Does the risk of witnessing amateur singers wearing head-swallowing sombreros and performing that group birthday serenade sound like a bit much? In other words, do you feel like getting your margarita on even if you're more in the mood for upscale seafood than a super chalupa? Then make your way to McCormick & Schmick's.
The bar exam: Does the risk of witnessing amateur singers wearing head-swallowing sombreros and performing that group birthday serenade sound like a bit much? In other words, do you feel like getting your margarita on even if you're more in the mood for upscale seafood than a super chalupa? Then make your way to McCormick & Schmick's.
Esta casa es su casa: It's dark and steakhousey in the Easton Town Center McCormick & Schmick's. I often enjoy hanging out there in the nonchalant yet handsome bar. It's a good place to thumb through their thick American cocktail menu - where each drink comes with a little history lesson and fruit juices squeezed through a metal press right in front of you by the ultra-professional, white-jacketed staff.
Tale of the cocktail: M&S offers several excellent margaritas, but I love the simply titled "Margarita Cocktail." For it, the juice of two limes is shaken with Cointreau, Sauza Gold and just a touch of simple syrup. Poured into a hefty rocks glass, the mightily refreshing lime-heavy drink has an edge of saltiness to it, and at only $6.50, is one of the best handmade margarita deals in town.
Margarita munchies: At the bar in the late afternoon and again in the late evening, M&S offers a revolving menu of stupid-cheap, high-quality happy hour food. So there might be Mahi-Mahi Cakes with a Thai peanut sauce or wonderful sheets of panko-battered Fried Zucchini. I especially like the Margarita Cocktail paired with the Chicken Etouffee. The drink's flood of bright lime cuts right through the dark, deep, complex, peppery and deliciously heavy soup (a bounteous bowl is sold for an amazingly low $4).


text:
English, Holmes share 54-hole lead at Torrey Pines among clustered leaderboard
By Stephanie Wei under PGA Tour
Harris English didn't have his A-game on Saturday at Torrey Pines, but he managed to escape with a one-over 73 in the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open and still shares a spot atop of a packed leaderboard.
English, who led by two heading into the weekend, got off to a nice start, making a birdie on the first hole to extend his lead to three shots. However, on a day with tough conditions at Torrey's South Course, he broke his streak of 39 holes with par or better on the par-4 6th. After driving it in the fairway bunker, he knocked his next shot short in the rough. His chip flew over the green and then he blew his putt to save par six feet past the hole before he missed the comeback for bogey and tapped it for a costly six.
The 25-year-old from Georgia recovered decently, posting eight straight pars before getting back into double digits at 10-under with a birdie on the par-4 13th. However, a poor chip on the par-3 16th led to a bogey and dropped him back to nine-under for the tournament.
With the difficult scoring conditions, English kept reminding himself that he was playing a very tough course and put that into perspective.
"I got a little carried away with my lie on no. 4 and I ended up making double bogey there," said English in his post-round presser. "But I didn't let it affect me. You got to stay patient out here. That's what my caddie has been telling me all week. This is a hard golf course, this is one where pars are good, and don't compound a mistake with another mistake by getting frustrated. I didn't want the double bogey to get me frustrated and then to start pressing a little bit and trying to make birdies, because once you do that and you start hitting some crazy shots and the kind of shots that are pretty stupid out there and that's where you make a lot more bogeys.
"I felt like I did a good job of maintaining my composure and playing my game. I feel like I had a good stretch there hitting the ball 15 to 20 feet a lot of holes and giving my putter a chance. That's where I'm going to play good. This place is put the ball in the fairway and give my putter a chance to make birdies. So, I'm pleased with how I handled myself today. I know 1-over par is never good on the PGA Tour, but today it keeps me in the tournament. I could have easily pressed a little bit and turned that 1-over into a 3- or 4-over."
English is looking for his third win on the PGA Tour. He won the 2013 FedEx St. Jude Classic and 2014 OHL Classic at Mayakoba. At both those events, he also held the 36-hole lead before going on to hoist the trophy on Sunday. While this is the first time he's led/co-led through 54 holes, he's looking forward to the challenge of finishing strong.
"I remember in Memphis I think I was one shot back going into Sunday; and my win in Mexico I was really close to the lead, probably one shot back or so," he said. "But I love being in this spot. This is why I play golf since I was 10 or 11 years old, this is what I want to be doing and this is why everybody on the PGA Tour practices so much is to be in this position.
"I'm just looking forward to getting to tomorrow and being around the lead or in the lead with six holes to play. That's kind of always my goal and that's why I do it. So I'm — I love the nervous butterflies on the first tee and especially when all the people start watching on the back nine. That's awesome."
J.B Holmes took advantage of Moving Day, surging 15 spots up the leaderboard by posting a four-under 68 to tie the low score in the third round. Although he had three bogeys, Holmes, who endured brain surgery for Chiari malformations in 2011, carded an impressive seven birdies, starting with a chip-in on no. 4 to spark some momentum. While he gave one back on no. 5, he birdied nos. 6 and 7. He added to that on the back nine with birdies on nos. 10, 13, 14 and finished strong with another one on the 18th, putting him in solid shape to chase down a fourth victory on the PGA Tour as he heads into the final round.
"I played great all day and hit the ball well and gave myself a chance to make some birdies and I made them," said Holmes. "So, I birdied 18 to finish, that's kind of all I'm thinking about. It's a tough golf course, tough finishing holes, bogeys are going to happen. Yeah, I made a few coming in. So, overall it was a great day, I hit it great, felt comfortable over the ball all day and just had a lot of fun."
Torrey's South Course is a beast and Holmes is known for his length, which he has used to his advantage, particularly on the par-5s.
"This golf course is a big ball striking course, so you got to hit it in the fairway, you got to hit some good shots and give your self a chance for some birdies," said Holmes.
While distance is beneficial here, finding the short grass off the tee is also premium.
"With some distance, I got a chance to get there in two (on the par-5s)," said Holmes. "But if you don't hit it in the fairway it doesn't matter how far you hit it. The rough's really high right now and you can't move it very far. So you got to hit it in the fairway and give your self a chance.
"Even the par-5s I guess the good thing about that is if you do miss the fairway you can still get it up there and have a wedge in your hand and have a chance to make a birdie. So every week the guys make, everybody out here makes more birdies on the par-5s, so you always like to feel like you have a better chance on those for sure."
Among the five players who trail Holmes and English by just one stroke is Jimmy Walker, who has already won in the 2014-15 season by successfully defending his title at the Sony Open in January. Walker will be seeking to add to his success over the past two seasons, where he has captured four PGA Tour titles since the fall of 2013.
"Mentally you just have to be tough because you're going to get put into situations, it's just going to happen where you're just going to have to make a good par and you just have to be ready for that and know it's going to happen," said Walker, "then take advantage of good shots you hit and try to make some putts."
Chad Campbell had the shot of the day when he aced the par-3 no. 3 with a pitching wedge. He fired a two-under 70 and is among the group of five trying to overcome a one-shot deficit heading into Sunday. Campbell, who has four PGA Tour victories, will be seeking to win for the first time in more than seven years.
Finally, Jason Day, the no. 8 ranked golfer in the world, was the only player in the top 10 to make the cut. He shot a ho-hum one-under 71 and is just two shots off the lead.
#2015 Farmers Insurance Open, #Chad Campbell, #Harris English, #J.B. Holmes, #Jason Day, #Jimmy Walker, #Torrey Pines
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Business Consumers Criminal Financial Government National Trials
Ex-Wilmington Trust Officials Convicted of Fraud, Conspiracy
May 3, 2018 May 10, 2018 ASSOCIATED PRESS
conspiracy, Fraud, verdict
By RANDALL CHASE
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Four former executives for the only financial institution to be criminally charged in connection with the federal bank bailout program were convicted Thursday of fraud and conspiracy charges.
The former Wilmington Trust executives were convicted after a six-week trial in which prosecutors said the defendants deliberately misled banking regulators and investors by not reporting hundreds of millions of past due loans.
Former bank president Robert Harra Jr., former chief credit officer William North, former chief financial officer David Gibson and former controller Kevyn Rakowski were convicted on charges of fraud, conspiracy and making false statements to federal regulators.
Several of the offenses carry maximum prison terms of 30 years, but it's unclear whether any of the four will spend time behind bars. No sentencing date has been set, and defense attorneys vowed to appeal.
This isn't over yet," said Ken Breen, an attorney for Gibson.
The bank itself reached a $60 million settlement with prosecutors last year just as a trial was set to start. In reaching the settlement, Wilmington Trust did not acknowledge any liability.
Prosecutors alleged that in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, bank executives misled regulators and investors about Wilmington Trust's massive amount of past-due commercial real estate loans before the bank was hastily sold in 2011 while bordering on collapse. Founded by members of the DuPont family in 1903, the bank imploded despite receiving $330 million from the federal government's Troubled Asset Relief Program.
"It was the gold standard for many number of years in the state of Delaware, and its demise was a significant development in this community," said U.S. Attorney David Weiss.
"The defendants were a victim of their own arrogance," Weiss added.
Weiss said the defendants recklessly loaned money to a small group of developers, mostly for projects in central and southern Delaware, then hid the truth when the loans became past due and weren't paid.
Instead of reporting the true amount of past due loans, bank officials "waived" millions of dollars in matured loans from reporting requirements if the loans were designated as "current for interest" and in the process of being extended, even if the necessary paperwork had not been done.
To ensure that loans that were well past the date for repayment were current for interest and thus purportedly exempt from reporting requirements, the bank lent even more money to struggling developers just so they could make the interest payments on the underlying loans.
"That's the bank paying itself," prosecutor Jamie McCall told jurors.
Before the fire sale to M&T Bank, Wilmington Trust raised $287 million in a 2010 stock offering, intended in part to help repay the TARP funds, while concealing the truth about its shaky financial condition from investors, prosecutors said.
"The public has an absolute right to know how these financial institutions are keeping score…. The jury understood this," Weiss said. "They've got car loans. They've got mortgages. They've got credit cards. There are no extensions when your bill comes due, there's no waiver. You pay it off or the bank comes to see you about what you owe."
Prosecutors said Wilmington Trust officials deliberately concealed the quantity of past due loans on their books from October 2009 through November 2010, failing to disclose the waiver practice to regulators, even after federal officials found serious problems during a 2009 examination. The examination resulted in a memorandum of understanding in October 2009 requiring the bank, among other obligations, to submit past-due loan information monthly, instead of quarterly.
In the fourth quarter of 2009, Wilmington Trust officials reported only $10.8 million in commercial loans as 90 days or more past due, concealing more than $316 million in past due loans subject to the waiver practice, according to prosecutors.
Defense attorneys argued that their clients did nothing wrong and that they acted transparently while trying to steer the bank through difficult times. They repeatedly attacked the credibility of a key government witness, former Wilmington Trust loan official Joseph Terranova, portraying him as a "serial liar" out to save his own skin.
"We are stunned by the jury's decision in this case," attorneys for Harra said in a prepared statement. "The simple fact is that our client is an honorable man who never in his life thought about committing a crime."
Terranova and two other former Wilmington Trust officers, Delaware Market Officer Brian Bailey and loan officer Peter Hayes, have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Two other co-conspirators already have been sentenced. James Ladio, former CEO of MidCoast Community Bank, was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to pay $700,000 restitution. Businessman Salvatore Leone was sentenced to a year and a day in prison and ordered to pay $784,000.
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Antioxidant Super Power Choccy Milk Drink for your Kids!
It has been a beneficial journey towards better health and improved vitality I have been traipsing on with my family. Not so long ago I looked at food merely as a satisfying belly filler, basing my choices on taste over health or nutrition in particular. Not that we have ever eaten overly badly, but when I look now at some of the choices my family made diet wise, I know that I would rarely decide those same options now. Too much information embedded in my consciousness now helps me to make a whole menagerie of better choices.
One of the easiest choices for any on of us to incorporate into our diets, and that of our children - is RAW CACAO POWDER. What the hell is it? Well its just raw chocolate powder - similar to that you might find in your Grocery store cake supplies aisle. The difference is, that rather than looking at chocolate powder merely as an artificial delicacy, empty of nutrition and full of sugar peaks and sugar crashes after the fact - it could be seen as an enormously health benefiting super food. Because it is! Okay - not the cadburys stuff you find in the local supermarket - but the Raw Cocoa/cacao powder.
The difference? Processing vs unprocessed. There is no taste difference whatsoever, it looks exactly the same as processed chocolate. Neither are sweet, both require added sweetening to taste like the chocolate milk you know and love. But the difference is so extreme it's hard to believe they are the same product.
The question is, why would ANYBODY choose processed cocoa over the raw stuff? It's a no brainer - cost. The cost of buying raw organic cacao powder online or in the health food store is higher than one would expect from the cheap and nasty versions that have been processed to all but completely lose their health benefits.
Now for the recipe! It's easy, and I feel a lot less guilty giving my daughters a chocolate milk shake these days than I used to!
1) Heat water in saucepan or kettle to boil.
2) Add the milk to your cup/bottle.
4) Pour the water in, shake or stir to mix.
You want to add the milk first so that the water doesn't scald the raw cacao. By mixing the milk and cacao a little first, you reduce this substantially. Your milkshake will be warm not scalding hot - perfect for babies and children to drink immediately.
And rather than filling them with unwanted crap - you know the sugar they're getting and you know that using this recipe you are giving your kids an amazing antioxidant boost that no other ingredient can match!
As we all search for that resonating truth, the ones which align with our conscience and feel to be the way to enlightened reality - we must all present what we find to others who too, search for that understanding . Here is my journey toward truth.


text:
Philthepower.com
CUSTOM DART SHIRTS
SINGAPORE SINK SCOTLAND IN FRANKFURT
Singapore produced one of the biggest shocks in the history of the Betway World Cup of Darts as they defeated number one seeds Scotland 5-2 on the opening day of the tournament.
The 32-nation tournament opened at the Eissporthalle in Frankfurt with the opening eight first round games on Thursday night, with former World Champion Gary Anderson and UK Open champion Peter Wright being dumped out at the first round stage.
Paul Lim, making his fourth consecutive appearance at the World Cup, opened the match by hitting a 180, which set the tone for the rest of the encounter, as Singapore broke throw in the opening leg.
Scotland looked to have restored order as they immediately broke back, with Gary Anderson hitting tops in the second leg.
However, Lim and his partner Harith Lim regained their lead by breaking the throw again in the third leg.
The match looked to be swinging back Scotland's way as Singapore missed five darts for a second break in the fifth leg, allowing Scotland to close the gap to one.
However, it was to be the oldest player in the tournament who produced the magic moment as Paul Lim took out 100 on tops to seal a memorable win.
"This is a massive moment for Singapore, its a great win," said Harith Lim after the match.
"When we saw the draw we were just happy to play against two of the best players in the world.
"I knew if we put them under pressure we would have a chance but to win the match is so fantastic." Added 63-year-old Paul Lim.
Singapore will now face Spain who were provided with with a serious test before the pairing of Antonio Alcinas and Cristo Reyes prevailed in a 5-3 victory over Japan.
The Japanese side of Haruki Muramatsu and Yuki Yamada raced in to a 3-1 lead before a run of four straight legs confirmed the victory for the Spanish.
The 2017 Betway World Cup of Darts opened with the Greek team of John Michael and Ioannis Selachoglou having to battle back from 3-1 down to overcome Thailand in a 5-3 victory.
The Greeks will face Belgium who needed an impressive individual performance from Kim Huybrechts to help pull himself and his brother Ronny past New Zealand.
The match looked a tough draw for 2013 finalists Belgium but world number 12 Huybrechts showed his class hitting four maximums, as they ran out 5-2 winners.
"Ronny and I know that even when one of us played badly, the other can pull us through." Said Kim.
"I played well today but I know next time I might need Ronny and I believe he will be there for me."
Eighth seeds Australia then had to survive a match-dart as they snuck past Denmark to reach the second round.
The team of Kyle Anderson and Simon Whitlock were expected to have far too much for Per Laursen and Alex Jensen but the Dane's had other ideas.
The third leg saw Australia break throw but Laursen returned the favour in the very next leg, taking out 116 to break back and level the match.
The encounter then went with throw until the deciding leg where Laursen missed tops for an unlikely win.
Whitlock, who was struggling with a wrist injury needed his partner to land the winning double.
"I needed my partner there." Said Whitlock.
"My wrist is in a lot of pain so I just had to stick in there and let Kyle do the business." Added the 'Wizard'.
Kyle Anderson, who is making his second appearance at the Betway World Cup of Darts was happy to take the lead role.
"I had to play well tonight and I think I did that.
"I started a bit nervy but once I found my range it was all ok. Im delighted to get through that one." Said Anderson.
Australia's second round opponents will be Russia as Borris Koltsov produced a moment of magic to secure their place in the next round as they beat Hong King 5-3.
With the match going with throw the Russian took out 111 on double 16 to break the throw, a break which would ultimately win them the match.
The Republic of Ireland booked a second round clash with Wales after beating Poland 5-3 in a close encounter.
William O'connor started the match in style, taking out 106 to hold in the opening leg of the match.
However, it was Poland who were first to break the throw, pinning tops in the fifth leg for a 3-2 lead.
Mick McGowan then found double eight in the very next leg to break back immediately as Ireland went on to win three legs in a row and seal the win.
Mark Webster and Gerwyn Price had to average 100.14 and survive two match-darts as Wales snuck past Finland in a last leg decider.
The final match of the opening day of action in Frankfurt began with Finland moving in to a 2-0 lead to put the pressure on Wales.
However, Webster rose to the occasion taking out 124 on the bull to break back immediately.
The match then went with throw, including a seventh leg 141 finish from Finland as the match went to a deciding leg.
Finland then had two opportunities to win the tie but Kim Viljanen missed two darts at tops to seal the victory.
It was Webster who found the winning double, pinning double five before speaking of his relief.
"That was was tough! The guys played so well but fortunately I had Gerwyn with me, he was brilliant.
The scoring from him was great and fortunately I was there to tidy it up at the end."
Price who hit four maximums and a 177 during the game was pleased with the win.
"It's great to get over the line, I scored well but this is a team game and Mark hit the most important double of the night." Said the 32-year old.
The first round concludes on Friday evening with the remaining eight games, including reigning champions England - represented by World cup debutant Dave Chisnall and Adrian Lewis - up against Gibraltar's Dyson Parody and Dylan Duo.
Betway World Cup of Darts
Thursday June 1 (8pm local time, 7pm BST)
Greece 5-3 Thailand
Russia 5-3 Hong Kong
Republic of Ireland 5-3 Poland
Spain 5-3 Japan
Belgium 5-2 New Zealand
Australia 5-4 Denmark
Singapore 5-2 Scotland
Wales 5-4 Finland
Friday June 2
USA v Italy
Hungary v Canada
Austria v China
South Africa v Sweden
Brazil v Switzerland
Northern Ireland v Germany
England v Gibraltar
Netherlands v Czech Repulic


text:
Dennis Mills
Ideas & Achievements
Strengthening Public Safety
In 1999, Dennis negotiated with Federal Solicitor-General Andy Scott, successfully securing $160,000 for Toronto's ROPE Squad – the Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement program. The following article by Alan Cairns of the Toronto Sun, published in 2000, provides first-hand details of how important the ROPE Squad is and how the added investment from the Solicitor-General bolstered the work of Toronto's Police Service.
Corralling the killers
Toronto squad works on shoestring to track fugitives
By ALAN CAIRNS — Toronto Sun
All talk, no action. That's how members of the Toronto Police force's Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement squad are feeling towards government bureaucrats.
Officials agree the four-member squad's work in catching more than 300 desperadoes has been outstanding and they support the force's $3.3-million-a-year plan to expand the unit across the province.
But while provincial officials orally endorse the plan, neither the province nor the federal government has made any moves to put it into action.
"One of the surest means to reduce serious crime as well as save money by reducing future investigation and prosecution dollars," is how the Ontario's Office for Victims of Crime described the plan in its recent report, a Voice for Victims.
"It makes sense … the sooner the better … it's the right thing to do," Ontario Corrections Minister Rob Sampson says.
"It doesn't take a Rhodes scholar or a doctorate to know escapees and parolees who screw up are dangerous," says Steve Sullivan, of the Ottawa-based Resource Centre for Victims of Crime.
"It only makes sense that someone should be out there looking for them … not just in Ontario, but across Canada."
But the lack of government funding and resource support for expansion has frustrated Toronto Police Association president Craig Bromell.
"We've needed this a long time. But more now than ever before," says Bromell, noting a federal prison system push to get more offenders out on some form of early release.
As of today, parole officers across Canada have signed 966 arrest warrants for federal parolees and escapees who are unlawfully at large. Of these, 248 are in Ontario and more than 200 in the Toronto area. Ontario has another 300 or so provincial parolees who are AWOL — 263 in Toronto.
Canada does not have an agency to chase fugitives, such as the U.S. Marshal's service or the FBI. Typically, arrest warrants sit on a shelf and gather dust.
Front-line police officers know the dangers all too well.
In March 1995, Sudbury Const. Joe MacDonald had no idea the car he pulled over in a routine check carried Clinton Suzack, a violent drug gang enforcer who a month earlier had been released from an Ontario jail and had run from a Hamilton halfway house. Suzack and his buddy, federal parolee Peter Pennett, broke MacDonald's leg and shot him to death.
Four years ago, Det. Steve McAteer started the four-member Toronto ROPE squad to work with federal parole officers to nab escapees and parolees who went underground.
Two years ago, then-federal Solicitor-General Andy Scott, encouraged by Broadview-Danforth MP Dennis Mills, cut a $160,000 cheque to the squad for equipment.
McAteer recalls Scott was enthusiastic about the "pilot project" and asked McAteer to help form a national strategy to help "restore the public's faith in the justice system."
PUBLIC FAITH SHATTERED
That public faith has been shattered many times. One such occasion was the attack on Mississauga real estate agent Wendy Carroll, by a pair of released double killers, John Lyman Kehoe, 51, and Edward Samuel Schwartz, 61.
The duo lured Carroll to a Port Credit home on the pretense of viewing the house. Once inside, they slit her throat and tried to rob her. Carroll, who lost 40% of her blood, survived.
Kehoe, sentenced to life in prison for smothering his two infant daughters in 1972, and Schwartz, who in 1973 murdered his ex-lover and her boyfriend, skipped parole months prior. Nobody had been entrusted to find them.
Kehoe testified at their trial that Carroll's throat was slit in a struggle and the pair left her for dead because they were on lifetime parole and they didn't want to return to prison.
"I wasn't about to hang around with her with a stab wound in her neck," Kehoe testified. "I was afraid to call 911 because we would have been apprehended."
Another pointed reminder came in early 1997, when federal parolee Michael Hector executed three Thunder Bay men, two during a drug deal and another during a gas bar robbery.
After his release from federal prison on full parole in April 1995, Hector, 35, was monitored by the John Howard Society in Thunder Bay. A prison psychologist's warnings to keep Hector on a short string went unheeded and, in the six months prior to the slayings, Hector cancelled his marriage, ditched his fiancee, lost his business, went into debt, passed a string of fraudulent cheques, began drinking and using cocaine and worked as a bouncer in a strip bar.
These tragedies formed the background to Scott's $160,000 start-up grant for ROPE.
McAteer said he took to heart Scott's request that he use some of the funding to help develop a national strategy. But within a few months, Scott quit amid allegations of an indiscreet discussion of government business on an airline flight.
FUNDING VACUUM
Operating in a funding vacuum ever since, the ROPE squad has nabbed 300 AWOL parolees and escapers, among them some of the most dangerous and violent criminals in Canada.
"We are involved with the hard-core guys," says McAteer. "The robbers, the rapists, the killers. These guys are the shooters, the violent ones."
Last month, the ROPE squad got more than it bargained for when it arrested John Keith Sergeant, 26, a violent robber who skipped federal parole in March, only one month after he was freed from prison. After numerous break-ins, Sergeant, his friend Lucas Day and two women were arrested June 7 after their rented truck was boxed in by ROPE officers in a high-risk takedown.
Police found a loaded pistol in the car and another loaded gun in one woman's purse. Day was later charged with first-degree murder in the death of a man at a Toronto nightclub.
The ROPE squad also arrested Stephen Pak, the leader of an Asian crime gang, who went underground after his early release. He, too, was arrested with guns and ammunition.
Last August, a Niagara police officer escaped death when a bullet fired through the window of a van fleeing a St. Catharines bank robbery deflected off his cruiser's windshield.
Two parolees, Maciej Sitarz, 29, and Ed Roncetti, 35, both of Toronto, were arrested by an OPP tactical team two weeks later while hiding on a boat at a Penetanguishene marina. Police found two bulletproof vests and tens of thousands of dollars in cash.
The ROPE squad also probed Tyronne Conn, a career criminal serving a total 47-year sentence and the first prisoner in 40 years to escape Kingston Penitentiary. Conn was suspected of a gunpoint bank robbery in Colborne, Ont. and thought to be planning others when he was tracked to a Toronto residence. During negotiations Conn shot himself.
CAME BACK FOR MURDER
The ROPE squad was on the trail of wayward parolee Anthony Alfred Williams, 35, last February after he fled to Montreal, but lack of manpower sidelined the chase. Two months later, Williams returned to Toronto, kidnapped his ex-wife and killed her and himself in a car in Toronto.
"I can't change the past … but I suggest that if we had a stronger unit in place we may have had a chance at taking Williams off the street," says McAteer.
The squad, now overseen by Insp. Mike Federico and expanded to include two officers from York Regional Police, was recognized at the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference with an award for quality in enforcement.
Despite the taint last year when two members were charged with alleged misappropriation of informant money, the squad has gained strength.
Toronto Police Chief Julian Fantino has unreserved support for ROPE.
Fantino says he takes a "great deal of pride" in the unit's successes and considers it an "innovative and resourceful" law enforcement tool.
"I've always felt that if we are more strategic and focused in what we do to fight crime then crime would be reduced," says Fantino, who committed York officers to the squad prior to his Toronto appointment this year.
"We turn out so many people from our prisons and jails who are clearly high-profile in criminal propensity and many of these individuals go off the tracks," he says.
PLANS FOR 40-MAN FORCE
The plan for an Ontario-wide expansion has been on the drawing board for the past year and has been submitted in draft forms to the federal and provincial governments.
It seeks financing for a 40-man force which would reach across Ontario, split into five teams of six detectives, three teams for the north, west and east of the province, and two for Greater Toronto.
The proposal calls for the squad to be based in Toronto and spearheaded by Toronto Police, not only because both the current project and the future proposal are Toronto initiatives, but also because 416 of 573 offenders who are currently sought for parole breaches are believed to be in the GTA.
But the federal and the provincial governments have not announced support for the initiative or given funding.
Federal Solicitor-General Lawrence MacAulay has had the Toronto proposal in his lap for a year. Toronto officials met with MacAulay and Correctional Services Canada Commissioner Ole Ingstrup, but there has been no response.
Victims' advocate Sullivan stresses neither Ottawa nor Ontario should rely on the other to deal with the issue and they should both come to the table.
Ontario's procrastination could be due to an alleged attempt by OPP officials to wrest control of any squad with a province-wide jurisdiction.
Fantino refuses to get into any "Toronto Police Services versus OPP rhetoric." He said: "Our intent is to do the right thing for the right reasons.
"The greater public good calls for, demands, we do this right. It is our duty to get the appropriate outcome. This is not an us-versus-them kind of deal. We all have to sit down and talk."
Parole sources say only a small portion of close to 600 AWOL provincial and federal parolees reside in OPP territory.
In addition, Toronto Police have reminded the government that 36 of Ontario's 41 jails are within the boundaries of municipal police forces.
ROPE squad boss Federico says Toronto would be the logical base for any unit because the city has by far the largest number of failed parolees and escapees, parole offices and is big enough with sufficient transient housing to hide fugitives.
Federico foresees a Toronto-based ROPE-style force which could "give an immediate response across Ontario." The officers would offer either direct intervention or indirect support to municipal forces.
Federico says he is encouraged by the public statements of Sampson and Solicitor-General David Tsubouchi, and is optimistic the federal government will support the proposal.
The current ROPE team — Federico, McAteer, and detectives Doug Ducharme, Wayne Ward, Greg Higgins and secretary Sandy Stirzaker, continue to catch fugitives and improve their performance through training, some of it with FBI specialists in the U.S.
WYD [World Youth Day] is bigger, better and far cheaper than the Olympics. WYD 2002 was Toronto's finest hour.
— Father Raymond J. De Souza, July 26, 2012, National Post
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Single Tax System
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Molson Rocks for Toronto
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Damar Hamlin live-tweets through an amazing NFL day in his honor
The 24-year-old Bills safety cheered on his teammates from his hospital room, and announced his latest charity initiative, as well
Share All sharing options for: Damar Hamlin live-tweets through an amazing NFL day in his honor
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin spent his Sunday afternoon doing what the rest of Bills Mafia was doing: tweeting about the Bills game. Considering what he's been through in the past week, that in and of itself is very much worth celebrating.
And celebrate it, his Bills teammates and the rest of the NFL did: Hamlin's presence was ubiquitous across league broadcasts all day, but particularly in Orchard Park, NY, where the Bills defeated the New England Patriots, 35-23, to secure the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs.
Here's a quick little rundown of Hamlin's day on Twitter.
Bills-Patriots kickoff
Hamlin shared a picture of himself and his parents before the game from his room at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he remains in critical condition after going into cardiac arrest less than a full week ago. He was decked out in the same "Love for Damar" gear that the entire league wore to honor the 24-year-old on Sunday.
GAMETIME!!! @BuffaloBills pic.twitter.com/PQYClonUHb
— (@HamlinIsland) January 8, 2023
Nyheim Hines opening kickoff touchdown return
In a surreal moment straight out of cinema, Bills running back Nyheim Hines fielded the opening kickoff of their Week 18 game — the first live snap the team had played since Hamlin's injury — and promptly returned it 96 yards for a touchdown. Hamlin was truly one of us in his reaction to the play.
OMFG!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FREE HINES @TheNyNy7
A bit later on during the first half, the Bills noted that Hines' return touchdown was the first for the team in three years and three months — nodding toward Hamlin's No. 3 jersey.
God Behind All This No Coincidence..3⃣ https://t.co/J2dCVv4VBN
Dawson Knox touchdown reception
At the beginning of the second quarter, Bills quarterback Josh Allen made time in the pocket and found tight end Dawson Knox for a four-yard touchdown to give the Bills a 14-7 lead. As he celebrated his score, Knox quickly found a CBS camera, threw three fingers up, formed his hands into Hamlin's signature heart, and told Hamlin that the team loved him.
Hamlin replied almost immediately.
I love you too @dawson_knox
Tre'Davious White intercepts Mac Jones
At the start of the second half, with the Patriots driving deep into Bills territory, cornerback Tre'Davious White made a play on a fade route and intercepted quarterback Mac Jones to snuff out the scoring attempt. It was White's first interception in more than a calendar year, in his sixth game since returning to the lineup following an ACL tear.
White is one of Buffalo's veteran leaders in the secondary, and Hamlin was clearly thrilled to see White get back to his play-making ways.
T WEEZY!!!! WELCOME BACK 27!!!
Nyheim Hines returns another kickoff for a touchdown
Unbelievably, the Bills took the lead for good in this game when Hines — following a Nick Folk field goal that gave the Patriots a 17-14 lead — took a kickoff 101 yards for his second return touchdown of the game. That return kick-started a 17-6 Bills scoring run to close out the game, and Hines would tell reporters after the game that Hamlin was among the players in recent special teams meetings predicting a break-out performance in the return game.
HINES FREE
Stefon Diggs, Matt Milano, and Tremaine Edmunds close it out
After the Patriots scored a touchdown (missing a two-point conversion) to cut Buffalo's lead to 28-23 early in the fourth quarter, the Bills put their foot on the gas pedal and closed the game out in style. Allen hit Stefon Diggs for a 49-yard score to extend the lead to 35-23, and after the Bills fumbled a punt to give the Patriots possession in their territory, linebackers Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds recorded interceptions on back-to-back New England possessions to put the game on ice. Hamlin shared his excitement for all three big plays.
14. The biggest of the biggest. ❤
Ⓜatt Ⓜilano
BIG Ⓜaine!! @maine_savage23
Giving back to UC Medical Center
In typical Hamlin fashion, after the final whistle blew on the Bills' victory, Hamlin used the moment to give back. He released a new t-shirt and announced that all proceeds from the sale of the shirt would be given to first responders at the UC Trauma Center — some of the very people who helped to save his life, and help him recover all of his faculties, over the past week.
We all won .
I want to give back an ounce of the love y'all showed me. Proceeds of this shirt will go to first-responders and the UC Trauma Center.
Go get yours!https://t.co/YoDbBo6bzs pic.twitter.com/BQ6HHv5woF
What a day it was for Bills fans, and it was genuinely amazing knowing that Damar Hamlin experienced all of it right alongside us. We continue to send all of the positive vibes to Damar, his family, and the Bills organization as his recovery continues.
Buffalo Rumblings Post Game Call-In Show: Week 18


Content is king. And, well… queen too. Always has been and always will be. It's how you spread your word and brand, and it's one of the crucial ways to attract new business and keep ongoing business engaged.
So if you are producing great content and sharing it via your networks, clients and to the world in general you have a better chance of establishing yourself and your business as leaders in your industry.
Without content no-one knows who you are and what you do. You are essentially silent.
A great content strategy can generate quality leads and build your brand profile.
1. Understand what content is. Content can be a blog/article piece, a video, a picture or even a quote. Content comes in many forms, not just the written form. Analyse what visual content you can create and share to your audience. Images of products, sure, if you're marketing tangible things. But also images and video of successful events and activities if you are supplying professional services.
2. What is your USP … your Unique Selling Proposition? What are you the best at doing? Before considering generating content, you need to know what separates you from the rest. Why are you so good at what you do? What is your brand, niche or area of specialty (and premium customer service is not an option – everyone says that!) Identify your USP and then market it to the max.
3. What content do you have already? You may not realize that you already have produced content … or your employees may have. Do you have videos or have you been featured in the local paper or a national blog? Have you written a speech for an event? Have you produced industry overviews or updates for internal use? This is all content you can use in your strategy.
4. Channels to share your content. Where can you share this content? Options included your current client database, contact database, all your social media channels including LinkedIn and partner sites too. That is, people who are willing to share your content as it adds value to their clients also. Analyse the opportunities to collaborate on content with other brands that dovetail with yours. For instance, if you are a florist, partner with wedding planners.
5. 12 month plan. Put together a very simple 12 month plan with a theme for each month for content sharing. The more prepared you are to generate and share content the more likely it will happen. For example, a day of filming videos can produce enough content for six months. Add to that six articles and you have 12 months of content ready. And don't see your plan as set in concrete… a plan should be a living tool, so review it every month.
6. Get professional help. Just like anything that goes out with your brand attached to it you need to have the right people involved. If you are filming then make sure you are using a professional videographer, if you are writing articles make sure they are being reviewed by an editor. You have one chance to impress or turn someone off your brand. Don't blow it.
If you need help with building the best content strategy for your particular brand, give me a buzz.


Kumari Anshu (PhD Scholar) presented the paper by Moorman and Aston-Jones from the Journal of Neuroscience entitled "Orbitofrontal Cortical Neurons Encode Expectation-Driven Initiation of Reward-Seeking"
Adaptive execution and inhibition of behavior are guided by the activity of neuronal populations across multiple frontal cortical areas. The rodent medial prefrontal cortex has been well studied with respect to these behaviors, influencing behavioral execution/inhibition based on context. Other frontal regions, in particular the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), are critical in directing behavior to obtain rewards, but the relationship between OFC neuronal activity and response execution or inhibition has been poorly characterized. In particular, little is known about OFC with respect to extinction learning, an important example of context-guided response inhibition. Here, we recorded the activity of OFC neurons while rats performed a discriminative-stimulus (DS)-driven sucrose-seeking task followed by multiple days of extinction of the DS. OFC neuronal activity was maximally responsive (1) to reward-predicting stimuli (RS) that triggered a lever press (i.e., lever-response initiation) and (2) during reward-well approach in pursuit of sucrose (i.e., well-response initiation). RS presentation that was not followed by a lever press or RS presentation during extinction produced weak activation, as did nonrewarded stimulus (NS) presentation regardless of response (press or withhold) or session (DS-sucrose or extinction). Activity related to nonrewarded well entry was minor, and activity was significantly inhibited during reward consumption. Finally, OFC neuronal activity switched selectivity to track rewarded behaviors when the RS/NS contingencies were reversed. Thus, rather than signaling variables related to extinction or response inhibition, activity in OFC was strongest at the initiation of multiple components of reward-seeking behavior, most prominently when valid reward-predicting cues drove these behaviors.


oThe immediate jeopardy was called when the facility failed to protect a resident from physically and verbally being abused by a staff member.
oThe immediate jeopardy was called when a CNA provided care in an intimidating, physically and verbally abusive manner to residents and was intimidating and verbally abusive to another resident.
•F608 (1time) IJ/SSQC – Reporting of Reasonable Suspicion of a Crime for failure of the facility to ensure that a staff member who had knowledge of an incident of physical, verbal abuse and intimidation, immediately reported those concerns to the facility administrator for 4 or 6 residents.
•F609 (1 time) IJ/SSQC – Reporting of Alleged Violations for staff failure to report allegations of abuse to management resulting in the risk of physical and psychosocial harm for 6 of 9 residents with allegations of abuse.
•F610 (1 time) IJ/SSQC – Investigate/Prevent/Correct Alleged Violation for failing to thoroughly investigation allegations of physical and verbal abuse, resulting in a left shoulder and wrist sprain for a resident.
•F679 (1 times) SSQC – Activities Meet Interest/Needs Each Resident for failure to ensure resident were provided with activities designed to meet their interest and their physical mental, and psychosocial well-being.
oFailure to ensure an effective intervention was in place to prevent elopements for 7 or 7 residents.
oFailure to prevent the elopement of cognitively impaired resident whose whereabouts were unknown from 7pm to 7:15 pm.
oFailure to provide supervision, safety interventions, and monitor for reoccurrence of self-harm for a resident with known behaviors of wrapping a call light cord around their neck.
•F698 (1 time) IJ/SSQC – Dialysis for failure to provide immediate assessment and care to a resident in an emergency resulting in excessive bleeding and death.
oFailure to ensure a resident was provided care to prevent the development of multiple state 2 to stage 4 pressure ulcers due to the resident being left on a bed-pan for an undetermined amount of time.
oFailed to provide wound care to the pressure ulcers as ordered by the physician.
oFailed to notify the physician of wound changes and implement interventions to prevent the development of pressure areas to right buttock of a resident. The left heel worsened from a deep tissue injury to an unstageable pressure ulcer and development of a heel pressure ulcer.
oFailure to ensure a resident with pressure sores received necessary treatment and services to promote healing.
•Failure to provide the care and treatment to a stage 2 pressure ulcer to prevent worsening to an unstageable, larger wound.
oFailure to provide adequate supervision to a severely cognitively impaired resident ot prevent falls for 1 of 3 residents. This practice resulted in the resident falling and sustaining a fractured left hip that required surgical intervention.
oFailure to provide supervision and appropriate assistive devices (wheel chair) to a cognitively impaired resident who required extensive assistance with all transfers. This resulted in the resident falling and being transferred to the hospital emergency room and admitted to the hospital with a left side fractured rib.
oFailure to prevent a fall. This resulted in a subarachnoid hemorrhage (bleeding in a space between the brain and tissue covering the brain), failed to ensure an intervention was in place for previsions fall, and failed to complete a full investigation for a resident.
•F684 (1 time) -- Quality of Care for failure to ensure residents received treatment to a diabetic ulcer per the physician orders. A culture was missed.
•F658 (1 time) -- Services Provided Meet Professional Standards for failure to ensure a comprehensive assessment and care plan reflected a safe transfer process. This deficiency resulted in a resident sustaining a tibia/fibula fracture on the right leg during a transfer.
•F692 (1 time) – Nutrition/Hydration Status Maintenance for failure to comprehensively assess residents' weight loss and update weight loss care plan interventions to ensure residents maintained acceptable parameters of nutritional status. This deficient practice resulted in severe weight loss and abnormal labs over a 30-day period.
Please direct your questions or request for assistance to ldavenport@ihca.org.


As the time passes, we get tangled between the hassles of our life, career and family. There is no denying that the only thing ignored amid this is our own self. The lifestyle we have these days consists only of pollution, stress and harmful factor. So in such a situation even a girl in her 20s suffer from pigmentation, fine lines, sagging, skin darkening, etc and needs anti aging products to protect skin from damaging after effects later in life. I can't stress much about its need for ladies who are in their 30s or above. I've compiled a list of Top 10 anti ageing creams which are available in Indian market. Ready to take your pick girls? Let's move on to the anti ageing creams list.
Clinique has taken up a unique step by providing two variants of one product according to skin type. It has one product for Dry skin (SPF 20) and another one for oily skin (SPF 25). Purchase one according to your requirement and skin type. It leaves skin shiny, soft and silky but if you'll apply makeup on it, it won't feel oily. Only the price hurts, but you shouldn't hesitate while splurging on your skincare. Right? Quite a favourite among anti ageing lovers.
So these are the top anti ageing creams available in India. The prices are a bit high but who said anti ageing came cheap? Most of all, you can not cure ageing completely, its a natural process. All you can do is slow it down and delay it by use of these creams and lotions.
Which is your favourite Anti Ageing cream? Share your reviews with us.
Shreya recently posted…Nach Baliye Season 7 Jodis & Judges Revealed !
Good ones but most of them seem expensive. I have tried an anti ageing cream from the brand Avon which was priced around INR 600 2 years back and I really liked it.
May you suggest best Anti Aging cream for men?
This is so helpful. I have a combination skin, can I use pond"s age miracle or if you can suggest something better ?
You have researched a lot and gave your opinion. I also found one more article about anti aging. They have also written well after research and convince me. I am confused between all these products. I am mentioning that article below.
This is also one of the best anti aging cream in India by Mitchell. You can surely try ordering it online.
Great compilation . Most of these are easily available.
Currently I am using IMIANA HOUSE IMBOTOX anti aging moisturizer as a night cream and it working great for me.


Description - Our 3.2mm custom cut rubber underlayment is a millimeter thicker than our 2mm roll, but offers a greater amount of sound reduction comparatively. Rubber underlayments are very popular with hard surfaces, due to the fact that rubber is more rigid, and provide the firmness necessary to resist compression from heavy objects and foot traffic. Our underlayment is also mold and mildew resistant due to the addition of a antimicrobial additive which inhibits the growth of both. Our flooring underlayment also doesn't hold water, which allows for installation of the underlayment without a vapor barrier. But if the flooring will be installed in an area where water may be present, then a vapor barrier would be required. Also a vapor barrier may be needed per the manufacturer's warranty. This sound proofing underlayment is also very popular with our Grid-Loc and Modular tiles due to the fact that it is very thin and helps to reduce the noise that can be made from them. So if you are looking for an underlayment that is affordable but at the same time gives you good sound absorption, then this is the product for you.
Material - Our 3.2mm custom cut rubber underlayment is comprised of more than 85% recycled material.


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Poroshenko in Washington: A Review from the U.S. | VoxUkraine
By Volodymyr Lytvynenkoon September 14, 2019 in Geopolitics
The question for Kyiv is whether its value will be that of a piece in someone else's game or that of an independent actor, delivering real results and real progress
Petro Poroshenko's visit to Washington was, on the whole, positive for his country. The Ukrainian President and his delegation reinforced their relationships with senior U.S. officials and laid the groundwork for some expanded cooperation. The visuals, however, could have been better. It was difficult to avoid the impression that Poroshenko was playing a secondary character in a larger drama. That said, the entire trip demonstrated that the Trump Administration does value Ukraine; the question for Kyiv is whether its value will be that of a piece in someone else's game or that of an independent actor, delivering real results and real progress.
Poroshenko speaks to Ukrainian-Americans in front of the Holodomor Memorial in Washington, D.C. Source: Twitter.
Poroshenko at the White House
The uncertainty surrounding the Trump-Poroshenko meeting began June 14 when Ukrainian media reported that the two leaders would meet in Washington. Foreign Minister Klimkin confirmed the meeting the following day. However, the White House had only announced that Poroshenko was meeting with Vice President Pence. As late as June 19, the day before the meeting was set to take place, Press Secretary Sean Spicer said only, "if I have any updates on the President's schedule, I'll let you know later today." The White House did not announce that Poroshenko and Trump were meeting until just after 10:00 PM the night before. Taras Berezovets, a Ukrainian political analyst, writes that the meeting was not announced until the last minute because the Trump Administration "dedicates little time to diplomatic etiquette [мало часу приділяє дипломатичному етикету]." But The Guardian reported that Trump was reluctant to accept the meeting in the first place.
This means that Poroshenko boarded his plane for the United States before the meeting was confirmed — a risky decision. It would be embarrassing for any foreign head of state to visit Washington without meeting the U.S. President. It is possible Poroshenko hoped Trump's advisers would push him to take the meeting: senior White House officials knew that they could not risk shaking the Administration's fragile standing with Congress, where Ukraine's interests have long enjoyed bipartisan support.
At 10:30 AM on Tuesday, June 20, President Poroshenko met with Vice President Mike Pence. The two agreed on the need for a peaceful resolution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine and the need to implement key reforms. According to the White House readout of the meeting, "the Vice President highlighted continuing U.S. support for the Normandy Format negotiations to implement the Minsk agreements and stressed the importance of continued reforms to fight corruption, improve the business climate, and keep Ukraine's International Monetary Fund program on track."
In what Foreign Policy called "a remarkably low key meeting," Poroshenko and Pence walked over to the Oval Office to "drop in" on President Trump and H.R. McMaster, his National Security Adviser. At 11:09 AM, the Trump-Poroshenko joint appearance began. It was over by 11:11 AM. President Trump spoke first, saying that it was "a great honor" to be with President Poroshenko and that Ukraine was "a place that we've all been very much involved in." He added that he believed "a lot of progress had been made." Poroshenko, in turn, said that Donald Trump was "one of the most reliable supporters [and] strategic partners for Ukraine." He added that Ukraine was "a story of success" for which he was proud to have President Trump and the United States "as a co-sponsor."
Petro Poroshenko and Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House. Source: White House youtube account.
Neither Trump nor Poroshenko mentioned Russian aggression during their joint appearance; nor did they discuss any plans or ideas to trade Crimea for Donbas, according to a Facebook post by Iryna Gerashchenko, the first deputy Chair of Ukraine's Parliament. She writes that the Trump-Poroshenko discussion lasted 30 minutes, in an apparent reference to a private meeting. The Ukrainian TV network TSN reported that a one-on-one meeting between the two heads of state did not occur. Poroshenko's statement says that his conversation with Trump was "long and meaningful," and that Trump "expressed support for Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence… [and] for Ukraine in the issue of countering Russian aggression."
The tone and appearance of Poroshenko's time in the White House was so strange that Foreign Policy wrote "the optics of the meeting are sure to be the focus of the visit." The absence of a joint statement or a formal press conference was surprising. Though subdued meetings for foreign heads of state have happened, they are very rare in the Trump Administration. When visiting the White House earlier this month, the presidents of Romania and Panama each stood beside President Trump for joint press conferences, even though Romania and Panama's combined population is less than half of Ukraine's. For Poroshenko, the fanfare-less meeting was a stark departure from his previous treatment, having been formally welcomed to the White House in the past by both President Obama and Vice President Biden. Poroshenko and Obama's first joint press conference lasted twelve minutes. And of course, Poroshenko's reception at the White House also invites comparison with Trump's jovial meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Kislyak.
Following the Trump meeting, Poroshenko gave what appeared to be an impromptu press conference on the street in front of the White House. A number of bloggers speculated about the origins of the coffee table. Poroshenko thanked the Trump Administration for its support of Ukraine before driving off to the next meeting.
Poroshenko gives an apparently impromptu press conference on the street in front of the White House. Source: Facebook of Iryna Gerashchenko.
Further Meetings in Washington
In addition to the White House meetings, the Ukrainian delegation also met with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and his senior staff. Poroshenko, receiving full honors, sang along to the Ukrainian National Anthem as it played. During their joint appearance, Poroshenko expressed his appreciation for the Pentagon's support of Ukraine's military and his hopes for further cooperation. He also highlighted that Ukraine spends 6% of its GDP on defense, while the U.S. has been trying to get its NATO allies to reach the 2% goal.
Secretary Mattis gave Poroshenko a picture of the two of them, the frame inscribed with the words, "From One Patriot to Another — With Respect." Mattis, widely respected in the United States, said that Ukraine and the U.S. share a "commitment [to] the principles underlying the international order. Words like sovereignty, territorial integrity and freedom from coercion come to mind." He praised Ukraine's ability to defend itself "against all odds" and "in the face of dangers from aggression, cyber attacks, [and] a neighbor shredding trust." On the issue of whether or not the United States will provide Ukraine with lethal defensive weapons, a Pentagon spokesperson said, "We don't rule out the option of doing so in the future." Regarding U.S. sanctions on Russia, the spokesperson said that they will "remain in place until Moscow reverses the actions that triggered [them]."
Source: Facebook of Svyatoslav Tsegolko
At the Department of State (the U.S. equivalent of a ministry of foreign affairs), Poroshenko and Secretary Rex Tillerson "coordinated positions as regards termination [sic] of Russian aggression in Donbas and return of Crimea [співрозмовники скоординували позиції щодо припинення російської агресії на Донбасі та повернення Криму]," according to a statement from Poroshenko's administration. The statement added that "the U.S. Secretary of State also confirmed preservation of sanctions against Russia until full restoration of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity [Держсекретар США підтвердив збереження санкцій проти Росії до повного відновлення суверенітету і територіальної цілісності України]."
Poroshenko and Secretary Tillerson's joint appearance was brief and stilted. Each thanked the other for the meeting, then one journalist posed a general question about Russia to Tillerson, who responded only with "We're in discussions." That was the end of the joint appearance. In the past, however, the State Department has been fuller in its comments. Speaking in Belgium on March 31, Secretary Tillerson said that "Russia's aggression against Ukraine shook the very foundations of security and stability in Europe. Today, Russia's ongoing hostility and occupation is compromising our shared vision of a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace… The United States sanctions will remain until Moscow reverses the actions that triggered our sanctions." And in the past, Department spokespersons have reiterated "that sanctions will remain in place until Russia returns control of the Crimean peninsula to Ukraine and fully implements its commitments in the Minsk agreements."
The Ukrainian delegation also had meetings with the Secretary of Commerce, where the parties discussed developing bilateral trade; and the Secretary of Energy, with whom Poroshenko discussed cooperation on nuclear energy, hydrocarbons, renewables, and — very cleverly — the U.S. coal exports to Ukraine. Poroshenko's meeting with Christine LaGarde, managing director of the IMF, led Timothy Ash to suspect that the IMF might soften its position on pension reform, land reform, and other structural changes that need to be made before the IMF releases the next tranche to Ukraine.
One of the most important meetings for Poroshenko, however, was with Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Following the meeting, Ryan issued a statement saying it was a "privilege" to welcome Poroshenko and that Congressional support for Ukraine transcends party lines because the U.S.-Ukrainian relationship "is critical to our national security and our shared values." Ryan says that he and Poroshenko "discussed ways to build on this partnership and counter threats posed to both of our nations by Russia." Speaker Ryan also said that he supports "additional sanctions," which Iryna Gerashchenko interpreted to mean "the necessity of increasing sanctions against Russia until full implementation of the Minsk agreements, as well as restoration of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including Crimea." It is more likely that Ryan was suggesting that the House would pass some additional sanctions against Russia for its interventions, and not that sanctions would be continuously increased until Ukraine's grievances were all addressed.
Poroshenko and his senior staff meet with Chief Deputy Whip Patrick McHenry, Speaker Paul Ryan, and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (left to right).
Political Context in Washington
Poroshenko's meeting with House leadership was particularly important because Congress is currently considering a sanctions bill against the Kremlin that passed the Senate 97 votes to 2. The bill would prevent the Administration from lifting sanctions levied against Russian entities if Congress disapproved. Ukraine strongly supports this legislation, even though some analysts point out that if the restrictions make it nearly impossible to lift sanctions, Russia would lose its primary incentive to dial back the Donbas War. Currently, the Administration is free to lift the sanctions for any reason, and on June 21 the Department of State announced once more that the sanctions "will remain in place until Russia fully honors its obligations under the Minsk Agreements."
In fact, this is why some argue that Poroshenko was playing a secondary role in a larger, U.S. political drama. Most Presidential administrations are opposed to having their hands tied by legislation that codifies sanctions, and Trump's is no exception. This would be consistent with Trump seeking to relieve Congressional pressure regarding Russia by meeting with Poroshenko and by instituting further sanctions, announced a few hours before the meeting. These sanctions are not particularly substantial, but instead are part of a series of moves that are likely designed to demonstrate to Congress that Trump is tough on Russia and that there is no need codify the Russia sanctions.
Russia remains a toxic theme for the Trump Administration. The Trump campaign is being investigated for possible collusion with Russia, which if true would likely bring down the Administration. In addition, it is likely that Trump is under investigation for obstructing that investigation by firing FBI Director Comey. The Administration has said that although the Trump Administration seeks better relations with Russia, progress in that direction is impeded by the Kremlin's actions in Ukraine. Ukraine, therefore, provides a useful opportunity for Trump to demonstrate his toughness on Russia.
In fact, Tillerson is leading a behind-the-scenes effort to get the United States more involved in the Donbas War negotiations. He is expected the appoint a special envoy who will communicate directly with Vladislav Surkov, a top aide to President Putin. German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters in March that she supports opening such a communications channel. One Western diplomat told Buzzfeed, "If you want to pressure the Russians, you need the Americans on board."
All in all, Ukraine's delegation appeared to be playing the role of a piece in this game. Trump does not want to be restricted by the sanctions bill being considered by the House, so he is attempting to demonstrate his engagement on Ukraine by getting serious on Russia. By meeting with Poroshenko, slightly increasing sanctions, and exploring an increased role in the Donbas-related negotiations, the Trump Administration is trying to keep doors open for its cooperation with Russia. If Trump wanted to silence his critics, he would provide Ukraine with lethal weapons; by relieving some pressure, this move might allow him to proceed on issues against Ukraine's interest. It does not appear that Ukrainian officials take this into account.
In the end, Poroshenko's trip to Washington was successful because he was able to reassure himself and his country of American support. Ukraine and the United States will likely nominally increase their economic and defense-sector cooperation, and some U.S. cabinet secretaries are likely to visit Ukraine in the coming months. Moreover, the Ukrainians — and Congress — were repeatedly assured that the Trump Administration has no interest in lifting the Russia sanctions until the Kremlin complies with its Minsk II obligations. As Svitlana Zalishchuk wrote, it may be possible that this "hybrid visit will bring the end of the hybrid war that much closer [гібридний візит зміг наблизити гібридну війну до її завершення]."
Media surrounding Poroshenko and Trump. Source: Facebook of Iryna Gerashchenko.
Volodymyr Lytvynenko
Volodymyr Lytvynenko has been a reporter on the news desk since 2013. Before that she wrote about young adolescence and family dynamics for Styles and was the legal affairs correspondent for the nv.ua. Before joining The 102. international, Volodymyr Lytvynenko worked as a staff writer at the Apostroph and a freelancer for Korespondent, Segodnya.ua.
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v8

Platform

Public Types |
Public Member Functions |
List of all members

v8::Platform Class Referenceabstract

#include <v8-platform.h>

Public Types

enum  	ExpectedRuntime { kShortRunningTask,
kLongRunningTask
 }

Public Member Functions

virtual void 	CallOnBackgroundThread (Task *task, ExpectedRuntime expected_runtime)=0

virtual void 	CallOnForegroundThread (Isolate *isolate, Task *task)=0

virtual void 	CallDelayedOnForegroundThread (Isolate *isolate, Task *task, double delay_in_seconds)=0

virtual void 	CallIdleOnForegroundThread (Isolate *isolate, IdleTask *task)

virtual bool 	IdleTasksEnabled (Isolate *isolate)

virtual double 	MonotonicallyIncreasingTime ()=0

Detailed Description

V8 Platform abstraction layer.

The embedder has to provide an implementation of this interface before initializing the rest of V8.

Member Enumeration Documentation

          enum v8::Platform::ExpectedRuntime

This enum is used to indicate whether a task is potentially long running, or causes a long wait. The embedder might want to use this hint to decide whether to execute the task on a dedicated thread.

Member Function Documentation

          virtual void v8::Platform::CallDelayedOnForegroundThread
          (
          Isolate *
          isolate,

          Task *
          task,

          double
          delay_in_seconds

          )

pure virtual

Schedules a task to be invoked on a foreground thread wrt a specific |isolate| after the given number of seconds |delay_in_seconds|. Tasks posted for the same isolate should be execute in order of scheduling. The definition of "foreground" is opaque to V8.

          virtual void v8::Platform::CallIdleOnForegroundThread
          (
          Isolate *
          isolate,

          IdleTask *
          task

          )

inlinevirtual

Schedules a task to be invoked on a foreground thread wrt a specific |isolate| when the embedder is idle. Requires that SupportsIdleTasks(isolate) is true. Idle tasks may be reordered relative to other task types and may be starved for an arbitrarily long time if no idle time is available. The definition of "foreground" is opaque to V8.

          virtual void v8::Platform::CallOnBackgroundThread
          (
          Task *
          task,

          ExpectedRuntime
          expected_runtime

          )

pure virtual

Schedules a task to be invoked on a background thread. |expected_runtime| indicates that the task will run a long time. The Platform implementation takes ownership of |task|. There is no guarantee about order of execution of tasks wrt order of scheduling, nor is there a guarantee about the thread the task will be run on.

          virtual void v8::Platform::CallOnForegroundThread
          (
          Isolate *
          isolate,

          Task *
          task

          )

pure virtual

Schedules a task to be invoked on a foreground thread wrt a specific |isolate|. Tasks posted for the same isolate should be execute in order of scheduling. The definition of "foreground" is opaque to V8.

          virtual bool v8::Platform::IdleTasksEnabled
          (
          Isolate *
          isolate	)

inlinevirtual

Returns true if idle tasks are enabled for the given |isolate|.

          virtual double v8::Platform::MonotonicallyIncreasingTime
          (
          	)

pure virtual

Monotonically increasing time in seconds from an arbitrary fixed point in the past. This function is expected to return at least millisecond-precision values. For this reason, it is recommended that the fixed point be no further in the past than the epoch.

The documentation for this class was generated from the following file:

deps/v8/include/v8-platform.h

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