Clinton could face mounting problem with health overhaul
WASHINGTON (AP) — With the hourglass running out for his administration, President Barack Obama's health care law is struggling in many parts of the country. Double-digit premium increases and exits by big-name insurers have caused some to wonder whether "Obamacare" will go down as a failed experiment.
If Democrat Hillary Clinton wins the White House, expect her to mount a rescue effort. But how much Clinton could do depends on finding willing partners in Congress and among Republican governors, a real political challenge.
"There are turbulent waters," said Kathleen Sebelius, Obama's first secretary of Health and Human Services. "But do I see this as a death knell? No."
FILE - In this May 2, 2016 file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton listens to Dr. Christopher Beckett, CEO of Williamson Health and Wellness Center during a tour an exam room of the facility in Williamson, W.Va. With the hourglass running out for his administration, President Barack Obama¿s health care law is struggling in many parts of the country. Double-digit premium increases and exits by big-name insurers have caused some to wonder whether ¿Obamacare¿ will go down as a failed experiment. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Next year's health insurance sign-up season starts a week before the Nov. 8 election, and the previews have been brutal. Premiums are expected to go up sharply in many insurance marketplaces, which offer subsidized private coverage to people lacking access to job-based plans.
At the same time, retrenchment by insurers that have lost hundreds of millions of dollars means that more areas will become one-insurer markets, losing the benefits of competition. The consulting firm Avalere Health projects that seven states will have only a single insurer in each of their marketplace regions next year.
Administration officials say insurers set prices too low in a bid to gain market share, and the correction is leading to sticker shock. Insurers blame the problems on sicker-than-expected customers, disappointing enrollment and a premium stabilization system that failed to work as advertised. They also say some people are gaming the system, taking advantage of guaranteed coverage to get medical care only when they are sick.
Not all state markets are in trouble. What is more important, most of the 11 million people covered through HealthCare.gov and its state-run counterparts will be cushioned from premium increases by government subsidies that rise with the cost.
But many customers may have to switch to less comprehensive plans to keep their monthly premiums down. And millions of people who buy individual policies outside the government marketplaces get no financial help. They will have to pay the full increases or go without coverage and risk fines. (People with employer coverage and Medicare are largely unaffected.)
Tennessee's insurance commissioner said recently that the individual health insurance market in her state is "very near collapse." Premiums for the biggest insurer are expected to increase by an average of 62 percent. Two competitors will post average increases of 46 percent and 44 percent.
But because the spigot of federal subsidies remains wide open, an implosion of health insurance markets around the country seems unlikely. More than 8 out of 10 HealthCare.gov customers get subsidies covering about 70 percent of their total premiums. Instead, the damage is likely to be gradual. Rising premiums deter healthy people from signing up, leaving an insurance pool that's more expensive to cover each succeeding year.
"My real concern is 2018," said Caroline Pearson, a senior vice president with Avalere. "If there is no improvement in enrollment, we could see big sections of the country without any plans participating."
If Republican Donald Trump wins the White House, he'd start dismantling the Affordable Care Act. But Clinton would come with a long list of proposed fixes, from rearranging benefits to introducing a government-sponsored "public option" as an alternative to private insurers. Not all her ideas would require congressional action.
"She is going to find it important to continue to expand health care," said Joel Ario, a former Obama administration official who's now with the consulting firm Mannatt Health.
People in the Clinton camp say she recognizes that as president she'd have to get Obama's law working better, and is taking nothing off the table.
A look at some major ideas and their prospects:
PUBLIC OPTION
Clinton's primary rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, advocated "Medicare for all" and that pushed Clinton to a fuller embrace of government-run insurance. But Democrats could not get a public option through Congress even when they had undisputed control. Whichever party wins the Senate in November, the balance is expected to be close and Republicans are favored to retain control of the House.
While a new national insurance program seems a long shot, Obama's law allows states to experiment. "I think the public option is more likely to be tested at a state level," Sebelius said.
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SWEETENING SUBSIDIES
Clinton has proposed more generous subsidies and tax credits for health care, which might also entice more people to sign up. But she'd have a tough time selling Republicans. It may be doable in the bargaining around budget and tax bills, but Democrats would be pressed to give up some of the health law's requirements, including a premiums formula that tends to favor older people over young adults.
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INCREMENTAL CHANGES
Whether it's fixing a "family glitch" that can prevent dependents from getting subsidized coverage, requiring insurers to cover more routine services outside the annual deductible, or reworking the premium stabilization program for insurers, incremental changes seem to offer a president Clinton her easiest path.
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MEDICAID EXPANSION
Expect a Clinton White House to tirelessly court the 19 states that have yet to expand Medicaid for low-income people. She'd ask Congress to provide the same three full years of federal financing that early-adopting states got under the health law. GOP governors would demand more flexibility with program rules.
"I'm just hoping that reality begins to sink in when she is inaugurated," Sebelius said. "If the law is not going to go away, then let's make it work."
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WASHINGTON (AP) — With the hourglass running out for his administration, President Barack Obama's health care law is struggling in many parts of the country....


Clinton could face mounting problem with health overhaul


PANAJI: The educationists, teachers, representatives of the industry and members of the NGOs on Saturday participated in the consultative meet on the draft national education policy 2016 and came out with observations, which would now take the shape of recommendations, to be soon forwarded to the Union ministry of human resource development.
The one-day meet, jointly organised by Mushtifund Saunstha, Don Bosco, and Konkan Development Society, and held at the Mushtifund Saunstha auditorium in the city discussed early childhood care and education, school education – primary and secondary education, higher education, teacher development, curriculum and evaluation, skills in education and employability, open learning and adult education, and financing of education including public-private partnership.
Amit Narkar, the executive director of the National Centre for Advocacy Studies, who facilitated the deliberations among the stakeholders, in his address stated that the TSR Subramanian committee, constituted by the central government in 2015, for formulation of national education policy, submitted its report on April 30, 2016.
“However, the government neither made the report public, nor acknowledged that such a report existed,” Narkar added, pointing out that the report eventually leaked in May 2016, and the draft national educational policy 2016, released by the central government in July 2016, found in it many of the inputs from the TSR Subramanian committee report.
“The draft national educational policy is however vague in nature,” he remarked.
It was also informed that there are 13 themes pertaining to school education given in the draft national education policy 2016 for consultations, while 20 themes about higher education.
The last date to submit the recommendations to the Union HRD ministry is September 15, 2016.
Maintaining that the national education policy 2016 will decide the educational and developmental future of present and future generations of children and youth, and overall development of India, Narkar said the draft policy is manageable and readable, and is further concise and comprehensive. He however raised questions as to why the policy was initially not made available in Indian languages, and not released in print format.
Narkar said the draft policy has fairly progressive vision-mission and speaks about preparing ‘framework for action.’
“However, it erroneously equates ancient Indian education to vedic system, does not mention about National Curriculum Framework 2005, links education to India becoming world superpower, ignores social justice aspect, overemphasises on skills and vocational education thus restricting the youth to livelihood by sidelining the importance of higher education, dilutes Right to Education Act, and finally speaks about public-private partnership for financing education,” he observed.
“The national education policy 2016 should be seen in context of larger policy paradigm linked to Skill India, amendment to the Child Labour Act, and textile industry policy,” Narkar stated, predicting that 80 per cent of content on the draft national education policy would be retained in the final draft policy.

‘Draft national educational policy is vague in nature’


British tech champion ARM's sale to Japan's SoftBank wins shareholder nod
By Paul Sandle
LONDON, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Shareholders in British technology company ARM approved its sale to Japan's SoftBank on Tuesday, marking the end of independence for the chip designer that powered the smartphone revolution.
SoftBank swooped on the Apple supplier in July, agreeing to pay $32 billion in cash for a company that it hopes will remain at the forefront of digital innovation.
ARM said that more than 95 percent of the votes cast on Tuesday approved the takeover.
Seeking to win political backing and smooth the path for the deal, the Japanese company's charismatic leader Masayoshi Son spoke to British Prime Minister Theresa May shortly before the deal was announced to allay concerns that it would be bad for the British technology sector.
SoftBank, which is paying a 43 percent premium, has promised to at least double ARM's workforce in Britain over the next five years, keep its headquarters in Cambridge and retain its partnership-based business model and culture.
The commitments will be the first test of new takeover rules that make such pledges binding. The rules were introduced after Pfizer attempted to buy Britain's AstraZeneca in 2014.
ARM Chairman Stuart Chambers said that SoftBank's guarantees on jobs and investment were legal commitments, not merely "nice ideas and promises and intents".
"If you look at the post-offer undertakings that SoftBank has made, they are extremely strong, they are virtually unprecedented," he told Reuters after Tuesday's shareholder meeting in London.
Chief Executive Simon Segars, who will stay with the company, said that SoftBank shared ARM's long-term view on investment, including retaining and developing the engineers who were essential to ARM's success.
"We are not going anywhere, we are still going to be at the heart of British technology. We are growing globally because we are a global business," he said.
"This represents an exciting new chapter for ARM, and an ability to really grow and do everything we were doing and do more and do it faster."
Some remained unconvinced, however. Paul Myners, a former British financial services minister, said the sale was more evidence of the City's predilection to "sell at a reasonable premium, get out, don't invest for the future, don't back the British economy".
"This is a business that is at the heart of the ecosystem of modern technology, the internet of things, an area in which we lead," he told BBC radio on Tuesday, adding that it would not have been possible to sell ARM in 60 days had it been an American, German, French or Japanese company.


By Paul Sandle LONDON, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Shareholders in British technology company ARM approved its sale to Japan's SoftBank on Tuesday, marking the end of...


British tech champion ARM's sale to Japan's SoftBank wins shareholder nod


Avengers (NDA) rebel group announced this week it had called a ceasefire and was entering talks with the government, many hoped peace would be restored to the country’s oil belt.
If only it were so easy.
The NDA dominate the headlines, but behind the scenes, a groundswell of other groups have been claiming damaging attacks on Nigeria’s oil infrastructure and are refusing to come to the negotiating table.
They include the Reformed Egbesu Boys of the Niger Delta, Adaka Boro Avengers, Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force, Niger Delta Revolutionary Crusaders and the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate.
Nigerian security forces operating in the region say the NDA have been responsible for just over half of the major attacks on oil pipelines and facilities in recent months.
“More than 50 percent of these attacks have been traced to the so-called Niger Delta Avengers, but we have also discovered that other groups have emerged in the last three months and some of these attacks can be traced to these new groups,” a military officer based in the oil-hub city of Warri told AFP.
“From our records in the last three months, the NDA have claimed responsibility for six attacks, but we have recorded 16 militant-related attacks in Delta and Bayelsa states,” said a senior state security officer in Warri.
That is bad news for Nigeria.
The country’s petroleum minister has said that the country’s oil output has dropped 23 per cent from last year to 1.5 million barrels per day, according to Bloomberg News.
“Our average for the year will obviously be dismal,” Emmanuel Kachikwu said earlier this month.
“We have a lot more groups now we need to bring together to have peace.”
– Ceasefire ‘charade’ –
Most of those groups are refusing to negotiate with the Nigerian government.
“The charade called ceasefire is in the bid to collect more money from both the federal government and oil companies to be shared between the founders and the boys of the Avengers,” said Greenland Justice Mandate spokesman Aldo Agbalaja on Monday in a statement.
“The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is still carrying on with this campaign against Nigeria’s oil and gas interest until the federal government does right by our people.”
Each group has a different variation on the Niger Delta Avengers platform varying by ethnicity and region, but all demand greater ownership of oil blocs and a bigger share of crude revenues.
“The issues of resource ownership and management which have been agitating the people over the years have not been addressed,” said Eric Omare, spokesman for the Ijaw Youth Council, a community organization in the heart of the oil-rich riverlands.
“Until these issues are addressed and the people benefit from the oil revenue, peace would continue to elude the Delta region and no amount of security presence can solve the problem.”
– ‘Take vengeance’ –
An amnesty program introduced by former President Umaru Yar’Adua in 2009 brought peace to the Niger delta after attacks by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) crippled output.
In return for laying down their arms, militants were handed monthly stipends and given training as divers, welders and farmers.
Yet when President Muhammadu Buhari indicated that he would wind down the costly program in an effort to trim government spending the region erupted again in violence.
“If the government fails to put concrete plans in place for major infrastructural development in the region — modern hospitals, access roads, schools, market plazas — the negotiation will likely break down,” said Chijioke Nwaozuzu, petroleum economist at the University of Port Harcourt.
“The negotiation could be stalemated. If this is unresolved, it could lead to an escalation of violence,” Nwaozuzu said.
The proliferation of groups makes it more difficult to engineer a comprehensive solution.
Securing a deal with the Avengers may even backfire, said Ecobank energy analyst Dolapo Oni.
“What sort of negotiations are we having with the NDA? What exactly are we offering them to ease the tension, are we offering money? Pipeline contracts? Jobs?” Oni said.
“If the Nigerian government offers the Niger Delta Avengers money, similar to what happened years ago with MEND, that could result in further instability,” Oni said, speaking from Lagos.
“What we could see is infighting between the militant groups, which will still result in sabotage, as that’s how they will take vengeance.”

'Offering Avengers money could result in further instability'


Story highlights Sen. John McCain: 'Britney Spears is certainly very attractive'
McCain will face challenger Kelli Ward in the Arizona GOP primary on August 30
Washington (CNN) Sen. John McCain has a reputation for being a tough political player but he let his guard down Thursday when he admitted having a soft spot for American pop princess Britney Spears.
The veteran Republican senator from Arizona and former Vietnam prisoner of war made the admission about the singer and entertainer best known for hits "...Baby One More Time" and "Oops!... I Did It Again" when he was stopped at Los Angeles International Airport.
A reporter from the celebrity news website TMZ asked McCain, who turns 80 on Monday, to name his favorite "younger generation" female celebrity.
"Britney Spears?" a man traveling with McCain suggested.
"There you go," McCain retorted with a smile. "Britney Spears is certainly very attractive."

John McCain admits soft spot for Britney Spears


Sen. John McCain has a reputation for being a tough political player but he let his guard down Thursday when he admitted having a soft spot for American pop princess Britney Spears.


Some of the most prime, pristine real estate in Crosslake is set aside for a good cause: so kids living with disabilities have the chance to experience summer camp, just like other kids.
Camp Knutson, a service of Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota, sits on Manhattan Point, between Big Trout and Lower Whitefish lakes.
Camp Director Jared Griffin came to the camp in June 2015. He took over after Rob Larson, previous camp director, decided to step down after 28 years at the helm of the camp. According to Griffin, the camp's mission is simple.
"Our mission is to be able to offer a retreat setting for kids with identified needs," Griffin said. "To give them the best week of their life."
How camp works
The model at Camp Knutson is unique because the camp partners with different groups like the Autism Society of Minnesota and the Down Syndrome Foundation to bring children with special needs to camp, Griffin said. These groups bring their own support staff and, combined with the Camp Knutson staff, form a "really solid, powerhouse team," he said. Camp Knutson serves as a host for these other groups, which allows the camp to bring in children with a variety of different needs throughout the summer.
"We make camp come to life for them and bring that camp atmosphere," Griffin said. "It's just incredible how strong our partnerships are."
Kids with greater needs need a larger support staff in place in order to feel comfortable at camp, Griffin said, so it's necessary for the partner organizations to bring their own support staff. Some of the groups will also bring in medical staff to support campers with greater medical needs.
Many of these groups are repeat customers, so to speak, so campers return for multiple summers, Griffin said, and it's cool to see them grow over the years and the role camp plays in their lives. Some campers who come for the first time may be nervous about their needs or conditions, so camp shows them they aren't alone, he said.
"It gives kids an opportunity to feel that 'I have this going on in my life, but I'm not going to let this completely define who I am,'" Griffin said.
Currently, the camp spends the summer hosting weeklong camps for children with disabilities. During the fall and winter, the camp is open for retreats, but Griffin is trying to build more mission-based programming into the camp's offseason. These could be midweek camps, weekend retreats or family camps.
A lot of Lutheran Social Service groups will come to the camp for training in the winter, along with a variety of other groups. Once groups arrive at camp and see the uplifting experience camp offers, Griffin said, they want to come back.
"I believe that we've got a really great culture in place here," Griffin said. "Once people see that happening, they want to just keep coming back."
The camp works with adults, too, and had an offseason camp in February for veterans, Griffin said. There was also a camp for older kids who have been recently adopted, in order to strengthen family ties.
"There's a lot of great programs out there, a lot of great organizations and groups," Griffin said. "But they need a home, they need a place that is going to line up with their mission and their vision."
The camp has been around since 1953, so groups mostly find Camp Knutson, rather than the other way around, Griffin said. The camp's experience and track record sets it apart, he said, which means groups want to work with the camp.
"We're able to elevate their game to the next level or beyond, just because this is what we do," Griffin said.
The number of kids who come up for a camp varies from group to group, Griffin said. For the autism camp, there will be around 40 kids, while the camp for children with heart conditions attracts around 95 kids. If kids have greater needs, the camp will usually be smaller than the camps for children with smaller support system needs.
"We don't want to have 100 kids with autism here at camp at one time in our dining hall," Griffin said. "Because they kind of need to spread out a little more and have their own space."
Background
Griffin grew up on a family farm in Dubuque, Iowa, where he learned about leadership, hard work and the importance of working as a team. Those values have served him well at camp, he said, because no one accomplishes anything at camp working alone.
Griffin also grew up around teachers and family friends who worked with children with special needs, including his mother, who worked as nurse. He knew he wanted to work with children with special needs for a career, but as a freshman in college he wasn't fully certain about it.
During his freshman year at the University of Northern Iowa, he saw an ad in the campus newspaper for summer help at Camp Buckskin in Ely. The camp worked with children with learning disabilities and social and emotional needs, so combined with his passion for the outdoors it seemed like a good fit.
"So I went up there and just had the summer of my life," Griffin said. "Just an amazing experience. I learned probably more from the kids than they probably learned from me."
Griffin returned to the camp each summer and worked there seasonally for five years. During that time, he gained experience and worked his way up the organizational ladder at the camp.
After college, he worked as a special education teacher for three years in Mason City, Iowa, but in the summers, he still returned to work at Camp Buckskin. Finally, the camp offered him the program director position, a position he held full-time, year-round for 10 years.
The director position involved a lot of travel between the camp in the summer and the camp's winter office in the Twin Cities. Griffin and his wife wanted to start a family, so he taught at a mental health program in Eden Prairie for a year.
During that time, he learned Larson would be stepping down at Camp Knutson and was searching for someone to pass the torch to, Griffin said. It's not an easy search, he said, because there's not many people out there have experience managing camps that focus on children with special needs.
"I feel like we were definitely guided to be here," Griffin said. "The more I spoke with Rob, the more it just seemed like this was a really good fit."
Most of Griffin's close friends are people he's met at camp, because, as he put it, "camp gets into your blood, in terms of what it's about." When Griffin left Camp Buckskin, he wasn't ready to leave the camping world, he felt like he had more to offer the camp. But, he knew it was the right time for someone to step into his role, just like he stepped into Larson's role at Camp Knutson.
Part of the reason Griffin left Camp Buckskin was the need to keep his family centered, he said, which was difficult when he was splitting his time between the Twin Cities and Ely. So when the Camp Knutson position came to be, he knew it needed to be the right decision for his family, himself and the camp, before he would say yes to it.
Camp atmosphere
The connections people make at summer camp are unlike the connections made in other walks of life, Griffin said. It's a shared experience, where campers and staff alike share their highs and lows. Because of this, it's easy for campers and staffers to be their true selves.
"(The campers) see you as you really are," Griffin said. "You can't fake who you are at camp, because it's pretty easy to see past that."
Griffin met his wife Joanna at Camp Buckskin. She's from Colorado and wanted to work in the social service field, he said, and is now an occupational therapist in Baxter. It worked well to meet at camp, he said, because each person could see what the other was about.
The Griffins welcomed their first child, daughter Payton, in May 2015, he said, and their young family has been embraced by the camp community.
"It's neat for us to be able to have her here and see what kind of community she might be able to grow up in," Griffin said.
There's a lot of teaching involved in camping, so Griffin draws from his past experience in the classroom at camp. At camp, kids learn how to socialize with one another and start developing their potential, he said.
"I do see myself, definitely, as a teacher," Griffin said. "This is kind of our classroom or our place where we facilitate that learning and growth."
Griffin's first summer at camp consisted of a lot of learning, listening and building relationships. He needed to learn about the camp's culture and traditions before, in order to better understand the camp.
"We have to be good stewards here," Griffin said. "Stewards of the facilities and to the property, but good stewards to the resources that Camp Knutson's been blessed with."
It's important to be open-minded and flexible when going into a new camp experience, Griffin said. A camp director needs to observe the camp and give it what it needs, he said, not what the director thinks it needs.
"You've got to have your eyes open to what you see is going on, to really make your efforts work," Griffin. "My style, my approach to leadership is to be very diplomatic."
Griffin didn't do much fundraising while at Camp Buckskin, so fundraising at Camp Knutson is new territory for him. He's taken to it pretty well, he said, and is starting to develop good intuition for it.
The camp is a part of Lutheran Social Services, but the focus is more on social service than Lutheranism, Griffin said. The camp is non denominational and everyone is welcome, he said, and tries to reach out to those with the greatest needs, "just to be able to have their spirits uplifted."
"A lot of what we talk about at Lutheran Social Services is just being a good neighbor," Griffin said.
Mentorship
Despite stepping down, Larson continues to serve as a consultant to the camp and as a mentor to Griffin. It's readily apparent how much the camp community means to Larson, Griffin said, and it's an honor to be trusted with carrying on Larson's legacy.
"It's kind of neat to have the opportunity to carry on his legacy, carry on his life's work," Griffin said.
Griffin and Larson talk daily and have developed a good friendship, Griffin said. He likes hearing about Larson's experiences and getting his perspective on things. Larson also provides valuable insight on what the camp has done in the past and what new things it could try.
"You take your lead from what you've been taught from your mentor," Griffin said. "Then you try to bring what you can bring to the table too."
The biggest thing Griffin brings to camp is a fresh perspective and a fresh set of eyes, he said. He's able to look at camp in a new light and identify new things the camp could try.
In 2003, Larson completed a $3.5 million capital campaign that transformed the camp and increased its capacity to serve children with a wide variety of special needs and health conditions. A new retreat center was built at the same time.
The way the camp looks now is largely due to Larson's hard work, Griffin said. The groups involved in the camp also came during Larson's tenure. Larson focused on building up the summer programming, Griffin said, which is why he's looking to expand the mission-based programming into the spring and fall.
"We're positioned differently than when Rob started," Griffin said. "There's a lot of really good stuff already in place and happening here."
Larson worked hard on a succession plan for the camp, Griffin said, which means he can now come to camp and enjoy helping with the campers.
"Yesterday he was out here driving boats and tubing with kids, just having a blast," Griffin said.
Volunteerism
Camp Knutson wouldn't be where it is without support from an extensive group of volunteers, Griffin said. Volunteers help with the groundskeeping by mowing and gardening. The volunteer organization consists of more than 100 people who help out by organizing fundraisers. They also help at camp by running arts and crafts activities, as well as driving pontoon boats for the camp.
"I think that there's a lot of empowerment within our community here at camp," Griffin said. "There's definitely that sense of ownership and responsibility to be a good neighbor."
Griffin is focused on keeping the camp's volunteer corps engaged and vibrant, because of the impact volunteers make on the camp. He also wants to take on the challenge of getting people to take on leadership roles as volunteers, which is a challenge in any organization.
Notable experience
One of Griffin's most memorable experiences so far at camp was his first pontoon boat ride on a windy day last September. An adult mental health camp was in town, so Griffin and another more experienced boater took the campers via boat to the nearby Dairy Queen on Cross Lake.
On the return trip, with the wind blowing harder, the group made their way back to camp. Waves were coming in, Griffin said, and pretty soon, the front of the pontoon dipped and a wave crashed over the boat, soaking his passengers.
One of the campers had been giving staff members "a pretty rough go" during the camp, Griffin said, so he was just waiting for her to give him an earful for getting her wet. A staff member asked her why she let Griffin off easy, and her response stuck with him.
"She said, 'Well, because he was so kind,'" Griffin said. "I had helped her up the hill to the bathroom at the Dairy Queen because she had a mobility issue. So she gave me a free pass on that one."
The big challenges or memories don't come from the management aspects of running a camp, Griffin said. Rather, it's the day-to-day interactions with campers that result in the strongest memories.
Griffin enjoys wide-open spaces, fresh air and being active, so when he first got to northern Minnesota, he felt at home. He knows many of the campers have never been outside the Twin Cities, so coming to camp is a new experience for many of them.
"There's just that shock and wonderment," Griffin said. "A lot of kids don't get the opportunity to do these things."
Camp facts
In the past two years, the camp has built a new pavilion space for performances and rainy day activities. The camp has also added a large camper cabin, in order to greatly increase the camp's capacity.
Each summer, the camp serves children with skin disease, children with autism, children with down syndrome, children with heart diseases and families with a member or members affected by, or infected with, HIV/AIDS.
The camp was donated in 1953 by Minnesota Congressman Harold Knutson to be used as a summer retreat for "neglected, unfortunate, deprived and handicapped children."
An unfortunate part about Camp Knutson is the fact that some of the campers have conditions which can greatly shorten their lives. Because of this, the camp is dotted with memorial gardens and trees dedicated to campers who have died, Griffin said.
"That can kind of take a toll on you after a while," Griffin said.
A positive side of that is when the families of campers who have died come to Camp Knutson and see the impact the camp had on their camper's life, Griffin said.
"They knew the life of their child was short," Griffin said. "But this is where they able to find real peace and happiness and joy."


(CNN) A five-day-old newborn peers out from a pink blanket. His dark, almond-shaped eyes stare directly at the camera, his tiny hand tucked underneath his chin.
His short life has been anything but easy.
He, his twin brother and his mother were among the 6,500 refugees and migrants rescued in a 30-hour period while attempting to make the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean.
A five-year-old and his twin brother were traveling with their mother before they were rescued.
Médecins Sans Frontières' ship Dignity 1 and the Spanish humanitarian group Proactiva Open Arms rescued people who were aboard 15 rubber boats and one wooden vessel Monday.
The twins and their mother were transferred via Medevac for treatment in Italy, according to a tweet from MSF.
UPDATE: The 5 day old babies have been transferred for a medevac to Italy,
As many as 3,000 of the migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya by MSF, Proactiva Open Arms and Italian coast guard crews and one rescue took place in Maltese waters.
A total of 40 different rescue operations were responsible for bringing in the 6,500 migrants and refugees, including EU's Marine mission "Sophia," which fights smugglers; and Frontex, the European Agency tasked with border security.
The Italian coast guard said the rescued migrants are being taken to ports in Calabria and Sicily.
A man carries his 5-day-old son after being rescued from a crowded wooden vessel in the Mediterranean sea. The pair were fleeing from Libya.
The number of people plucked from sea on Monday was much higher than the average. Just two weeks ago, in the week that started August 14, the route was used by 2,197 migrants, according to the International Organization for Migration. Monday's rate nearly tripled that weekly amount.
Migrants flee conflict and violence
Most of the migrants rescued this week came from sub-Saharan Africa. Many of them using the central Mediterranean route, which runs roughly from Libya or other north African countries to Italy, are from Nigeria, Eritrea and Gambia, according to the IOM.
According to the IOM , migrants are taking advantage of Libya's ongoing political chaos to escape over the mostly open borders. The Libyan crisis has helped boost a lucrative smuggling business, with African migrants who reach southern Libya being transported through the desert to northern beaches where they board boats bound for Europe.
Migrants, most of them from Eritrea, jump into the water from a crowded wooden boat as they are helped by members of an NGO during a rescue operation at the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya.
This year, 264,513 people arrived in Europe by sea , landing mostly in Greece and Italy, according to IOM estimates released in mid-August.
Migrants from Eritrea hold their children during a rescue operation in the Mediterranean sea, about 13 miles north of Sabratha, Libya.
Of those who attempted the crossing, 3,165 people have died at sea, authorities said. At this rate, according to the IOM, the number of deaths will likely exceed last year's total of 3,771.
Most of the deaths in 2016 came from people risking this particular route -- Libya to Italy -- which is considered dramatically more dangerous. They're also using flimsy plastic rafts or wooden crafts not built for such a voyage, and all of the vessels tend to be overcrowded -- some carrying 600 or more passengers, according to the UN Refugee Agency.
While the number of deaths is expected to be worse this year, the total number of illegal migrant crossings into Europe via the Mediterranean is significantly lower, according to Frontex.
Thousands of migrants and refugees from Eritrea were rescued Monday morning from more than 20 boats by members of Proactiva Open Arms NGO. They were later handed over to the Italian cost guards and others NGO vessels operating in the zone.
But as migrant boats and rafts cross the Mediterranean Sea, gateways into Europe are narrowing and many are growing wary.
The Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), which conducts rescue operations in the Mediterranean, has called on the international community to consider safe and legal routes to end the number of deaths at sea. It says decision-makers should not think in terms of numbers, but rather about the individuals.
"It is only by treating the hundreds of thousands like the deserving individuals they are that dignified and humanitarian solutions can truly be reached," MOAS said.

Migrant rescues in Mediterranean: Newborn twins among 6,500 rescued


A pair of twins are among the 6,500 refugees and migrants rescued recently as families attempted to make the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean.


Turkey sends more tanks into Syria – Ceasefire efforts between Russia, US advance
KARKAMIS: Turkey yesterday sent more tanks into Syria to bolster a military offensive against jihadists and Kurdish fighters, as a diplomatic push for a new ceasefire in Syria gathered pace. An AFP photographer in the village of Karkamis on the Turkish side of the border saw six more tanks roll over the frontier as mop-up operations continued in a town wrested from the Islamic State group (IS). Sporadic explosions were heard from over the border as Turkish-backed rebels carried out de-mining work in the town of Jarabulus seized from IS on Wednesday.
The state-run Anadolu news agency confirmed that the rebels were working to destroy explosives left behind by IS militants, with 20 different sets destroyed on Friday alone. The deployment was the latest phase in Turkey’s military operation inside Syria-codenamed “Euphrates Shield”-to oust IS from the border region and also counter advances by a Kurdish militia opposed by Ankara. As Turkey stepped up its biggest operation in Syria since the start of the war, the US and Russia announced progress in talks on agreeing a new ceasefire. Meanwhile, the evacuation of Daraya, a town crushed by a four-year Syrian army siege, continued, with hundreds of fighters and their families arriving in rebel-held territory in the northwest.
‘Important steps’
In Geneva on Friday, US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov said they had cleared key obstacles in ceasefire talks but had yet to reach a final deal. “Today I can say that we achieved clarity on the path forward” for a revamped cessation of hostilities, Kerry said.
Lavrov concurred, saying that “very important steps” had been made on a deal to stop the violence. Russia, a staunch ally of Assad’s regime, has been backing government forces with air strikes on rebel-held areas. The US supports Syria’s main opposition alliance and some rebel factions. There had been hope that Friday’s talks might lead to a breakthrough on the battered northern city of Aleppo, where fighting between government and rebel forces has escalated in recent weeks, leaving hundreds dead. But neither side gave pledges on getting much-needed aid into the city. And Turkey’s offensive in Syria added yet another layer of complexity to the tangled web of powers jockeying for influence in the war-torn country.
Turkey’s leadership has made clear that its offensive is also aimed at holding back the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia, which has led the fight against IS in the area. Ankara says that the YPG has failed to stick to a promise made by its US allies that the militia would move back east across the Euphrates following the seizure of the town of Manbij from IS earlier this month. Turkey sees the YPG militia and its Democratic Union Party (PYD) political wing, which have links to Kurdish rebels in southeast Turkey, as “terror groups” bent on carving out an autonomous Kurdish region.
Over 50 tanks
Turkey has continued sending in tanks since Wednesday’s lighting operation to help rebels rout IS from Jarabulus. Helped by Turkish forces, the rebels retook the town, which had been in IS hands since 2013, without a fight. Hurriyet daily reported that Turkey had 50 tanks and 380 personnel on the ground in Syria after three days of operations. The Turkish troops are supporting an even larger force of hundreds of Syrian rebels.
On Thursday, Turkey shelled Syrian Kurds south of Jarabulus but there have been no reports of further activity against the group since then. Hurriyet said the Turkish forces had been given an order to “strike immediately” should the YPG be seen to make any move towards the liberated town. Elsewhere, rebel fighters leaving the town of Daraya near Damascus, which had held out against an army siege for four years, began arriving in the rebel-held city of Idlib.
At least five buses carrying fighters and their families arrived yesterday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Daraya was one of the first towns to rise up against President Bashar al-Assad in 2012. From a symbol of revolt it became a symbol of the fierce suffering caused by the war, with the army siege causing acute hunger. The rebels said they were forced to give up the town because of deteriorating humanitarian conditions, accusing Damascus of “starve or surrender” tactics. The around 8,000 civilians left in the town are also being evacuated. – AFP

Turkey sends more tanks into Syria - Ceasefire efforts between Russia, US advance


A conflict between police and an armed man has entered its 22nd hour.
Sussex Police have issued an updated statement about the incident, which is continuing at a property in Harbour Road, Pagham.
Police have cordoned off a house in Harbour Road, Pagham and are negotiating with a man armed with a gun. Picture: Eddie Mitchell
As previously reported, trained police negotiators are at the scene speaking to a pensioner armed with a gun. Click here for the original story.
In their latest statement, Sussex Police said: “Police are continuing to talk with a 72-year-old man who is believed to be armed with a gun inside a property in Harbour Road, Pagham.
“It comes after emergency services were called to the address just after 4pm on Sunday (28 August) to a report of threatening behaviour.
“A woman known to the man was also in the house at the time, but she left shortly after police arrival and is safe and well.
“The 72-year-old man remains in the property alone.”
Detective Superintendent Carwyn Hughes said: “I would like to thank the local community for their patience and understanding while we deal with this ongoing situation.
“Harbour Road remains closed and a cordon around the area is still in place.
“The safety of local residents is our priority and we are doing all we can to make sure their daily routines and Bank Holiday plans are not disrupted. People living in properties along Harbour Road are free to come and go with police support.
“Communication between a trained negotiator and the 72-year-old man in the house continues.”
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COUNTY UPDATE: Armed man siege reaches 22 hour mark


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Iran's national flags are seen on a square in Tehran February 10, 2012, a day before the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl
DUBAI—Iran has arrested a member of the negotiating team that reached a landmark nuclear deal with world powers on suspicion of spying, a judiciary spokesman said on Sunday.
The suspect was released on bail after a few days in jail but is still under investigation, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said at a weekly news conference, calling the unidentified individual a "spy who had infiltrated the nuclear team," state media reported.
The deal that President Hassan Rouhani struck last year has given Iran relief from most international sanctions in return for curbing its nuclear program, but it is opposed by hardliners who see it as a capitulation to the United States.
Ejei was responding to a question about an Iranian lawmaker's assertion last week that a member of the negotiation team who had dual nationality had been arrested on espionage charges.
Tehran's prosecutor general on Aug. 16 announced the arrest of a dual national he said was linked to British intelligence, but made no mention of the person being in the nuclear negotiations team. On Sunday, Ejei did not explicitly confirm that the arrested person had a second nationality.
Britain said on Aug. 16 that it was trying to find out more about the arrest of a joint-national.

Iran arrests nuclear negotiator suspected of spying


Tottenham end interest in Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha
Tottenham have ended their interest in signing Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha this summer.
Spurs made an opening offer worth an initial £12million last week but Palace rejected the bid and were adamant Zaha is not for sale.
Press Association Sport understands Spurs will not be going back in for the 23-year-old and have now moved on to other targets.
Wilfried Zaha is no longer a target for Tottenham
Marseille winger Georges-Kevin Nkoudou is expected finally to complete his £11million switch to White Hart Lane after agreeing personal terms last month.
Nkoudou has even been training at Hotspur Way while the two clubs finalise details of the transfer, which has been held up by a change of presidency at Marseille. Spurs forward Clinton Njie is likely to move on loan in the opposite direction.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino wants to bring in another attacking midfielder as well as Nkoudou, however, and is wary of being left short after the recent sales of Nacer Chadli, Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason.
Newcastle's Moussa Sissoko is one option being considered but Spurs want Newcastle to lower their £35million asking price.
Zaha was viewed as more in tune with the club's transfer policy of buying players under 25 but Palace have made it clear they will not entertain offers so late in the transfer window.
The forward even held a meeting with Alan Pardew at the club's training ground last Thursday and told the Eagles boss he wanted to join Pochettino's side.


Tottenham have ended their interest in signing Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha this summer. Spurs made an opening offer worth an initial £12million last ...


Tottenham end interest in Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha


3:02 Woman parts with beloved dog because both are blind and the dog is deaf Pause
0:35 Transit police officer saves man from oncoming train
3:35 Police officer saves man trapped in burning car
1:46 Florida scientist designs trap in quest to eliminate mosquito-borne illnesses
2:13 They're yours you know? Happy 100th to The National Park Service
3:49 'I'm a white male, and I am prejudiced': Caller asks black TV guest how to change
2:07 Astronomers discover new earth-sized planet
1:58 Mother of baby born with Zika complications shares heartbreaking ordeal
1:02 Happy 100th birthday, National Parks Service
1:18 Grandfather doesn't believe that mother killed baby in fridge
2:40 Mom accused of killing baby in fridge denied bond

Woman accused of mistreating dog after Facebook post


Police accused a 24-year-old woman of animal mistreatment after they investigated a complaint on Sunday of a Facebook photo that showed a dog with a shoestring tied around its snout. Shiloh Police Department said they cited Sarah B. Boothby, of Shiloh, with one count of cruel treatment to an animal, a Class A misdemeanor.


Close your eyes for a moment and think of an artist at work.
What do you see?
Chances are you pictured Da Vinci capturing Mona Lisa, or Rembraandt sketching the start of his Night Watch.
Perhaps your tastes run more to Picasso or Dali.
Or your mind’s eye may have focused on your youngster’s Grade 2 project stuck to the fridge door for the past seven years.
If you’re a bit out of the ordinary, you may have zeroed in on Michelangelo releasing the contents of a block of marble.
Did you envision Beethoven banging away at his harpsichord with one hand, quill pen in the other?
If you didn’t automatically identify with a favourite novel, at least you probably don’t have any difficulty recognizing that writing can be art, given the right pen – or typewriter – guided by the right hand.
I’ll bet your first thought wasn’t a guy in a ball cap and suspenders sitting on a backhoe.
It’s not what comes to your mind’s eye, I’ll warrant. But in real life…
The way some of those guys make those machines move is nothing, if not art.
There are some renovations going on next door, and I found myself mesmerized by a fellow pounding away on a thick slab of concrete with a jackhammer attached to the front of his tractor.
Just inches from the front door of the house, the giant steel chisel etched and crumbled the slab as cleanly as Michelangelo discovering a lock of David’s hair.
It brought to mind yet another artist, who dug a new water well for us last year.
Working in tight quarters, he lifted sand and gravel out of an ever-deepening hole, sometimes coming within a hair’s breadth of obstructions, working quickly to maintain the opening while nimblyplacing tons of concrete sleeves 15 feet below the wheels of his tractor.
I recall our first backhoe on the farm.
It was a rickety piece of second hand (probably third or fourth hand) equipment.
One of my brothers, still in his teens, got on the tractor, wiggled the levers about for a couple of minutes… and operated that machine like it was a natural extension of his own arms.
That’s art, too.
The result might not be suitable for hanging in the Louvre, but watching it happen is more fun than a grizzled nerd tap-tapping on his keyboard.


2:06 Three things Hillary Clinton should do now that she's clinched the nomination Pause
1:00 Donald Trump protesters get rowdy in Fresno
2:57 Meet Merrick Garland, Supreme Court nominee
4:00 Democrats debate issues important to Latino voters, and diplomatic relations with Cuba
0:54 Analysis: Supreme Court And Abortion
1:48 FBI chief, Apple lawyer testify in first encryption hearing
1:22 A Supreme Court without Scalia
1:23 Democratic debate highlights: Who loves Obama more?
1:29 California congressman vapes in hearing to make his point
2:07 Astronomers discover new earth-sized planet

How soon is too soon for ex-lawmakers to turn into lobbyists?


Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate Deborah Ross of Raleigh, N.C., is hoping to highlight political ethics as polls show a tightening race against incumbent U.S. Sen. Richard Burr. Her campaign is criticizing a past Burr vote on insider trading prohibitions and pushing her call to undo Citizens United.


The seventh annual Mike Miller Classic is Dec. 29 and Dec. 30 and will feature 17 games between high school and college basketball teams and for the first time, it will include two girls' prep games. Twenty teams will represent seven states at the classic.
The Corn Palace will host 11 games during the two-day event, while the Sanford Pentagon's Heritage Court will have six games on the final day.
"South Dakota has two of the most unique and best venues in high school basketball to offer," Mike Miller Classic President Ernie Kuyper said. "It is just fun to call and try to get teams all over the country to come to South Dakota."
The classic has expanded each year and did again this year, with the addition of two girls' games. Waconia, Minnesota, will play Sioux Falls O'Gorman on Dec. 29 at the Corn Palace in the first ever girls' game of the classic. Aberdeen Central will then play Waconia at the Sanford Pentagon on Friday.
Waconia is coached by Mitchell graduate Carl Pierson, who was a member of the 1994 Class AA boys' state championship team.
"It has kind of been his dream to come back and coach in the Palace," Kuyper said. "It was just a perfect fit. He has a great program, great tradition. We found two teams in the state of South Dakota that like the matchup."
Kuyper added the hope is to add more girls' games in the future.
"We want to grow this thing and just help the boys and girls and the kids of South Dakota," Kuyper said.
The kids of South Dakota will again go up against some of the best teams from around the country at the event.
Both the Mitchell and Mitchell Christian boys' teams will play in the classic. Mitchell Christian will play the first game of the classic Dec. 29 against Patrick Henry from Minnesota. The Kernels will then play Sioux Falls O'Gorman at the Corn Palace that night during the first game of the Coach Gary Munsen Tournament. Munsen, who died in January, is a former Mitchell High School basketball coach who amassed more than 900 wins and 12 state championships coaching the Kernel boys and girls.
Game two of the Coach Gary Munsen Tournament features DeLaSalle, Minnesota, against IMG Academy (Florida) at 8 p.m. on Thursday at the Corn Palace. DeLaSalle has played in the classic in recent years and features small forward Goanar Mar, who has verbally committed to play at Division I George Mason in Virginia.
IMG is new to the classic and is led by power forward Isaiah Stokes, who reportedly has offers from Florida, North Carolina and Tennessee. IMG junior forward Emmitt Williams is a four-star recruit, according to Rivals.com.
"IMG Academy out of Florida will be really, really good," Kuyper said. "That 8 p.m. game that first night—DeLaSalle vs. IMG Academy—will be great."
National power La Lumiere from Indianapolis will play Aberdeen Central at 8:30 p.m. on Friday at the Pentagon. La Lumiere was the national runner-up last season and is expected to be No. 1 in the USA Today preseason rankings. The Lakers—who have become Mike Miller Classic regulars over the years—boast four players in the ESPN 100 rankings, including forwards Brian Bowen and Jaren Jackson.
"La Lumiere is an explosive team," Kuyper said.
Sioux Falls Washington will play St. Anthony (Texas) at 7 p.m. Dec. 30 at the Pentagon. St. Anthony is powered by 6-foot-10 Charles Bassey, who last year was named the country's top freshman by Fab 50. He's No. 1 ranked recruit in 2019, according to rivals.com. Bassey is the No. 2 recruit by ESPN.
"He will be a heck of a player to watch this year," Kuyper said about Bassey, who has offers from Baylor, Kansas and Tennessee, among others.
For the second straight season, college teams will also play in the event. Dakota Wesleyan University, Dakota State University, York College (Nebraska) and Southeastern University (Florida) will all play in the classic as part of the Doug Martin Classic. Martin is a former DWU men's basketball coach, who led the Tigers to four conference championships.
Kuyper said it was an easy sell to the college teams and the high school teams about playing in the event.
"They want to come be a part of it," he said. "It is pretty easy on my end to make the phone call to see if the teams like to come and play against DWU and Dakota State, with DWU's tradition it just makes it a pretty easy phone call. It seems like all the teams want to be a part of it and come see the Corn Palace, the Pentagon. They just love it."
Seventh Annual Mike Miller Classic Schedule
Thursday, Dec. 29 at the Corn Palace
Corn Palace
11 a.m. - Mitchell Christian vs. Minneapolis Patrick Henry (Minn.)
Doug Martin Classic (Game #1):
12:30 p.m. - Dakota State University vs. Southeastern University (Fla.)
2 p.m. - Prairie Seeds Academy (Minn.) vs. First Assembly Christian School (Tenn.)
3:30 p.m. - Girls: Sioux Falls O'Gorman vs. Waconia (Minn.)
5 p.m. - Bridgewater-Emery vs. Chester
Coach Gary Munsen Tournament:
6:30 p.m. - Mitchell vs. Sioux Falls O'Gorman
8 p.m. - DeLaSalle (Minn.) vs. IMG Academy (Fla.)
Doug Martin Classic (Game #2):
9:30 p.m. - Dakota Wesleyan University vs. York College (Neb.)
Friday, Dec. 30 at the Corn Palace
Doug Martin Classic (Game #3):
5:30 p.m. - Dakota State University vs. York College (Neb.)
7 pm - Bridgewater-Emery vs. Prairie Seeds Academy (Minn.)
Doug Martin Classic (Game #4):
8:30 p.m. - Dakota Wesleyan University vs. Southeastern University (Fla.)
Friday, Dec. 30 at the Sanford Pentagon
SESSION 3
1 p.m. - Gary Munsen Tournament—third-place game
2:30 p.m. - Girls: Aberdeen Central vs. Waconia (Minn.)
4 p.m. - Patrick Henry (Minn.) vs. First Assembly Christian School (Tenn.)
5:30 p.m. - Sioux Falls Washington vs. St. Anthony (Texas)
7 p.m. - Gary Munsen Tournament—championship game
8:30 p.m. - Aberdeen Central vs. La Lumiere (Ind.)

More tweaks made to Mike Miller Classic lineup


New Story
Gene Wilder, whose wild curls and startling blue eyes brought a frantic air to roles in the movies “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” “Young Frankenstein” and “Blazing Saddles,” died on Monday at the age of 83, his family said.
Wilder, whose best work included collaborations with director-writer Mel Brooks and actor-comedian Richard Pryor, died at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, from complications of Alzheimer’s disease, the family said in a statement.
Wilder’s nephew, Jordan Walker-Pearlman, said the actor had chosen to keep his illness secret so that children who knew him as Willy Wonka would not equate the whimsical character with an adult disease.
Wilder’s barely contained hysteria made him a go-to lead for Brooks, who cast him in “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein” and “The Producers” in the 1960s and ’70s.
“Gene Wilder – one of the truly great talents of our time. He blessed every film we did with his magic & he blessed me with his friendship,” Brooks said on Twitter.
Besides his classic collaborations with Brooks, Wilder paired memorably with comedian Richard Pryor in hits “Silver Streak” and “Stir Crazy.”
Wilder also was active in promoting ovarian cancer awareness and treatment after his wife, “Saturday Night Live” comedian Gilda Radner, whom he married in 1984, died of the disease in 1989.
He helped found the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Detection Center in Los Angeles and co-founded Gilda’s Club, a support organization that has branches throughout the United States.
Born Jerome Silberman to Russian immigrants in Milwaukee, Wilder studied at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre in Bristol, England, and then studied method acting at the Actors Studio.
A leading role in a play that also starred Anne Bancroft, who was dating her future husband Brooks, led to Wilder becoming a top member of Brooks’ stock company of crazies, some of whom branched out with Wilder into other film ventures.
Wilder’s first movie role was a small part as a terrified undertaker who was abducted by Bonnie and Clyde in Arthur Penn’s 1967 film of the same name.
The following year he was panic-stricken Leo Bloom to Zero Mostel’s conniving Max Bialystock in Brooks’ “The Producers,” picking up an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor.
While it initially got a tepid response, the movie with its over-the-top song “Springtime for Hitler,” went on to become a cult favorite and, years later with a different cast, a monster hit on Broadway.
Wilder was a last-minute fill-in as the “Waco Kid” in Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles” in 1974, and with Brooks wrote the screenplay for “Young Frankenstein” released later that year, also to big box office returns.
The two were nominated for best screenplay Oscars, but lost to Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo for “The Godfather Part II.”
With Brooks alumni Madeline Kahn and Marty Feldman, Wilder made his directorial debut with 1975’s “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes’ Smarter Brother,” and directed several other movies with uneven results.
Wilder’s title role in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” earned him a Golden Globe nomination in 1971, and he was nominated again in that category in 1976 for “Silver Streak.”
He won an Emmy in 2003 for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series for appearances on “Will and Grace.”
Wilder’s memoir, “Kiss Me Like a Stranger: My Search for Love and Art,” was released in 2005 and he collaborated with oncologist Steven Piver on the book “Gilda’s Disease” in 1998.
He was hospitalized in 1999 with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma but was said to be in complete remission in 2005.
Wilder lived in Stamford in a house built in 1734 that he had shared with Radner, writing and painting watercolors with his wife Karen Boyer, whom he married in 1991.

Gene Wilder, star of ‘Willy Wonka,’ ‘Blazing Saddles,’ dead at 83


Gene Wilder, whose wild curls and startling blue eyes brought a frantic air to roles in the movies "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," "Young Frankenstein"


A significant quantity of cash was taken in a raid on a Blackpool home.
Police have released CCTV images of a man they would like to speak to following the burglary West Park Drive.
The incident happened at around 3.30pm on Sunday August 21.
Officers believe the offender entered the property after scaling a fence by the rear garden, then breaking in through a window.
After a search of the address, a large quantity of cash – in the region of £1,000 – was stolen before the burglar made off.
Following investigation, police have released images of a man they want to speak to in connection with the incident.
PC Nick Trangmar, of Blackpool Police, said: “We are appealing for information following a burglary at an address in Blackpool.
“The offender has stolen a large amount of cash and we need to find the person responsible.
“We have released images of a man we want to speak to in connection with the incident.
“If you recognise him, please contact us immediately.”
Anyone with information can contact police on 101 quoting crime reference WA1612846.
Alternatively Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.


Visit now for the latest Blackpool crime news - direct from The Gazette


U.S. slams EU, but Apple tax demand first issued in Washington
By Foo Yun Chee and Alastair Macdonald
BRUSSELS, Aug 30 - The United States is furious at the European Union for handing Apple Inc a $14.5 billion tax demand on Tuesday but EU officials say it was Washington which put them on to the scheme in the first place.
It was a U.S. Senate report in May 2013 revealing the tech giant's deal with the Irish government to rule a big slice of its global earnings untaxable that prompted the European Commission to launch its own inquiries the following month.
The U.S. Treasury said the Commission's order that Apple pay 13 billion euros in back taxes to Ireland - which the company and Dublin are appealing - endangers EU-U.S. economic relations just as efforts to reach a transatlantic free trade pact unravel .
A senior Democratic senator said Brussels had made "a cheap money grab" for U.S. revenues.
But his party colleague who chaired hearings into Apple's taxes three years ago, Carl Levin, said the Europeans were only trying to take what U.S. authorities had failed to claim by not closing loopholes that allowed firms to hoard profits overseas.
"The IRS has failed to stake a claim for U.S. taxes on those revenues," he said in a statement, referring to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. "So Europe attempts to fill the vacuum. Shame on Apple for dodging U.S. taxes. Shame on the IRS for failing to challenge Apple's tax avoidance."
For Marcel Fratzscher, president of leading German economic think-tank DIW Berlin and author of a new book on growing inequality, the mudslinging between politicians reflects how global corporations have exploited competition for investment to blunt states' efforts to co-operate against tax avoidance.
"Companies are playing one government against another," he told Reuters.
EU LISTENED TO SENATE
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, a straight-talking Dane who dismisses talk of leading an anti-American crusade, says the hearings at the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations chaired by Levin were what gave her Spanish predecessor grounds to demand disclosure by Apple and Ireland.
"The Commission listened and decided to look deeper into the matter," Vestager said in June, crediting media reporting and hearings in the British parliament for also providing evidence to help break secrecy around nearly 1,000 cases across Europe.
The Commission said in its judgment on Apple that the United States and other countries were welcome to try and claim some of the unpaid taxes for themselves - highlighting just the complaints of Levin and other senators three years ago when they skewered Apple CEO Tim Cook for failing to bring cash home.
As well as Apple, Starbucks Corp was ordered to pay more Dutch taxes and Amazon.com Inc and McDonald's Corp are still being investigated; a series of EU accusations that Google, part of Alphabet Inc, has abused its market power have also fuelled complaints from U.S. President Barack Obama's administration that Europe is out to punish American success.
Competition lawyer Pierre Sabbadini said political pressures drove different responses by different authorities. Leaks and public hearings on tax deals had created pressure among voters for the EU to act in 2013, he said, while the size of the companies targeted gave them clout with political leaders, too.
"When investigation-target companies have grown to the size of Apple, they can reach out for political support," he said.
The Obama administration has taken its own action to curb tax avoidance schemes lately. In April, amid public controversy over drug company Pfizer Inc's proposed merger with Allergan Plc of Ireland, it announced plans to curb so-called "tax inversions", by which U.S. firms have undertaken cross-border mergers in order to switch to a domicile abroad and so avoid U.S. taxes.


By Foo Yun Chee and Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS, Aug 30 - The United States is furious at the European Union for handing Apple Inc a $14.5 billion tax demand...


U.S. slams EU, but Apple tax demand first issued in Washington


U.S. slams EU, but Apple tax demand first issued in Washington
By Foo Yun Chee and Alastair Macdonald
BRUSSELS, Aug 30 (Reuters) - The United States is furious at the European Union for handing Apple Inc a $14.5 billion tax demand on Tuesday but EU officials say it was Washington which put them on to the scheme in the first place.
It was a U.S. Senate report in May 2013 revealing the tech giant's deal with the Irish government to rule a big slice of its global earnings untaxable that prompted the European Commission to launch its own inquiries the following month.
The U.S. Treasury said the Commission's order that Apple pay 13 billion euros in back taxes to Ireland - which the company and Dublin are appealing - endangers EU-U.S. economic relations just as efforts to reach a transatlantic free trade pact unravel .
A senior Democratic senator said Brussels had made "a cheap money grab" for U.S. revenues.
But his party colleague who chaired hearings into Apple's taxes three years ago, Carl Levin, said the Europeans were only trying to take what U.S. authorities had failed to claim by not closing loopholes that allowed firms to hoard profits overseas.
"The IRS has failed to stake a claim for U.S. taxes on those revenues," he said in a statement, referring to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. "So Europe attempts to fill the vacuum. Shame on Apple for dodging U.S. taxes. Shame on the IRS for failing to challenge Apple's tax avoidance."
For Marcel Fratzscher, president of leading German economic think-tank DIW Berlin and author of a new book on growing inequality, the mudslinging between politicians reflects how global corporations have exploited competition for investment to blunt states' efforts to co-operate against tax avoidance.
"Companies are playing one government against another," he told Reuters.
EU LISTENED TO SENATE
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, a straight-talking Dane who dismisses talk of leading an anti-American crusade, says the hearings at the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations chaired by Levin were what gave her Spanish predecessor grounds to demand disclosure by Apple and Ireland.
"The Commission listened and decided to look deeper into the matter," Vestager said in June, crediting media reporting and hearings in the British parliament for also providing evidence to help break secrecy around nearly 1,000 cases across Europe.
The Commission said in its judgment on Apple that the United States and other countries were welcome to try and claim some of the unpaid taxes for themselves - highlighting just the complaints of Levin and other senators three years ago when they skewered Apple CEO Tim Cook for failing to bring cash home.
As well as Apple, Starbucks Corp was ordered to pay more Dutch taxes and Amazon.com Inc and McDonald's Corp are still being investigated; a series of EU accusations that Google, part of Alphabet Inc, has abused its market power have also fuelled complaints from U.S. President Barack Obama's administration that Europe is out to punish American success.
Competition lawyer Pierre Sabbadini said political pressures drove different responses by different authorities. Leaks and public hearings on tax deals had created pressure among voters for the EU to act in 2013, he said, while the size of the companies targeted gave them clout with political leaders, too.
"When investigation-target companies have grown to the size of Apple, they can reach out for political support," he said.
The Obama administration has taken its own action to curb tax avoidance schemes lately. In April, amid public controversy over drug company Pfizer Inc's proposed merger with Allergan Plc of Ireland, it announced plans to curb so-called "tax inversions", by which U.S. firms have undertaken cross-border mergers in order to switch to a domicile abroad and so avoid U.S. taxes.


By Foo Yun Chee and Alastair Macdonald BRUSSELS, Aug 30 (Reuters) - The United States is furious at the European Union for handing Apple Inc a $14.5 billion ...


Cash hoarding reinforces China view further monetary easing futile-sources
By Kevin Yao
BEIJING, Aug 29 (Reuters) - On the face of it, China's central bank has room to cut interest rates to try to lift the economy, but sources say evidence companies and banks are hoarding cash has reinforced policymakers' view there is no major benefit in easing policy further.
The reluctance has also been shaped by the experience of Japan and the European Union. Despite much more aggressive easing policies than China, including negative interest rates, they have struggled to lift their economies out of the doldrums, these sources said.
So unless China's economic growth is at serious risk of falling below 6.5 percent, policymakers do not see the need to reduce interest rates or bank reserves, known as the reserve requirement ratio (RRR), they said. The sources are involved in internal discussions of policy proposals and offer advice, but are not part of the final decision-making process.
The People's Bank of China (PBOC) did not respond to a request for comment.
Beijing has already cranked up government spending this year to support economic growth, but the view that policymakers see limited dividend from cutting rates or the RRR could knock any lingering market expectations for a near-term easing.
It is also likely to disappoint state-owned enterprises and provincial governments, many of which are saddled with heavy debts, while many private companies are reluctant to invest right now given economic uncertainties, so cheaper credit may not make much difference to them.
"The central bank is not prepared to cut RRR or interest rates. The effectiveness of monetary policy is limited and we will have to rely on fiscal policy," said a person familiar with the PBOC's thinking, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Even with China's official lending rate at a record low of 4.35 percent, economic data shows that firms are depositing money at banks rather than investing for the future, this person said.
July money supply figures showed a sharp increase in cash and short-term deposits and a much smaller rise in longer-term deposits, a divergence economists say shows companies are holding onto cash and banks are not lending all that they can. China's relatively low interest rates should favour borrowing and investing over saving, they said.
A Reuters analysis of the top 100 listed companies who provided quarterly figures, excluding financials, showed that their cash and short-term investments at the end of June were up more than 27 percent from a year earlier. The increase for the top 2,048 was 17 percent, led by industrials and information technology.
LIQUIDITY TRAP?
The current easing cycle began when the central bank cut interest rates in November 2014. It subsequently cut rates another five times and RRR for all banks five times.
That has left the financial system flush with cash and interest rates low for borrowers, but has not pushed money into areas of the economy most in need, raising concerns of a "liquidity trap".
Household loans, mostly mortgages, accounted for more than 90 percent of new bank loans in July as corporate credit demand faltered, central bank data shows.
That lowers the urgency for the central bank to cut interest rates or RRR because the price and availability of cash do not appear to be having the desired effect, the policy insiders said.
While policymakers believe rate or RRR cuts yield limited economic returns, they are also worried easing would weigh on the yuan, which hit a six-year low last month, at a time when financial markets are speculating about the next U.S. rate rise.
Easing could also have other negative effects.
"Cutting interest rates could increase pressure on asset bubbles as money flows into sectors outside the real economy. Housing prices in some cities are still rising due to more liquidity and loose monetary conditions," said another policy adviser.
INEFFECTIVE?
Cutting rates would be an obvious incentive for companies to borrow funds if they want to invest. But many private companies, which account for 60 percent of overall investment, are either reluctant to borrow of find themselves unable to get loans while economic growth is uncertain.
Many banks shy away from lending to private firms because they are seen as more of a credit risk than a state-related entity that they assume would be bailed out by the government if it was unable to pay its debts.
Private-sector investment grew at a record-low pace of just 2.1 percent in January-July compared with a year earlier, while investment by state-owned firms jumped 21.8 percent as Beijing boosted infrastructure and other spending to support the economy.
Government spending overall rose 13 percent in the first seven months of 2016, double the 6.7-percent pace of first-half GDP growth.
Earlier this month, Sheng Songcheng, head of the PBOC's Survey and Statistics Department, was quoted by China Business News as saying China's fiscal deficit could rise to between 4 percent and 5 percent of GDP, up from the 2016 target of 3 percent.
To be sure, the sources said easing monetary policy would be an option if economic growth unexpectedly dipped to near or below 6.5 percent - a baseline needed until 2020 to meet long-term GDP goals.
"Fiscal policy is definitely more effective than monetary policy, but we cannot say monetary policy is ineffective," said a senior economist at a top government think-tank.


By Kevin Yao BEIJING, Aug 29 (Reuters) - On the face of it, China's central bank has room to cut interest rates to try to lift the economy, but sources say e...


Cash hoarding reinforces China view further monetary easing futile-sources


Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte rejected proposals Wednesday for him to declare a state of emergency on a violent southern island to more rapidly defeat Abu Sayyaf extremists, who killed 15 soldiers in his government's largest single-day combat loss so far.

Philippine leader rejects emergency power vs extremists


Ascoli Piceno, Italy (CNN) Italy began the painful task of burying its dead Saturday following a massive earthquake -- as aftershocks rattled the heart of the country and the death toll climbed to 290.
A gym in the Italian province of Ascoli Piceno was transformed into a funeral hall.
In Ascoli Piceno province, a state funeral was held in a local gym.
Thirty-five coffins adorned with flowers and framed photographs sat in three rows for victims from the town of Arquata del Tronto.
Taped at the foot of each coffin was the name of the deceased printed on white paper.
Before the ceremony, family members clustered around each coffin, one teenager sitting on the floor next to one, weeping inconsolably. One family encircled a coffin with peach-colored flowers and held each other in a long embrace.
Wreaths delivered for the state funeral. A photo posted by @atikacnn on Aug 27, 2016 at 2:13am PDT
Hundreds of people attended the Catholic ceremony of prayers, Bible readings and hymns, many themselves survivors in casts and bandages. A wall hanging of Jesus on a crucifix overlooked the grieving community, as mourners fanned themselves in the stifling heat.
'A new spring'
Bishop Giovanni d'Ercole led the ceremony, telling the painful story of a little girl who was saved from the rubble, her sister found dead on top of her, apparently shielding her sibling.
Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A woman rests in the courtyard of a convent in Amatrice on Friday, August 26, two days after a 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck central Italy. Hundreds of people have been killed, and the death toll is expected to rise as rescue teams reach remote areas. Hide Caption 1 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Firefighters inspect a damaged building from the elevated platform of a firetruck in Amatrice on August 26. Amatrice has been the hardest-hit town, with more than 200 killed there. Hide Caption 2 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy An aerial view shows the damage in the village of Saletta on August 26. Strong aftershocks in the region have rattled residents and emergency crews. Hide Caption 3 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man and woman comfort each other in front of a collapsed house in Amatrice on August 26. Hide Caption 4 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Firefighters cordon off an area around the rubble from a destroyed building in Amatrice on August 26. Hide Caption 5 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Emergency team members set up a tent camp for earthquake victims at a sports field in Arquata del Tronto on August 26. Hide Caption 6 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rescuers make their way through destroyed houses in Pescara del Tronto on Thursday, August 25. It's unclear how many people remain trapped under debris. Hide Caption 7 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A field kitchen in Amatrice provides meals for emergency workers and earthquake survivors on August 25. Hide Caption 8 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rescue and emergency service personnel use an excavator to search for victims under the remains of a building in Amatrice on August 25. Hide Caption 9 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy An old building in Amatrice is partly damaged after the quake. Hide Caption 10 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy An emergency services helicopter takes off in Amatrice as rescuers continue the search for survivors. Hide Caption 11 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man rests on a bench after spending the night in a makeshift camp set up inside a gym in Amatrice on August 25. Hide Caption 12 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A bird's eye view of Amatrice shows the devastation after the deadly quake struck on Wednesday, August 24. Hide Caption 13 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rescuers help a woman from the rubble in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 14 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Search-and-rescue teams survey collapsed houses in Pescara del Tronto on August 24. Hide Caption 15 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man cries as another injured man is helped in Amatrice. Hide Caption 16 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy This woman in Amatrice was wounded during the earthquake. Hide Caption 17 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rescuers carry a man through earthquake debris in Amatrice. Hide Caption 18 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rocco Girardi receives treatment after being rescued from the rubble in Arquata del Tronto on August 24. Hide Caption 19 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy The body of a unidentified child lies on a bench in Arquata del Tronto on August 24. Hide Caption 20 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy The quake left this house in ruins in Arquata del Tronto. Hide Caption 21 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Two people hug each other next to damaged houses in Pescara del Tronto. Hide Caption 22 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Two women pass along a stuffed toy in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 23 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Residents take in the damage in Amatrice. Hide Caption 24 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy This aerial photo shows damaged buildings in Amatrice. The quake struck at 3:36 a.m and was felt across a broad swath of central Italy. Hide Caption 25 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy An emergency hospital camp is set up to treat earthquake victims in Arquata del Tronto. Hide Caption 26 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A woman tries to comfort her child in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 27 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Residents survey a collapsed staircase in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 28 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Residents of Pescara del Tronto care for an elderly earthquake victim on August 24. Hide Caption 29 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Search-and-rescue teams look for survivors in Pescara del Tronto. Hide Caption 30 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Survivors sit among the rubble of a house in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 31 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Residents search for victims in Amatrice. Hide Caption 32 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy An injured man is rescued from a collapsed building in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 33 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man leans on a wall in Pescara del Tronto. Hide Caption 34 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A dog searches for people trapped in collapsed buildings in Amatrice. Hide Caption 35 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Rescuers search for victims in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 36 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man is pulled alive from the rubble. Hide Caption 37 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A man surveys damage near a dust-covered car in Amatrice on August 24. Hide Caption 38 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy Two people huddle together in Amatrice after the earthquake. Hide Caption 39 of 40 Photos: Earthquake strikes central Italy A rescue worker drives a truck of rubble as cleanup operations begin in Amatrice. Hide Caption 40 of 40
"They were holding each other, between them in embrace, both death and life," he said.
"A lot of the dead were children. So a thought to you young people -- we are now living in a time of war ... The earthquake is like a war because nature does not forgive. We have to defend ourselves because it is wise. We must have a dialogue with nature and never provoke nature," he said.
But he also said that after the tragedy, the communities affected would be given new life: "A new spring and a new birth come."
Relatives and friends attend a night vigil in Ascoli Piceno, Italy, ahead of Saturday's funeral.
"Faith is difficult. But faith shows us how to start again, with your feet on the ground and your face towards heaven."
The bishop led Holy Communion and blessed the dead, waving incense over their coffins, as mourners signed the cross.
Preparations for the state funeral for victims of Italy's earthquake. Scouts and police form a corridor for family members to enter the gymnasium where the service will be held. Italian PM Matteo Renzi will attend along with President Sergio Mattarella. We will be live from outside the service. A photo posted by @atikacnn on Aug 27, 2016 at 1:19am PDT
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and President Sergio Mattarella arrived at the funeral, the latter after visiting Amatrice, a town reduced to rubble where the vast majority of deaths occurred.
The President met with mourners and consoled them. He also visited an emergency camp in Accumoli and Pescara del Tronto, CNN Affiliate RAI reported, on what was declared a national day of mourning.
Aftershocks continue
Even as communities mourned, the aftershocks rattled central Italy early Saturday, the US Geological Survey reported.
The rescue efforts continue through the aftershocks, though hopes of finding more people alive are quickly fading. Experts say the chances of survival drop significantly after a 72-hour period, a window that closed early Saturday.
In a hospital in Ascoli Piceno, one man talked about how he lost his mother in the earthquake.
JUST WATCHED Italy earthquake: Survivors fight for their lives Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Italy earthquake: Survivors fight for their lives 02:44
"My first thought is my mother is here but I can't help her," Mattia Rendina said from his hospital bed, his bones fractured, his face bruised.
"She passed away to God. She's gone now," he said as tears welled up in his eyes.
"I'm like this because my mother [taught] me to be a person like this. To be strong."
2,500 displaced in camps
To accommodate the displaced, emergency camps have been set up across affected areas, offering food and shelter, and psychological support to those who have lost their homes and loved ones.
AnnaMaria Volpetti, 52 was visiting Accumoli with her family. They now live in Tivoli but travel here every summer to the town where her family originally comes from. "We are lucky," she says. "The earthquake was brutal. It came in waves." A photo posted by Lauren Moorhouse (@lomoorhouse) on Aug 26, 2016 at 3:08am PDT
The Civil Protection Agency said 2,500 were living in the camps, and that more were being built to meet the enormous need.
Images from an Amatrice camp showed displaced people lining up for pasta and an elderly couple sitting on the edge of mattresses on a gym floor, having a meal as those around them hugged and consoled one another.
The Italian Council of Ministers approved a state of emergency Thursday for the regions affected by the earthquake, allocating 50 million euros (about $56.5 million) in funding while the displaced took refuge in the camps.
People prepare to spend the night Thursday in a makeshift camp set up in a gym in Amatrice.
Residents gathered at a square in Amatrice, some of the women crying and hugging, as dust still lingered in the air. Men stood in stoic silence.
'So many dead, so many children'
At a camp in Sant'Angelo, northeast of Amatrice, people gathered and shared their stories of loss.
JUST WATCHED Life in the rubble Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Life in the rubble 01:57
"There is no hope, too many people dead. And Amatrice doesn't exist anymore," Angelina Leone said, holding back tears. "Amatrice has disappeared, and there are so many dead, so many children."
At yet another camp in Accumoli, Anna Maria Volpetti, 52, said she had been visiting her hometown with her family when the quake hit.
"We are lucky," she said. "The earthquake was brutal. It came in waves."

Italy earthquake: A country in mourning begins burying the dead


Italy began the painful task of burying its dead Saturday following a massive earthquake -- as aftershocks rattled the heart of the country and the death toll climbed to 290.


ST. PAUL -- When it comes to crop art at the Minnesota State Fair, the race wasn’t between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. It was between Trump and Prince.
And the winner was Prince.
Much like Marshmallow Peeps diorama contests, the crop art competition displayed at the Fair’s Agriculture-Horticulture building is often driven by pop culture, with seedy tributes to recent celebrity deaths or inspired by people in the news.
This year, the recently late and long-time great rock star Prince took the title as the favorite subject for crop artists, with works ranging from a mashup between Prince and the logo from the “Hamilton” musical, a Prince glyph turned into a seed necklace and a seed art version of the album cover art of Prince’s “HITnRUN Phase One.”
But coming in a close second was Republican presidential candidate Trump, who was the inspiration for a crop art depiction of the cartoon character Richie Rich spouting quotes like, “I’m yuge,” and “I don’t like losers.”
There was also a Trumpian chicken declaring “The sky is falling!” and Trump as a Pokémon Go character called “Evil Trumpachu.”
But even if you count the crop-art depiction of Ronald Reagan in heaven saying, “I said tear down the wall,” the Prince-inspired seed art entries outnumbered the Trump references seven to five.
Prince’s image also could be seen at the Fair’s Creative Activities building, woven into ribbon-winning rugs.
Despite making history as the first woman presidential candidate of a major party, we didn’t see any crop art versions of Clinton. But there was one that featured a quote from President Jimmy Carter, and another depicted Trump critic Khizr Khan waving a copy of the U.S. Constitution.
And poor David Bowie. He’s another pop-music icon who died in the past year, but he didn’t rate a crop art portrait at the State Fair. But there was a version of Abe Vigoda, the longtime character actor who died in January.
Nick Rindo said he’s not surprised that Prince inspired so many crop artists, even though it can be hard to find purple seeds among the crops grown in Minnesota.
“Prince is a natural fit. It just makes sense. There’s nothing more Minnesota than Prince,” Rindo said.
After methodically sorting purple corn kernels by hue, Rindo did a version of “Purple Rain” Prince emerging from a purple lotus flower.
“I tried to make the whole thing out of purple seeds, which proved to be very difficult,” he said.
Former Pioneer Press artist David Steinlicht, who did the Prince album cover in crop art, said that if you were really serious about getting a crop art blue ribbon, you’d probably avoid what other people are doing and try to come up with something different or unusual.
“In the past, I’ve worried about what other people would do,” said Steinlicht, who now lives in Canada. But he said crop art takes so long to create, “you want to do something that appeals to you to put in that much effort.”
“That illustration kind of spoke to me,” Steinlicht said of the Prince album cover image that he re-created in seeds.
As far as why Trump attracted so many entries, well, there’s the hair.
“I use corn husks as hair,” said Laura Melnick, a longtime crop artist from St. Paul, who did the Trump as Richie Rich entry. “You can draw your own conclusions on whether it works.”
“Trump is just so out there and so obvious. He’s given us so much to work with,” said Teresa Anderson, a crop artist from St. Paul who did Ronald Reagan commenting on Trump.
Anderson said she once saw a crop art entry that depicted Democratic Minnesota Sen. Al Franken as the Joker.
But in general, when crop artists get political, they tend to be left leaning, say many of the competitors.
Crop art competitor Cathy Camper said that’s been the trend as a new generation of younger crop artists started getting interested in the medium. Over the years, Camper has done crop art portraits of Malcolm X, Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie and Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
“Where else can you have your artwork viewed by thousands of people?” she said.
“We get a lot of grief from right-wing blogs,” Anderson said.
“I wouldn’t mind seeing Republican crop art,” Melnick said. But “Republicans don’t do it.”