now is to relax and enjoy your day taking in every detail.
We honeymooned in the Dominican Republic along with out daughter and then had a second mini moon a month later in Barcelona.
Everyone asks what married life is like ? My answer is always the same, its the same as it was before only now I know that I'm the luckiest girl in the world to have my husband my by side for the rest of my life , our perfect little family.


Cieszanowski A, Pasicz K, Podgórska J, et al. Reproducibility of intravoxel incoherent motion of liver on a 3.0T scanner: free-breathing and respiratory-triggered sequences acquired with different numbers of excitations. Polish Journal of Radiology. 2018;83:437-445. doi:10.5114/pjr.2018.79651.
Cieszanowski, Andrzej, Katarzyna Pasicz, Joanna Podgórska, Ewa Fabiszewska, Witold Skrzyński, Jakub Jasieniak, and Agnieszka Anysz-Grodzicka et al. 2018. "Reproducibility of intravoxel incoherent motion of liver on a 3.0T scanner: free-breathing and respiratory-triggered sequences acquired with different numbers of excitations". Polish Journal of Radiology 83: 437-445. doi:10.5114/pjr.2018.79651.
Cieszanowski, Andrzej et al. "Reproducibility of intravoxel incoherent motion of liver on a 3.0T scanner: free-breathing and respiratory-triggered sequences acquired with different numbers of excitations." Polish Journal of Radiology, vol. 83, 2018, pp. 437-445. doi:10.5114/pjr.2018.79651.
Cieszanowski A, Pasicz K, Podgórska J, Fabiszewska E, Skrzyński W, Jasieniak J et al. Reproducibility of intravoxel incoherent motion of liver on a 3.0T scanner: free-breathing and respiratory-triggered sequences acquired with different numbers of excitations. Polish Journal of Radiology. 2018;83:437-445. doi:10.5114/pjr.2018.79651.
To optimise the intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) imaging of the liver on a 3.0T scanner by assessing parameter reproducibility on free-breathing (FB) and respiratory-triggered (RT) sequences acquired with different numbers of signal averages (NSA).
In this prospective study 20 subjects (M/F: 10/10; age: 25-62 years, mean: 39 years) underwent IVIM magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on a 3.0T scanner using an 18-channel phase-arrayed coil and four different echo-planar sequences, each with 10 β values: 0, 10, 30, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200, 500, and 900 s/mm2. Images were acquired with FB and RT with NSA = 1-4 (FBNSA1-4, RTNSA1-4) and with NSA = 3-6 (FBNSA3-6, RTNSA3-6). Subsequently, for the assessment of reproducibility of IVIM-derived parameters (f, D, D*), each subject was scanned again with an identical protocol during the same session. IVIM parameters were calculated. The distribution of IVIM-parameters for each DWI sequence were given as the median value with first and third quartile. Inter-scan reproducibility for each IVIM parameter was evaluated using coefficient of variance and Bland-Altman difference. Differences between FB sequence and RT sequence were tested using non-parametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
Mean coefficient of variance (%) for f, D, and D* ranged from 60 to 64, from 58 to 84, and from 82 to 99 for FBNSA1-4 sequence; from 50 to 69, from 41 to 97, and from 80 to 82 for RTNSA1-4 sequence; from 22 to 27, 15, and from 70 to 80 for FBNSA3-6 sequence; and from 21 to 32, from 12 to, and from 50 to 80 for RTNSA3-6 sequence, respectively.
Increasing the number of signal averages for IVIM acquisitions allows us to improve the reproducibility of IVIM-derived parameters. The sequence acquired during free-breathing with NSA = 3-6 was optimal in terms of reproducibility and acquisition time.


This 2-bed, 1.5-bath unit in the Colonial Square Cooperative is ready for you! Featuring hardwoods and updated vinyl windows throughout, the unit has a large, light-soaked living room that's great for entertaining or peaceful reading with a cup of coffee. The first floor also has an eating area, kitchen and half bath. Upstairs you will find both bedrooms and a full bath. The basement is partially finished with a cute recreation room and additional storage space. Step outside to the back courtyard and enjoy eating and recreation on your deck - one of the few in the co-op! The location provides easy access to shopping, restaurants, and highways, plus several nature areas and schools are just next door! Association fee includes taxes, interior and exterior maintenance, water, sewer, trash pick-up, lawn maintenance, and snow removal. Unit has one assigned parking spot. Don't miss out!
Mary D. Mitchell School Elementary School / Public 3 0.22 mi.
Scarlett Middle School Middle School / Public 5 0.31 mi.
Clifford E. Bryant Community School * Elementary School / Public N/A 0.98 mi.
Pittsfield School * Elementary School / Public 6 1.03 mi.
3093 Williamsburg Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48108 is a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath single family home was sold for $90,000.


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* *Skinny Annie Blues (Kensington 1-57566-058-X, Aug '96 [Jul '96], $21.95, 250pp, hc, cover by Lisa Henderling) Associational mystery novel.
* *Through Darkest America (Congdon & Weed/Contemporary 0-86553-184-6, Apr '87, $15.95, 275pp, hc) [Through Darkest America] Sf novel set in a bleak and bitter post-holocaust America.
* _Through Darkest America (Worldwide Library 0-373-30302-5, Sep '88 [Aug '88], $3.95, 256pp, pb) [Through Darkest America] Reprint (Congdon & Weed 1987) sf novel of post-apocalypse America.
* _Lady of the Lotus (Jeremy P. Tarcher 0-87477-506-X, Mar '89 [Feb '89], $11.95, 377pp, tp) Reprint (Doubleday 1975) quasi-historical fantasy novel about Buddha and his wife.
* _Peter Pan (NAL/Signet Classic 0-451-52088-2, May '87 [Apr '87], $2.50, 200pp, pb) [Peter Pan] Classic juvenile fantasy novel with new illustrations by Sergio Martinez. New afterword by Alison Lurie.
* _Peter Pan (Unicorn 0-88101-069-3, Oct '87, $16.95, 179pp, hc) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) juvenile fantasy novel, with new illustrations by Greg Hildebrandt.
* _Peter Pan (Armada 0-00-692905-2, Jan '88, £1.95, 158pp, tp) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) young-adult fantasy novel. Illustrated throughout by Robin Lawrie.
* _Peter Pan (Methuen 0-416-09392-2, Jan '88, £9.95, 158pp, hc) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) young-adult fantasy novel. Illustrated throughout by Michael Hague.
* _Peter Pan (Puffin 0-14-032007-5, Jan '88, £1.95, 206pp, tp) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) young-adult fantasy novel. Illustrated throughout by Jan Omerod.
* _Peter Pan (Viking Kestrel 0-670-80862-8, Jan '88, £7.95, 206pp, hc) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) young-adult fantasy novel. Illustrated throughout by Jan Omerod.
* _Peter Pan (Penguin/Puffin 0-14-036674-1, Jan '96 [Feb '96], $3.99, 242pp, tp, cover by Keith Scaife) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) classic young-adult fantasy novel. This is a repackaged, worldwide edition of the Puffin 1994 edition with an introduction by Naomi Lewis and illustrations by Elisa Trimby. Sixth printing.
* _Peter Pan (ACC Children's Classics 1-85149-702-1, Oct '98 [Dec '98], $24.95, 144pp, hc, cover by Greg Becker) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911) classic young-adult fantasy novel. This edition has new illustrations by Greg Becker. Part of a new line from the Antique Collectors' Club, Market Street Industrial Park, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590; 800-252-5231. The jacket lacks a price; this appears to be an international edition printed in the UK.
* _Peter Pan & Wendy (Pavilion 1-85145-179-X, Jan '88, £8.95, 158pp, hc) [Peter Pan] Reprint (Hodder & Stoughton 1911, as Peter Pan) young-adult fantasy novel. Illustrated throughout by Michael Foreman.
* *Queen of Knights (Pocket 0-671-46973-8, Mar '85 [Feb '85], $3.95, 372pp, pb) Historical fantasy novel; "Monica Barrie" is a pseudonym for David Wind. Wind, in a private letter, insists the book (despite its romance packaging) is a straight historical fantasy with Robin Hood, Richard the Lion-Heart, and Celtic mythology.
* *Death Trap at La Puente (Brea CA: Viva la Lucha Publications 0-9649280-0-0, 1995, $5.00, 18pp, ph, cover by Steve Gerber) Science fiction story starring the masked wrestler El Físco Nuclear and the agents of Cal-International Pro Wrestling, Inc.
* *Ami, Child of the Stars (Lotus Press 0-914955-05-5, Dec '89, $7.95, 112pp, tp) Children's sf/UFO novel of a boy who befriends aliens and sees the wonders of the universe and the importance of ecological awareness. Translated from the Spanish. Illustrated by Glen Strock. First American edition and first English translation.
* *Anatomy of Wonder, Fourth Edition (R.R. Bowker 0-8352-3288-3, Mar '95, $52.00, 912pp, hc) Non-fiction, critical/bibliographical/reference work on SF, its history, major authors, use in other media, and library collections; nearly 2,000 books are critically annotated. A major one-volume reference. Order from R.R. Bowker, Box 31, New Providence NJ 07974; 800-521-8110.
* *Fantasy Literature: A Reader's Guide (Garland 0-8240-3148-2, Mar '90 [Feb '90], $49.95, 586pp, hc) Non-fiction, a bibliographic reference using the same format as Barron's Anatomy of Wonder. This has articles on various subjects followed by a listing of significant works with annotations.
* *Horror Literature: A Reader's Guide (Garland 0-8240-4347-2, Mar '90 [Feb '90], $49.95, 596pp, hc) Non-fiction, a bibliographic reference using the same format as Barron's Anatomy of Wonder. This has articles on various subjects, from "The Early Gothic 1762-1824" to "Fantastic Art and Illustration", followed by a list of significant works in each subject area with annotations. There is a lengthy section devoted to contemporary horror fiction, the first resource of its type.
* *What Fantastic Fiction Do I Read Next? A Reader's Guide to Recent Fantastic Fiction (Gale Research 0-7876-1866-7, Oct '97 [Nov '97], $89.00, 1679pp, hc) Non-fiction. A gathering of brief descriptions of books published from 1989-1996, plus multiple indexes: by title, author, story type, locale, character, character description, or time period. Limited to new or recently reprinted works, many classics are missing; series are often represented only by later novels, with no reference to earlier works even in the "Series" index. Award winners (Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, etc., but not Locus) are also listed, for the years 1989-1996.
* *The Ancient One (Putnam/Philomel 0-399-21899-8, Sep '92 [Aug '92], $17.95, 367pp, hc, cover by John Collier) Young-adult time-travel fantasy of a young girl, caught up in a struggle to save a grove of redwood trees, who is thrown back in time 500 years.
* _The Ancient One (Tor 0-812-53654-1, Aug '94 [Jul '94], $4.99, 339pp, pb, cover by Darrell K. Sweet) Reprint (Philomel 1992) young-adult time-travel fantasy of a young girl caught up in a struggle to save a grove of redwood trees who is thrown back in time 500 years.
* *The Fires of Merlin (Penguin/Philomel 0-399-23020-3, Sep '98, $19.99, 261pp, hc, cover by Mike Wimmer) [Lost Years of Merlin] Young-adult Arthurian fantasy, volume three in "The Lost Years of Merlin" trilogy. Young Merlin must master his new powers to stop a dragon threatening to destroy Fincayra.
* *Heartlight (Putnam/Philomel 0-399-22180-8, Sep '90, $15.95, 272pp, hc, cover by Karl Swanson) Young-adult sf novel with fantasy elements in the manner of Madeleine L'Engle. A first novel.
* _Heartlight (Tor 0-812-55170-2, Nov '95 [Oct '95], $4.99, 272pp, pb, cover by Darrell K. Sweet) Reprint (Philomel 1990) science fantasy novel of quantum physics and psychic powers.
* *The Lost Years of Merlin (Putnam/Philomel 0-399-23018-1, Oct '96 [Sep '96], $19.95, 326pp, tp, cover by Mike Wimmer) [Lost Years of Merlin] Young-adult Arthurian fantasy, volume one in a trilogy. A boy with amnesia washes up on the Welsh shore, and turns out to have strange powers — and a great destiny.
* *The Merlin Effect (Putnam/Philomel 0-399-22689-3, Sep '94 [Aug '94], $17.95, 254pp, hc, cover by Mike Wimmer) Young-adult Arthurian fantasy about a modern girl who must rescue her father from danger on a sunken treasure ship.
* _The Merlin Effect (Tor 0-812-55169-9, Nov '96 [Oct '96], $5.99, 254pp, pb, cover by Darrell K. Sweet) Reprint (Putnam/Philomel 1994) young-adult Arthurian fantasy about a modern girl and a sunken treasure ship.
* *The Seven Songs of Merlin (Putnam/Philomel 0-399-23019-X, Sep '97, $19.95, 306pp, hc, cover by Mike Wimmer) [Lost Years of Merlin] Young-adult Arthurian fantasy, volume two in a trilogy. Young Merlin has to learn some important lessons to restore the land to life.
* *Genocide: The Anthology (Knights Press 0-915175-28-2, Nov '88 [Jan '89], $8.50, 211pp, tp) Despite the title, this is a gay near-future novel.
* _Catmagic (with Whitley Strieber) (SFBC #10534, May '87, $4.98, 376pp, hc) Reprint (Tor 1986) dark fantasy novel.
* _Giles Goat Boy (Doubleday Anchor 0-385-24086-4, Sep '87, $9.95, 710pp, tp) Reprint (Doubleday 1966) quasi-sf literary novel.
* *The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (Little, Brown 0-316-08251-1, Feb '91, $22.95, 373pp, hc, cover by Carol Wald) Literary fantasy novel of a modern man who finds his way into the world of Sindbad and the Arabian Nights.
* _The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (BOMC no ISBN, Apr '91 [Mar '91], $19.95, 584pp, hc, cover by Carol Wald) Reprint (Little, Brown 1991) literary Arabian nights fantasy novel. This is identical to the Little, Brown edition except it lacks an ISBN and price and has a BOMC mark on the back.
* _The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (BOMC/QPBC no ISBN, Oct '91, $11.95, 584pp, tp, cover by Carol Wald) Reprint (Little, Brown 1991) literary Arabian nights fantasy novel. This is identical to the Little, Brown edition except it lacks an ISBN and price and has the dust jacket printed as the soft cover.
* _The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (Doubleday/Anchor 0-385-42220-2, Feb '92 [Jan '92], $11.00, 573pp, tp, cover by Carol Wald) Reprint (Little, Brown 1991) literary fantasy novel of a modern man who finds his way into the world of Sinbad and the Arabian Nights.
* _The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (Sceptre 0-340-55910-1, Oct '92 [Sep '92], £6.99, 573pp, tp, cover by Carol Wald) Reprint (Little, Brown 1991) literary fantasy novel.
* *The King (Harper & Row 0-06-016195-7, May '90 [Apr '90], $16.95, 158pp, hc, cover by Barry Moser) Literary fantasy novel, a retelling of Arthurian legends set during WWII, illustrated by Barry Moser.
* _The King (BOMC/QPBC no ISBN, Apr '91 [Mar '91], $7.95, 158pp, tp, cover by Barry Moser) Reprint (Harper & Row 1990) literary Arthurian fantasy novel. This is identical to the Harper & Row edition except it lacks a price and ISBN and has the jacket printed as the soft cover.
* _The King (Penguin 0-14-014992-9, May '92 [Jun '92], $8.00, 158pp, tp, cover by Barry Moser) Reprint (Harper & Row 1990) fantasy novel, a retelling of Le Morte d'Arthur set during an alternate World War II.
* *Child of Tomorrow (NAL/Signet 0-451-13781-7, Aug '85 [Jul '85], $2.50, 192pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Young-adult sf novel, Book 2 of the "Time Keeper" trilogy.
* _Child of Tomorrow (Grafton 0-246-12869-0, Mar '86, £5.95, 160pp, hc) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, second in the "Timekeeper Trilogy".
* _Child of Tomorrow (Dragon 0-583-30924-0, Sep '86, £1.95, 160pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, #2 in the "Timekeeper" trilogy.
* *The Time Keeper (NAL/Signet Vista 0-451-13629-2, Jun '85 [May '85], $2.50, 191pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Sf novel, first of a young-adult series.
* _The Timekeeper (Grafton 0-246-12868-2, Mar '86, £5.95, 160pp, hc) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, first in the "Timekeeper Trilogy".
* _The Timekeeper (Dragon 0-583-30923-2, Sep '86, £1.95, 160pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, #1 in the "Timekeeper" trilogy.
* *When Dreamers Cease to Dream (NAL/Signet/Vista 0-451-13869-4, Oct '85 [Sep '85], $2.50, 190pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Young-adult sf novel, Book 3 of "The Time Keeper" trilogy.
* _When Dreamers Cease to Dream (Grafton 0-246-12870-4, Mar '86, £5.95, 160pp, hc) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, conclusion of the "Timekeeper Trilogy".
* _When Dreamers Cease to Dream (Dragon 0-583-30925-9, Sep '86, £1.95, 160pp, pb) [Time Keeper] Reprint (Signet/Vista 1985) young-adult sf novel, #3 in the "Timekeeper" trilogy.
* *Banshee (Worldwide Library 0-373-97075-7, Jun '88 [Aug '88], $3.95, 382pp, pb) Horror novel, a first novel.
* *Relife (Pocket 0-671-67639-3, Jul '91 [Jun '91], $4.95, 296pp, pb) Horror novel of an amnesiac man carrying something inhuman within him.
* *Nights of the Living Hell (Carlton Press 0-8062-4054-7, Dec '91 [Apr '92], $13.50, 224pp, hc) Horror novel of a small town at the mercy of a monstrous creature that consumes human victims. Available from Carlton Press, 11 West 32nd St., New York NY 10001.
* *Wasteworld 1: Aftermath (Granada 0-583-13701-6, Jan '84 [Dec '83], £1.50, 128pp, pb) [Wasteworld] Survivalist post-holocaust adventure, first of an "action" series.
* *Wasteworld 2: Resurrection (Granada 0-583-13702-4, Jan '84 [Dec '83], £1.50, 142pp, pb) [Wasteworld] Sf novel, second in in the post-holocaust adventure series.
* *Acts of Conscience (Warner Aspect 0-446-67251-3, Jan '97 [Dec '96], $12.99, 400pp, tp, cover by Wayne Barlowe) SF novel.
* _Acts of Conscience (Warner Aspect 0-446-60511-5, Feb '98 [Jan '98], $5.99, 386pp, pb, cover by Wayne Barlowe) Reprint (Warner Aspect 1997) SF novel.
* *Alpha Centauri (with Michael Capobianco) (Avon 0-380-79282-6, Jul '97 [Jun '97], $13.00, 438pp, tp, cover by Chris Moore) SF novel. Terrorists plague a colony ship that is mankind's last hope. A hardcover edition (-97511-4, $23.00) is also available.
* _Alpha Centauri (with Michael Capobianco) (Avon Eos 0-380-78205-7, Sep '98 [Aug '98], $6.99, 438pp, pb, cover by Chris Moore) Reprint (Avon 1997) SF novel.
* *Dark Sky Legion (Bantam Spectra 0-553-29616-7, Aug '92 [Jul '92], $4.99, 404pp, pb, cover by Stephen Youll) Sf novel about an eternally-young millenia-old man charged with perpetuating the status quo in a far-future star empire.
* *Fellow Traveler (with Michael Capobianco) (Bantam Spectra 0-553-29115-7, Jul '91 [Jun '91], $3.99, 403pp, pb, cover by Paul Swendsen) Sf novel of U.S./Soviet conflict over space travel.
* *Iris (with Michael Capobianco) (Doubleday Foundation 0-385-26727-4, Feb '90 [Jan '90], $8.95, 436pp, tp, cover by Paul Swendsen) Sf novel of colonists' lives on a wandering gas giant. Also available in hardcover (-26726-6, $19.95).
* _Iris (with Michael Capobianco) (Bantam Spectra 0-553-28822-9, Jan '91 [Dec '90], $4.95, 402pp, pb, cover by Paul Swendsen) Reprint (Doubleday Foundation 1990) sf novel of colonists on a wandering gas giant.
* *The Transmigration of Souls (Warner Aspect 0-446-60167-5, Jan '96 [Dec '95], $5.50, 411pp, pb, cover by Bob Eggleton) SF novel. An alien artifact offers new realities to humanity, and Fortress America is terrified.
* *When Heaven Fell (Warner Aspect 0-446-60166-7, Mar '95 [Feb '95], $5.50, 343pp, pb, cover by Sean Beavers) SF novel. Resisters on Earth try to overthrow their cybernetic alien overlords.
* *White Light (with Michael Capobianco) (Avon Eos 0-380-79515-9, Oct '98 [Sep '98], $13.00, 343pp, tp) Near-future SF novel. Two families fleeing a dying Earth find an omnipresent entity — a god — designed to preserve life by absorbing time.
* *Yellow Matter (TAL Publications no ISBN, Dec '93, $5.95, 37pp, ph, cover by Kim Colson) Sf short story with an introduction by Kevin J. Anderson. This is a signed numbered limited edition of 1,000 copies. Available from TAL Publications, PO Box 1837, Leesburg VA 22075.
* *The Way to Ground Zero: The Atomic Bomb in American Science Fiction (Greenwood 0-313-25892-9, Dec '88, $39.95, 278pp, hc) Non-fiction. Historical study of how science fiction influenced the decision to build and use atomic weapons.


text:
Covid Kids: The response of schools to coronavirus
Joanna Williams, July 2020
In response to coronavirus, schools closed to all but the children of key workers on 20 March 2020. The majority of children did not return before the end of the academic year, meaning they will have spent over five months out of the classroom. Schools remained closed to most pupils for such a long time because of government social distancing requirements and the teaching unions' insistence that the health of all teachers should be guaranteed. At this stage, it is still not clear whether schools will open to all pupils, full time, come September.
In this report, Joanna Williams argues that children and young people do not appear to be severely affected by coronavirus. There is little evidence that children play a role in transmitting the virus to adults. However, children have missed out on education and socialisation. It is vital therefore that children are able to return to normal as soon as possible so as to make up for lost opportunities. If some children return to academic teaching, while those from more deprived backgrounds are given a reduced curriculum combined with therapeutic interventions, educational inequality will be exacerbated further. Repeatedly telling children they will develop mental health problems may become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The author offers a series of recommendations, including for government to drop all requirements for children to practice social distancing with immediate effect. Places such as playgrounds, swimming pools and leisure centres should be reopened for children as a matter of urgency and they should provide free entry for children throughout the summer months.
Joanna Williams concludes that all schools should reopen fully, to all pupils from the start of the new academic year, with no social distancing in place. The report recommends that any narrowing of the curriculum to focus on only core subjects should take place for as short a period as necessary. Schools should aim to have all children ready to be taught the full curriculum by January 2021. From September, there needs to be an immediate focus on bringing all children up to speed with missing subject knowledge as quickly as possible.
Joanna Williams writes in The Yorkshire Post, 'An impoverished school curriculum risks ruining a generation'
Joanna Williams on Spiked, 'We have abandoned a generation'
Joanna Williams on Spiked, 'Don't turn schools into therapy centres'


text:
Mercury's molten core
Geoscientist Online 14 May 2007
Earth based radar measurements of Mercury have shown that the tiny planet is hiding a molten outer core, providing new insight into the planet's history and the origin of its magnetic field. Emily Baldwin reports.
Mercury is an end-member planet, residing closest to the Sun in our Solar System. Characterisation of its interior properties is therefore crucial to our further understanding of the formation and evolution of habitable worlds.
The state of Mercury's core has puzzled planetary scientists since Mariner 10 first flew by the planet over thirty years ago and detected an internal magnetic field. In comparison, Venus has no magnetic field, and Mars and the Moon only have evidence for ancient fields.
Mercury's field is thought to be due to an active Earth-like dynamo. This requires that at least the outer shell of its core should have remained molten. Given that Mercury's mass is just 5% that of the Earth, the natural assumption would be that the planet's interior had cooled sufficiently by now to allow the core to solidify. Maintaining a molten core through to the present day suggests that a light element, such as sulphur, has lowered the melting temperature of the core material. Models have shown that sulphur, however, is unable to condense at the distance from the Sun that Mercury now occupies. This implies that Mercury was accreted from planetary building blocks that originated from a wide range of locations in the Solar System.
A team of scientists lead by Jean-Luc Margot, assistant professor of astronomy at Cornell University, has devised a novel method for monitoring the spins of rocky planets from Earth, in order to test some of these theories. They beamed powerful radar signals at Mercury from two separate observatories on the Earth - the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, and the Arecibo telescope in Puerto Rico. The echoes of these signals appeared as a unique pattern of speckles, reflecting the roughness of the planet's surface. Measuring how long it took for a particular pattern of speckles to reproduce at the two earthly monitoring stations – around 10 seconds - allowed the team to calculate Mercury's spin rate with greater accuracy than has ever been thought possible. The experiment could only produce usable results when the Earth and Mercury stood in a certain alignment, which occurs for periods of just 20 seconds at a time. The scientists made 21 such measurements.
The team also made observations (over five years) to determine Mercury's libration –tiny twists in the planet's spin as it orbits the Sun. These occur as a result of Mercury's eccentric 88-day orbit around the Sun. The Sun exerts forces on the planet causing it to 'wobble'. The measured librations were double what would be expected for a completely solid body, but fit the idea of a molten core that does not rotate in the same manner as its shell (think of the difference between spinning a hard-boiled egg and a fresh one on a table-top).
The presence of a molten outer core is consistent with dynamo models for generating a magnetic field, but this is not the only viable mechanism for the producing the field. Mercury's field is very weak – three orders of magnitude less than that of the Earth. An Earth-like dynamo system could operate as a result of several possible configurations of the internal state of the planet. These mysteries may find solutions as future missions arrive at Mercury.
Continuing mission
NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft is already en route and will fly by Mercury in January 2008 before achieving orbit in 2011. The spacecraft is expected to map the magnetic field in detail and to determine the nature of its source.
In 2013 ESA and Japan's BepiColombo mission will launch, arriving in 2019. Both of these missions will endeavour to reveal some of the mysteries surrounding Mercury's magnetic field and interior design, and enable progress in understanding the formation and evolution of an end-member planet. But in the meantime, Margot et al's novel techniques have provided a new tool to probe planetary interiors from the Earth, opening up avenues in planetary physics to allow us to constrain the underlying geophysical processes of other near by planets.
Ref: Science V 316; 4 May 2007; p 710-714. "Large Longitudinal Libration of Mercury Reveals a Molten Core" J. L. Margot, S. J. Peale, R. F. Jurgens, M. A. Slade, I. V. Holin.


Ouedraogo Boureima was just four years old when, in 1985, his family left their village in Burkina Faso and walked across the border and into Côte d'Ivoire. They brought only the clothes on their backs, two sheep, four cooking pots, food for travel and a picture of their ancestors. The family traveled south and then west, finally settling in the rural community of Blolequin, where Ouedraogo's father declared that he would support them as a cocoa farmer.
Ouedraogo's family planted and then cultivated cocoa trees, and they built a new life for themselves. Ouedraogo came of age and eventually joined his father in the cocoa fields. Then in 2011, the Second Ivoirian Civil War broke out, leaving Blolequin in shambles with dozens killed, and forcing the family to retreat to Burkina Faso. Last year, as a measure of peace began to settle back over the land, Ouedraogo returned to Côte d'Ivoire.
"My heart, my loyalty and my livelihood lies among the shade of my cocoa trees and the blood red earth of Western Côte d'Ivoire," he explains. Now 31, Ouedraogo is carrying his father's dream forward. It is a dream shared by more than 4.5 million people in Côte d'Ivoire, who depend on cocoa for their livelihoods. But as the Boureima family knows well, cocoa is an industry fraught with challenges, including price volatility, farmer exploitation, low wages and child labor, in a country plagued by political instability.
Despite the war's end, political unrest continues to threaten Côte d'Ivoire's cocoa crop—already under pressure from pests, fungi, unsustainable farming techniques, climate change and drought—while global cocoa demand climbs steadily at a rate of three percent a year. At the same time, increasingly low yields raise concerns about future cocoa shortages and hurt the incomes and aspirations of millions of Ivoirians.
In 2008, the Rainforest Alliance began to introduce socially, environmentally and economically sustainable practices to farmers in Côte d'Ivoire—helping farmers increase their yields and their profits, and improve their lives. Ouedraogo is one of tens of thousands of farmers in Côte d'Ivoire who have benefited from Rainforest Alliance certification.
In an effort to improve his family's life, in 2011 he joined a cooperative of cocoa farmers working toward Rainforest Alliance certification. Many farmers in his community were initially skeptical of certification. The country's history of violence and political unrest colored their perception; over the years, they had been approached by a number of NGOs offering aid, but in the end, they all failed to deliver on their promises. Desperate to support his family, Ouedraogo was willing to accept the possibility that certification would not pan out.
Ouedraogo Boureima (third row center, yellow shirt) with Rainforest Alliance staff and other members of the COABOB co-op.
Just one year later, Ouedraogo's understanding of certification has evolved substantially. As with many farmers, it was initially talk of a price premium that attracted him. In actuality, certification does not guarantee a price premium, but higher yields resulting from the techniques promoted by the Rainforest Alliance have improved farmers lives. A 2012 study found that net income on Rainforest Alliance Certified farms in Côte d'Ivoire was 291 percent higher than on noncertified farms.
As Ouedraogo and other farmers have learned, however, higher incomes are just one aspect of the complex journey to sustainability. Now in its second year, Ouedraogo's Rainforest Alliance Certified cooperative COABOB is composed of 798 farmers who have a much deeper understanding of the challenges and benefits of certification. It was a struggle, for example, for many farmers to accept certification requirements that prohibit the use of toxic agrochemicals and encourage the use of alternative methods to control pests and add nutrients to the soil. With decreasing yields, many farmers felt pressure to increase their use of pesticide and chemical fertilizers on cocoa trees "It takes the Rainforest Alliance training and an outside perspective to understand that these chemicals are not long term solutions," explains Ouedraogo.
Certification has led to other on-farm improvements, as well. Through his work with the Rainforest Alliance, Ouedraogo learned to prune his trees (cutting away old, dead and diseased branches) and put a mixture of wood shavings and composted cocoa pods around the base of each cocoa tree (helping to keep the soil around the trees' roots moist). He has also planted a variety of trees on his farm to protect his cocoa from the sun and enrich his soil.
This year, Ouedraogo noticed that his trees had sprouted new, healthy growth. He is hopeful that his harvest will be larger as a result. If other certified farms in the country are any indication, he will get his wish. Certified cocoa farms in Côte d'Ivoire have produced 72 percent more than their uncertified counterparts.
Thanks to commitments from leading brands like Mars, Unilever, Kraft and Hershey, the Rainforest Alliance's certification work in Côte d'Ivoire has experienced remarkable growth. Over the last six years, 85,000 Ivorian farms covering more than one million acres (410,000 hectares) have become Rainforest Alliance Certified. Companies now recognize that environmental, social and economic sustainability are essential to securing the global cocoa supply—and that Rainforest Alliance certification can help to accomplish these goals.


text:
RoyalDish.com > The British Royal Family > Britain > Topic: British Royal News II
Author Topic: British Royal News II (Read 146551 times)
royalviewers
Warned
Mini Member
Re: British Royal News II
Quote from: Lady Alice on December 24, 2018, 02:08:45 PM
Message clear: Megan is not besties with the Queen.
No more spin required.
Quote from: Lady G on December 24, 2018, 10:54:14 AM
Ooh clever Sophie - get there early before everyone else arrives and get HM and her ear to yourself. She would have survived the Tudor courts, that one 😆
It should not be forgotten that Sophie's career was in PR. We only hear about the time she made indiscreet comments when she was conned by an investigative journalist posing as a Middle-Eastern businessman, but she ran a successful PR business in partnership for five years. This is a woman with a proven track record in the PR business and in learning from her mistakes. She knows how to look after her own interests, and should not be underestimated.
Quote from: Margaret on December 24, 2018, 09:35:44 PM
She has the kind of smarts I wish all married ins had. She can teach a class on how to ingratiate yourself, promote your self with the top dog and protect your and your branch's interests without coming off as an overbearing, disingenuous and supercilious cow.
A new duchess and a certain Snake should take notes.
Sondra Finchley
The Edwards could very well be going up a rank soonish, but Sophie is smart to ensure her line received the benefit of the Queen's largess now and in the will because she knows what is coming when Charles takes the throne. Its far smarter than the petulant brat approach a la Andrew. And hey, maybe she really likes the Queen and vice versa
Humongous Member
in search of ethical emerald tiaras
Isn't the Queen genuinely fond of Sophie? I know her widowed father is invited to Sandringham and other things for the holidays and whatnot regularly.
Who wouldn't like Sophie, though!
writing angry fauxminist letters in the Lesbaru
Certainly they appear that close that there must be some affection or both are exceptionally good actors, which given HM does not act like that with others makes it almost certain she has some affection for Sophie.
Oh_Caroline
Tim O'Donovan's totals (https://twitter.com/CepeS.../1079543951613456384?s=19)
D-Domestic, I-International, T-Total
Anne: D-447, I-71, T-518
Charles: D-398, I-109, T-507
Edward Wessex: D-263, I-200, T-463
Andrew: D-259, I-135, T-394
QEII: D-283, I-0, T-283
Richard: D-193, I-50, T-243
Sophie: D-166, I-73, T-239
William: D-150: I-70, T-220
Camilla: D-149, I-70, T-219
Harry: D-108, I-85, T-193
Edward Kent: D-140, I-34, T-174
Meghan: D-45, I-51, T-96 (only counted from Wedding Day)
Birgitte: D-87, I-3, T-90
Kate: D-64, I-23, T-87 (maternity leave April--September)
Alexandra: D-67, I-0, T-67
Big Member
Geez, the duke of Kent is in his 80s now --and he beat all the young whipper snappers.
Medium Member
Quote from: Ellie on December 25, 2018, 04:20:43 PM
I want to be her BFF! In video and pictures, Sophie and HM seem to have a genuine affection for each other. The queen probably appreciates that she's low key and does her job and there were never rumors of her trying to distance Ed from the rest of the family. Yes, she did have a little bit of a rough start, but after that she was golden. Since her own mother has passed, she may look at her as a mother figure.
January 20, 2019, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew attended Sunday Service at St Peter's Church in Wolferton near to her Sandringham Estate in Norfolk
https://www.newmyroyals.c...s-sunday-service.html?m=1
Micro Member
The makeup person should apply foundation on Queen's neck as well.
Small Member
^ I wondered about that; then I learned she was wearing a lime-green dress beneath the coat, so I think there may be some reflected colour there
kingcanut
Prince Philip, 97, gives up driving licence
The Duke of Edinburgh is to voluntarily give up his driving licence, Buckingham Palace has said.
It comes after the 97-year-old duke apologised over a car crash near the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, in which his Land Rover Freelander landed on its side after a collision with a Kia.
Two days later Norfolk Police gave him "suitable words of advice" after he was pictured driving without a seat belt.
Buckingham Palace said that he surrendered his licence on Saturday.
In a statement, the palace said: "After careful consideration the Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence."
The duke wrote to a woman injured in the crash, which happened on 17 January on the A149 near the Queen's country estate.
He escaped injury, but Emma Fairweather, a passenger in the Kia, broke her wrist.
full article: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-47186875
"Think and let think".
genegal43
All I got was a Nancy Pearl Action Figure...
Well that's good!
Genealogy: shrinking the world one person at a time!
Baby Member
I really didn't think he would do it, but so glad he did!


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Welcome to the new e-Laws. It's now easier than ever to find Ontario laws. We welcome your feedback.
O. Reg. 101/06: Food Premises
filed March 31, 2006 under Health Protection and Promotion Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.7
ontario regulation 101/06
made under the
health protection and promotion act
Made: March 29, 2006
Published on e-Laws: March 31, 2006
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: April 15, 2006
Amending Reg. 562 of R.R.O. 1990
(Food Premises)
1. Clause 32 (b) of Regulation 562 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 is amended by striking out "5° Celsius" and substituting "4 degrees Celsius".
2. (1) Subsection 40 (1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(1) The only meat permitted at a food premise is meat that has been obtained from an animal inspected in accordance with either Ontario Regulation 31/05 (Meat) made under the Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001 or the Meat Inspection Act (Canada) and that has been stamped and labelled or otherwise identified in accordance with that regulation or that Act.
(2) Paragraphs 3 and 4 of subsection 40 (3) of the Regulation are revoked and the following substituted:
3. Patients, visitors and staff at the Health Centre are informed in writing each time before they are served uninspected meat that the meat has not been inspected in accordance with either Ontario Regulation 31/05 (Meat) made under the Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001 or the Meat Inspection Act (Canada) and that meat that has been inspected is available for consumption.
4. Patients, visitors and staff at the Health Centre are informed in writing that meat that has been inspected in accordance with either Ontario Regulation 31/05 (Meat) made under the Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001 or the Meat Inspection Act (Canada) is always available to be served on the premises.
(3) Section 40 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsection:
(4) Despite subsection (1), a food premise may have on the premises uninspected meat obtained through hunting that is handled, prepared and stored for the sole purpose of serving it at a wild game dinner held under the authority of an authorization granted under subsection 52 (1) of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997, if the following conditions are met:
1. The uninspected meat is handled, prepared and stored so that it does not come into contact with other food before the other food is served.
2. Patrons and staff are notified in writing each time before they are served uninspected meat that the meat has not been inspected in accordance with either Ontario Regulation 31/05 (Meat) made under the Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001 or the Meat Inspection Act (Canada). The notice shall be clearly printed on each ticket issued to a patron of a wild game dinner and also be posted in a conspicuous place at the entrance to the venue at which the wild game dinner is held.
3. The operator must keep a list of all patrons that attend the wild game dinner and must provide a copy of the list to a public health inspector upon request. The list must contain each patron's name, address and telephone number in full.
4. The operator must keep a list of all persons who donate uninspected meat for a wild game dinner and must provide a copy of the list to a public health inspector upon request. The list must contain,
i. each donor's name, address and telephone number in full, and
ii. with respect to each donor, the name of the species from which the donated meat was obtained.
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